The Surgeon's Wife

by Kieran Crowley

In the summer of 1985, in his exclusive Upper East Side Manhattan apartment, Robert Bierenbaum, a prominent surgeon and certified genius, strangled his wife Gail to death. He then drove her body to an airstrip in Caldwell, N.J., and dumped it into the Atlantic Ocean from a single-engine private plane. The next day he reported her missing.Gail's parents had been thrilled to learn she was marrying Robert Bierenbaum. He seemed to be the perfect match for their daughter. he was from a well-to-do family, a medical student who spoke five languages fluently, a skier, and he even flew an airplane. But Gail would come to learn of her husband's dark side. On one occasion when Robert had tried to choke Gail because he caught her smoking, she filed a police report. She also alleged that he tried to kill her cat because he was jealous of it. For year, her sister pleaded with Gail to run for her life. Even her therapist warned his vulnerable patient that she could eventually die at the hands of the man she married.Fifteen years after this unspeakable, unfathomable crime, a jury found Robert Bierenbaum guilty of murder--and stripped the mask off of this privileged professional to reveal a monster.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, Audiobook, Crime, Mystery

428 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2001

About the author

KIERAN CROWLEY is a New York Times bestselling crime author and investigative reporter who has received communication from an actual serial killer and deciphered his secret code. Crowley has covered hundreds of trials and thousands of murders and recovered evidence missed by police at numerous crime scenes, some of which helped bring killers to Justice. He lives in New York with his family.

Reviews

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first listen I didn’t hear that this case set a precedent in the state of New York. Whenever I run across things like that I give the book 4 stars because of its relevance. This crime, this trial occurred a bit in the past, so I’m not sure if or how many times it’s been used.

[DAISY READS HORROR · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really have to give it up to Mr. Crowley, the author of this book. He did a spectacular job in portraying both sides of this case. I must say that after reading this and all of the evidence, I am not so sure that Dr. Bierenbaum should be sitting in that jail cell right now.

Gail clearly had her own issues when she disappeared & although I am not a supporter of reading all of the victim's dirty laundry in the true crime books I often read, in this case I think it was extremely important for Mr. Crowley to state it. Gail was promiscuous, a drug user and most importantly was suicidal numerous times in her past. This was the main reason that led me to believe that she might have disappeared on her own or got involved with the wrong crowd. However, one can not forget that Dr. Bierenbaum was a surgeon and was also knowledgeable enough to cute her body into pieces, tie a weight to her and dump her body in the ocean as he flew his private plane........ I just don't know what really happened in this case or what side to believe.

I guess we will never know unless she shows up somewhere after 20+ years, or Dr. Bierenbaum admits to killing her body and dumping it out into the ocean...... I plan to read more on this case to see what happens with Dr. Bierenbaum's appeal that he has going on right now.

[Debi · Rating 1 out of 5]

I bought this book because of the great reviews and hated every minute of it. It was written terribly despite the author being a New York Times bestselling author.
Repetitive - Entire sections were repeated.
And every time a woman was in the story her outfit and physical appearance were described - not the men. Who cares if the woman testifying was wearing pearls and was an 'attractive blonde with a stylish pixie haircut'

Torture!

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm giving this 4 stars only for the fact that towards the end, when the trial took place it became very boring. At least it did to me anyway..maybe it was because I knew what the outcome was going to be. Other than that the book kept my attention.

[Amber · Rating 2 out of 5]

This books was mediocre. It wasn't too badly written but there were parts that were a bit redundant and though it's a sad story and the guy is a psychopath it was hard to get into it or to feel a connection to the victim as she was a conniving manipulator who was really just using her husband anyways. It's sad to think that not only did she lose her life, she didn't even get a chance to experience real love and instead wasted her time with an abusive man that she didn't even love anyways.

[Pamela Walter · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a better true crime novel. The story of Bob Bierenbaum, a surgeon who murders his first wife and disposes of her body by flying over the Atlantic in a single engine plane. He then goes on to live his life as a charible, if socially clueless, surgeon. As the prosecuter said it was like he had sentenced himself to penance.

