Couple Found Slain by Mikita Brottman The author gives us an interesting and informative account the legal system's dealings with mental health prisoners. Relevant details and facts were presented in an easy to read and understand. With the compassionate narrative, it was easy to relate to Brian's frustrations and disillusionment. Hard to fathom this lack of legal options and inhumane treatment of these individuals are presented and tolerated in today's society.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to preview the book.

This is a definite “must add “ to the collection of any true crime addict/ lover.

This does much more than discuss the murders of parents by their son, this delves into the aftermath of the murders, and the psychiatric admissions and complications of a child abused and pushed to their limits, and how a psychotic break caused the ultimate death of this dysfunctional family unit.

For me, it was a 4 out of 5 stars read as I thoroughly enjoyed the change in focus from the traditional true crime script with the addition of what abuse, mental illness, and about how the suffering of mental illness os seen through the eyes of a young man be charged with killing his parents.

Thank you to #NetGalley, the publisher and author for the electronic ARC in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.

When I first saw the title of this book, I was intrigued. I love a good true crime story and even better if they have photo's within the book, macabre maybe but hey what can I say, I am fascinated with that kind of stuff.

However, this story is not so much about the incident, the brutal slaying of a married couple in their home by their son, but instead its about the aftermath. What happens to a man who murders his parents in a state of insanity?

Brian Bechtolds life was horrible. His parents were garbage people by all accounts. He was the last of 5 kids, a menopause baby, to a woman who didn't give a crap about being a mom let alone one so late in life. She was a horrible housekeeper, lazy and relied on her older daughters to play caretaker to the young child. One incident stuck out to me " Brian and his sister Cathy were at the local pool, when another boy dropped a watering can on his head cutting it open. The mother of the boy took Cathy and Brian home, their mother on the phone couldn't be bothered to come outside to check on him, so Cathy asked the woman to take them to the hospital so her could be treated." What kind of mother does this? Not to mention the father who was an alcoholic abusive belligerent man who beat not only his kids but his wife, punching her in the stomach when she was pregnant with Brian (gotta wonder if that played into his issues later in life).

I found this book to be fascinating and sad all at the same time. I cannot begin to imagine what its like to have a psychotic break, to know that you committed a crime, but to also know that you wont ever do it again, only to have doctors over and over say that you aren't capable of rejoining society because you a threat to others.. I only wish the ending of the book had been more positive. I was really hoping he would get out, finally, after years of appeals, court cases and his "compliance" with the doctor in regards to medication.

I felt the story was a compelling one, a fast read, well paced with loads of information, maybe too much at times, but still a worthy read. Especially if you, like me, have suffered from or know someone who has a mental illness.

This book isn't what you typically expect of a murder story. It was interesting to see the ins and outs of a psychiatric facility from a patients point of view. Brian had a unique point of view in that he was sane enough after a time to fight to try to get out. He felt unimportant and forgotten about, which is how I think many patients may feel . I enjoyed this perspective and it really opened my eyes to some of the issues with some of our countries facilities. They are meant to be beneficial to its' patients, but that may not always be the case.

I found this nonfiction book about Brian Brechtold who, in 1992, murdered both of his parents. The description of how it all went down and was really detailed but not with boring unnecessary details. Brian came from a family who had mental health problems among quite a few of them. It became evident to me (though I'm not in the medical field) that he, too, had mental problems.

I found the story of Brian's murders fascinating. I thought it would've been planned and that he killed them with great intention; however, after he killed them he went to the police after a week or ten days and turned himself in but claimed he didn't know if he really had killed them, dreamt it, or even hallucinated it. The investigation into the murders was quite informative.

Brian eventually ended up being placed in Perkins Psychiatric Hospital and the author used that setting to further the reader's insight into mentally ill people who murder. The data was given in an informal way so I didn't feel bogged down with stats. At the same time, Brottman informed her readers with some interesting things about people who murder their parents, which I had never known before.

