Very well written history of a legend of the Wild West. The author paints a very colorful picture of the life of Belle Starr. Lots of great information detailing her and those around her. Thank you NetGalley for the advance audiobook copy. #NetGalley

Queen of All Mayhem is an engaging and well-told look at the life of a totally kickass woman, Belle Starr. The narrator did a great job keeping things lively, and while the story slowed down at times—especially in parts not directly about Belle—it all added important context that helped explain her choices and personality. I really enjoyed how the author tackled the rumors and legends surrounding Belle, offering thoughtful theories about what might be fact or fiction. It struck a great balance between history and storytelling, and I’m glad I took the time to read it. Definitely worth it for anyone curious about the woman behind the legend.

Queen of All Mayhem is a biography of Belle Starr, a remarkable woman from the Old West. She defied the standards of her own day for womanly conduct, but doesn’t comfortably fit within modern standards either. She was a mother, but became an outlaw, and eventually the leader of an outlaw gang. Belle Starr married a Cherokee man, yet was a supporter of the Confederacy during the Civil War. And her untimely murder is shrouded in mystery to this day.

The author, Dane Huckelbridge, uses conjecture mixed with the historical facts we know about Belle Starr to give this nonfiction book a literary feel.. Due to lack of sources for parts of Starr’s life, and many unreliable early sources, Huckelbridge is forced to use quite a bit of conjecture. But the reader still gets a fairly full, and reliable picture of Belle Starr, told in an engaging manner.

Thanks to Harper Audio through NetGalley who allowed me to listen to the audio version of this book. The narrator, George Newbern, did an excellent job! Nonfiction narrators tend to have a rather lifeless delivery, but Newbern’s narration has real personality.

I honestly don’t Know where to start.
So first of all some background on myself, I grew up in Lawrence, Kansas and have spent the majority of my academic life studying Bleeding Kansas. If I’m not studying Bleeding Kansas I’m studying Native American History or women in history that have been overlooked.
I went into this book quite excited for it, one of my favorite types of historical books to read is ones about women who have been overlooked when it comes to history or stories told. I gave this book a solid chance, I let multiple things go in the beginning, just little things that were slightly off about Bleeding Kansas as for I have an in depth knowledge on the topic and know that not everyone is going to and the point of this book is not Bleeding Kansas it’s supposed to be Belle Starr. Chapter 4 is where I solidly draw the line however.

The Negatives
- for a nonfiction book to so blatantly have so many historical inaccuracies is crazy
-The author is all over the place with the timeline, if you are writing a book about one's life and you have decided to follow her life chronologically don’t go off on tangents that take place in 1529
- This is a book about “The Blood-Soaked Life and Mysterious Death of Belle Starr, the Most Dangerous Woman in the West”, I disagree. This is actually a book about the broad history of the time Belle Starr was alive, with off branches of other times in history that the author has decided to input for one reason or another
- The amount of contradictions are mind boggling
- let's not make excuses for colonizers
-Let’s not downplay colonization
-let’s not imply or say that colonization is destined
- of course every history book is going to have some of it’s authors biases, that's just human nature, however this book has SO many of the authors opinions
-his opinions about a bunch of things that felt very unnecessary, like why go off on a tangent about the Incas if not just to implant the opinions of the author
- Um no the Cherokee Tribe’s organization of itself is NOT comparable to medieval europe, there are in fact way more differences than similarities
-While we are on this topic, why compare Native way of life to whites way of life at all in this way??? Its yucky
- There was A LOT of use of white terminology when referring to Native way of life and the Native people in not okay to me ways


I can not say if the book narrows in and focuses more on Belle Starr after chapter 4, but I do know it very much feels like in the first four chapters that the book did not feel like it was a biography of Belle Star.
The down playing of colonization, and use of inaccurate terms and historical accuracies got to me too much by the end of chapter 4 and I had to put the book down. I normally would not review a book I did not finish but I felt as if I needed to review this book. I knew that I would feel okay reviewing it as long as I clearly stated that I did not finish it, state where I stopped and why I did, and stay within the information I have from those first 4 chapters.
I would say that a positive was some of what I did learn about Belle, but after the historical inaccuracies I encountered I felt a need to fact check the information that stuck in my brain. So I did such, and while yes I am glad I know more about Belle Starr and what I did learn about her is a positive of the book I feel like a historical nonfiction book should not make me feel a need to fact check information in it.
I thought the narrator did a good job with narration and keeping me in the book, and keeping me fully paying attention to the information that was being read.

Queen of All Mayhem was so interesting and great on audio. I love learning about history that is lesser known. I'd read more from this author.

3.5 Stars
Vibes: Bio of Belle Starr, famous female outlaw. Colorful western lore + family + culture + mystery.
Pros: Western lore rides again! I love the mystery thread of a Tall Tale.
Cons: Glorifies a criminal BUT that was a sign of the times so it doesn't bother me.
Thoughts: If you can get past the acceptance of criminal activities, this is a fun story. The research sounds like it was top-notch and well done. I love the thread of mystery that we get from tall tales that allows an imagination to wonder. This book also makes you miss the times that not everything was documented on a phone/computer/etc.

