Railways, gaslamps and swirling fog are the vital ingredients in any Victorian melodrama. The truth, however, was often stranger, more thrilling and more horrifying than fiction. In this book, four eminent crime historians reveal the realities of the Victorian criminal underworld. Notorious crimes - the Road Hill Murder, the Balham Mystery and Jack the Ripper - stand alongside long-forgotten, neglected cases; the most shocking and terrifying cases rub shoulders with everyday horrors, some stunning and some merely sad. This unique work of reference deserves a place on every true-crime enthusiast's bookshelf.