I highly recommend this book.

I would like to thank Henry Holt and Co. for a free eARC of this book in exchange for my opinion.

Omg this book!!!
Very well written and will definitely give reference to people looking for a book that keeps you engaged until the end!!!!

Wtg well.written

Both my fiance and myself devoured Couple Found Slain. This is a fascinating look at life in a maximum security hospital. I had never read anything like this. It was really hard to read at times, and I somehow found myself empathizing with him, which I did not expect. True crime fans should 100% read this

I found this book very interesting and getting a look into a mental hospital as a means of “prison.” It is true that a lot of people, including myself, think that if someone is deemed mentally incapable to stand trial that they will be out of a mental hospital sooner than if they were sent to prison. This book shows just how untrue that is.

It is really scary to think that is is truly how psychiatric hospitals are run. One part spoke about clinical notes and how the doctor took the main character’s choice and interest in certain types of books as part of his mental illness. If that was true today, and hopefully it is not, then we book readers are all mad and insane.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the Kindle Arc. Couple Found Slain is the true-crime story of the murder of a husband and wife by their youngest adult son. The book details the arrest and follow up events involving 22-year old Brian Bechtold and the murder of his parents in Maryland in 1992. Rather than being sentenced to prison, he is institutionalized. The book is a detailed account of what takes place after a person is diagnosed with mental illness and a serious crime. Very concise and in-depth, Couple Found Slain is a timely true crime story of an on-going problem in the criminal system.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Henry Holt & Co for gifting me a digital ARC of this nonfiction book by Mikita Brottman - 4 stars!

Brian was the last of five children born into a very dysfunctional family. He was just 22 when he walked into a police station in Florida and confessed to killing both parents at their home in Maryland. He was diagnosed with schizophrenia, found not criminally responsible and sent to a maximum security psychiatric hospital and where he remained for 27 years.

I admit to liking to read true crime; this book explores more of the after. It showcases how far we have to go to truly treat mental illness. The author skillfully laid out not only Brian's story but countless others. Why are some people released after a few years where others remain for decades? Brian hated to take medications, especially the ones that are typically given to psychiatric patients, leaving him not much more than a zombie. But refusing to take medication, even when he showed no further sign of illness, was cause to say he was exhibiting mental illness. Everything was a catch 22. Those in prisons have more rights than those in institutions; many committed crimes in hopes of being sent to prison. Very eye-opening book I would recommend for anyone interested in this subject.

A unique true crime book, Brottman focuses on three prongs - Brian Bechtold's childhood, the turning point at which he murders his parents, and his stay at a psychiatric hospital as a result of a "not criminally responsible" decision in the murder case. What I found most interesting about this audiobook was the fact that we were able to see Bechtold as a full human - not a "monster", not a "crazy person" - someone with a history of trauma and with a mental illness, but also other interests and personality characteristics. With prisons currently housing more people with mental illnesses than any other location, this book serves an important purpose in allowing us to get to know Bechtold. Too often, we focus only on the criminal act, and not the contributing factors, such a trauma, and the aftermath of how those who commit crimes are treated and given needed services - or not given those needed services, as is often the case.

An unusual very interesting look at a true crime.This follows the defendant after he’s faced the legal system and kicked into the mental health syste,m.Truly eye opening.to see how the murderer Brian is treated ,#netgalley#henryholtbooks

