A very well researched and entertaining book about a past that some have forgotten. It was such a delightful read it left me wanting more. I could picture myself right there in the early 1920's alongside all of the characters.


Synopsis:
n the early days of Prohibition, long before Al Capone became a household name, a German immigrant named George Remus quits practicing law and starts trafficking whiskey. Within two years he's a multi-millionaire. The press calls him "King of the Bootleggers," writing breathless stories about the Gatsby-esque events he and his glamorous second wife, Imogene, host at their Cincinnati mansion, with party favors ranging from diamond jewelry for the men to brand-new cars for the women. By the summer of 1921, Remus owns 35 percent of all the liquor in the United States.

Pioneering prosecutor Mabel Walker Willebrandt is determined to bring him down. Willebrandt's bosses at the Justice Department hired her right out of law school, assuming she'd pose no real threat to the cozy relationship they maintain with Remus. Eager to prove them wrong, she dispatches her best investigator, Franklin Dodge, to look into his empire. It's a decision with deadly consequences. With the fledgling FBI on the case, Remus is quickly imprisoned for violating the Volstead Act. Her husband behind bars, Imogene begins an affair with Dodge. Together, they plot to ruin Remus, sparking a bitter feud that soon reaches the highest levels of government--and that can only end in murder.

Combining deep historical research with novelistic flair, The Ghosts of Eden Park is the unforgettable, stranger-than-fiction story of a rags-to-riches entrepreneur and a long-forgotten heroine, of the excesses and absurdities of the Jazz Age, and of the infinite human capacity to deceive.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
Unfortunately, I have tried reading this book on 2 separate occasions and during that 2nd attempt, I have only managed to make it halfway through so I’d rather stop here and state that this book just wasn't for me.

I received a Netgalley copy of this book from Crown Publishing in exchange for a review.

This is a perfect book for a fan of the 1920s. You have gangsters, crooked lawmakers and upstanding citizens trying to keep it all together. As a historian I really liked how the author quoted heavily from different archival sources. These won't be too strenuous for the average reader, the use of the trial transcripts as a way to break up the action in the first half of the book was a unique narrative device.

Sometimes I found the plot to lag a bit, I wanted a bit more urgency between the lawmakers and the lawbreakers. I also wished that there were more examples that showed the widespread interest in the trial.

Overall I think this is a great book about an interesting and lesser known cast of characters in US history. Gatsby would be proud!

Recommended for fans of the genre Historical People Behaving Outrageously.

Well, written and clearly well researched, this book still unfortunately hasn't clicked for me the couple of times I've picked it up to read.

You can't win 'em all.

A book I read in the end due to it being picked for a book club.

I loved it and I don't always read and enjoy non fiction. The book focuses on two people, one is George Remus who became known for violating Prohibition and getting into the alcohol trading business and was quite allusive for awhile. The other person that this book focuses on is Mabel Walker Willebrandt who worked in the US Attorney office and was a part of the investigation that ultimately brought George Remus down. This book gives the reader an in depth look into each of them in a time and place where laws could be a little questionable as to being really upheld!

I liked this book a lot, it moved really quickly and read almost like fiction which for me is a big plus.

This was my first Karen Abbott book, but I hope to read more of her and soon.

3.5*
Abbott takes us back to the early days of Prohibition and the world of George Remus, a bootlegger who lived a life of excess, only to be betrayed and incarcerated. This story details the rise of a man who manipulated the system and became one of the most successful liquor purveyors in the Cincinnati area. But as with many illegal enterprises, the federal government finally caught up with him and he was sentenced to jail. But worse than his incarceration, it was the betrayal of a person close to him that destroyed him.

George and his second wife Imogene lived a life of ostentacious excess. She was his ally and he showered her with riches. But when the government convicted him, his circumstances took a turn that he never saw coming. As his life lies in shambles, his behavior becomes ever more erratic and irrational.

This nonfiction examination of the story of the roller-coaster life of Remus is well-researched. Much of the dialog is taken from court and personal documents. This little-known bootlegger was infamous at the time, and the scandal surrounding his life makes for a fascinating look at the rise and fall of a criminal enterprise. The court cases and circumstances of his incarceration are striking and reminiscent of the jailhouse treatment of Al Capone.

