The Black Widower: A Beautiful Doctor, Her Seemingly Perfect Husband, and a Chilling Death

by Michael Fleeman

She was his second wife—to die. . .
Coming off a failed marriage, a beautiful woman named Toni joined an online dating site, hoping to find true and lasting love. Harold Henthorn seemed like her dream come true—a handsome man who said he had “a heart for others.” Only weeks after meeting, they were wed. But Toni’s family began noticing Harold’s dark side—especially his controlling nature, which Toni didn’t seem to mind. Until she met her end at the bottom of a ravine. . .

Was he a grieving husband—or a black widower?

Harold’s tearful story of his wife’s hiking “accident” just didn’t hold up with Toni’s family—or the police. Then a shocking truth was uncovered: twenty years before, Harold’s first wife had also died suspiciously in a remote area with no witnesses. Soon, more questions arose: Who was Harold Henthorn—a devoted, grief-stricken husband or a cold, calculating killer? Could authorities find a way to connect his wives’ deaths and expose the truth?

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, Audiobook, Crime

297 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 1, 2017

Reviews

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an observation I could put on almost every true crime book I've ever read.
I can never be a jury member. Why you ask? Because attorneys constantly say during closing arguments USE YOUR COMMON SENSE. That one small statement gets under my skin so deeply I'm certain I would jump right up from my seat with my RBF and say no shit? I thought I'd play eenie meenie miney mo with a person's life. I find that so disrespectful. Who am I kidding? I'd never make it onto the jury in the first place

[Ronnie Cramer · Rating 4 out of 5]

When a woman 'falls' to her death in Rocky Mountain National Park, authorities are suspicious of the surviving husband, particularly after they receive word that this is the second wife he's lost under unusual circumstances. Contains some minor errors, but it remains a solid account by the reliable Michael Fleeman.

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

It started off okay, but then lost steam about halfway through. I gave up before I even finished the whole thing, as I found that I had lost interest.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I briefly remember following this story as it happened in my home state. Such a tragic loss. It is amazing the lengths that people will go through to gain wealth. As I kept reading this book, the further and further I got the scarier and more intrigued I became with Harold. It was interesting to read how he reacted to both of his wives' deaths (in the moment and afterwards). Example is Harold talking to a family friend and photographer about Toni's death. He was calm and did not shed any tears. This was barely after the fall. Then, Harold had put together a video but all of the photos featured were of Harold only.

You have to be cold hearted to push a jeep off a jack and watch as it crushed your wife. The fact that he would not help her and grabbed a dirty plastic bag to put under her head, showed no remorse. Author, Michael Fleeman did a great job telling this story again. True crime readers will thoroughly enjoy reading this book. It was a nice balance from start, middle to end.

[Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

At first Harold Henthorn had pretty much convinced police that his wife’s death was an accident. She was under their car, allegedly switching out a tire, when the jack failed and the car fell on her, crushing her chest cavity. But they wondered why she was the one fixing the tire, not him? But then they found out his first wife had died in an “accident” too. Investigators took a deep dive into the apparently uneventful Henthorn marriages and found life insurances policies, tons of them, for the wives, but not for the husband. I enjoy reading about the investigation into true crime, and when justice is on the winning side, I feel soooo satisfied.

[Judy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Listened on audio.

Interesting case as the guy was married to them for a while before they met their tragic ends. How do you do that? Love someone for so long (or a least be with someone for so long) and then kill them for profit???

So cold.

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was okay, but I think I picked it up based on a long-form article I'd read (possibly by the same author of the book?). The article would have sufficed for me instead of reading this book, actually, as it detailed the two murders pretty completely. The thing this book has that the article didn't though is the trial, which seemed like the author merely condensed the transcript. There wasn't a lot of original writing in this book at all - it is about 70% quotes from interviews and the direct trial transcript and evidence reports. Being a law clerk for a judge and having just sat through a two week trial a couple months ago, I felt the monotony of trial all over again throughout the second half of this book. Some people might love this kind of writing, but it wasn't great for me.

[Stacy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Don’t waste your money on this book unless you’re specifically interested in reading lengthy excerpts from the trial. Beyond that, there’s very little original insight—everything else about this true crime case can be found easily online, often presented more clearly and thoroughly.

