Born Evil

Evil

by Julia Derek

WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF YOU FOUND OUT YOUR CHILD IS A PSYCHOPATH?
One night when Jennifer Hanson returns home, she catches her 12-year-old son Shane stabbing their cat to death. Thankfully, he doesn't see her. Having long known Shane has a brain with psychopathic tendencies, her worst fears may be confirmed. Ever since he accidentally shot his father to death at age six, she has done everything she can to ensure Shane doesn't become a full-blown psychopath. He has behaved normally up until now. Have her efforts been in vain? She can tell he's changing, becoming increasingly dangerous, but she can't stomach putting him in a psych ward. But then she finds pics of a dead girl in his phone, a girl everyone thought had died accidentally...

NOTE: BORN EVIL is a stand-alone psychological thriller with no sex and very little violence.

Genres: Thriller, Fiction, Psychological Thriller, Mystery, Horror, Ebooks, Mystery Thriller

280 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 17, 2018

About the author

Julia Derek is originally from Sweden and is a trainer by day and writer by night. She's the author of several mystery and thriller books.

Reviews

[Jess☺️ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Born evil by Julia Derek is one of those books where you really can't wait to read it and then get disappointed with it. I found it hard to start as I kept picking up and putting it down the ending kind of gave it justice but by that time it was a little to late.
This might be for some people but it just wasn't for me , I still recommend you give it a go because we are not all the same and you may enjoy it.

[Linda Strong · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jennifer Hanson is a single mom to her son Shane, who is twelve. She's single because Shane killed his father, her husband. He took the gun from his father's closet and shot him while he was sleeping. Jennifer swears up and down it was an accident .. he was only 6 years old. But was he old enough to actually kill ... or is he a psychopath in the making?

A few years later, when a friend's young daughter is found at the bottom of a ravine, everyone assumed it was an accident. She was known to wander around watching the different birds. Later, Jennifer found pictures on her son's camera ... pictures of the dead girl, after she had fallen. When questioned, he said he had found her but was afraid to say anything because they might think he had something to do with it.

And when his therapist is found murdered in his home, Jennifer knows it's time to protect her son.

The twists and turns in this book kept up a dizzying speed from the very first page. I understand a mother's love for her child, but to witness such distressing things and believe whatever story she is told, should have been anything but acceptable.

But don't be fooled .... can you believe everything / anything you just read? It's very well written with characters that are a bit unique. It's a dark tale, a sad story.

[Kerryn Forsyth · Rating 1 out of 5]

I perservered through to the end by skimming through pages .This would have to be one of the worst books I have read. It was repetitive and painfully drawn out. The writing was stilted and the storyline unbelievable.

[Misty Marie Harms · Rating 3 out of 5]

**3.5 Stars**

[Carol · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Disturbing" doesn't even begin to describe this book. I read a lot of gory stuff...and this had promise in the beginning, but I had to quit when the 13-year-old kid killed the cat. I don't tolerate torture to helpless, innocent animals. The mother actually made excuses for years for her psycho kid...who "accidently" shot his father when he was six. She KNEW for years that this child was nothing resembling normal. Lots of "accidents" seem to happen around this young man. I ask you...just how deluded can a parent be? Hope she sleeps with one eye open, her door barricaded and a light on. I look for the next book to be entitled "Born Stupid", telling the mother's story.

[Lori · Rating 1 out of 5]

1/2 star. I finished this book as I felt invested at the halfway point to see if this author could cobble together a stellar ending. She didn't. This is one of the worst books I have had the misfortune of reading. It was completely predictable and I must say the writing was atrocious. Very disappointing.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Born Evil is the first book in a trilogy featuring Jennifer and her son Shane. There are plenty of things as a parent that would be our worst nightmare and your son being a psychopath has got to be way up there. How do you deal with it? It’s one of those scenarios that until it happens to you I really couldn’t hazard a guess.

A mother’s instinct is to protect her child at all costs of which is what Jennifer finds herself doing. She is living life on edge, not knowing what her young son is capable off. Shane on the outside is like any other kid. With it just being him and his mum, you can see that he is close to Jennifer which makes what Jennifer knows even harder to live with.

It’s hard to say to much more without giving any spoilers away. What I will say is that the story took an unexpected turn and had me hooked through out.

Born Evil is a definite page turner of a read with some shocks and surprises along the way. A dark and disturbing read of which fans of this genre will no doubt enjoy.

[jennifer garcia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Born Evil

I really enjoy a good psychological thriller. So when I read the description about this novel, I was immediately intrigued. However, the book was very stilted, repetitive and unbelievable. I was surprised this author has written so many books because this one feels like a novice wrote it. Disappointing.

[Olivia Hines Nowacki · Rating 1 out of 5]

Awful writing. I honestly can’t believe it was published.

