As soon as I saw this on Netgalley, I knew I needed to read it. I read it as soon as I was approved.

True crime has been an interest of mine for as long as I can remember. I did have a fairly extensive background of the case before reading. If you don't know much of the case then this is a good read for you.

The book is well written, I do feel that most of this information can be found by Googling the case. I felt that there was a lot of negative information about Shanann which turned me off the book because I hate victim shaming.

I'm thankful to NetGalley for sending me an eARC in advance in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 stars.

When I first saw this book, I knew I had to read it, as this has been a case that I’ve followed since it hit the news. It’s a devastating and horrifying case & Glatt doesn’t spare any detail, no matter how disgusting and unfathomable it is.

This book is broken up into three different parts - before, during, and after Chris Watts killed his pregnant wife, Shan’ann, and their two young daughters, Bella and Celeste. The chapters are short, which makes this a very quick read. Despite being a quick read, there were times when I had to put the book down because the details of the murders were so difficult and devastating to read. But I will say that, overall, it didn’t really seem like there were any *new* details in the book. Most information that Glatt included has been widely reported in the news over the last two years — i.e. Chris’ affair, Shan’ann’s social media presence, their bankruptcy, and Chris’ explanation(s) of what happened on that August day in 2018. However, I still thought the book was well written & the information of the case well presented.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press & NetGalley for a copy of the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

True Crime is one of my favorite genres to read. This book is another reason why. All I can say is, Wow! There was so much about Chris and Shanann that you can never know from the news and media. It takes a good author to find out all the details so we can get a full picture of the life these people lived. I love when a story builds and you know the crime is coming. Yet, I cringe every time I read about the murder; especially when children are involved. In the beginning of this book I actually felt bad for Chris. I thought Shanann was very controlling and cared more about looking like the perfect family on social media despite whatever was really going on in her home. She seemed to value other peoples opinions very much and didn't consider anyone else's feelings in the process. However, when Chris realized another woman is interested in him and, in his opinion, listens to him more and shows him the attention he never got from his wife, he flips the script. Not under any circumstance is it okay to lash out and hurt someone when they make you mad or upset you deeply. Though we really don't know exactly how it happened, it's so hard to believe this man, or any man, can kill their own children and wife. I love true crime because I just don't see how someone can stop caring that much and kill someone with their bare hands, or any weapon. What possesses a person to be that cruel? I just don't see how a normal human being could ever commit these heinous crimes. Something has to take control for them to do this, right? Thank you Netgalley for letting me read this book and thank you John Glatt for doing your research and giving us this chilling and gripping true crime novel.

The Perfect Father was an interesting read on such a shocking crime. While I thoroughly enjoyed the book due to the insight on the relationship and the crime, there were multiple things I had issues with, giving this book three stars. While I am sure that the wife was not the easiest person to live with, at times throughout this book, it felt as though the writer was attacking the wife. The author seems very one sided and I felt as though he tried to present reasons as to why the crime was committed, as though trying to explain it away. I wish that the author had been more impartial and not attempting to portray Watts as the good guy while portraying his wife as the bad guy.

Prefacing this review by saying that I love true crime but for some reason, I don’t really love to read true crime. I much prefer my info to come from TV shows/docs/movies and podcasts/social media groups dedicated to the subject.

Thank you to Netgalley, John, and St. Martin’s Press for an advance copy of The Perfect Father.

If you have an interest in true crime or just pay attention to current events, then you probably have heard of the Watts family murders. To this day, it’s still a crime with so many question marks around it that will likely never be resolved.

The Perfect Father dives deep into the 2018 murders of Chris Watts’ wife, two children, and unborn child committed by Chris…someone described by everyone (including his own in-laws) as the perfect father in the perfect marriage. Starting with both Chris and Shannan’s childhoods and going up to present day speaking to Chris’ parents about his incarceration, we get a voyeuristic look into the lives of the Watts, not unlike Shannan shared on her social media platforms. The difference being, in this book we get the sense that something was amiss in the family whereas Shannan portrayed the perfect life.

A book like this will definitely make you think twice about that friend or family member you have that’s always giving the impression that everything is more than fine.

"In The Perfect Father, New York Times bestselling author John Glatt reveals the tragedy of the Watts family, whose seemingly perfect lives played out on social media—but the truth would lead to a vicious and heartbreaking murder."

