Crook County - Podcast Rankings and reviews

This podcast is nothing short of phenomenal. The narrator takes you on a deeply personal and emotionally gripping journey as he uncovers the secret life of his father. The way he tells his story is unforgettable in the way you’ll be captivated, yet disturbed by his father’s actions as the villain, but somehow that same villain is likable, if not beloved. You’ll find yourself rooting for him and the entire family to come together. The intensity of the revelations intertwined with a marriage, fatherhood, and as a first responder, is unmatched.

The storytelling of this true crime and family memoir is authentic and masterful. I found myself experiencing the unfamiliar, yet relatable raw emotions that the family, and even Kenny the Kid experienced, and still are enduring to this day. The production quality is top-notch and pacing is perfect. A must-listen for true crime lovers. I recommended this podcast to all my friends and sent to family back home in the Detroit & Chicago areas.

I’ve listened to hundreds of podcasts and never before felt absolutely compelled to write a review. I love true crime, and this podcast has plenty of that kind of story. However, what is even more compelling about this story is the manner in which it is told, including the raw and visceral emotion that leaps through the speakers as Kyle slowly reveals the full story. Ultimately, Crook County is about not just a decades-spanning series of crimes in Chicago, but about the complexities of us humans and the hard won peace of forgiveness. As a psychologist, I live in the gray, but rarely does a podcast take a seemingly black and white topic like true crime and show us that, like most things in life, there are almost always aspects that are very gray, indeed. Absolutely loved this podcast and highly recommend!

As someone from the Chicago area, this is as real as it gets. The antagonist reminds me of one of my dad’s old poker buddies. People don’t realize how intertwined the legit world was with the underworld back then. This podcast explains that divide perfectly. Kyle expertly humanizes, scrutinizes and criticizes his dad’s many choices, both good and bad, as he navigated Chicago corruption culture. My only complaint was that maybe the show was dragged out a little longer than needed. Overall as a former Chicagoan, I believe this is one of the best podcast works to ever come out of our city.

I can’t decide whether to take a breath at the end of this podcast or cry - such an awesome, authentic, heart-wrenching crazy story. Excellently written and delivered.

Crook County promises a gripping deep dive into organized crime and corruption, but unfortunately, it doesn’t deliver on that potential. The interviews, while occasionally intriguing, never quite cohere into a compelling narrative—and it’s hard to shake the feeling that much of the story is either unverified or exaggerated. The host rarely fact-checks or pushes back on his father’s claims, which leaves the listener questioning the credibility of the entire project. I kept waiting for the big reveal or the deeper dive into the mob, but it never really came. On top of that, the music choices felt mismatched to the tone, adding to the overall sense of disjointedness.

Total commercial time is about half the show. It’s really less than 15 minutes of actual show. Every ad is over 3 minutes. Absolutely ridiculous. This isn’t television or tv streaming. I couldn’t make it past the 5 minute ad. I just fast forwarded to see how many more there were, if it was even worth listening to. Spoiler, it’s not.