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Terror to the Wicked: America's First Trial by Jury That Ended a War and Helped to Form a Nation
A brutal killing, an all-out manhunt, and a riveting account of the first murder trial in U.S. history--set in the 1600s in colonial New England against the backdrop of the Pequot War (between the Pequot tribe and the colonists of Massachusetts Bay), an explosive trial whose outcome changed the course of history, ended a two-year war, and brought about a peace that allowed the colonies to become a full-blown nation.
The year: 1638. The setting: Providence, Plymouth Colony. A young Nipmuc tribesman, returning home from trading beaver pelts, is fatally stabbed in a robbery in the woods near Plymouth Colony, by a white runaway servant and fellow rogues. The young tribesman, fighting for his life, is able, with his final breaths, to reveal the details of the attack to Providence's governor, Roger Williams. A frantic manhunt by the fledgling government of Plymouth ensues, followed by the convening of the first trial, with Plymouth's governor Thomas Prence presiding as judge. The jury: local settlers (white) whose allegiance seems more likely to be with the accused than with the murdered (a native) . . .
Tobey Pearl, piecing together a fascinating narrative through original research and first-rate detective work, re-creates in detail the full and startling, pivotal moment in pre-revolutionary America, as she examines the evolution of our nascent civil liberties and the role of the jury as a safeguard against injustice.
The year: 1638. The setting: Providence, Plymouth Colony. A young Nipmuc tribesman, returning home from trading beaver pelts, is fatally stabbed in a robbery in the woods near Plymouth Colony, by a white runaway servant and fellow rogues. The young tribesman, fighting for his life, is able, with his final breaths, to reveal the details of the attack to Providence's governor, Roger Williams. A frantic manhunt by the fledgling government of Plymouth ensues, followed by the convening of the first trial, with Plymouth's governor Thomas Prence presiding as judge. The jury: local settlers (white) whose allegiance seems more likely to be with the accused than with the murdered (a native) . . .
Tobey Pearl, piecing together a fascinating narrative through original research and first-rate detective work, re-creates in detail the full and startling, pivotal moment in pre-revolutionary America, as she examines the evolution of our nascent civil liberties and the role of the jury as a safeguard against injustice.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published March 16, 2021
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813 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
May 24, 2022
Trigger warning: racism, murder, puritans
My biggest problem with this book is how disorganized it is. The author frequently stops the story itself to discuss the history of jury trials or one man’s problems with his farm being too marshy. Unfortunately I feel like there’s simply not enough information about the Peach trial to fill a book of this length. In the trial itself, the author says that no one knows what Peach actually said, which I would argue is one of the most interesting things about a trial.
I think the book would have gone better if it started with all the history stuff that the author spread out through the action, and then the murder, and then the trial.
My biggest problem with this book is how disorganized it is. The author frequently stops the story itself to discuss the history of jury trials or one man’s problems with his farm being too marshy. Unfortunately I feel like there’s simply not enough information about the Peach trial to fill a book of this length. In the trial itself, the author says that no one knows what Peach actually said, which I would argue is one of the most interesting things about a trial.
I think the book would have gone better if it started with all the history stuff that the author spread out through the action, and then the murder, and then the trial.
December 27, 2023
I picked this up in the library on a whim. It was interesting, very readable, and spoke to events I’d never heard of, and a time period not well known to me at all. I learned more about colonial New England from this book than all of my grammar school social studies classes! It was a little disjointed and took a lot of detours, as some other reviewers pointed out, but I think that was important to the purpose of the book, which was to bring to life the lives of the very different people across multiple cultures who populated this land in this era, and provide more context to why this trial was so consequential. I very much appreciated the author’s framing for details that were purely speculative, based on similar events — always up front about the fact that they were speculative, yet still informative and based on what evidence survives.
December 17, 2022
What better reading for jury duty than a book about a America’s first jury trial?
