Sundown at Sunrise: A Story of Love and Murder, Based on One of the Most Notorious Ax Murders in American History

by Marty Seifert

Based on a true tale from the early 1900s, this work of historical fiction gives life to murderer William Kleeman, a handsome young farmer from southwestern Minnesota who courts the beautiful Maud Petri. After a quick engagement and marriage, the couple produce four children and are joined by boarder Mary Snelling, who teaches at the country school across the road. This addictive story winds through many twists before ending in a deadly rampage that results in one of the most notorious ax murders in American history.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Book Club, True Crime, Crime

384 pages, Paperback

Published December 14, 2016

Reviews

[Melissa (Semi Hiatus Until After the Holidays) · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

This was the choice for my book club this month. Although the axe murders were sad, they really make up an extremely small portion of this story. Most of the book is very mundane, with how William and Maud met, courted, had children, etc. Lots of detail about farming and chores and everyday life in the early 1900s, and very little about the murders and any investigation that took place.

Do I think William did it? There's not nearly enough information here to tell. This book didn't have any photos, and I think it really needed them. The person who chose this book printed them out for us, which was a great way to get some perspective and make them into real people rather than feeling like it's a fictional story. Also, where did the author get his information? Are there journals? Other articles? Is much of this pure supposition about what happened?

I was left with way more questions than answers, and although I appreciated the author's efforts to write the book and give these long forgotten people a voice, I just didn't feel like it covered the information that it needed to cover.

[Valerie · Rating 2 out of 5]

WAY too many unanswered questions. What was THE conversation between William and Mary like? Did Mary give birth? Why did Mary die shortly after all of this???? Did the truth ever come out???? Too much detail on unimportant things and not enough on the major things.

[Gail · Rating 2 out of 5]

I probably should only give this book one star because I really didn't like it much. The reason I bought the paperback edition was because the setting is rural Minnesota, fairly close to where I grew up and I had never heard about this heinous crime.

First book by this author, it shows. Anyone who kills his entire family with an ax and then hangs himself is probably not normal. The author does not need to hit the reader over the head with a hammer to show that. Symbols of evil all over -- garter snakes, especially, and crows, lots of crows, black horses, a black dog, everything black. Animals and people fleeing after making eye contact with this man, you get the picture.

It is historical fiction since the actual motivations are not known but the crime and characters were real people. A horrible crime for sure, a short article about the few known facts would have served it better.

[Sam Hansen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Marty Seifert nailed it! Sundown at Sunrise was able to bring back the life and memory of the Kleeman family in a way that was previously not recognized. Readers will finish this book as if they knew the family, as it reads like a movie script. Seifert’s understanding of human nature and the times is extraordinary and that is what makes this book such an easy read. It reads more like a novel than a history book. It has details wonderfully described that create mental pictures in your mind of the times, the people, and the world in which they lived. The narrative is so rich, that it fits impeccably into the wider picture. The story of love and murder sucks you in and makes the book impossible to put down. Sundown at Sunrise is a wonderful book that makes other murder books look like hollow shells in comparison.

[Annie H · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 ⭐
Woah!!!
That was crazy!

[Rebecca Peichel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book, written by my friend Marty Seifert, has been sitting in my TBR (to be read) pile for 2 years and I finally got my act together and picked it up. Once I did, I had a hard time putting it down.

102 years ago and 25 miles from my parent's farm on the plains of early rural Minnesota, William Kleeman murdered his wife, Maud, and 4 children with an ax before he hanged himself.

Sometimes a book gives you what you need, and that runs counter to what you thought you wanted. This is one of those. Modern thrillers have ruined us with elaborate plots, sharp twists, deep conspiracy, drawn out plans. Sundown at Sunrise sets it's own tone by providing a wealth of detail and imagery of the times. I can imagine in clear detail how my great-grandparents might have met, living 25 miles away in a place just like Clements during the same span of years.

Perhaps small hints wind through William's story over many years, glimpses of instability and godless behavior uncommon of the time; perhaps he creates a feeling of unease or trepidation in some, but no one can string together the small clues across decade. Perhaps one day he snaps. The man becomes desperate, swept up in a hardship he isn't prepared to face, and acts without thought or foresight. The brutal scene is no less deplorable or heinous for his lack of planning.

The research put into this book is incredible, though the main plot and many characters are fictionalized, Marty does an incredible job of painting the changing life of rural people and farmers in a time of rapid mechanization.

Other Goodreads reviews give Marty gets a mixed bag for his effort, and I can understand why reading Sundown at Sunrise and taking it at face value may engender such feedback. Pieces of the foreshadowing could be contrived as a bit heavy handed, some of the dialogue feels rote. But I'm glad Marty gave voice to the legends of his childhood, and opened a door for me, inviting me to discover some of stories in my own backyard.

I went down to the farm in Fairfax this January to see my Grandpa on his 87th birthday, and he told me about a pioneer cemetery he had stumbled upon in the woods in his youth. He hoped someone knew it was there, and was looking after it. The farm he grew up on was 2 miles to the East of where he lives now, directly across the road from where my parents now live, where I grew up.

