Rating: 
Summary: Fascinating story, but the book..........
Review: This is my third or fourth Ann Rule book, and she is absolutely a fascinating writer for me to read. She picks great stories to make into books. I do have a couple of constructive criticisms, however. In all her books, I feel she usually has a bias towards one person, which seems to be especially obvious in this case, favoring Mike Farrar and denigrating Debora Green throughout the book. My comment is not that I blame her, because I usually tend to agree with her choice, but it reduces the effectiveness of her story and makes her sound less than the professional she is. I would enjoy her books more with more unbiased reporting. No one is all good or all bad. Debora must have had more good in her than was presented or Mike would have left long ago and removed the children. If she was that bad and he did neither of the above, then he obviously was not the paragon of virtue he was presented to be. I really enjoyed the review on here that was written by the Kansas City person who knew them both. My other compaint about this book is that she didn't do much much more research about Debora Green's childhood and psychological make-up. Perhaps that material is hard to find if the family doesn't want to talk? I have done quite a bit of reading on psychology and personality disorders, and as I read the book I was thinking that Debora seemed to display quite a fair mix of borderline personality disorder traits. Then I read the review by someone here who was asked by her psychology teacher to read this book (she hated it), but I realized that I was not alone in thinking that she suffered some BPD (her psychology teacher obviously thought the same thing). I would have liked Ann to spend more time researching and including in her book the actual facts of Debora's childhood or life that resulted in this.
Rating:
Summary: Fascinating story, but the book..........
Review: This is my third or fourth Ann Rule book, and she is absolutelya fascinating writer for me to read. She picks great stories to make into books. I do have a couple of constructive criticisms, however. In all her books, I feel she usually has a bias towards one person, which seems to be especially obvious in this case, favoring Mike Farrar and denigrating Debora Green throughout the book. My comment is not that I blame her, because I usually tend to agree with her choice, but it reduces the effectiveness of her story and makes her sound less than the professional she is. I would enjoy her books more with more unbiased reporting. No one is all good or all bad. Debora must have had more good in her than was presented or Mike would have left long ago and removed the children. If she was that bad and he did neither of the above, then he obviously was not the paragon of virtue he was presented to be. I really enjoyed the review on here that was written by the Kansas City person who knew them both. My other compaint about this book is that she didn't do much much more research about Debora Green's childhood and psychological make-up. Perhaps that material is hard to find if the family doesn't want to talk? I have done quite a bit of reading on psychology and personality disorders, and as I read the book I was thinking that Debora seemed to display quite a fair mix of borderline personality disorder traits. Then I read the review by someone here who was asked by her psychology teacher to read this book (she hated it), but I realized that I was not alone in thinking that she suffered some BPD (her psychology teacher obviously thought the same thing). I would have liked Ann to spend more time researching and including in her book the actual facts of Debora's childhood or life that resulted in this.
Rating: 
Summary: Rule missed the truth
Review: Ann Rule missed the facts on this one. Mike and Debbie are wellknown to me for many years. Though Debbie has severe psychiatric problems, Mike was not brilliant nor attractive. He was very smart, but incredibly immature. He was never a ladies man. Debbie showed obvious signs of mental instability years before she had children, but it was overlooked by the medical establishment. ( ala Dr. Michael Swango) Mike and Debbie were codependent. Mike has always been a jerk. Debbie is sick. How sad, but don't make Mike look like a victim. Why the heck did he leave his kids with Debbie when she was deteriorating in front of him? He is to blame in this tragedy, too.
Rating:
Summary: Rule missed the truth
Review: Ann Rule missed the facts on this one. Mike and Debbie are well known to me for many years. Though Debbie has severe psychiatric problems, Mike was not brilliant nor attractive. He was very smart, but incredibly immature. He was never a ladies man. Debbie showed obvious signs of mental instability years before she had children, but it was overlooked by the medical establishment. ( ala Dr. Michael Swango) Mike and Debbie were codependent. Mike has always been a jerk. Debbie is sick. How sad, but don't make Mike look like a victim. Why the heck did he leave his kids with Debbie when she was deteriorating in front of him? He is to blame in this tragedy, too.
