The Mushroom Murders

The shocking story of a weekend lunch laced with a highly toxic mushroom, and a triple murder trial that gripped the world, shattered a family and gave a mother a life sentence.


LONGLISTED FOR THE 2026 INDIE BOOK AWARD FOR NON-FICTION 


On 29 July 2023, Erin Patterson hosted a family lunch at her home in the small regional Victorian town of Leongatha. She had invited her parents-in-law, Don and Gail Patterson, and Gail's sister, Heather Wilkinson, and her husband Ian.


Erin made beef Wellington for her guests, individual beef eye fillets covered in mushroom paste, wrapped in pastry. The following day, all four guests were taken to hospital, and Heather, Gail and Don died. Ian Wilkinson barely survived. A toxicologist found traces of the highly poisonous death cap mushroom in the remains of the meal. 


At first, it appeared to be a dreadful accident. As the police investigation continued, the evidence mounted, seeming to point one way. Yet Erin Patterson spun a web of lies, and steadfastly claimed she did not intend to harm her relatives. 


Greg Haddrick tells the fascinating inside story of the dramatic murder trial, and the forensic evidence that convinced the jury to convict a suburban mother of a gruesome triple murder. With many details not previously revealed in the media, it is the compelling story of a troubled family, and the world's most poisonous mushroom, which is readily found in parks and gardens.


'I enjoyed [it] immensely not for the horror of the tale itself, but for the insightful way it tackles this most intriguing story...a compelling tale.' - The Conversation 


Praise for Greg Haddrick's In the Dead of Night: 


'No one tells a true crime story better than Haddrick.' - John Silvester 


'As addictive as the best crime thrillers.' - Matthew Condon