Terror to the Wicked was pretty good, in a history-nerd kind of way. Arthur Peach, an indentured servant in Plymouth, is accused of murdering a trader from the Nipmuc tribe. Men from four colonies and four tribes come together to decide if there is enough evidence to come to a clear verdict and convict the killer. The story of the actual crime and trial of Arthur Peach wouldn’t really make a whole book, however significant the case’s handling was. However the author goes to great lengths to present the backgrounds of the people and context of the events. This all was a fascinating deep dive into the details of the era, which your average history class doesn’t have time to delve into. I was also impressed by the author’s fair treatment of all parties involved. The title itself felt like a bit of a bait-and-switch, since I thought the Terror to the Wicked was the Jury itself, and it turned out to be one of the men in the story (but no spoilers!) Overall I’d recommend the book, especially if you get called in for jury duty yourself!
The majority of people to whom I mentioned my upcoming jury duty immediately responded with a variation of “You can probably get out of it.”
To you I present the Declaration of Independence, which lists as a proof of the King of England’s “absolute Tyranny over these States” as
“depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury.” Randomized and inconvenient though it may be, jury duty is actually essential to our government.
Jury duty for me ended up being mostly waiting for someone’s case to go to trial, and none ever did. But technically we served a vital role, and also I got to spend the day reading in a quiet room. 📚
Terror to the Wicked was pretty good, in a history-nerd kind of way. Arthur Peach, an indentured servant in Plymouth, is accused of murdering a trader from the Nipmuc tribe. Men from four colonies and four tribes come together to decide if there is enough evidence to come to a clear verdict and convict the killer. The story of the actual crime and trial of Arthur Peach wouldn’t really make a whole book, however significant the case’s handling was. However the author goes to great lengths to present the backgrounds of the people and context of the events. This all was a fascinating deep dive into the details of the era, which your average history class doesn’t have time to delve into. I was also impressed by the author’s fair treatment of all parties involved. The title itself felt like a bit of a bait-and-switch, since I thought the Terror to the Wicked was the Jury itself, and it turned out to be one of the men in the story (but no spoilers!) Overall I’d recommend the book, especially if you get called in for jury duty yourself!
The majority of people to whom I mentioned my upcoming jury duty immediately responded with a variation of “You can probably get out of it.”
To you I present the Declaration of Independence, which lists as a proof of the King of England’s “absolute Tyranny over these States” as
“depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury.” Randomized and inconvenient though it may be, jury duty is actually essential to our government.
Jury duty for me ended up being mostly waiting for someone’s case to go to trial, and none ever did. But technically we served a vital role, and also I got to spend the day reading in a quiet room. 📚
December 26, 2025
In the earliest years of English colonial settlement in North America, violence was a daily reality. Yet, violence in context is at the core of this study by author Tobey Pearl. In 1638, the first war with Native Americans in New England was just coming to an end. The Pequot War saw an escalation in the level of violence employed to achieve victory to the horrors of “total war”, in which not only male combatants were killed in battle, but women and children as well, with their homes and fields burned and laid waste. Coming at the tail end of such a brutal conflict, the killing of one young Indian man by one white colonist seems unlikely to have even been noticed, much less to have been the start of the Plymouth Bay Colony’s most consequential murder trial.
Pearl examines the trial of Arthur Peach and his three companions, who had served as indentured servants, but ran off into the wilderness. Desperate and dangerous, they attacked and mortally wounded a Nipmuc man named Penowanyanquis. While he was able to escape his assailants, he died shortly afterward from the injuries sustained by the unprovoked attack. Yet, he was able to describe the attack, including the number of assailants and the location to new Providence colony leader Roger Williams. The resulting trial saw an established precedent of how jury trials would be conducted, setting the stage for the modern American trial by jury system for capital crimes.
I appreciate Pearl’s ability to avoid taking sides. She carefully examines the factors for all, including the four condemned attackers. She also does justice to exploring the nature of relationships between Anglo settlers and the Native American peoples, including the Wampanoag, Narragansett, Nipmuc, and Pequot, with whom the English colonists lived and shared the land.
Pearl examines the trial of Arthur Peach and his three companions, who had served as indentured servants, but ran off into the wilderness. Desperate and dangerous, they attacked and mortally wounded a Nipmuc man named Penowanyanquis. While he was able to escape his assailants, he died shortly afterward from the injuries sustained by the unprovoked attack. Yet, he was able to describe the attack, including the number of assailants and the location to new Providence colony leader Roger Williams. The resulting trial saw an established precedent of how jury trials would be conducted, setting the stage for the modern American trial by jury system for capital crimes.
