The Last Thursday in July - Andrew Hanscombe

It would have been very difficult to say anything negative about this book, which tells the story of André Hanscombe and the son he had had with Rachel Nickell, the young woman stabbed to death on Wimbledon Common in 1992. Fortunately there is nothing negative to say about the book itself, because The Last Thursday in July is well-written, dignified, and moving. It isn't a true-crime book: it's a true-life book, describing what happens to those close to a murder victim who has captured the attention of the media. Hanscombe recognizes clearly enough why his girlfriend did this: she was blonde, white, good-looking, innocent, and died in a particularly ...  Read the complete review

Murders are always upsetting. We read the details with a mixture of extreme horror, compassion for the victims and a selfish relief that we or our loved ones have been spared the agony of such violence. I picked up this book from the library as I had often wondered how little Alex, the son of Rachel Nickell was progressing, having witnessed the violent murder of his young and beautiful mother on a sunny Thursday morning in July. I presumed Andre Hanscombe's book would give an insight into this, but never dreamt when I started it that it would be so movingly well written and beautiful a story. The book tells of the couple's love story, how they ...  Read the complete review