Murder and morality in Victorian Britain

The story of Madeleine Smith

By (author) Eleanor Gordon, Gwyneth Nair

Paperback - £19.99

Publication date:

21 August 2009

Length of book:

224 pages

Publisher

Manchester University Press

Dimensions:

216x138mm

ISBN-13: 9780719077685

This book explores the life of Madeleine Smith, who in 1857 was tried for poisoning her secret lover. As well as charting the course of this illicit relationship and Madeleine’s subsequent trial, the authors draw on a wide range of sources to pursue themes such as the nature of gender relations and the extent of women’s social and commercial activities, and to bring vividly to life the world of the mid-Victorian middle class.The book contains new discoveries about Madeleine’s long and colourful life after the trial which confirm the view that it is only in fiction that the bad end unhappily.

The book will be of interest to academic social historians, but the fascination of its subject matter and the way in which much rich material is used to evoke a vivid sense of time and place, will also promote a wider interest among a more general readership.