The Black Hand, vol. 16
The Butcher of Rostov and adventures in DNA analysis
Okay, this is a thing I would write into a book and my editor would immediately say, “That sounds impossible – please delete”.
I was reading on Wikipedia (as you do) about the investigation around Andrei Chikatilo, also known as the Butcher of Rostov. Chikatilo confessed to murdering 56 women and children in particularly gruesome ways in the Soviet Union from 1978-1990, and he was convicted for 52 of the murders.
And (excuse me, but look away or skip this section if you’re a bit squeamish about body fluids) this was the sentence that jumped out at me while I was reading:
“A sample of Chikatilo's blood was taken; the results of which revealed his blood group to be type A, whereas semen samples found upon a total of six victims murdered by the unknown killer throughout the spring and summer of 1984 had been classified by medical examiners to be type AB. Chikatilo's name was added to the card index file used by investigators; however, the results of his blood type analysis largely discounted him as being the unknown killer.”
This struck me as being completely extraordinary – that a crime suspect had gotten away with murder for another six years because a fluke of genetics meant that his body fluids were of different types.
I dug around about this a little more, because my first reaction was “Well this can’t be right, it was probably because the medical examiners made a mistake or mis-classified the samples”. An American forensics expert, Edward Blake, also theorized that the examiners had just been sloppy.
But in later years, forensic science discovered that it’s quite possible.
“The forensic scientists later claimed that Chikatilo must be a unique individual whose blood type differed between a blood sample and a semen sample. No other scientists at that time took this theory seriously and it was generally regarded that the samples had been mixed up or the tests simply botched.
Unfortunately, this theory of non-secretors proved true some time later after his final arrest when it was found out that a secretor status refers to blood protein antigen/antibody markers, which were used in the "classical" serological methods of blood identification in the days before the advent of DNA analysis. Secretors secrete these bloodmarkers into their other body fluids (saliva, tears, sweat, milk, etc.) while non-secretors do not. Therefore, the blood type of a secretor can be determined by testing body fluids other than blood, but would need actual blood to confirm the blood type of a non-secretor. About 80% of the population are secretors, and about 20% are non-secretors. Secretor status is of rapidly diminishing relevance today. Few labs (in the USA at least) do antigen/antibody analysis anymore, because DNA methods are so much more definitive. Secretor status is irrelevant in DNA analysis.”
So you can, for example, have Type A blood and saliva, and your semen can be of a different type. And before 1985, when DNA analysis came into common forensic use, it would have been very easy to get away with murder.
Like I said, if I wrote this into a book, I would get fired.
THE KILLING CODE Aus cover
You may have noticed that this month’s newsletter is a week late – soz!
That’s because last week I was a bit caught up in the cover reveal for the Australia/Oceania edition of THE KILLING CODE – look at this beauty, she’s so lovely 😊
And a little birdy (ie. a nice bookseller at Readings Books) has told me that reading copies of the book are already out in the wild. This is amazing! Also slightly terrifying! It’s amazing because I’m excited that people are getting to know my gorgeous codegirls…but it’s also scary, knowing my book is being read.
I don’t know why it’s still scary – I’ve written eleven books, and the book-release-nerves are always the same. I guess that’s just the way my author brain rolls.
What I’m reading
The Terror by Dan Simmons is an 800+ page epic about the doomed 1845 Franklin expedition to find the fabled Northwest passage through the Arctic. Sir John Franklin led the expedition of the two ships, HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, to the frozen wastes of the north, where the ships subsequently became trapped in the winter ice and endured years of darkness, paranoia, hypothermia, lead poisoning, starvation, scurvy, cannibalism, and nightmarish temperatures of -55 degrees Celsius during what is now considered to be some of the least favourable conditions in the Arctic in 700 years (it was so cold, your teeth could literally shatter in your jaw if you stayed outside too long).
The book focuses not on the ambitious and vainglorious Sir John Franklin, but on his second, the canny and thoughtful Irishman Francis Crozier, who captained the Terror. Simmons jazzes up proceedings by having the men not only stuck in place but under attack by a huge and horrifying beast which is picking them off one by one…
This kind of historically-accurate, deeply researched story with a touch of horror is thoroughly my jam! Despite the book’s length, I was completely engrossed for the entire freezing journey, and the story ends in a particularly interesting and satisfying way.
I just found out that The Terror has been turned into a TV series on Amazon Prime with the wonderful Jared Harris in the lead role, so I’m definitely watching that, although I hear it doesn’t stick the landing as successfully as the book – let’s find out.
THE KILLING CODE characters
Hooray! I finally get to introduce you to my lovely codegirls!
Welcome to the world, Kit, Moya, Dottie and Violet! Keep an eye out for some fabulous character cards for the girls, available through the preorder campaign for THE KILLING CODE coming next month (there will be other goodies too! Hang onto your preorder/library order receipts!).
And huge thanks to Ana Radovcich, the amazing artist who brought my girls to life – you can find an interview with Ana in the last edition of The Black Hand. Please do check out Ana’s work at @unukapartizana on IG – Ana has been visiting family in Croatia, and just got in touch a few days ago to say she broke her leg and her wrist after a fall on a walking path, so please send some good wishes her way!
What I’m watching
The Boys – that’s it, I’m watching The Boys.
Yes, it’s gross, and profane, and gory, and disgusting, and anarchic, and intense, but I can’t help it – I love it. It’s the anti-Marvel of it all that fascinates me, and how it answers the question that every comic-book reader has surely had at least once, which is “what happens if superheroes have just as many human vices as the rest of us?”
