Albino Luciani, known as smiling Pope John Paul I, died on Sept 28, 1978 after a papal reign of only 33 days. He was 65 years old. Lack of clarity The death of Albino Luciani (Oct 17, 1912 – Sept 28, 1978) has long been one of speculation, intrigue, conspiracy, and wild accusations involving the […]
Book Reviews
His Bloody Project by Graeme Macrea Burnet
The book’s title is your red flag: is it a blood-covered piece of work or, a cursed work? If it is the first, who spilled the blood and why? If it is the latter, is the killer cursed by their crimes or were they predestined to commit these crimes? And the project itself, who started it […]
The Cadaver King and the Country Dentist
As I mentioned in Sum it Up! #57, I am reading up on forensic odontology. I came across this book “The Cadaver King and the Country Dentist.” A quick glance told me it was about the wrongful convictions of both Kennedy Brewer and Levon Brooks. They were wrongfully convicted when two girls (both three years […]
Jason Lucky Morrow’s Famous Crimes
The book “Famous crimes the world forgot” by Jason Lucky Morrow is a perfect fit here at DCC. I too like to know more about old cold cases. This book review concerns Volume II. It came out in 2017. Volume I came out in 2014. I have not read Volume I. Jason Lucky Morrow’s website is […]
The Brain Defense: neuroscience in court
Neuroscience plays a role in the courtroom just like partial fingerprinting and DNA. It is a field with which many struggle. Is it true when someone says: “my brain made me do it?” Is that person hearing voices or simply making excuses? It is tempting to think that indeed, they make up excuses to avoid […]
A Cruel Necessity by L.C. Tyler
I love historical mysteries and books where we deal with forensic sciences in their early stages. So when I heard that “A Cruel Necessity” by L.C. Tyler would bring me a dead body with an expertly slashed throat underneath a dung heap I had to read the book in one sitting. Naturally. The author takes […]
Moscow Bound by Adrian Churchward
If you look at the cover of this political thriller you will see in the background some lines of a document. We can vaguely make out what it says. It is a snapshot of a page. That one page undoubtedly belongs inside a huge file. The words “Top Secret” are crossed out. Who did that […]
The Grenadillo Box by Janet Gleeson
How I missed Janet Gleeson‘s book in 2002 I do not know. It will forever be a mystery. The book has everything I love: a historical setting with enough twists so that the plot I envisioned could come true. We are in the eighteenth century, in the United Kingdom. The year is 1755. It is […]
Peter Morrone, the Pope who quit
Peter Morrone (1215 – 1296), the Pope who quit, is better known as Pope Celestine V. The book by Jon Sweeney presents us with three powerful men. All skilled and stubborn. We discover how Peter Morrone’s life became entangled with Charles II of Anjou, the King of Naples. The other of course, was Cardinal Benedict […]
The blood on my hands by Shannon O’Leary
“I used pseudonyms in the book in order to protect my family. He was never charged despite the police knowing about his activity. The police investigations were case files and are not available to the public. People outside Australia would not be aware that many of the missing person files in NSW in the 1960s […]