I have read other fictional accounts of the infamous Lindbergh kidnapping as well as a few non fiction articles. I was still hoping I wound find this book intriguing and it was. The book was extremely well written and engaging. It was a shocking event and it still is all these years later. Kudos to the author for a fresh take on this event. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC. Opinions are honest and my own.

The kidnapping of the century happened in 1932. Charles Lindbergh’s son is missing and one of the primary suspects is his nanny, Betty Gow. She is an attractive young lady from Scotland who has come to the United States to make her fame and fortune. She is very well vetted by the Lindberghs prior to being hired to take care of their young son Charlie.

Charlie’s mother, Anne Morrow Lindberg, is busy making trips all over the globe with the first man to cross the Atlantic on a solo flight. Anne is a very attractive woman and achieves her pilot's license during the time Betty was the nanny.

Betty is suspected of the crime and under continual suspicion. She has to return to Scotland because of the notoriety in the case but returns when some of his nightwear is found in the woods near the home. Days later the body of baby Charles Lindbergh is found fairly close to the home. Betty is totally devastated by the boy’s death and stays on through the investigation and trial.

This book is very well written. The characters are very well developed and the narrative heartbreaking in its exposé. I found myself very sympathetic with Ms. Gow and the Lindbergh family. 5 stars – CE Williams

Having no previous knowledge about the kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby, I found this book quite interesting. I wasn’t necessarily hooked to the book where I had to finish it immediately but it was a good read all the same.
I don’t really feel as though the book came to a good conclusion in terms of who actually aided the killer in the baby’s whereabouts on that Tuesday night. However, since the book is from Betty’s POV it makes sense that it was just her speculation.

I did also enjoy the Fact vs Fiction at the end to gain insight on what was dramatized for the sake of the book vs what actually happened in the real kidnapping.

I don't read much historical fiction anymore. Getting a degree in History kind of ruined the genre for me. However, there are instances where it's an effective mode of storytelling. The Lindbergh Nanny is one of those cases. The Lindbergh kidnapping is one of those cultural touchstones that most people know about, but only an uncomplicated story involved America's beloved pilot, Charles Lindbergh. Mariah Fredericks takes us inside the story from a new perspective, that of the Lindbergh nanny, Betty Gow. We meet Gow as she's hired by the Lindberghs and becomes the primary caregiver to Charlie. Fredericks builds up to the main event, which only happens in a few pages, but the downfall is beautifully captured. The confusion of the kidnapping, the peculiarities of the case, like how the kidnappers knew the location of Gow and the child, and the media spectacle that followed. The book takes quite a bit to get to the actual kidnapping, which results in a back 1/3 that sometimes feels a bit rushed. It would benefit the book to spend less time building the relationship between Charlie and Betty. Betty is an excellent lens through which to view the story. I'd like to see a book from Anne Lindbergh's perspective or even a good biography. She was an exciting figure outside her husband, but she was a one-note in this retelling. It's still a fascinating peek into a story that indelibly changed American law. Even if you've never heard of the Lindbergh kidnapping, you'll be interested in this book!

(4..5 stars due to pacing)

The Lindbergh Nanny by Mariah Federicks

I really only knew the basics behind the kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby but I learned a lot by reading this novel. The story is told through the eyes of the Nanny, Betty Gow. Gow is at the center of the storm when Charles Jr. is kidnapped from his nursery in 1932. The world became captivated in finding the Charles Lindbergh’s son.

Through this book, I learned the elements of the crime, the key players (suspect list), and general background on who was involved in the daily life of the Lindbergh family. This is a work of historical fiction but I really enjoyed reading it especially the afterwards which tells what was true and what was speculation. I want to thank Netgalley for allowing me early access to this entertaining novel for my honest review.

I wish to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press – Minotaur Books for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book. I have voluntarily read and reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is a very interesting historical fiction and the title says it all. It is the story of the kidnapping of the Charles and Anne Morrow Lindbergh baby from the standpoint of the Nanny. It deals with the effect this kidnapping had on all the members of the household staff rather than being told as strictly a crime story. So much has been written from the investigation point of view that I found this fascinating. The nanny was the person closest to the baby and charged with the day to day care of the infant. She became the prime suspect once the kidnapping came to light. The story deals with the fear, the stress, and misery this young Scottish immigrant woman experienced in dealing with the loss of the baby and being under heavy scrutiny by the police and press. I certainly saw a side of Aviator Charles Lindbergh that I did not know.

At the end of the book in the author’s notes she explained what is factual and what she changed or invented in the writing of the book. I was fascinated with all this and the recommended reading list that she outlined.

I found the book to be well written as it captured my full attention quickly. All of the characters were well developed and it was evident from the very beginning that this was a totally different point of view of the story of the most famous kidnapping in America.

