Well this was painful to read. I can’t imagine what it must be for people who have had such a childhood. I just, I feel sorry for the fictional character, Randy. No matter what he did, I could never forget his reality as a child.

When I think of mystery, I think of books just like this one, that gives all the thrills. This is a perfect book to snuggle up with on any day.

this was a really interesting read, it felt deeper than the typical mystery in the theme. The charcters felt like real people and I enjoyed reading this.

I’m not really sure how this ended. The first part is call”The End” but it is not known who the woman is. Randall is truly evil as is his father. It is not understandable to me how a woman could put up with what mama did. And I guess she didn’t in her end. The author uses descriptive language.

(I recieved an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review)
(All the triggers possible: dysfunctional families, pedophilia, murder, graphic sexual scenes etc.)
(more like a 4.5/5 stars)

This. Book.
This book.
I must, first of all, state the fact that the cover doesn't do this book justice at all and I hope more effort is put into the covers of Rashell Lashbrook's books from now on, because the writing style and the way she develops her stories is truly deserving of a more appealing front design in order to attract more readers.
I went into this book not really knowing what I look for, other than an origin story of a to-be criminal. Yes, I like reading about these things when they're done right. And damn it was done very, very right.
I can't believe how the author managed to compile such a long period of someone's life, with all the important, key moments that led him to where he got in the end, while also providing us with some other interesting side stories that were also developed enough. Besides all the horrific things that she managed to touch upon in this book, she also added diversity to it as far as LGBTQ+ goes, and I really wasn't expecting to see it.
I haven't really gathered my thoughts quite enough I feel like, so this review is not that coherent. But one thing is clear: this book shocked me in the best possible of ways. It is one of the few books this year which I've not wanted to put down, literally. It made me love, hate and understand characters, while also judging them. It made me root for some to succeed and for others to get what they deserved. It made me gasp, cry and open my mouth in shock. It made me do all the things.
As long as you can mentally get past the triggers (I feel that those which I listed are only just a few, so I advise researching further before going into the book), it is worth the read. It is true that, at some point, it had something missing for me, which made me not give it a full 5-star rating alongside the cover, but I can't really pinpoint what it is. It might have been a bit of an underdeveloped storyline somewhere. Nonetheless, it didn't lack enough for me not to adore it, so there's that.
If you want a horrific origin story, one rooted not in supernatural, but in real-life's psyche, this book's for you!

RaShelle Lashbrook's harrowing novel delves into the consequences of child abuse and neglect. Told through a series of vignettes, a portrait emerges – a mosaic full of cracks and uneven edges.

The story of the Carter family takes place in the mid-twentieth century in a small rural town in Texas. Dominated by the father, Wyatt, the family is subjected to constant barrage of abuse by an angry, philandering, hard drinking man. His wife,Pearl, had initially been trapped into this marriage by Wyatt's initial charm but even when the abuse begins she cannot bring herself to find a way out. Even her two children, Randy and Janie, take second place in her heart that is filled with love, yes, but also fear and hopelessness.

When Pearl delivers a third and desperately unwanted child, things in this fragile dysfunctional family begin to seriously fall apart. Increasingly, Randy and Janie must begin to care for themselves emotionally and often physically.

This is no easy read and the author does not hold back on the terror children face when living in a family out of control. In the end, the reader can't help question one child's resiliency versus the crushing effect child abuse on another.

Most people understand that many abused children go on to perpetuate the abuse on their own offspring so the premise is not surprising. Randall is only 3 and sister Janie 6 when the book opens. They are abused frequently by their mentally unstable mother and alcoholic, philandering father to the point it becomes uncomfortable and painful to read. I usually like dark plots, but this was hard to read as there were few redeeming qualities in any of the characters. Of course we feel compassion for Randall as we realize it's what he grew up knowing and his family was constantly dysfunctional. But there was so little happiness that I found myself depressed and wanted to get through the book as quickly as possible. And it ended so abruptly that I thought I'd missed something. Don't take my word for it though as there are plenty of really good reviews; this just wasn't the book for me!

