About this title: In 1941, Josslyn Hay, the 22nd Earl of Erroll was found murdered in a decadent colonial British outpost called Happy Valley, near Nairobi, Kenya. This book is a nonfiction account of the mysterious circumstances surrounding the killing, based on newspaper accounts, interviews, and trial transcripts.
Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Binding: PAPERBACK
Publisher: Random House UK Distribution
ISBN-13:9780099766711ISBN:009976671X
Description: Good. 009976671X Earlier smaller paperback same content exactly-Aside from newer introduction/Afterward, original text has never changed, Standard Used Condition, some cover wear, different cover, No writing or Highlighting, some minor spine creases, minor age tan-well bound and solid, sold for content. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Date Published: 1988
ISBN-13:9780140106879ISBN:0140106871
Description: Acceptable. Reading Copy Only-Expect Signs Of Wear, And Perhaps A Little Damage *** Expect to receive a well read copy-The condition of the book will be readable, perhaps with heavy creasing and some damage. You wouldn't want to give it as a present-Dispatched in padded packaging. ** UK SELLER-Get it in days not weeks ** read more
Edition: First edition/1st Printing
Binding: Trade Paperback
Publisher: Vintage Books, New York, New York, U.S.A.
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780394723662ISBN:039472366X
Description: Good+ 8vo-over 7¾"-9¾" tall. 299 pages, clean text, cover has some wear, sticker, . creasing. Previous owners stamp on fly page. Foxing. read more
Edition: Reprint
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Penguin Books, Harmondsworth, Middlesex, UK
Date Published: 1986
ISBN-13:9780140067903ISBN:0140067906
Description: Very Good. 7" Tall. 299 pages incl index. Page-edges/margins lightly yellowed o/w a very clean & very tidy copy. TWO COPIES AVAILABLE. read more
Binding: PAPERBACK
Publisher: Random House UK Distribution
ISBN-13:9780099766711ISBN:009976671X
Description: Very Good. 009976671X Slight Shelf Wear, Excellent Copy! ! Buy with confidence! Please leave feedback after your purchase. It helps other buyers know we are a responsible and reliable seller. Thank you! read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Vintage
Date Published: 1998
ISBN-13:9780099766711ISBN:009976671X
Description: Good. **SHIPPED FROM UK** We believe you will be completely satisfied with our quick and reliable service. All orders are dispatched as swiftly as possible! Buy with confidence! read more
Description: Good. Former Library book. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Description: Very Good. 0394756878 Mass Market Paperback, Condition: Very Good; this book is in very good condition with light discoloration due to aging and other light wear. read more
Description: Acceptable. Former Library book. Shows definite wear, and perhaps considerable marking on inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Jonathan Cape
Date Published: 1982
ISBN-13:9780224017312ISBN:0224017314
Description: Good. EXCELLENT value for money and ready for dispatch. Delivery usually within 3/5 days. Our reputation is built on our Speedy Delivery Service and our Customer Service Team. read more
Description: Very Good. 0394756878 Mass Market Paperback, Condition: Very Good; this book is in very good condition with light curve to the spine / light reading creases to the covers. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Date Published: 1988
ISBN-13:9780140106879ISBN:0140106871
Description: Good. **SHIPPED FROM UK** We believe you will be completely satisfied with our quick and reliable service. All orders are dispatched as swiftly as possible! Buy with confidence! read more
"James Fox is a wonderful writer and is able to tell a fascinating tale of sex, drugs, and murder in colonial Africa during the 1940's. He can pique your interest in the story of a bunch of titled , boorish, Brits who traveled to Kenya to party. They truly had no redeeming value. However, there is some voyeuristic pleasure in studying the lives of these wealthy and highly educated, hedonists who were pampering and pleasuring themselves with sex and drugs while a Wold War was raging in Europe and 6 million human beings were being exterminated for social cleansing. I would suggest that upon reading this book that you pick up Wildflower about another woman and her husband who go to Kenya about a generation later. The dichotomy of the two mind sets is stunning."
"The subject matter is fascinating; the book is not. The first part of the book gives a basic rundown on the setting, people and events of the 1941 murder of aristocrat and famed playboy Lord Errol in British colonial Kenya, up to and including the court case of the sole man accused of the murder (who was acquitted). Although this part read like an extended newspaper article, I wish this had been the premise of the entire book. For it was the second part of the book that made me lose interest.
The second part (over half the book) focuses on the research, interviews and speculation done over 20 years after-the-fact by the author and his mentor Cyril Connolly, the British writer and literary critic. They'd published an article about the case in 1969, and after Connolly's death in 1974, Fox resumed their cold case detective work in homage to his mentor. The end result is this book, which gives more weight to the latter-day investigation and the personality of Cyril Connolly than to the story of the murder itself. The second part got so tedious, I eventually had to bail."
"The louche behaviour of the residents of Happy Valley, Kenya led to all sorts of affairs and intrigue and perhaps it was no surprise when someone was murdered after all the jealousies that had been aroused by numerous affairs. Lord Erroll was the unfortunate party but no-one was ever convicted of his murder despite extensive police investigation. 'Jock' Broughton was charged and acquitted but many felt that he was guilty and Cyril Connolly began a later investigation into the affair. This is what the book is based on and it would seem that Broughton may well have been the guilty party, a fact that comes out in a well researched and well written book about a fascinating world that, presumably, exists no longer."
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