The details of the book are clearly based upon facts. Abbott has included a lengthy reference section at the end that notes the exact source of the information she includes. This is not as riveting a story as her book Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy. In that earlier book, readers are treated to the fascinating personal stories of women of courage and boldness. The story of George Remus lacks the engaging focus on people who are exceptional. Instead, here Abbott portrays a man who broke laws and schemed to build a financial empire during Prohibition. The focus is on a time where illegal liquor sales was a thriving industry run by clever men who sometimes had to face the music. In George’s case, he had personal issues that compounded his legal woes. Somehow the story lands a tiny bit flat, lacking the vivacious and impressive portrayal of the people that made Abbott’s earlier book such an outstanding story of female bravery and cunning.

The Ghosts of Eden Park provides a detailed peek into the lesser known relationship in history of George and Imogene Remus. I’ve watched a few television shows and documentaries that included George Remus’s bootlegging schemes however, I never heard about his tumultuous relationship with his wife Imogene. While the material was interesting, the book was a little long and, at times, I struggled to stay focused. There are a lot of details which are all wonderfully researched and I realize this story wouldn’t have been done justice had all the details not been included. The author did a great job of keeping me both hating Remus, and feeling bad for Remus, all at the same time. The ending was a great build-up and, even though I realized early on how it was going to go, I didn’t expect many of the details. Overall, if you have an interest in history, especially the Prohibition Era, it’s a good read!

A book with really many different stories inside all dealing with prohibition. You have George Remus who first divorces his first wife, marries second wife Imogene. Because he has a pharmacist license, he was allowed to purchase liquor. This was for medical purposes but he saw a way to make money out of it and did he ever. Within a few years of their marriage, the two of them were living in a mansion, with the top of the line in everything. They would also have very elaborate parties that were over the top as well. This would go on until 1925 when he was finally sent to prison.
The person fighting him and the rest of the nation was Mabel Willebrandt. She was a U.S. Assistant Attorney General from 1921-1929. Her story was very fascinating, her working for the government was very frustrating. She got help in words only. She had to fight even when her office took someone to court. A judge dismissed a charge of tax evasion with evidence when just years later Capone would go to prison for the same charge.
Her real big trouble was agents working for her and the bootleggers. One turned out to flip himself after they put him in the prison as Remus who had not fallen for that trick until Franklin Dodge got the information he needed and instead of going back to his office he went to Imogene. Who then divorced Remus, or began to? She did sell the Fleishman distillery then gave her ex $100.00 dollars. That only pissed him off, for he knew how much he had and of the sell.
Miss. Willebrandt equally frustrated because she lost an agent and when a new president was elected thinking she would become Attorney General; she was passed over for a male.
Once Remus was out of prison he went after his soon to be ex and where the story takes a wicked turn, he chases her in a park with his car and shots her twice. She dies, when he goes to trial, he pleads insanity and goes to an institution therefore when he is thought not to be crazy cannot try him again or double jeopardy. He gets away with murder.
Of course, there is so much more to this story. How they evaded raids. Having tunnels built how he himself controlled 30% of the liquor that Americans were drinking up until 1925. That is amazing. Also, the story of Miss Willebrandt for me was very good and I don’t know if a book was ever written about her but she sounded like a powerful woman for that time. Overall an excellent story, very much worth the read.

Although I've read a lot about Al Capone, I had never heard of this particular bootlegger. I wish that I had and I will now be looking to find out more about him. George Remus is what I can only describe as a drama king. I really enjoyed this book and learning about his dramatic scenes in and out of the court room. He sounds like he was quite a character but one that you probably wouldn't want to be on his bad side.

True crime has never been better written than in The Ghosts of Eden Park by Karen Abbott. This true crime has everything a reader could want from the Jazz age that it had to offer, bootlegging, bling and drama. Follow this historical fiction that has been meticulously researched and brought back to life.

I found this book to be intersting, but not compelling. I didn't have trouble finishing it, but was surprised it didn't grab me,.True crime books are popular at my library so we will purchase it and I will recommend it to true crime buffs who like historical books.

So, I am a fan of Karen Abbott and I have liked all that I've read by her. I think this is my favorite, it was gripping right from the start, so much detail of the time and place.