It takes many years to bring him to justice as the body is not found, and procecutors are reluctant to try a case without it.

[Micki G · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unsatisfying

Not certain I am a fan of this author. The book was absorbing for long stretches, but repetitive and speculative in others.
Editorial efforts were VERY sloppy. Twice, half a page was repeated, verbatim. Many sentences were cut off or nonsensical.
The story itself is very interesting, but the sloppy editing is so prevalent that it disrupts the flow of the story.

[Ann Prewett · Rating 5 out of 5]

True crime at its best

Quite possibly the most thoroughly researched and unbiased true crime story I’ve ever read. The author is an excellent writer with well-crafted sentences that are often absent in this genre.

[Rita · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a riveting read. I couldn't put it down and the author was top-notch and spot-on with the research, details and about the families. A must
read.

[Diane Waddington · Rating 5 out of 5]

great book too bad it took so long to get him.

[Bill reilly · Rating 5 out of 5]

It all begins with Gail Katz swallowing forty Quaaludes washed down with some vodka. The college dropout was depressed but the mixture failed to finish her off. Two years later, her best friend Amanda introduced her to Robert Bierenbaum. Her mother had advised her to marry a Jewish doctor and she followed the advice. Other than their common religion, the pair were polar opposites. He was a conservative Republican and she was a liberal who argued constantly with him and informed anyone who would listen, that she was not in love with him. The whiner also complained that she was unfulfilled sexually. No wonder Bob threw her out of a plane. Not guilty would have been my vote for the henpecked husband.
Shortly after they married, Gail told friends that while watching a program about Claus von Bulow, her husband told her that he would make sure to get rid of the body, unlike the famous socialite.
It only gets better with Gail admitting to an affair with a man of Arabic descent. I cannot make this s*** up. The sex starved housewife had numerous flings but when Dr. Bob caught her smoking, he choked her to unconsciousness. A doorman recalled some of her lovers visiting while Bobby was at work. The unfaithful wife screwed them and snorted coke. She claimed to enjoy "kinky sex."
A shrink who treated the mismatched couple separately and was astounded by Bierenbaum 's admission that he had indeed strangled his wife and had previously killed an exe's cat. The doc warned Gail that her spouse was a psychopath and was extremely dangerous. He wrote a warning letter to family members in case of a lawsuit. Amazingly, they reunited.
At their last supper together, Gail asked for a divorce and a generous financial settlement. She showed a copy of a police report from his attack and the warning letter from their shrink. Drastic measures would be taken by the trapped husband.
Missing person posters were posted around the East Side neighborhood with a photo of the petite young women. The Katz family were suspicious from the start. Bob called his spouse a "J.A.P." and said that she would be found on a shopping spree at Bloomingdale's.
Two months after Gail went missing, a fellow doctor moved in and he had a fling with a nurse. They broke up and the doctor left his field of cardiology and became a plastic surgeon.
He moved to Las Vegas and a flourishing career using his skills to actually help patients, unlike many of his contemporaries who mostly did breast implants on showgirls. On humanitarian missions to Mexico, he provided free care to the poor.
A long string of girlfriends filled his social calendar and he eventually met his second wife, Janet Chollet, a gynecologist. The French-Canadian Catholic would become his staunchest defender. They moved to North Dakota where Dr. Bob became known as a "breast man," performing mostly breast implants. Meanwhile, his wife left medicine to study law. She also wrote an unpublished manuscript with the protagonist having an orgasm while giving birth. Say what! This saga is Shakespearean in magnitude.
The book was published in 2001 and an Internet search followup should be done after finishing this amazing ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ read.

[Roger · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most will probably not like my review - I tend to be a bit too blunt. (my bad). Before reading on, let me make this one thing clear. Murder is heinous, deplorable............and, by the way, against the law, both mankind's and God's.

