I stayed up way too late reading this one! A thriller about serial killers that’s also funny? A group of smart, crazy women running around Las Vegas trying to catch one of said serial killers? Psychological trauma, wild plot twists, huge grand plans to save the day? This book had so many things going on and it just all worked. I loved the whole Vegas group, the glimpses into the past, the interludes, and the fast pace at the end as everything came together. Every twist totally had me fooled, and I was smirking way more than you do reading a normal thriller. Such a good one…. and I was so excited to read “see you in the sequel” in the credits!

Wasn't sure what to expect and was pleasantly surprised. I didn't know this author, and do like mysteries, so gave it a try. Some humor, pretty good pace and characters. Nice, fun book to read.

The story starts off with Amber who is unlucky enough to be a victim of a serial killer but somehow happens to get away thanks to a mysterious woman. Darkly humorous with a lot of quirky situations shine despite the seriousness of serial murders.
I agree that the reader must suspend disbelief in plenty scenarios that are just too convenient and yes, a lot of puking puking by the main character.
The writing style reels you in though, it has a good flow and the personality of the twenty-something Amber feels believable. If you like serial killers, Las Vegas, and humor, this book is for you!

What a fun book! It has the humor of Janet Evanovich, but I felt like the writing and story were more complex and the characters were better developed. The storyline was intriguing, the protagonist's voice was wry, but you could still feel some emotion. The book was a fast read and felt like it flowed easily. I didn't find myself bored and pushing through loads of exposition or side plots. I devoured the book in a day. If this ended up being a series, I would enjoy reading more.

I loved the book and how it had so many twists and turns. I thought I had it all figured out but the easy the author wrote it, I had second guessed myself. The book could easily turn into a series that I would for sure read.

Great writing!

I received an advance review copy of Killing Me via NetGalley, drawn by the playfulness of the cover and description. Despite being a thriller/murder mystery, the book offers such humor and quirkiness. The plot begins with the speaker/protagonist, Amber Jamison, facing a serial killer and somehow being saved by an unknown vigilante. These initial pages plodded along slowly with the unmistakable vibe that something more was about to happen.

I don't hand out five stars often, but I do for this book because it showed such easy prose, such fresh ideas and mixed everything into a blender and somehow spit out something palatable and cohesive. The characters have compelling back story. The side characters fall in and out of the text while somehow bringing stereotypes to three-dimensional life and gaining the reader's sympathy.

The book touches on queerness without making it a queer book, per se. The main character is a woman who dates women, and the book even offers mention of non-binary folks, but the novel itself remains mainstream.

If a murder mystery where the main character is set up to be a victim can be fun, this book is definitely fun.

The author does a magnificent job of building just the right amount of tension, danger and ridiculousness.

I enjoyed the storyline of this book. There were a few surprises that I was not expecting! Especially at the end, it had me questioning if what I thought was wrong. I will definitely be checking out the Michelle Gagnon's other books!


Thank you to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for the book and opportunity to share my thoughts.

I absolutely loved this book! The voice is hilarious and I couldn't stop laughing at the bizarre situations the protagonist, Amber, found herself in. Normally I don't like serial killer books but a darkly comic one like this is right up my alley. I don't want to give too much away but it kept me guessing until the very end. Highly recommend to those who love wickedly funny thrillers.

Killing Me
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: Thriller
Format: Kindle eBook
Date Published: 5/16/23
Author: Michelle Gagnon
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons
Pages: 336
GR: 4.25

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and G.P. Putnam’s Sons and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: Amber Jamison cannot believe she’s about to become the latest victim of a serial killer—she’s savvy and street smart, so when she gets pushed into, of all things, a white windowless van, she's more angry than afraid. Then she’s saved by a mysterious woman…who promptly disappears. Her close call has law enforcement circling a past she’s tried to outrun. So she’s forced to flee, ending up at a seedy motel in Las Vegas with a noir-obsessed manager and a sex worker as her unlikely companions...and danger right behind. To survive, she's forced to dust off her old playbook and partner with someone she can’t trust. The odds are against her, but sometimes you just have to roll the dice.