What a fun and interesting narrative on the life of Belle Star! I enjoyed the conversational tone, the details of her life and lore, and the contextual history.

Queen of All Mayhem: The Blood-Soaked Life and Mysterious Death of Belle Starr, the Most Dangerous Woman in the West is a thoroughly researched, intellectually engaging biography of Belle Starr, one of the most notorious women of the Old West. Dane Huckelbridge masterfully places her life within the broader historical context of the American frontier, giving readers a deeper understanding of the times she lived in—post-Civil War turmoil, territorial lawlessness, and the shifting dynamics of gender and power.

This isn’t a dramatized Western—it’s a serious and thoughtful account that gives Belle Starr her due as both an outlaw and a product of her environment. The sections detailing the wider history do occasionally slow the pacing, but they add valuable context for readers interested in the era.

George Newbern’s narration enhances the audiobook, delivering the story with clarity and subtle character that suits the material well. This is a book for readers and listeners who already have an interest in American history, the Old West, or biographies of strong, unconventional women. If you're drawn to stories of frontier justice and defiant lives lived outside the bounds of expectation, this one’s for you.

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperAudio for the advance listening copy.

Growing up Belle Starr was a household name for me, since our family lore says we are a related (not verified), just like the author. This is a fascinating exploration of the early life of Belle Starr, and the events that created an agent of mayhem, namely significant personal loss. Starr was a woman born out of time, and she would not be made to suffer the injustices of her sex. A known horse thief, a murderer, a daughter, mother, and wife, Belle's life is a fascinating contradiction of a woman trying to make her own way at a time when society had a narrow path for women.

Well researched, and a well-told story, this is a great read for anyone interested in Western history, feminism, or both.

Myra Maybelle Shirley, also known as Belle Star, was shot and killed on February 3, 1889. At the time of her death, she was just 40 years old and one of the most dangerous women in the American West. She led a gang of horse thieves and married one of the most dangerous outlaws. She also married a direct descendent of the greatest female warrior in Cherokee history. This is the story of her life.

Why Kirsten likes it
As always, I adore Huckelbridge’s writing style as I learned about one of the most notorious bandits I’ve never heard of! Belle’s story is made to be memorialized in a movie because if I didn’t know this was a nonfiction book, I never would have believed half the things that she did! #gifted by HarperAudio

This is a such an interesting book of speculative nonfiction. I love that it's about Belle Starr, but also about the people, history, and cultures surrounding her.

This book was well-written and well researched. Any author writing a non-fiction book about a historical woman is going to have issues because women just weren’t deemed worthy of documenting and there is a little factual evidence to provide.

While it is important to list the context of the times so that you can understand what may have caused Belle to act as she did, in this book felt more that Belle was a secondary character. It was more of a general Wild West, Native Americans, Civil War history type book rather than Belle Starr story. The title was misleading. The I was disappointed because I was expecting to learn more about Belle and I learned far more about her brother and husbands. The author did stick to facts rather than rumors about her deeds. Not a bad book, but not what I was expecting.

George Newbern had a good voice and this was easy to listen to.

Thank you to the author, HarperAudio, and NetGalley for the Advanced
Listener Copy (ALC) copy of this audiobook and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

Queen of All Mayhem: The Blood-Soaked Life and Mysterious Death of Belle Starr, the Most Dangerous Woman in the West by Dane Huckelbridge (book cover in image) is the story of Belle Starr (born Myra Maybelle Shirley) one of the most dangerous women in the Midwest. Covering her early life, and how circumstances in her life led her to a life of crime in pursuit of gaining her own agency, we learn that she may not have made it into the historical cannon, if she her death had not reported to the NYT by a local reporter.

I had the good fortune of being able to read and listen to the audiobook at the same time. While the narration by George Newbern was excellent, this still felt like an academic historical text and may limit the audience for this amazing account of Hucklebridge’s attempt to sort out the facts from the lore. I strongly recommend this book for those who are interested in learning about the women of the American west.

Thank you, William Morrow and Harper Audio Adult | Harper Audio, for the opportunity to read this ARC and listen to this ALC. All opinions are my own.

Rating: 5 Stars
Release Date: May 13 2025

Tags:
#WilliamMorrow
#HarperAudio
#QueenofAllMayhem
#DaneHuckelbridge
#GeorgeNewbern
#Biography
#History
#NonFiction
#BelleStar
#netgalley

I think I should start this with a confession. I may be American, and I may enjoy learning and reading about the 19th century, but for the longest time I have never been interested in Westerns. To a great extent, I found most stories and legends, fictional or not, to blend together in my head. I can safely say that I've also heard very little about women in the wild west. They always seemed to be on the sidelines or in the background adding very little to the ongoing conflicts.

