I can't really explain how I missed this saga as it was all unfolding but have since heard bits and pieces in subsequent podcasts. This really laid the whole sordid business out nicely. While it did start a bit slow, once the pace picked up I couldn't put it down. This truly bizarre series of murders made for one wild ride.

John Glatt did it again! He writes amazing True Crime books that I just can not put down. I followed this case as it was happening and was excited when I saw that Mr. Glatt had written about it. This book did not disappoint. It was a quick, enjoyable read. This was one of those books that I just had to read "one more page" or you know finish the whole book in one day!

Lori was a good mother, followed her Mormon religion and was well liked, but when she met Chad her life changed. Chad was also Mormon, but he took his religion to the extreme and started a group of certain people to prepare for the end of the world. Lori got caught up with his charm and beliefs and started to see even her children in a whole different light. She was brainwashed into believing that some people were zombies and had taken over the soul. The story goes on to find Lori's missing children. This book is a true crime mystery..
I thank the author, publisher and Netgalley for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Great easy to read book that really delves deeply into the case and into the live of Lori and Chad. I had casually seen a few articles about the case but this book goes much deeper into all of the disturbing factors that led up to the murder of 2 innocent kids. Alot of shocking details!

This was a very well-researched book and I appreciated all of the background information about both Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell and their families, much of which I didn't know even after following the story in the news and watching several true crime specials about it. But the book can be very repetitive at times and gets bogged down in unnecessary details. The author seems to think it's necessary to describe what people are wearing ALL OF THE TIME, to the point that it becomes distracting, and is also obsessed with with describing Lori Vallow as "glamourous" or "beautiful" or "stunning" ALL OF THE TIME, which does not humanize her, in my opinion, and doesn't make what she did any less awful.

I don't know how close to a final proof this ARC was, but there were still a ton of grammatical and spelling errors in this edition and also organizational problems with the flow of the book, which made it harder to review.

Author John Glatt did a fantastic job researching and writing this excellent True Crime story about these horrific crimes that happened in the not too distant past and with the trials still looming ahead. Lori Vallow ran off to Hawaii to marry husband number 5, Chad Daybell, shortly have Chad's wife died of "natural causes." Lori's 4th husband, Charles Vallow, had been shot by Lori's brother, Alex, in "self defense" shortly before that. About the same time, Lori's two children, Tylee Ryan and Joshua (JJ), an adopted "drug baby" as she referred to him, both disappeared. This is such a tragic and disturbing case, not to mention very convoluted, but the author does an excellent job telling the story and keeping the timeline in order.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of this very heartbreaking story that is still far from over in exchange for an honest review.

As a bit of a disclaimer, I would like to start off with a statement that I am a fanatic follower of this case. I watch all the videos, podcasts, news articles, read the document dumps,interviews, tv specials, everything. When I got a request from Netgalley for a opportunity to review this book, I jumped on it immediately.

As the first summary sentence states, this book focuses on Lori first and foremost. Plucking different points of interest from a wide variety of sources to try to piece together Lori's life. The narration reads like that, a very straight forward statement of facts of events with some sprinkling of comments (some very juicy statements) from people from her younger years about her love life and family interactions. Quotes from court documents, hearings, newspapers etc, things readily available on the internet regarding the case.

Overall I think it was a good overview of the hectic and stress filled legal battles that followed Lori throughout her life. A few comments on Chad's life taken from his books, mainly his biography and his website (which I feel that Chad talks way too much about his ancestors than he does himself). Along with some statements from court documents, hearings, newspapers etc.

As a somewhat obsessed fan I was hoping for a lot more details from those subjects he barely addressed that had some really good "meat" to this story. For example characters revolving around and within the alleged "cult" circle are barely mentioned. Julie Rowe, Melanie Gibb, Zulema Pastenes, Preparing a People, just lightly touched upon.

It was nice to have something to read through that laid down the basics. As a fan of the case I am always searching for the deeper underside of the why, the deciding factors...the inner monologue and especially the rubric that may have been hibernating beneath all the actions Lori and Chad made, and I feel that I have come to know the couple a little bit more through some of the insights Mr Glatt has presented. For example something that I have always pondered is how Alex really got the cut on his head, was it him, Charles Vallow, or Lori herself that may have caused the damage? Interestingly stated in the book was that Alex did that to himself to pass off his story of the struggle between he and Charles, giving Alex the best reasoning for the shooting of Charles in self defense. A piece of information that I had always assumed happened but never heard stated as fact before.

If you do end up wanting to more about the case I highly suggest checking out the many pod casters, you tubers and the television specials to help round out the story. There are so many players in the circle that it is a "rabbit hole' of information that would probably take a thousand pages to round them all out to gain a real understanding.

“The Doomsday Mother” by John Glatt tells the ongoing (at the time this review is being written) story of Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell. This is a true crime book, but with the cases still pending trial - it was written without a full conclusion (which I’m sure was frustrating for Mr. Glatt - the trials have been postponed thanks to COVID and other circumstances).

