Official Review: Who Killed Little Johnny Gill
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weiwei
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- Latest Review: "Who Killed Little Johnny Gill" by Kathryn McMaster
Official Review: Who Killed Little Johnny Gill
[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Who Killed Little Johnny Gill" by Kathryn McMaster.]
3 out of 4 stars
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"Who Killed Little Johnny Gill?" by Kathryn McMaster is a historical crime fiction set in Bradford, England, 1888. This book is about Johnny Gill’s murder and the ensuing investigation. The book begins with the introduction to Johnny’s normal, happy family of six. Johnny Gill was the eldest son of Thomas Gill and Mary Ann Gill. A few days after Christmas, Johnny left home one early morning to join William Barrett for the milk run and was never seen again. Johnny was 7 years old when he disappeared.
After countless futile attempts to locate their missing son, Thomas and Mary decided to file a missing person report with the Bradford police constables. The build up of the story is pretty good. I can imagine the mounting despair and fear Mary felt each passing second closer to the impending bad news. A few days later, Johnny was discovered murdered and gruesomely mutilated fifty yards away from home. The mutilation is adequately and vividly described. This is the most memorable part of the book for me.
The author makes the additional impact by describing Thomas and Mary’s grief and heartbreak. It was a heart-wrenching moment when they were informed of Johnny’s murder and mutilation. I can feel the emotional torments Mary had to suffer through. This makes the book more than just a horrible crime retelling. It gives the readers a profound connection to the characters. I feel it will be a more interesting read if readers are given the side of William Barrett’s story as well. I am curious as to what were his thoughts and feelings as a prime and only suspect in this unspeakable crime.
I appreciate the author’s effort in describing the law enforcement officials’ hard work and struggle during the investigation. Due to the limited knowledge of forensic science during that period, it was extremely hard to bring the perpetrator to justice, despite the gathered evidence. The book gives an elaborate account of the police procedures required during that time. It was challenging and laborious. And in order to gather more evidence, Chief Constable James Withers and his team was constantly fighting against time. Their frustration is palpable throughout the book.
The facts and information presented are organized and structured. Nevertheless, I found the back-to-back pages of witnesses’ statements and recounts in Chapter Three are a tad too bland. I also find it confusing and overwhelming due to the sheer number of witnesses. This is my least favorable part of the book. Understandably, it is important to give the readers detailed recounts of the witnesses. However, I feel the flow and presentation of this information can be improved to be less dull and more engaging. One apparent typo I noticed is that Ruth Gill was mistakenly written as Ruth Barrett in Chapter Three. I was not able to find any other references to Ruth Barrett in the book. Therefore, I believe there was no such Ruth Barrett character in the story, and it should be Ruth Gill instead.
Overall, I enjoy reading this book and rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. It is well-written, easy to read and has a nice pacing to the story. I would recommend this book to any true crime fans and readers who enjoy crime fiction in general.
******
Who Killed Little Johnny Gill
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3 out of 4 stars
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"Who Killed Little Johnny Gill?" by Kathryn McMaster is a historical crime fiction set in Bradford, England, 1888. This book is about Johnny Gill’s murder and the ensuing investigation. The book begins with the introduction to Johnny’s normal, happy family of six. Johnny Gill was the eldest son of Thomas Gill and Mary Ann Gill. A few days after Christmas, Johnny left home one early morning to join William Barrett for the milk run and was never seen again. Johnny was 7 years old when he disappeared.
After countless futile attempts to locate their missing son, Thomas and Mary decided to file a missing person report with the Bradford police constables. The build up of the story is pretty good. I can imagine the mounting despair and fear Mary felt each passing second closer to the impending bad news. A few days later, Johnny was discovered murdered and gruesomely mutilated fifty yards away from home. The mutilation is adequately and vividly described. This is the most memorable part of the book for me.
The author makes the additional impact by describing Thomas and Mary’s grief and heartbreak. It was a heart-wrenching moment when they were informed of Johnny’s murder and mutilation. I can feel the emotional torments Mary had to suffer through. This makes the book more than just a horrible crime retelling. It gives the readers a profound connection to the characters. I feel it will be a more interesting read if readers are given the side of William Barrett’s story as well. I am curious as to what were his thoughts and feelings as a prime and only suspect in this unspeakable crime.
I appreciate the author’s effort in describing the law enforcement officials’ hard work and struggle during the investigation. Due to the limited knowledge of forensic science during that period, it was extremely hard to bring the perpetrator to justice, despite the gathered evidence. The book gives an elaborate account of the police procedures required during that time. It was challenging and laborious. And in order to gather more evidence, Chief Constable James Withers and his team was constantly fighting against time. Their frustration is palpable throughout the book.
The facts and information presented are organized and structured. Nevertheless, I found the back-to-back pages of witnesses’ statements and recounts in Chapter Three are a tad too bland. I also find it confusing and overwhelming due to the sheer number of witnesses. This is my least favorable part of the book. Understandably, it is important to give the readers detailed recounts of the witnesses. However, I feel the flow and presentation of this information can be improved to be less dull and more engaging. One apparent typo I noticed is that Ruth Gill was mistakenly written as Ruth Barrett in Chapter Three. I was not able to find any other references to Ruth Barrett in the book. Therefore, I believe there was no such Ruth Barrett character in the story, and it should be Ruth Gill instead.
Overall, I enjoy reading this book and rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. It is well-written, easy to read and has a nice pacing to the story. I would recommend this book to any true crime fans and readers who enjoy crime fiction in general.
******
Who Killed Little Johnny Gill
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like weiwei's review? Post a comment saying so!
Latest Review: "Who Killed Little Johnny Gill" by Kathryn McMaster
