Killing Me by Michelle Gagnon was an absolutely WILD, delightful ride! I would describe it as a campy thriller with lots of comedy thrown in. It has so many plot twists and turns, I was totally captivated!

It follows Amber after her narrow escape from a serial killer. Only to find herself the target of ANOTHER serial killer. It has an amazing cast of characters - mostly badass females! - that add so much to the story. Most of the book takes place in the seedy underbelly of Vegas - which also added an interesting element.

I can’t even tell you how much I loved this book. It’s a must read if you like:
🔑 Strong female characters
🔑 Thrillers with a side of humor
🔑 Flawed characters
🔑 Stories about serial killers
🔑 Alllll the plot twists

Publish date: May 23, 2023

Thank you to @netgalley and @penguinrandomhouse for access to this eARC.

This was such a strange book. Am I glad I read it? …maybe? It started out in a hilarious whirlwind, so I had high hopes for this one. A college student named Amber gets kidnapped by a serial killer known as the “pikachu killer”, who completely shaves his victims and paints them to look like pokemon… what!? Amber’s inner commentary throughout the abduction is just golden. So this book started off with this funny edge that I really enjoyed! If the whole book had stayed consistently funny like it was at the beginning, I think I would have really loved it. But then I feel like that level of comedy died down as you kept reading. It still has plenty of sarcastic banter, but it wasn’t so laugh-out-loud funny to me. I put the book down around 40% for a while, and then I struggled to get into it until closer to the end.

Things went from quirky but still slightly believable, to completely outlandish and I just couldn’t quite follow it. I think my main issue is it just didn’t quite fit with my sense of humor. However, if you *want* an outlandish and quirky read about catching a serial killer, I think you’d like this.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

I greatly enjoyed this book. So much so, that I read it in one sitting. It's a fun, quirky read with eccentric female characters, .sarcastic humor and heart.

The characters, particularly the MC, were fully developed. The pacing was perfect with the plot having unexpected twists and turns which kept me engaged until the last page.

Although there is humor, underlying it is the theme of second chances and redemption.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishing team for giving me an eARC of Killing Me in exchange for an honest review.

This was a FUN book, but it wasn't quite for me. It starts with our main character in the back of a van being kidnapped by the Pikkachu Killer, a serial killer who paints his victims to look like Pokeman characters. As off the wall as this is, the humor and wacky characters only grown throughout the book. It is definitely a campy thriller, and not an edge of your seat, nightmare inducing thriller. Overall, this book and it's characters were every bit as zany as I was hoping for. Unfortunately, the premise requires way too much suspension of disbelief and reliance on unexplainable technology to be my personal cup of tea.

Thanks to Netgalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for the free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This is a fun, fast paced thriller/mystery/suspense story of serial killers and eccentric women with a touch of sarcasm. Its definitely good time! We meet Amber, a grifter, who has gotten herself kidnaped by a serial killer. She is rescued by a woman in a ski mask who hunts serial killers professionally and wields a mean cattle prod. Now the game begins!

There are a lot of twists and action to keep me guessing about what is around the corner but the unique humor thrown in was great! I definitely will watch to see if this becomes a series! Loved Marcella and Dot!

Highly recommend!

The cover of this book is what caught my eye and then the synopsis sounded right up my alley. Amber, the main character, was written so well. I really enjoyed her thoughts as she was being kidnapped and made an event that should be horrifying, much more entertaining. This book has so many random twists and turns but I was there for all of them. Definitely buying a physical copy of this book when its released to add to my collection. Absolutely loved this one and will be telling everyone I know about it. Thanks NetGalley for granting me the e-ARC to read.

Thank you to NetGalley, G.P. Putnam's Sons New York, and Michelle Gagnon for my ARC of Killing Me.

I thoroughly enjoyed this read. Seriously, this is a top tier book and I had so much fun reading Killing Me by Michelle Gagnon. I laughed, I cried, I gasped, I was on the edge of my seat throughout the whole book. Normally, there is "fluff" in books like these before you really get up to the action. That was not the case in this book. Michelle Gagnon is HILARIOUS. Seriously, she has such a way with writing that there is NEVER a dull moment in this book. In all books I read there are times where I read mindlessly and then I don't understand what I read, but that did NOT happen in Killing Me. I read every single word and loved every single second of it.

