Bone Deep: Untangling the Betsy Faria Murder Case by Charles Bosworth Jr.; Joel J. Schwartz

☆☆☆☆☆
.ePUB, 381 pages
Expected Publication: 22 Feb 2022
By: Kensington Books, Citadel

About The Book:
On December 27th, 2011, Russell Faria returned to his Troy, Missouri, home after his weekly game night with friends to an unthinkable, grisly scene: His wife, Betsy, lay dead, a knife still lodged in her neck. She’d been stabbed fifty-five times. First responders concluded that Betsy was dead for hours when Russ discovered her. No blood was found implicating Russ, and surveillance video, receipts, and friends’ testimony all supported his alibi. Yet incredibly, police and the prosecuting attorney ignored the evidence. In their minds, Russ was guilty. But prominent defense attorney Joel J. Schwartz quickly recognized the real killer. The motive was clear. Days before her murder, the terminally ill Betsy replaced her husband with her friend, Pamela Hupp, as her life insurance beneficiary. Still, despite the prosecution’s flimsy case and Hupp’s transparent lies, Russ was convicted—leaving Hupp free to kill again. Bone Deep takes readers through the perfect storm of miscalculations and missteps that led to an innocent man’s conviction—and recounts Schwartz’s successful battle to have that conviction overturned. Written with Russ Faria’s cooperation, and filled with chilling new revelations and previously undisclosed evidence, this is the story of what can happen when police, prosecutor, judge, and jury all fail in their duty to protect the innocent—and let a killer get away with murder.

My Review:

The investigation and prosecution of Russ Faria was an unmitigated and unjust disaster of incompetence and legal prejudice that had to be exposed to the public.

The quote above pretty much sums up what happened during the police investigation and trial. I am not one for non-fiction but after hearing this was going to be a mini series and reading my friend Jan's review I couldn't pass up requesting an ARC...And am I ever glad I did. This book was shocking and had me shaking my head at the American justice system, if there is ever an example needed of why there should not be a death penalty this case is the perfect one. Can you imagine being found guilty of murdering your wife, when you are actually innocent!? This book gets into the nitty gritty of detective work, the judicial system and the prosecutor's office. I loved the intricate details and the fact that the defending council helped write the book. The Lord Byron quote "'Tis strange -- but true; for truth is always strange; Stranger than fiction; if it could be told, How much would novels gain by the exchange!" kept going through my head the entire time I was reading this. I am just glad justice was finally served and that Russ and Betsy's family family got closure and the real culprit is behind bars.

I, for one, cannot wait to see how Renée Zellweger does in this role. If you love police procedural and/or courtroom dramas this book is for you! I highly recommend you don't just take my word for it and read Jan's review here, she does a much better job describing why this book is so great. This is why I love GoodReads SO much...Thanks Jan!

Disclosure:

With many thanks to NetGalley, Charles Henry Bosworth, Joel Schwartz and Kensington Books, Citadel for the giving of the ARC.

#BoneDeep #NetGalley