I appreciate Pearl’s ability to avoid taking sides. She carefully examines the factors for all, including the four condemned attackers. She also does justice to exploring the nature of relationships between Anglo settlers and the Native American peoples, including the Wampanoag, Narragansett, Nipmuc, and Pequot, with whom the English colonists lived and shared the land.
May 19, 2021
It is not a novel and begins a bit slowly, but by midway it is VERY ENGAGING and hard to put down. There is A LOT to learn about the early judicial system (pre-revolutionary war). There is also much insight into the class divisions, servitude, slavery, the divisions between the various settlements and their leaders, and the tensions between the settlers and Native Americans. It is not a very long book, but it is packed full!
June 25, 2021
Tobey Pearl had applied incredibly thorough research skills to the extraordinary story of three white men tried for the murder of. Nipmuc man in Plymouth Colony in 1638. Her book conveys the social complexity of colonial American societies, in which whites, Native Americans, and Blacks came into daily contact with one another, trying to simultaneously to hold together their fragile societies *and* live up to their ideals. Often their principles and the reality of the hardscrabble colonial New England life conflicted and colonial leaders relied on the law and juries to shore up the social foundations. When Arthur Peach, an indentured man escaping servitude with three others, brutally murdered Penowanyanquis in the forest, the Nipmuc man miraculously survived long enough to identify his killers. Peach and his accomplices were quickly apprehended, all but one, and the case quickly proceeded to trial. Pearl recounts all the forces at play on this incident, vividly bringing to life the numerous English colonial leaders—Myles Standish, Roger Williams, and John Winslow included—as well as the rivalries and alliances among the Nipmuc, Wampanoag, Narragansett, and other First Peoples. The result is a rich and revealing story.
May 18, 2021
The true story of America's first trial by jury. In 1638, Arthur Peach, a young Irishman indentured to former governor Edward Winslow, ran away and with three other runaways attacked a young Nipmuc trader returning from a trading post near Plymouth. The victim, Penowanyanquis, though mortally wounded, escaped and survived long enough to tell two other tribesmen of his fate. They brought him to Roger Williams, governor of Providence, where he was examined by a local doctor.
The trial outcome was anything but certain for several reasons, but in the end the jury heard the evidence and came to an apparently just verdict, which greatly eased English/native tensions and set a precedent for legal actions in the growing colonies.
Pearl does a great job of telling the story by filling in the huge gaps in the historical record with relevant here's-what-likely-happened stories and useful background information
The trial outcome was anything but certain for several reasons, but in the end the jury heard the evidence and came to an apparently just verdict, which greatly eased English/native tensions and set a precedent for legal actions in the growing colonies.
Pearl does a great job of telling the story by filling in the huge gaps in the historical record with relevant here's-what-likely-happened stories and useful background information
November 3, 2021
3 or 3.5- I wanted to like this more as it was a super interesting story and had lots of interesting facts about the time period and the people involved. However, the timeline was weird and the author often left a scene to discuss the background of a person (who had been introduced much earlier) and there was a lot of "he was likely thinking" or "there was a good chance he felt"- HOW DO YOU KNOW? I get the suppositions based on evidence that was used to write the story- the references and notes were substantial and detailed which I appreciated- but to posit what people were thinking at any given point seems to be a stretch. Especially with how often this mechanism was used.
October 28, 2021
He might have, maybe he did this, he likely wore this, they possible were thinking about this. Just endless speculation in an effort to introduce details of life in colonial Massachusetts, with the trial tangential at best.
June 15, 2021
I know that this period can be incredibly difficult for historians to research, given the lack of surviving records, particularly those recording the native point of view or experience. The author did a good job of always trying to be respectful of that point of view and filling in the gaps with what is known and trying to extrapolate to the experiences of the individuals involved in these events. But even so, the book still feels very thin though and lacking in detail.
One thing that struck me was the discussion of juries as a means of democracy /a bulwark against tyranny. Perhaps in those early days that was true, but all I could think about was in the 19th and 20th centuries when American juries, particularly in the south, were a main mechanism for racial control. Juries would willfully refuse to convict those guilty of murdering black people and were complicit in upholding the racial caste system. I know that's far outside the author's chosen area of focus, but it still felt odd to make very sweeping and almost romanticized claims about the American judicial system when so much of its history throughout other periods has been anything but democratic or just.
