Book review: Why did Pistorius pull the trigger?

Harriet Alexander searches for clues in the revealing ­biographies of Oscar Pistorius and the woman he killed

Oscar Pistorius posing next to his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in Johannesburg in January 2013. AFP PHOTO / WALDO SWIEGERS

Oscar Pistorius, writes John Carlin at the end of his book on the fallen star, is "an enigma - a man of many masks." And this account of Pistorius's life and trial lays bare the conflicting sides of the athlete's character.

Carlin is reluctant to be drawn into offering an opinion on the tragic hero/murderous monster debate, noting that everyone had an opinion on the murder case. "The brutal question on the lips of many was whether he felt more sorry for what he had done to Reeva Steenkamp, or what he had done to himself," he writes.