Member Reviews
As a lover of The Kind Worth Killing, I was so excited to get this advanced copy! Thank you so much.
I was absolutely immersed in this semi-sequel! I loved the twists - Swanson is a mastermind at this. Joan drove me crazy, Richard had all kinds of issues, and Henry continued to be flawed and well intended.
I did have some issues with the school gun violence scenes. Some words used were hurtful (one or two kids shot during a shooting didn’t make headlines, for example) as we’re talking about someone’s child here. It just made me uncomfortable as a mother of 3.
Overall though, I absolutely loved this book. It kept my attention to the very end!
"We all eventually end up in a tragedy."
Loooooved everything about this one. It's different than TKWK but definitely left some breadcrumbs that reminded me why I loved that book so much.
Unlike most books, this one kept my interest with every single POV and storyline. Suspenseful, mysterious, and f***ing brilliant.
A top read for the year. Hands Down.
If you enjoyed The Kind Worth Killing you will love this book! If you’ve never read The Kind Worth Killing stop whatever you’re doing and read that book and then this one! This book is broken down into 3 separate parts with every part keeping you on the edge of your seat needing to know what twist lies ahead. It is also told from many points of view, which I personally love, it allows you the ability to get inside everyone’s head but despite that you will be still be left saying OMG WHAT??!
I would rate this book 3.75 stars. As a huge fan of “A Kind Worth Killing”, I felt this sort of sequel/spin off fit perfectly and was still similar in style to its predecessor. I enjoyed the similarities to its plot twists as the previous novel, but don’t think it lived up quite as much.
I was excited to see Lily again, although I wish we saw more of her. Henry was doing what Henry always does. My main issues were it was somewhat easy to predict, but putting that aside, a still enjoyable read.
I enjoyed the flashbacks every other chapter, it gave a clear idea of who the antagonists are and how they think/operate. Unfortunately, they felt like they could’ve been a lot more cunning in the current situation, versus the past, but maybe they were only good at planning in advance and not dealing with issues in the moment. The issues the protagonists faced seemed a little too easily solvable though.
Again, I wish we saw more of Lily, but enjoyed overall how the story played out and wrapped up.
"The Kind Worth Saving" was another good novel by Peter Swanson. The plot, though a little predictable and unbelievable in places, was interesting and compelling enough to keep me reading, and engrossing enough that it was easy to breeze through the book without time seeming like it passed at all.
I read the first in this series a long time ago, so I kind of went into this sequel a little clueless. I don't remember many details about the first book, and don't reread books.
Peter Swanson is one of my favorite authors, and this book confirms it. His books are full of just unlikeable, evil people and it's always a wild ride. If you are able, read the first one before this sequel, but the sequel works okay as a standalone, too.
Peter Swanson gifted us with the sequel to The Kind Worth Killing.
Kimball and Lily are back with another twisty-turny thriller.
The Kind Worth Saving will keep you up at night reading just one more chapter. You know what the outcome is with that don’t you? 🙂
Kimball and Lily are the US equivalent of Luther and Alice and I sincerely hope there’s more to their story.
I also love the literary and music nods woven throughout the book.
Peter Swanson has become one of my favorite authors.
The Kind Worth Saving is a five star read for me!
Thanks to NetGalley for the preview!
Perfect Song Pairing - Murder By Numbers by The Police
The Kind Worth Killing was one of the first books that hooked me on thrillers, so I was excited about this sequel (even though I am normally not a fan of sequels/series). It was well written, but there was no mystery or twist. Just people who like to murder other people lol. Also I find the whole Henry/Lily dynamic really weird... He's in love with someone who tried to kill him? Anyway I kept waiting for a big twist or something, but it never came. Still an enjoyable read, just don't expect any surprises.
Swanson revisits characters from his earlier novel The Kind Worth Killing. The former high school English teacher, turned police officer, turned private eye, is hired by a former student to prove her husband is having an affair. Little does he know he has stepped into a spiders web of deceit and manipulation. Nothing is quite what it seems, Swanson is up to his usuals twists and turns keeping the reader turning pages to get to the final resolution. As in his previous books there are plenty of literary references for the reader to pick out along the way.
This reviewer supports the HarperCollins Union. I've read and written a review, but won't be uploading it here or on any other platforms until the HarperCollins Union has a fair contract.
While not a groundbreaking or earth shattering title, this was a very fast paced book and a solid purchase for thriller dominant collections.
