The story of a dead woman in a tree and theories of witchcraft, gypsies, and prostitution keep this story intriguing, but the writing is terrible. I wish I enjoyed the book more.

This was such an interesting read that I had never heard of before, but once I started reading, I had to know more.
A fascinating read

This is the first book solely on the subject of the Hagley Wood Murder which looks at the fascinating tale of a unsolved murder from April 1943. Speculative theories from the possible to the unlikely to the ridiculous continue to the present day as who victim was and who placed her body inside of a Wych Elm tree in the Midlands. The woman believed to be in her 30's and who has still not been positively identified was found by 4 teenaged boys in April 1943.

The author M.J.Trow tell the reader that there has been theories on the murder including espionage to her the victim linked to prostitution. Other claims include her being a variety of nationalities and ethnic group however crime remains unsolved to this day.

The book is well written, very informative and earned to place among my true crime collation.

MJ Trow really knows his stuff and I am super excited about his upcoming podcast to find out more about his historical murder knowledge. This book did an amazing job at sifting through the possible stories for this particular cold case and I really enjoyed getting to think for myself through his amazing research.

In April 1943, four teenage boys discovered a corpse stuffed into the hole of a wych elm in the industrial Midlands area. The body had been in the tree for up to two years. The pathologist determined that she was female, probably in her thirties, had given birth at least once, and was just under five feet tall. Six months after the discovery, mysterious messages like ‘Who Put Bella Down the Wych Elm – Hagley Wood’ began appearing on walls in the area, and the victim became Bella. Unfortunately, no one could identify her, and her murder case was eventually closed decades later.
Over the years, various folks have tried to solve the crime. One author attributed her death to witchcraft while other theories posited Nazi or gypsy involvement. This book tells the stories of all the theories. While the details of the murder are murky and the crime remains unsolved, the fact remains that life is cheap.
This book is basically a true crime book, similar to a podcast with the author’s religious and social views sprinkled throughout. The author also shares mistakes made by the police and other authority figures during and after the investigation. His theory about Lavonia Stratford makes sense, too.
I appreciated the photos at the end. The book was fairly boring, though. I was expecting more of a novel rather than a documentary. The author’s personal politics were annoying at times, too.

Princess Fuzzypants here: This is a fascinating book that uses research to debunk the myths that have grown around the wartime murder of an unknown woman who ended up stuffed in a tree in Hagley Wood. The investigation was sloppy at best and the evidence has been lost forever but the author has painstakingly refuted the “facts” that were printed in books and articles zapping the embellishments and outright fabrications. She has little mercy for the people who decided to make the story more sensational..

She takes a couple to task but she reserves her greatest vitriol for the journalist whom she holds most responsible for the mythistory. I do like that word. It sums up so much of the drivel that passes for truth on the internet. It was not as easy back in the day for stories to take on a life of their own like it is now but this sad tale got lots of mileage and put more than a few quid in a number of pockets.

The author admits no one will ever know exactly what happened but she sorts the the stories of witchcraft, Nazi spies, gypsies and prostitutes and comes up with a plausible explanation. Whether the author is right or wrong, it is still a riveting book of how one historian can demolish decades of yellow journalism. Five purrs and two paws up.

Who put Bella down the Wych Elm?

This enigmatic graffiti appeared sporadically throughout Worcestershire, England, following the 1943 discovery of a woman’s corpse stuffed into the hollow trunk of a wych elm in Hagley Wood. The murder was thought to have taken place in 1941, as the remains had been skeletonized. In spite of extensive police work being done, the woman’s identity remains unknown.

While the case may seem impossibly cold, one researcher is determined to solve it. M.J. Trow has put forth his best analysis in The Hagley Wood Murder: Nazi Spies and Witchcraft in Wartime Britain released April, 2023 by Pen & Sword True Crime. This is the first book on the subject since Donald McCormick’s Murder by Witchcraft - a book of questionable value.

