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Tom Wood
A Best Selling True Crime Writer, Podcaster, Columnist
& Retired Detective
(With 'Ruxton the First Modern Murder' Shortlisted for the Prestigious Scottish National Book Awards '21 by the Saltire Society & the Publisher's Top Selling Book in '21, '22 & '23).
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Newspaper & Magazine Columnist Plus Podcaster Sharing Stories and Opinions on Crimes Past & Present - With Almost Four Decades of Extensive Experience in Policing.
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Also a Leading Authority & Spokesperson on
Criminal Matters, Drugs & Alcohol.
A Little About Tom
Tom Wood was born and bred in Edinburgh, where he spent almost four-decades in the police and was one of Scotland’s most senior and experienced operational police officers.
He has an extraordinary career spanning from ‘bobby on the beat’ in Stockbridge to senior ranking posts in the police.
Much of Tom’s career was spent in CID and investigating some of the country’s most serious crimes. And now, he’s a respected authority on criminal matters, a newspaper and magazine columnist, podcaster and published author of true crime.
And when he’s not writing, Tom is a keen motorcyclist and sailor but most enjoys the challenges presented by his brood of grandchildren!
Tom's Most Recent True Crime Book
'Ruxton - The First Modern Murder'
Available in Audiobook (Buy Now), Kindle Edition or Print Version (Buy Now)
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"Fascinating and unforgettable, this book exposes a darkly sinister tale to the light, offering novel insights into not only the criminal case but how its investigation acted as a catalyst for the transformation of modern policing and forensics. Ruxton benefits from a rigorous and resourceful research process, without ever compromising on pace or readability. A decisive moment in criminal history is examined with intelligence, clarity and originality."
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This famous murder case, was the story, according to Tom, that "had to be written!"
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In writing Ruxton - The First Modern Murder, Tom draws upon his huge wealth of over 40 years’ experience in the police and conducting cold case reviews. It’s the only book currently on the market, which tells the incredible inside story of one of the most complex murder investigations (taking place in 1935 in Lancaster), that the world had ever seen and the ground-breaking work of Scottish forensic scientists who developed new techniques to solve the case and shaped the future of scientific criminal investigation, worldwide.
Many elements of the book are like a cold case review - where you take a step back and tell the story whilst also making observations and interpretations based on the behavioural characteristics of the crime type.
Tom gained access to previously unseen documents, some of which hadn’t been looked at for over 80 years. He felt a real passion to tell this great, gripping, true life murder story. And felt a sense of duty to convey the ‘behind the scenes’ story and bring some of these forgotten Scottish heroes in the fields of forensics, anatomy and policing into the limelight because those that worked on this ground-breaking case were amazingly talented, trail blazers of their time, who advanced the way criminal investigations were handled forever and these people deserved deeper recognition!
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"I kept always two books in my pocket, one to read, one to write in."
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Robert Louis Stevenson
Get In Touch
One of the best aspects about being an author, is hearing feedback from my readers.
I'm also available for media opportunities, covering the fields of criminal matters as well as the police's perspective on drugs and alcohol as well as book talks and lectures. I look forward to hearing from you.
