Full Description
Ideal for professional and aspiring crime writers.
How many times have you read a crime novel describing a poisoning, a stabbing, an explosion or a shooting and realised it's wrong? Mistakes jar and can undermine a brilliant plot. This guide will help you to avoid these mistakes, save you research time and ensure that your writing is scientifically credible. Crime writers increasingly look for accuracy in their work and this book, which assumes no previous scientific knowledge, will be a valuable asset for both novices and experienced writers and will also fascinate readers who love crime fiction.
This book explains:
• The nature of poisons and how they work.
• How to knock out a character and avoid killing them
• The nature of explosives are and what happens in an explosion..
• How fires start and their effects on people and buildings.
• Firearms, suppressors and how they work
• Mechanisms for murder.
• Tips on fighting back from an attack and escaping from captivity.
• Problems of body disposal and crime scene clean-up.
• The nature and use of DNA.
• Forensic techniques & how evidence can be misinterpreted.
Reviews on Amazon
Katie 5.0 out of 5 stars The science behind crime scenes
Paperback Verified Purchase Invaluable step-by-step guide, which looks at the science behind the crime scene. This book is well written, informative and easy to use. A must-have.
4.0 out of 5 stars Great reference for crime writers
Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
This is a great and easy to read reference for the science behind writing crime. It will definitely be a well used tool in my writing. I also like how case studies are included to show what is being told / explained. Easy recommendation from me!
Contents
Introduction
What this book is - and isn't 15
1 Poisons: General Principles 17
What is a poison? 17
Getting it into the body 17
Getting it out of the body 19
Half life 20
Acute versus chronic 21
Case study: Thallium at home and work 21
Tolerance 21
A fatal dose 22
LD50 23
How do they work? 23
Working together 24
Antidotes 24
Delayed action 25
Carcinogens 25
Biological agents 26
Radioactive poisons 28
Getting hold of poisons 29
Writing poisons (1) 33
2 Poisons: Specific Substances 35
Abrin 35
Case study: Abrin purchase 35
Aconitine 36
Case study: a killer curry 37
Arsenic 37
Atropine 38
Case study: A toxic tonic 39
Botulinum toxin 40
Carbon Monoxide 41
Case study: The deadly dentist 42
Chlorine 43
Case study: (Nearly) kicking the bucket 44
Cyanide 45
Case study: A terminal headache 46
Digitalis 47
Case study: Suicide by Foxglove 48
DNP 48
Case study: Slimming pill fatality 48
Fungi 49
Case study: Somerset Death Cap 49
Gelsemium 50
Case study: Poisoned cat stew 51
Hemlock 52
Case study: Death in Maine 53
Insulin 53
Case study: Murder on the ward 54
Muscle relaxants 55
Case study: A poisoned politician 56
Nerve agents 56
How nerve agents work 57
Case study: Sarin underground 57
Case study: Novichok in Wiltshire 58
Nicotine 59
Case study: Lethal injection 61
Opiates and opiods 61
Case study: The lethal GP 63
Palytoxin 63
Pesticides 63
Case study: Poison in Essex 65
Phosgene 65
Potassium chloride 66
Case study: A killer nurse 66
Ricin 66
Case study: Pellets of poison 68
Strychnine 68
Tetrodotoxin 69
Thallium 70
Writing poisons (2) 71
3 Producing Unconsciousness 73
The Basics 73
Chemical Methods 73
Chloroform 74
Case study: The Chloroforming Lab Tech. 75
Chloral Hydrate 77
Midazolam 77
Case study: Rape and manslaughter 79
Ketamine 79
Other anaesthetics 80
Case study: Vet in the frame 81
Date rape drugs 81
Case study: The Black Cab Rapist 83
Case study: Rape and murder 84
Spice 85
Psychedelics 85
Over the counter 85
Asphyxiants 86
Case study: Christie and carbon monoxide 86
Mass anaesthesia 86
Case study: Death at the Theatre 87
Sources of supply 88
