Very good read !

A story surrounding the disappearance of young teenage paper boys in Des Moines in the early 1980's. A simpler time where there was less awareness of stranger danger and the like. The story feels very real - and the author notes indicate the fictional tale is based on some true missing children cases of that time - thus explaining the feeling of authenticity to this tale.

This book is based on the real-life Des Moines Register paperboy kidnappings which happened in the early 1980s when the author was a young girl. Those kidnappings led her to think "Someone out there is stealing children." Imagine how frightening that thought must have been for her as a child. It's frightening for adults to comprehend.

In August 1984, paperboy Christopher Stewart has gone missing. Hours later Sammy Cox rushes home from his paper route, red-faced and out of breath hiding a horrible secret. Sammy's older sister, Crystal wants to go to college and be a writer. The boy's disappearance reminds her of an earlier case when another boy went missing. She begins to write an essay on their disappearance hoping that this essay will help her get a college scholarship.

Detective Dale Goodkind is haunted by the cases of the missing boys. He vows to find out the truth even if it means having to face his own demons.

"Sometimes, being a human was hard work."

These characters POV are told as they all try to come to terms with what is going on in their lives - their thoughts, their feelings, and their fears. Each is carrying a weight around with him/her.

"Whoever fights with monsters should see to it that he does not become a monster in the process. And when you gaze long into an abyss the abyss also gazes into you." - Nietzsche

This book deals with difficult subject matter. A detective is hunting a predator of children, a young boy with a horrible, terrible secret, and a young woman dreaming of a future. What happens when their lives collide? Who are the monsters? Does hunting a monster make you one also? Will the "bad guy" get caught?

Well thought out book that will have triggers for some. Well written and researched.

Thank you to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

I loved the concept of The Monster’s We Make. Set in the 80’s, which I’m a sucker for, and a fictionalized account based on the disappearance of some local paper boys.
The story centres on 12 year old Sammy, his 18 year old sister Crystal and Dale, the local detective trying to solve the case while struggling with his own past demons. I thought the author did a great job capturing the era and the setting as well as family life in Iowa. I was engrossed in the book and the mystery surrounding the case. And who doesn’t love family secrets and mysterious characters?
What I struggled with was Dale’s character. I just couldn’t relate to him and wondered how he would have even gotten to this point in his career. Crystal, a hopeful future journalist, had better detective skills. But perhaps that was more for the overall story.
At the end I was left feeling like I wanted more, needed more. It was like being on a rollercoaster going up with the anticipation of that belly flopping drop, but you never quite reached the top.
Overall a well written and interesting book and I will definitely read more by the author. 3.75⭐️

This was a very chilling, well written read, which had me covered in chills while also gasping for breath. I thought it being about a true story made it much more chilling, astonishing, and shocking! The author was sympathetic, I think because it was based on a true crime, and could’ve possibly went to more extreme and disturbing writing, but overall I felt the story was done very well and made for great chilling, twisted read! I highly recommend to both thriller/mystery and true crime lovers!
Will make sure I buzz it up on all the different platforms!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the free e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I struggled with this one. It struck me as novel written by someone not at all comfortable with the subject matter they were writing about. There were obvious attempts to push the envelope, but they never reached their full potential. This book was like taking someone to a haunted house but in broad daylight and the house itself has 100 people in it: everything seems a lot less scary with that lens on.
A stand-out character was Crystal, Sammy's older sister. But I can't say I liked her because I didn't get to know her that well. In fact, all of the supposed main characters were written like secondary characters, never quite coming into focus as fully-formed individuals.

The rating gets bumped up a bit by the overall point that the plot makes: monsters in society aren't extraordinary, but living among us, coaching our kids' sports leagues, tutoring them, benignly asking for directions.

For die-hard thriller lovers, I'd give this a miss.

Growing up during the 80's I remember children disappearing and the pictures on the back of milk cartons. This book is based on a few of those real life cases as the author explains in the notes section.

This book was a bit difficult to read with all that is going on in the world at the moment. But I wanted to focus as much as I could and really give this book as much of my attention as I could and I am glad I did.

The story centers around a neighborhood in Des Moines, Iowa where paperboys are disappearing without a trace. As the mystery deepens and we are introduced to all the different characters and learn of their backstories we wonder who the monster is. This story shows how evil thrives and grows behind closed doors and we allow it to based on appearances.

The Monsters We Make is a mother's worst nightmare.A boy go missing while taking care of his paper route. This story is told by 3 different people. Officer Dale Goodkind, is the police officer in charge of the investigation. Sammy, who is a 13 year old boy also with a paper route who seems to be hiding something. Crystal, Sammy's 17 year old sister, who is investigating the crime thinking it will help her with her essays for entering college. This story is creepy, scary, and keeps you on the edge of your seat. I received an advanced readers copy and all opinions are my own.