Enjoyed reading this book. I will not recommend it as a good choice. I hope to see more novels in the future. Loretta Doolittle

Gangsters, bootleggers, crime and corruption, and all in the Midwest. That is what drew me to the book. And there was plenty of that for the taking. The star of this book was George Remus, multimillionaire and known as the "King of the Bootleggers". With most of the local police in his pocket, a mansion in Cincinnati and a rebellious wife, Imogene, George owned a third of all liquor in the United States. Then with George in prison, Imogene decides to take him off his throne and she sells off most of his millions. The result - murder.

This is non-fiction and very well researched. It takes you through a time and place that is little known to most people. This story of prohibition took place before even Al Capone was notorious. It tells of the rise of George Remus, his life with his wife Imogene, and through his trial. Then also of the aftermath of his imprisonment.

Boring in spots when the details over ran the story, and entertaining in learning the history of Remus and his bootlegging days.

The Ghosts of Eden Park by Karen Abbott is out now so if you enjoy true crime, and who doesn’t- because it’s fascinating- get your hands on this book! Truth is stranger than fiction and oftentimes the things people have done stun and shock me though it shouldn’t.

Here’s the scoop:

In the early days of Prohibition, long before Al Capone became a household name, a German immigrant named George Remus quits practicing law and starts trafficking whiskey. Within two years he’s a multimillionaire. The press calls him “King of the Bootleggers,” writing breathless stories about the Gatsby-esque events he and his glamorous second wife, Imogene, host at their Cincinnati mansion, with party favors ranging from diamond jewelry for the men to brand new Pontiacs for the women. By the summer of 1921, Remus owns 35 percent of all the liquor in the United States.

Pioneering prosecutor Mabel Walker Willebrandt is determined to bring him down. Willebrandt’s bosses at the U.S. Attorney’s office hired her right out of law school, assuming she’d pose no real threat to the cozy relationship they maintain with Remus. Eager to prove them wrong, she dispatches her best investigator, Franklin Dodge, to look into his empire. It’s a decision with deadly consequences: With Remus behind bars, Dodge and Imogene begin an affair and plot to ruin him, sparking a bitter feud that soon reaches the highest levels of government–and that can only end in murder.

This was an incredibly researched book and I enjoyed living in the world of prohibition for a while.

You find out more about this book and order it here!

I’m a new true crime fan, and still find that my attention span is a little short for them. Without a strong narrative I lose interest fairly quickly, so this one wasn’t for me.

I typically don't read a lot of true crime, but I found the synopsis intriguing. I am certainly glad that I read this book! The Ghosts of Eden Park focuses on the career of pharmacist, lawyer, and bootlegger George Remus and his wife Imogene and their relationship as Remus gains notoriety as the "King of Bootleggers."

The success that George Remus has makes him very wealthy, with he and his wife often bestowing very valuable gifts upon the pair's dinner party guests. Remus' operation catches the attention of the federal government and George Remus is ultimately convicted of violations of the Volstead Act and sentenced to prison.

While imprisoned, Franklin Dodge is sent by Mabel Willebrandt, a prosecutor in the Attorney General's office, to infiltrate Remus' criminal enterprise, and an illicit affair begins between he and Imogene Remus.

The prison sentence along with his wife's betrayal lead to Remus' deteriorating mental state, culminating in him taking Imogene Remus' life the morning of their court date for a divorce settlement.

What ensues is a 6 week trial where Remus, who often refers to himself in the third person, defends himself. Alienists have declared him sane, but based on numerous outbursts and breaks with reality between his discovering his wife's infidelity and the trial, referred to as "brainstorms," is he really insane or is it all a show?

You can clearly tell that this book is very well researched and highly detailed. To me, the story never lagged and read more like crime fiction or a legal thriller to me. This story was told in such a way that makes the reader feel as though you were right there as it was unfolding. I really enjoyed it and learned many things about this era in American history.

My thanks to Crown Publishing, Karen Abbott, and NetGalley for gifting me an e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Ghosts of Eden Park: The Bootleg King, the Women Who Pursued Him, and the Murder That Shocked Jazz-Age America by Karen Abbott is a 2019 Crown Publishing Group publication.

An absorbing and shocking true crime saga!!

