Wow. This book is a well written book about horrific murders. I’ll just say that I almost was not able to finish it because the details are just too much in certain parts. Certain parts are very hard to read. I did not agree however with the authors way of depicting Shanann and Chris in the first part of the book. It almost seemed that since she was controlling that she somehow deserved it, which I do not agree with. The author should have a non biased way of writing. Chris was depicted to be submissive then just snap. No matter what characteristics these individuals had/have, the author should write facts and not biased opinions. Only recommend if you like true crime and are in the right headspace to read something so heavy.

The book was ok. I didn’t learn too many things about this horrific crime that I didn’t already know. I did not feel it was very detailed and seemed to be a somewhat cursory retelling of the facts that have been out there for some time now. There were a few more details regarding the timeline and the autopsies that I did not know about as well as the sentencing and aftermath.

I think there has to be a lot more to this family and what was going on behind closed doors. Shanann was depicted as somewhat shallow and narcissistic and Chris as basically a man who had no backbone, just doing whatever his wife told him to do. Until he decided to just go insane. Something seems wrong with this picture. Not sure we will ever know more though. I did not know Watts was sent to prison in Wisconsin and was next door to the guy who kidnapped Jayme Closs for a while. That was odd. Also odd is how Watts still keeps changing his story about the details of that night. Either way, the book is pretty good and a very fast read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I found this book simultaneously intriguing and frustrating. It's a fascinating and well-researched take on a truly horrific crime, and I appreciate John Glatt's commitment to drawing on a wide variety of sources to tell the story. It's a good book, but I had one problem with it, which is that the first half of the book includes a lot of victim-blaming and what feels like justification. It's all about how Shanann Watts was controlling, how challenging Chris Watts' life was while being married to her, how obsessed she was with her Thrive sales... it's not a flattering portrait, and the way it's written almost seems to suggest that Chris's actions were a result of hers. The second half of the book is a lot better on this front and really makes it clear that Chris is a monster, but the framing on the front end could have been kinder; she could have been portrayed as a successful business woman instead of obsessed with Facebook, as a great mom instead of crazy over her child's allergies, etc. I also felt like the front half of the book was effectively summary after summary of Facebook posts and videos, which got old after a while. Still: it's well-researched, well-constructed, and a fascinating take on a story where there is a tremendous amount of textual evidence and evidence from social media. I'd recommend it if you enjoy true crime.

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review!

This was an absolutely chilling book to read. It’s so much like fiction because it’s really hard to believe that a human could do this to his family. I recommend this read but not at night or if you’re alone. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read and review it.

I was familiar with the Chris and Shanann Watts' murder case prior to reading John Glatt's book "The Perfect Father," and had read another book on the subject. I give Glatt top marks for pulling together all the information into a very readable, cohesive book that does an excellent job of presenting the case without a lot of editorializing.

Some people may have the impression of Shanann as a great mother with a boatload of less-than-desirable traits and qualities, but Glatt gives us a full range of perceptions from family, friends, coworkers and lets us draw our own conclusions. And he gives Chris the same treatment. He also offers up Nichol Kessinger's actions in a similar manner without making any judgment.

Glatt also does a great job of showing the toll this murder case took on various law enforcement officers, some of whom were diagnosed with PTSD. The way they went about solving this case, and coaxing a confession of sorts out of Chris Watts was very detailed. Glatt notes that law enforcement thinks we will never truly get the truth about what happened that awful day, and that Watts can't even be honest with himself.

I really enjoyed this even-handed, balanced look at the Watts case. 5 stars.

My current read is The Perfect Father: The True Story of Chris Watts, His All-American Family, and a Shocking Murder by John Glatt. Do you know this story?

I am a bit of a true crime junkie, having started reading this genre back in the 80s thanks to Ann Rule, queen of the true-crime book. Honestly, I didn’t know about Chris Watts and I only briefly read the synopsis before digging into this book. I had to stop and look up pictures of Chris and his wife.

The author’s writing style is straightforward and detailed as he takes us back to the beginning of the relationship between Chris and his Shanann.

Chris was a mild-mannered introvert married to the very outgoing and strong-willed Shanann. They were both hard workers and dedicated to their young daughters. In fact, Shanann often posted on social media about how amazing her husband was and how much she loved him.

