7 h 58 minAudiobook8 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
A bloody thumb mark points to one man. What if the evidence everyone trusts is wrong?
Diamonds vanish from a London safe, and a thumb mark seems to settle the case. Reuben Hornby stands accused, though he insists he is innocent. His solicitor turns to Dr. John Thorndyke, a medical man and barrister who asks what the mark can actually prove.
Dr. Christopher Jervis tells the story as he joins Thorndyke's inquiry. Together, they move between the laboratory and the world outside it, testing evidence rather than trusting first impressions. Superintendent Miller has faith in the fingerprint system. Juliet Gibson has faith in Reuben. Thorndyke must bring scientific care to a case others already consider closed.
What you’ll discover
- A mark under suspicion Follow a crime puzzle that asks whether a fingerprint alone can establish guilt.
- Science instead of hunches Watch Thorndyke turn to microscopes, experiments, and careful reasoning to examine the case.
- A companion with questions See the inquiry through Jervis, whose questions bring you closer to Thorndyke's methods.
- Innocence against certainty Meet an accused man whose defence depends on questioning evidence others accept.
- The laboratory meets the court Explore the uneasy relationship between scientific expertise, police confidence, and the search for justice.
Who will love it
For readers who love puzzles solved by reasoning and evidence, and anyone curious about how forensic science first met the courts.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A robbery and a bloody thumb mark
- Thorndyke and Jervis take the case
- The new science of fingerprints
- Thorndyke tests the evidence
- Justice, certainty and trust in experts
- How Freeman builds his mystery
Who’s who
- Dr. John ThorndykeA medical man and barrister who studies evidence with scientific care and takes on the defence of the accused.
- Dr. Christopher JervisThorndyke's friend and colleague, a younger doctor who tells the story and helps with the inquiry.
- Reuben HornbyA young man accused of the robbery because of the thumb mark, who insists he is innocent.
- PoltonThorndyke's assistant, a skilled maker of instruments who prepares the experiments in the laboratory.
- Mr. MarchmontThe solicitor for Reuben, who brings the case to Thorndyke and fears how heavily the print weighs.
- Juliet GibsonA young woman who believes in Reuben's innocence and hopes Thorndyke can prove it.
- Superintendent MillerA police officer who trusts the fingerprint system and sees the evidence against Reuben as sound.
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Il segno del pollice rosso
by R. Austin Freeman · 1907
A bloody thumb mark points to Reuben Hornby, and Dr. Thorndyke tests the evidence to defend him.
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In short
The Red Thumb Mark was published in 1907 and is the first novel by R. Austin Freeman to feature Dr.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A robbery and a bloody thumb mark
The story opens with a crime that looks simple. A safe has been opened and valuable diamonds are gone. The family and the police want to know who could have done it, and the first answer seems plain. Among the papers at the scene there is a mark made in blood, and it is the print of a thumb.
The print is compared with the thumbs of the people who might be guilty. It matches that of Reuben Hornby, a young man who has money troubles and a family connection to the place that was robbed. To the police this is more than a clue. At this date the fingerprint system was still new, and officials at Scotland Yard spoke of it as nearly beyond doubt.
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What is The Red Thumb Mark about?
It is a detective novel about a London robbery in which a bloody thumb mark points to a young man named Reuben Hornby. Dr. Thorndyke defends him and questions whether the fingerprint evidence can be trusted.
Who is Dr. Thorndyke?
Dr. John Thorndyke is a physician and barrister who acts as a medical and scientific expert in legal cases. R. Austin Freeman created him, and this novel was his first appearance in a book.
Who tells the story in The Red Thumb Mark?
Dr. Christopher Jervis tells it. He is Thorndyke's friend and colleague, a younger doctor who helps with the case and asks the questions a reader would ask.
The author
R. Austin Freeman
1862–1943 · British detective novelist
Richard Austin Freeman (1862–1943) was a British doctor and writer. He was born in London and died in Gravesend, Kent. He wrote detective novels and short stories featuring the medical investigator Dr John Thorndyke. His first Thorndyke novel, The Red Thumb Mark, was published in 1907.
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