This book pulled at my heart strings, and I found my self unable to read due to all the tears in my eyes sometimes. There were moments of outrage, where I wished I could just reach in the book and shoot Marshal my self... or that horrible Rankin. I found my self liking Marshal sometimes, and wished that things could have been different for him. If only Rankin and his tutor weren't there to be his role models, things might have been different for him. It was clear he loved Mamma Mae at the end, even though he hanged her. I didn't like the ending, and was expecting something more fulfilling. Something along the lines of maybe Marshal getting shot by Mamma Mae, Rankin being blamed for it and then all the slaves moving into the Big House with Lavinia and Will Stevens. :)