Unnatural Murder: Poison In The Court Of James I

Royal scandal, set against the background of the Jacobean court, involving love, bribery, poison, treachery and black magic - 'a hugely enjoyable book' Daily Telegraph

'A gripping detective story ... Wonderfully dramatic ... Probably the juiciest court scandal of the past 500 years' Daily Mail

In the autumn of 1615 the Earl and Countess of Somerset were detained on suspicion of having murdered Sir Thomas Overbury. The arrest of these leading court figures created a sensation. The young and beautiful Countess of Somerset had already achieved notoriety when she divorced her first husband in controversial circumstances. The Earl of Somerset was one of the richest and most powerful men in the kingdom, having risen to prominence as the male 'favourite' of James I.

In a vivid, enthralling narrative, Anne Somerset unravels these extraordinary events. It is, at once, a story rich in passion, intrigue and corruption and a murder mystery - for, despite the guilty verdicts, there is much about Overbury's death that remains enigmatic. The Overbury murder case profoundly damaged the monarchy, and constituted the greatest court scandal in English history.

'This is a book about murder, witchcraft, adultery, lechery, intrigue and chicanery among the country's most powerful nobility' Time Out

“A gripping detective story that tells us more about the corruption, debauchery and naked power-plays of seventeenth-century life than anything I have read - Daily MailAnne Somerset gives us scandal in high places, as well as insights into a seamy underworld of quacks and witches, hustlers and go-betweens ... Both history and whodunnit, this is a hugely enjoyable book - Daily TelegraphThis is by far the most comprehensive account I have read of the Overbury scandal, combining a firm mastery of complex sources with a narrative drive that impels the reader to turn the page. It is also quite one the best historical whodunnits - SUNDAY TIMESA sordid yet fascinating story which Anne Somerset delineates with great skill - THE TIMESAnne Somerset shows skill and stamina in telling her lurid tale....This book consolidates her position in the front rank of historical biographers for the general reader - COUNTRY LIFEThis marvellous account of a real-life episode in 1615 bristles with ingredients Webster would have recognised and loved - DAILY TELGRAPHDeals in a scholarly but ever readable way with a fascinating historical nugget. This is a book about murder, witchcraft, adultery, lechery, intrigue and chicanery among the country's most powerful nobility - TIME OUT”

Wonderfully dramatic ... Probably the juiciest court scandal of the past 500 years. Anne Somerset writes so freshly that her characters strut before us as if they lived today. A gripping detective story that tells us more about the corruption, debauchery and naked power-plays of 17th century life than anything I have read -- Christopher Hudson DAILY MAIL
This is by far the most comprehensive account I have read of the Overbury scandal, combining a firm mastery of complex sources with a narrative drive that impels the reader to turn the page. It is also quite one of the best historical whodunnits SUNDAY TIMES
Anne Somerset gives us scandal in high places, as well as insights into a seamy underworld of quacks and witches, hustlers and go-betweens; her subsidiary characters stand comparison with Ben Jonson's most outrageous rascals ... Both history and whodunnit, this is a hugely enjoyable book -- Lucy Hughes-Hallet DAILY TELEGRAPH
A sordid yet fascinating story which Anne Somerset delineates with great skill -- Antonia Fraser THE TIMES
Anne Somerset shows skill and stamina in telling her lurid tale....This book consolidates her position in the front rank of historical biographers for the general reader -- John Jolliffe COUNTRY LIFE
A fine and absorbing book, based on fresh scholarship and fresh thinking and deserving both a lay and professional readership -- Blair Worden THE SPECTATOR
This marvellous account of a real-life episode in 1615 bristles with ingredients Webster would have recognised and loved -- Max Davidson DAILY TELGRAPH
Deals in a scholarly but ever readable way with a fascinating historical nugget. This is a book about murder, witchcraft, adultery, lechery, intrigue and chicanery among the country's most powerful nobility -- Steve Grant TIME OUT
Scrupulously researched, her account of the Overbury scandal illuminates the machinations and intrigues which passed for government in Jacobean England SUNDAY TIMES

Anne Somerset read history at King's College London. In 1980, her first book, THE LIFE AND TIMES OF WILLIAM IV, was published in W&N's KINGS AND QUEENS OF ENGLAND series. This was followed BY LADIES-IN-WAITING; a biography of Elizabeth I; UNNATURAL MURDER and THE AFFAIR OF THE POISONS. Her biography of Queen Anne was awarded the 2013 Elizabeth Longford Prize for Historical Biography. Until his death in 2011, Anne Somerset was married to the artist Matthew Carr. She lives in London.

Royal scandal, set against the background of the Jacobean court, involving love, bribery, poison, treachery and black magic - 'a hugely enjoyable book ' Daily Telegraph 'A gripping detective story ... Wonderfully dramatic ... Probably the juiciest court scandal of the past 500 years' Daily Mail In the autumn of 1615 the Earl and Countess of Somerset were detained on suspicion of having murdered Sir Thomas Overbury. The arrest of these leading court figures created a sensation. The young and beautiful Countess of Somerset had already achieved notoriety when she divorced her first husband in controversial circumstances. The Earl of Somerset was one of the richest and most powerful men in the kingdom, having risen to prominence as the male 'favourite' of James I.In a vivid, enthralling narrative, Anne Somerset unravels these extraordinary events. It is, at once, a story rich in passion, intrigue and corruption and a murder mystery - for, despite the guilty verdicts, there is much about Overbury's death that remains enigmatic. The Overbury murder case profoundly damaged the monarchy, and constituted the greatest court scandal in English history. 'This is a book about murder, witchcraft, adultery, lechery, intrigue and chicanery among the country's most powerful nobility' Time Out

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