WHAAAAAT IS HAPPPENNNING?! I’ve been craving a good ol’ fashioned crazy true crime and I found it in this book. I read it in two days, could not put it down. This true crime’s got everything! Suspect husband, police not following evidence, lawyers and judges being real shady, a weird best friend, more murders, and Dateline! If you’re a true crime fan, highly recommend picking this book up when it comes out.

Honestly, if I hadn't done some independent research on this to verify some of the information included in it, It would have been hard for me to believe that this was a true story. The way the prosecuting attorney, original case judge, and police officers handled this case was absolutely disgusting and - at least as far as I could tell - downright criminal.

This book was an incredibly interesting read, but the characters in it are so ridiculous that they almost seem unreal. Honestly, you'll just have to read it to understand what I mean. How such people keep their jobs as cops, judges, and lawyers is beyond my understanding.

But if you're looking for an interesting modern true crime case to dive into, you'll enjoy this one. It is well-written and narrated just as well. It doesn't drag - either in terms of the story or the narration - and it doesn't go off on too many boring tangents like some true crime stories do.

I'd highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys true crime.

Russ Faria arrives home from a game night with friends to find his wife, Betsy, dead with a knife in her neck. He calls the police never thinking for a second that he would be a suspect in her murder. Despite a solid alibi and evidence seeming to prove his innocence, Russ Faria is charged, tried, and convicted as his wife’s murderer. Meanwhile, Betsy’s “friend”, Pamela Hupp tells so many twisted lies and stories to ensure that Russ is charged. How could the jury not see through all of the holes in Pamela’s story and not see that Russ’s trial is based solely on conjecture? If I didn’t know this was true crime, I would think if was an unbelievable court drama.

Any and all true crime fans need to read this book! Although you may have heard of this case already (featured on Dateline 6 times, a podcast in 2019, and a limited series coming out today), this book is told by the defending attorney Joel Schwartz. Joel offers inside knowledge and uses court recordings and documents to ensure the accuracy of the book as well. I was so intrigued by this one and went down a rabbit hole on google to learn more about this terrible event.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tantor Audio for the copy of this book for an honest review.

This was such a well read book, the case was so very interesting and it was weird so me hope so many things were overlooked and how cunning pam was

<i>Bone Deep</i> is the story of the Betsy Faria murder case, as told by her husband’s defense attorney, Joel Schwartz, written by Charles Bosworth Jr. When Russ came home from his regular Tuesday night game night with friends to find his wife lying on the floor in a pool of blood, with a knife sticking out of her neck, he immediately calls 911. The detectives and prosecuting attorney were convinced that Russ had killed his wife, despite the evidence that contradicted their assumptions. It took years for Scwartz to help clear Faria’s name.

The mishandling of this case is so mind-baffling! If this book were a work of fiction, I would have trouble suspending my disbelief that the judge would have gone so far to side with the prosecution and prevent Schwartz from providing evidence that would point to the real killer, and yet it actually happened. This story kept me riveted from beginning to end, and I would call it a must read for True Crime fans, especially if they are not already familiar with this case. Gary Bennett did a fantastic job narrating this audiobook.

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

Over the last few years, I've grown to really enjoy listening to true crime books. Although geographically, the murder at the center of this book isn't all that far from me, I have to admit that I was completely unfamiliar with it. In Troy, Missouri, Russell Faria returns home his standing weeknight out with friends to find his wife dead on the floor. What follows is a true story that genuinely reads like fiction. I'm not surprised that in just under a month from its publication, a TV series with big Hollywood names will be out. The whole case has such a Hollywood vibe - a grisly murder, greed, sex, a frame and twists you genuinely never see coming! I absolutely couldn't stop listening to this one and only cautiously image-searched for faces to go with the names to avoid any spoilers.

The audio performance here is solid and while the book itself doesn't paint a positive picture of the police or justice in this part of Missouri, the book does end in a more hopeful note. This is detailed without ever being boring. It's an absolutely captivating listen! I am really looking forward to the mini-series now!