[J.P. Willson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This certainly started off with a bang, draws the reader in with a rather horrific beginning and then does flow well throughout. I did not like the change of narration at the start of chapter 26 to that of the teen boy, simply because that narration was well above his age level, even with him being regarded as a genius. that sort of threw the momentum of the story for me, then to have it switch back at the end for the conclusion was also somewhat off-putting.
Over all a decent read.

[Michelle Plass · Rating 1 out of 5]

I found the book to be stilted and unrealistic. The plot and dialogue were just awful. Ick Ick Ick. I've read gruesome books before and I just couldn't get into this one. It just seemed poorly written, though the premise was intriguing.

[Lynda Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now this is a very twisty (and twisted) tale and I really liked the dual narration. It was written in a differing way, too, not one chapter per narrator as many authors do but half the book with one and half the other. I enjoyed the way it was done, learning things from both sides. I despaired of Jennifer, always excusing her psycho kid !! She really had my blood-pressure raised at times. I just wondered how deluded a parent could be, though I only have dogs, so I can only comment as an outsider as such.
There were a couple of instances where I thought it may have become a little farfetched, especially when Jennifer was lying to a friend (who had a daughter called Zelda) about something then told her that she must mean another Zelda........like there would be dozens of them around !! A 14 year old girl goes missing at one stage, too, yet we're to believe nobody noticed till the following morning !
This story does have an ending, although it will continue into the next book, which has gone into my wishlist a bit sharpish !! There were some issues with apostrophes, then missing commas out.....she seems to particularly dislike using them, but needs to as they can make her sentences make way better sense. For example, '"Ah, there you are at last," he said, beaming pleased' or "I laughed that seemed so ridiculous."
She did also mention she had "begun to write on a screenplay" and again with "I missed not writing on a screenplay" which, in both instances, is awful English !! I would use tick, tock as opposed to tic, toc as well but that was it for errors I'd spotted.
I look forward to seeing how things progress in the second book.

[Kristina Trawick · Rating 2 out of 5]

Grudging 2 stars

The return of the first narrator explaining all the things that were SO wrong in her first appearance was very offputting. I just kept thinking she was an idiot. The second narrator filled in some blanks, but in no way acted or thought like a child. (The transition from one to the other was rather abrupt. )

The NYPD are portrayed as blithering idiots who couldn't spot a planted clue if it smacked em up the side of the head. I just kept thinking the author was either very young, or this book had been translated from another language. (Who turns on the "plate" on a stove to heat a pot? Is that a NY thing? I assume it was a burner. ) So many things just made me nuts. 2 stars for originality, 1 for research.

[Anne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, it started out well and pulled me in right away. Unfortunately I got so tired of the mother’s constant stupidity about her son that I was about to put the book down and not finish. Then there was the narrator change to the son that others have mentioned, and though that gives away a twist, I think it helps to know it’s coming because the mother is so annoying. It got me interested again, but in the end it just didn’t cut it. Too much explaining why things were done and using the end of the book to go back and justify all of the stupidity. Sadly this one just didn’t work for me.

[Kymberli Ward · Rating 1 out of 5]

Most of what I thought to write has already been noted by others. Suffice it to say, I'm amazed at the number of 5-star reviews. I found it tedious, predictable, badly written, and the minutiae - page after page after page - was simply boring. The number of books this author has published surprised me as the style was that of someone just starting out. The "major twist" was easy to figure out early on, and the unannounced change of POV at Chapter 26 was just confusing. Anyway, I disliked the book and will definitely not be looking for sequels.

[Jenny Godin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Found this book for free on Book Bub today & it looked interesting. I picked it up & couldn't put it down. Finished it in 1 afternoon. Was not what I expected. Original plot that had so many twists & turns. I can't wait for the next book!

[Sarah McMullan · Rating 2 out of 5]

So bad it's good. Kinda.

More holes than a fishnet.
Overflowing with incorrect information on almost everything. What's the opposite of research?
I'm shocked at how this even saw the light of day.

[Eden Levan · Rating 1 out of 5]

The dialogue is stiff and unnatural, the concept ill-conceived, and the subject matter poorly researched.

[Christine Marshall · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was truly one of the most messed up fictional books I have ever read, but, it was certainly a page-turner! I couldn't put it down! I read it all in one sitting!

[grevelyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

had to panic read for psychology and it was pretty shit

[Reeda Booke · Rating 3 out of 5]

You can probably guess what the twist and even the outcome of this book from other reviews, but I'm not giving anything away in mine.

I guessed the massive twist, but it was still entertaining and the very end was still a bit shocking. Wouldn't mind seeing a sequel just to see the accused get some revenge.

It had some minor plot holes and some little inconsistencies, but it still kept me engaged enough to read it all to see how it ended.