I went down the Google rabbit hole of abandoned pioneer family cemeteries to find with some relief that it is known and marked by Nicollet County. I was struck by how little I, as a lover of history, knew about this piece of history so close to home. As every year passes, we lose opportunities to know the stories of those that came before us.

History is not only an abstract concept of places far away. Whether you're born in a city or on the most rural of farms, it is under our feet, it's across the road, it's down the street. It lives on through the people who once lived in a place, the ones who are still here, through the ones who have moved away. It's our responsibility to use our imagination to tell and protect the stories that shaped our homes, those home that in turn, shape us.

[Julie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Too much detail on things I felt didn't matter (cranking to get car engines started). Lots of mystery surrounding snakes and what a bad person William Kleeman was. Until the murders, I didn't have any reason to think ill of him. Still don't know what the deal with the snakes was. And the teacher...no answers about her either. I don't consider myself a book critic. Generally, either I like it or I don't. This one left me wondering lots of things...finally, why did I bother to read it.

[Jeanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This work of historical fiction, based on an actual ax murder back in 1917, was based in southwest Minnesota, where I grew up. This added an interesting twist to the story with the familiarity of the small town farming communities. The only bad thing about this story was the true life tragedy that was the basis for the story -- story leading up to and after the tragedy was well thought out and executed. 6 out of 10.

[Terry · Rating 1 out of 5]

More of a romance novel than historical fiction.300 pages of daily life and times(I guess) of early 1900s life with about 20 pages near the end about the murders.

[TE · Rating 4 out of 5]

This capable historical fiction/true crime novel tells a story which is little-known outside the rural farming community in Minnesota where the events of that tragic evening occurred, now more than a century ago, in March, 1917. In fact, many of the reviewers here note that they're from the area, and thus have an interest in local history. The event's relative obscurity is somewhat surprising, actually, considering the fact that it's one of the most horrific ax murders in American history, reminiscent of the far-more-famous Villisca ax murders, which occurred in a small Iowa town in 1912. In that case, however, a family of six, as well as two young neighbor girls, were bludgeoned to death by an ax-wielding madman, which was almost certainly the work of a family annihilator serial killer, not a family member. In that case, the murderer was never positively identified.

"Sundown"'s author, Marty Seifert, who served as a representative in the Minnesota House for fourteen years, is a local who grew up just a few miles down the road from the murder site, which is about two miles from the town of Clements, in Redwood County. As such, he has intimate firsthand knowledge of the events that occurred that tragic day in 1917. In fact, he recalls that while passing by the old farm site as a child, his father would point to the property and tell him, "something terrible happened on that farm." So terrible, in fact, that neighbors adjacent to the Kleeman's rented homestead reportedly got permission from the landowner to burn the house after it had sat empty for many years, in an attempt to erase any pervasive reminders of the event and to keep curious onlookers from visiting the site.

Those efforts weren't entirely successful, however. A fairly well-known YouTuber did a video about this event not long go, and toured the grounds with the current owner of the property, Alex Peterson, who purchased the land from his grandfather's estate after the latter passed away in 2020. His grandfather had initially purchased the property, consisting of about 200 acres, in 1988, so Alex, like Seifert, has vivid childhood memories of the site. His grandfather would also tell Alex the tragic story of the Kleeman family, from the time he was about twelve or thirteen.

Although Alex stated that he and his wife have performed some amateur archaeological excavations, much of the original home site remains untouched since at least the time his grandfather first purchased the property, which, locally, at any rate, has remained rather notorious. Reportedly, around the time the book came out, a team of paranormal investigators asked to conduct an investigation there, but as Alex's wife was pregnant with their fourth child at the time, which was also close to the the 100th anniversary of the event, he declined their request.

Although a motive has never been clearly established, what is known is that tenant farmer William August Kleeman, aged 31, murdered his entire family - wife, Maud, age 27, and their four young children, aged five, three, two, and just five weeks, with an ax at their rural farmhouse as they slept, and then hanged himself. Kleeman left a suicide note wherein he suggested, somewhat cryptically, that someone had broken into the house and demanded money - and had killed the entire family, aside from Kleeman himself - whereupon Kleeman subsequently hanged himself. However, no one believed this far-fetched story: it was quickly determined by police and the coroner that William himself had killed his sleeping family. There were no signs of distress or duress, suggesting that his wife and children never even knew what hit them: how would a burglar or thief have slaughtered the sleeping family in their beds without waking them, all the while holding William hostage? - who clearly hanged himself rather than face justice and public shame for their murders.

The book is one of fiction, in that most of the events which recount the story of William and Maud are fictionalized, as is the dialogue, but it is certainly consistent with what could have occurred in the years just prior to the outbreak of World War I. What is fact is that Maud Petri was a pretty, outgoing and somewhat flirtatious young woman, by the standards of the rural farming community where she lived with her fairly wealthy parents and brother, but she was still considered a sensible and respectable girl who was well-thought of. She initially met William Kleeman, a dashing, handsome, but somewhat narcissistic and impulsive lad who had a reputation as a ladies' man, at a local dance. The two became immediately smitten with each other, their attraction mutual.