This is it. Amber Jamison is about to die. After getting abducted by a serial killer, she is now hairless and blue, and she is about to die. She's more embarrassed if anything because she's about to become a statistic. As if the situation couldn't get any weirder, she's saved by a knight in shiny armor... really a woman in skinny jeans and a ski mask using a cattle prod. A bit of a... really blunt person... Amber is saved by this mysterious person who quickly leaves just as fast as she arrived. Then, things get even weirder. After a close call with the police, Amber now has to go on the run and ends up in a sketchy Las Vegas motel where she befriends the noir-obsessed manager and a local sex worker. And as if things couldn't get more peculiar, she's now getting chased by different a serial killer. Time for Amber to go back to her roots and work with an unlikely team to take care of business. Maybe this time, she'll get lucky in Vegas.

I really felt like Gagnon left no stone unturned by the end of this book. She even gave us a satisfying ending! I especially appreciated the diversity of this book with the inclusion of POC and LGBTQ+ characters. Seriously, what a fun read. I don't think I've ever laughed so hard while reading a book. I know that first and foremost, it's a suspense/psychological thriller book. Don't get me wrong, I was seriously shocked at the plot twists and I felt like I was running a marathon. Even until the end I was still questioning everything, and I mean that. in a good way. It truly takes a talented author to be able to also stay true to the "humorous" aspect of the book. Honestly, I didn't find the comedy to be "cheesy", I genuinely found it laugh out loud funny. Also the fact that it was almost like a heist but not a heist to get money, a heist to catch a serial killer? Chef's kiss. Wow. Amazing. Wonderful. Show stopping. Now all I want to do is read more books like THIS. Gosh I really cannot express how incredible Killing Me by Michelle Gagnon is. From the author to the cover of the book (which is BEAUTIFUL, I love it), to the actual. book itself, I give it a million stars. But I guess I'll have to settle for five stars.

I would describe this first as a fun thriller, the characters were relatable and I thought amber was a great heroine. Quick read too, I throughly enjoyed this book. I went into this one blindly not sure what to expect I laughed out loud at parts and others I was in suspense as to what would happen next. Would definitely recommend this one. Thank you netgalley for advanced copy.

After the f-bomb was tossed almost as soon as I started to read, and within another page, several curse words were used, I opted not to read the book.
Zero stars

The book's description sounded promising, but such an implausible premise only works if everything else is convincing enough, but the writing here is so bad and immature, and the humor too flippant for my taste (but also, just not funny). I'm glad so many people enjoyed this book, but it's not for me and I couldn't finish it.

Killing Me, Amber Jamison. From a nice quiet town to a hunting ground for a serial killer, Amber thought she'd be safe but ended up in the hands of the serial killer. Tied up with a bag over her head, in the back of a van. The serial killer drove her to a warehouse and it seemed like that's where Amber's life was going to end. But it didn't. That's when things in her life got really weird. How'd she ended up getting out of the warehouse with her life? The first chapter brings you into the story quickly and doesn't let you go. The author, Michelle Gagnon, did an amazing job with Killing Me. I refuse to continue reading books that are full of filler words/information or when the story moves too slowly. The speed of Killing Me was great and kept my interest. You'll be rooting for Amber. I did!

I enjoyed this book mostly because of the writing style. Fun read. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Thanks to NetGalley and Putnam Books for sending me an ARC of Killing Me in exchange for an honest review.

Twenty-something Amber Johnson is about to become the latest victim of the “Pikachu Killer” when she is rescued by a woman who wears a ski mask and hunts serial killers. She may have survived this latest brush with death, but the attention from law enforcement risks her past coming to light, so Amber goes on the run. Soon she’s in Las Vegas meeting new people, which is great, but she’s also drawn into the path of an even more dangerous serial killer, which is less great. Good thing she already knows a serial killer-killer….

As you should expect from a book with an opening scene involving a serial killer who paints his victims to look like Pokémon characters, Killing Me is going for both laughs and thrills. The laughs often come from Amber’s cynical, sarcastic perspective on each scene, though the reader slowly learns the darker secrets in her past. But there’s also a solid mystery/thriller here as Amber is drawn into the murders taking place in Las Vegas, unsure of who she can trust. Dot, Marcella, and Grace are all good secondary characters. In fact, nearly every character in the novel is a woman—complicated and flawed, but redeemable.