HOW A MONSTER A MADE is the story of Randy Carter. He is followed from the time of being a very young boy until he's in his twenties ... married and a father.

He is the middle child (the only boy) of a abusive alcoholic brother and a mother who seemingly is lost in her own world. He torments his older sister, Janey, and there are some who say he killed his baby sister, Rosie.

The older he gets, the more out of control he becomes. Always ...always... bad things happen when he's around. He may look like an angel ... he's anything but.

I was very disappointed in this book. From the write up by the book blurb, I was expecting a lot of page-turning action. What I got was just a plain story. Yes, it's full of abuse from his father ... he terrorizes everyone around him ...but I kept waiting for the suspense ... waiting for 'something' that was never produced. The ending came to an abrupt halt .. like the author got tired of writing and just stopped.

Many thanks to the author / Netgalley for the digital copy of this book. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

A glimpse into the life of this post-war, impoverished American family detailing rampant alcoholism and abuse. How a Monster is Made provides an honest point of view from each family member while mainly focusing on Randall Carter, a toddler at the start of the book and a grown "family man" by the end of the book, shining light on events and circumstances which ultimately define little Randy and the type of man (or monster) he will be. This book is well-written and definitely held my interest the whole way through. When I can get my hands on it, I intend to read RaShell Lashbrook's other book, Hidden in the Dark.

This book was very very dark, but well-written. I would give it 3.5 stars if that was an option. Parts of this story were difficult to read. This fictional story does truly show how a rough upbringing can turn a child into a monster as he ages. This book will leave you feeling uneasy reading about how three children grew up in such a mentally and physically abusive household, but it is worth the read.

Trigger warnings
Rape, sexual abuse, domestic abuse, alcoholism, pedophilia, physical violence, mental illness, psychological abuse

This is one dark twisted tale that will leave the reader feeling emotionally worn out and utterly depleted. Its an arduous read and yet it provokes thoughts of is a monster made or born, the old nature or nurture chestnut that psychology students love to ponder.
Randy Carter has endured a childhood from hell. An alcoholic father who beats up his powerless mother and daughters, mental torture, abandoned by a mother who falls into a psychotic break that lasts years, poverty, mental abuse, you name it, Randy has been through it. Reading of his childhood is a lesson in pure grit to get through as you see a defenceless child abused over and over. Heartbreaking. Gut-wrenching. Misery. But balanced against Randy experience are two other siblings, who endure the same suffering. Yet there is something in Randy that turns him simply from a wretched child worthy of compassion into a man of violence, able to inflict such evil on the vulnerable that it turns the stomach. Quite simply put, bad things happen when Randy is around and as a reader one is left to consider if he is pure malevolence or simply living out the example he was shown.

This is an absorbing tale, taking you through years of torture on children unable to defend themselves to witness the effects of long-term abuse. There is innocence lost, vulnerability and grief at the loss and torment these children endure. There is revulsion, anger and horror at what Randy is capable of at such a young age and a growing horror at what he may be capable of. There are hints at his nature revealing itself early in the story, raising questions as to whether he would have turned into the monster regardless of his miserable upbringing or if that were the end story of someone innately wicked.

Painful to read at times, this is not an easy-going beach read or something to set upon when nothing else takes your fancy. It would make a wonderful book club read as the discussion of nature or nurture is one that everyone has an opinion on.

Difficult yet totally worth the effort.

This book really is a blueprint for how to turn a young impressionable boy into a selfish, uncaring man whose only concern is getting what he wants. The author did not sensationalize any part of the story. She clearly understands the behavioral and psychological factors that shape a child who grows up in a dysfunctional family. I worked for many years with hospitalized adolescent psych patients and was impressed with her ability to describe how repeated mental and physical trauma affects children. This is a hard book to read because of the subject but it is well written.