The Watts family murders occurred on August 13, 2018, in Frederick, Colorado, US. Christopher Lee Watts and Shanann Cathryn Watts met in 2010, and were married in November 3, 2012. They had two daughters: Bella Marie Watts and Celeste Cathryn "Cece" Watts. Chris Watts was employed by Anadarko Petroleum, while Shanann was an independent representative for the multi-level marketing company Le-vel, selling a product called Thrive. At the time of her death, she was fifteen weeks pregnant with a son. In "The perfect Father" Glatt attempts to reveal the Watt family secrets leading up to and after the vicious murders.
It is no secret that I believe MLM schemes are full of nothing but vultures and charlatans but I refuse to let that cloud my judgement and lead me to victim blame. It has been hinted at before that Chris Watts "changed" after being pressured by his spouse to not only take but sell/promote the Thrive products. It is possible that his actions were inflated by the use of the products, but I still feel that there was always darkness lurking deep within his soul.

"The perfect father" did an excellant job detailing the lives of the Watts family, up to during and then after the murders. The one issue I had was its apparent lean towards one side. It painted a portrait of a loving and doting father ( and perhaps at one time he was), but also of a husband led to murder by an incessantly overbearing spouse. If I am to be fair though it would be hard not to be onesided, afterall the only other true witnesses are dead.

I will admit that at times I did find myself drawn towards feelings of sympathy for Chris Watts. If any of the mistreatments such as verbal abuse orignate from truth that is unfortuante. Irregardless, it is no way indictive of murder nor does it make the senseless murder of two small children understandable or forgivable. I feel deep sorrow for the loss of three lives but it is for the two small children snuffed from existence by the person whose job it was to love and protect them, that my heart shatters for over and over again.
"The perfect father" is extremely well written and fast paced but it is not a light hearted read. Any book that focuses on the annihilation of a family is anything but easy to swallow.

I recieved a digital copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a hard book to review because although it was a very well written and detailed book the subject matter is so tough to read and re live what happened, it’s not for the faint of heart. I appreciate how the author did their best to provide both sides to the case and stuck with the facts. You can tell it was thoroughly researched and fact checked.
When reading this book I felt like I was grieving with the families and was trying to figure out how someone could do that? A good and tough read but be prepared for the unfortunate gruesome details. They are needed for a fact telling book but still heard to absorb.
Thank you Netfalley for the advanced copy.

If I hadn't known this was a true crime book and heard about this case in the news, I definitely would have thought it was fiction, as the story is so horrendous. A man killing his pregnant wife and daughters and then dumping their bodies at an oil site is just unimaginable. The issues below the surface were even more shocking and the author did a great job of laying out this story so that those who don't remember it from the news can follow it.

It is kind of weird to want to give a book about a murder story five stars. Yet, I felt like the author really did a good job of recapping this horrible and sad story of how Shanann, Bella and Celeste lost their lives. I still remember hearing and reading about this case as I live in Colorado.

It was interesting to see how Chris went from being submissive husband and father to a cold, blooded killer. Yet, in a way; I think that years of Chris taking more of a silent role caused him to exploded. Only when his fuse went off, he killed his family. The worse part was how distant he was during the whole event from killing Shanann...loading her body into the back of the truck and his daughters riding in the back seat with their dead mother on the floor. To killing each of his daughters and dumping their bodies into toxic oil drums.

What blows my mind besides the murders was that his parents can go on believing that their son is innocent; despite the various different stories he has told them about the murders. The other aspect that I and others I am sure don't really think about is how a murder affects the detectives and police involved in the case. There were many that suffered PTSD and had to quit afterwards.

This is a true crime book of the Watts family. Chris, the father his beautiful wife Shanann, their two little daughters and Nico the baby boy they've planned and longed for. They seem to be the opposite attract couple. Chris quiet, loving and caring for his family. He's happy for Shanann to be in the limelight. She's bright, vivacious, vibrant strong willed, determined. Really what Chris Watts is, is passive aggressive. He is not able to talk or Express or communicate his feelings. There will be a blowing point. No one can hold that much anger in and not destroy everything in it's path
And when it does there will be hell to pay.
Well written book about one of the most recent and horrifying stories of the year!

This was such a chilling and disturbing book/circumstance/whatever you want to call it. It didn't bring much new information, but it's a good way to follow along with what happened. I love reading true crime, and John Glatt definitely was the perfect writer for this.

Having already heard of this case on a recent podcast I debated even putting it on my TBR. However, I love true crime and it received high praise from Book Riot’s Liberty Hardy so I decided to give it a try. I am so glad I did. This book offered fascinating insight into their relationship and detailed accounts of their lives leading up to the murders in chronological order. Every time I had to put it down I couldn’t wait to pick it back up again. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys true crime and am anxious to see what else this author has written.

Thank you, NetGalley, for providing me with a digital copy of this wonderful book!

4.5/5 stars

This book is disturbing and disgusting and is definitely a page turner. It is difficult to put a rating on a horrific circumstance that affected so many peoples' lives.
The books is written in chronological order and has many details of what happened during this time. However, these details seem to be things that were gathered and already out there. I don't think this has new information or interviews/perspective of the friends or family members.
I also read it as more "pro" Chris Watts which bothered me. It felt like the author was critical of Shanann Watts and that she was to blame for being murdered.
True crime followers would probably enjoy this one.