Bone Deep tells the story of the investigation, wrongful conviction, and subsequent exoneration of Russ Faria for the murder of his wife, and the eventual arrest and guilty plea of the real killer. The details of the case are so over-the-top that it's hard to believe this actually happened: Russ had an airtight alibi of being at a movie night with several friends during the murder, cell phone data proving his location, and documented purchases outlining his travel to and from the friend's house and yet, he was convicted. The real killer had got away with it for a while, and by the time she is eventually arrested, she's killed twice more.
Bone Deep provides more than enough new details to engage readers who have already listened to "The Thing About Pam" podcast or watched the Dateline episodes about the case, and readers who haven't will be shocked when Bosworth and Schwartz lay out the story. I will recommend to true crime readers and fans of deep-dive crime podcasts like Missing Maura Murray and Serial. Thank you to Kensington Publishing, Tantor Audio, and Netgalley for an audio copy for review.

Heart-pounding. Sick beyond fiction!

I don't consider myself a true crime reader. "Bone Deep" is probably my second book. If this was fiction, I would've DNF because it's convoluted, eye-rolling, just plainly too farfetched.

Russ Faria came home from game night to find his wife Betsy dead with multiple knife wounds on her arm. He thought she committed suicide because she went through depression and was terminally ill with cancer. He called 911.

Betsy was stabbed 55 times and Russ became the sole suspect. Even though crime scene evidence and friends' testimony supported his claim, Russ was charged with murder and was found guilty by the jury.

You would have to read it for yourself because it's just unbelievable. No freaking way!! How did everything go so wrong? Russ's attorney, Joel J. Schwartz wouldn't give up and worked diligently to get Russ out and to reveal the true killer. The last person who saw Betsy alive and the sole beneficiary on her life insurance policy.

I didn't think I'm a true crime reader. I don't see the point if you already know the story and the ending? It's about the details. Reading wiki or the news just doesn't cut it. Omg, I'm still frustrated and wanted to pull my hair!! This book has changed my mind! Highly recommend it if you want to try non-fiction, or if you're into crime, mystery, or legal thrillers. Gary Bennett was perfect with the narration. I'll probably find a print copy once this is published to see the photos etc. AND I'm looking forward to watching the limited crime drama series with Renée Zellweger, and Josh Duhamel in March!

Thank you Val's great review and for encouraging me to give it a try.

Thank you Tantor Audio and Netgalley for the audio advance copy.

The way this man was railroaded is like so many other wrongful convictions we see. If you are ever questioned by the police Do Not EVER agree to a polygraph no matter the results they will tell you that you failed. A Polygraph is not accepted in court so I don’t know why they are able to use them to lie to suspects.

This book may have been a little longer than it needed to be it could have used a bit of editing but other than that it was an interesting read. It took way too long for Betsy’s family to get justice for her!


Gary Bennetts narration was well done.

This was a good true crime story.

3 stars

I received this audiobook from the publisher Tantor and NetGalley for a fair and honest review

I came very close to giving up on this book very early on. There was one opening scene where the husband, on discovering his dead wife repeated, “oh no” non-stop. Then there was the recap of the same scene and “oh no” was again on replay. I decided to give it two more miles in my ears on my walk and I am so glad I did. This scene that was tough on the ears played a major roll in the trial.
   As an avid listener to podcasts, this was a skillful narrative of this famous case and so well read by Gary Bennett.
   It was fascinating to listen to so many missteps (purposeful ones at that) by police and authorities that led to the conviction of an innocent man, TWICE!
   As you were presented with the facts, it became so unbelievable as to why certain evidence was not allowed, how egos needed to be stroked, and a chain of command could be ignored.  Witnesses (one in particular) could be coaxed down a certain path chosen by police interrogators or not investigated at all in spite of their connection with the victim.    
   I was constantly amazed at the blatant incompetence and disregard for a person’s rights to a fair trial on the whim of an inexperienced judge and prosecutor. Everything that happened to this man was true, this was real life, not a novel. How could this be? His outcome would not have been the same if he didn’t have a driven lawyer who was determined never to let this all slide by.
   You don’t want to miss this audio book and I hope the movie is just as exciting.