I definitely get the sense that Shanann was controlling and bossed Chris around but according to friends, he didn’t seem to mind. In fact, he was described as being “obsessed” with her several times. But did her controlling ways push him over the edge?

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’m not quite finished with this and am anxious to get back to reading it. This is a book where perhaps the less you know, the better.

If you like true crime, get this book it’s very good and of course disturbing. It will be out on July 21, you can pre-order here.

You can also listen to a Crime Junkie podcast about the case here.

If you want a true crime book to read right now, you can go wrong with Ann Rule books. I really liked If You Tell by Gregg Olsen.

This was a great book. I had little knowledge of the Watts murders, and even lesser expectations of the book, but my patience was well rewarded by this great book.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this book. I was very interested in this book because of the storyline and the story beyond the headlines. It is a very well written book that tells this sad story. I found it easy to understand the characters and easy to follow along with. I highly recommend to anyone that enjoys reading true crime.

I personally haven't read much true crime, so I don't have a lot of other reading experiences to compare this one to. I did find the writing a bit choppy, particularly in part 1, and it sometimes felt rushed. I did really appreciate the overall tone the author used throughout the book, it seemed quite impartial and focused only on the facts.

Being a well known, high profile case, it would be interesting to know if the author personally conducted some of the interviews referenced throughout, or if this was made solely from borrowed works.

Well written very disturbing true crime story.. Had to put the book down a few times. too disturbing to read all at once.
I know this is a story that will stay with me for a long time..

Loved this book!! I’ve followed the Shannan Watts case from the beginning and was so excited that John Glatt chose to write a book about it. I loved that it showed the real Shannan and Chris - the author didn’t deify Shannan, but showed that she was a real human being with flaws as well. I felt like it gave a really fair picture of both sides while still preserving Shannan’s memory. This was such a disturbing case and it was a very interesting read. My only complaint is that I wish it was longer!

As horrific as the subject matter if this book is, it was very well written. The author has tastefully told the account of the lives of Christ and Shanann Watts, their daughters, their marriage, and the events leading up to the murders of a pregnant Shanann, and their daughters, Bella and Celeste. Although portrayed as a calculations controlling woman throughout her marriage, no one deserves to die by the hands of someone they love. What weighs most on my mind are the thoughts of Bell and Celeste as the man who they loved most in the world, trusted most in the world, coldly and calmly smothered them both. For Bella to have watched her little sister die is behind imagination and just breaks my heart.

WOW! There was several times when I was reading this book that I would have to stop and walk away.
I knew how it would end. I knew the who did the killing and even after reading the book, I got no closer to the WHY?!
I absolutely loved that the author went chronologically. It was easy to read and to follow along in what happened in the lives of the Watts.
The author did not give into speculation...which is nice. He laid out the facts and the timeline and lets the reader form their own theories.

A greatly researched, well thought out book about the Watts murders.

Wow!
This book is harrowing but impossible to put down!
I read it in one sitting.
A Very well written account of the times leading up to, and after, the horrific murders of Shannan Watts and her children by their seemingly perfect husband/father.
This is NOT an easy read, but true crime fans everywhere will appreciate how factually excellent it is, and also how neatly it is written in chronological order.
A Fascinating and insightful read.

I've been following this tragic story in the news and have had an interest in it since then. So when I saw the talented John Glatt was writing a book about it I knew it would be a book I needed to read. I wasn't disappointed! John has clearly done his homework for this case and he laid out everything perfectly. While the story is sad in it's own right, it's certainly one people need to know about! Highly recommended.

As always, let me thank NetGalley, the publishing house, and the author for allowing me an electronic copy in exchange for an honest review.
Wow this book lingers. OK. Where to start? The author chose to introduce the reader to Shanann first. She seems to be slightly high-maintenance, extremely motivated, and very Type A. Definitely a helicopter mom. And then Chris. He had a tiny bit of sympathy from me for being with such a dominant wife. But then he lost his mind! But he seemed to have lost his mind in a controlled, calm manner. Another woman involved (of course).
But the part that gut-punched me was the author describing what Chris had done to his children. And the police accounts of retrieving their bodies. I also VERY much appreciate the follow up reporting how the events affected the detectives and police dept.
I could totally keep typing about this but I don't want to give too much away.

