John Glatt’s riveting account of the true-crime case of Chris Watts will leave you feeling sickened and shocked.

Shanann and Chris Watts seemed to have an ideal marriage: an openly loving relationship, thriving careers, two beautiful daughters, a wide social circle, and a Colorado home that anyone would admire. They were even expecting their third child—a son who would complete their family.

Yet, shortly before sunrise on August 13, 2018, Chris methodically and heinously murdered his pregnant wife and two young daughters.

As distraught family and friends rushed to Chris’s side to be with him, what was to follow would crush and horrify everyone he ever knew.

Within twenty-four hours, Chris made a full confession to the police. He confessed to strangling Shanann and suffocating his daughters. He drove to an oil site he worked at, dug a shallow grave for Shanann—threw her body into it, and then dumped his baby girls into separate oil tanks.

Brilliant and thorough, John Glatt’s writing and details deliver a compelling, gripping read. However, the retelling of what the innocent victims endured, is heartbreaking. The Perfect Father may still be a disturbing read, for even the staunchest of true crime enthusiasts.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for John Glatt’s read of, The Perfect Father.

Opinions expressed are my own.

In a tragedy such as what is contained in this book, everyone wants to know why. What happened? Where did it all go wrong? Dissecting their lives like this just seems so intrusive, I'm having a hard time getting through it. I know people project perfection into social media, post infinite and intimate details about their life but still. I think we've all known a Shannan on Facebook - ceaselessly posting and promoting and I will be the first to admit I usually mute people who do that. That isn't what I'm there for personally. The Perfect Father to me portrayed a summarized version of a husband and wife - through Facebook, family, texts, letters, and the accounts of others so I think it needs to be taken with a little grain of salt. What it does boil down to though, is that they were human. Chris just happens to have made choices that he and many others will never be able to recover from. I cannot even fathom what these families - especially Shannan's have gone through. The scope and repercussions of losing your family like that are unimaginable. I am truly sorry for their loss even though words and condolences will never fill that hole.

After reading this book I am still on the fence on how to feel about actually reading it - something I've never really experienced before. I feel very unsettled after reading it like I'm the one that put their lives under a microscope in every aspect. It's also a feeling like I'm just jumping on the bandwagon of pain for this family although my sister and I followed this case when it was ongoing since we're around 40 miles away from Frederick, CO. I remember hoping that the Watts family would not fall into the percentage of murders where someone in the family is responsible. My sister and I were completely blown away that Chris could actually do something like that to his family, regardless of facts. I believe Chris's account that the book mentions twice, I don't have a shred of doubt that he did it.

The town of Frederick is not in the Rockies - the way the author describes it makes it sound as if it's a mountain town like Breck or Vail but it is definitely not. Close to, yes... in? Nope. A trivial thing but as a native, it's an irritating statement.

I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read a digital ARC copy of this tragic and horrific book. I would recommend this book to readers who are interested in true crime and the ability to read about tough subject matter that really happened to someone.

I had completely forgotten this was an actual case, I remember reading about it in the news. It sounds weird to say that enjoyed it given the subject matter. It was very informative and I learned a lot more about the case than I ever could on the news. Very well written and I appreciated the timeline of events. A book and case I won't forget anytime soon

I recently watched a series of videos on the Facebook page, Law & Crime -- the "Watts Family Murders." This book provides much of the detail not included in the docudrama but it's still true that no one will ever know what really happened that night and why this man did what he did. I do think it's apt, however, to describe Chris Watts as a monster. Family annihilation is the ultimate betrayal.

True crime fascinates me, and I've recently rediscovered my love for this genre. It was heartbreaking to read the story of how all of this unfolded while also noting that the Facebook page for Shan'ann Watts is still active and can be viewed. The background information included made me feel as if I actually knew the couple and their families and could sense that trouble was brewing. The main catalyst, however, was definitely the illicit romance between Chris and Nikki Kessinger and I don't believe that she was completely innocent of culpability -- she knew he was still married and living with his wife and daughters when they started dating. She had even searched both Chris and Shan'ann on Google long before their own relationship began. I hope she doesn't profit or gain any positive notoriety because of this. She's a liar and manipulated the situation to try to make herself look better with her actions after the fact.

The book was well-written and I read it in a single sitting as I was unable to tear myself away. It's just a tragedy all around and no one who knew them personally will ever recover -- all those lives destroyed because of the actions of two selfish people (Chris and Nikki). Yes, Chris is the one who killed Shan'ann, Bella and Celeste (and Nico), but it was because he wanted a new life with Nikki. What made him snap at that precise period in time? Maybe one day, Chris will be more forthcoming and be able to tell the whole truth after reflecting during these very long years as he lives out his life in prison. I'm glad he spared everyone the circus that would have been the trial. I hope he remembers and suffers.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, St. Martin's Press, for this e-book ARC to read, review and recommend. If you enjoy true crime, don't miss this one.

PS It bothers me greatly that the author does not use the apostrophe in writing Shan'ann's name throughout the book. It is not Shanann according to everything else I've seen and read.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review.

