An enthralling story of a crime, a trial and the people who lived it. Also brings the era to life vividly. ( )

On February 8, 1915 the maid Carrie Davies shot Charles "Bert" Massey as he returned from work in view of at least one witness. By February 27, 1915 her trial was complete. This book gives the known details of events, the statements of Carrie and other witnesses, but is at least as much about Canada and Toronto and the changes society was experiencing. And early Canadian involvement in The Great War. For a U.S. citizen it is interesting to be forced to filter a different sort of continental nationalism, and view the lives of individuals who mattered to their community in 1915 and beyond.

There seemed to be a lot of questions that could have been asked of which there is no record. That's not strange when the case was over 100 years ago and there seemed to be no doubt about what happened, just why. Most of Toronto seemed satisfied with the why presented at the trial and almost no one saw any real advantage in making a bigger scandal out of what happened. ( )

This book is part true crime and part Canadian history. The author reports a famous murder case in Toronto in 1915, of socialite Charles Massey by his maid Carrie Davies, and inserts it into a snapshot of what was happening in Canada and especially in Toronto at that time. The eventual outcome of Carrie Davies trial was very interesting but I found the historical aspect of the book fascinating. It broadly covers Canada's contribution to the war but really focuses on the growth of Toronto as a powerful, economic force in the country. It talks about the development of architecture, the socio-economic situation in the city, business, immigration and women's rights of the time. It was a really interesting history lesson woven into the story of a murder trial. ( )

This is a story about a murder and trial that occurred here in Toronto in 1915. An 18-year-old British maid shot and killed her employer, because he had been sexually harassing her (though that language wasn't yet coined back then). Bert Massey was from a famous and wealthy Canadian family, and this should have and could have been an easy open-and-shut case. But it wasn't. It was a highly sensational trial and there were many sub-plots behind it. But almost as soon as it was over, Carrie Davies was quickly forgotten and faded into obscurity as the war took over the headlines. I thought it was very poignant that when a Toronto Star journalist, Frank Jones (I recognized his name!) went looking to speak to Carrie's daughter, in the 1980s, decades after Carrie's death, he was astounded to discover that she knew nothing of her mother's past. Carrie had never told her family about it.

In the preface, author Charlotte Gray wrote, referencing her previous books:

"I was able to understand my subjects from the inside, because he or she had left personal papers in which I could read what they thought and hear their voice. Yet after finishing each one of these books, I found myself wondering about forgotten lives, the long-dead individuals who left no record behind them. What happens to anonymous, powerless individuals who are swept up by events and currents completely beyond their control?"

Gray also listed the sources she used to reconstruct this story since Carrie herself left nothing, no letters, journals or diaries. ( )

The Massey murdered in this book was Charles Albert "Bert" Massey, cousin to future governor general Vincent Massey. In February 1915, Bert was shot by his maid, Carrie Davies, as he was about to enter the house. Carrie stated that she had killed him in self-defence, that he had been preparing to ruin her. Thus, when she came to trial, she pled not guilty -- that her act had been excusable homicide.

In this book, Gray tells the story of the death, the trial, and the aftermath, as well as the social and political upheaval that was going on in Toronto and internationally at the time of the trial. Her research, as always, is impeccable, and her writing is so effortless that I was able to gulp down 10 chapters in a single sitting. Carrie's case is an interesting one for the environment in which it was taking place, with influences such as the war overseas, the beginnings of Canada as an autonomous nation on the world stage, and the fight for women's rights, among others. The biggest challenge with this book was finding Carrie's own voice, because she did not keep a diary and most of the action surrounding her happened to her without her input or consent. The aftermath section of this book makes particularly interesting reading as Gray examines the impact of the case decades down the road.

If you like true crime and/or Canadian history, this may be of interest to you. ( )