William was of far more humble origins than Maud. The son of a German immigrant, a man of more modest means with a much larger family to support, William was, in fact, at the time, working as a common farm laborer and living in a ramshackle house on his employer's property when he met Maud, although he clearly had more lofty aspirations. To his credit, he worked tirelessly to improve his lot, even if much of his effort was intended to impress Maud and her skeptical family, who were less than enthusiastic about their budding romance. Even the Petri's hired hand, who had harbored a crush on Maud since her teenage years, was unimpressed with her suitor, it appears, as he was conspicuously absent the day of their wedding, which was hosted at the Petri residence.

What else is known is that William harbored some rather odd, even somewhat disturbing quirks: he had a notorious distaste for religion of any descript, refusing to attend church services, or, at least in the novel, even enter the building - a stark departure from standard practice at the time, especially since his family were Lutherans. As previously mentioned, that included even being married at the Petri's church by their longtime pastor. He reportedly also liked to party, and was a regular at community social events, which itself may not have been untoward, but he also had quite the reputation as a playboy amongst the young women in the community, one who didn't seem in any hurry to settle down.

William was also very image-conscious and status-oriented, someone who could even be described as a pathological social climber who, at least as portrayed in the novel, constantly tried to impress people by throwing his money around. He purchased his own team of horses and buggy, which were more a hindrance than a help for his job as a farm laborer, ostensibly so that he could take Maud for rides in the country during their courtship, but he may have had a more ulterior motive. Rather than save up to buy his own farmstead, especially considering the fact that he refused to ever purchase on credit - he paid cash for everything, which severely hampered his ability to buy his own land - William decided that the horses and buggy weren't good enough for him. He shortly thereafter also depleted his savings to buy a Sears-catalogue mail-order automobile, an ostentatious display of wealth which largely backfired. It was of such poor quality that it was an embarrassment, and rather than enhance his status, served as yet another stark contrast between his ability to provide for Maud, compared to her wealthy parents.

Despite many people's misgivings, however, the wedding went forward. Shortly thereafter, the pair moved into a house on her father's property. Maud was apparently pregnant by the time she returned from their week-long honeymoon, as their first child was born nine months later. As their young family quickly grew - four children were born in just about six years - they soon outgrew the house on her father's property and aimed to move to a larger one. As William refused to purchase anything on credit, and thus was unable to buy his own farm outright, the family lived on a rented property at the time of their deaths.

The other significant event in the story is that William agreed to take on a boarder, at the behest of the local school board. Mary Snelling, an attractive, well-educated young woman, had been hired to teach at the local schoolhouse, which was within a short walking distance of the Kleeman farm. This may have been the turning point which led to tragedy, however. Although there is no direct evidence to support the theory, it has long been whispered that pretty, young Mary at some point became William's mistress while living with them. Seifert even claims that the schoolteacher was exhibiting signs of pregnancy - specifically, symptoms of morning sickness - the week of the murders, when she departed rather suddenly to visit relatives.

Mary was thus out of town on the day of the murders, but it was she who ultimately discovered the body of William Kleeman, hanging lifelessly from the ceiling in his dining room by a rope around his neck the day of her return. She did not discover the bodies of the other family members initially, but reportedly found and read his suicide note, fled the house, and contacted the authorities, who then searched the house and uncovered a gruesome scene: each of the other five family members had been murdered with an ax blow to the head, killed in their beds while they slept. The murder weapon was recovered at the scene.

Not surprisingly, the event resulted in a media frenzy, if one largely confined to the local area. It still became fodder for all manner of wild speculation about the nature of the crime, the perpetrator and the victims, which has persisted for over a century, now. The crime admittedly wasn't as widely publicized as the Villisca murders, probably because there were no trials or lawsuits associated with it: authorities almost immediately concluded that they had their man, William Kleeman himself, and closed the case, even if a specific motive for the terrible crime remained elusive. However, this new book, which is at least based on solid evidence and takes only a modest amount of poetic license, as it were, will nonetheless bring the little-known event to a much larger audience, which is likely to prompt additional speculation.

Many theories about the case have been circulated for the past century, but no real motive has ever been established. An article in the "Windom Reporter," published shortly after the event, is perhaps most representative of the general belief at the time, when it speculated that "Mr. Kleeman, had, in a fit of temporary insanity, killed his wife and four children, and then hung himself. Financial trouble is said to be the cause." This latter assertion was refuted by both families, however, who asserted that the young family was actually in good financial standing. Were they to have fallen on hard times, Maud's fairly wealthy family would certainly have stepped in to assist.

