I love quirky murder mysteries, so this book caught my eye and made it onto my anticipated reads list. The story starts with Molly waking up after a night out for a company party. Molly is extremely hungover, can’t remember the night before, but finds a cute man in her bed. Maybe this is a cultural thing, but as an American I find it odd the “night out” is in the middle of the week and everyone is expected to be at work the next day. Anyways, Molly forgot to charge her phone, so she rallies and heads into work where she learns she went viral the night before (not in a good way) and is sent back home where she later discovers her best friend and roommate (Posey) has died. While the police believe Posey’s death was an accident, Molly has her suspicions and starts to piece together what happened the night before and the clues Posey left behind. Throughout the story, Molly realizes there were things she didn’t know about her best friend and is confronted by her own trauma. My only critique is that it was a little too convenient how some characters knew each other, otherwise this was a fun read that kept me entertained until the end.

4.5/5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and HQ for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a brilliant read, which starts off with humour but turns into something quite horrific. Molly has a night out which she can't remember ,finds a strange man in her bed ,then she finds out she is the star of a video which has gone viral and then she finds her best friend and room mate dead in the bath .This is a dark gripping story ,fast paced with I though a very surprising ending .Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC .

I had so much fun reading HTKMAGAWI that this was an immediate request, and I'm happy to say it was just as good!
This book leans on some heavy topics but approaches them from a compelling and thought-provoking way. Blending serious reflections on themes like sexism, social media and grief, which entertainment and humour, this is fast-paced and engaging.
Katy Brent writes brilliant main characters with wit and surprising depth, and I can't wait to see what else she has in store for us,

Oh Molly, Poor Molly, what she has to go through is dramatic, life changing but every cloud has a silver linning. It made me think how people are so mean and unfortunately it reflects real life on the social media front. The book is whitty, dramatic and a real life changing events story. I would really recommend it, with lots a curve balls and shocking finds.

What. A. Book.

The plot line itself was incredible. It was fast paced and absolutely had me gripped from the first page. The twists in this book quite often took my breath away, and I really enjoyed uncovering the mystery with Molly. The authors writing style was easily readable, and highly enjoyable.

The characters were diverse, with the majority being loveable and interesting to read. All the characters were well developed, and I was intrigued to discover how they all fitted in with the story.

I devoured this book in one sitting. So good!

💭 ᴍʏ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛꜱ:
What can I say? Katy Brent has done it again. Making a book with heavy topics into a light and entertaining read. I was hooked and engaged from page 1. It's frustrating, exciting and funny. It gives a glimpse of the struggles in modern day social media environment (how powerful this can be in a bad way) and dealing with loss and grief. While also maintaining that light-heartiness. I love these kind of journalism/detective storylines. I flew through the pages.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

🤓 ʀᴇᴀᴅ ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ʟɪᴋᴇ:
Edge of Your Seat Tension
Banter
Heavy Topics mixed with lighter elements
Revenge
Detectives

ꜱʏɴᴏᴘꜱɪꜱ:
𝘚𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘢𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵.
𝘐’𝘷𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘯 𝘶𝘱 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘭, 𝘢 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘣𝘦𝘥, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐’𝘷𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘷𝘪𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘴.
𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘢 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨…

𝘔𝘺 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘗𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘺 𝘪𝘴 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘥. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘤 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘐 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘮𝘶𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥.
𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦’𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘥𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘮𝘦. 𝘐 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘢 𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳.

This is the second book by Katy Brent that I have read and I loved it just as much as I did the first one. This one isn't as dark as her previous novel which was probably the only thing I was disappointed about but that is just me being picky and I still thoroughly enjoyed this read!

It was clever in the way it was written and every time I thought I had it all figured out another curveball was put into play and I was back to square one. I can't wait for her next novel now as I know it is going to be another good read.

This one does have a lot of trigger warnings in place as deals with murder, suicide, bullying and other hard hitting topics so may not be suited to everyone.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an Arc in exchange for an honest review.

As the author's previous (and first) book was so unique, I wasn't really sure what to expect from this. In the last, the main character was literally getting away with murder and as such was someone you're meant to hate but couldn't help loving because she was also sassy, funny and smart. I wasn't really sure how that could be done again - and it wasn't. In this the main character was the heroine. But otherwise it was the same in that Molly was also funny, smart, etc, it was still a comedic murder mystery and the writing was brilliant again. As illustrated perfectly by this quote from Molly: "I need to use Posey's dead face to unlock a secret phone I discovered stashed in with her vibrators." I also loved the philosophy of 'shit happens (no matter what you do) so balance it out'. So in case you hadn't gathered I loved this and can't wait to see where the author goes next.