Trow is able to parse out fact from fiction thanks to the files of the case being made available to the public after it was deemed unsolvable in 2005. He assiduously analyzes the newspapers of the time, comparing their information with case files and McCormick’s later more fanciful account to get as close to the truth as possible.

Trow does much to contextualize the difficulties that World War II posed in solving the case. By studying what spies existed upon Britain’s soil, he is able to put to bed the notion that ‘Bella’ was liable to be a spy. Likewise, he contextualizes Margaret Murray’s comments about witchcraft in relation to the case to help better explain how unlikely that idea was.

Is the case solvable now? M.J. Trow does an excellent job postulating a possible solution for it. Whether or not his solution is the actual one is impossible to say, but he makes a more logical and compelling argument than anyone else has. By dispensing with some of the more outlandish speculation he leaves us with a much more human and intriguing case rooted within the life of the average person within the time period.

DNF

Pretentious writing, mockingly using the word woke and implying men in suits are discriminated against 🙄

I was lured in with witchcraft and nazi spies, not worth it

Readers can brace themselves to be woven through both fact and fiction in this true crime tale about Bella and the Wych Elm or the Hagley Wood Murder. This book does an amazing job of providing the reader many sources that bring forth questions on how reliable they are. No need to bring the devil's advocate while reading, Trow will bring his own for you to fully analyze this case!

I very much appreciated the author's information about not only the case itself, but also the time period with which this case happened in. The fact this event took place in WWII really sheds light on what was occurring in many towns across Europe, but particularly Britain, during the war. It provides an understanding of just how hard this time period would have been to bring justice to the victim, even in normal circumstances.

The case has never been solved and it's not hard to see why. Four boys finding the body and tampering with it, as well as the crime scene, to only keep it secret for several years completely rendered the area almost useless to the police once they were finally told. Then to the police also ruining the scene, in typical fashion for the time period, to the clothing of the victim providing no branding, tags, or any distinct features. There is just simply not enough evidence or information about the victim and the area for us to ever truly know what happened and who this victim was.

I had a hard time getting through the full book only because some sections were so detailed that you do need to read this carefully to fully understand all the complexities and persons involved. I also was a little frustrated at the constant mention of McCormick and his pitfalls/issues that he brought to this case. I understand why the author speaks about him throughout the book, but at times it did feel almost too nitpicky and overshadowed the crime.

Overall, this is a highly detailed and thorough review. I learned quite a few new tidbits and I'd encourage anyone to read it if they're interested in this case!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
Amazing historical true crime novel. Very interesting, well written and lots of research was put into it.
Highly recommend.

In this book, the author sets out to look in detail at the various stories, myths and speculative theories which have revolved around the case, since the discovery of her body by four boys in 1943. Everything from witchcraft to espionage as well as many other suggestions have been purported as theories of Bella's demise. Bella's identity was never discovered, let alone how or why she ended up dead inside of a tree.

This is the first book which pulls together all of these theories and examines them individually. It has been extensively researched and well written. It was easy to read and did not get too bogged down in any particular theory. Instead, the author presents us with a comprehensive guide to the case and the various opinions that have surfaced in the last eighty or so years.

The case was officially closed in 2005 as it was decided that there was no possibility of it being solved.

Whilst, the author has debunked the majority of the theories around this case, he does venture to impart his own, plausible theory of who Bella was and who murdered her.

I could not put this book down. Highly recommend if you love historical true crime books. I’ve heard of this case in the past and I love that the author wrote about it

I like historical true crime and this was excellent. A story about a mystery, endless theories and a good writer.
It was a pleasure and it kept me hooked.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