Bone Deep is a non fiction account of the murder of Betsy Fraira and her husband Russell's hearings for her murder. All in all it was a decent book. I l9vetrue crime and that is what drew me to it. I did feel that it was a bit lo g and could have been about 30 or so pages shorter. I would recommend it to other true crime fans.

Imagine that you are out at your friends house, watching movies.

Then imagine you come home [after running errands] and find your spouse brutally murdered. You call 911 and a nightmare that is so horrific it reads like a thriller begins, and takes almost 10 years to come to completion.

This is the story of the brutal murder of Betsy Faria and the trial of her husband Russ, who was convicted despite all the overwhelming evidence proving otherwise and the news reporter and the defense lawyer who fought tooth and nail to get that trial thrown out, a new trial given and finally had ALL the evidence presented in the case, which shows that Betsy's "friend" is the true killer. If not for the relentless diligence of these two men [as well as news coverage from Keith Morrison and Dateline], Russ Faria would still be sitting in a jail cell, convicted of a crime he did not commit, railroaded by the police, the over-zealous prosecutor and an inexperienced judge who just wanted to look good in her first murder trial. The fact that the police had already convicted Russ before he was ever formally charged and continued to both lie and ignore the facts that were right in front of them is horrific enough, but witness tampering and ethical issues, just adds to it. And until Pam Hupp murders again, no one ever really sees her as the real killer of Betsy. It is a horrific story that just infuriated me over and over again, even as Russ is finally found innocent but has to watch Pam Hupp walk away [though thankfully, not for long].

I am not sure how Russ has been able to walk away from all this without anger and bitterness, but he has and that is one of the best part of this stories. The fact that so many of the players in this story were fired, fined, sued, etc is just cherries on the top.

I was also able to get the audiobook from NetGalley for this and this was an excellent audiobook - it helped sort out all the players and really enhanced the story. Hearing the story was just overwhelming at times and I still can hardly believe all this is a true story. The narration really adds to that. I am so glad I got to listen to this and will be looking for other books narrated by this narrator - he is fantastic!!!

Thank you to NetGalley, Charles Henry Bosworth, Joel Schwartz, Gary Bennett [Narrator], Kensington Books and Tantor Audio for the kindle ARC and audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley for this audio edition of Bone Deep by Charles Bosworth and Joel Schwartz.

This is a STORY. Whether you are a crime junkie or not, talk about crazier than fiction. When I first started listening to it and heard a familiar name, I inwardly cringed, I knew this story already! And I didn't cringe because it wasn't a good story, I cringed because it's a story that will make you SO MAD and amazed at the sheer sociopathic audacity!

The narration is fantastic, the writing is detailed without getting too bogged down. I highly recommend this insane piece of nonfiction.

This book is infuriating. Not because it’s written poorly, it’s so good that it’s hard to put down.

But, a case about a murdered woman and the trial of her innocent husband is one of those that just makes a person (me) want to rage flip the entire justice system.

Being able to get the viewpoint of the defense attorney and to understand what this trial was like behind the scenes was fantastic.

I had first heard of this case from the Morbid Podcast and their coverage of it, but this really lays out everything, including transcripts of the case and the evidence against Pam Hupp.

Thank you so much Netgalley and Citadel for the advanced audiobook. It was so well done.

Bone Deep by Charles Bosworth and Joel Schwartz was based on true crime. The story was so well written and presented and it made me feel as If I am a character in the story as I listened to the audio tape. It feels so real. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to the book and I tried to guess the killer but I only managed to guess who might be as the case was presented in court. The book was excellent - the author captured the scenarios and described them very well and the book connects the readers to the book. Brilliant book and brilliantly narrated. Highly recommend it to the other readers. Readers who love reading Crime will definitely enjoy this book.

The book made me realize how close friends whom you trust and confide in can go to any lengths to get what is yours. Many incidents are money motivated. I don't want to give away too much of the story. Read to find out how and why things happen. Enjoy the audio or the book.

