Bitter Blood: A True Story of Southern Family Pride, Madness, and Multiple Murder by Jerry BledsoeMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
When you begin reading this book, the characters don't fit the profile of the southern family pride this book depicts, and you may wonder why this part is included. But trust me on this... it is important and the story will come full circle and help you better understand how these crimes happened.
This is the story of three families in North Carolina who are connected by marriage, status, and ultimately, by death. The common denominator is a woman called Susie Sharp Newsom Lynch, and later, Fritz Klenner, her cousin. The story is about power, status, obsession, alleged insest, a custody battle, and murder, actually, multiple murders.
You may decide you don't like any of the characters, as there are only a few likable in the bunch, and there are a great many characters. It is somewhat difficult to keep track of who is who and why they are important to the story.
Bledsoe didn't leave out any detail, but he unfortunately repeated details numerous times. This book could have been one third shorter without leaving anything out. Towards the final chapters, I just wanted it to end.
The actual story is quite interesting, I just didn't need to read the same events over and over. I can't say anything more without giving away too much of the plot, but if you like true crime, and you know how to skim when you realize you're not being told anything new, then this book might be for you.
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