"The Redwood Gazette" (Apr. 4, 1917) suggested, in contrast, that "the rumor that financial affairs was the cause of worry and dementia has also been silenced, by relatives, who state that the family had no cause for anxiety over money matters. In the apparent absence of any motive, it is only charitable to accept the only plausible theory - the act being the action of a mentally deranged person." The coroner's inquest (essentially a mini-trial, where cause and manner of death were presented and determined, along with the identification a potential perpetrator) came to a similar conclusion, or, rather, a lack thereof. It determined that Kleeman had killed his family, despite vague suggestions to the contrary in his suicide note, but no motive was ever agreed upon. The manner of death was, of course, determined to be homicide, in the case of his family, and suicide, in the case of Kleeman himself.

At this point, there really isn't much else to go on, and, given the passage of time, there probably won't be any in the future. The case has been laid to rest, along with the victims and perpetrator. The parents, surviving siblings, friends, co-workers and neighbors, however, then had to come to terms with the tragedy and to live with the terrible aftermath. Apparently, one of them couldn't, which essentially makes William directly responsible for one more death. According to the author - and I don't think this is fiction - his dear friend John, the son of his former employer, who had few if any other friends owing to a severe stutter and crippling shyness, himself committed suicide two weeks after William's funeral. He reportedly also left a note, stating simply, "I lost my only friend. Forgive me, Momma." John had hanged himself in a shed and was discovered by his father when he failed to show up for supper.

The grieving parents also had to interact with each other, even over the issue of burials. Eventually, they mutually agreed to have two of the children buried near William, and two buried near Maud, as, understandably, Maud's parents refused to let her be buried next to William, even if that meant that she would be separated from two of her children for all eternity. Although the author was apparently unaware of the fact at the time, according to burial records, the entire family is buried in the same cemetery, Redwood Falls Cemetery - just not together. William August Kleeman (b. 1886) is buried alongside his two daughters, Gladys Alice (b. 1911) and Lois Rosamund (b. 1913). Their marker simply states "Kleeman," and omits any detailed information about the three individuals, including first names, birth or death date. William's parents August (a German immigrant) and Wilhelmine "Minnie" Kleeman, who survived him by 30 years, are also buried there. His mother was so distraught that she did not even attend her son's funeral.

Cemetery records also show that Maud (b. 1889) and the other two children are likewise interred in Redwood Falls Cemetery, alongside other Petri family members. They are located near the marked grave of William Petri, but Maud, her parents Clara and and Henry, and two of the children, son Gordon (b. 1915) and little Rosadell, only about five weeks old at the time of her murder, lie in unmarked graves (Lot 14, Block 6, Division 3, in "beds 1, 2, 5, 6 and 7"). It appears that the family desired perpetual anonymity and privacy: even a local newspaper article in the "Redwood Gazette," dated April 4, 1917, refers to the cemetery simply as "the burial ground where the interment was made."

For the most part, the story has faded into obscurity over the last century, other than for die-hard true crime enthusiasts. The ax is now housed at a local historical museum but is not on public display. Little remains of the original Kleeman homestead: there's now just the stone foundation of the original house, a crumbling chicken coop, which was later repurposed as a utility shed, a well, which does still retain the original, rusted iron pump that the family themselves would have actually used, and a long, unpaved driveway which leads to a small wooded area atop a low mound. Thus, although some old outbuildings can still be found at the site, nothing but the stone footprint remains of the house, which was razed to the ground. Anything still on the site is also engulfed in a thick grove of trees and an overgrowth of brush, which obscures most of whatever might remain from view.

The Sunrise schoolhouse where Mary Snelling, the Kleeman's boarder, taught also still survives, but not on the original site. It was pulled from its foundation and relocated to nearby Rowena, about ten miles from the farm - which is really just a grain elevator and some outbuildings now - several decades ago. Strangely, it appears that the old schoolhouse has been repurposed to serve as a storage building at the grain elevator. It was formerly located just a stone's throw from the Kleeman home - which was the point of having the teacher board with them. The school was visible from and within easy walking distance of the house, even in winter, when deep snow would have made the roads all but impassible. Apparently, a stop sign at an intersection of the main road now marks the site where the schoolhouse once stood. It actually remained in use until the 1960s, when it was finally shuttered and moved from its original location to the present site, where it sits, in a significant state of disrepair. Owing to harsh environmental conditions, however, it is likely not to last much longer, if efforts are not undertaken to preserve or protect it.

Nor was Mary Snelling, the teacher who boarded with the Kleemans and who discovered William's body, long for this world. She died in Oct., 1918 of influenza, at age 23, only a year and a half after the killings, during the epidemic of 1918-1919. After the murders, she resigned her post and moved in with her sister. There is no record of her ever having had a child, which calls into question the speculation that she was William Kleeman's mistress who was experiencing symptoms of morning sickness the week of the murders, or that she had an illegitimate child by him.

