From the description, Please Let Me Destroy You by Rupert Taylor had everything I was looking for in a story: chaos, intrigue, and characters you couldn't forget. Apollo Jones is a filmmaker looking for his next big idea when one stumbles into his lap. The idea? Heist a casino. The problem? He has a panic attack that ruins the whole operation.

I thought I would for sure get sucked into this book, however I struggled with getting hooked into the story -- I started this book on February 20th and finally called it as a DNF on March 18th. Almost a month of not being able to get connected to the story in a way that actually made me want to finish the book. I'm really bummed because Apollo Jones seemed like a character I would love. I might pick this book up again in the future just to give it another shot.

If you like books that are more vibe centric vs. plot centric I think you might really like this book! It is very atmospheric! I'm not sure why it didn't work for me but like I said, I will give it another shot in the future.

This book takes you on the adventure that you couldn’t possibly prepare yourself for.

Please Let Me Destroy You is about an aspiring filmmaker, Apollo Jones, who seeks interesting stories that he can turn into a series which would probably finally earn him respect. When he fails to rob a casino for the sake of a story, he resorts to capturing stories lived by ordinary people.

I’ll start off by saying that I enjoyed reading about such different characters that Apollo meets along the way. Rupert Taylor includes hard-hitting details that made me feel like I had met and loved these people myself. Unfortunately, this was probably the best part of the book for me.

What bothered me the most was Apollo.

His character felt inconsistent and underdeveloped. When he narrated, he spoke immaturely, using phrases like “hit different” and “built different” as if he were a teenage boy, but was laconic in his dialogue, speaking more like an adult man. There were no details as to his age or even how he’d gotten into filmmaking. The closest we got was about his father, but even then, it didn’t feel relevant, believable, or that it added to our understanding of Apollo. Most of the time, I forgot he was even Australian without the occasional usage of “reckon” and “mate” which seemed like the only two indicators.

Some parts were just so profound that I was wowed by the writing, but I was always taken aback when the writing felt lazy. There were several occasions where the writing was “telling, not showing” in which conclusions that should be made by the reader were just flat out written in the prose—one of them relating to the title of the book, so that was disappointing.

Also, the usage of the homophobic f----- slur was unnecessary and distasteful.

Overall, it was anticlimactic and the inclusion of so many flat, seemingly irrelevant characters and inconsistencies took me out of the story. I struggled to finish it and properly enjoy it.

For people who enjoy adventurous stories where you don’t know where you’ll end up come the last chapter (in this case, Episode), you’ll definitely enjoy this book. As well as anyone who has read “Supermarket” by Bobby Hall (AKA Logic) because the main characters/narrators have similar voices.

Thank you to No Frills Buffalo for providing this ARC via Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

Cool concept. I think the movtives of characters were clear and so was the writing. I think the pacing could have used some more work because there were times I felt the prose dragged on. However I did enjoy the book