Saffy has two secrets:

One, she kills bad men.

Two, she's in love.

A rich femme fatale, Saffy has been enamoured with true crime podcaster, John, who has been accused of a crime he didn't commit. Using her feminine wiles and all the money at her disposal, she sets up the perfect meet cute to get John's attention. It works, and she joins forces with John to help him clear his name -- but are her own secrets too much for a normal relationship?

This was a really fun book that reminded me a little of Stone Cold Fox, but with more murder. I love books about smart women manipulating everyone around them, so this hit the mark, plus there was some good commentary on the value and impact of true crime in today's society. There were also some great twists that I didn't see coming.

Fun book with lots of twists. I would definitely recommend to mystery and thriller friends.a few items in the plot were challenging with sensitive readers. Overall, lots of fun.

I really enjoyed this arc and thank you to NetGalley for the advance copy! 


This book tells the story of two people. Staffy, a feminist serial killer of men who are evil, who is very at her job. And Jon a podcaster/writer, who is obsessed with following the stories of serial killers, but so obsessed his wife leaves him and one of his friends ends up being a serial killer not to his knowledge.  


While Jon has no idea what Staffy does, he is interested in her and Staffy is trying very hard to get Jon to like and date her because she likes him. She pretends to be interested and naive in Jon's latest serial killer chase to win him over.

A wickedly dark and utterly addictive thriller which follows charismatic, serial killing socialite, Saffy Huntley-Oliver, who likes to punish bad men. It’s the one thing she’s most proud of—making the world a better (and far safer) place. But it sure does get lonely, so Saffy (after some casual teasing from her younger sister) decides to find herself a boyfriend and firmly sets her sights on true crime podcaster (and longtime crush), Jonathan Desrosiers. The only real snag to her plan: he happens to help the Police catch serial killers …

I haven’t binge read a book this quickly in AGES—I absolutely loved it! Part Rom-com and part feminist revenge thriller, Julie Mae Cohen expertly delves into issues and themes (such as Pedophilia, Rape, sexual assault and domestic abuse) that are soo rage inducingly relevant it wasn’t difficult understand Saffy’s (admittedly twisted) reasons for killing.

The opening chapters, which paint a heartbreakingly bleak backstory for Saffy, only endeared her to me more, and (despite her unrepentant, serial killing tendencies) actually had me rooting for her, which was definitely a surprise. And her dark sense of humour and Dexter-like quest for justice only made me like her more.

This book reminded me a lot of "You" - I love the twist of the script leaving me hoping for the "villain" to win. This book also highlighted so many hard societal issues women face daily and amplified how I'm sure we all feel from time to time.

This was a nice switch up from my usual genre. I honestly liked the whole female Dexter vibe Saffy, the main female character, had in this book. Granted she was a serial killer determined to rid the world of bad men but she was also rather like-able as well. I enjoyed the fact that Julie Cohen was able to make her multifaceted and was able to have her be relatable in some ways to her female audience.

Saffy finds her self in love with Jon desories who has become famous because of his popular true crime podcast. Jon finds him self in a tangled web of divorce, lies, and well murder.

What Jon doesn’t know is that Saffy this beautiful woman he met happens to be at the center of it all.

Overall this was a fun book to read and I do recommend it to anyone looking for something different!

I found "Bad Men" to be a decent quick read, and it was hard to put down at times. The concept of a female serial killer trying to capture the affections of a true-crime podcaster was unique; unfortunately, I didn't really care for the main character, Saffy. Jon was an interesting character, and I liked that the story was told from alternating points of view. The ending was satisfying, making the read worth while.

This book kept me on my toes. I went into thinking I knew what to expect from the main character Saffy who kills 'bad men', then we meet another character, Jonathan who's a true crime podcasters and author and the story takes off in a direction I didn't expect and the book is all the better for it.

Saffy's narration is sharp, amusing and frank. The story moves quickly and kept me engaged. I couldn't quite figure out all of the angles to the plot which kept me guessing. It all builds to a satisfying ending.

A definite recommend.

Last year I read "How to Kill Men and Get Away With It" by Katy Brent and I really enjoyed it so I could not wait to see how this book would be different. It did share a lot of the same elements but there was a fresh take on this premise that I enjoyed. The book follows a young woman named Saffy who started killing "bad men" as early as 11 years old. She is savvy, rich, and beautiful. I liked her for the beginning. Then enters Jon, he is a true crime podcaster and author. He loves to solve crimes but he does worry that he is making money off of other people's tragedies. Saffy puts her sights on Jon and decides to try to date him - by any means necessary. Jon was recently accused of murder so he and Saffy join forces to find the real murder to get Jon off the hook. I did enjoy that the book was about murder (several different murders) but also about relationships (no matter how delusional). It was funny and thoroughly entertaining. I can say that I did figure out who the killer was very early on in the book and even the twist but it was still an super fun book that did not make me extremely anxious since most of the murders were off the page.

Thank you for the ARC Netgalley.

i didn’t know what i was getting myself into when i requested this on netgalley a few months back—it sounded like the perfect dark comedy read for spooky season, however it fell short of my expectations. it was poorly written and the plot lacked any depth. there was no flow to the story and i couldn’t tell how much time had passed which left me confused most of the time. the orchestrated relationship between jonathan and saffy was weird - she was forcing too much of her “feelings” that the interactions felt scripted almost? i don’t know how to describe it but i cringed every time they flirted with one another. there were too many things and subplots going on in the story for me to enjoy it so it felt like a chore to read.

