More Molecules of Murder - Paperback

by John Emsley (Author)

How can a plant as beautiful as the foxglove be so deadly and yet so useful to treat heart disease? What will kill a rat may also kill a human so it is not, necessarily, surprising to find that murderers have resorted to rat poison but what happens when the rat poison doesn't work? Eight years after the highly acclaimed Molecules of Murder, John Emsley is again applying his winning formula to writing a book about crimes of murder and attempted murder carried out with natural and man-made poisons. Every chapter will feature one molecule and begin with an explanation of the molecule itself, followed by details of its discovery, history and use in medicine, before analysing murders which have been carried out using it. This book will not disappoint anyone interested in substances that are poisonous.

Back Jacket

How can a plant as beautiful as the foxglove be so deadly and yet for more than a century be used to treat heart disease? The same is true of other naturally occurring molecules as will be revealed in this current book by award-winning author and chemist, John Emsley.

More Molecules of Murder follows on from his highly-acclaimed earlier book Molecules of Murder, and again it deals with 14 potential poisons; seven of which are man-made and seven of which are natural. It investigates the crimes committed with them, not from the point of view of the murderers, their victims, or the detectives, but from the poison used. In so doing it throws new light on how these crimes were carried out and ultimately how the perpetrators were uncovered and brought to justice.

Each chapter starts by looking at the target molecule itself, its discovery, its chemistry, its often-surprising use in medicine, its effects on the human body, and its toxicology. The rest of the chapter is devoted to murders and attempted murders in which it has been used. But, be reassured that murder by poison is not the threat it once was, thanks to laws which restrict access to such materials and to the skills of analytical chemists in detecting their presence in incredibly tiny amounts.