This book covered the horrifying case of Chris Watts, who murdered his pregnant wife and two young daughters in order to try and start a new life with his mistress. I read about this crime in detail when it happened, so I already knew a lot about it. This book was well-written but obviously quite disturbing. I was a little annoyed because it almost felt as though the author was defending Watts during the first half of the book - constantly commenting on how quiet, submissive, and nice he was, while Shannan was made out to be a demanding shrew. But that stopped halfway through the book. A well-done look at the awful crime, though I feel a few more details could have been included.

This is a detailed look into the Chris Watts case. There was so much more information that wasn't covered in the media frenzy that became if this horrific crime. I and 3 other colleagues do a library podcast called the Long Overdue Podcast and I am looking forward to talking about this book in an upcoming episode for our true crime segment called Dewey Like Murder?! This will be a perfect book to talk about once I have it on order for the collection!

Chris Watts had it all or so it seemed. With a beautiful, successful wife, two young daughters who adored him, a lovely home and good job, the world should have been at his feet. His wife, Shanann, worked from home selling a medicinal skin patch to improve quality of life and, as with everything she cared about, was very good at her job. Her handsome husband was everything she ever wanted, describing him as the love of her life. Her two young daughters had a happy childhood, although, like their mom, both had health issues, and were doted on by their parents. Living, as many families do, with a life played out on social media, they were described by all who knew them as a happy, loving family, and nothing could have prepared them for the story which was about to emerge.

Shanann and her family's story was beyond shocking, leaving deep traumatic wounds for everyone who became involved either willingly or unwilling in what happened. John Glatt writes an excellent account of a murder case which shattered lives, left families with unanswered questions, and was covered extensively, both nationally and internationally, on all media outlets.

I hadn't read about this before and so was shocked by the venom and rage hidden away behind the facade of an idyllic family life. It was written in a style which flowed and gave as much detail as was possible from all sides of a story which unsurprisingly was met with disbelief by all those involved in any way.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers in exchange for an unbiased review and would recommend it to anyone interested in modern day true crime stories. This is a first class read which has the power to shock and amaze.

Synopsis: In the early morning hours of August 13th, 2018, Shanann Watts was dropped off at 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. In this first major account of the case, bestselling author and journalist John Glatt reveals the truth behind the tragedy and constructs a chilling portrait of one of the most shocking family annihilator cases of the 21st century.

I heard about this story before, the videos and articles were heartbreaking. This book allowed me to see what was not tackled and shown by media, and it broke my heart further. I got so anxious and curious as I started reading this book. I feel so sad about every detail and revelation. They seemed to be happy and perfect, but it is all a front, and it is sad. I am not trying to sympathize with Chris; what he did is awful, wrong, and incredibly evil. But this book elaborates Chris life, the before and during, and even after, and I also felt terrible for him. The author did an excellent job of describing the experiences of the Watts Family up to the littlest thing. Very informative, and the analysis is spot on. The story is frightening and painful, but a very interesting read.

I thought I knew this case pretty well, but there were so many details in this book that I had not heard before. It was an amazing, sad, horrible story and I didn't want to put the book down. I have several other books by John Glatt on my want to read list, I really want to push those to the top and begin reading them right away.

A huge thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this publication, in exchange for an unbiased review.

St. Martin's has done it again. A great book. Like all true crime books though, its heartbreaking.

Set some time aside to read this (broad daylight recommended) as you wont want to put this down. Very well researched which all true crime novels should be. Highly recommend.

I read this incredibly sad book in a day and a half because I simply could not put it down. Author John Glatt did an excellent job chronicling Chis and Shanann Watts' lives from their childhoods, courtship, marriage and very tragic ending for Shanann, her two young daughters and unborn son. I was familiar with this case but this book gave a lot of details that I was not aware of. Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of this very sad book which was very well researched and well written in exchange for an honest review.

I am a true crime addict and knew about this case from the media. This book brought to light new information about the family and those involved with the family that I had not heard before reading. If you are a true crime enthusiast pick this book up! The author did a great job with this disturbingly tragic event. I rate this four stars and received this from netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

An informative, disturbing look at the case of Chris Watts.

A heartbreaking tale to read, but a fantastically in-depth, well written and informative piece on this horrific crime. It is clear the John Glatt has put a great deal of research and heart into this book.

Shanann, her husband Chris and their two young daughters, Bella and Celeste live a perfect family life. They have a beautiful.home. go on nice family vacations and seem to have it all. Shanann gets involved with a pyramid scheme selling a supplement and is so good at encouraging her friends to also try it and join, that soon she is on the level of getting a new car and great getaways. Chris is also in on this, but not quite with the enthusiasm of his wife. Shanann writes her daily blog, praising the supplement and her husband, saying how blessed she is that they have such a perfect marriage and how he is the perfect husband and father. Then Shannan and the girls go missing.
This book is a true crime story and will keep you reading late into the night. Sad, but entriguing.