The Hagley Wood Murder took place 80 yrs. ago in the Midlands. In April 1943, four teenage boys discovered a corpse stuffed in a Wych Elm tree. It had been there for 2 yrs, a female about 30 yrs. old, had given birth and was just under 5 ft. tall. The cause of death was suffocation. "Who Put Bella Down the Wych Elm" began to appear on walls and the name Bella has stuck ever since. In 1968 a book on the case appeared by Donald McCormick Murder by Witchcraft tied Bella to the occult murder of Charles Walton on Meon ill in 1945. Lots of theories have since developed that the murder was a spy victim parachuted in by the Abwehr, the Nazi secret service. This book is the first book to unravel the fiction of McCormick. It names Bella and her probable murderer. The conclusion is that of a prostitute as one of the world's oldest profession and world's oldest crime. It goes over teeth that were missing and clothing that she was clothed in that was too big for her. I found the book very interesting and all the solutions to murder that were available. Bella has been thoroughly researched in this book by M.J. Trow and look forward to reading more about this murder. If you love true crime then you would enjoy reading this book. I would like to thank Pen Sword True Crime and NetGalley for a copy for an honest review.

A Superb Retelling…
A superb retelling of the so called ‘Who Put Bella Down The Wych Elm’ case - an unsolved case which, over the years, has drawn much speculation, discussion and theory. Who was the so called ‘Bella’ and who could have been her killer? This is, perhaps, the definitive and only full account documenting the crime which was discovered in Hagley Wood in April of 1943 by four teenage boys. Along the way, the author neatly unravels fact from fiction and ultimately provides his own theory of what really happened. Eminently readable, beautifully written, perfectly articulated and endlessly fascinating.

A very well written and researched book on the barely published story of Bella in the Wych Elm. From the way it’s written, you’re able to see just how much time and effort M J Trow has put into fully researching this topic. An in-depth and informative read.

The Hagley Wood Murder is the fascinating tale of a murder in April 1943 that gripped the country at the time and has continued to produce speculative theories from the possible to the unlikely to the outright ridiculous.

The unfortunate victim was a woman in her 30's who has still not been positively identified and was found by 4 teenaged boys in the someone what unlikely location of the inside of a Wych Elm tree in the Midlands. With the word "Wych" in this context being entirely misunderstood a the case has gone down in urban myth as involving the supernatural with dark rituals and sacrifices spoken about in local legend and sensationalist books. As author M.J.Trow explains there have been many other exotic theories involving espionage ,in yet more trashy books and with the victim being linked to prostitution and being "expertly" claimed to be of a variety of nationalities and ethnic groups to add to the confusion as the crime remained unsolved.
As well as a relatively mundane, but eminently more likely, theory of his own M.J.Trow paints a picture of wartime Britain that is somewhat at odds with the "Blitz spirit" of tradition with it's soaring crime rate and opportunism.
An excellent,thought-provoking and very entertaining book with the author doing his own detective work despite virtually zero remaining evidence and all of those involved in the original investigation now passed.

I received a free copy of, The Hagley Wood Murder, by M J Trow, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. The Hagley Wood murder happened 8o years ago, in April 1943, 4 teenage boys found a corpse. Such a sad story about a women who has been dead for maybe 2 years, whos bones were found. A very good, informative read, I enjoyed it.

The Hagley Wood Murder discusses the true, unsolved murder of Bella, who was found by 4 young boys in the wych elm.

The writing style in this book is very beauty and ornate, which for me, was difficult to follow. I had a hard time reading through the book and struggled to understand exactly what was being said. There was also a lot of information that I didn’t feel was pertinent to the story. For example, why do I, as a reader, need to know that the hagley boys drank orange juice with oil? In my opinion, the book is geared towards an audience of scholars as it reminded me of a pbs documentary rather than a book for everyone to enjoy, such as a popular Netflix docuseries. Perhaps I will finish this at a later date, but as for now, I cannot finish it. I’ll rate it 3 stars, the book is well done, but not for someone like me.

This is about an old murder from 1943 in Britain when four boys were out looking for bird’s nests and found someone had stuffed a body in a hollow wych elm. Through the years it’s become a legend rather than a true story with known details. Much misinformation was spread around, which just drew the story in strange directions, as if it weren’t already a bizarre story.