This is my second book by Katy Brent and one of the things I love about her writing style is how raw her books are. I could be laughing out loud one minute, then the next, be an emotional mess. I loved How to Kill Men and Get Away With It and never thought I could love another character as much as I loved Kitty Collins, but now, Molly Monroe has won my heart with her drunken “escapades” and her hot mess of a life.

Molly lives in a flat in London with her best friend, Posey. They met in college when they were both majoring in journalism and have been friends ever since. Now, they both have careers in writing but Posey is the most successful in the newspaper business with her tentative stories while Molly is wasting away at a teen magazine company writing columns about unicorns and llamas.

Molly leaves Posey at home to pregame with her friend Paloma before heading to a bar basement for a work party. Molly wakes up the next morning with a killer hangover, a fully clothed man laying right beside her, and no recollection of what happened that night. Her phone is dead, but apparently she gained some unwanted attention on social media overnight. She NEEDS to talk to Posey about her debacle but finds her best friend dead in the bathtub. This was not an accident, she was murdered! As Molly pieces together the events of her drunken night and researches the teenage disappearance that Posey was investigating, she finds a bombshell that could put a target on her back too. 😳

If Katy Brent writes a third brilliant book I’m going to declare her an auto-buy author, because I loved this book almost as much as I did her 2023 release, How to Kill Men and Get Away With It. Though the two books are as different as night and day, they’re both flavored with Brent’s distinctive feminist prose and sharp, satirical sociocultural commentary.

This book is smart, thoughtful, emotionally provocative, and morbidly funny. Molly Monroe wakes up one morning after a work party with a strange man in her bed. She doesn’t remember much of anything from the night before. The guy’s name is Jack and he tells her he rescued her after he found her crying and wailing but not able to tell him why somewhere near his house in Vauxhall the night before. He brought her home in an Uber and just stayed with her because he was afraid she’d choke on her own vomit. She’s fully dressed. So is he. She feels fine, except she feels mostly dead from a hangover. He leaves her his number in case she needs to get in touch with him and she reluctantly goes into work, despite the strange looks and weird name-calling she gets from people on the way.

But that’s just the start of a few weeks of the weirdest and most heartbreaking weeks of her life.

The sociocultural commentary is hard and fierce in this book: social media and how it automatically focuses on fetishizing and shaming females who obviously are out of it when they are unknowingly filmed or papped, wives who automatically go after the other woman when they should go after their husbands first, best friends who scream at one another over their habits instead of just automatically helping, and mostly all of the men who dismiss and deride women whenever they have the chance of taking an out.

Katy Brent has more talent in her little finger for straddling that fine line between satire and mockery than most authors in the business. It would be easy for her to dip a toe fully into blaming men for everything, but Brent fully acknowledges that women can sometimes be just as awful. Internal misogyny is a beast and sometimes even the best of women can succumb when they’re weak.

It was brilliant, quick-witted, and sharp. Watch out for TW/CWs, please.

I was provided a copy of this title by NetGalley and the author. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you.

File Under: 5 Star Review/Dark Comedy/Murder Thriller/Psychological Thriller/Satire/Suspense Thriller/Women’s Fiction

The book literally starts with a bang, and it kept me gripped from there. Wonderful funny feminist, murder, mystery – even better than her first book! Katy Brent will be a must read from here on out!

This is a brilliant read; clever, dark, witty and poignant. I really enjoyed the way the layers of truth are gradually peeled away and the ending was a total surprise. The bad/good of social media is also shown here, as is the fact that despite the years of feminism, not enough has changed. Great heroine, honestly this is a book to savour.

𝐬𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐬𝐢𝐬
Something bad happened last night. I've woken up with the hangover from hell, a stranger in my bed, and l've gone viral for the worst reasons. But I can't remember a thing... My best friend Posey is dead. The police think it was a tragic accident. I know she was murdered. There's only thing stopping me from dying of shame. I need to find a killer.

𝐦𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 💭
I am OBSESSED with the main character Molly, her humor, her sarcasm and her realness. I‘d love to be friends with her 🤭
In this book you can trust no one, however Molly wants to know who killed her best friend Posey. She is doing her friends‘s credit by investigating one of Posey’s cases about a missing girl, as if her life depends on it. Nevertheless, she has to handle a lot of own problems too. I loved how social media comments related to her viral video introduced every chapter, nice detail :)
Moreover, I could really feel her emotions, it was such a page turner (I literally couldn’t put it down)!
Jack is one of the cutest male characters I know 🥹
The ending was indeed shocking and profound (maybe a little too shocking for my taste). However I was stunned and will be thinking about this book for a while since it touched on lots of different topics!
If you‘re looking for a quick and hilarious read, this one‘s for you!

