A very compelling true crime story from the Illinois of the 1880’s!

I really enjoyed this book!  A young schoolteacher, left alone in the schoolhouse at the end of the day, is subjected to “nameless indignities” by persons unknown.  What follows is a gripping tale of neighbor against neighbor, shoddy investigations, attempted lynchings, pompous lawyers and the ruination of a young woman’s life.

The research that it took for Susan Elmore to put together this story is mind-boggling!  Using family stories, newspaper accounts and court records, she has constructed a clear, interesting and realistic portrait of what happened in the small settlements in rural Illinois.  As a person who loves to do genealogy research, I’m thrilled to see how in-depth the research can be.  As a person with roots near the locations in Illinois, I love the historic picture she presents of the area.  As a lover of mysteries, this sets one’s imagination racing.  

There is a lot of detail and some people may find that it moves too slowly for them but for me, all the detail just helped me immerse myself in the people, the setting and the time period.  I loved it from start to finish.

I received this book through Goodreads First Reads program and I really appreciated the opportunity to read and review this book.