This is a really creative way to tell the story of a prolific serial killer, Samuel Little, that includes multiple points of view. Fans of true crime will likely love this book! However potential readers should know that the book does get pretty graphic, so this could be triggering or upsetting to some.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read/view this book. I must admit that I could not finish it; I found it boring. That doesn't necessarily mean that it's not a good book; it just wasn't a good fit for me. I wasn't a fan of the run on about the police investigation. I was more interested in words from the killer, how he justified his killings and what was going on in his mind. I did get a bit of that but was just tired of all the extra info that I wasn't interested in.

A very intriguing read that differs from other true crime I've laid eyes on. I felt it was similar to Michelle McNamara's "I'll Be Gone In the Dark", only a tad less obsessive, intense. It still felt as driven, but perhaps in a more casual sense, maybe? I mean, McNamara's project lead to her tragic and far too soon demise, so...

I appreciate that she goes into exploring and explaining the justice system, that this book isn't solely about the serial killer. I'd even go so far as to say there is an attempt to humanize Sam a bit at some point. Or, if not humanize, an attempt to explain. I am grateful she took on this daunting project, as I hadn't heard of Sam prior. And to be able to interview the killer at length was a benefit to more than just the morbidly curious.

At times, Lauren's writing choices left me confused, so while I'm in love with her and her style, those bits that made me tilt my head did leave me frustrated. Like I was reading an inside joke or some unknown short hand, despite re-reading and even coming back. STILL! That said, I do want more from her; I will check out her harem memoir. My favorite part was the phone conversation between Jillian and Holland. I didn't mind the decision to attempt to flesh out some of the victims; it felt genuine and possibly even necessary.

"I saw a glimmer of opportunity to make a meaningful change, bringing to light stories from which most people turned their heads. I had a strong stomach, insatiable curiosity, and the dead calm afforded me by PTSD." - Jillian Lauren

Included at the end of Lauren's book are the victims' information with pictures when available (alive, nothing crime scene or postmortem related), plus the survivors. There will also be a reading group section at the back, a conversation with the dedicated and awesome author (these were not in the ARC), a bibliography, resources (like ViCAP.), and lastly, the marketing and publicity campaign.

Behold the Monster is an engaging and enticing book. I have applaud the author for being strong enough to ask the deep questions and more importantly listen to the answers. What an extremely horrifying individual as he did not ever seem to have remorse for what he did.

Not only was it engaging book to learn more about the author story, but also about how easy it is for these monsters to get into our lives. This is the definite read not just for the information held inside it's pages about the killer, but also a warning to guard ourselves.

Behold the Monster by Jillian Lauren

I have read quite a lot of books about real crimes, in the first person how the victim survived her ordeal, or how the investigation took place, this book was kind a bit of all of those in one, but while trying to reach all it kind of ended up lacking a bit, at least for me, I ended up making of this book a task that I just wanted to finish, while it dragged away… it felt much more as fiction, I didn’t connect with how the story was told, while I am sad that all of Sam Little victims were terrible wronged and deserved a lot better, I didn’t connect or enjoyed reading this book, time jumps between chapters did not help… something is missing but I cant put my finger on it… it was ok, maybe you’ll like it much more than what I did…

Thank you NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS (non-fiction), for the free ARC and this is my honest opinion.

Immediately going into this read I was enthralled and so hyped up because it's been awhile for me to read this genre. But as the story went on I was a bit confused. It seemed so real and I assumed it was based off a true story, so AMAZING job because you fooled me!!! Lol I'm pretty sure this author is a highly skilled writer. It really threw me in this story and played out like a movie. I enjoyed the flashbacks the most and absolutely loved being in Sam's past. It was chilling because it is all true. A true monster. I was a bit shocked. Couldn't believe this was being told in such a great detail. That's when I paused and Googled it hardcore. If I'm being honest I'm still not 100% sure. I really liked learning his past/murders in his eyes. Definitely strange. Jillian character is very detailed and I feel like I know her personally. This author did a great job. Her details in writing are spectacular!!! I highly recommend!!! I felt like Jillian is obsessed a bit with finding out these cases and will do whatever. Kinda cutthroat. A true journalist ! Very well written. Now I want to watch her docuseries on Starz.
Thank you Netgalley!!

Ugh! I love true crime and this was part reality, part divulging of facts and it felt like part fiction describing Sam’s “dates”
I loved the book, I hated the book, I wanted it to end. I truly hope the cases can be solved with time and tenacity.

