To Slip the Bonds of Earth by Amanda Flower

To Slip the Bonds of Earth
by Amanda Flower

ISBN-13: 9781496747662
Hardcover: 288 pages
Publisher: Kensington
Released: March 26, 2024

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
December 1903: While Wilbur and Orville Wright’s flying machine is quite literally taking off in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina with its historic fifty-seven second flight, their sister Katharine is back home in Dayton, Ohio, running the bicycle shop, teaching Latin, and looking after the family. A Latin teacher and suffragette, Katharine is fiercely independent, intellectual, and the only Wright sibling to finish college. But at twenty-nine, she’s frustrated by the gender inequality in academia.

Returning home to Dayton, Wilbur and Orville (and Katharine) receive an invitation to a fancy Christmas ball. Orville decides to bring their as-yet-unpatented flyer plans to the festivities, where they are stolen. Orville and Katharine also find a murdered blackmailer with Orville's screwdriver in his chest and the host's son covered in blood. Katharine sets out to find the missing plans and prove that her student is innocent.


My Review:
To Slip the Bonds of Earth is a historical mystery set in 1903 in Ohio. Katharine had a hard time remembering that her goal was to find the stolen plans. She spent no time looking for them but switched to proving that her student wasn't the murderer, or maybe discovering whodunit. She asked questions, broke into buildings to poke around, read letters not meant for her, and generally annoyed people. Yet she didn't figure out whodunit or find out who had the plans. Whodunit helpfully decided to confess in front of witnesses. It's never adequately explained how everyone seemed to know that Orville had Critically Important Plans in his jacket pocket, and it's mind-boggling that he took them to a party instead of leaving them behind with Wilbur. So I found the mystery pretty disappointing and, yes, I guessed whodunit before the reveal.

Katharine certainly had courage and drive, but she's not willing to listen to anyone's advice, even the people she's supposedly helping. She just did what she wanted to do, usually very impulsively and without thinking out the consequences. She had a quick temper, which didn't make her any friends, but she felt completely justified in her behavior. She lied all the time, yet was so disappointed when she caught her maid in a lie. She wasn't especially logical. For example, she couldn't decide if she should trust the description of a man given by a servant that she knew who was familiar with the man or the besotted description of him given by her best friend. Basically, I didn't find her very likable, and none of the other characters were particularly engaging.

There was no sex or bad language.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.