I am a sucker for historical fiction. Although based on a real event , this book intertwines both fact and fictional events. Incredibly well written, and so happy I was able to get a copy from NetGalley.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the Kindle ARC. I don't read historical fiction very often but something drew me to the story of the Lindbergh baby kidnapping as told from the point of view of his nanny. I was vaguely familiar with the story. The Lindbergh Nanny is a suspenseful story, even if one knows the outcome. Told from the viewpoint of Betty Gow, the name of the real-life nanny, the inner workings of the Lindbergh family are shown and Betty's love for little Charlies shines. The detail is spot-on and very suspenseful at the same time. I looked up information about the kidnapping after finishing the book and was surprised at how accurate this account of historical fiction was.

Historical fiction at its absolute best. Mariah Fredericks takes a well-known historical incident, the kidnapping of the Lindbergh nanny, and brings it to life. By telling the story from the viewpoint of Betty Gow, the Scottish immigrant nanny, we too see the people and events from the point of view of an outsider who is right in the middle of the action. This was an engrossing read, and I much appreciated the author's section at the end telling what was fact and what was fiction in the novel, so I didn't have to go research it myself.

A slow start but once it got going, wow! I enjoyed this one quite a bit. thanks netgalley & the publisher for the ARC, in exchange for an honest review!

Excellent story! I had heard things here and there over the years about the Lindberghs and the kidnapping of their child, but I never really heard the whole story. This was well written and satisfying in every way, except the actual outcome, of course. Highly recommended.

This book kept me on the edge of my seat! It was an amazing story to follow. I loved following some of these characters. I did find that the beginning was kind of slow to get started but was worth pushing through.

This is an entertaining, well-written, engaging, historical fiction novel which is based on actual persons and events. It vividly describes the secrets, intrigue, mystery, sadness and heartbreak surrounding the Lindbergh kidnapping. The characters portrayed are well developed, and the conclusion is satisfying. The author's notes are interesting and informative, and are truly appreciated. They invite the reader to delve deeper into this fascinating and tragic event.
NetGalley and St. Martin's Press kindly provided me with an ARC of this novel, and this is my honest opinion.

My thanks to Net Galley and St. Martin's Press for this EXCELLENT arc to review.

In the early 1930s the world was captivated by aviator hero Charles Lindbergh. He was a celebrity. That all changed in 1932 when his 20 month old son Charles Jr was kidnapped and later found dead. Bruno Hauptman was accused and tried of the crime. Everyone knows the basic story but this book gives historical "fiction based on fact" from the perspective of a person not mentioned much at all.....Betty Gow, the child's nanny. .This is a what COULD have happened. Enjoyed this very much. Clear well written read.

This book was an interesting examination of a well-known historical event. I am fascinated with the true case so I was excited to read this novel. It's completely heartbreaking! The novel was well researched. I really enjoyed this book.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed are completely my own.

Thanks to NetGalley for ecopy for my Kindle.
Historical fiction with a lot of history and research has made this book a good one.
Though no one may ever know all the details of the kidnapping and death of the Lindbergh baby, this book really followed the actual events as close and possible and will give the reader insight that is very interesting.

While this is a work of fiction, it’s based on the real life Lindbergh kidnapping of 1932. Charles Lindbergh rose to fame when he became the first person to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean so Charles Jr., his son, was famous by proxy.

Betty Gow is the central figure of this novel and was the full-time nurse(nanny) to baby Charles. Intimately involved in the life of the Lindberghs, she was present the day the baby went missing. In fact, she was the last person to see him alive, and the first one to discover he’d gone missing. By nature of these facts, she became a prime suspect, as did the others who were staffed by the Lindberghs. Under extreme scrutiny and violent threats, Betty sets out to find the real criminal in an effort to bring justice to Charles and to clear her own name.

I think this is a fascinating story and I can understand the desire to tell this story and to read about it. My biggest qualm with the book is that we were nearly halfway through by the time anything happened. The buildup to the kidnapping was long and slow, and by that time, I was a bit disengaged. The back half was filled with theories of what could have happened and debunking them. I appreciated that the story was told for the POV of the Lindbergh Nanny as I think that created good depth and perspective.

Retelling if the Lindbergh Kidnapping buy from the perspective of the baby’s nanny. I love reading anything on this subject and this was a nice/different historical fiction perspective on the crime of the century… raises some good questions and makes you think about other possibilities

I received a free e-arc of this book through Netgalley.
I found this book told in the POV of the nanny to be really hard to put down. It's historical fiction based on the available evidence and it was fascinating to think about what may actually have happened that night. I appreciated the historical overview at the end of the book and hearing about what happened to the Lindbergh's staff after this traumatic event.

A new take on the kidnapping which was incredibly compelling and interesting. Despite knowing how the story ends, this story was engaging nonetheless.

I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own