I greatly enjoyed this book. It takes place in Des Moines, IA in the early 1980s when a couple of disappearances of local paperboys scares the town into believing there is a serial killer on the loose. The primary characters are 12 yr old Sammy, a paperboy himself, his 18 year old sister, Crystal, a wannabe journalist, and the officer in charge of the disappearance cases, Dale. The book goes back and forth between the POVs of these 3 characters.

There is a lot going on here for us to figure out along with the characters. Sammy is hiding something but we aren't sure if it has to do with the disappearances or not. Crystal is doing her own research into the disappearances in the hopes of winning a scholarship to college, and there are a couple additional suspicious characters who may or may not be involved.

The author does a great job at capturing the 1980's and it took me right back there. She also created a believable dynamic between Crystal and her family, with complex relationships with which the reader could emphasize. I was not a fan of Dale's character, but wasn't sure if the author intended that response or not.

The book had a satisfying ending where some things got worked out and there were still loose ends in other areas- I like this more than when its tied up a little too neatly. Despite not liking Dale, he did grow on me a bit from his actions towards the end of the story.

Overall, I'd recommend this book to those who like mysteries and missing persons stories, especially if they grew up in the 80's and want to recapture some of that nostalgia. I am looking forward to seeing more from this author.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was an amazing read. I love that this story is based a true story that actually happened made this book even a better read.

What grabbed me first was the synopsis . Secrets play a big part in this book. Its actually based on a true story. This is perfect for me as i love my true crime. I had alot of dejvu moments as i grew up in the 80's with the technology they had back then. I was totally into this book and couldnt put it down.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of The Monsters We Make.

I enjoy novels based on true crime and I was intrigued by the premise of The Monsters We Make.

The Monsters We Make is a well-written, fictionalized account based on the real life disappearances of three young newspaper boys in the Midwest in the 1980s.

In August 1984, a young boy goes missing.

Sammy Cox is a 12 year old boy hiding a terrible secret. His sister, Crystal, an aspiring journalist, intends to write an award winning essay based on the disappearances for her college application, hoping to win a much needed college scholarship.

Sergeant Dale Goodkind has been tasked with investigating the disappearances, at the same time, hiding a horrible childhood trauma that may blind him to the true predator living amongst them.

The narrative is told by these three, distinctive individuals and readers are given insight into their trauma, their shame, their wishes and dreams, and their hopes.

The author evokes the 1980s so well; the tone and setting, the fashions, the permed hair, the music!, and the belief that we are all safe in our neighborhoods, reminding the readers how the word 'pedophile' was a strange word, unheard of, really, back in those days.

Unfortunately, it is now too common a word, along with 'predator'.

I enjoyed how the author uses a true crime backdrop to highlight the nostalgia and fear of the past, mentioning notable serial killers Dahmer and Bundy.

People believed they were safe, but it was false, but how could you blame them? How else did you sleep at night?

But, the author makes a valid point, often overlooked, that sometimes, killers and predators are allowed to continue preying and hunting and killing because some people turn a blind eye. We refuse to believe the terrible truths we are told about a person. We don't want to believe that this person committed heinous acts. What does that say about us?

Just take a look at our current headlines now. Epstein. Sandusky. Larry Nassar. Nothing has changed.

The character development was strong, and I sympathized and empathized with Sammy, his sister, and Dale, even the teacher Crystal had a crush on. We all have strengths and weaknesses; but it takes a strong person to recognize that weakness and do something about it.

The ending was unexpected, yet apt. Sometimes, there is no justice. No closure. Life is ambiguous and vague. But, the same truth applies to all survivors: get help and move on.

Great writing, good research and info (check the author's notes in the back) and a painful story that's definitely not for everyone but I recommend it to anyone who wants to read a good book based on a true crime.

I have to admit it probably took me until halfway through to become invested. But once I was, I was so deeply impacted by this book.

I appreciated the complexities of each perspective in this book- an 18 year old awkward yet adorably bright, innocent high school senior, a 13 year old chubby, shy, nearly suicidal paper boy (these two are siblings), and a detective investigating a series of missing boys in the rural midwest.

This was, in my limited opinion, the most vivid and accurate portrayal of pedophilia, a child’s perspective, a community’s power to either foster or oust predators, and the suspicion we thrust upon the innocent. It’s hard, as an adult, to understand why kids don’t just tell an adult if someone hurts them. This book provides a perfect psychological deep dive into why that’s simply not the case.