Non-chemical methods 89
Writing knockouts 92
4 Explosives and Explosions 93
What makes an explosive? 93
Low explosives 93
High explosives 93
Primary, secondary and tertiary 94
Propellants 95
Gas explosions 95
Case study: An industrial explosion 96
Dust explosions 96
Plastic explosive 96
Shaped charges 97
Detonating cord 97
High Explosive or Incendiary Bomb? 98
The Components of a Bomb 98
Handling and defusing 99
Grenades 100
The effects of explosions 100
Shrapnel 102
Case study: Shrapnel in Soho 102
Nuclear explosives 102
Individual explosives 103
Detection 106
Legal issues 107
Controlled explosives precursors 108
Availability and practicality 108
Case study: Bombs in Devon 109
Writing explosives 109
5 Fires 111
The Fire Triangle and Tetrahedron 111
Smoulder versus flame 112
Ignition 112
Case study: Sparking cat 113
Spontaneous Combustion 114
Fire development 116
Effects of fire on buildings 117
Effects on people 118
Fire investigation 119
Accelerants 121
Case study: Tragedy in Derby 122
Incendiary devices 122
Incendiary errors 123
In conclusion 125
Writing fire 125
6 Firearms 127
What is a firearm? 127
Calibres 127
The cartridge 128
Bullets 129
Rifles 130
Automatic weapons 131
Case study: Slaughter in Las Vegas 132
Shotguns 133
Revolvers 133
Semi-automatics 134
Case study: A royal jam 135
Airguns 135
Air cane 137
Dart guns 137
Starting pistols 138
Plastic pistols 138
Reactivated weapons 139
Flying lead 139
Range 140
Penetration 141
Realistic imitation firearms 141
Getting shot 142
Forensic aspects 144
Not-so-silent killers 144
Getting a gun 146
Case study: Zorakis 148
Case study: Armed paedophile 149
Hollywood howlers 149
Writing firearms 151
7 Weapons and Tactics 153
Part 1: Means of murder
Electricity 153
Case study: Fatal bath 154
Case study:Air embolism 154
Case study: Deadly deacon 155
Crossbows 155
Knives 156
Statistics 156
Blunt instruments 158
Give us a brake 159
Strangulation 160
Suffocation 161
Exploiting allergies 161
Part 2: Escaping and fighting back 162
Breaking out 162
Fighting back 163
Home discomfort 165
The legal position 166
Writing attacks and escapes 167
8 After the Event:
Body Disposal and Cleanup 169
Part 1: Cadavers 169
Handling 169
Dismemberment 170
Case study: Murder in Muswell Hill 171
Burial 171
Landfills 173
In the house 173
Fire 174
Acids and alkalis 175
Case study: The acid bath murderer 175
Watery graves 178
Case study: Unexpected preservation 179
Exotic ideas from fiction 179
Part 2: Traces left behind 179
Cleaning up blood
Cleaning up DNA 181
Concluding points 182
Writing disposal and cleanup 183
9 DNA 185
Part 1: The Basics What is DNA? 185
Collecting DNA 186
Analysis 187
Case study: The first conviction 189
Timings 189
Mixtures of DNA 190
Case study: Interpretation errors 190
Cold cases and sample storage 190
Predicting appearance 191
Case studies: Right and wrong 192
Familial matches 192
Case study: M3 manslaughter 193
Mitochondrial DNA 193
Low copy number 194
Part 2: Interpretation and complications
Identity 194
Background DNA 195
Secondary transfer 195
Persistence 195
How did it get there? 196
Contamination 196
Case study: Laboratory error 197
Writing DNA 197
10 A Forensic Miscellany 199
Preamble 199
Chemical analysis 200
Spot testing drugs 200
False positives 201
Residues and records 202
Drugs and driving 203
Portable spectrometers 203
Ionic errors 204
Down on the body farm 204
Botanical barcodes 205
Fingertip sex 206
Chemical lifestyle profiling 206
Vein pattern analysis 207
Faking fingerprints 207
Fingerprints' pore relations 208
Dodgy documents 208
Forensic gait analysis 209
Gunshot audio 209
Mistakes and reliability 210
Misinterpretation 212
Case study: A doubtful particle 213
Misconduct 214
Writing forensics 215
References and Further Information 217
Fiction works cited in the text 249
Film and television references 251
Glossary 253
Index 257
