A book review of Evil at Our Table: Inside the Minds of the Monsters Who Live Among Us by Samantha Stein, PsyD
Stars: *****
Kensington Books (2025)
True Crime Memoir
272 pages
Disclosure: I received this book in exchange for an honest book review. This post contains affiliate links.
Summary: In Evil at Our Table, Samantha Stein, PsyD examines how society decides who is too dangerous to release and who may be given another chance. Grounded in real evaluations, the story unfolds in the space where psychology meets the law.
Working under California’s Sexually Violent Predator Law, Dr. Stein conducts evaluations that can result in indefinite incarceration or release. Each assessment requires close attention to behavior, personal history, and psychological risk, all while acknowledging the uncertainty inherent in prediction.
The book details how Dr. Stein listens to offenders’ accounts of their crimes, their upbringing, and their internal logic, weighing accountability against the possibility of change. She studies patterns of manipulation and remorse while remaining aware of how high the stakes truly are. Beyond the cases themselves, Evil at Our Table reflects on how repeated exposure to violence and moral ambiguity shapes her personal life. The story offers a rare look at how justice is navigated when certainty is elusive.
Evil At Our Table
TRIGGER WARNING: sexual abuse, sex offenders, sexual assault, mental illness
This is a hard book to review. With the subject matter, it doesn’t sound right to say it was a good book. It was written well. But the subject matter is not good. I think it’s an important subject to write about though, especially from the point of view of a forensic psychologist who worked with these types of people (sex offenders.)
Most people just hear the term sex offender and think they are all horrible people, evil monsters who deserve to die. Perhaps you will still think that after you read the book or perhaps you will see that there are also regular people who made bad decisions and are forever labelled a sex offender because of it. There is no “right” or “wrong” way to feel after this book. You may feel differently if you were abused or assaulted sexually. Either way, the book is eye opening and an eye opening read.
Am I glad I read this book? Yes. Was it well written? Also yes. Would I recommend it ao everyone? No. This book is not for everyone. If you are interested in psychology, especially in crimes, yes. If you want to know what is done with sex offenders after they are arearrested, yes.
About the Author
Samantha Stein Psy.D. is a forensic psychologist who specialized in sex offender and addiction treatment, court-ordered evaluations, and court testimony for nearly 3 decades. The author of a popular PsychologyToday.com column with over 2.2 million reads, her writing has been published in numerous outlets, including Flaunt Magazine, The Awakenings Review, Anxy Magazine, and The Guardian. A frequent speaker and teacher, she has presented at numerous conferences. She is also an avid photographer whose work has been exhibited in several small shows and has sold to collectors and individuals. She lives with her family in the San Francisco Bay Area. Visit Samantha at her website.