The epilogue was also very disjointed. The author gives the fate of some very minor characters down through several generations, even though some of them were at most tangential to the story (like the army captain in Virginia that Peach served under, or Blackstone, whose home they stopped at very briefly). This felt like an attempt to fill space, when I think it would have been better spent making more connections between this case and future events in native/colonist relations, which is touched on only briefly.
All in all it's an interesting story that I, and I assume many others living in this area, had never heard of. But in terms of detail it probably could have been condensed down into a much tighter article by removing a lot of the tangential information that doesn't really add much to the understanding of the event or it's consequences. I'm left with the feeling that the author set out to prove this was a pivotal case, but in the end I don't feel that they've made a convincing argument to prove that fact.
One thing that struck me was the discussion of juries as a means of democracy /a bulwark against tyranny. Perhaps in those early days that was true, but all I could think about was in the 19th and 20th centuries when American juries, particularly in the south, were a main mechanism for racial control. Juries would willfully refuse to convict those guilty of murdering black people and were complicit in upholding the racial caste system. I know that's far outside the author's chosen area of focus, but it still felt odd to make very sweeping and almost romanticized claims about the American judicial system when so much of its history throughout other periods has been anything but democratic or just.
The epilogue was also very disjointed. The author gives the fate of some very minor characters down through several generations, even though some of them were at most tangential to the story (like the army captain in Virginia that Peach served under, or Blackstone, whose home they stopped at very briefly). This felt like an attempt to fill space, when I think it would have been better spent making more connections between this case and future events in native/colonist relations, which is touched on only briefly.
All in all it's an interesting story that I, and I assume many others living in this area, had never heard of. But in terms of detail it probably could have been condensed down into a much tighter article by removing a lot of the tangential information that doesn't really add much to the understanding of the event or it's consequences. I'm left with the feeling that the author set out to prove this was a pivotal case, but in the end I don't feel that they've made a convincing argument to prove that fact.
September 2, 2022
The Pilgrims and the Puritans flooded northeastern America in the 1620s and 1630s. Even before that, the Indians were almost wiped out due to European diseases. This vacuum was welcoming to the English as they migrated from Britain to escape religious persecution. They set up institutions like Britain’s and based on ancient Roman and Greek ideas. Despite good intentions, major problems cropped up as Europeans established themselves and cheated Indians of land and possessions. The Pequot War of 1836-8 was an important flashpoint when Indian grievances and English arrogance collided. Genocide has been used to describe the atrocities against the Indians.
This book describes one brief glimmer of justice as the war was winding down. It is the story of an Indian trader ambushed and killed by a gang of escaped indentured servants and how they were apprehended and tried by a jury. There were no direct witnesses to the deed, so the testimony of two Indians based on the dying Indian’s last words was the main evidence against the gang. This was an early trial by jury in the colonies that endures to this day. It showed that both whites and Indians could be trusted to pursue justice though there may have been hidden agendas. The writing of the book is a little jumpy here and there and there is a fair amount of filler material that explains what occurred before and after the main event and speculation of motives and actions. Notes are available at the back that refers to the relevant page number but there is no numbering in the text that refers to the notes. However, it is a decent exposition of how an early American jury was empaneled and a verdict was reached that most everybody accepted.
This book describes one brief glimmer of justice as the war was winding down. It is the story of an Indian trader ambushed and killed by a gang of escaped indentured servants and how they were apprehended and tried by a jury. There were no direct witnesses to the deed, so the testimony of two Indians based on the dying Indian’s last words was the main evidence against the gang. This was an early trial by jury in the colonies that endures to this day. It showed that both whites and Indians could be trusted to pursue justice though there may have been hidden agendas. The writing of the book is a little jumpy here and there and there is a fair amount of filler material that explains what occurred before and after the main event and speculation of motives and actions. Notes are available at the back that refers to the relevant page number but there is no numbering in the text that refers to the notes. However, it is a decent exposition of how an early American jury was empaneled and a verdict was reached that most everybody accepted.
