So began a conflict which would be called "Bleeding Kansas" for the shocking violence that left over 200 dead as the two sides sparred for control. The cast of characters ranged from Stephen Douglas, the architect of the Kansas-Nebraska Act whose presidential ambitions were veiled; to Missouri "border ruffians", who ducked in and out of the area to pack elections and terrorize free staters; to fanatical John Brown, whose strategy in the Potawatomie Massacre called for "making examples" of the proslavery corpses he left behind; to Sheriff Jones, who enjoyed federal backing in the sack of free-state Lawrence; to all manner of politicians who promoted or ducked the issues so clear in Kansas. The author weaves diaries and letters throughout the narrative to bring the confusion of this sad and violent time home to the reader.

What Karen Zeinert makes clear is how significant Kansas was. First, the conflict spread far beyond the territory, deepening the division over slavery in America, tearing apart one political party and giving rise to another. The endless struggle of "Bleeding Kansas" was a bell tolling, a dire warning and a foreshadowing of the catastrophe to come when America went to battle against itself in the Civil War.