Introduction by the author (excerpt): Since the publication of the first edition of my book on Madeleine Smith in 1999, new bits of information about Madeleine, the trial and possible theories about what happened in March of 1857 have continued to surface.
This new edition attempts to address and present this new information and to give a complete picture of the theories and beliefs about the alleged murder and subsequent trial in the events that captured Great Britain's attention and made Madeleine one of the earliest and strongest examples of an accused murderer whose celebrity extended long past the trial.
Paperback: It was a case that rocked Victorian society.
Madeleine Smith, a young woman from a prominent Glasgow family, stood accused of the murder of her lover.
The evidence against her seemed overwhelming.
But after what was described as Scotland's trial of the century, Madeleine received the verdict of 'not proven' and walked free from the courtroom.
Emile L'Angelier was a working-class immigrant from the Channel Islands.
He and Madeleine began an illicit affair, which, two years later, she tried to end to marry a wealthier man.
When Emile threatened to show her father their passionate love letters, she desperately agreed to continue their covert correspondence and meetings.
Six weeks later, on 23 March 1857, Emile was dead from arsenic poisoning.
The absence of a clear verdict in the trial caused widespread consternation.
The story of the young girl who apparently poisoned her secret lover so that she could go ahead with a family-arranged marriage would live on in print, on stage, and on the screen throughout the following century and a half.
The Strange Affair of Madeleine Smith (2007) gives the most complete picture to date of the events surrounding this infamous case.
Douglas MacGowan's vivid account reads at turns like a thriller, a love story and a courtroom drama.
He quotes extensively from contemporary sources, notably the correspondence between Madeleine and Emile, whose explicit content so shocked Victorian sensibilities.
Ultimately, he leaves it to the reader to judge Madeleine's guilt or innocence.
Madeleine Smith became one of the most famous women of her day.
Yet her life following the trial is as shrouded in myth and mystery as the murder itself.
The book concludes with fascinating new information about the woman who, in the opinion of many, 'escaped the noose, but not dishonour.'
About the author: Douglas MacGowan is a freelance writer who has published two books about nineteenth-century Scotland. He has contributed articles to Celtic Heritage, the Scottish Journal and the Scotsman, as well as to Court TV's online Crime Library. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area where he works as a Legal Assistant.
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