Rating:
Summary: Not one of Rule's best books
Review: The story truly was gripping, as was the careful description ofthe forensic evidence at the scene of the fatal fire. However, unlike Rule's STRANGER BESIDE ME and SMALL SACRIFICES, there's never a feeling of real comprehension or understanding of this woman's psyche. I came away from the book feeling overwhelmed by the tragedy, but not any closer to understanding it.
Rating:
Summary: Not one of Rule's best books
Review: The story truly was gripping, as was the careful description of the forensic evidence at the scene of the fatal fire. However, unlike Rule's STRANGER BESIDE ME and SMALL SACRIFICES, there's never a feeling of real comprehension or understanding of this woman's psyche. I came away from the book feeling overwhelmed by the tragedy, but not any closer to understanding it.
Rating:
Summary: Great Potential, But...
Review: While this book had great potential, I think, when compared toother true crime thrillers, it fell far short of the mark. Rule spends far too much time with little details and fails to give us the nuts and bolts of what makes a true crime thriller really interesting--the personality behind the criminal. Rule lacks both the hypnotically lyrical prose of And The Sea Will Tell and the me smerizing look at the man (Jeffrey MacDonald) behind the mask in Fatal Vision. This book is ultimately sad, as all true crime thrillers are, but it is really not worth the time and effort. I feel terribly sorry for the children involved, who were the true victims. The husband will have to live with the consequences and accept his share of the blame. Bitter Harvest is definitely not Rule's best effort. Look elsewhere this time.
Rating:
Summary: Great Potential, But...
Review: While this book had great potential, I think, when compared to other true crime thrillers, it fell far short of the mark. Rule spends far too much time with little details and fails to give us the nuts and bolts of what makes a true crime thriller really interesting--the personality behind the criminal. Rule lacks both the hypnotically lyrical prose of And The Sea Will Tell and the mesmerizing look at the man (Jeffrey MacDonald) behind the mask in Fatal Vision. This book is ultimately sad, as all true crime thrillers are, but it is really not worth the time and effort. I feel terribly sorry for the children involved, who were the true victims. The husband will have to live with the consequences and accept his share of the blame. Bitter Harvest is definitely not Rule's best effort. Look elsewhere this time.
Rating: 
Summary: Bitter Harvest leaves a bitter taste
Review: I read true crime basically, to try and understand what makespeople do what they do. I still don't know if I will ever understand this Mother/Doctor. I suppose what makes this story all the more horrifying is that she had been a practicing physician. Ann Rule is at her best with this shocking, horrifying tale. Each time I remebered that this was fact not fiction, I was filled to revulsion, at times, totally anguished. The book is riveting. My heart bled for those poor, innocent children. All I can say is that their Mother was truly a mad woman. Obviously, Dr. Green should be buried underneath the prison which she sits in--alive! The sad thing about it, is that I don't even know if this woman was actually "sick." I don't think she deserves that much benefit of a doubt. Anne does a great job depicting this nightmare.
Rating:
Summary: Bitter Harvest leaves a bitter taste
Review: I read true crime basically, to try and understand what makes people do what they do. I still don't know if I will ever understand this Mother/Doctor. I suppose what makes this story all the more horrifying is that she had been a practicing physician. Ann Rule is at her best with this shocking, horrifying tale. Each time I remebered that this was fact not fiction, I was filled to revulsion, at times, totally anguished. The book is riveting. My heart bled for those poor, innocent children. All I can say is that their Mother was truly a mad woman. Obviously, Dr. Green should be buried underneath the prison which she sits in--alive! The sad thing about it, is that I don't even know if this woman was actually "sick." I don't think she deserves that much benefit of a doubt. Anne does a great job depicting this nightmare.
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