My Thoughts: Who knew that an epic suspenseful thriller could be so darn funny? Gagnon does it so well and gracefully. Amber is a bad ass heroine that is funny, bold, sarcastic while being a kind person. The plot was set so brilliantly, you really did not know what character to trust or what events to believe. I do not want to give too much away to not spoil it for readers. Just know this book is funny, suspenseful, and fast paced! The characters were developed well with depth, humor, twisted, intriguing, and creatively woven throughout the story. The author’s writing style was complex, dark, suspenseful, funny, and just brilliant. If you love the Finlay Donovan series like I do, you will love this, so go preorder NOW! I can see this being a best-seller.

I thank the author, Penguin Group Putnam and NetGalley for offering this arc. I thought the premise was intriguing, and it was. This was a good romp. The suspense was good and the flip/flops were satisfying. The author displays a dispassionate harshness toward her characters that I admire. Really.

It is, however, completely unhinged from reality, which is part of the fun. Does anyone else wonder how our heroine is constantly being hurt and manages to find healthcare despite serious injuries? That seems to be a real meme in thrillers these days. . . don't these people worry about fake indentities and no insurance cards? No deductibles? No copay? (But I digress. . . you can tell what my year has been like.) And then there's the "Oh, here's a positive surprise that you had no idea was coming that will change your life. Don't misplace it!"

So, an enjoyable romp like a frothy souffle that you can pretend you didn't love and ignore the calories. I will read the blurb on the upcoming sequel and maybe give it a whirl. And I'll check out the author's other series.

Sex workers, drug addicts, con artists, and serial killers. What an incredibly diverse cast of kooky characters. The humor is dry and quirky just like I like it and everyone is flawed yet a few are still lovable. I had no idea where this book was going to take me but it was an enjoyable psychological thriller/dark comedy. Some of it was a bit cheesy and clichéd but it added to the charm overall. If you love books about female relationships (friends, family, and lovers), serial killer thrillers, and supremely flawed heroines, then this is a book for you.

I wish I had more stars to give this wonderful book! Actually, 100 wouldn’t be enough! I was expecting a thriller/murder mystery, but I didn’t expect it to be laugh out loud FUNNY! I even read passages to my husband, out of context, & he laughed, too! She writes like we think, and says the internal stuff out loud. It’s real, poignant & thought provoking. But mostly, it’s a fun ride!

You can read the book’s description above, so I’ll just say that even though some of the elements were a little far fetched, I could suspend my disbelief for this book. The characters were all likable, well except for the murders, but even then, this author gave reasonable, interesting descriptions of them. To think I was almost scared off in the first 5 pages! I would’ve missed one of the best, funniest, & well-written books I’ve ever read!

I couldn’t put this book down, & at the same time, I didn’t want it to end. I look forward to the sequel, & I’m going to look up her other books & read them. I highly recommend this book!

Thank you to #NetGalley for giving me an ARC copy of #KillingMe by #MichelleGagnon. I appreciate the opportunity to read it in exchange for my honest review.

Amber has been kidnapped. She's come to terms with her fate, realizing she's going to become the next victim, left at the mercy of the Pokemon Go Killer. Aside from the crushing reality of death being on the way...like, RIGHT NOW, it's especially disheartening since she's done everything she could to rebuild her life. Her sordid past is all but behind her and she was so close to finishing up her degree, living her new life. Until she's saved. A mysterious woman swoops in, freeing Amber. But why is she chasing serial killers? Why did she choose to save Amber? Either way, the cops are involved and Amber has not choice but to flee, choosing Vegas to lay low and dodge the law. She can run but, she can't hide: someone far more sinister is hot on her heels.

Killing Me has a different energy than typical thrillers, perfectly meshing action and giggles, resulting in an over-the-top story that is consistently in motion. The foolery reeled me in immediately. I internally cackled at the Pokemon Go killer, Amber's thoughts, literally every conversation between Dot and Jess. The imagery is exciting, the text lit up in neon, I can't imagine another setting but Vegas for the plot to unfold.

Every character and relationship glows, their strength not inherently stated but, shining through nonetheless. I'm a sucker for women-centric works, and even more so when they're unabashedly themselves. There's no question each of the main characters here are bold and brazen in their own rite, a force when put together.

