Ah, it's good to be back to the Swanson I know and love after Nine Lives was such a disappointment. The Kind Worth Saving is a worthy sequel to The Kind Worth Killing and it was so much fun seeing Kimball and Lily again.

Not unlike its predecessor, The Kind Worth Saving features unlikely people coming together and plotting the perfect murder. Or four. When no one even knows they've talked to one another, who could possibly link them?

Enter Henry Kimball and Lily Kintner.

The story opens with Kimball being hired as a private investigator by Joan, who is certain her husband, Richard, is having an affair. But while Kimball is tailing him, infidelity turns to something far more sinister. And when Kimball discovers two dead bodies, he can't help thinking that there's more to the story than there first appears. So he decides to go to the one person who might have insight into the matter.

As with The Kind Worth Killing, we are handed the answers early in the novel and the rest of the story becomes about the characters, the moves they play, and how they figure out the truth. Swanson makes this style of storytelling work well. Instead of hanging everything on a twist that we may or may not figure out, he draws us into his characters' minds and makes wondering what will happen to them the real pull of the book.

I only discovered Peter Swanson’s “The Kind Worth Killing” last year and absolutely loved the psychological thriller. It was one of my favourite reads of 2022.

In “The Kind Worth Saving”, some time has passed and Harry Kimball no longer is a police detective and is now a private detective and Lily Kintner is living with her divorced parents keeping the peace between them.

A young woman called Joan Grieve hires Harry to investigate and confirm her suspicions as to whether her husband Richard is having an affair with a work colleague called Pam. It turns out that Joan was a former student of Harry in his first career as a High School English Teacher before he joined the police. Harry starts his surveillance of Richard and also takes time to revisit his time as a teacher and events that occurred when Joan was in one of his classes. As he investigation deepens he calls on Lily to run his theories by her. I find their relationship absolutely fascinating and that despite everything that happened in the past, he has a respect for Lily.

Just like “The Worth Killing”, the story unfolds from the perspective of the key characters, in this case, Harry, Joan, Lily and Richard. Also, there are multiple timelines providing back stories to Joan and Richard and also Harry’s previous life as a teacher.

If you loved “The Kind Worth Killing”, you will absolutely love “The Kind Worth Saving”.

I really hope that there will be a third instalment with Harry and Lily - they are just such interesting characters.

Huge thanks to Faber & Faber and NetGalley for making “The Kind Worth Saving” to me as an e-ARC in return for a fair and honest review.

The first book I ever read by Peter Swanson was The Kind Worth Killing way back in 2015 and it has stayed one my favourite thrillers ever since with it's clever plot and intriguing main characters, killer Lily Kintner and and rather oddball cop Henry Kimball.
Far too many years later Peter Swanson has decided to write a sequel ,The Kind Worth Saving, but it's well-worth the wait. While it's not essential to have read the previous book you'll get far more out of this one if you have, not least Lily and Harry's backstories.
Now a Private Detective Henry is employed by someone he recognises as a former pupil from his pre-Police days as a Teacher to investigate her husband,who she thinks is having an affair. Harry's investigation leads him into going literally under cover and he suspects that all is not as it seems when events take a drastic turn for the worse. Henry,unlike most i suspect ,looks to someone who once stabbed him for help, the enigmatic and deadly Lily Kintner.

This is an excellent story that as well as being a great thriller has the usual Peter Swanson cerebral touch as a bonus. As Harry's seemingly routine marital investigation escalates rapidly ,he and Lily find links between his current drama , traumatic events in his past...........and beyond,as it becomes obvious that they are not the only unlikely couple taking an interest.

I would strongly suggest that anyone who hasn't read "The Kind Worth KIlling" to do so before tackling this one, not essential but you'll get a whole lot more out of the later book if you do so.
An excellent read that I really hope leads to more in the series.

Absolutely brilliant! Peter Swanson at his best. I love how the suspense slowly builds up and how the true nature of all the characters [with their nasty thoughts!] slowly exposes itself. I was not at all sure who are the good/bad guys and how it was all going to pan out. It's shockingly outrageous in parts and made me gasp out loud. So gripping I read it in one sitting. Highly recommended.

Another enjoyable read from Peter Swanson. Henry Kimball is hired to check out a husband suspected of cheating on his wife and ends up discovering his dead body. The story has the usual twists and turns but I found it lacked the excitement of some of Swanson's earlier books. This one was quick to read and entertaining but the ending felt rushed and it lacked the thrilling adrenaline rush that you usually get with Swanson's books. Nevertheless I would still recommend this book as a good read.

Another good book from Peter Swanson.

As usual I love the writing style and the story telling.

I’m not sure of what I can say that won’t spoil the kind worth killing so I will keep it vague.

I really enjoyed it.

If you follow my blog you will know that I read The Kind Worth Killing years ago and once I heard a sequel had been written, I had to re-read the book again – see my review here

The Kind Worth Saving can be read as a standalone – but honestly I would not recommend it because The Kind Worth Killing is utterly brilliant and a masterclass in psychological thrillers – so do yourself a HUGE favour and buy both books.

