Molecules of Murder: Criminal Molecules and Classic Cases (Hardcover)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: atropine poisoning, hyoscine hydrobromide, thallium poisoning, Kathleen Grundy, Molecules of Murder, John Emslcy (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Molecules of Murder is about infamous murderers and famous victims; about people like Harold Shipman, Alexander Litvinenko, Adelaide Bartlett, and Georgi Markov. Few books on poisons analyse these crimes from the viewpoint of the poison itself, doing so throws a new light on how the murders or attempted murders were carried out and ultimately how the perpetrators were uncovered and brought to justice. Part I includes molecules which occur naturally and were originally used by doctors before becoming notorious as murder weapons. Part II deals with unnatural molecules, mainly man-made, and they too have been dangerously misused in famous crimes. The book ends with the most famous poisoning case in recent years, that of Alexander Litvinenko and his death from polonium chloride. The first half of each chapter starts by looking at the target molecule itself, its discovery, its history, its chemistry, its use in medicine, its toxicology, and its effects on the human body. The second half then investigates a famous murder case and reveals the modus operandi of the poisoner and how some were caught, some are still at large, and some literally got away with murder. Molecules of Murder will explain how forensic chemists have developed cunning ways to detect minute traces of dangerous substances, and explain why some of these poisons, which appear so life-threatening, are now being researched as possible life-savers. Award winning science writer John Emsley has assembled another group of true crime and chemistry stories to rival those of his highly acclaimed Elements of Murder. Ch 1: Ricin and the assassination of Georgi Markov Ch 2: Hyoscine and the murder of Belle Elmore Ch 3: Atropine and Mrs Agutter's gin and tonic Ch 4: Diamorphine and the Dr Jekyll of Hyde Ch 5: Adrenaline and the near-perfect murders of Kirsten Gilbert Ch 6: Chloroform and the murder of Edwin Bartlett Ch 7: Life & Death & CO; Carbon monoxide and the homemade gas chamber Ch 8: Cyanide and the death on the Nile Ch 9: Paraquat and the poisoned gravy Ch 10: Polonium and the poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko

About the Author

Dr John Emsley is best known for his series of highly readable popular science books about everyday chemistry, some of which have run into multiple editions and printings in the UK, and all of which have been translated into several other languages. He has also published in national newspapers and magazines, and he has written chemistry text books and booklets for industry. John has a carved an impressive career in popular science writing and broadcasting over the past 20 years, emphasising the benefits of chemistry, and the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. John's chemistry career started in 1960 with a PhD in phosphorus chemistry from Manchester University. With spells at the University of London, Westfield College and Kings College as lecturer and reader, he became science writer at Imperial College and then the University of Cambridge where his prolific writing career took off. With his background in chemistry he has had over 110 original research papers published, mainly on phosphorus chemistry and on hydrogen-bonded systems. He has also had more than 500 popular science articles and features published in: New Scientist, The Independent (for which he did a regular column 'Molecule of the Month' for six years), The Guardian, Chemistry in Britain, Chem Matters, Focus, Science Watch and many more. Some of his best selling popular science books include: Better Looking, Better Living, Better Loving, (2007), Elements of Murder (2005), Vanity, Vitality & Virility (2004), Nature's Building Blocks (2001), The Shocking History of Phosphorus (2000), Molecules at an Exhibition (1998) and The Consumer's Good Chemical Guide (1994, Science Book Award Winner) His skills derive from the objectivity gained through a combination of an academic background and freelance writing. The breadth and the topicality of his coverage of chemical issues is second to none, and ranges from food chemistry to advanced semiconductors, from alchemy to Viagra. Although John is primarily an inorganic chemist he has proved himself capable of covering all branches of chemistry, helped in no small way by his willingness to consult those with specialist knowledge and to enlist them in checking his texts before publication. In this way his writing has gained a reputation for thoroughness of coverage and reliability of content. No science has suffered as much from media alarms and misinformation than chemistry, and much of this would have gone unchallenged but for John Emsley. John is regularly approached by the media and asked to take part in broadcasts, more often simply seeking advice on some aspect of chemistry, and his skill is to be able to provide a clear explanation. He is well-known to many in the media and he has been a stalwart of the Association of British Science Writers for 25 years. Dr Emsley is a great science communicator. His entertaining books have contributed to the advancement of a positive awareness of science and he says of himself in the preface of his book Nature's Building Blocks: 'As a writer of popular science, I am aware of the desire of people to know more of the world about them.'