As other reviewers have noted, this book delves into the background of both Lori and Chad - including their upbringing (more Lori’s), families (leaning a bit more heavily again toward Lori’s), and their obsession with preparing for the apocalypse - but also their obsession that they were bidden by a higher power to lead people to salvation.

Reading this book made me realize that if this hadn’t really happened, it really read like a bad fan-fiction storyline or something from a bad soap opera arc. That’s not a criticism of Mr. Glatt’s writing - it’s just that what happened, why it happened, and how it happened just seems to be out there in crazy land (and, ultimately, incredibly sad and heartbreaking). Mr. Glatt did a great job in laying out the timeline and telling the facts in an interesting and easy to grasp way. The book contains information from many sources, including interviews, TV news programs, and newspapers.

I hope that once the trials happen (or there’s some final resolution for Lori and Chad) that the book will be updated to include that information. If, like me, you knew some of the story thanks to headlines but didn’t know the backstory - you might want to add this book to ones to read.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
I was first introduced to John Glatt’s true crime novels through “Golden Boy: A Murder Among the Manhattan Elite”. I enjoyed the true story of mental illness, real and imagined, and how it was used as a defense for the young, rich and powerful young man living in the upper echelons of Manhattan. When I was invited to read, “Doomsday Mother”, also by Glatt, I jumped at the chance.
Lori Vallow married Doomsday Prepper and LDS church member, Chad Daybell, in a quiet ceremony on a Hawaiian beach. However, both Lori and Chad had dark secrets that they wanted to keep quiet. For example, both Chad’s former wife, Tammy, and Lori’s former husband, Charles, were both found dead within weeks of each other, in seemingly mysterious circumstances. Then, once the couple had married, two of Lori’s children, Tylee and J.J, completely disappeared, and no one in their immediate family or friends, had seen them. After months of searching, police in the couple’s former home of Idaho uncover two dead human bodies in Chad Daybell’s backyard- and the seemingly perfect couple are arrested and tried for murder.
“Doomsday Mother” provides a haunting look into a cult of “doomsday preppers”, led by Chad Daybell. Although Daybell claimed his Mormon religious beliefs supported his teachings, the church itself disavowed both Chad and Lori, claiming the couple were too “extremist”. Although the majority of the legal proceedings label Lori as a “follower” of Chad’s, Glatt also implies that Lori’s upbringing could very well have attributed to her crimes, as the death of two of her previous husbands (prior to meeting Chad) would indicate.
The novel is divided into three parts; Lori’s past, Chad’s rise to LDS fame, and the disastrous events (including the trial) that happened after the two had wed. There are a lot of characters in this story, from Lori and Chad’s family and friends, to LDS preppers and Doomsday Preppers, to former exes of the exes, so there are quite a few people to differentiate between in this plot. However, I thoroughly enjoyed all of the detailed background provided, especially the twisted sibling relationship between Lori and Alex.
Although I had not heard of this case prior to this novel, the murder of JJ especially was heartbreaking for me, as JJ was on the autism spectrum and it touched a particular chord. The fact that this case was relatively recent (the trial took place during the Covid pandemic) made the story all the more gruesome and disturbing. Glatt provides a first-hand look at the case from various perspectives, and when justice is finally handed out, I felt an immediate satisfaction and sense of reassurance.
Glatt somehow manages to highlight true crime stories that have not been discussed ad nauseum, and I appreciated Glatt’s respect for the victims and their families.

Quite an interesting read about the one story that made international headlines. I can’t imagine the reasons why someone would do something so heinous and looked forward to reading this book. Words escape me. Full of some interesting information that kept me interested and I learned quite a bit. If you are into true crime or have any fascination with this case, it is one you want to grab. 4-5 stars.

The Doomsday Mother: Lori Vallow, Chad Daybell, and the End of an American Family was a good read by John Glatt. This book tells the twisted tale of Lori Vallow, who is accused of having her two children murdered. This was to start a new life with her new husband, doomsday prepped Chad Daybell. Lori and Chad moved to a beach resort in Kauai, and they seemed to fit the image of the ritzy gate community. They fled to Hawaii while they were being investigated for the disappearance of her children back in Idaho. Neither child has been seen alive in five months. She had been devoted to her children and her Mormon faith for many years, until her path crossed with Chad’s. He taught her followers how to prepare for the end of times. During the investigation into the children’s death’s, they uncovered more suspicious deaths surrounding both Lori and Chad. These deaths include the death of Lori’s third and fourth husbands, her brother, and Chad’s wife. In June 2020, JJ and Tylee’s remains where discovered on Chad’s property and the newlywed’s were arrested and charged with murder. During investigations it was discovered that the couples beliefs had them convinced that the kids became zombies. This book was a good read into the true crime story of two doomsday preppers and just how far they would go to prepare.

