Midnight Assassin: A Murder in America's Heartland

by Patricia L. Bryan and Thomas Wolf
Publisher: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
Publication Date: April 1, 2005

On a moonlit night in December 1900, a prosperous Iowa farmer named John Hossack was murdered in his bed--struck in the head with an ax. The victim's wife, Margaret Hossack, told investigators that she was asleep beside her husband when an intruder struck the fatal blows. The Hossack's nine children--including five who were in the house on the night of the murder--supported their mother's claim of innocence. But reports soon surfaced that the murdered man had threatened and abused his family, and for years his wife had complained of this behavior to the neighbors. Legal authorities quickly decided that Hossack's alleged mistreatment of his family constituted a motive for murder. Four days after the bloody assault, Mrs. Hossack was arrested at her husband's funeral and charged with the crime.

In Midnight Assassin, Bryan and Wolf examine the harsh realities of farm life at the turn of the century and provide a poignant portrait of Margaret Hossack, who, innocent or guilty, suffered through a terrible marriage and years of public scrutiny. The book is a haunting human drama that looks at the plight of women--legally, socially, and politically--during that period. What also emerges is the story of early feminist Susan Glaspell, who covered the Hossack trial as a young reporter and later used it as the basis for her two most acclaimed works: Trifles and "A Jury of Her Peers."

The authors touch upon issues of domestic abuse, the way stories are told in communities and courtrooms, the influence of the media, assumptions about behavior and social roles, and the complexity of emotions and loyalties that define family relationships.

The book is available at your favorite bookstore or through online booksellers.