I exercise my right to my own opinion in reviewing this book as I am quite sure there have been more than a few people who were angry about the story of Velma Barfield. I do believe in God, and I do believe church is good for people. However, this is just one more example of why church itself should not become someone's God. Christians are not perfect and there are so many people, such as Velma, who hide under the umbrella of Christianity while committing horrible crimes. People seem to have the mistaken idea that just because someone is going to church, it should make them above reproach. Velma proved that isn't so. On another note, Velma also should not have been allowed leniency simply because she gained a new understanding of Christianity while in prison. So she was finally able to come to terms with God, that's great. But this country has so often allowed the bleeding hearts to take control and "forgive" in a way that keeps the criminal from enduring the consequences of the actions taken. I say forgive, but don't forget that consequences are necessary and deserved. The people who were killed didn't get a second chance at life.Jerry Bledsoe was very thorough with his account of Velma's life and crimes.
Heartbreaking book.This book tells both sides of a very sad murder story. I was always for the death penalty until reading this book.I have all the sympathy in the world for the victims and there families.I never saw the other side of it. When the perpetrators families have to go through the ups and downs of trying to save the life of there loved one. When someone has redeemed themselves and is doing good for others even prisoners it should count for something. This family continually went through the ups and downs of appeals and stays of execution.It destroyed the lives of her family for many years to come.There were a lot of circumstances that presented during trial tha t I think should have overturned the sentence of death. This book has really made a huge impact on me.
Reading this book I was drawn to the number of people who were hurt by the crimes of Velma. The lawyers and family who fought so hard to prolong her life would like you to accept that prison had changed her but the fact still remains, whether addicted or not, this woman was still a serial killer. The question of whether she should live or die is not the main question , the main question should be was justice served. If this was a man who had killed seven people the question of death would not have been such an issue with people. The book is wrote mostly by the views of Velma's family and her lawyers although you do hear from some of the victims family, it is mostly about the life of Velma and the fight to save it. Well worth the read whether you are for or against the death penalty. In the end it left me crying for all the victims including her family.
—Laurie
Jerry Bledsoe did a good job of providing background about Velma Barfield and showing how her crimes impacted her children & the impact she had on the folks who tried to help her. However, I am skeptical that Velma was truly reformed before her execution. For her sake, I hope she did truly have a religious experience & repented for her past crimes. So many criminals use religion as an excuse to try & avoid their punishment, and a part of me feels like Velma was one of them. I still feel Bitter Blood was a better read.
—Suzanne