While the crimes themselves were horrific and should have made for a compelling read, the author somehow manages to make the subject matter boring. The book suffers from excessive repetition, with the same points and passages rehashed over and over without adding new context or analysis. On top of that, it’s riddled with typos and grammatical errors. The lack of basic editing makes it feel rushed and careless, which comes across as disrespectful to readers.

[Aura Erickson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story is focused on the 'accidental' death of an eye doctor. She was a smart, devout christian woman who married a man who deceived her and others. The cruel truth was that her husband had already murdered his previous wife to collect life insurance. He murdered her so that he could collect 4.5 million dollars in life insurance. The book is well written although at times it focuses a lot on details of the crime and it is repetitive. I would have liked to read more why would a smart woman would fall prey to such a callous man. I would have also liked to know why did he developed into such a cruel person.

[Ron Baumer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book review is performed on an audiobook. The story will horrify you and make you wonder if he really killed his first wife as well. The fact that the police botched the first investigation and that it ultimately led to his thinking he could get away with a second one really struck home. This was an evil person who thought he was entitled to a lifestyle paid for by others.

The narrator does a great job of telling the story and keeping you engaged and wanting more.

I would recommend this book to all true crime fans.

[Becky Courage · Rating 3 out of 5]

A complex case that was overall an enjoyable read. At times, however, the writing style and presentation of facts became overwhelming. Constant run on sentences and seemingly irrelevant tangents made parts of the investigation difficult to follow. The most interesting pieces of writing came from court testimony; particularly the opening and closing statements.

Would recommend for those interested in true crime novels.

[Kayla Krystine · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is riddled with spelling and grammatical errors. I feel that the author really tried to drag out the word count and there were a lot of “filler” paragraphs and sentences.

The story is a very depressing one and involves what I would call child abuse. If that bothers you, steer clear. There are also two very gruesome murders explained in detail.

I’m glad I read this book but it did make my heart hurt.

[Roger · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fleeman is a good writer but he doesn’t necessarily always select the most interesting cases to write about. This one was just “so-so”…(not to sound heartless for the two women he killed). This scum bag Harold Henthorn lived off insurance money from the two women that he killed. A real scumbag - this Henthorn.

[Jill Crosby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Checks all the boxes for a true crime book; victim’s background, killer’s background, victim’s family involvement and impact, description of the crime and setting, use of transcripts and direct quotes from interviews. Basic and readable, but doesn’t go overboard in fleshing out anything. Missing—information on the killer’s youth, family, and background.

[GrannyLee · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book tells the tragic story of 2 beautiful women that marry a monster. And how life insurance money can make someone do the unthinkable.

The 2 stories are intertwined and interesting. But the way the book is written, it is very repetitive. Drags on and on.. and my interest started to wane.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

As far as true crime goes, this book flows formula. You get to know about the crime, timeline, victim, suspect, trial and aftermath. But what sets this book apart is the perpetrator. With great detail you get to go inside this marriage from hell.

[Jocelyne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Don't waste your money on that book unless you want to read about some of the trial's excerpts. Otherwise, you can read about this true crime on the Internet.

This book is full of typos and grammar errors. The author should be ashamed. It's a lack of respect for the readers.

[Janet · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is really a reprint of court transcripts and police reports. I wish he had made even a small attempt to find out about Harold's past. Even to just interview old friends or classmates would have added depth to this story.

[Sherri Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

A chilling and well written book!!

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sad book. What a messed up POS.

[Beth Ann Garcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unbelievable story of a man full of entitlement and lies, hell bent on controlling the lives of his wives until he didn't "need" them anymore. Chilling & Calculating. Downside=typos

[Cindy Lou · Rating 2 out of 5]

Poorly written with lots of typos!

[Lauren Trent · Rating 3 out of 5]

The depths of darkness that lives inside some people is truly harrowing. My heart breaks for the families of the women taken by that man.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great beach read or vacation read. I zipped through this as I wanted to see how the investigation turned out despite all the craziness.

[Courtney Johnston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audiobook👂🏻