Raised by a Serial Killer

Discovering the Truth About My Father

De: April Balascio

Narrado por: April Balascio

The untold story behind the hit true crime podcast The Clearing, this unforgettable memoir traces one daughter’s moving quest to understand her larger-than-life childhood as she searches for the truth about her father, the serial killer Edward Wayne Edwards.

One evening in 2009, April Balascio was searching online, as she had been every night, for unsolved murders in the towns her family had lived growing up, when she stumbled across the latest investigations into the “Sweetheart Murders” cold case. All at once, the buried memories of her father’s dark history were awakened, and she knew she had to take action. She picked up the phone to call a detective and the rest is infamous true crime history.

In her unflinching memoir, Balascio bravely reveals an astonishing tale of a lifetime of manipulation, unexplained upheavals, and silent fear. Some part of her had always known what her father was capable of, but the full truth of how she came to these revelations is as riveting as it is quietly terrifying. Through searing storytelling, dedicated research, and intimate insight, Raised by a Serial Killer is a gripping, courageous memoir unlike any other.

©2024 April Balascio (P)2024 Simon & Schuster Audio

Authentic, sympathetic and well done

I'm writing this review when the author is nearly done with high school. I have several hours to go, but I'm so impressed with the book that I'm motivated to recommend it as soon as possible. The author narrates her own story, which lends authenticity and atmosphere to the telling. People often wonder why spouses and children in the orbits of such appalling characters as the author's father don't run away sooner than they do. But the fine details of this family's predicament reveal the attachments and conditioning which immobilize them, along with the extreme danger of leaving such a vicious and vengeful person. This is not a hard book to hear because we can hear in the author's voice that she was adaptable, strong and courageous in ways that allowed her to survive. I believe her siblings and mother were too. There's no gratuitous description of the father's crimes. It's well-worth reading.

Her poor childhood 😭

I just wanted to reach into the book and save this sweet baby, you are amazing! This was very well written and easy to follow along!

Wow

RAISED BY A SERIAL KILLER is the remarkable story of how a daughter’s call to an unsolved murder tip line brought down a serial killer. April, Edward Wayne Edwards’s oldest child, grew up tortured and traumatized by her father. Unprotected by her mother, April endured countless beatings and humiliations. Still, April believe he loved her. I don’t know if Edwards was capable of love. He may have been able to mimic a loving father for short periods of time but it doesn’t seem like he put anyone’s needs ahead of his own agenda.

Speaking out about crimes perpetrated by her father caused estrangement among her siblings, which didn’t surprise me. The unwelcome notoriety affected everyone in her family and although from April’s point of view, her siblings were aware of their father’s criminal behavior including at least one murder. Still, being raised in a family as dysfunctional as the Edwards, where their father often pitted the siblings against each other, I’m not surprised they didn’t grow up with healthy relationship skills.

RAISED BY A SERIAL KILLER is 75% April’s child and young adulthood, giving insight into Edwards’s minor crimes and his systematic abuse of all his children. Readers see how April’s realization that her father’s behaviors weren’t normal and were in fact barbaric and murderous. The remaining 25% focuses on the investigations, capturing Edwards and the aftermath.

Narrator is very hard to listen to

The story was well written and is a testament to the author overcoming the adversity of her upbringing. Enthralling from start to finish. Only downside was that the author narrates the story, but that’s not to say that it didn’t add to the overall experience. She just does not have a good reading voice or cadence for storytelling; very juvenile.

Good reader

She whines way too much about getting spankings and being poor but she is a hood reader.

Interesting story

I really like her account of her experiences. Terrible childhood so sad. But she seems to have come a long way.

A painful story of survival

I enjoyed April narrating her own book as it adds to the total performance. It is remarkable that she was able to continually overcome trauma and find a way to move forward. Like a Phoenix. I had some neglect in my childhood and I perceive my siblings and especially my mother as a victim, but nothing even close to this trauma. April’s story was more than many people would be able to overcome and much worse than I anticipated. It was not only the magnitude but the chronicity of the abuse. This family never got a break from this monster.

I live in Wisconsin near where the sweetheart murders occurred and I clearly remember this because I was the same age as these kids at the time. It stood out to me that Tim Hacks parents were so kind to April. They have closure about their son and it is clear throughout the book that April is grieving for all of her fathers victims - more than she grieves for herself.

Story Good/Narration poor

The story is very interesting, but the narration should have been done by a professional. April seems to be reading the story for the first time, it didn’t feel like it was truly her own personal story.

Most interesting!!

Well written and narrated. Astonishing and at the same time heartrending. Overall one of the most interesting books I have listened to in a long while.

Interesting but Traumatic and Poorly Read/Produced

The subject matter is traumatic and hard to hear, but more difficult was listening through this book as read by the author. She has an odd childlike delivery style. She does not seem to be able to read a sentence properly and mispronounced many, many words. From time to time, I had to take a break from listening as her narration became tedious. Ultimately, I am glad that she and her siblings survived such a traumatic life. Hopefully, this book helps her future financially.