Disgraced police detective Henry Kimball has hung up his shingle as a private investigator. A former student hires him to get proof that her husband is cheating on her. Just as he's about to get the proof his client craves, things spiral wildly out of control. Told from multiple perspectives and timelines, the layers are peeled away until there's nothing left but the shocking truth. Perfect for fans of psychological fiction.
Detective Henry Kimball is now a private investigator and has taken on a case from an old high school student. She has always struck him as more than meets the eye. When he finds two bodies during the case, he wonders her role.
I love books about some evil females posing as every day, normal women. This story was so interesting to me! It wasn’t as twisty as some of his other reads, but it was just as entertaining. There was a lot of backstory on a few of the main characters left out, so I highly advise reading the Kind Worth Killing directly before. I read it a while ago and wish I had refreshed myself before this one.
“Everything boils down to that one sentiment. I was there. I was there, and I felt things and saw things. Sometimes I understood them, but most of the time I did not.”
The Kind Worth Saving comes out 3/7.
The Kind Worth Saving doesn't have to be read as a sequel to The Kind Worth Killing. In fact, it's fantastic as a stand alone. Henry Kimball, the anti-hero of the first novel, has left the police force in shame and now has his private investigators license.
Kimball gets a visit from former high school student Joan from when he was an English teacher, pre-cop. Joan needs Kimball to investigate her cheatin' husband to catch him in the act with his office manager.
Kimball takes on the case. Pretty soon he discovers the cheaters' bodies inside an empty home. A murder/suicide. Or is it?
Ok, the reader already knows the outcome. But Swanson cleverly backtracks Joan's life of crime and partnership with another deadly player. Was she also responsible for the school shooting that left her nemesis dead?
Henry begins to sense a pattern. But will it get the PI killed? Only a key player from Kimball's past can save the day!
A fun, diabolical and fast read, The Kind Worth Saving will amp your thriller senses into hyperdrive.
4.5 stars.
Henry Kimball from The Kind Worth Killing is BACK! After being kicked off the police force, he now works as a private investigator. Joan Whalen is his newest client, who requests his services to investigate her husband to prove he is cheating. It turns out Joan also was Kimball's student when he was at the center of a tragedy. What should be an easy job of documenting infidelity quickly grows more gruesome when Kimball finds two bodies. Now, Kimball will have to go back to this tragic event in his past to unearth the truth.
This was another excellent cat/mouse game thriller by Swanson, and I loved reuniting with Kimball and Lilly (yes, she is also a part of the story!). Swanson has such a knack at writing these "bad" characters who you cannot help but root for. He also calls into question where the line is between good and evil. The sequel definitely lived up to expectations.
3.5 stars, rounded up because The Kind Worth Killing was the first book I read by Peter Swanson and one of my favorites. I truly enjoyed catching up with a couple of his characters from TKWK in his newest novel. The plot was mostly solid and begins with Henry Kimball still a detective and being hired by a woman to find out if her husband is cheating on her. Plenty of twists, as is the norm with his books, unfortunately, it just didn't come together for me and the storyline fell apart for me. I felt like the ending should have been more satisfying. Thanks to Netgalley for an ARC of this novel. If you're a fan of Swanson and TKWK, then you will enjoy his newest work.
3.5 stars. This is part of the series, but you don't necessarily have to have read book one since there is a stand alone mystery in this novel. Henry Kimball is a private detective approached by a former student to figure out if her husband is cheating on her. "But what should be a simple case of infidelity becomes much more complicated when Kimball finds two bodies in an uninhabited suburban home with a FOR SALE sign out front." This story has some good twists and turns. I also like how it moved between the perspectives of Henry, Joan, and one other character. I just found some of the twists to be a bit implausible, and some of Henry's choices were questionable too. So while I enjoyed it, I wouldn't say it is a must read. Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this as an ARC.
For lovers of twisty thrillers, there’s a lot of clever plotting here. I was concerned that it would be necessary to have read the first in this series, but much background is included.
Picking up two years later, from The Kind Worth Killing , The Kind Worth Saving is off to a bang. Alternating past and present timelines allows us to really get to know the characters in depth. With obsession and secret pacts this sequel if a great follow up.
I didn't realize this was a sequel to a previous book I had read years ago and enjoyed, and it can be read as a standalone. (I want to go back and reread the first book now). The reader knows fairly soon who the culprit is, but an enjoyable read nevertheless to see how the mystery unfolds to the private investigator on the case.