I was intrigued by this book because I had never heard of Sam Little, but I honestly had a very hard time finishing this book. It just seemed so all over the place, I could not keep the timeline straight.

This is not typically my style since I don't usually read true stories. Serial killer stories do interest me though so I enjoyed reading this as far as that goes. Of course this subject is always hard to read especially when it's true or based on truth. Thank you for the opportunity to read this

This is a very interesting book. It very thoroughly covers the story of Sam Little and his victims as told to Jillian by the killer himself. It can be a difficult read at times since it really details what those victims experienced when killed. What makes this book different for many others about serial killers is the the Jillian tells it as she was told from Sam Little.

This book sits in a strangely grey area — on one hand, being that obsessed with a singular serial killer is a little unhealthy and risks glorifying the horrific things they’ve done, toeing the line of tipping into gratuitous violence and glorification . On the other hand, that obsession helped to find the truth about almost a hundred innocent women. Serial killers and crime are a morbidly curious subject for many people, but we need to always remember that the stories we read or watch are about real lives, real people
Who’ve lost their lives and people who’ve loved them left behind.

This book does try to bring these women into the frame and most of the time does so is a respectful and graceful way while also telling a simply harrowing account of a first-hand experience through accounts, logs, and multimedia to paint a startling picture of the sheer brutality of a real monster.

The layout was simple and easy to read despite the heavy content — bringing visual maps and first hand accounts along with the authors own thoughts and speculation about the unknown aspects of the story.

The true-crime novel “Behold the Monster” tells the story of Sam Little (AKA Sam McDowell), widely considered “America’s most prolific serial killer”, as the cover of the book states. The author spent a lot of time interviewing Little in jail for the book. Little’s upbringing is similar to Ted Bundy’s, and his MO is strangulation, similar to Gary Ridgeway. He also chose prostitutes as his victims, like Ridgeway. However, different from Ridgeway is that Little travelled throughout the United States killing women instead of staying in one general area, making it difficult for law enforcement to make an actual determination as to how many he actually killed. Throughout the book he is adamant to those who interview him that he never raped his victims, but rather he sexually enjoyed the act of strangulation, watching his victims take their last breath. Prior to his death in 2020, he admitted to killing 50 women, but there is the potential that he killed many, many more. This novel takes the reader through Little’s life as well as some of his victims’, both those who lived and those who died.

I’ve read a lot of true-crime novels from authors such as Ann Rule (whom I consider the best true-crime author ever), Vincent Bugliosi, Truman Capote, and Gregg Olson, to name just a few, but I have never heard of Jillian Lauren. After reading this book, I would not include her in the category of best true-crime authors. I had a difficult time getting through the entire novel. Lauren’s style of writing, for me, was not engaging; she used rather crude words such as “ho” instead of prostitute and “boosted” instead of stealing, as well as other cruder ways to describe certain body parts, which to me did not appear professional or respectful. Further, she kept jumping around in the timeline, which I found to be troublesome to follow the story. When I read true crime, I like the novels to have chronology to them. This book jumped around from 2018 for one chapter and then the next one set in 1971, and that type of jump continued throughout the whole novel. In addition, for me she lacked some credibility in that she occasionally referenced being high; so, if that is the case, how do we know whether the information she is putting forth in the book is accurate, particularly when she noted that she did not use a tape recorder, but relied on her memory?

All in all, I would not recommend this book for diehard true-crime fans.

This book was great, though the format is unusual. The parts of the book that are more factual in nature are written in a way that are engaging and keep the readers attention, instead of like a textbook. The chapters that are fiction are very difficult to read, in part because they are mostly true and in part because its fictionalizing the truth. I think this could put off some people and potentially offend people as well. I hope the author gained permission from the victim's families to do this. The book itself was fascinating and is a must read for any true crime fan!

While a bit gruesome and heartbreaking, this true crime book was thoroughly researched and well written. I’m not sure if I had heard of Sam Little before….I used to be a huge true crime fan… I want to say that I have but definitely not to this extent. The author did a great job.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for this ARC. ~I was given this book and made no commitments to leave my opinions, favorable or otherwise~

Before reading this I had never heard of Sam Little, so this was a very interesting, albeit upsetting, read. Lauren obviously put a lot of research into this book, and some parts a quite graphic.

I’m not sure, but this book seems to have been previously published in 2020? This might be a revised addition with additional information, nonetheless it is still a very interesting, informative, and disturbing book to read. Any book that details the life of a serial killer is never an easy read.

