Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this eARC. I am reviewing this book in audio format.

Bryan Johnston's "Deep in the Woods" is a gripping true-crime narrative that transports readers to a bygone era—a time when the wealthy and powerful were not immune to the darkest corners of human nature. Set against the backdrop of the Great Depression, this meticulously researched account delves into the shocking abduction of young George Weyerhaeuser, scion of the timber dynasty.

In 1935, nine-year-old George Weyerhaeuser is snatched from the streets just blocks away from his opulent home. The perpetrators—a motley crew comprising a career bank robber, a petty thief, and a nineteen-year-old Mormon wife—hold George captive in a pit, chained to a tree, and locked in a closet. The audacity of their crime reverberates across the Northwest, launching the largest manhunt in the region's history.

Johnston weaves a tale that reads like a Hollywood thriller, complete with unexpected twists and improbable developments. The characters—both the victim and the captors—are vividly portrayed, making us question the boundaries of human resilience and cruelty. As the FBI races against time, the tension escalates, leaving readers breathless.

Roger Wayne's narration adds an extra layer of intensity. His voice captures the urgency of the search, the fear in George's eyes, and the desperation of the captors. Wayne's ability to evoke emotion draws listeners into the heart of the story.

"Deep in the Woods" explores themes of privilege, survival, and the lengths to which ordinary people can be pushed. It's a tale of contrasts—the vast wealth of the Weyerhaeuser family juxtaposed with the stark brutality of the kidnapping.

Johnston's meticulous research and Wayne's compelling narration make "Deep in the Woods" an unforgettable journey. Whether you're a true-crime aficionado or simply love a riveting story, this book will keep you turning pages (or listening if you have the audiobook) long into the night.

This novel is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and a chilling reminder that darkness can lurk even in the most idyllic landscapes. Highly recommended for anyone seeking a thrilling, thought-provoking read.

In 1935, nine year old George Weyerhaeuser, part of the wealthy timber family, was kidnapped while walking home from school. His kidnappers made contact and demanded the largest ransom recorded to date. He was kept in trunks of cars, chained to trees in the forest and down in a pit, then imprisoned in a small closet. After the ransom was paid, George was released and reunited with his family.

The kidnappers were a pair of ex-cons and a nineteen year old Mormon girl who had recently married one of them. Although they threatened to kill the boy, there didn't seem to be any real intent to do so. Throughout it all, George kept his cool and after his return, seemed remarkably unaffected by the trauma.

The married couple were quickly caught after passing some of the ransom bills. The other man, who was the originator of the plan and the leader of the group, evaded capture for a time. All were brought to trial. The married man was given forty-five years while his wife, whose lawyer and even the judge believed was fairly innocent, pled guilty and was given a shorter prison sentence. The leader when eventually captured and tried was given life in prison.

This was an interesting true crime case. Although I follow true crime fairly closely, I had never heard of this case, although I had heard of the Weyerhaeuser family. The kidnapping occurred not long after the Lindbergh kidnapping and that case influenced both the family in its decision to pay the ransom and in the actions of the local law enforcement and the FBI who were involved. Readers will learn much about the creation of the FBI and how J. Edgar Hoover viewed crime and criminals. George grew up to lead the family business and surprisingly, gave a job to the married man when he was released from prison. The epilogue followed all the participants through later years. This book is recommended for true crime readers.

This was an interest book about a crime I had never heard of before. The book was enjoyable and seemed well researched. If you are a True Crime fan, I highly recommend you read Deep in the Woods!

3.5 stars I’m rating this book based solely on my enjoyment of it. It was a superbly researched and written true crime. The story of the Weyerhaeuser kidnapping in the early 20th century was one I hadn’t heard of prior to reading this account. The book details the kidnapping, the efforts made to get the boy back and the eventual arrest and trials of the guilty parties.

There was also some interesting historical information about Hoover and his involvement in leading the search for the boy and kidnappers. My only reason for three stars is that I found the actual kidnapping event upon which the story was based, to be not very noteworthy. The kidnapping of any child is big news and a tragedy but the story itself wasn’t all that captivating as a book. The crime was pretty straightforward and short lived so there wasn’t a ton to write about.

I encourage others who gravitate towards true crime to read or listen to this book as my rating is based on personal preference. The storytelling was thorough and factual. The audiobook performance was well narrated. Just wasn’t a historical event that wowed me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Tantor Audio for an advanced audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This book was brilliant, I enjoyed every minute of it. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator was amazing and make it very easy to engage with this book.  This is a non fiction book however,  it was wrote that well that it flows like a fiction book making it so easy to listen to and enjoy. This is in fact my first true crime book and will definitely be reading more if they are all as good as this book. This book sounded as if it was very well researched and full to the brim with those small important details. The boy that was kidnapped in his later year gave the author an interview making this book all the more appealing. The ending really surprised me but it just shows the growth of people and there willingness to help others. I couldn't help but be in awe of the communities that came together to prove evidence of the kidnappers movements. This make the book so much more interesting and gripping leading to a brilliant sense of tension.
So much praise goes to the author and publishing team for bringing us such a gripping, edge of your seat read that I and I'm sure others will engage in an thoroughly enjoy. Can't wait to read more now.

