The Cause of Death - Dr Cynric Temple-Camp (Harper Collins New Zealand) $39.99

Strange and shocking stories of death and murder in provincial New Zealand.  You won't believe these stories happened in New Zealand... Forensic and coronial pathologist Dr Cynric Temple-Camp lifts the lid on some of the most fascinating cases he's worked on during his 30-year career as a pathologist, moving from Zimbabwe to Palmerston North.  Temple-Camp gives us all the gritty details from his 30 year career a handful of obscure and well known, high profile cases including attending Mark Lundy's Privy Council hearing.

Always expect the unexpected from the dead, says Temple-Camp.  Usually, pathologists don’t talk to or meet the families of patients, so getting clearance from them to write about their loved ones’ deaths was a challenge both professionally and emotionally, he says. Work on a sudden death takes a "little debit against their emotional energy" and burnouts in the industry are par for the course, he says “I don’t believe anybody is immune to this sort of sorrow.”

However, meeting the families turned out to be one of the best things about writing the book.  Some of the deaths date back 30 years so many people were shocked to hear from him.  “So many of them said ‘We never knew the story, and thank you for telling us the story and thank you for looking after my loved one… and telling their story, letting them speak.”
This is what makes Temple-Camp's book more than just another cold hard facts account.  The interviews with families give a more rounded view of the cases and also let in some of the emotional values.  It is always hard when you've lost a loved one in tragic circumstances but perhaps we can empathise more when we know the full story.  It can also give some intresting spins on our own assumptions.

Photo: Stuff.co.nz

Take the case of the mysterious discovery of the naked body of a woman, found prone against a fence near an airport control.  On initial analysis it appeared that she'd been severely beaten.  Dutifully, Temple-Camp told the police that the man responsible was a psychopath who would likely kill again.  The police had interrogated the woman’s husband for three days, before the true cause of her death emerged.  Apparently she was mauled by a bull.  “This lady kept cows. She had a bull that she’d raised herself – I think it was a cross Ayrshire Friesian bull. This bull was known to be quite antagonistic to people. And it had jumped the fence and caught her.”  The woman had a theory that should you be attacked by a bull, you could distract them by throwing a piece of clothing to the ground and making a getaway.  “This is what she’d done, and her clothes were strewn right across the paddock – but the bull caught her at the fence.”

Then there's the baffling case of a recluse found lying on his bed with what initially appeared to be a bullet wound between his eyes.  Again, on further investigation the truth came out differently to what was expected...