John Glatt has a way of making you feel like you aren't just reading facts about a crime. It feels like you are right there in the middle, watching things unfold as the story plays out. It's hard to say I loved it, but I did finish the story filled with emotion for each character involved. The story was told in a very unbiased way. We see some of Shan'ann's faults along with Chris's. We see that they may not have had the perfect marriage they portrayed to the world on social media. This by NO means implies that she deserved to have her life taken by someone she loved in such a horrific manner. This story is filled with tragedy and left me feeling very raw.

The Perfect Husband is a timely true crime novel about the tragic fate of the Watts family. Divided into a history of the family, the murder of the wife and children, and the trial aftermath of Chris Watts for their deaths, this novel is not for the faint of heart. With heartbreaking detail and interviews with family and friends, this novel helps to flesh out what has unfortunately become an all too common crime.

Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest opinion.

Not bad at all for a true crime book. The subject was immensely fascinating psychologically. The author brought out quite well how the control and OCD of the wife could have made him snap. But there is no psychological attempts to figure out how he cpuld have murdered his beloved daughters in such a cold, dispassionate, remorseless way. Surely someone close to him growing up must have noticed something wrong....an inability to really connect emotionally.

As all the books I have read recently, this one could have used some judicious editing, but it's better than most.

The outline of the story of what happened to Shan’ann Watts of Colorado in August 2018 is fairly well known. She, along with her two daughters and the son who was due the following January, disappeared and her husband Chris was all over the media, pleading for their safe return. TBH I had no idea what had been going on in their lives that led up to the grisly conclusion to this mystery, and being a true crime junkie, I was happy to receive an advance copy of The Perfect Father by John Glatt from St. Martins Press and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

The subtitle of the book is “The true story of Chris Watts, his All-American family, and and a shocking murder,” so there’s no spoiler to say that there was a horrible resolution to the disappearance and subsequent search that was all over the media that summer. Also, it is pretty well accepted that Chris is a monster, and NOTHING justifies his actions…but it’s a real train wreck, and sometimes it’s hard to look away…

I wasn’t aware that although Chris and Shan’ann Watts appeared to be the “perfect family” and she posted EVERYTHING on social media to reflect that perfection, the true story is that the reality didn’t match the presentation. (As my friend says, “I wish I had the life I put on Facebook.”)

After moving from North Carolina to Colorado, Chris worked for Anadarko Petroleum and Shan’ann sold weight loss supplements (Thrive). He made over 60K a year and she was VERY successful in the world of multi-level marketing, selling $720, 699 (!!) worth of Thrive products in 2017, winning vacation trips, a Lexus, etc.

But no matter how much they earned, they spent way more. Shan’ann was pregnant with their second daughter in mid-2018, and they filed for bankruptcy in June. At that time, despite their combined earnings, they owed almost $450,00 (including $70,000 in credit card, medical, and student loan debt). They lived in a huge house and she drove a Lexus but they had less than $10 in their two savings accounts and $860 in their checking account. So no matter how it all looked on social media, things were not good financially, although she tried very hard to always appear as the happy, successful, beautiful family.

In addition to the financial issues, there were ongoing problems between Shan’ann and Chris’s parents, and because she was ALWAYS the dominant person in the marriage, she basically told him his parents couldn’t visit the grandkids. In a very creepy passage, one of Shan’ann’s friends was relating a conversation she had with Sha’nann about that visit: “I told him over my dead body…they don’t get to disrespect me and him and his kids and get rewarded.”

At some point in 2018, Chris began an affair with a woman who also worked for Anadarko, and it got very hot and heavy over that summer when Shan’ann and the kids were gone for several weeks on vacation. Shortly after she returned from that vacation, Shan’ann went on a business trip, and the morning after she got back to Colorado, she and her kids were reported missing. They apparently just vanished, and Chris was seen all over the media as the distraught spouse. It wasn’t long before the horrible truth came out…and OMG was it horrible. That man is the WORST.

The book is well done, and although it didn’t make my feelings about Chris in ANY way positive, I found it very interesting to. find out that the reality was SO different from my perception (admittedly derived mostly from media sources including mainstream news and People magazine). For a true crime book aimed at a general audience, this is definitely five stars. It includes grisly details, possibly (OK, definitely) more than some readers want to know, but I’m not sure there is any way to tell this story without that level of detail. True crime fans will love it.