Perhaps not good of me to say, but this guy’s JAP (Jewish American Princess) wife, Gail was, according to what I read, a nut! She was constantly complaining about everything (not only to her husband, but all her friends, as well). Frankly, it appeared that EVERYONE was sick & tired of her moody ups and downs and her constant drive for attention. Contrary to what this review indicates, I did not see Robert Bierenbaum as a “monster” but, admittedly, I guess he did kill this idiot. When I use the word “guess”, this is because the prosecution brought a case of 2nd degree murder charges against Bierenbaumn without: a body..... little to no forensic evidence..... nor an eye witness and, for that matter, not even a solid motive! How a jury found him guilty is, frankly, beyond me.

After having read over 2000 books I have to say not the best written book but not the worse either. So I guess one would say, "mediocre" but good enough to hold most readers, (true crime fans) attention.

[Imani · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very well researched, in-depth and objective retelling of this story. I live for the kind of level of detail he included.

I cannot remember ever reading a story where the victim seemed so spectacularly dislikable. Seriously, this Gayle chick was a total horror show.

Definitely not saying she deserved to be murdered (he probably did kill her - though there wasn't really evidence at trial that proved that), but it was remarkable that across an audiobook of about 14hrs, there was not one single positive attribute about her to be recounted. It was stunning. And she literally chose to stay with someone she knew had the propensity to murder her, because she wanted to be able to extort him. That, to her, was preferable to getting a job.

This book really highlights the dangers of marrying the wrong people, for the wrong reasons. Everyone in this story lost.

Again: not saying she deserved to be murdered.

[Ronnie Cramer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having recently read and enjoyed ALMOST PARADISE by this author, I decided to re-read his earlier book THE SURGEON'S WIFE. It was good, but did get repetitious when the trial started; apparently Keiran's technique improved in the four years between these books. The ebook version was also loaded with typos, most of which were clearly the result of OCR scanning.

[Amaka Azie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting true crime book.
A slow burner
Repetitive too
But managed to keep me engaged throughout.
I believe Bob is guilty though.
His defence doesn’t make any sense.
Violence against a spouse out of anger is unacceptable to me. No matter the reason.
There’s always the option of walking away.
That’s far better than murder or any other form of violence.

[Jeff G · Rating 4 out of 5]

I originally started this book back in 2010/11 and never finished it. Decided to finally re-read it in its entirety. A pretty gripping story that also happens to be based off true events.

Upon finishing it, I discovered that the alleged killer is up for parole next month! I’ll have to keep an eye and see how things develop.

[Cynthia Rennolds · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent True Crime Retelling of a Strange Case

Author does a good job in the retelling of a strange and difficult case. The author first introduces you to the Birenbaum’s and gives some insight into both of their personalities and their marriage before delving into the trial. The details of what occurred are well laid out and understandable. Very interesting book.

[Deirdre Collier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Better than average

Interesting twist on the usual true crime story. The role of the psychiatrist makes it especially interesting. The author's final thoughts have me lots to think about.

[Everydayreader1 · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The Surgeon's Wife" is the best true crime novel I've read this year. It is a detailed account of both the lives of the victim and the man convicted of murder. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is fascinated by true crime.

[Joseph Gramaglia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Read set in NY

The author described the Jewish culture ,NY and the doctor's arrogance in such an uncanny manner that I felt like I lived in NY and knew the characters in the story personally.

[brenda belg parlaman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a cant put down book!!!

[Angie Horn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book

It was an interesting book but sad that Gail, the wife, lost her life. The author's reporting of the court room got alittle old. Overall a good book.

[Brett · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75

[Coral · Rating 1 out of 5]

Terrible writing. Entire sections were redundant. Obvious bias supporting the accused. Author resorted to victim-blaming throughout. An unprofessional and unreliable account of a true crime.

[Aimee DeSherlia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting read! My opinions on innocence and guilt changed throughout the book.

[Kelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I realized once I got to page 88, that I have read this true crime book before (lol).

[Kelly Corley · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was a good story line but way too long on the details.
I lot of the information could have been consolidated or shortened.

[Lisa Plorin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Was interested because of the Minot ND connection. Enjoyed it a lot

[Belinda Jackson · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book was entertaining but longer than needed.

[Peter R Wetton · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting book but spoiled by grammatical errors on just about every page. Probably a result of scanning the hard copy book. Publisher should have picked up these during copy checking