I received an Advanced Reader's Copy from the author through NetGalley. The book is Independently Published. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.
#HowAMonster Is Made #NetGalley

This book is a disturbing fictional view on how a little boy can be made into a monster, through upbringing, situation, and of course, the people surrounding him as he grows older. The book is equally sad, disheartening and disturbing. And what’ saddens me most if the fact that, somewhere, anywhere in the world, some children are in the same state of affairs described in this book.
It is a heavy read, but it’s interesting and will keep you turning the pages quickly.
The ending will leave you feeling uncomfortable and very sad.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an Advanced Release Copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very engaging book that keeps you reading from start to finish. Randy Carter, the main character, endures an unbelievably atrocious upbringing. We follow him through his childhood to adulthood and are witness to the traumatic events that shape him.

It is a well written book and despite the sensitive subject matter, well worth your time.

***Trigger Warning- Book contains Domestic Abuse, Child Abuse and Rape.***

How a Monster is Made by RaShell Lashbrook is a well written book about how abuse can/is a generational thing. Dark and at times very upsetting, you feel bad for the children as they are growing up. That feeling does tend to change as the kids become older and have a choice on how to lead their own lives. A heavy read, but one worth reading.

Thank you Netgalley for the free digital ARC in exchange for an honest and voluntary review. All opinions are my own.

This book, which I received from Netgalley, was difficult to read. The scenes of child abuse are difficult to stomach. I could barely get through this book because of it.

Holy *insert preferred expletive* this was a bleak, bleak book and was very heavy going. It was extremely well done though. The characters drive this story and they were very well fleshed out. The book held my interest throughout, although reading it was a bit like watching a slow motion train wreck.

The books shines a light of the generational effects of domestic abuse through the lens of one family. Wyatt, the father who will brook no argument or disagreement and thinks women belong firmly in the kitchen and the bedroom; Pearl the mother who keeps taking Wyatt back when he turns on the charms again; and their two children - Janie, about 9 at the start and Randy, about 3 years old who has to live up to his father’s ideals of what a boy and man should be like (exactly like him of course). Although Wyatt wasn’t by any means the worst wife batterer I’ve read about and his punishment of the children were excessive but not brutal. Nevertheless he was a mean drunk and it wasn’t just about the abuse, it was also the neglect, the belittling and humiliation and the complete obliviousness to anyone else’s needs but his own.

In this toxic environment Pearl suffers post partum depression after the birth of her third child and is institutionalised. The story is set mainly in the 1960s and I guess things were different then. The children are left to get on with it as best they can while their father drinks himself into a stupor every night.

The son, Randy, the presumptive monster of the title didn’t start out bad. He was a sweet little boy who loved his mother and craved his father’s attention. At many a turn he could have turned out better if only his mother had been there or if his father had been even a slightly better role model. Instead he turned into a person who used people for his own ends. There seemed to be a disjunct somewhere or I missed something. The book started with a chapter called the end - the reasons for which will become obvious when you read it. What I didn’t get was the character of Raine in this chapter. She is not referred to elsewhere in the book so you are left wondering how we get from the end of the book to the end of the story in the first chapter. Where does Raine enter the story? I took off a star for this anomaly because it really bothered me. Thanks to Netgalley and RaShell Lashbrook for providing me a copy to review.

It took me less than 24 hours to read this book, literally, and since I finished it and I still feel uneasy.

This book is heavy, deep, and it touches wounds that you didn’t even know you had. It narrates the childhood of Janie, Randy and Rosie, and describes with details how it feels like to grow up in a broken home.

The way RaShell Lashbrook tells us Wyatt and Pearl’s relationship, the abuses, the beatings, I cannot really explain, but it makes you feel them. It felt like I knew them, I could literally feel their agony, their pain, the anger.

When you think you’ve had enough of it all, it focuses on Randy’s life. You begin to feel relieved, like there is no family pattern repetition, but unfortunately this feeling doesn’t last long. You literally can’t breath while reading this book.

When I finished it, I was shocked and angry because there was no closure. But then I found out there is a second book, called Hidden In The Dark, and now I feel it is my duty to read it so I myself can have closure for this story.

So summing up, it is a great book. I personally liked it very much, but it is not light reading. It is dense, it touches sensitive matters, family abuse, sexual assault, violence, amongst other terrible things that unfortunately happen very frequently in our society.

I am dying to read the sequence.

Denise