Behold the Monster, is about serial killer Sam Little. Sam Little was behind bars when he met with the author, Jillian Lauren. It was with Jillian that Sam started confessing all his murders. Sam spoke with Jillian during their prison visits, and most often on their phone calls. Sam knew the phone calls were being recorded, but he still kept on talking. Sam Little often drew pictures of his victims while confessing to Jillian. Sam called Jillian his “best friend”. Jillian was even listed as next of kin for Sam Little, and she was the first person the prison called when he died of Covid-19 complications on December 30, 2020.

This book gives an overview of Sam Little’s victims. We get a clue as to what their last moments on earth were like. The author also interviewed family members of some of the victims, so that their memory could live on. We also hear from the four women who were able to escape and live through their nightmare with Sam Little.

Everything about Sam Little is disturbing! His birth into the world was disturbing. His upbringing was disturbing. His reuniting with his biological mother as an adult was especially disturbing! This book became extremely hard to read at times.

While creepy, I guess Sam was a bit smart on who he preyed upon. He preyed upon women who were on drugs, and who were most often prostitutes. He would ask them questions such as, “Do you have lots of family around? Are you close with your family?” If he knew these women didn’t have anyone, then they were an easy target. He would lure these women into his car and strangle them for sexual pleasure. Most of these women were not missed by anyone. Those that were able to get away and live to tell about it- well, unfortunately no one believed them because they were drug addicted prostitutes.

Sam Little confessed to killing 93 women. The FBI has confirmed 60 cases. Therefore, Sam might be the “most prolific serial killer in American history of record.” In any case, if you are a fan of true crime and especially that of serial killers, then I highly suggest reading this very detailed book about the life of Sam Little.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Sourcebooks, and the author for an ARC of this book. All opinions are my own. Publication date: July 18, 2023. (Genre- True Crime, Nonfiction)

Jillian Lauren is a fantastic writer! This true crime novel is beautifully heartbreaking and horrifying. I knew barely anything about Sam Little, until now. Even though I had to put the book (kindle) down sometimes, I always wanted to keep going. Thank you Jillian Lauren for taking the time to write these haunting tragedies. Thank you NetGalley, the publishers and to Jillian Lauren for this incredible ARC!

I had never heard of Sam Little before reading this book, and was astonished after learning more about him. He is one of the most prolific serial killers, having admitted to 93 murders, with the police confirming 60. Not only did he murder an astounding number of people, but he had an impressive rap sheet, covering burglary, rape, theft, grand theft, breaking and entering, armed robbery, assault, assault on a police officer, shoplifting, driving under the influence, and resisting arrest, among others. But what's most astonishing is the fact that he was arrested and tried multiple times, getting away because of a lack of evidence. On those few cases where he was convicted, he served a paltry amount of time, and was back out on the streets to continue his reign of terror.

The author holds nothing back, going into detail the crimes he committed and the suffering these women went through. There is a lot of talk of police procedure and investigations which can be a little dry at times, but the story easily draws you back in when it turns back to Sam. The author spent many hours with Sam, trying to get into his mind and understand what made him do it, but there is no answer. Many times he professes that he didn't do it, other times that he was chosen by God to cleanse the Earth. There is no way to understand why he did what he did, only that he was a monster to the extreme.

For those interested in true crime and serial killers this will be a hit. However, be warned that it is not for the faint of heart.

Wow!!! What a book. I was so excited to get this one as an advanced copy through netgally. It did not disappoint! Wow, is all I have to say.

"Behold the Monster" is a nonfiction reckoning with one of the most prolific serial killers in history, if not THE most... and yet I had never heard of him. "Sam Little" and his fame have yet to really take hold in the poplar consciousness, at least in my realm, but "Behold the Monster" is a brutal, horrifying takedown of our justice system and the concept of who counts as a "victim" as much as it is about Sam Little. Ninety-three women - many Black, all desperate - are suspected to have died beneath Sam's vicious hands. And yet he kept getting away with it, year after year. He's an old man by the time author Jillian Lauren catches up to him.

Oh, Jillian Lauren. She writes with such confidence, snark, empathy and clarity. I had never read a true crime book in such an intriguing, unapologetic voice. Her tenacity and dedication to the lost is the backbone to this book, the much-needed center of morality in a story that threatens to be too gruesome to digest.

It's an extraordinary, awful tale. HIghly recommended to fans of true crime and criminal justice.