However, a genealogical researcher recently suggested that Mary Snelling was not the schoolteacher's real name: rather, her real identity was Ruth Jane Snyder. There is still no record of Mary/Ruth having a baby, but the researcher has raised the possibility that a baby born into the family, Earl Ray Dorman II, in either 1916 or 1917 (the birth date is inconsistent, giving rise to even more suspicion that something was amiss) was actually the son of Ruth Jane Snyder and William Kleeman. Earl II died and was cremated in 1988, so no remains were preserved to test whether he was actually related to William Kleeman. Earl II did have a son, however, Earl Ray Dorman, III, so there are living descendants, and, hence the possibility that they may someday perform a DNA test to determine whether the rumors are true. The mystery remains, as does the ultimate motive of why William Kleeman did the unthinkable and slaughtered his entire family.

This is a capable novel, in a similar vein as Truman Capote's "In Cold Blood." It's a fairly quick read, as the prose is simple, but engaging, and it is a truly captivating, but tragic story - sad in the sense that "Titanic" was sad, because you get to know the characters well, but already know their ultimate fates. Readers expecting a gory, detailed account of the killings will be disappointed, however, because only about 20 pages or so discuss the crimes directly. Almost all the content is about William and Maude's romance and life together, as well as a thorough introduction to the close-knit, rural community in which they lived and died. If you're looking for thick description of the murders, look elsewhere. This novel is a respectful yet honest account of one of the most terrible episodes in Minnesota history, which shouldn't be forgotten.

[Brittany M · Rating 5 out of 5]

Starts out slow but then as I kept reading I was able to get into it. I read this because I grew up on a farm between Sleepy Eye & Morgan & I had never heard of these murders until this book came out. I was happy to see both towns mentioned in the book as well as Mankato where I live now. I also don't live too far from Glenwood cemetery so now I may have to wander over there one of these days to see if I can find Ruth Snyder's (Mary Snelling in the book) grave. As for the book, it was a spooky yet interesting read & the ending made me emotional because while it was creepy, the whole murders in general & how they happened is very sad! The author did a great job of hitting me in the feels at the end of this book.

[Jill Crosby · Rating 2 out of 5]

A well-organized fictionalized account of one of Minnesota’s most notorious murders. That being said, the prose is frequently shaky and awkward; there’s empty, often contradictory symbolism (snakes, crows, black horses, more snakes) employed randomly to indicate evil ( I was reminded of Frau Blüchrr’s effect on horses in “Young Frankenstein”);the writer has a HORRIBLE ear for dialogue; and pleasepleasePLEASE someone with any sense of decency—get this man a thesaurus. There are DOZENS of words/phrases to use in place of “smirk.” For the love of all that’s good, please master a few of these before setting fingers to keyboard again

[Kendra · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved that this book took place in an area close to home. It is always fun to read an recognize the town names. I also enjoyed that there was so much detail about the appliances and farming equipment from the time period. It really set up the scene. However, I found my self wanting more. It is based on one of the "Most Notorious Ax Murder in American History" yet that was such a small portion of the actual book.

[Brynne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sundown At Sunrise
By:Brynne Farasyn


The book I read is titled “Sundown At Sunrise” by Marty Seifert. My book is based on a true story about a girl named Maud Petrie. She goes to a dance and meets a handsome man named William Kleeman. They get along very well and William and Maud end up dating for a while until he proposed to her and they later had 4 children together. William always avoided going to church and always made up excuses for not praying before they ate. The family eventually moves out to a new farm on their own and end up being joined by a boarder named Mary Snelling who is a teacher at Sunrise Schoolhouse. They end up having a pretty good life, that is until William ends up murdering his whole family with an ax and hanged himself after. His motives for doing it are still unknown and no one can figure out how a once loving and caring father and husband, turned into a murderous and horrifying person.
The theme of this book is love and betrayal. At the beginning of the book you would've never guessed how it would end. The whole first part of the book is about how their love is built and how the family, well that is for all except for William, builds a relationship with God and have strong beliefs and faith. The betrayal constantly becomes more visible in William as he constantly avoided religion and religious acts or beliefs, cheated on his wife, murdered his own family, and looked away from God only to find Lucifer himself. He often used excuses to not say grace and to not pray “‘Maybe we should say grace before eating’ Clara Suggested to Maud and William ‘Excuse me ma’am’ William quickly replied as he stood up from the chair. ‘I need to use the outhouse right quick. Go ahead without me’”. William in a way betrayed himself as he was loved and loved people before something provoked him into carrying out the horrifying crime. In the end the theme of love and betrayal is clear as daylight as everyone becomes closer and radiates love after mourning their loved ones, and everyone now can see William and his betrayal to everyone that has ever loved him and needed him.
I personally do not recommend this book to anyone. The overall topic of the books and the story is very interesting but it doesn’t happen till the end of the book. The book tends to drag on and gets very boring to read as the author goes into extreme detail such as “They Scratched their high-backed chairs back on the hardwood floor, seating themselves at a small table for four.“. I feel as the book was intended for more mature audiences as the overall topic of the book was based off a true story and the story is very gruesome and hard to understand how someone could do that. The book was fairly easy to read the only hard things to understand was the setting as the story took place in the early 1900’s and some people might not know what the characters and saying or doing. The fact that the books setting was set in our town area with familiar town names such as Redwood Falls, Mankato, Clements, and many more drew me to the book. I also dislike how the author leaves us to infer parts of the book that could lead to major changes in how we view the story. That is why I don’t recommend the book Sundown at Sunrise.