March 17, 2024
This book felt really uneven. The beginning few chapters were much more interesting than the middle of the book, which got bogged down with legal tedium. Then the ending picked up a bit.
The author had a knack for making me emphasize with people who lived hundreds of years ago and whom history has, in a large part, forgotten.
But, like many events that happened in this era of American history, there just aren't many records about what actually happened. The author does try to infer, but it feels like critical pieces of information are missing.
I'd probably give this author a try again. I did like Pearl's writing style in the first and third parts of the book, and she really did make the history of the era come alive in my eyes.
The author had a knack for making me emphasize with people who lived hundreds of years ago and whom history has, in a large part, forgotten.
But, like many events that happened in this era of American history, there just aren't many records about what actually happened. The author does try to infer, but it feels like critical pieces of information are missing.
I'd probably give this author a try again. I did like Pearl's writing style in the first and third parts of the book, and she really did make the history of the era come alive in my eyes.
April 21, 2022
This book could have been much shorter.
There are certain stories which probably only need a short Wikipedia article about them. Now and again, an author sees a way to turn a short story into something worth writing a book about it. Tobey Pearl somehow did this with the first jury trial in America.
Here’s what happened. Four indentured servants decide they don’t like the “indentured” or “servant” part of their job titles. They make a run for it. Unfortunately, they didn’t have what anyone would consider a plan. While stuck in the middle of nowhere, they decide to kill an innocent American Indian to get some food and/or money.
A chase ensues. They get caught (obviously, or the jury trial would be stupid). The trial happens. As you can see, there doesn’t seem to be a book’s worth of material here. You would be wrong.
Pearl puts all of these events in context. The constant state of near war between the American Indians and the colonists. The infighting between the different colonies and even the divides within each colony. The outcome of the trial was far from a sure thing. Pearl fleshes this all out and makes this much more thrilling then it had any right to be.
There are certain stories which probably only need a short Wikipedia article about them. Now and again, an author sees a way to turn a short story into something worth writing a book about it. Tobey Pearl somehow did this with the first jury trial in America.
Here’s what happened. Four indentured servants decide they don’t like the “indentured” or “servant” part of their job titles. They make a run for it. Unfortunately, they didn’t have what anyone would consider a plan. While stuck in the middle of nowhere, they decide to kill an innocent American Indian to get some food and/or money.
A chase ensues. They get caught (obviously, or the jury trial would be stupid). The trial happens. As you can see, there doesn’t seem to be a book’s worth of material here. You would be wrong.
Pearl puts all of these events in context. The constant state of near war between the American Indians and the colonists. The infighting between the different colonies and even the divides within each colony. The outcome of the trial was far from a sure thing. Pearl fleshes this all out and makes this much more thrilling then it had any right to be.
October 25, 2024
In 1638, a nascent Massachusetts Bay colony along with Plymouth were faced with something extremely rare in those days - the murder of a Native American. Tobey Pearl's "Terror to the Wicked: America's First Trial by Jury that Ended a War and Helped to Form a Nation" brings to light the events that would lead to the stabbing of a Nipmuc known to history as Penowanyanquis and a jury trial that would end the Pequot War and set precedence for trials going forward in the colonies. The book itself immerses we the reader in the day-to-day lives and struggles faced by the colonists and how they were learning to work with their native neighbors the Nimpuc, Narragansett & Wampanoag. Each step of the way through the murder, trial & verdict Pearl keeps we the reader engrossed as we also get additional info on things done by some of the more famous people who came to America from England about the Mayflower and subsequent ships. This well written book brings to light a piece of early American history that isn't well explained & is definitely a must read.
March 25, 2021
In 1638 four indentured servants attempt to make their way from Plymouth Colony to New Amsterdam. Along the way they encounter a native tribesman and kill him. At a time when the relations between natives and colonists are beginning to devolve into the tragedy for the natives to come, the several colonies agree to sit a jury to hear evidence, some of which is provided by the natives. Pearl does a great job of describing the world of this time. He adds context and fleshes out the players, many of whom are well known in our nation’s history: Standish and Williams for example. As we grapple with the more negative aspects of our nation’s history, this book sheds light on an episode mixed with impending doom and with uplifting hope.
