His Bloody Project : Documents Relating to the Case of Roderick Macrae: Shortlisted for the Booker Prize 2016

Graeme Macrae Burnet’s historical novel tells the story behind a 19th-century triple murder in a remote crofting community – a crime that shocked the nation.In 1869, Roderick Macrae was accused of the brutal slaying of three people, in a murder trial that gripped the British public. Roderick’s memoir, along with court transcripts, medical reports, police statements and newspaper articles, shows that he readily admitted his guilt. But do they reveal just why a young man would commit the most atrocious acts of violence? Why didn’t he defend himself more vigorously, or try to cover up the crime? And will he hang?"In offering us various pieces of the puzzle without any neat, prefab conclusions, Burnet turns his readers into detectives ... The seduction of many crime stories is that they offer all the answers we don’t get in real life. His Bloody Project reminds us that there are other pleasures to be drawn from a superb novel that revolves around the act of murder." - Sarah L. Courteau, The Barnes & Noble ReviewGraeme Macrae Burnet was awarded a Scottish Book Trust New Writers Award and is best known for his dazzling Booker-shortlisted second novel, His Bloody Project (2015), he is also the author of two novels set in France and written in a style influenced by the Belgian novelist Georges Simenon: The Disappearance of Adèle Bedeau (2014) and The Accident on the A35 (2017). His fourth novel, Case Study (2021), consists of a series of notebooks apparently sent to the author in 2020 to aid his research into a rogue 1960s psychotherapist. Documents Relating To The Case Of Roderick Macrae. A Brutal Triple Murder In A Remote Northwestern Crofting Community In 1869 Leads To The Arrest Of A Young Man By The Name Of Roderick Macrae. There's No Question That Macrae Is Guilty, But The Police And Courts Must Uncover What Drove Him To Murder The Local Village Constable. And Who Were The Other Two Victims? Ultimately, Macrae's Fate Hinges On One Key Question: Is He Insane? Preface -- Statements By Residents Of Culduie -- Map Of Culduie And The Surrounding Area -- The Account Of Roderick Macrae -- Glossary -- Medical Reports -- Extract From Travels In The Border-lands Of Lunacy / By J. Bruce Thomson -- The Trial -- Epilogue -- Historical Notes And Acknowledgments. Edited And Introduced By Graeme Macrae Burnet. Actually Written By Graeme Macrae Burnet. Includes Bibliographical References. Shortlisted For The Man Booker Prize 2016. Winner, Saltire Society Fiction Book Of The Year 2016. The Year Is 1869. A Brutal Triple Murder In A Remote Community In The Scottish Highlands Leads To The Arrest Of A Young Man By The Name Of Roderick Macrae. A Memoir Written By The Accused Makes It Clear That He Is Guilty, But It Falls To The Country’s Finest Legal And Psychiatric Minds To Uncover What Drove Him To Commit Such Merciless Acts Of Violence. Was He Mad? Only The Persuasive Powers Of His Advocate Stand Between Macrae And The Gallows. Graeme Macrae Burnet Tells An Irresistible And Original Story About The Provisional Nature Of Truth, Even When The Facts Seem Clear. His Bloody Project Is A Mesmerising Literary Thriller Set In An Unforgiving Landscape Where The Exercise Of Power Is Arbitrary. The year is 1869. After a brutal triple murder in a remote community in the Scottish Highlands, a young man by the name of Roderick Macrae is arrested for the crime. A memoir written by the accused makes it clear that he is guilty, but the police and the courts must decide what drove him to murder the local village constable. And why did he kill his other two victims? Was he insane? Or was this the act of a man in possession of his senses? Only the persuasive powers of his advocate stand between the killer and the gallows at Inverness. In this compelling and original novel, using the words of the accused, personal testimony, transcripts from the trial and newspaper reports, Graeme Macrae Burnet tells a moving story about the provisional nature of the truth, even when the facts are plain. Shortlisted for the Booker Prize 2016 A Radio 4 Book Club pickThe year is 1869. A brutal triple murder in a remote community in the Scottish Highlands leads to the arrest of a young man by the name of Roderick Macrae. A memoir written by the accused makes it clear that he is guilty, but it falls to the country's finest legal and psychiatric minds to uncover what drove him to commit such merciless acts of violence. Was he mad? Only the persuasive powers of his advocate stand between Macrae and the gallows. Graeme Macrae Burnet tells an irresistible and original story about the provisional nature of truth, even when the facts seem clear. His Bloody Project is a mesmerising literary thriller set in an unforgiving landscape where the exercise of power is arbitrary. The year is 1869. A brutal triple murder in a remote community in the Scottish Highlands leads to the arrest of a young man by the name of Roderick Macrae. A memoir written by the accused makes it clear that he is guilty, but it falls to the country's finest legal and psychiatric minds to uncover what drove him to commit such merciless acts of violence. Was he mad? Only the persuasive powers of his advocate stand between Macrae and the gallows. Graeme Macrae Burnet tells an irresistible and original story about the provisional nature of truth, even when the facts seem clear. His Bloody Project is a mesmerising literary thriller set in an unforgiving landscape where the exercise of power is arbitrary. --back cover "A masterful psychological thriller." - Ian Stephen. A brutal triple murder in a remote northwestern crofting community in 1869 leads to the arrest of a young man by the name of Roderick Macrae. There's no question that Macrae is guilty, but the police and courts must uncover what drove him to murder the local village constable. And who were the other two victims? Ultimately, Macrae's fate hinges on one key question: is he insane? A story ingeniously recounted through the accused's memoir, trial transcripts and newspaper reports, His Bloody Project is a riveting literary thriller that will appeal to fans of Hannah Kent's Burial Rites. Documents relating to the case of Roderick Macrae. A brutal triple murder in a remote northwestern crofting community in 1869 leads to the arrest of a young man by the name of Roderick Macrae. There's no question that Macrae is guilty, but the police and courts must uncover what drove him to murder the local village constable. And who were the other two victims? Ultimately, Macrae's fate hinges on one key question: is he insane? A story ingeniously recounted through the accused's memoir, trial transcripts and newspaper reports, His Bloody Project is a riveting literary thriller that will appeal to fans of Hannah Kent's Burial Rites.