Thanks to NetGalley and HQ Stories for the ARC, I appreciate it. The Murder after the night before is out on the first of February.

Brilliant. I love the writing style, so easy to read and really keeps your attention.

Molly’s world is falling apart, her work Christmas do has ended in her becoming the subject of a viral video…and that’s not the worst thing that happens that night!

Molly finds herself embroiled in a murder investigation. Who can she trust? Will she get through this alive?

Great characters, gritty plot and fast paced. I was hooked start to finish!

Having loved Brent’s first novel, I was super excited to get my hands on her second… and it really didn’t disappoint!

Clear your schedule for this one, I could happily have sat and devoured it in one sitting if adult life hadn’t rudely gotten in the way.

Our main character, Molly, is really having a terrible time, waking up with what can only been described as one hell of a hangover, she’s trying to piece together her night, and doesn’t like what she finds out. That’s not even the worst of it, coming home to find her best friend dead.

This sets up a wild ride of trying to figure out what happened, both to Molly & Posey - a duo desperate to find out the truth!

Every time I thought I had it figured out, Brent through in a curve-ball! & Molly was such a great main character, flawed and so real in the best of ways, with a healthy dose of humour thrown in.

Go and get your pre-orders in, I’m already waiting impatiently for her next book!

Well that was unexpectedly enjoyable. I chose it recognising the name of the author and liking the title. I didn’t read the blurb but it was a really good read. A light hearted murder mystery so to speak, a who dunnit with some extremely serious issues thrown in alongside the main plot and yet enjoyable and on the few occasions funny in a dry wit type of way. My favourite being “Joshua Jackson”. IYKYK. I was definitely be recommending this book to everyone and I will now be looking out for Katy’s next release.

Thank you NetGalley, Katy Brand and the publishers for the opportunity to read this in return for an honest review.

I loved How to Kill Men and Get Away With It, well…, The murder After The night Before was even better!!

Oh Molly!!!!
After a Christmas works do, Molly wakes up next to a man she has no idea who he is, her day gets even worse from then on!
Molly is a great character and lots of twists and turns throughout the book. I binge read it, hard to put down.
Quite dark in places and certainly makes you think about how online content and perceptions of people.
I cannot wait to read what Katy Brent brings out next a definite go to author for me.
Thanks to NetGalley and HQ for a copy of this book.

Thank you to #NetGalley for this ARC.

Loved this. Maybe even more than her Brent's first book "How to kill men and get away with it".

What's stuck with me the most since reading this story is how unrelentingly sad it is. It is sometimes quite funny too, but at it's core it is about a young and lonely woman who goes through a heartbreaking loss. The mystery aspect of the novel is quite farfetched, but where many a story never acknowledges its own farfetchedness - this one actually uses how strange the plot is as one of its core features.

Brent's first book is more of an outright wild ride, and while this one has the same humour and some of the same strangeness it feels more grounded. It's a bit like if "How to Kill Men and Get Away with It" was a person, she has now grown up and is trying to be like everyone else.

Main character Molly embodies much of what it is like being a young woman today, and does it in a way that resonates with me on a personal level. I see myself and people I know in the characters, and even though we don't have murder mysteries to solve, or a video of us being sexually assaulted online(...), I feel for us. Being an adult is HARD.

Thank you so much Katy Brent - already looking forward to whatever you read next!

This was enjoyable. I was definitely missing the spark I got from reading Brent’s other book.

There were a few things I didn’t love. The story was semi predictable, and everyone was either a total asshole or severely incompetent which made the plot line seem unbelievable. Also, the main character has total and complete trust in another character that doesn’t really make sense.

I did like the twist at the end with her dad and also I loved her happy ending. It was well deserved.

I have no bad words to say about this book. Katy Brent is a new to me author and I got this on ARC so thank you to @netgalley and @but_katy_did_it for this beauty!

I was hooked. I read this in 3 sittings. I couldn't wait to read more but was gutted when it had finished. I am very proud of myself for figuring out 2 of the twists very early on but to be honest this was bloody full of them!!!

The humour in the opening chapter alone killed me off (sorry bad choice of words given the theme haha) but also the way this book deals with grief and shame and anxiety is absolutely brilliant!

Love a bit of civilian detective work. Finally a 5 star thriller!!!! Excuse me while I go and get her other book immediately!!