George Remus is a name I was only moderately familiar with. I knew he was a famous bootlegger during prohibition, but I didn’t know much more than that. I had not familiarized myself with his complex criminal operation or with his personal issues, which included referring to himself in third person, and the hint of mental instability. So, I had no idea what to expect when I started reading this book.

Well, to say George lived a colorful life is an understatement. As an attorney, he found a way to procure alcohol legally for “medicinal purposes.” This subterfuge allowed him to take control of a large percentage of distilleries. From there he built a very lucrative bootlegging operation which made him quite wealthy, earning him the moniker, “The King of the Bootleggers’.

George and his second wife, Imogene, lived a lavish lifestyle, handing out diamonds and cars to their party guests, but the law was not ignorant of his enterprise. Enter Mabel Walker Willebrandt, a prosecutor with the Attorney General’s office, whose job it was to investigate and prosecute violators of the Volstead Act.


This is where the story really gets interesting. One of Wellebrant’s agents, Frank Dodge, was assigned the task of infiltrating Remus’ empire. Frank’s involvement lead to a shocking turn of events that would have made a gripping crime novel. The head spinning twist and turns in this case just goes to show that truth really is stranger than fiction…

Since Truman Capote spoiled us with his ‘True Crime Novel’, any other approach to this ‘genre’ can be mind numbingly dry. Yet, Karen Abbott has employed a new technique which I thought worked out quite well.

The book is written in the standard chronological format- thank goodness, as I’ve never seen nonfiction work out when someone gets creative with the timeline. The research is also noteworthy as the author had access to thousands of pages of transcripts. Naturally, this requires exceptional organizational skill, and Ms. Abbot did a phenomenal job with so much material.

There are many people involved in this tale, and unlike fiction, where the author has control over the number of characters involved in the plot, the author didn’t have that same luxury when it came to writing nonfiction. Still, I thought Abbott handled it nicely, including all the key players in this saga without allowing it to slow down the momentum. In fact, the book is very fast paced, and held my interest all throughout.

As one will gather from the title, bootlegging is not the only crime at play. A murder is eminent which is where Abbot applies one truly unique and clever trick-

Unless one already knows how this story plays out, the victim and the murderer remain a secret until the killing transpires in real time. Abbott keeps us on the edge of our seat, building the suspense and keeping one guessing like this was a fictional murder mystery.

Then there is that stunning trial! The prosecutor was Charles Phelps Taft II, son of William Howard Taft. But you will have to read this book to believe how it concluded. It’s one of the most insane trials I’ve ever read about from this era. Talk about putting on a show!

I admit, by the time I turned the final page, I was shaking my head in disbelief. This is one bizarre story and will take readers on a wild roller coaster ride through prohibition and the politics of the day. But mostly this is one of the most entertaining true crime books I’ve read.

5 stars

This was a very entertaining - if a bit overly detailed at times - tale about Prohibition-era America. It's a time-frame that doesn't get as much attention as it seems like it should. It was, after all, a time of capital-C Characters, on both sides of the law, as well as money, drama, crime, and secrets - normally all topics that lend themselves to fabulous storytelling. In Abbott's latest we get all of that in spades, including a fascinating peek behind the curtain of women in early 20th century American politics. It was a fascinating tale of wine, women and song and I enjoyed it - mostly.

I must admit that there were several points during which I found the story to lag rather substantially though. This seems to happen a lot in narrative non-fiction that includes courtroom drama. I think authors get overly enthused by the possibility of *actual*, transcript, dialogue in the form of the back-and-forth of attorney-witness interaction and feel compelled to include as much as possible. While I appreciate historical veracity, rarely is a trial as exciting as people think - there is a LOT of monotonous repetition (intentionally), and reading large swathes of it slows the pacing to the detriment of the story even if to the benefit of the historical record.

Still, Abbott has done a great job painting a portrait of a time and place that were dashing, violent, and full of enough hidden agendas to satisfy readers who enjoy a good twisty tale. If tighter editing could have evened out the pacing a bit, the narrative portions of the story (especially early on) more than hit their marks and it was an enjoyable read on the whole.

Ghosts Of Eden Park is the recreation of one of the biggest bootleggers in A Erica. history
The book talks about all the crazy going ons during the Jazz Age.
If you love true crime books, this is for you.
It contains murder, deception, and all the trials and tribulations of the various politicians
If you love historical non fiction, this book is for you.