Murder: Twelve True Stories of Homicide in Canada

by Edward Butts

Who committed Toronto’s Silk Stocking Murder? Why did a quiet accountant in Guelph, Ontario, murder his wife and two daughters? When did police in Alberta hire a self-styled mind reader to solve a mass murder? How did an American confidence man from Arizona find himself facing a murder charge in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia? These questions and more are answered in Twelve True Stories of Homicide in Canada , the latest collection of thrilling true Canadian crime stories by Edward Butts. The keenly researched chapters tell the stories behind some of Canada’s most fascinating murder cases, from colonial times to the 20th century, and from the Atlantic provinces, to the West Coast, and up to the Arctic. You’ll meet John Paul Radelmuller, the Gibraltar Point lighthouse keeper whose murder remains an unsolved mystery; wife-killer Dr. William Henry King; and Sinnisiak and Uluksuk, Inuit hunters whose trial for the murder of two priests became a national sensation. Butts also profiles the investigators who tracked the killers down, and in some cases sent them to the gallows in this collection of true tales that range from shocking and macabre to downright weird.

Genres: True Crime

223 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Ed Butts https://www.goodreads.com/author/show...

Reviews

[Ietrio · Rating 1 out of 5]

Cheap thrills from a failed writer. There is nothing in here to set the volume apart from thousands of other crap writings.

[Teena in Toronto · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like reading true stories and Canadian stories so this book caught my eye. It contains 12 true stories of homicide in Canada ... some I'd heard of but most I hadn't. They ranged from the 18th century to around the time of WWII.

I found this book interesting and I liked that there were pictures with some of the stories. I liked the writing style ... there was enough information but it wasn't too detailed. It's crazy what led some of these people to commit murder and expect to get away it.

Blog review post: http://www.teenaintoronto.com/2024/11...

[Graham Clayton · Rating 4 out of 5]

The 12 chapters in 'Murder' tell the stories behind some of Canada’s most fascinating murder cases, from colonial times up to the 20th century, both unsolved and solved. An entertaining read for true crime fans and anyone interested in off-beat Canadian history.

[Nikki Matacic · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little dull and repetitive at times but overall I loved it. I had never heard of these.

[Karine Lelièvre · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was dry and hard to read... Not always well structured or explained to make me understand these historical murders easy

[Bettye McKee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vintage true crime

This is a reasonably well-written book with some very interesting true crime stories. The time periods vary but I would consider all of them vintage crimes.

I have read works by this author before and intend to look for more.

17

[Vanessa]

its was different from most of my true crime books i have read in the past. what i like about this one most is that the stories started in the early 1800s and worked its way up in time finishing in the 1900 i think? also lots of history. which i had no interest in highschool,middle school and so on. so i felt like i was learning alot of new things.

[Stephanie Bryant · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick read with some murders where you wonder why it took so much effort to convict and others that make you feel glad to live in the 21st century where there are laws of evidence

[Ronnie Cramer · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting collection of historical (mostly forgotten) Canadian crimes from the 18th century to the WWII era. The chapters average about fifteen pages each and made for good episodic reading.