Before the phrase, "the trial of the century," became a cliche, there was New England slave trader Joseph White and the greatest whodunit of the 19th Century. The wealthy, powerful and supremely disliked shipping magnate had apparently swam with too many sharks to escape justice forever. But who would go into a man's bedroom and kill him in his sleep? Edward Renehan's book, "Deliberate Evil: Nathaniel Hawthorne, Daniel Webster, and the 1830 Murder of a Salem Slave Trader," shows how the murder drew titans of history into what was already a famous, albeit small, town. He also explains how the trial and the coverage of it still echoes today, and why we should pay close attention to how the story faded from memory as key figures passed away. It's a story of mystery and power in a town that had already been shaped by one of the most famous events in American history.

Edward Renehan's website can be found at here

He is on social media here

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