Thank you NetGalley for my copy of The Perfect Father.

I really like John Glatt's writing.  My first book I've read by him.  I felt it was very informative and had details about the crime I did not know before.  I will be reading John Glatt's previous books and continue to look out for more by him.

This is pretty much impossible to rate- which isn't a castigation of the author or anything. The book was easy to read if you have a morbid interest in true crime.

I love true crime novels, and was not familiar with this case going into reading this novel. This book has received great reviews and I was thrilled to get an eARC copy via NetGalley.

I enjoyed reading this book and following along as many questions are answered as you read along. Such dark and twisty revelations that will keep you hooked onto this story until you've turned the last page.

If you like reading true crime novels I definitely recommend this one.

The Perfect Father Review 

This book was incredibly well written. It was informative and to the point. There were only a few parts that I found repetitive but I would just scroll through. What a horribly sad case. 

SYNOPSIS:

In the early morning hours of August 13th, 2018, Shanann Watts was dropped off at her Frederick, Colorado home by a colleague after returning from a business trip. It was the last time anyone would see her alive. By the next day, Shanann and her two young daughters, Bella and Celeste, had been reported missing, and her husband, Chris Watts, was appearing on the local news, pleading for his family's safe return.

But Chris Watts already knew that he would never see his family again. Less than 24 hours after his desperate plea, Watts made a shocking confession to police: he had strangled his pregnant wife to death and smothered their daughters, dumping their bodies at a nearby oil site. Heartbroken friends and neighbors watched in shock as the movie-star handsome, devoted family man they knew was arrested and charged with first degree murder. The perfect mask Chris had presented to the world in his TV interviews and the family's Facebook accounts was slipping--and what lay beneath was a horrifying image of instability, infidelity, sexual ambivalence, and boiling rage.

I'd rank this book closer to 3.5 stars.  The story itself is just so incredibly heartbreaking and outrageous.  The book felt slightly jumbled between the timeline of events and the concentration on the Facebook posts.  The book did provide a lot of information that wasn't really focused on in the media coverage, but it felt like the story would grind to a halt for pages of "now this is what her Facebook showed at the time" example posts.  I'm a huge true crime buff so it wasn't as troublesome to me.  I understand that these books are incredibly difficult to write well, but it would probably be a DNF to someone looking for a better story.

This was a well-written, objective book that gave information from both sides and perspectives. It gave new information that I was unaware of in this case and was a thoroughly enjoyable read!

I really enjoyed reading this book. I went into the book not knowing what it was about. I had not heard about Chris Watts and what he did. Overall this book tells the story of how Shannan meets Chris and their lives together until the night that Chris decided to murder her and their 3 children. The story is well written with a lot of information. I like reading crime books and this one did not disappoint.

I  know John Glatt is a prolific true crime writer, but this book fell a little flat for me. Perhaps it’s because the Watts family had such an online presence before the murders and the saturation of the case in the media following them, but I felt this book was mostly a transcript of Facebook posts, text messages, police videos, and media stories. I don’t feel there was anything “new” presented.

The Perfect Father: The True Story of Chris Watts, His All-American Family, and a Shocking Murder was a good read by John Glatt. In this book the author reveals details about the tragedy of what happened to Chris Watts family. They seem to be the perfect family on social media but there are a darkness that no one knew about.

I'm a huge true crime fan, so this one came as a bit of a disappointment. The first half was superb and made me excited for the rest of the book. I learned some things about their backgrounds I had never heard before. 

The second half, on the other hand, was basically just a summary of events after the crime and there was no new or shocking information. 

Thanks Netgalley and publisher for the ARC ebook in return for my honest review.

I am addicted to this case.  The poor little girls.  The poor woman who just would have been happy moving on In my opinion. I wonder how watts’s mind works, how he could have this idea and react the way he did.  I have read, listened and watched this case.  This book did. Wonderful job speaking about the case.

I was so excited for this book (as much as one can be for true crime).  I did not follow it in the news so I was excited to learn more.  I am an avid true crime reader but true crime books aren't exactly "quality literature" so I do keep that in mind.

I really enjoyed the first quarter of the book where it gave backgrounds on Chris and Shanann.  The next part felt like a chronological detail of all Shanann's postings on Facebook.  "On July 15, Shanann posted a picture of her girls and talked about how she loved them." And it continued, and continued.  

The second half of the book was about the murders and the trial in which Shanann is painted as a control freak who essentially was lying about her perfect life on Facebook.

Also, there was soooo much information on Thrive in there. 

I was really disappointed with this book but I would definitely pick up another John Glatt book.