**audiobook version**
Narrator
5 stars

Story
5 stars 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

How!! HOW!!! HOW!!!!!!!
How does such a clear miscarriage of justice happen!?
How!!!
It is unbelievably sad that a women lost her life (especially as she had a stage 4 cancer diagnosis) but what a story!! PAM!!! again I ask HOW!!!!!!
I have not stopped talking about this book, to the point my husband and I were on a 6 hour road trip and I'm pretty sure he wanted to put a pillow over my face at around the 4 hour mark of me banning on about this.

What to say? If, like me, you listen to this never having heard of Betsy and Russel Faria, you certainly won't want too many spoilers. However, if you have read the summary you will at least be aware that Russ is innocent of this awful crime.
The whole thing reads like an outlandish fictional detective story, one in which the reader would likely find the plot to be quite unbelievable, one has to keep in mind that yes, this really did happen! Betsy was brutally murdered and Russ was convicted of this dreadful crime
How this all came to be, how it all turned so bad for Russ makes for a compelling read, but, what is more unbelievable is the prosecutions train of thought.
Just to make the situation even stranger than fiction is how events unfolded to prove Russ Faria to be innocent.

If you love True Crime then this is for you!

Narrated by Gary Bennett, the only part of the narration I found a bit tedious was the first part, the initial interview of Russ, however, not the fault of the narrator, just the way the story was written

Charles Bosworth is a True Crime author and Joel Schwartz the criminal defence attorney

I would recommend this book for patrons interested in true crime. The narrator had a very good voice and was very engaging. According to the publisher's notes, this book is the inspiration for the NBC miniseries "The Thing about Pam," so I suspect that a lot of patrons will be looking for this book.

Title: Bone Deep
Author:



Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC.

I was approached to give an honest and fair review of Bone Deep, Untangling the Betsy Faria Murder Case.

What a twisted tale of friendship gone wrong. This was a in-depth look into the Russ Faria case who was accused of murdering his terminally ill wife Betsy, who died by being stabbed 55 times.

Betsy so-called best friend Pam Hupp weaves a tale of Russ being a horrible husband that Betsy didn’t want access to her life insurance. Just days before Betsy’s murder, insurance paperwork was changed to Pam yet none of that was allowed during Russ’s murder trail.

This true crime novel is biased due to the one author, Joel Schwartz, being the lead attorney representing Russ. Though he gives all the facts of the case, he still outlines all of the evidence that points to Pam Hupp being involved.

Not only is this a murder case but also a case of injustice against Russ. It was heartbreaking to know a grieving man was accused and tried for the murder of his wife.

Bone Deep by Charles Bosworth; Joel Schwartz
Narrated by Gary Bennett

If this book were a novel, I'd call it preposterous, but sadly, the things that happened in this book happened in real life. December 27, 2011, Russel Faria arrived home to find his wife dead, her body bloody, a knife sticking out of her neck. Terminally ill Betsy had always fought depression and had threatened suicide in the past, so Russ, seeing knife wounds on her arms and neck, thought Betsy had committed suicide.

From the moment Russ made the 911 call to to report his upsetting find, Russ was under scrutiny. Every action by and every word from Russ was analyzed and found at fault by investigators who instantly decided Russ had killed his wife. Wrong minded decisions to blame Russ for Betsy's murder kept investigators, and those prosecuting Russ, from considering the chance that anyone else could have murdered Betsy. With a clear alibi, evidence, and witnesses that Russ could NOT have murdered Betsy, he was still charged with her murder.

With all evidence on the table, Pamela Hupp, a friend of Betsy and the last person to see her alive, should have been a suspect. Thank goodness Russ had good people behind him, working not only to clear Russ's name but also to bring to justice the real murderer of Betsy. But this would take years and Pamela wasn't finished with her wicked ways. This audiobook lays it all out for us, how Russ and his defenders were up against a brick wall of legal incompetence, lies, made up "facts", and the evilness of a woman named Pamela Hupp.

Thank you to Tantor Audio and NetGalley for this ARC.