Couple Found Slain is not a true crime story in the typical sense. It’s about how people judged to be not competent to stand trial or go to prison based on mental illness face a long, uphill battle for competent evaluation and treatment from a never ending rotation of mental health professionals who all base their assessments on something different. Brian Bectold murdered his parents after days without sleep, during a total psychotic break. He turned himself in and found himself in a psychiatric institution in lieu prison. Brian began to long for the “freedom” of prison. After years and years of feeling well, being clearheaded, having no symptoms he finds himself stuck there while others are released.
This is an eye opening story about mental health care, or lack of it, in the United States. People going into the field of institutional mental health care, as a provider or guard, should look into this case and consider it in their future dealings with the people in their care. I emphasize the word “people”, as opposed to inmates or patients. Brian, for example commuted one horrible act. I’m not excusing what he did, but it is obvious that severe problems in that family began with his targets, his parents. I be
I’ve Brian Bectold to be an unfortunate soul who was born unplanned and unwanted. Victimized and abused by his parents and further victimized for the rest of his life, so far, by the mental health system. Thank you #netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this eye opening account of a life trapped in the mental health legal system. #CoupleFoundSlain

Thank you to Henry Holt and co for my copy of Couple Found Slain. I was very interested by the premise of the story and had seen many reviews so was excited to dig in. After 40% I decided to stop, it took me forever to get that far. I could not get into the story and how it was written was not appealing to me. I couldn’t connect to Brian. I may try again after I read another few books.

It is hard to imagine having much sympathy for a young man who murders both parents and leaves their bodies to rot for weeks. But this book does just that. A peek inside the psychiatric hospital he was ultimately committed to exposes violence, cruelty and seemingly reformed patients living (perhaps just existing) indefinitely with few options and no one who seems to listen. This eye opener leaves me longing to learn the stories of others like Brian.

“This book is about another part of the story, the part that begins when the verdict is announced, the sentence handed down.”

This book is unique in that it doesn’t center just around the crime but also dives into what happened after Brian was sentenced for his crimes. Maybe it’s because I’m a social worker but throughout this book, I felt bad for Brian. He was clearly never given the proper help that he needed and deserved. His family was messed up and had a lot of issues and his parents were not nurturing toward him. I really liked how the author described the role each family member played within their family system. I also liked the different educational aspects of this book. It was well written and kept my interest.

This was a really well done novel and really reminded me of Anne Rule actually. I think it provided a good amount of detail but did not make me feel like it was clinical so I definitely wasn’t bored. Definitely recommend for true crime fans and even ones that want to branch out a bit. Review cross posted to Amazon/B&N.

Thank you to the publisher for a an egalley as well as a physical ARC.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-arc for review. True crime is one of the most engaging genres for me, but over time reading too much of it can get repetitive. Couple Found Slain by Mikita Brottman had a unique premise that drew me in and held my interest. Reading about the aftermath of the crime and sentencing, rather than the usual focus on solving the crime and hunting for a perpetrator, really made this book stand out. The author clearly conveyed that the main purpose of maximum security psychiatric facilities' main focus is not on rehabilitation/treatment or preparing people with the tools needed to reenter society. While I felt that the operation of the facility was awful, and that the system as a whole is in deep need of repair, I was unable to feel a high level of sympathy for Brian, even though it felt like the author was quite biased in his favor. Overall it was interesting to read a true crime book that didn't fit the usual formulas.

I received a copy of Couple Found Slain: After A Family Murder through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I love the true crime genre and have read quite a bit. However, I’ve never read something quite like this. The author starts out by saying this isn’t your typical true crime story. The author provides the details of the crime and the victims. Instead of keeping the focus there the author asks the question “what happens after the murder”? It focuses on the life of the offender after his conviction. While the crime he committed was appalling, the inhuman treatment he faces afterwards is unjustified. Definitely an eye opening look into the mental health system as it relates to the criminally insane. I appreciated the fresh direction this author took with this true crime event. We don’t often get a different perspective or a look at what happens to offenders after the sensational trials are over.

It is a truly difficult feat to convince your readers that someone who commits a double murder deserves any sort of sympathy, but Mikita Brottman does just that in this extremely gripping and oftentimes heartbreaking story. Written in such a way that humanizes Brian, this is an incredible feat of investigative journalism. Brottman’s writing is absolutely enthralling and the look her story takes at the broken system in which many mentally ill patients can fall through the cracks or become trapped is captivating.