Reviews

Bleeding Kansas by Sara Paretsky

danapr's review against another edition

2.0

I agree with the reviewer who mentioned that this book was too easy to put down. It took me almost 2 months to get through (fortunately I read more than one book at a time). Even being from Missouri, I was unaware of the history around the border wars so was hopeful about the storyline including that history and how the family descendants related to each other in the present. The premise is that 3 of the families who settled in eastern Kansas during the civil war had common beliefs and goals but grew to being almost enemies based on religious differences. The relationships between the families is complex with (no spoilers) involvements in anti-war protests, forbidden puppy love, extramarital affairs and religious beliefs ranging from Wiccan to extreme Christian and Jewish fundamentalism. I realize that religious beliefs often take extreme form but it just seemed like the author tried to include too much extremism in one story. And the book was way too long - even if the story was decent, it could have been told in about half the pages.

searchandrescueteam's review

dark emotional funny hopeful reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

jerefi's review against another edition

2.0

The writing was fine and I went through it pretty quickly, but I found the ending to be rather lackluster.

jodieoc's review against another edition

reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

2000ace's review against another edition

4.0

Sara Paretsky sets this book in the Kansas heartland of the Kaw River valley where she grew up, and although it isn't a mystery, there is plenty of suspense and action. The cast of characters includes the members of two families, one modern and more or less forward-looking with solid middle American values, the other a fundamentalist Christian family, complete with a domineering matriarch, a sadistic older brother, a totalitarian father, and another son who dreams about the daughter from the modern family.

When an attractive new neighbor lady of dubious sexual orientation moves into an old mansion down the road, she brings with her temptation in several guises: one is sexual, one is feminist, and one is anti-war. At around the same time, a trio of Jewish rabbis visit the evangelicals, and deem that their perfectly red calf may be a harbinger of the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem.

This book is a very engaging read: quite different from Paretsky's other books, but, at the same, wedded to the others by her distinguished writing style. Highly recommended

kathrynreadsalot's review against another edition

3.0

Favorite author from childhood. Still can spin a tale that keeps my attention.

raehink's review

2.0

I didn't finish this one. Lost interest after eighty pages or so. I found the characters wooden and stereotyped and really didn't care about any of them. I was intrigued by the setting as well as the juxtaposition of different religious viewpoints, but not enough to keep reading.