The emotions of these teens, the highlight on the notion that our parents are not perfect, and the homage to the missing in the midwest (Jacob Wetterling, Johnny Gosch, etc. etc. etc.) were perfectly done. My only reservation is the ending. You’ll see if you read.

In the 80’s, in West Des Moines, Iowa, a string of murders waged war on the hearts of parents, the victims, paper boys.

This is the true story of the Paper Boy murders. As a parent, a tale that hits you deep in your gut. It was repulsive, and heart wrenching. To know what the families went through, breaks my heart.

I was absorbed. The writing was excellent. The story was intricately told in third person.

Well worth your time.

* Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange of my honest review.

It was the early 80s, before children and their parents had to worry about the worst that could happen. Kids could run free and play outside with abandon. Young boys could do their paper route on Sunday mornings before the sun rose. Until a paperboy is taken in plain sight, twos years after another one went missing.

Told from the perspective of a young boy, his journalistic sister and the detective on the case, The Monsters We Make is truly enthralling. I might dare to say that this may be one of my favorite books this year, and I still have 10 more months to go! It examines a time when things felt safe, and then it doesn’t. This book is truly heartbreaking, and beautifully written. I can easily see this story transformed into a Netflix series or movie. While it won’t be out until this Summer, you should pre-order a copy now. I cannot recommend this book enough!

An excellent book about a small boy whose words are not taken seriously and how he goes on to solve his problems himself. The back drop is the kidnapping of paper boys in the 1980s. The book deals with a very sensitive topic without delving into descriptive details but still makes the reader understand the magnitude of the offence. It emphasises that parents should listen to what the children say and trust them which I wholly accept. The characters are very well developed and the families are natural. The evil is definitely among us. I would recommend every parent to read this book.

Written in third person, we follow the lives of teenage journalism student Crystal, her younger brother Sammy and lead detective Goodkind as we unravel the mystery of two missing paper boys.

I was drawn to the story as a lover of 80s small town America but for me this was my first book based on a true crime. That fact made the entire journey more sinister, the fear for those missing children was more palpable knowing it really did happen in Des Moines.

Everything from the characters, behaviour, pop culture references and setting were so authentic it felt as though I were watching it all unfold. The writing flowed nicely and everything included was necessary, I wouldn't edit a thing.

The Monsters We Make focuses mostly on two slowly unravelling theories with a simple but acceptable pay off. My real interest was in the character development and the secrets they each hid. I identified very well with Crystal as the mothering, responsible older sister and felt the cause and effect of the events for each character were well thought out.

Thankfully no scenes go into horrifying detail but they still left a nauseous feeling. The dread and sympathy continued to build as the length of time the boys were missing stretched on and on.

In the end The Monsters We Make is a purely fictional take on a true event, it was very well written and feels entirely plausible.

Great plot line and set-up, great tension building. May be a little triggering to anyone with children, working with children, etc. I found it challenging in that regard

I want to start off by saying thank you for the opportunity to read and review this book, it was a very good read easy to follow along with storyline and characters. This was a new author for me but I very much enjoyed it, thank you for the opportunity and I look forward to reading more by this author again. I highly recommend this book to everybody.

What a chilling read this story is. It's based off true events and it definitely takes you back to that time period. Every parents worst nightmare takes place. You really had a feel for the characters. Very good thriller!

After a couple of chapters, I realised I had read this book before in hard cover. However, I was happy to read it again and enjoy. The factual background material (paper boys kidnapped and murdered) added extra depth to the story. So we have both a historical novel (it's set in 1984) and the sense that this could just as well be a story happening right now.
The focus on the boy at the centre of the story, Sammy Cox, provides a keen insight into how predators operate - that it doesn't have to be the dark stranger at all, as we all know. The police detective, Dale Goodkind, gains our sympathy as much as Sammy. Dale can almost do nothing right, but we understand why, and we feel for him. It seems like an unsolvable crime, simply because those who know are so threatened they can't say anything. this is the nature of child abuse.
The author handled the movement back and forth between viewpoint characters very well, and her characters are all strong and believable. Crystal as a budding journalist struggles to tell a story that in 1984 would have been confronting - and yet most of it is happening right under her nose. It's not until she realises the truth that she is able to write it - this is also an insightful view into great journalism. The combination of passion and truth.
It always interests me to read a novel set before mobile phones. We take them for granted now, and they can mess up the plot of a thriller in annoying ways. In this novel, that lack of instant communication is brought home in many ways, and for me it added an extra interest to the solving of the crime.