Bodies in the Garden: The Wycherly Murders – A True Crime Podcast

On July 18, 2022August 5, 2022 By MCJIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

In Britain however the crimes that we are often most gripped by tends to be those that happen to ordinary people, who live quiet lives. Perhapse that is to do with the fact that despite seeing ourselves as a modern state, in the UK we still live with the hangovers of the feudal system, with such regressive concepts as the "deserving poor," and moralisitic phrases like "hard working people," still finidng currancy in our politics, which has been overrun recently with those for whom even their privilage comes gold plated. We've never admired our rich and powerful as much as tolerate them, and get on with our own lives.

Pride month bonus: The best crime podcasts and books with an LGBTIQ+ flavour

On June 21, 2022June 21, 2022 By MCJIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

For LGBTIQ+ communties crime is too much of a reality. Across the globe queer people are more likely to be victims of crime, historically they have been more likely to be criminalised, and in many places the fear of imprisonment for being nothing more than who you really are is far, far too present. So in this post we are going to pinpoint some of the best podcasts and books TCF has reviewed over the last seventeen months which whether fiction or non-fiction have an LGBTIQ+ element.

The House That Vanished: A True Crime Podcast About the Disappearance of Neville Presho’s house.

On June 21, 2022 By MCJIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

In life things are seldom as permanent as we think they will be when we are children. The art of accepting and living with change is one of the secrets of life, and one that all of us will struggle with at some point, whether it is the end of a relationship, a job, or …

Continue reading The House That Vanished: A True Crime Podcast About the Disappearance of Neville Presho’s house.

If You Tell by Gregg Olsen: A True Crime Book

On June 13, 2022 By MCJIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

Motherhood is an idea that permeates If You Tell by Greg Olsen by it's absence. Olsen recounts the life of Shelly Knotek, who killed three, and abused countless others, including her own children. Knotek could easily be cast in the role of femme fatal, her good looks attracting many unsuspecting men into her orbit, but that would be too surface a reading of what is a clearly aberant pshycology. Instead Olsen makes his readers the proverbial frog in water slowly begining to boil, as he trace the development of Knotek from a troubled and difficult child and teen into a fully fledged murderer.

Women Who kill with Lucy Worsley – A Historical True Crime Podcast

On June 11, 2022 By MCJIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

With the hindsight that living in a different era gives us we can easily see that for some of these women, it was the strict, inflexible mores of Victorian society that led them to their fates, and had they lived in different times, may have had very different outcomes.

Girl, 11: A Crime Fiction book about a true crime podcaster

On May 18, 2022May 18, 2022 By MCJIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

It is never long before crime fiction follows true crime, and one has to wonder if the podcaster could be poised to replace the private eye, who's peak in crime fiction does feel somewhat in the past. The prospect of the podcaster as the new crime fiction hero - or more likely heroine, given true crimes demographics - is intriguing, as they bring in not just a new job, but drag with them an audience.

Untold: A True Crime Podcast About the Murder of Daniel Morgan

On April 25, 2022April 25, 2022 By MCJIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

It will not be a surprise to many that the News of The World would be tangled up in this most shady episode as they became a by-word for the absolute worst of tabloid journalism, souring countless lives, with it's underhand tactics.

The Purified: A Crime Fiction/Thriller Book set in Scotland

On April 12, 2022 By MCJIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

Many writers, even those native to the Highlands can imbue their descriptions with a sense of twee kitsch and a paint by numbers version of what is a beautiful, but highly complex, part of the world. Writing the Highlands is easy, but writing the Highlands well, with a sensitivity to the land and it's deep history is a feat that only those with a unforced empathy can complete.

Ripple: A Long Strange Search for a Killer – A True Crime Book About the Boy in the Woods Murder

On March 8, 2022October 30, 2022 By MCJIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

This is the strength of the book, the deeply personal decades long reflection of the victims family. However, this is not a piece of investigative journalism. So those who are expecting the rigour of someone with the caliber Gregg Olsen will be dissapointed. Cosgrove is aware of this, and admits that in his journalistic career he gravitated towards upbeat fluff pieces, and there are points where this shows.

Happy Birthday True Crime Fiction

On February 14, 2022March 18, 2022 By MCJIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

February 14th 2022, is True Crime Fiction's first birthday, so I feel it is important to thank everyone who has been listening to the podcast, reading the website, sharing and liking posts and in general to those who have enjoyed TCF. It has been hard work, and at times the review schedule has felt a little oppressive, but given that I was not really sure what would come out of True Crime Fiction, I am really pleased with what it has produced. We've had over 11,000 downloads in the first year and we've got plans for future development.