THE PERFECT FATHER BY JOHN GLATT

7/18/2020

The Perfect Father is a horrific true crime account of the Christ Watts murder case. This book emotionally devastated me but I'm glad to have a better understanding of the case that has haunted millions of people around the world.

Rating: ★★★(.5)
Release Date: July 21, 2020
Genre: True Crime.
Series: None. Standalone.
Pages: 291 pages
Format: eBook. ARC.

In The Perfect Father, New York Times bestselling author John Glatt reveals the true story of a Colorado family whose storybook life turned into a nightmare.

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.

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.

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READ MY BOOK REVIEW

Release Date: July 21, 2020
Actual Rating: 3.5 stars

True Crime

FIRST THOUGHTS: A devastating and haunting true crime novel that I won’t forget. This book had me rolling in emotions.

MY REVIEW:
John Glatt is a seasoned true crime writer and when I saw he was writing a book about the Chris Watts case (it made headlines around the world) I knew I needed to read it. For one thing, the story is absolutely devastating. How can a seemingly perfect man kill his pregnant wife and two daughters? It’s unthinkable. Secondly, I remember reading about this case and seeing it all over the news. I live in Massachusetts and this happened in Colorado and seeing as it made it way over to my little hamlet shows how sensational the case is (was). Finally, I am a true crime junkie. I have a master’s degree in psychology and reading stories about the abnormal side of the human brain (and the abnormal side of human nature) is interesting to me. All this put together, this is a book for me.

For the most part, this is a good book. John Glatt writes the story in three parts (before, during, and the aftermath of the crime) so we gain an understanding of everything that led up to the crime; how their relationship may have played a part etc. and what happened in the courts. The chapters are small so reading it quickly is fairly easy (unless your queasy then it may be harder to read it in one sitting). HOWEVER, the beginning of the book (when looking at this couple relationship) it seemed like the author was siding with the murderer. There were things in the book that bothered me because it looked like he was throwing more of the blame at the victim (she’s to controlling etc.) rather than her husband who killed her. That put a bad taste in my mouth. I don’t care how controlling she was or what she did, she never deserved what happened to her or her babies. This is the main reason I am giving this one 3.5 stars.

FINAL THOUGHTS
If you’re a true crime reader, I would recommend this one to you. The case is still “new” as the events occurred within the last 2 years and many will know the story anyways because it was plastered all over the news. Be warned though, this book is devastating. I cried a few times because I can’t imagine what happened. Ugh, it makes me sick to my stomach. I am however glad to know more about the victims who deserve peace and justice.