Back to this book.. The Kind Worth Saving features Henry Kimball – who we last met as a detective investigating some murders and Lily Kintner, a fabulously flawed female psychopath whose paths crossed with dangerous consequences in the first book.

Henry is now a private investigator, having left the police force after everything that happened in the first book. He has been asked to follow a cheating husband and his lover and provide proof for his wife Joan. However things are not quite what they seem as firstly Joan and Henry have history (well English actually) together as he was her high school teacher years ago and they were both involved in an awful event at school, secondly whilst following Joan’s cheating husband and lover he actually becomes the only witness to a murder/suicide.

The first half of the book is really all about Henry, his past as a teacher and we get to know more about Joan. I was concerned where Lily was and checked the blurb to make sure she did feature in the book and when she finally did appear the pace of the story quickens and the twists and turns start jumping out all over the place.

It wouldn’t be a Peter Swanson novel if he doesn’t kill off some really fascinating and important characters mid-way through the story whilst literally turns the narrative upside down and leaves the reader reeling.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and loved Lily and Henry’s relationship and would love to see these characters appear in a 3rd book.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I absolutely LOVED The Kind Worth Killing, and when I found out there was going to be a sequel I was excited, if a little wary. The book ended so satisfyingly I didn't see where they could go with it. I needn't have been concerned, this book is a separate story which just so happens to have returning characters from the first book.

The plot was really interesting and I loved the multiple perspectives and multiple timelines. There were a lot of layers to the story and some fun surprises along the way. I adored the character of Henry Kimball and really enjoyed reading about him. As with the first book, I found the writing style a joy to read.

I would absolutely recommend this book. It can be read as a standalone, but I think you would get more out of it having read The Kind Worth Killing first (also just because it's a bloody good book!)

With thanks to Netgalley and Faber and Faber for this free ARC in exchange for a honest review
I loved The Kind Worth Killing so was really excited to read this. Although not a sequel per se it does bring back the lovely Henry and the enigmatic Lily. Peter Swanson has lovely relaxing style of writing that immediately draws you into the book and while this isn’t as good as the first one I do think the author was right to bring back these characters just to see how/who they are after the Ted/Miranda incident. This could easily be read as a stand-alone and was a really enjoyable read with some nice twists

Having read and loved The Kind Worth Killing, there was no way I could pass up on the chance to read this novel by the author as it features two of the characters from the book I just mentioned. Admittedly it is a few years since I read the other book but it is one that has stayed with me due to how twisted it was.

Henry is a private investigator who is called upon by an ex pupil to get proof on her cheating husband. Everything seems pretty straight forward to start with on this case but as Henry gets more involved, he wonders if there is more to it.

The story alternates between Henry and Joan, Joan being Henry’s client and ex pupil. Through Joan’s chapters we get to know more about her and her past. Present and past are entwined skilfully by the author giving us glimpses of the carnage that is awaiting the reader. The story is yet again wonderfully plotted and has the reader on tenterhook as the tension mounts.

The Kind Worth Saving is a great follow on and begs the question as to whether there will be anymore books to feature Henry and Lily. I really hope so as they are complicated yet likeable characters that get under your skin. Peter Swanson is an author that excels in adding twisty layers into his stories that has the reader riveted and unable to tear themselves away. Nothing is straightforward or as it seems and it had me on edge throughout. A master storyteller!

Peter Swanson's dark psychological thriller is a sequel to The Kind Worth Killing which I have not read, nevertheless I think this works reasonably well as a standalone, with more than enough intriguing details of what happened previously. Henry Kimball is a private investigator with aspirations of being a poet, if only he had any talent, instead he spends his time writing dreadful limericks, a former English teacher who left after horrifying tragic shootings in his classroom. He left the Boston PD after he got obsessed with and is knifed by Lily Kitner, a woman he now has a friendship with, along with her family. Interior decorator, Joan Whalen sees Kimball, she wants him to provide proof that her real estate agent husband, Richard, is having an affair, she is certain it is with the office manager, Pam O'Neil.

The strange thing is that he knew her as Joan Grieve, former gymnast, a student in that English classroom, bringing back all the terrifying memories when he froze as the tragedy unfolded. The narrative goes back and forth in time, back to when Joan was holidaying with her parents and sister as a 15 year old at the Windward Resort in Kennewick, Maine, where she has an unpleasant experience with a boy, and comes across Richard Seddon, who attended her school too, but whom she had never paid any attention to. The two forge an intensely dark relationship, a strong bond that survives through the years, despite them meeting up so rarely. Kimball carries out surveillance as instructed by Joan, following both her husband and Pam, perhaps breaking the rules as he gets involved in a way he should not have. Matters culminate in him following the pair to a vacant property for sale, he hears gunshots, rushing into the house.

Kimball stumbles over the dead bodies of Richard and Pam, in what looks like an apparent murder-suicide, but his suspicions are aroused, leading him to meeting and confiding his troubling thoughts to Lily. As he investigates, a dangerous endeavour, events lead to Lily making decisions as the kind worth saving. There are twists galore in this gripping compulsive story of 'perfect crimes', and a cast of great characters, my particular favourites being the women, Joan and Lily. Fans of Swanson are likely to love this, as are those who love dark and suspenseful psychological thrillers. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.