Product Details

• Hardcover: 242 pages
• Publisher: Royal Society of Chemistry; 1 edition (September 24, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0854049657
• ISBN-13: 978-0854049653
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (89 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #95,225 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Few Flaws, September 10, 2008

By	Harkius "harkius" (Laramie, WY) - See all my reviews

mar this entertaining and well-written book, and they could easily be fixed by the time that the final version is released.

This book attempts to strike a healthy balance between informative and entertaining, perhaps attempting to hit that happy land that the Discovery channel does. Call it edutainment, if you will.

There is a lot of chemistry in here for those who are not interested. Stand warned. For those who have taken a few university courses, like intro chemistry and a basic one-semester organic chemistry course, there will not be anything new or difficult. For those without this experience, it will not be too significant to mar your appreciation for the rest of the book, so long as you are at least nominally interested.

The detective end is not quite as well-developed as the chemistry aspect, likely because the author is trained as a chemist and merely an amateur sleuth, or someone who likes crime stories. This detail in hand, it becomes much more obvious why the stories about the poisoners tend to be less florid and colorful than the chemical descriptions and the histories of the various compounds.

If you are okay with that, you will enjoy this book. If you are not really interested in chemistry, you picked the wrong book to read. This is really a targeted book, as you may guess from the fact that it is published by the Royal Society of Chemists (likely a British analog of the American Chemical Society).

One other remark about the book. Some information is strangely absent. For example, there is a mention of more details about cyanide manufacture in the glossary, but when I checked, it was absent. Other information is strangely present, as if the author has failed to foresee the possibility that some people may try to use this as a handbook of poisoning. Obviously, there is no information here that would not be easily acquired elsewhere. However, that doesn't mean that it should be presented so frankly and with so few warnings. Just a remark.

A fun read though. On the whole, it was quite good. It accomplished much of what it was intending, and a little better balance between the crime and science aspects, and I would have given it a fifth star.

Well done. B-

Harkius

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Scary Stuff, September 8, 2008

By	Erika Mitchell (E. Calais, VT USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This book is a collection of articles explaining the chemistry of various poisons used for murder. Emsley is an analytical chemist working in the UK who has been called on to assist with a number of investigations in which poisoning has been suspected. In this book, he examines ten compounds or elements that have been used for murder (ricin, hyoscine, atropine, diamorhine, adrenaline, chloroform, carbon monoxide, cyanide, paraquat, and polonium), explaining the chemistry of their toxicity, and reviewing how murders involving the substances were solved. He has divided the book into two parts, naturally occurring toxins and synthetic toxins. The book is intended for general audiences, so chemical terms are explained in an extensive glossary at the back of the book, and sources are provided in a list of "Further Reading," rather than interrupting the text with footnotes.

I found the book quite well written and straightforward to read. This is no murder mystery book, but rather very much a book about the chemistry of murder and forensics. For a chemistry book, though, Emsley does go into great detail about the lives and motives of the criminals who used the toxins that he describes. Although intended for general readers, parts of the text require at least a passing knowledge of general chemistry. Whereas Emsley has highlighted what he considers technical terms in the text and defined them in the glossary, he assumes that readers will at least have the background to understand terms like "covalently linked" and "ionically linked", as in "These drugs [Tagamet, Isoptin, and Celexa] are non-toxic due to the cyanide radical being covalently rather than ionically linked." Other such basic general chemistry terms and concepts are assumed rather than explained in the text or the glossary. Chemists, chemistry students, and others interested in forensic chemistry will find this book quite informative, as well as interesting.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting book with a unique perspective, September 7, 2008

By	M. Hyman "Artist at large" (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is part science, part murder story. It discusses several famous murders, starting from the perspective of the poisons used to perpetrate them. It covers the chemical properties of the poison, and the plants or manufacturing process by which it is found or made. Then it covers a brief history of those involved in the famous murder cases. As such, it provides a historical set of practical use cases.

Since I am interested in science and history, this book provided a good combination of the two. For some, reading about poisoning deaths might be morbid, and for those who like murder mysteries, reading about science might be boring, but for me the combination was strong.

I was a little concerned that some of the research about the murders might not have been complete, in that his discussion of the Crippen murder painted a one sided picture, whereas the much lengthier book Thunderstruck brings in many more details and makes the murder more understandable in context and the motivations of the murderer more complex.

Regardless of this potential flaw, the book is quite worthwhile, and has certainly lead to some interesting cocktail conversations, albeit perhaps ones in which one might take a second look at what is in the cocktail.