How to Kill a Guy in Ten Ways by Eve Kellman ⭐️⭐️⭐️

This novel explored vigilante justice and female rage while sprinkling in some dark humor. I will admit, it took me quite a while to warm up to Millie, the main character. In the beginning, I felt like she tried way too hard to be funny and witty, so I found her annoying and unlikable. I wish I would’ve warmed to her earlier because near the end I enjoyed the dark humor and sarcasm.

The author did a great job linking Millie’s motivation to her actions. I really appreciated the consistency in this, and it helped the book make sense. Millie was absolutely a train wreck and as a reader, I often was like WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS? Although infuriating, it worked and it helped the side characters shine.

I found the pacing the best near the end. I thought this started slowly with too much inner monologues from an unlikable main character. Once we got to the action, I felt the pace picked up and it was more successful.

If you’re a fan of vigilante justice, morally corrupt and unlikeable narrators, or a criticism on society, check this one out.

I think I just didn't understand this book. The main character was a terrible person, and not in a fun way. I'm surprised she helped women, because she was so judgemental of every little thing about them. I hope that this was supposed to be satire. If not, it was so much worse than I thought it was.

Well what a read!!!

Brilliant!

Phenomenal!

Unputdownable!

How can any written review do this justice? This book is one of my favourites of this year to date. I was pulled in and this is one that is completely fantastic.

Millie is the character behind Message M, she is fiery and completely likeable. This is worrying, because of her actions throughout the book. With that said, I loved her. What a brilliant character!

Millie has a very strong friendship with Nina which is brilliant. We all have that friend we could turn to, no matter what. For Millie, Nina is the no matter what friend. I loved the duo and after THAT ENDING- I hope there will be more to come from the duo.

This is perfectly paced, written in a way you feel as though you are watching the events play out in front of you. This is a book which is completely unforgettable. I have an almighty book hangover and loved everything about this one.

I love how unpredictable this was. In my wildest dreams, I couldn’t have thought of how it would end. Eve Kellman is certainly someone I wouldn’t wanna cross after reading this completely wonderful book.

I have had moments of laughing out loud, moments of gasping and being completely caught up in everything that has taken place on the pages. The world could’ve collapsed around me and I would have been oblivious. This is brilliant! A must read which should be on everyone’s TBR.

There is nothing negative I can say about this one. This is a book worthy of all the stars and all the praise. I will be recommending this to everyone.

3 1/2 stars

This book has a great premise, but I feel like the execution was a little off. Millie has good intentions, but we all know where those lead you. Her quest is noble and the path she's on was truly an accident and she ran with it. I get it.

She's tunnel-visioned with her quest and is bound to make some mistakes. However, the mistakes she DOES make legitimately are huge. Like she should've been caught a long time ago. She's also a person who I couldn't really connect with. She's a Debbie Downer. She's a pessimest. She hates EVERYONE (minus her sister and bff and possibly her new potential boyfriend). Like, I don't even understand why the love plot line was even in the story. I guess to create tension about getting caught for the murders, but it felt unnecessary for me. I just got mad because he's the only one (besides Katie) that I had any sort of feelings for one way or the other.

Make sure to check trigger warnings because there's some dark topics being discussed and talked about (child abuse, child molestation, rape, murder, sexual assault, to name a few).

It was a rough read for me (not because of the TW, I don't have any that I know of) because the first like 2/3 of the book I just was trudging through. The last like 6 chapters I was fully invested and things started to really pick up. Millie was no longer complaining. No longer drowning and we'd finally reached the top of the roller coaster and it was all downhill from there (finally). The ending made up for it a bit, so I gave back some points.

Thank you, NetGalley and Avon Books UK for this ARC. These are my honest opinions.

I tried, but I just couldn’t finish it. I gave it seven chapters and then gave up. I didn’t like the main character and it was all so unbelievable. The murder? Some of her inner dialogue was funny, but the sad story of her sister was becoming repetitive after only seven chapters. Not for me.