Happy pub day to this true crime book: The Perfect Father. Thank you to #netgalley and St. Martins Press for the advanced copy for my honest review! This book is out today.

Synopsis: This true crime story is about the life of Chris Watts and the horrific murders of his wife, Shanann and their two young children. Chris was the “perfect” husband: attentive, doting, and loving of his family. It was inconceivable that he would be responsible for something so horrendous. This book shows the mental downward spiral he goes through during his life and marriage that ultimately led him to snap.


My Review:⭐️⭐⭐⭐ / 5 stars
First off, this is incredibly detailed and informative. It read almost like day by day account of Chris and Shanann’s life up to the days after the murder and the court hearings. Its eerie to read about what could cause someone to immediately shut off their feelings for their own family and disassociate unconditional love to cruel murder. The more I read, the more I was finding it hard to stomach this terrible tragedy I saw on the news a couple years ago. If you are interested in true crime, you will definitely will want to read this.

I don't typically gravitate towards true crime, but between The Southern Book Club's Guide To Murder (featuring true crime reading book club) and being captivated by If You Tell earlier this year, I have been more open to the genre this year. This book details Chris and Shannan Watts' lives - and the murder of Shannan, her unborn son and two young daughters ar the hands of her husband.

The book reads much like a serial article - or a script for a more in-depth Investigation Discover show. The author keeps himself completely out of it and attempts to stick to the evidence and facts. But in presenting a balanced view, there are some uncomfortable moments that seem to border on blaming the victim. And while Glatt mentions a few alternative theories, it is clear that he doesn't actually purport to any of them. There doesn't seem to be an inside view or any details not covered by public record (though this is still an intimate view, in large part thanks to the strong social media presence the family maintained). If personal interviews were a part of this, that research doesn't seem to be acknowledged.

I also wish that the motive had been a bit clearer... it does seem like a quick turn from an apparently loving (but pushed around??) husband to a murderous monster and his mistress' role also seems open to interpretation with the timely mentions of her internet searches and their long phone calls. It's a heartbreaking story, and while it's a quick read, I just wish that there had been a bit more depth to it. I was also surprised that more blame wasn't placed on the Thrive products that he seemed to be abusing with over-use and the reality of their financial pressures. I can certainly see why there are book clubs so devoted to this genre though - this certainly leaves a reader with a lot to talk about!!

John Glatt did an impressive job of presenting the background story of Shanann Watts and her two young daughters and their tragic demise at the hands of their "perfect" husband and father Chris Watts. As I often suspect when I see an ideal life portrayed on social media, the reality may be far different. This case had captured my attention from the beginning because it reminded me of Laci Peterson. I have long been drawn to true crime narratives through books and televised coverage because I want to know what leads up to such tragic acts of violence. In the case of Chris Watts, my own personal theory is that his excessive use of Thrive products and extreme weight loss could have led to a chemical imbalance. As the book clearly states, we will probably never know what really happened. The one good thing Chris did was to take a plea deal and save everyone from a long drawn-out court battle. I always feel sorry for the families of both the victims and perpetrator. Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read and review an advance copy.

Dude. I had no idea about this story and was literally captivated from beginning to end. Highly recommend if you are a murder mystery fan, however, it does have violence towards children just as a word of warning. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advance reader digital copy of this book. Having been interested in this sad true story since it occurred, this book was a must read. Previously unknown facts and interesting tidbits were revealed in this book. Any true crime fan would love this telling of Chris Watts and his creepy criminal psychotic behavior of slaughtering everyone who loved him most.

The Perfect Father: The True Story of Chris Watts, His All-American Family, and a Shocking Murder by John Glatt is about real murders that takes place in Colorado. I live in Colorado, and remember this case clearly. The first time I saw Chris Watts on the news, I knew he was guilty of something. This story is unbelievable, to me. How could this man kill his pregnant wife and his two beautiful daughters? I do not normally read true crime books, but I knew I had to read this one. I highly recommend this book if you enjoy true crime books.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I received this book from the publisher through Netgalley for review and all thoughts and opinions are my own.
This book is an overview of the Chris Watts story. He was an all-American boy, handsome, a hard worker, loyal son and friend, devoted family man...until he became a family annihilator. This case will continue to disturb investigators and although the book lays out one scenario, there are others to consider. I recommend reading the book, viewing the video releases on YouTube for deeper insights, but only if you want to. It's really dark stuff. Book is a good place to start and well written, investigative in nature. It is a case sure to be discussed for years until Chris Watts tells the full story, without lies.