"Bad Men" invites readers on a rollercoaster of a ride through the twisted world of Saffy Huntley-Oliver, a glamorous socialite with a secret life as a proficient serial killer. The narrative skillfully blends dark humor, suspense, and a touch of romance, creating a unique and addictively readable feminist thriller.

Saffy's character is a complex mix of intelligence, charm, and a chilling moral code that drives her to eliminate society's worst offenders. The tension between her deadly pursuits and the desire for a genuine connection forms the heart of the story. The introduction of Jonathan Desrosiers, a true-crime podcaster with a knack for cracking cold cases, adds a layer of intrigue as he becomes entangled in a murder mystery that puts him on the wrong side of the law.

I gave this three stars because the opening sections were strong, but eventually it became predictable and fell flat.

Thank you to NetGalley and The Overlook Press for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own. Thanks for reading my review!

Seraphina "Saffy" has taken it upon herself to kill Bad Men throughout her life - rapists, murderers, domestic abusers. She started when she was 12 with her pedophile step-father when he went after her 6 year old sister.

Jon is a true crime enthusiast with books and a podcast but when his wife leaves him and he discovers a severed body in a bag on his doorstep, he decides to take step back from his true crime life.

Saffy befriends Jon and together, they tackle the case of whose body was left on Jon's doorstep and who's responsible.

I liked how it switches between Saffy and Jon's POV and I really enjoyed this book but I will say it was slightly predictable. 4/5

Follow me @fueledbycoffeeandbooks2023 for more reviews :)

This was a fast paced read but predictable. The twists were easily guessable. I wish the story line was more focused on Saffy and her “extra curriculars”

A female serial killer staging a meet cute with a true crime writer??
(come on, that plot is actually genius)

A perfect fast-paced and quirky thriller that I genuinely could !! not !! put !! down !! No seriously. I went into this book semi intrigued by the summary but once I started it, this one had me hooked. Honestly at this rate , it was probably one of my favorite reads of 2023.

The main character, Saffy, kills bad men, that's her thing. But, as she gets wrapped up in the life of the love interest, Jon, the two end up working together to solve a murder mystery. The dual POV works quite well with this storyline, providing inner emotions and suspicions that makes you wonder, who is the true murderer? Plus even though Saffy is a sociopath, you can't help but feel for her. Will her "side job" eventually get her caught or not...

Filled to the brim with dark humor, this book needs to be added to your list.

Oh, plus there is an adorable dog that tags along with them everywhere. What's not to love?

I enjoyed this book from page one! The writing is smart and self-aware. The protagonist, Saffy, is remarkably likable for a sociopathic serial killer (who only kills bad men), and the mystery kept me guessing. The chapters written from alternating perspectives keep the reader engaged in experiencing the story from all angles. I highly recommend this read!

What a ride- I found this book to be very readable, but unhinged thriller. This is a story of a feminist serial killer looking for love. It has very dark humor, and is definitely not for anyone who is squeamish. It’s definitely a page turner. I thought the ending was going to be predictable, but then I was surprised!

loved this book about a serial killer who follows her favorite podcaster and wants to find him and fall in love. I loved that he brought out other serial killers and she has a taste for blood. good romance and killer ending . loved it

Overall about a 3.25/.5
The first chapter was really disturbing — the intention i imagine — but still a tough way to get into the story. Then it took a bit for me to settle in because of the alternating narratives. Saffy’s narrative was much more entertaining for me, with witty writing that made it interesting to be in her head, if also quite disturbing. It was a great balance of horror and humor. But Jon’s narrative was more central and I found it to be a bit dry, as Jon just seemed like such a flat character in comparison to Saffy.
Still, it was a fairly engrossing and quick read.

I was really intrigued by the synopsis of this book. The book started off with a strong female character who murders her abuser, in a very bizarre, and honestly very unrealistic way. Then from there they girl seems to become a weak woman vying for the attention of a very vanilla man seems to waddle in his own self pity. I felt like the characters lacked depth of emotion. However, as the book progressed, I feel like that may have been a conscious artistic choice. Overall, I think the plot line and idea was good I just wasn't a fan of the writing or execution. The twists were predictable. The title Bad Men had me hoping for "They Never Learn" vibes and it just didn't seem to hit the mark. Thank you for letting me read this book. This will be a hard one for me to rate as I don't believe that it was bad, it just wasn't for me and I hate to give low marks to books that others will genuinely enjoy.

Summary:
Saffy is a proud feminist and lover of true crime. She has a crush on her favorite true crime podcaster, Jon. Saffy is also a vigilante serial killer who is obsessed with Jon. It’s your classic equation for a sweet love story.

Title: Bad Men
Author: Julie Mar Cohen
@juliecohenauthor
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5
No spice 0/5

Tropes:
Twisty
Bloody Romance
Dark
Clever
There’s a Dog In It

Triggers:
Mention of SA
Violence/Murder
Severed Heads
Trauma


Whitney’s Thoughts:
This is the perfect fall read—it’s a murder mystery, it’s dark, there is hardly anyone you want to root for but you kind of like them anyway. Saffy has a Dexter quality, but more “topple the patriarchy” than “get rid of serial killers”. I loved the twists and turns and seeing things through Jon’s eyes as well as Saffy’s. Lots of bad men, indeed.