[Mila J · Rating 5 out of 5]

**Spoiler Alert**



I read the book Sundown At Sunrise by Marty Seifert. This book is about Maud Petrie and William Kleeman. They met each other at a dance. A couple of months later William took Maud to town and they went to the waterfall and William proposed. One week after their wedding Maud was pregnant. She gave birth to her first child, Gladys Kleeman who was born on June 1911. She then went on to have three more children, Lois, Gordon, and Roseadel. The Kleemans were living in a home that was close to the Petrie Farm, so that Maud’s parents could help out with the kids. Soon they moved to their own place away from the Petrie’s. A couple of months later they heard about a boarder that needed a place to stay and the school was right by the house so William just said that they could take her in. The boarder, Mary Snelling moved in. It came time for Mary to see her family again so she asked William if he could give her a ride to town. Being the nice person that he is, he said yes and they set out for town. After William dropped Mary off at the depot he went to the saloon and had three drinks. When he came home that night he went to let the dog out and he saw an axe on the porch. He wrote a note saying that a burglar broke in and killed the family and that he hung himself because he claimed he couldn’t stop the burglar. There was no burgular. William killed his entire family one by one, the children with the blunt side of the axe and Maud with the sharp side. This was recorded as the worst murder in the world.


The author makes it so there are many emotions in the story. The author left the reader in suspense because we never learned why William Kleeman murdered his family. He can make it seem so sad but scary at the same time. In the beginning its very romantic and beautiful and by the end it was very sad, scary, and suspenseful.


I recommend this book because it has a lot of horror and suspense. There is a lot of mysteries in the book that will leave you thinking about what happened. I loved this book because of the characters. They just seem so loveable and nice. I recommend this book for kids over the age of 9 because there is some swearing and there is a murder scene. I wouldn’t recommend this book if you don’t like murders or any death. It goes into a lot of detail about the murder scene. I hope you all read this amazing book!

[ming l · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book I read is “Sundown at Sunrise'' by Marty Seifert. It is based on a notorious incident that happened in Minnesota. A girl named Maud Petrie met William Kleeman at a dance. They get along well and start courting. William proposes to Maud and a week later after their wedding, Maud is pregnant. Maud proceeds to have four children. The Kleeman's lived in a home that was close to the Petrie Farm, so that Maud’s parents could help out with their children. Soon after the Kleeman's decided to move to their own place away from Maud’s parents.A few months later, The Kleeman's hear about a boarder who needed a place to stay and there was a school right by their house so they decided to let her stay there. Soon Mary Snelling moves in. Maud seems to be a bit jealous of Mary. Mary needs to get to town to see her family and William gives her a ride to town and drops her off. William goes to the Saloon and grabs some drinks. He then went home and let the dog out and started sharpening his axe. When Maud and his children go to bed, William writes a note claiming that a burglar broke in and killed his entire family and that he hung himself because he could not stop the burglar. There wasn’t a burglar. William kills Maud first and his children one by one with his sharpened axe. William then hangs himself and his body is to be first discovered by Mary Snelling, The Kleeman’s boarder when she arrives back to their house. This was one of the worst axe murders in American history.


The author writes about how Kleeman meets his wife Maud, and life in the early 1900s. .Marty Seifert writes a good love story and it turns pretty dark. This book was romantic, suspenseful and it was overall a really good book. It had too much detail in the beginning and was pretty slow and alot of crows and snakes and a black dog kind of shows that Kleeman is an evil person. The ending is sad and leaves you’ll never know why Kleeman did what he did. Somebody who kills his family and hangs themselves is not mentally okay and normal, the author does not need to put so many things that symbolize evil you get the idea, William is just an bad person.

I do recommend this book and I recommend it to people who like horror and suspense. I loved this book and couldn’t put it down. It was not really predictable that William was going to kill his family which leaves you wondering why he killed them. It is very sad when he murders his entire family and hangs himself. I think it is cool that the murder took place near Redwood. It was a pretty decent book and I recommend it to people over age 12 because William murders his family and hangs himself. You should definitely give this book a try!

[Jahlyn B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marty Seifert has done such an amazing job on writing Sundown At Sunrise. He has done a lot of research about the 1917 murder near Clements, MN. Since he has written this book it has been so popular. This novel is based on a real story about a murder in Clements. After reading this book I have changed many ways on the way I look at things. You can’t like someone just for their looks, you need to look at their personality also. Just like how Maud thought William was attractive but didn’t necessairly like his personality. After I finished reading this I have got more involved on reading more about history and the background of this story, how this novel has been started and how much of it actually happened back in the 1900’s.

After reading this book Marty Seifert has become one of my favorite authors. Sundown At Sunrise is the only book he has written but if he continues to write he will have more and more people liking his books. This novel is one of my top three favorites. He chose to give more detail about either how Maud is feeling during her life with William and her emotional feelings. Also you knew how William was feeling a lot during the story, like whenever they would prey he would get up and make an excuse he had to use the restroom or he needed to do something quick. This novel keeps people hooked either when it’s when he murders his family or when he ends everything about his life. It keeps you reading! To finish it all up he left the reader thinking did that really happen!

I highly recommend Sundown At Sunrise for anyone who enjoys a little love story and some violence. You could get sucked into this book very fast. I believe everyone should get the chance to read this book because you will fall in love with it really fast. There was one part that was leaving you kind of stuck, thinking why would you ever do that to some innocent people. This novel went into detail a little bit about some history, I’m not a big fan of history but I thought it was an awesome book.

[Thomas F · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sundown at Sunrise by Marty Seifert is one of the best books I’ve ever read. Sundown at Sunrise is about a family from Clements, MN. There are many people in the story so I sometimes got mixed up with the characters and didn’t know who they were at times because he keeps switching characters. Otherwise it was an awesome book but with a sad ending.

The author did a very good job with details and giving out words and expressions. On page 279, he put the exact letter that W. Kleeman (the killer) wrote to the people that found him and the other dead bodies. It said, “dear folks - when woke this morning someone in house. Says money or lives. It is in dresser. Happy. I hang myself. Good Bye Bye with love, W. Kleeman.” I thought it was cool that he actually found the letter he wrote to the family. Also on page 270 we wrote, “‘Come on, baby. I need some luck,’ he whispered. He pulled the handle swiftly. In less than ten seconds, he was disappointed again.” With what it says you can tell that he was mad and that he was trying to get the reader to read more because in that time of the book it was getting closer to the murder part.

I would rate this book a 7/10 just because it was a little confusing sometimes but otherwise it was a great book. I really liked that it was based on a true story close to my home city and that it was non-fictional. It was a little to long for me but that meant that I actually had to read more at home and during class. My favorite part was the ending. Even though I knew what the ending was, I still liked it because I didn’t want to stop reading it because it was very good. Sadly the ending was sad but knowing what was gonna happen because I knew about the story didn’t make it as sad. I would definitely recommend this book to others because it was super good and was a type of book where you don’t want to quit reading it.

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book, which I found at Barnes and Nobles, is a historical fiction novel crossed with a true crime story. it details the true story of William Kleeman, a young farmer, who murders his entire family with an ax them hangs himself. The fiction part leading up to the grizzly event, tells the story of how William met his wife Maud, and tidbits of small-town/country life in the early 1900s. It is very well written and given the story, brings a lot of details to life that could've led to what happen on the farm, and what really was William's motivation for the crime, instead of like in a basic true crime story, where statistics, psychology and experts explain why William did what he did. There's more to focus on the characters, and small-town. Even though his motives weren't really explain, but given the small hintand details into Williams personality and character, it's easy to come up with your own reasons why he did what he did!

It was interesting to see the historical details, as I a history buff, and knowing that this book was for the most part was based off of historical events, with some of the details filled, making it more of a historical fiction novel then a true crime story, since how much this story grabbed me with its historical facts along with the fictional narrative, I'd give it a 5 out of 5. It was a good story and hopefully there will be more to come from this author.

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oh my word. I had such high hopes for this book chosen by a book club member. The title is great!

First, the author tells us throughout the book how beautiful William is and makes it seem like he is possessed by a demon or something. He won’t set foot in a church, flees when he sees a cross or Bible, makes pastors blanch, makes docile dogs violent and foaming at the mouth as they try to attack him. Horses run away from him as do cows and chickens, but snakes and crows flock to him. Give. Me. A. Break. I found myself rolling my eyes over and over again. It was so far-fetched.

Second, there is a family in a home named Joseph and Elizabeth. Elizabeth is pregnant, and the baby jumps in her womb when she meets William. If you know the Bible, this will sound very familiar. 🙄Their children were named Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Their dog was named Michael. You know, like Michael, the angel of the Lord, the archangel. 🙄 Just too much.

Third, 66 dark angels salute on the order of Lucifer when William hangs himself. What??? Crazy.

Fourth, this book plodded in the mundane. There was so much repetition of mundane events like starting a car. You didn’t even read about the murders until page 280 of 366 pages. That’s a whole lot of exposition to get to the crux of the story.

How is it that some authors like Hemingway, Austen, Steinbeck, Harper Lee, etc., can write about mundane, everyday things and make them so compelling? This author didn’t do that.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I could not put this book down. Partially because it took place in the 1900's in Southwest Minnesota and those times were very interesting to read about(I am was born in Southern Minnesota.) Also because this murder was so brutal and there seemed to be no history reported as to why this man snapped and killed his entire family and then hung himself. The book provides a clue that it might have been because of his one night affair with a school teacher that boarded at his home. (She may have gotten pregnant) The papers at that time said it was because he was in debt, but it doesn't seem like that is true as he was very frugal with his money and had plenty of family/friends around to help if he got in trouble.