The acknowledgments for Killing Me state that this book is the start of a series. The book certainly works as a stand-alone, and fully wraps up the story, though the ending is a bit bittersweet. Presumably the sequel would reunite the surviving characters to take down another killer in another fun story while also giving some of them a shot at a happier ending. All of that sounds good to me. Recommended. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

A fun and fast reading novel with sincere characters and good character development that highlights themes of trust, trauma, and friendship. If you are looking for something to keep your attention, that that has characters who are unpredictable and snarky but still likeable and kind this is a great pick. College student Amber can't believe her bad luck when she is picked up as the latest victim of the Pokemon killer - yes the Pokemon killer. Her life is not quite over yet, as something even more unexpected happens, leading to a cascading series of events that send her to Las Vegas. Not a cozy for the faint-hearted but not a dark noir-style thriller either - this is the type of twisty mystery that is a fun read for those who appreciate protagonists who flirt with the dark side.

- Thriller
- Mystery
- Humor

Bullet plot: Amber Jamison never imagined her life would be cut short by a serial killer. As a lover of serial killer podcasts she was supposed to be smarter than this! Then, by an even stranger turn of events she survives. Only to try and start her life anew out west. On her voyage she soon becomes a pawn between a brother and sister’s killer game of “catch me if you can”. Teaming up with an unlikely group to try and end this deadly game before she falls prey to yet ANOTHER serial killer… because sooner or later everyone’s luck runs out.

Rating:3.75/5

A huge thank you to the author and publisher, for providing me with an ARC copy of this book, in exchange for my honest review.
You want my honest review? This book was absolutely FANTASTIC! It hooked me from the first chapter and I devoured each and every one thereafter. We begin in Tennessee with Amber getting kidnapped by a serial killer and “rescued” by a ski mask wearing, cattle prod wielding, vigilante of sorts. “Ski mask” ends up being- a woman! She is reluctant to tell Amber how she found her and why she rescued her, she really just wants to move on. When the FBI comes around Ambers apartment, to discuss what happened to her, she knows the skeletons in her closet need to stay hidden. This leads to Amber skipping town and heading West to fabulous Las Vegas. When Amber is sent a file of recent kills in the area, “ski mask” and Amber are brought together once again and someone has a lot at stake.

I loved pretty much everything about this book. I read a lot of thrillers, and while I did guess one of the twists, there were plenty more to keep me guessing. This did have a lot of suspense, but the humor throughout made this a completely different reading experience than most. I will definitely be purchasing this book when it is released, as well as sharing my review then, and I could not recommend it more. I hope this becomes a series- I need to know what happens to Dot and Marcella! I need to know if Amber and “ski mask” reunite and use their skills to solve other crimes. Basically I just need more! So if Michelle Gagnon is reading this: please!

This was a great book. I loved every paragraph, every sentence and every word of this masterpiece! I read it in 12 hours, which is a lot for me to do! It had everything and more laid out in the novel! I sure hope she writes more! I am totally hooked!

I could not put this book down! It's the perfect cozy-ish mystery you need very campy and it balances having mystery/suspense and second guessing with humor and a touch of light heartedness. The writing was easy to get into and added to the easy way you can fly through this book. Like any other cozy mystery's I think it would be best to have a bit of suspension of belief while reading.
I will be looking for more Michelle Gagnon books in the future!

This book drew me in with its premise and kept me reading with its humor and voice. It made me want to take a trip to Vegas and hang out with these characters. The narrator may not be entirely reliable, but as I reader I always felt that I was in good narrative hands. And I love a messy female main character. No spoilers here, but I will say the plot kept me guessing and I enjoyed every moment. This was my first book by Michelle Gagnon, but I will now be seeking out more of her work.

In Killing Me, Amber starts out as the soon-to-be victim of a serial killer. She's rescued, but the woman who rescues her comes with her own set of complications--which instantly become Amber's problem, too. I can't say too much more than this without spoiling everything, but I can say I absolutely loved this! The humor was well-balanced, and despite having a funny edge, the book maintained tension, scariness, and delivered twists. Just when I thought I was one step ahead of the plot, nope, I was wrong. This was a great ride, and I highly recommend it.