A ROGUES’ GALLERY of murderers and pirates, plus a pair of brazen bank robbers and a fraud artist who fooled Halifax’s elite. A supporting cast that includes a wise-cracking Cape Breton judge, legendary journalist-turned-politician Joseph Howe, circus showman P.T. Barnum and future prime minister John Thompson. Daring, Devious & Deadly is a collection of fifteen true tales of crime and justice that spans more than one hundred and fifty years of Nova Scotia’s history, from a triple murder in 1791 at a farm near Lunenburg to 1947, when Angus Walters, skipper of the racing schooner Bluenose, was attacked in the pages of an American magazine.

News & Excerpts:

>> Watch my interview with CTV Atlantic anchor Bruce Frisk0

>> Listen to my interview with Kevin Moore, host of the Can’t Make This Up podcast.

>> excerpts in the Oct/Nov issue of Saltcapes magazine & the Nov/Dec issue of Ellery Queen’s Mystery MagaziNE

>> Listen to my Interviews (focusing on Cape Breton cases) with CBC Cape Breton’s Steve Sutherland – Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / PArt 4

>> Read “Three-ring robbery,” an excerpt on a Halifax bank Heist during P.T. Barnum’s circus parade in 1876, published in Halifax Magazine

>> “There’s a deep interest in true crime and that’s always been the case.” Click HERE to read my Halifax Magazine interview

>> Wondering which story is my favourite? LISTEN to my interview with Rick Howe on News 95.7 (Aug. 27 / 9 AM show, starting at 39:25)

THE CASES ARE DRAWN from communities across the province, from Sydney and Amherst to the provincial capital of Halifax, from the rugged coast of the Eastern Shore to the historic town of Annapolis Royal. Filled with surprising twists and courtroom drama, these stories of greed, murder and vengeance offer a window on the past. They showcase advances in investigative techniques and forensic science that revolutionized policing, the legal system and the search for justice. But justice can be far from blind. Religious hatred, partisan rivalry, social status, ethnicity or political corruption sometimes invaded the courtroom, threatening to upset the delicate balance between guilt and innocence. Was justice done in each of these cases? You be the judge.

Reviews:

“Fascinating [and] stranger-than-fiction … guaranteed to please the book lover and the history lover on your Christmas list.” – Bruce Frisko, CTV Atlantic

“An easy, must-read work …that should be on every Canadian History bookstore shelf. Each tale reads as a dramatic episode of a favourite mystery or court case TV program …. captivating [and] hard to put down.” – Miramichi Reader

“These cases are presented in an engaging manner that keeps the reader turning the page and wondering what dastardly deed will be exposed next.” – Atlantic Books Today

“From bank robbers who used P.T. Barnum’s circus as a diversion to voters who went to the polls brandishing clubs and pistols … Nova Scotia’s history is filled with unbelievable yet true tales.” – Kevin Moore, host, Can’t Make This Up podcast.

“Jealousy, greed and skullduggery at play.” – Valley Journal Advertiser

“Nuggets of story-telling gold [and] a must-read for anyone interested in real life drama … a unique historical package of narratives of court and law from across the province.” – LighthouseNow

“Vintage stories of bank robberies and fraud, murder and piracy and even deathly disasters caused by human error, fill the pages of Dean Jobb’s latest book.” – The Chronicle Herald 

“From murderers and pirates to bank heists and fraudsters, Nova Scotia’s history has its share of tales when it comes to crime … [Jobb’s] new book is sharing these lost stories.” – HalifaxToday.ca

“I was flabbergasted to read about an election in 1859 that turned deadly due to a toxic mixture of religion and partisan politics …. The story of the Saladin sailors who turned into pirates is equally unreal.” – The Grapevine (Wolfville)

“Engaging and delightfully readable …. Highly recommended to lovers of Nova Scotian history, tales of daring criminals, and those who love to be taken back in time.” – Tyler LeBlanc, author of Acadian Driftwood

Contents

Part I: Disorder in the Courts

1 Trial by Humour

Glace May Magistrate A.B. MacGillivray may have been the wittiest, most sarcastic judge to grace the bench in Canada. But was this any way to dispense justice?

2 “An Unshackled Press”

A letter published in The Novascotian, accusing Halifax’s civic leaders of corruption, landed Newspaper publisher Joseph Howe in the prisoner’s dock in 1835 on a charge of criminal libel. Luckily, he had a good lawyer.

3 Death at the Waterloo Tavern

When the body of the crewman of a British warship was found on the steps of a notorious Halifax tavern in 1853, there was no shortage of suspects.

Part II: Breaking the Bank

4 Cooking the Books

By 1870 James Forman had been the Bank of Nova Scotia’s head cashier and most trusted employee for almost four decades. Too bad he was Lining his own pockets.

5 Three-ring Robbery

When P.T. Barnum’s famous circus arrived in Halifax for the first time in the summer of 1876, a couple of enterprising bank robbers stole the show. 

Part III: Law of the Sea

6 The Saladin Pirates

Thirteen people were aboard Saladin when it left Chile in 1844. Only six remained when the ship ran aground near Country Harbour a few months later. And each survivor had a different story to tell.

7 The Skipper’s Good Name 

Angus Walters raced the schooner Bluenose to fame and glory. So when an American magazine shot his reputation full of holes in 1946, Lunenburg’s renowned captain got even.

8 Mutiny on the Zero

The mate said it was the cook’s idea. The cook blamed the mate. One thing was certain when the ship Zero was found abandoned off the LaHave Islands in 1865: the captain was dead, slain by one of his crewmen.

Part IV: Victorian Horrors

9 A Trust Betrayed

The murder of a penniless woman in Annapolis County in 1880 shocked Nova Scotians. the province’s best prosecutor was determined that her killer would not escape justice.

10 An Affair of Honour

Nicholas Martin, one of Sydney’s leading citizens, brazenly shot and killed a judge’s son in 1853. Was it murder or the work of a madman?

11 Death at the Polls

Passions were running high during the 1859 provincial election, at a time when religion determined the choice of political party. At a polling station near Halifax, sectarian hatred exploded into open warfare.

Part V: Deadly Disasters 

12 The Halifax Explosion’s Fallout

After the explosion of 1917 devastated Halifax, the hunt was on for scapegoats. The captain and pilot of the French munitions ship Mont-Blanc survived the blast, only to find themselves charged with manslaughter.

13 Inferno at the Queen Hotel

Fire swept through Halifax’s Queen Hotel in 1939, killing 28 people. If the hotel's owner had installed proper safety equipment, could more lives have been saved?

Part VI: Silent Witnesses

14 Tell-tale Chalk

The Boutilier brothers were charged with murder in 1791 after three people were murdered near Lunenburg. Their trial turned on a single shred of evidence.

15 The Leather Band

It was almost the perfect crime – leave no witnesses, make a fast getaway. But Why did the prime suspect in an 1838 murder at a Cumberland County farm have a dead man’s wallet?

check out Madness, Mayhem & Murder – 16 more true stories of Nova Scotia crime & justice.

Like the cover? Gail LeBlanc’s design is inspired by vintage Wanted posters in the Nova Scotia Archives – examples are posted online.