The Arsenic Century: How Victorian Britain was Poisoned at Home, Work, and Play by James C. Whorton

Final Rating: 4.2/5

 A grim and oddly fascinating look back at “the poisons of poisons”.
 
  The Arsenic Century: How Victorian Britain Was Poisoned at Home, Work, and Play is one book that may not be for everyone, but for me this was exactly what I have been looking for: a comprehensive well-told mixture of medical and legal case histories that involved a truly unusual portion of history and central subject. It seems I am drawn to these types of titles that can serve me well to learning more about certain eras and The Arsenic Century: How Victorian Britain Was Poisoned at Home, Work, and Play definitely had me saying “I didn’t know that” quite a few times when it came to its hodgepotch of little known facts and the strong doses of bygone crimes and old beliefs had me eagerly reaching for my kindle late at night. It also had the right number of true deadly examples that clearly explained why the 19th century could be aptly called “The Arsenic Century” and the many reasons Arsenic was said to be “the poisons of poisons”. It did however let me down somewhat with the final chapters that meandered away from the central interest at certain points and the lack of photographs surprised me. Thankfully though everything else presented kept me reading and I am very satisfied with this non-fiction work joining my eclectic shelves, it has found a proper place next to Fashion Victims: The Dangers of Dress Past and Present, A is for Arsenic: The Poisons of Agatha Christie and perhaps by The Poisoner's Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York but time will tell.

-purchased and read on kindle