History, Politics & Society
On a steamy August night in 1952, a British family settles down to sleep beside their car in a lay-by. Before daybreak all three of them, a father, a mother, and their ten-year-old daughter, have been brutally murdered.
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On a steamy August night in 1952, a British family settles down to sleep beside their car in a lay-by. Before daybreak all three of them, a father, a mother, and their ten-year-old daughter, have been brutally murdered.
In a remote corner of Provence two worlds collide under a full moon. The British family are pioneering scientists and cosmopolitan; the French family accused of the crime are farmers defined by their land and codes of conduct which struck outsiders as feral. The accused farmers closed ranks and lied repeatedly in the shadow of the guillotine and to save the family’s honour. An inspector calls. With extraordinary tenacity he tracks down the man dubbed ‘the monster of the farm of the damned’.
This is the true story of the most contested murder in France since the Second World War, the inspiration for films and tales of espionage, hit squads, wartime bullion treasure, and chemical weapons research. Doubts still linger locally in this part of France as to the final judicial outcome. Conspiracy theories about the reason for the murders are routinely aired, and some family members of the man finally convicted of the crime still claim his innocence.
Here's what readers have to say about this book....
Ill Met by Moonlight is the fascinating and shocking story of the murder of the Drummond family ,who were holidaying in Provence in 1952. Famous Scientist Sir Jack Drummond ,his wife Anne and 10 year-old Daughter Elizabeth had the misfortune to camp in a lay-by next to the property of the dysfunctional Dominici family, short on morality, strangers to honesty and borderline feral. When the 3 bodies are found the spotlight falls on the Dominicis and despite the horrendous nature of the crime and strong evidence pointing straight at them they close ranks and churn out obvious lie after obvious lie,they were, to be blunt ,truly disgusting people. Finally justice is done,albeit with the perpetrator getting a surprisingly easy time in prison and even more surprisingly released on humanitarian grounds a few years later, Author Rene Weis has done an excellent job of detailing the awful events of the night the Drummonds were murdered,not least complicated timeline of the odd behaviour of the Dominicis and the sights reported by various passers-by. While barely remembered in Britain once the story left the headlines it's been a source of controversy in France for decades and engendered several bizarre conspiracy theories and plenty of debate over the guilt or innocence of members of the Dominici family. A gripping, meticulously researched and well-written book.
A well researched and interesting case of an infamous case known widely to the French and English. This was a new story for me and I found it to be very appealing as I love to read stories from times forgotten. It's such a tragedy, especially since a child was involved. The author did a very good job at presenting all the facts as well as background information on the people involved. Always a bonus for me is there are pictures. Thanks to Netgalley, the author and publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.
I knew nothing about these events until reading this book. How truly weird, scary, and heartbreaking for an entire family to be murdered on the side of the road! One of the worst things about the case is how there is no real closure, as people are still arguing about the crime.
