Daisy de Melker: Hanged for Murder - Ted Botha
Daisy de Melker: Hanged for Murder
A Gripping, Modern True-Crime History of South Africa’s Most Infamous Poisoner
Bibliographic Specifications
- Title: Daisy de Melker: Hanged for Murder
- Author: Ted Botha
- Publisher: Jonathan Ball Publishers, Johannesburg
- Publication Date: 2023
- ISBN-13: 9781776192779
- Edition Details: First Edition, Standard Softcover Release.
- Binding: Original publisher's premium heavy-gauge illustrated card wrappers with modern matte finishing.
- Physical Format: Octavo (8vo), 288 pages. Features a central section of historical crime scene and court photographs.
- Language: English
Official Condition Report
- The Book: Very Good Plus (VG+)
- Exterior / Wraps: The pictorial softcover wrappers are bright, clean, and perfectly flat. Shows only the slightest, microscopic hint of handling friction along the bottom rear edge. The spine is completely uncreased and unbroken.
- Interior: The inner pages are exceptionally crisp, bright white, and immaculate. The binding is completely firm, and the book shows no evidence of being heavily read. Free from any ink marks or turned corners.
- The Dust Jacket: Not Applicable (As Issued).
Synopsis & Historical Value
In Daisy de Melker: Hanged for Murder, acclaimed author Ted Botha re-examines the chilling trial and execution of South Africa’s ultimate black widow. In 1932, Daisy de Melker gripped the nation when she was accused of poisoning two former husbands and her own son with arsenic and strychnine. Botha utilizes fresh archival digging, newly unearthed letters, and trial transcripts to bypass the sensational mythos, delivering an atmospheric, deep psychological review of 1930s Johannesburg and a judicial system under severe scrutiny. It is an essential modern true-crime collectible copy.
Author Profile: Ted Botha
Ted Botha is a highly accomplished contemporary South African author and investigative journalist. Known for his keen eye for narrative non-fiction, his works are celebrated for their meticulous pacing, journalistic depth, and ability to breathe new life into historic true-crime events.