I have been looking online for more information about this real event. Can't come up with much.
So the book was satisfying to read, but at the end I hungered to know why he did this. I also don't understand the burial arrangements. Would be interested to hear what others think who have read this book. I am not spoiling anything because from the beginning you know that he will eventually kill himself and his family. I suspect that farmers at that time did not know why either, or if they did, would not talk about it.

[Pam Herrmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quickly burned through this book. A friend had posted something about the book/author on Facebook and I was very interested. Found out that the author was going to be doing a talk/book signing in New Ulm so I went with my friend Dawn. The book is based on one of the worst murders in Minnesota history in small town Clements. A handsome young farmer courts the innocent Maud Petrie at a local dance. His smooth demeanor has her falling head over heels and they end up getting married quickly. They have four children and then Mr. Smooth turns to the dark side and ax murders his whole family and then hangs himself. This book has me craving more answers from this and other crimes I've heard about in the area. I thought it was a great story of love and real life murder not far from where I live.

[Austin A · Rating 5 out of 5]

I finished reading "Sundown at Sunrise" by Marty Seifert and it was a chilling story. The book is about a murder in Redwood Falls, Minnesota. It was a very scary book but I enjoyed it so much. William Kleeman was the murderer and everytime it mentioned his name it sent chills down my back. The book was very good though, and you wouldn't expect anything if you had no idea what it was about.

The book had very many unexpected part throughout and every single one I had to keep reading to see what happened. Marty Seifert is very good at red herrings. He would make the book seem like a good lovestory, and then everything turns around. The way Marty writes, is such a good thrilling technique. He scared me very many times throughout the book until the very end. I loved the book and wish there was more to it. The book had a great storyline and I didn't want to stop reading. This book is definitely in my top 10.

I recommend this book to higher level readers and if you want a chill. This book was very enjoyable to me and I recommend it to anyone. It was very unpredictable and creepy. I enjoyed the book because it was a good plot and good writing from Marty. This book was not confusing and easily understandable. My favorite part was the murders because it explained them in great detail and I loved it. I have never read a book like this, but now I want too.

[Koren · Rating 3 out of 5]

I guess I'm too much of a true crime fan to really enjoy a book that is based on a true crime. I can see that this crime would not have had enough information to make a nonfiction book. There would be no way to know what the victims and murderer were thinking. There was no investigation or trial. The book is more of a romance novel until you are almost to the end. The book left a lot of unanswered questions about the young teacher the husband got pregnant. It doesn't tell much about her after the deaths and doesnt give us a clue about what happened to her baby or why she died just a year or so after the deaths. It would be interesting to talk to the author to see why he picked this crime to make up a story about, but it seems he chose it because it was close to where he lived.

[Martha Stellmach · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book details a true murder suicide that happened in rural Minnesota in 1917. It was totally a new story to me. Such a sad story, I still don't understand the motivation behind the murders. The book also details farming practices in Minnesota back in the day. The farmers of that Era were transitioning from old ways to the new mechanized ways. It must have been been hard to make that move and expensive to afford it all. Well written by a Minnesota politician who grew up in the area as well as representing it in the legislature. Marty Seifert, the politician, had been aware of the story all of his life and chose to flesh out the story for us. This was another book that made me cry 😢 A must read 📚

[Ashley Orchard · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book held suspense well. There are 266 pages prior to the actual murders, but it held my attention and was an easy read. However, I find there to be serious flaws in the imagery and depiction of the story. What we believe and understand William Kleeman did is atrocious, and it does seem likely that he committed this crime. However, the “evidence” gathered historically would never hold up in modern court and a motive was never identified. To then demonstrate that this man is evil when we don’t know what actually happened, goes simply too far. There were other and better ways to portray this story.

[LuAnn Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mystery book club

It was an easy read and a real life setting.One could relate too. But a great mystery too as for why Mary died so soon after the murders.And what was exchanged between William and her on the ride to the train. I can guess.But it left you thinking. And also few people knew how evil he was. Interesting how the snakes and crows reaction.Plus the pastor. Keep me reading the book.

[Danyelle Cleveland · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick and intriguing read based on true events that took place in Minnesota 100 years ago. Murder and romance often make for an intriguing story and from the start, you are wondering what will lead to such a terrible murder. The event is well researched and keeps you hooked from start to finish. A couple of loose ends but overall it makes for a good read.

[Ann Iverson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I understand why he had what I consider "supernatural" occurrences in the book but I'm not sure they were needed in the story. I also personally prefer fact over fiction. What was the real reason for the final act? I'd also like to know where the author got the "fictional" names for some of the people since he used a family name of mine in the book.

[Joyce · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating telling of the infamous, and horrific axe murders of a family in 1917 Minnesota. Still leaves me with a lot of questions.
-Was Mary pregnant and what happened to her baby?
-Why would Maud's family offer to have two of the children buried with William?
Might have to do some further research. What an interesting time in US history.