Alan Moore addressed this question, and also the show Invincible, and many others – but no one has done it with such chaotic hilarity (and so many flying body fluids) as The Boys.
THE KILLING CODE preorders
Did I already tell you to hold onto your receipts? Hold onto your receipts!
If you preorder the book, or order it through your local public library, you’ll be eligible to enter the preorder giveaway. There will be prizes for everyone who enters, and the campaign is open international.
It’s starting next month, and I’ll let you know when All Systems Are Go🚀
How to Correctly Get Rid of A Dead Body
Now, back in April we discussed a few of the patently wrong ways to get rid of a body – things like backyard bonfires and putting your inconveniently-dead person through a woodchipper (nope, don’t do that).
So this month, I once again insert my disclaimer that whatever my readers do with this tasty information is none of my legal concern – and finally I get to share with you a few ways to dispose of a corpse that are both correct and (somewhat) easier than the above-mentioned woodchipper. Read on…
1. Piranha solution
Decomposing a body in acid has been a mainstay of crime fiction – and actual criminals – for decades. But plain old hydrofluoric acid won’t cut it: You need a bathtub full of piranha solution, which is a mix of sulfuric acid and hydrogen peroxide. Oh, and you’ll want a pretty great ventilation hood, and it’ll take a while. Please remember to neutralize the solution with ice (to balance the exothermic reaction, ie – it’ll get real hot) and sodium or potassium hydroxide before disposal down the drain.
2. Fire up the medical incinerator
It’s impractical to burn a body in your backyard – so don’t do that! Go to the experts! The medical industry uses specialised incinerators to dispose of waste; the diesel burners reach temperatures over 1000 degrees C, and special blowers increase air pressure to make things go faster. The resulting ash will be just 3% of your pesky body’s original volume, and then you can simply…scatter it around. Medical incinerators are the boss – if you can get access to one of these babies, this is the superior way to go.
3. Bury in another person’s grave
Got a dead body and don’t know what to do with it? Have you considered disposing of it in someone else’s grave? It worked for this dude – his crime wasn’t discovered until he confessed to it and led detectives to the burial site. It’s the old ‘can’t see the wood for the trees’ rule: If you’re going for secrecy, don’t dig a suspiciously-fresh grave in your backyard, just dump the body in an existing cemetery plot!
4. Add your deceased person to a building footer
The mafia has been doing this for ages, and it works – mainly because once a building is set on top of the concrete foundation, your dead body is pretty hard to find. The lye and alkali in concrete, plus the way concrete heats up when it cures, means that the body will be mostly eroded even if it is discovered. Nifty! If it’s good enough for Jimmy Hoffa, it’s good enough for you.
5. Weighted ocean disposal
Look, you can’t really go past the ocean as a disposal site – it’s just so darned big. And if you cut up your dead body and sufficiently weigh the pieces before you heave them over the side of a boat, there’s no reason why your dead person is likely to be found. Body parts in the ocean are usually broken down quickly due to decomposition and the action of crabs, fish, and other predators. Apart from the messy ‘cutting up the body’ aspect, this is a cheap and comparatively convenient method of disposal.
6. Try a big hole in the ground
I live near an old gold-mining area – and let me tell you, people have been finding bodies dumped in old mine shafts around here for years. Don’t have an old mine shaft? What about an old well, or maybe a nearby natural cave? Properly arranged, it might look as though your dead person went for a walk and just…got very lost.
SOME SHALL BREAK
Okay, I’ve been waiting to tell you this for literally ages…
I’m absolutely stoked to announce that the sequel to NONE SHALL SLEEP, which is called SOME SHALL BREAK, is releasing through LBYR and Allen & Unwin in June next year!
Here’s me getting dramatic about it over on TikTok:
This book has been such a ride – first it wasn’t happening at all, then it was going out as a serial in my newsletter, then it was in publishing negotiation hell for ages, and now at last I get to say the book will be traditionally released with an ebook and an audiobook next year. Hurrah! Also, phew! I’m deeply relieved that it all worked out this way and I finally (FINALLY!) get to talk about it!
If you’re keen to get in on the behind-the-scenes info about the progress of the book toward publication (including advance copies, personalised release copies, and special book swag, as well as peeks into my writing notebooks, the development of the book as it was written, cover progressions and more) – might I encourage you to subscribe to my paywalled newsletter NAILBITERS? I’ll be giving plenty of updates here, especially as we get closer to release, but Nailbiters is where I’m sharing all the really juicy stuff.
LoveOzYAbookclub
This month’s title is a debut by Australian author Lauren Draper, THE MUSEUM OF BROKEN THINGS – come along and read with us! We’re very easy going!
Send me your links!
Hey, I’ve been thinking lately about how I’d like to show some appreciation to my bookish readers – I know some of you have bookstagram, booktube, bookTwitter and booktok accounts, and that you’re probably posting lovely things there. So send me your links, and I’ll follow and signal boost them!
This newsletter is going out to more than six hundred subscribers now, and I have a bunch of followers online who might like to hear about you if you’re doing cool bookish things online. So hit me up anytime with your @ names or account links – I’ll give you a boost here in The Black Hand and on other platforms. Let’s share the love!
And that’s all from me this month. It’s absolutely freezing here on Djadjawurrung country in Victoria (not as freezing as those poor blokes trying to find the Northwest Passage, but it sure feels cold), so I hope you’re staying warm and not getting scurvy. Thank you all for being so excited about THE KILLING CODE and SOME SHALL BREAK online! That has been so lovely, and all the comments I’ve received from people have been enormously positive – it’s lit up these gloomy winter months for me, and I truly appreciate it.
Until next time, stay well and happy reading 😊
xxEllie