After one too many terrifying encounters, Millie Masters sets up a hotline for women who feel unsafe walking home alone at night: ‘Message M’. Very quickly she realises that there’s much more to be done to help these. women because the men just do it again the next night, and the next, and the next.
And when her own sister is assaulted on a night out, the temptation to take the law into her own hands becomes too much to resist. M can also stand for murder...

What a debut! This is a delightfully dark and witty serial killer thriller. You can’t help but root for Millie in her search for revenge. I flew through this book, a real twisty page turner.
Behind the humour and sarcasm, this book clearly highlights the sad darker reality of society. If only these situations were just stories!

This was really witty and I did enjoy it a lot! I feel like it was a little extra graphic than what I was expecting but I did really like the complex main character!

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read this book in exchange on my honest review

What an absolutely bonkers story! Equal parts gory and outrageous with even a bit of fun. With a vigilante that starts off with good intentions but slowly descends into mayhem and chaos. This is a thriller turned on its head, that somehow manages to get the reader to sympathize with the killer. Even as we cringe and want to look away each time she does it again. Appreciate Netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this one a bit early. If you are looking for a thriller that will twist your expectations and surprise you again and again, this should absolutely be your next read!

this is maybe not the book to read if you are already terrified as a woman about being taken advantage of by a man…

trigger warnings: murder, self-harm, child abuse, depression, domestic abuse, suicide attempts, stalking, drink spiking, rape, sexual assault, incest.

the premise of the book is a cool idea. The main character is trying to protect and take care of her sister who was sexually assaulted, so she tried to find the man who did it and created a job on the side to help other women in similar situations.

It’s just not as the description described, so I was a little thrown off.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon Books for allowing me to honestly review this.
This books comes out on 3/27!

A story about a vigilante serial killer who is making sure bad men get their karma. A female Dexer. but way better. Millie is a complicated character that you can hate, love, disagree, and agree with all at the same time. I feel like the author excelled in writing from an unreliable perspective and it makes the premise and plot points of the book way more fun. I recommend this to people who like fun novels of revenge, female friendship, and cozy murder mysteries.

Thank you to Avon Books and NetGalley for a copy of this book. It is out March 28th!

Following the rape of her younger sister Millie sets up a service coming to the rescue of women finding themselves in a vulnerable position on a night out. One of these rescues goes a little too far but with no one suspecting her involvement Millie goes full blown vigilante and before long she’s a serial killer and that doesn’t include her dad. But when she loses her job is she also losing her grip on reality? Then she starts dating a police detective - will her actions catch up on her?
When I started reading I thought this book might be too much like Katy Brent’s great book ‘How to Kill Men and Get Away With It’ but with its great back story, great characters and humour it is a great addition to the trope. Millie is a woman you want to back. Yes, there’s the odd accidental, not properly considered murder, but who can’t relate to that? We all have bad hair days!
With themes of stalking, date rape drugs and unwanted attention this book is sadly all too relevant. I highly recommend it to any woman who’s felt vulnerable due to the behaviour of a man at some time.

I thought by the cover the tone and content would be a little different. I didn't love the narrator. I didn't find her particularly compelling or make me feel one way or the other. Two thirds through I felt it reminded me of a Gillian Flynn protagonist. I think the book could have been shorter. I don't think the narrator needed to kill as many men as she did to propogate the story forward and at the end, I wasn't super surprised by the plot twists. I will say the second half of the book was far better and more engaging than the first. And I like the idea and concept a lot. Unique.

“Have you ever felt fear like that? The fear of a familiar, aggressive man fixating on you. Maybe you have, if you’re a woman.”

After something awful happened to Millie’s younger sister Katie, Millie vows to not only protect other girls and women from the same fate, but also to get revenge on the man who assaulted Katie. Millie creates ‘Message M’, a hotline where those feeling unsafe, be it on a date or walking home alone, are able to seek help. Through her work as M, Millie becomes increasingly obsessed with discovering the man’s identity and as Katie begins to fade away into herself, Millie begins to unravel and what starts as an accidental death of a creep descends into serial killing.