That's why when I saw the cover, I found myself intrigued. This is the biography of the most dangerous woman in the west, Belle Starr. The woman went from the daughter of a relatively well-to-do family to an infamous outlaw who not only associated with some of the most dangerous criminals of the time, but was a terrifying figure to cross herself.

The author has done such a wonderful job not only researching the woman herself, but presenting facts, exaggerations as well as (at times) conflicting accounts in a non-confusing way. The book, also, did a wonderful job introducing the audience to both the civil war as well as a lot of the political, cultural and societal dramas that unfolded after. I can safely say I breezed through the book and didn't find a single minute boring.

While this is a non-fiction biography, the writing is far from dry. The narration by George Newbern practically transports you to the setting. All of this comes together to make sure that it's an interesting experience for the readers/listeners.

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised. While I disagree with a lot of Belle Starr's actions and views, I enjoyed learning about a female outlaw for once, but also learn about the wild west in such a well-executed manner.

Also, why don't we wear feathery white hats anymore?

This is a very well researched and thoughtful biography of Belle Starr. Dane Huckelbridge did a good job of creating an immersive image of the 19th century American west. It is clear that he spent the time going through a range of primary sources in order to present the facts of Belle Starr's life. I also appreciated how he took the time to distinguish between the reality of Belle Starr as a unique woman, and the myth that was created around her life as a romanticized outlaw after her death. The reliance on fact and context did make it a fairly dry read, however. The narrator did a fairly good job making the content interesting, but it was easy to get lost in the details. I would recommend this to anyone interested in bringing real women more into our understanding of history.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperAudio for providing an eALC in return for my honest thoughts.

Thanks Net Galley for the advance audio of QUEEN OF ALL MAYHEM by Dane Hucklebridge. This book told the true story of Belle Starr, an outlaw in the Wild West. I knew very little about her prior to reading Dane Hucklebridge's biography of Belle, not even her full name. This author gave a very thorough history of her life and freely admitted when some incidents were conjecture and others were witnessed and discussed in court.
This work talked about both her human side and her outlaw side and left it up to the reader to decide whether or not she was a bad as she's portrayed in history, is more humane than portrayed and what affect her personal history had on her life and the choices she made.

Very interesting read. I learned a lot about belle star and her history. Loved the information and the narrative with the book.

Thank you netgalley for the advanced audiobook copy of Queen of All Mayhem. I was captivated by the story and history of this woman I had never before heard of. I don’t typically gravitate to nonfiction but I quite liked it.

*Thank you to HarperAudio and NetGalley for the ALC! All opinons are my own.*

I. ATE. THIS. UP. First, a disclaimer, I am absolutely a history nerd with an academic background in history and I devour things like this for fun on a regular basis, so if you take my recommendation for this when I later tell you that it is accessible and you find that I'm actually full of shit, please just remember that I basically live and breathe museum marquees so...

This was such a fun mix of narrative and traditional nonfiction. I really appreciated how the author made obvious use of his primary sources and wasn't afraid to throw them into his text. Primary sources like letters and old newspaper articles can often feel really overwhelming for a modern audience that isn't used to reading them all of the time, but they're also greatly beneficial to historical research so it's a bit of a double-edged sword. To not shy away from then in your text made for a general audience is really brave, but I think the way the author framed them as "can't miss" opportunities to hear the subjects in their own voice (which is exactly what they are!!) was a great way to go about it. There is a LOT of information in this book. You will find yourself absolutely wondering where it all ties back to our main subject, but for someone like me who appreciates the bigger picture, I really loved having the background information about the Civil War and the indigenous tribes. It helped inform the setting for me a lot. I know that's probably going to turn off a lot of people from reading this one, but I'm going to encourage all of you to try to stick with it because not only is the information valuable, but it's also presented in such a wonderful way. It's really clear to me that this was a fun project for Huckelbridge to work on and everything he put in here was on purpose.

I also want to give the absolute MOST kudos to the narrator of this audiobook, because it's the most fun I've ever had listening to a nonfiction book probably ever? George Newbern makes all of this crazy historical information and all of these outlaw stories an absolute joy to take in. It felt like I was sitting around the fireplace listening to someone just tell stories of a wild person they knew once or something. He felt so familiar by the end. These are things I have absolutely said about fiction narrators a million times, but nonfiction narration is harder for me and this has been such an uplifting experience. If you're at all unsure or hesitant about this book, I highly recommend doing it audibly. George will make it worthwhile for sure!

This book was captivating. For such an incredible story wrapped up in legend and lore, the author does a meticulous job of parsing out what may have truly taken place. I found the whole thing fascinating. I appreciated the effort spent to contextualize the events in the broader history of the time and I learned a great deal. Dane Huckelbridge was a great narrator. I absolutely recommend the audiobook experience. With Hucklebridge's friendly inflection I felt like I was being told a 'tall tale' by a relative or friend. I don't often have this much fun with a non-fiction/biography. Thank you NetGalley and HarperAudio Adult/HarperAudio for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.