This is a True Crime book. I found this book to be very interesting, but there was parts that I felt was repetitive. Some how I did not know anything about this case before reading this book. I have a kid that has autism, and It just upset me what happen to the kids in this book including the one that has autism. There was so much craziness going on in this book that I can even wrap my head around how anyone would do this or let this happen. This is just so sad. I did start off by listening to the audiobook from this book, but I did not like the narrator so I could not keep listening to the audiobook. I ended up reading this book on my kindle, and I enjoyed the kindle book of this book. I cannot say the audiobook was good. I was kindly provided an e-copy and e-audiobook of this book by the publisher or author (John Glatt) via NetGalley, so I can give an honest review about how I feel about this book. I want to send a big Thank you to them for that.

This is an exceedingly well written, thoroughly researched book. It is also so very difficult to read
I could not finish it.

Like watching a slow moving train wreck, you just can't wrench your eyes from the book. I think that the author did a great job of keeping the momentum going and trying to explain what really happened to JJ and to Tylee. I learned so much about Prepare a People and the distinct beliefs of some of the rogue LDS church.
I knew the ending, that the authorities would find the kids' bodies, yet I was still hoping for their safety. I just wish that Lori would say what happened.
I can't begin to imagine the stress the children were under with Lori.
The book is a great true crime book and it covered a lot of ground.

WILD and Interesting case and it is written by the fabulous John Glatt. He really is the best story teller. I would buy anything he wrote.. Do you think you know about this case? You do not. HIGHLY RECOMMEND.

Wow! From the first time I heard about J.J and Tylee missing and the bizarre relationship with Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell I was intrigued. Having always been interested in true crime, I continue to follow this story. I knew this book was right up my alley and would interest me but I was curious if it would have anything new to offer me as I felt that I had been pretty up to date with my knowledge of the case. To my welcomed surprise this book offered me A LOT of new information about this twisted case and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. The case is a sad one, there is no denying that, but the fascination lies within how a person(s) mind could be so easily manipulated and brainwashed. The author did a great job of making the book an easy read and topics flowed from one to another without confusion. There were many moving parts to this story and I think the author did an excellent job holding the reader's attention as well as making it easy to follow along with. While I wish this book was fiction, as it is heartbreaking to know it is not, I do recommend this book to anyone who loves a good true crime novel. I am interested in reading the author's other books as I have also followed along with another sad but fascinating true crime case of Chris Watts.

John Glatt has recently become one of my favorite true crime authors. He presents a detailed, easy-to-follow timeline of the story behind the headlines. The story of Lori Vallow was not an easy read by any means. It is hard to fathom how a mother could be brainwashed to the point of sacrificing her own children. How scary that a charismatic man such as Chad Daybell could wield that much power. Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an advance copy to read and review.

The Doomsday Mother is well written, easy to follow and tells the horrific , unbelievable story of Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell.

John Glatt always does an amazing job of writing and presenting all the facts in a true crime story.

The Doomsday Mother is of course very notorious and will be for years to come.

I could not help but think of the terror of JJ and Tylee and the aftermath for both Chad's family and Lori's.

The story is almost surreal , definitely terrifying and horrible and John Glatt leads you through the disturbing and terrifying account of what happened.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for a disturbing yet fascinating read.

I've grown to appreciate the True Crime genre in the past few years - particularly over audio. I have listened to Glatt's work in the past, so I was looking forward to checking out his latest where he focuses on the quite strange and tragic case of Lori Vallow, her family, and Chad Daybell and his family. I do recall the initial story when the two children, Tylee and JJ being missing made national news. This book reveals far more detail and background than were ever included in those initial reports.

Glatt first focuses on Lori - going back to her childhood and recounting all five of her marriages. Not quite as much as detail is provided on Chad Daybell, though his career from gravedigger to apocalyptic author and publisher are recorded here. With large family sizes, Mormon cult-like fringe groups and a higher body count than I expected, this narrative nonfiction begins to take crazier and crazier turns feeling more and more like fiction!

I definitely could not set this one aside - in fact, I think I listened to the entire book in virtually one sitting! The British narrator seemed like a somewhat distracting choice, so while this wasn't my favorite performance, it still thoroughly hooked me. With the rest of the trial still upcoming, I was a bit surprised that this is already out. I would have thought that the story would be more complete post-trial... there are a lot of questions left hanging because of this... I hope that more answers are forthcoming and the author is planning on some sort of follow-up!

The Doomsday Mother is a true crime story that chronicles the sordid actions of Lori Vallow and her husband Chad Daybell, accused of murdering Vallow’s two children. This is an incredible and almost unbelievable retelling how this couple came together, and their twisted “religious” beliefs that left a trail of dead bodies in their wake. The author does a meticulous job of piecing all the puzzles together, as there’s a lot of moving parts to this story. While the blame falls squarely on the couple, there’s enough secondary characters that share culpability here, from the couple’s friends and family members who failed to alert authorities early on when things were clearly amiss, to “church” leaders who closed ranks, as well as the slow-to-react law enforcement bodies. All told, this is an extremely sad story, although I wished the author had waited until the conclusion of any trials to publish the book, as I’m sure there are more details left to learn. I received an ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.