I really enjoyed How to Kill a Guy in Ten Ways. While what draws Millie to murder is by no means a light topic, Eve Kellman draws in a lot of humour, wit and a healthy dose of relatable female rage to create a genuinely enjoyable read. In my opinion there was a lot more depth than in similar books and I loved the exploration into female friendships and sisterhood throughout the book which I think sets this apart from others (such as How To Kill Your Family). I didn't personally love the ending but that's just a personal preference and I'm sure others will love it! I honestly can’t wait to see what Eve Kellman does next. Thank you to Netgalley and Avon for the ARC of this.

3.25 rounded down.
This was an interesting take on the female serial killer story line. It was a lot darker than what I was expecting. I think the cover and title fooled me a little, as I was expecting it to be more lighthearted than it was. The main character was painfully unlikable and I'm not sure how I feel about the ending. However, it was still entertaining and I found myself wanting to keep reading to find out what unhinged thing would happen next!

A female serial killer targeting men who deserve it makes for a fun read! Funnily enough, when I finished this I immediately started YOU’D LOOK BETTER AS A GHOST which is also about a female serial killer so maybe that’s my new era. Millie is not necessarily a likeable character (I mean, she is a serial killer!) but I was still fascinated by her choices and overall demeanor. If I had her upbringing, I would probably kill people too (kidding!) I though the ending was wildly fitting with the overall plot.

Unfortunately I struggled with this story. I didn't really like the writing style or the main character, and I couldn't get into the story. There was not a lot of intrigue for me from the way this story is laid out - it felt obvious and reminded me a lot of Promising Young Woman. Thank you to the publisher for granting me access to an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Message M was set up to help women looking to escape being followed, creepy men, bad first dates and the likes by Millie. After her sister is assaulted on a night out, she can't help but want to seek justice. All of these men day after day getting away with these crimes that aren't 'serious enough', Millie is out for blood this time and it doesn't matter who tries to get in her way. I enjoyed how Millie brought vigilante justice and the internal narrative that the reader gets as she goes about after her crimes. The ending was unexpected, but welcomed to wrap a bow on the story.

An unusual revenge novel. Up front- Millie is not a likable character nor is she admirable but she's compulsively readable. She's taking revenge against men who have committed bad acts but now someone knows what she's doing. How does that resolve? No spoilers from me. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. This has some very dark humor than might make you chuckle.

Trigger warnings for this book of SA, self harm and child abuse.

Millie is such an interesting character, at the start I was torn between ‘you go girl’ (even if you are a bit of a psycho) and oh my god you are insufferable. Millie has clearly been tainted by what happened to her sister but also she is also incredibly judgemental and negative, she hasn’t got time for people, they simply annoy her, other than her one best friend.

The book covers some heavy topics but Eve Kellman has managed to create a story with witty lines creating a humorously dark tale. A true revenge-thriller.

I found myself getting quite tense at times during the situations Millie found herself in.

An enjoyable book which keeps readers engaged and desperate to see where all this murder could possibly lead…

This was an interesting take on the female serial killer genre in that in that it was the first to make me feel like this is actually a character with an antisocial personality disorder. The main character Millie is a wildly unpleasant person to spend time with - she cares deeply for her sister, but that seems to be about it; even her relationship with her closest friend can be neglected when it suits her. Millie has what sounds like a fairly easy and enjoyable job with a fantastic boss, but she treats it like a chore and is unnecessarily a total dick to said boss, a kindly old man who gives her too many chances. She hangs out with a core friend group of three other women, but she seems to really actively dislike two of them judging by her constant bitchy inner monologue. Girl, if you don't like your "friends" it's actually legal to not hang out with them. Oh my god.

Millie is the living embodiment of the saying, "If you go out and meet someone who acts like an asshole, you met an asshole. If everyone you meet is an asshole, you're the asshole." Millie is incapable of encountering anyone without lobbing some insult their way; the only way to avoid this is if she feels sorry for them. I liked that she murdered awful men, and throwing a creepy guy off a bridge was a particularly sexy revenge fantasy moment for me. This and an ultimately pretty satisfying resolution edges this up to a three star for me, but by the skin of its teeth tbh.

My thanks to Avon Books UK and NetGalley for the ARC.