The Jan Broberg Story

The True Crime Story of a Young Girl Abducted and Brainwashed by a Friend of the Family

By: Jan Broberg, MaryAnn Broberg

Narrated by: MaryAnn Broberg, Jan Broberg

The Jan Broberg Story tells the winding tale of the Brobergs, a church-going, Idaho family that falls prey to a sociopathic neighbor who will stop at nothing to be with their young daughter.

Robert Berchtold, furniture store owner and family man, coaxes his way into the Broberg’s life, meticulously building their trust and bonding with their young girls. One day, Robert offers to take their 12-year-old daughter, Jan, horseback riding, only he doesn’t return her home. When Jan awakes, kidnapped and strapped to a bed in the back of a motor home bound for Mexico, she hears strange high-pitched “alien” voices telling her that she has been chosen for a special mission. What follows is the real-life trail of deception that plagued Jan Broberg from the age of 12, when she became the victim of Robert Berchtold’s bizarre four-year brainwashing scheme.

Written from the perspective of Jan Broberg’s mother, this gripping cautionary tale not only details the frightening acts and manipulation of a pedophile, but also highlights the Broberg family’s courage and resilience in the aftermath of harrowing events.

©2022 Jan Broberg and MaryAnn Broberg (P)2022 Jan Broberg and MaryAnn Broberg

Great story

This was very informative along with a story that had to be very hard to tell. A couple things were left out that they had in the documentary. The the only reason the story part got 4 stars

Wow!!

This story!! I cannot believe how much Jan, and entire family went threw. Quite baffling!

Unbelievable Story

It kept me scratching my head, and wondering how this strong brainwashing could really happen.

Surreal! And eye opening!

I spent my time listening to this going through every emotion! One doesn’t know how one will react until in a situation. Very enlightening.

A lot from the mother—better explanation than tv

Great insight from parents who experienced their daughter’s abuse. While might be easy to judge, it is so insightful on choices made

Amazing Story

Loved the amazing story, and raw, hard honestly. The narrator was easy to understand, with a good rhythm.

My favorite part of the book was the summary of what they did wrong and what they should have done instead. Hindsight is always more clear and I understand they were dealing with life with what they understood at the time, but revealing how they might have responded instead, was powerful.

I enjoyed this more than the documentary "In Plain Sight" (and I did enjoy that, too, but this was better). Because they could spend more time developing the story, so you understood it more (didn't seem so crazy).

Finally the way the story is written, weaving one perspective to another perspective was MASTERFUL! I loved the way they applied this technique.

Captivating and Shocking

This story perfectly encapsulates what you feel as a child who is being sexually abused by someone close to you. As a person who was sexually abused as a child, I can definitely say that no matter how shocking the circumstances are, if you trust the person then they can make you believe and feel anything they want.
A great testimony from a first-hand account and from the parent that bore witness.

Wish I would have listened to the book first

Fantastic story. Considering all Jan went through, this book is very insightful. The resilience of this family is remarkable and I keep leaning on "that which does not kill us, makes us stronger". That truly fits this story & this family. I wish I would have listened to the book before watching the miniseries. The book is definitely better with more detail to follow. I had to Google Jan Broberg to find out who she was - had no idea it would be an actress I recognized. She really did grow up to perform! Prayers to the family in their continued peace and thank you so much for sharing your story to educate others of what to look for when it comes to grooming. God Bless!

Compelling, Gripping, Sad Story slightly hindered

the story is well written. a compelling, saddening story about a poor girl's struggle to free herself from grooming and the mental devastation that comes with it. like others have said, the voice acting slightly hindered the delivery of the story but overall I found myself returning to this book and finishing it in 2 days. highly recommend for any parent just for the simple knowledge of noticing red flags in relationships.

What an incredible story of OVERCOMING!

Thank you for sharing your story, Jan. Although you went through such heartache, God is using your story to reach countless people who need to overcome as well.