While some of the plot points are far fetched, the absurdity works. If Amber, Dot, and Marcella weren't depicted in the way Gagnon did, I wouldn't have believed the situations they got into (and Dot got them out of) throughout but, because of how daring they are, I didn't question it. This allowed for insane twists that had me guessing until the last 90% of the book, questioning all I'd learned up until that point.

Reminiscent of the setting itself, every story element is abuzz and over the top: campy characters, colorful dialogue, inconceivable situations. Does some of it seem unimaginable? Yes but, who cares! It's FUN! Highly recommend this when you're in a silly goofy mood but make it murder.

Round up to 4.5

First time I read a book by this author and it won't be my last time! I read this book in one setting so fast paced and twisty and thrilling. Highly recommend ! Thank you to the publishers and netgalley for my complementary E Arc.

Loved this book !! It’s a crazy spin on the serial killer craze. From the first page the story takes you on a wild and sometimes hard to believe ride. Lots of dry humor mixed in with murder and unexpected friendships. I’m looking for to a sequel.
Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This book was better than I had expected to be honest. It was really fast-paced, hilarious and intense throughout the entire thing. I loved it.
Amber was kidnapped and on her way to a gruesome death when out of nowhere she was saved. When she thought it was all over, she was afraid of her past coming out so instead of letting that happen, she fled from her life to Las Vegas where she realized there was no escaping what was trying to take her down. With her new ragtag team of friends, she tries to escape a serial killer who isn't willing to let her go.
If you like thrillers and comedic one-liners, you definitely want to pick this up. I absolutely loved it. It has just enough comedy to make it entertaining without being too over the top. Definitely one of my favorite books that I have read this year. Do yourself a favor and just read it.

An odd read in the best possible way. I was constantly on my toes and couldn't guess what was coming! As someone who reads a good amount of thrillers and mysteries, it's hard to not see some plot twists coming. This book is a little ridiculous, but in such a fun way! For example, we open up with the Pikachu Killer, a guy who wears a Pikachu masks and paints girls like Pokemon characters before killing them. Yes, you read that right. This book is hilarious and a welcome change of pace from the rest of the genre.

If you love a cozy mystery for the humor and relationships, but you're also not opposed to a little more of the fast-paced excitement that get your heart racing, pick this up right away! I loved how the tension was balanced out by great depth of characters and relatioship-building between them. Sometimes that gets sacrificed for the sake of the plot, but Killing Me manages to include both well.

TL;DR: you need this book. It's really that simple.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Publishing for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

I loved this book!! Humor mixed with serial killers! Suspenseful but also fun! It kept me guessing until the end, the characters were enjoyable. Finished it in one day because it really draws you in.

When I first read the description of Michelle Gagnon’s Killing Me, I couldn’t wait to jump in. As someone who primarily reads true crime, mysteries, thrillers or comedies, I thought it would be the perfect read.

Let’s start with the pros. This book is a quick, easy read with a fun premise and a female lead. It never feels dull or sluggish. I’d liken it to an 80s power ballad, fervent and dramatic.

However, like many 80s power ballads, it feels like it’s trying a bit too hard at times… well most of the time, really. In the first chapter, readers are introduced to the Pikachu killer, a peculiar man who kidnaps women and paints their bodies to look like Pokémon characters before murdering them and disposing of their bodies. And from there, it gets quirkier and quirkier (and not in a fun Grady Hendrix or Chuck Palahniuk kind of way). Now, I’m up for a good quirk or strange revelation… but this was a bit too much.

I also struggled to connect with the characters, especially the heroine, who I found to be a bit nauseating (literally). I wish I would have counted how many times she pukes in the book. Too much to drink? Puke. Something scary happens? Puke. Shares her deepest, darkest secret? Puke. Seriously, who pukes that much?!

Flaws aside, this book did keep my attention throughout, and I had a fantastic time summarizing its madness to my husband.

Thank you to Penguin Group Putnam and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book is a wild ride crossing so many genres. Is it a thriller, a mystery, chick lit, lesbian romance? I don't mind what its label is - I enjoyed it. Thanks to the author and NetGalley for sending me an ARC. I am leaving this review voluntarily.