This review was added to amazon, goodreads, Barnes&noble, waterstones, kobo and Google books today same as above either under my name or ladyreading365 and also to my blog https://ladyreading365.wixsite.com/website/post/deep-in-the-woods-by-bryan-johnston-tantor-audio-5-stars

I am a huge true crime fan. TV shows, podcasts, books.....always into one story or another. I had never heard of this case -- the kidnapping of George Weyerhaeuser in 1935 -- before I listened to this audiobook. The story is very interesting and definitely kept my attention from start to finish!

Narrated by Roger Wayne, the audio is just over 8.5 hours. Wayne does a great job of reading. He keeps a nice pace, and his voice is pleasant. He kept the story an entertaining listen. I really enjoyed this book! Johnston definitely did a lot of research into this case and covers it from beginning to end with much detail. This is the first book by Johnston that I've read. I will definitely be reading more!

I'm not going to say anything about the case to avoid spoilers. There were definitely some events I didn't expect and can only guess at the extreme fear, stress and feelings of helplessness the parents must have experienced!

**I listened to a review copy of this audiobook from Tantor Audio. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

*received for free from netgalley for honest review* really interesting read! ive read books about how many people were kidnapped during this time and reading stories of them is creepy!

I found this true crime story to be very well written and really interesting. I found the people in the book to be absurd at times, but that is what made it ring true. I also loved the way it all turned out. I am sure you can do your research and know the results, but I don't want to spoil the story. Some of the decisions that were made or blindly followed left me shaking my head, and the way George reacted to the entire ordeal were both perplexing and a little awe-inspiring. Overall this book delved deeply into the circumstances surrounding a crime of opportunity of the kidnapping of a young boy in an era of economic turmoil and it did so very well.

<i>Deep in the Woods</i> tells the story of the 1935 kidnapping of 9-year-old George Weyerhaeuser, heir to a huge timber family. Taken off the streets one afternoon, George was kept manacled in a hole, forced to ride in the trunk of a car, chained to a tree, and finally kept in a closet. His family was ready to do whatever the kidnappers demanded to get George safely back. The FBI was determined to track down the kidnappers and make them pay, while the media printed any supposed information on the story they could get their hands on, regardless of whether it was true.

Whenever a book’s blurb says something like, “Perhaps the most astonishing thing of all, though, is how it ends,” I tend to think of it as hyperbole, but in this case, I must say I 100% did not expect the ending to this story.

I definitely recommend this story to fans of true crime. Johnston did an excellent job of laying out the facts and presenting the story, and Roger Wayne did a phenomenal job narrating the audiobook. I enjoyed learning about how the more renowned Lindbergh case had affected laws and the procedures for handling this case.

Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me an audio ARC of this book.

Thank you to the Publisher and to Net Galley for providing me with an ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Deep in The Woods is a wonderful piece of narrative non-fiction in the true crime sector of spooky-season things. I really enjoyed this, but it was difficult to listen to at times. It was challenging to figure out how the different characters and events tied together in the beginning, but as you continued through the story it all starts to make sense. I would have preferred a podcast style of this case, however, as the book often felt too long and drawn out and most definitely could have been shortened. I also did not care for the narrator. 4 stars.

The book is okay-written considering that most of the people from the time are dead and the only source material is case files and newspapers, but the narration felt a bit flat. The best bit was the short interview with the kidnapped George as an old (successful) 94-year old man (final chapter, #60).

Thanks to the publisher for the ARC and all the best to the families of all concerned.

As an avid consumer of all things true crime, it’s alway exciting to discover new cases-bonus points for being “old-timey”- and Deep in the Woods does not disappoint. The crime itself was strange, the trials stranger, and the ending, the epilogue, the strangest of all. The narration was perfect and added to the enjoyment of the story. I can’t wait to share this one with my true crime book club.

This story is wild. Imagine Master Minds meets Mad Money in this case that’s the first big time kidnapping case after the Lindbergh kidnapping and the FBI reform with J. Edgar Hoover. For a relatively cut and dry case it really went off the rails multiple times. There was Lizzie Borden/Mayra Hindley type media reporting, a fugitive on the run, connections to Whitey Bulger, Charles Manson, “Machine Gun” Kelley. This took so many last second turns. It listens/reads like a documentary with an old timey narrator and was very entertaining for a case that should have been open and closed in a much shorter amount of time. This was also extremely well researched with quotes, articles, interviews, FBI history, criminal history and other connected or relevant case histories.