June 13, 2022
Fascinating look into the beginnings of the American standard of justice. Lots of the book was speculation based on the author’s understanding of the times, so you have to remind yourself not every detail was necessarily accurate. The author did a good job of exposing American injustices towards Native Americans while also praising the people who laid a foundation for true justice. It gave a broad view of the culture of the mid-1600s in New England for further understanding of American history.
December 4, 2025
Hi, I just read your story and OMG it was actually FIRE. Fr tho, while reading my brain was in full-on IMAGINATION MODE
I'm an artist and I take commissions for Webtoons, Comics, Manga & Character/Cover Art. Not gonna lie dude but your story would look insane as a comic or webtoon, and I wanna be the one to do it. No pressure at all, just thought it could be super dope to bring it to life visually.
If you're down or wanna see some of my work, hit me up on Discord (eve_verse). Hope to hear from u soon!
Regards,
Evelyn
I'm an artist and I take commissions for Webtoons, Comics, Manga & Character/Cover Art. Not gonna lie dude but your story would look insane as a comic or webtoon, and I wanna be the one to do it. No pressure at all, just thought it could be super dope to bring it to life visually.
If you're down or wanna see some of my work, hit me up on Discord (eve_verse). Hope to hear from u soon!
Regards,
Evelyn
May 9, 2021
This book was all over the place. The chapters and historical information were not cohesive. The information added was mostly not necessary or assumptions, as stated by the author. “This person probably thought this” or “probably looked like this” or “probably went this route” or “probably saw this along the way.” I was so lost. Separating the info and trial into separate chapters may have been better but overall this book was difficult to navigate and stay focused.
June 2, 2021
The author of the book imparts feelings an emotions on the central figures of the story when we really don't have very much information on the feelings or emotions of these historical figures. This does not fit the book which is presented as a historical account of the events surrounding the execution of Thomas Peach and his gang. The story would be much better written as a piece of historical fiction.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 27, 2021
Succinct look at a criminal trail that helped lay the stake for the American juror system. Using it as one of my dual credit/College Now summer reading options for the 2021-22 school year as it does offer a different type of look at 17th century New England life with lots of references to figures my students will read about in their textbooks (Roger Williams, John Winthrop, Anne Hutchinson, Myles Standish).
August 4, 2021
Super, super slow and not engaging, there were quite a few names and details that came at the reader at once that it was hard to process and figure out exactly the setting and situation that the title and subtitle were referencing. So I didn't have the patience as I got about a third of the way through to slog through more names, locations, and details without feeling like I was actually getting information about a historical event that would fascinate me and began skimming more and more.
February 21, 2023
As a local to the area where this took place, I was thrilled with Pearl's ability to uncover a completely unknown story to me featuring individuals who are infamous in New England. This fast paced, edge of your seat microhistory is a perfect quick read for the history obsessed. The thorough research, especially into the indigenous history, is loaded with new information!
December 19, 2021
This one might hold the record for the book most quickly abandoned. (Ten seconds?) I should know by now how much I hate reading about "history." I'll never know why its presentation always has to be so boring.
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February 17, 2022An interesting tale of perhaps the first murder trial in the new colonies. I thought it interesting in the way the colonies largely acted independent from one another. This is a slim volume, and one does have to "get through" the first couple of chapters, but after those, the book flows well.
May 21, 2022
Overall this book is a well-written report on an important trial early in America's history. It gets bogged down in some places by suppositions and minutia, but the author is trying to supply details to the historical record that exists. Seems to be well-researched.
March 26, 2024
This should have been great. Legally and historically it's endlessly fascinating, but the writing was awkward and jumbled. I felt like I had to read each sentence twice.
In the end, it felt like too much work for what it provided.
In the end, it felt like too much work for what it provided.
December 2, 2024
Fascinating look at the complex, multi-cultural social structure of early Colonial America, through the prism of Colonial America's first jury trial. Too much speculation for comfort -- a little goes a long way.
January 2, 2025
Good review of a forgotten legal event in Amerocan history. Although it hits on the history that led up to the event and the formation of the trial by jury standard in Amerocan jurisprudence, I think it lacks a thorough review of that history that would have added to the book's historical value.
March 25, 2021
I only wanted to read about the trial, not about the pilgrims settling in Plymouth and the Pequot war.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews