Scotland Yard's early history in Victorian London has never previously been told. Dreadful Deeds and Awful Murders fills the gap, painting a vivid picture of the difficulties and considerable triumphs of London's first detectives.

The author presents detailed and intriguing accounts from the detectives' viewpoint, showing how they worked before the days of fingerprinting, blood tests, telephones or typewriters - when hunches really did form a large part of a sleuth's armoury.

The cases examined are set in their social and political context: the fledgling detectives had to pursue culprits in the face of severe press criticism, intense public interest, and frequent antagonism from magistrates, coroners, lawyers, and even prison governors.

Joan Lock draws extensively on contemporary reports and descriptions in newspapers, journals, police records, and fiction (including the works of Charles Dickens) in telling the story of determined and often brave pioneers.