I received this ARC from Netgalley and St. Martins Press for an honest review. A Perfect Father is a true crime story about Chris Watts who murdered his pregnant wife and two young girls. Shanann was a vivacious energetic young women who meets and marries Chris Watts. His marriage seems to be perfect and all who know him think he is the perfect father. Chris was an extreme introvert who was more than willing to let Shanann rule and schedule his life until one day he wasn’t.
John Glatt did a fantastic job telling the story of this horrible murder scene. He shows the emotion or lack of, and the facts of this time. It’s a page turner and hard to put down.
#ThePerfectFather #StMartinsPress #netgalley

The Watts family murders were sickening and horrifying, and just never made complete sense to me. I had hoped to get more of an understanding of why Chris Watts murdered his pregnant wife and two daughters from this book, but it did nothing. The book was a sloppily written hodgepodge of the author’s notes of tediously-recounted Facebook posts, text messages, notes, and phone calls, with very little narration. There was somehow too much detail and yet not enough at the same time.

But the main reason for my low rating is the victim-blaming. If I hadn’t known the full story before going into this book, I probably would have thought that Shannan Watts had murdered Chris, not the other way around. The author seemed to really dislike Shannan, and I was horrified at the amount of victim-blaming present throughout the book, especially the first half.

Riveting, chilling, gripping. All words that perfectly describe this book. The writing is so smooth that you get completely engrossed in it and only put it down once you have finished it.

Although this case is undoubtedly fascinating and horrifying, I wasn't really impressed by this true crime book exploring the case.

It was easy enough to read and follow, but it read just little snippets of information right after another without anything piecing it together. It's unclear as to whether the author found these quotes and pieces of information through other sources or through his own interviews. While some of me appreciated the fact that the author didn't impose himself into the telling of this story, I did feel like there was hole missing this book where the author should have pieced together information more.

I also wished that it would have explored the psychology of Chris Watt's more and perhaps the effects of the the "Thrive" drug he was using and how it could have affected him.

An interesting read for sure, but it just left me wanting to know more.

Chris Watts and his annihilation of his family was headline news for quite some time here in North Carolina when in happened in 2018, so I knew that eventually I'd be reading some sort of expose on the details of a crime that was shocking in its out of left field depravity. John Glatt's account, The Perfect Father, is the first of those that I've come across. It's a strange combination of a book that is incredibly distressing but tough to turn away from. It's the literary equivalent of "rubbernecking" when driving by accidents on the highway. We have a horror for what's happened, but also an innate need to know the hows and whys.

Glatt's account worked for me insofar as it was just a simple recounting of the facts as they were: Chris and Shanann's childhoods, how they met, their marriage, and their decision to have children. Glatt also does a fine job contrasting the "perfect" life that the couple portrayed on social media with the problems behind the scenes (bankruptcy, a tendency to continually live above their means, and marital issues that Chris seemed incapable of vocalizing or confronting.) Post-murder, many of their social circle and even Shanann's own family had trouble correlating the reality to the idyllic social media portrayals, describing Chris as "the perfect father" and "a good man." While Glatt's account doesn't drive us completely to that elusive "why" answer, this is more likely because Chris Watts himself seems confused as to why and has continually changed and lied about the events.

Recommended for true crime enthusiasts, with a warning that the description of the murder and aftermath is incredibly disturbing. Watts' crime was beyond description, and it was made even more horrendous by his cowardly attempts to accuse Shanann of a hand in it during his interrogation. This case is unfortunately one of the more graphic reminders that in the age of social media we are all mythmakers, and sometimes the truths hiding behind that veneer are too terrible to believe.

**I was given a copy of this book by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thanks to St. Martin's Press**

This book is a must read for all true crime fans. It was researched well, and included a lot of details.

The Perfect Father is divided into three parts...
Part I covers the early lives of Chris and Shanann Watts, their seemingly perfect marriage, and the births of their two daughters, Bella and Celeste.
Part II of the book is where things start getting darker... Chris and Shanann start having marital problems, and Chris starts his affair with coworker Nikki Kessinger.
Part III dives into the horrifyingly heartbreaking details of the August 13 murders and the events that followed, all leading up to his eventual confession.

Back in 2008, I remember hearing about this horrific event. Since then, I have listened to multiple podcast episodes on what happened. Despite my previous knowledge of the murders, The Perfect Father was written in a way that maintained my attention the entire time. It's a highly emotional read due to the facts presented, but also with the way the author chose to write the book. Unlike a lot of true crime books I have read that are just straight facts, John Glatt incorporates quotes into his narrative, which helps to enhance the emotion in the book.

While I did really enjoy the book, and gave it a deserved five star rating, I did have two critiques of the book:
- Glatt's descriptions of Shanann's personality felt kind of victim blamey - She is described as controlling and as having the more dominant personality between the two, which may have been an accurate depiction, but it just felt kind of gross. I feel as though the author could have done a better job at portraying Shanann accurately without making readers feel sympathetic towards Chris.
- Nikki Kessinger isnt included in much of Part III - Although the book is primarily about Chris, I would have liked to have heard more about the mistress after Chris has been arrested. Investigators say they dont believe she was involved, but I would have liked to have seen more of an explanation as to why they felt that way. She does cooperate with police, but I didnt feel like they wrapped up her aspect of the story.

Overall, it was a deeply emotional read, and I would highly recommend it to all crime junkies out there.