I love true crime and didn’t know anything about this crime-kidnapping. The author did a stellar job introducing me to the facts and background of all parties involved. With current crime they don’t always share information about everyone. This not only told me about the event it had an interview of sorts and and interesting thing that happens years later.
I learned a lot about the FBI and J Edgar Hoover, why and how people were hanged back then and many current events of the time.
I highly recommend it if you like true crime. I chose to listen to this book on audio and Roger Wayne narrated this and did an excellent job. This was 8 hours and 36 minutes long.
Thanks Tantor Audio via Netgalley.

A Crime of Greed

This is the true story of the kidnapping of nine year old George Weyerhaeuser written like a novel. It is very informative and although it bogs down in spots it is an interesting story.

The characters are not what you would think they would be for such a large kidnapping. They were not part of a gang or notorious at all. They were broke and looking for an easy way to make some quick money. A bank robber, his friend a petty thief and his wife a teenage girl were not who you would think of for this crime.

The two men tried to keep the young wife out of everything , however, she figured it out . She thought her husband's friend was a kind generous person, until he wasn't.
The young boy, George, was a smart boy and obeyed the kidnappers. He wasn't hurt, but he was imprisoned in some very scary places.

There was a huge amount of information on the FBI and how the case was handled, how the FBI worked and many of the hundreds of leads that they had to follow up on. What is surprising is the way in which the trio of criminals was finally caught and brought to justice.

Thanks to Bryan Johnston, Tantor Audio, and NetGalley for allowing me to listen to a complimentary copy for my honest review.

3.5 stars

This is an interesting true crime story I had never come across before: the 9-year-old son of a logging magnate is kidnapped for ransom in the 1930’s era of notorious criminal gangs & violent crimes. This book is well researched with an easy to follow narrative. Unfortunately, aspects of Margaret’s portrayal (she was the wife of one of the kidnappers) felt one-dimensional & a bit condescending, which is my main complaint with the book.

[What I liked:]

•This is a compelling true crime story, one I hadn’t heard before & is well worth the reading. George’s story, both what he endured & his life after the traumatic kidnapping, is touching. The details of the FBI as an emerging federal agency with new investigative techniques was quite informative. The involvement of the press in shaping public opinion & publishing illegally spurious allegations as hard facts was interesting too.

•The level of research is professional. The writer includes a personal interview he did with George (the kidnapping victim) 80 years after the incident, as well as excerpts from press coverage of the crime, letters written by the public to the FBI to “help” solve the case, & accounts from police interviews & the FBI agents involved in the investigation to give a well-rounded portrayal & analysis of events.

•The narrative gives details on all aspects of the story in a way that enhances it, without drowning itself in dry facts that distance the reader. I especially enjoyed the account of George’s encounter with the Boniface family & his reunion with his pet mice. The details of how the FBI tracked the ransom money by the serial numbers was really engaging too.


[What I didn’t like as much:]

•At times the scenes with dialogue that included the characters’ emotions & thoughts felt a bit hokey or overdone. It didn’t obstruct my enjoyment of the book, but it could have been more nuanced.

•The portrayals of the kidnappers (Harmon & William) & the accomplice (Margaret, Harmon’s wife) were heavy-handed & not very nuanced. William is the stone cold criminal who manipulates Harmon & Margaret; Harmon is the easily influenced small time con trying to go straight; Margaret is the utterly naïve young wife brainwashed by religion into blindly obeying men. This seemed like a gross oversimplification. As the story progressed, I felt that Harmon was manipulative of Margaret & callous himself, not just a misdirected & well-meaning guy trapped by William’s deviousness.

•Margaret’s portrayal in particular was shallow & reductive. The narrative is annoyingly repetitive about how sheltered & pure she was (basically TSTL), to the point that it felt condescending to both Margaret & the reader. I get that she was young & trusting, but I didn’t need to hear it in every paragraph.

•It also felt presumptive of the writer to chalk up her cooperation with the kidnapping plot to blind loyalty & obedience to her husband. William threatens to kill her & George when she starts asking questions, so wouldn’t part of her compliance possibly be out of fear? The writer seems to think unquestioning obedience of male authority is the only response Margaret is capable of, & reminds us of this at every turn.

CW: sexism, child kidnapping

[I received an ARC ebook copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Thank you for the book!]

This was an interesting listen. It wasn't unputdownable, but I kept wanting to listen to it. It wasn't an insanely crazy story, but it kept me listening. It could have been slightly shorter, or had a little more insight into the main characters. But I guess it couldn't have much character development as it was a plot driven nonfiction.