The book was a freebie and I thought it worth the read. 3 stars

[Lesley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I finished this yesterday, and I'm still wondering if I enjoyed it enough to go onto the next book of the series.

I guessed quite early on what was happening, mainly because of certain behaviours (trying not to do any spoilers!).

But I actually didn't expect the end of the book...

I'll try a lighter book before deciding whether to go to book 2.

[Rachel · Rating 1 out of 5]

The description of the book is amazing, you cannot wait to read it, and then you get four paragraphs in and realize the mistake you’ve made.

The entire book is a bore, it’s all pretty predictable and quite frankly, the twist at the end made me wish the book would be over even sooner.

[Lisa Swearengin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome thriller!!!

Great story...kept me interested. I liked the changing viewpoints. The twist at the end was such a treat!

Looking forward to reading more from this author.

[Lily · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars. Loved this twisted tale. It kept me guessing till the very end. I felt so sorry for Shane.

[Petra Sando · Rating 2 out of 5]

Deeply disturbing -- Unfortunately, not the way I expected.

I apologize in advance for *spoilers* and a somewhat harsh review. I really wanted to like this book. It started out well enough, despite a lot of repetitions throughout. The character of the mother seemed fairly likeable and genuinely concerned for her son, in the beginning, despite all she supposedly knew and thought about him -- almost to a fault, in the sense of "love is blind". And then I hit Chapter 26. Why in the world abruptly change the point of view to that of the 12 y.o. kid and worse, have him talk like an adult using words and phrases most educated adults would not even use when telling a story?! It felt horribly forced, each time the author actually threw in a few sentences that WOULD make sense for a 12 y.o.; but then, the author would have him use a few dull sounding phrases, which made the boy sound rather unlikable, and immediately returned to this over-the-top language again. Nevertheless, the boy seems somewhat personable, although you sometimes wonder if he's telling the truth. But then, as if the previous change of point of view from mother to son didn't give the readers proverbial whiplash enough, the author does it again, 16 chapters later, and shifts the point of view back from the son to the mother -- this time obviously trying to confirm her as an unreliable narrator. The second time she speaks, the author has the mother use language so different from the first time and so vile, it sounded like a completely different person. Not only that but the mother character reveals herself as the author or this, her story, proudly telling the readers how she did a great job lying and deceiving them, while elaborating on the horrible things she wishes on her son in the aftermath of the story. My first thought was, "What the heck did just happen here? Is she possessed by a demon, all of a sudden?!" But -- spoiler -- no, she isn't. In the epilogue, the son gets to weigh in once more but the author already made sure I'd be completely disgusted with the mother's second part in the narrative, which I endured just to get to the end, so it didn't win me back over. Even if the story itself could have been a fantastic dark psycho-thriller, the way it was written almost makes me wonder if it was just a poorly executed writing exercise the author chose to publish against her better knowledge (and without putting in an adequate amount of editing time). I kind of hope the author goes back one day to rewrite this story because it could have been really good had the mother's character arc been developed more slowly (with better foreshadowing to prevent a "deus ex machina" feel) and had the son used a less sophisticated vocabulary and a more relaxed syntax, which would be more appropriate for a young teen, even if he was a bit of a genius.

This was my first time reading one of Julia Derek's books and while the idea was great and the first 20 or so chapters drew me in, the rest of the execution was a fail to me. I wish I had read one of her previous works first, as this one left me disappointed, even though I got it through a free promotional offer.

[Kathy]

Read this on my Kindle, and it grabs you from the first moment, when a mother spies her 12 year old son stabbing their cat to death. Is he a psycopath? Julia has feared this moment ever since Shane shot and killed his father when he was 6. How can she protect her son and help him grow without getting into trouble because of his tendencies? When she consults a doctor who is later stabbed to death, they are on the run when someone says he saw her son leaving the doctor's house in the middle of the night. However, there are many twists and turns and different points of view in this book. What is the true story?

[VickiLee · Rating 1 out of 5]

Now that I have finished hitting my head against the wall because of my frustration with this novel, I will explain why. Baby as psychopath? Bad premise and I was immediately suspicious of the on-going and ever mounting number of suspicious deaths, sexual abuse, and accidents that fit perfectly into a mother and son’s life. The explanation of the father’s death was improbable and relied on random circumstances. Of course, this was true for all the deaths in the novel. If I read the saying “on the lam” one more time I would have screamed like a wild woman. I could go on, but I really feel this novel is not worth the effort.

[Les · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok, this book was ok to read, as I wanted to see what happened. But it had so many stupid parts that I had to just laugh. A bit on the amateurish side...Maybe a lot on the amateurish side. Her kid had been diagnosed at three with a psychopathic brain??? Huh?? And the sexual abuse that was fully explained was overboard and disgusting.