I really enjoy true crime podcasts which made me think I would love reading true crime. This book was very well written but it is the story of a deeply shocking tragedy. I hadn’t heard of this story before reading it but I did know that Chris Watts murdered his entire family. His wife Shanann was describes as a natural born seller and amazing mother. She told Thrive and had Chris using all the products which resulted in him dropping from 245 to eventually 180. Shanann alienated Chris’s family and told him what to do from day one. It doesn’t matter if she was an overbearing partner because everyone has their issues she  didn’t deserve what happened to her and her
three children. This story is so heartbreaking and doesn’t shed much light on why Chris did what he did, just gives us a picture of their lives before tragedy happened.

I can still remember watching the coverage of the Watts family murders on the news, watching the TV specials, and even watching the Lifetime movie. What I didn't expect was for this to be a book that I couldn't put down. I will admit it is hard to review a true crime book., but this is a book that is well-researched and provides more information on a tragedy that shocked the world.

The first half of this book is just a summary of Shanann’s social media accounts and makes it seem like the author is blaming her for her own murder - she was controlling, she belittled her husband, etc. It’s not until the last section do we see what a psychopath Chris Watts is. He murdered his pregnant wife and two daughters. It was sickening to read what a “controlling” wife Shanann was when we know how it ends for her and her children.

#netgalley #arc #truecrime #bookstagram #chriswatts #shannanwatts #wattsfamilymurders #bookreview #theperfectfather #johnglatt ok. Oof. So. If you know ANYTHING about this murder. Or. Devoured it like I did because #truecrimelover then you were invested in this one. All of it. Blow by blow. This book. I was hopeful. I feel like it’s been too soon for an accurate portrayal but 🤷‍♀️ who knows. So. Thanks to #netgalley I received this book for an honest review. Here’s my thing. I’m team Shannan. All the way. I don’t think she was this controlling bitch that people claim. This one felt very heavy leaning towards the #watts side of the family and I. Personally it’s disgusting for me. I don’t think Chris is a victim in this. It was a hard read for me. I don’t value the opinions of his family. It was just sad. So. If you think shannan was an evil doer then please read the book. It is phenomenally written for you. If you think that Shannan was just a normal wife. Living life. Trying. Then. Don’t read this one. We all have our views about this case. And. Pending yours. This book may or may not be right for you. #booklover #bookstagrammer #itried #imsorry

Unfortunately, I could not get into this book. The book test, which is kind of like a litmus test for books, is when I read to page 50. If I'm not 'feeling' a book at that point, I set it down. There are truly 'too many books, and too little time.' I wouldn't hesitate, however, to read another book by this author. I was really interested in the story and would be interested in seeing what Glatt puts out next.

Chilling, haunting, unputdownable. A true crime that focuses on a real life monster. I found this book hard to read a times but so very amazing with details that will have you checking you locks. John Glatt is my favorite true crime writer and this newest novel did not disappoint.

If you follow true crime even lightly, you’ll have heard Chris Watts’ name. The Perfect Father is the story of Chris Watts and the murder of his family by his hands. 

I’m quite picky about the true crime books I read, and I tend to be a harsh critic with them. However, I really enjoyed Glatt’s book. 

Glatt presents the lives of both Chris and Shannan since they were children up until the murders. He gives a very clear picture of their lives together before the murders and I found it fascinating. 

Though Shannan is a victim and Glatt’s pretty clear about that, he doesn’t white-wash her history and shows all sides of Shannan, as she was a flawed person just like we all are. Some people were quite offended by his portrayal of Shannan, I found it refreshing. Shannan was real and she deserves a book that highlights her positives and doesn’t ignore her less-than-perfect attributes. Nothing Shannan could possibly absolve Chris of her murder or the murder of her children, and that doesn’t change when we realize that she was not a perfect woman. 

Chris is presented in an equally fair manner. Glatt gives just the facts and evidence, with no sensationalism or opinions. His mistress, Nicole, is also discussed similarly, so you’re free to make your own determination. 

That being said, this book is really just a quick overview. If you already know about both Nic(k)oles, the cocaine addiction, and the bedsheets, this likely isn’t detailed enough for you to learn more. For the people who read true crime, but you don’t know much about this case, this would probably be perfect for you.

I want to thank NetGalley, the publisher, and author John Glatt for providing me with an ARC of the title The Perfect Father!

Wow, wow, wow. If you haven't heard the name Chris Watts, I'm sorry but you have to live under a rock! This story shook the world, and this quick and disturbing read delivered the rest of the details I was dying for. As soon as I saw this circulating the book world, I knew I wanted to read it. Badly. It did not disappoint at ALL! I loved that the author started at the beginning so that you were able to watch as Chris slowly dove into madness. 

What a wild read. I loved it. Thanks again for the opportunity to read and review this ARC!