Pulled in immediately and didn’t want to put it down! I finished My Darlings in just 2 days, I was gripped the entire time. I loved
the switching POVs and occasional timeline switches to slowly reveal the secrets/twists! I was also happy that the author included content warnings at the start of the book because this is very dark.

MC is unlikeable but sooo intriguing and complex. And really all the characters are unlikeable but they’re like “love to hate them” type characters-very dramatic, entertaining, and over the top rich people 😂 It’s described as desperate housewives meets Dexter and for once the comparison is spot on!!

I predicted a couple of twists early on but not all of them so I was pleasantly shocked! The ending was soo good 😨 I’d highly recommend My Darlings for anyone looking for a fast paced thriller with unlikeable characters and a serial killer POV! Definitely a favorite for September ❤️

TW/CW: murder, blood, violence, child abuse, alcoholism, body shaming, suicide, hazing, bullying, child death, infidelity, torture, domestic violence, emotional abuse, drugged without consent or knowledge, underage drinking, body horror, self harm

Wow, wow, wow. MY DARLINGS is a very wild ride. It starts off innocently enough with the female main character being a serial killer. Like that's the LEAST of the problems for her and all of the characters in this book.

Ahhhh, this book helped me get out of a NetGalley slump and after a string of not-so-great reviews, I wondered if I'd ever leave another good review on NetGalley.

The story has a TON of violence and I feel that could turn off some readers. It was far more than I expected and it was hard to read at times.

I thought the story hit on so many things women have to deal with, including the pressure of being in female friendships.

I can't say much more without giving a lot away.

I'm giving this a lower rating than I wanted because of the ending - I don't think the way that final character's very last action matched the rest of the story. IYKYK

Thank you NetGalley and Rise Action Publishing for an e-copy of MY DARLINGS to review.

I rate MY DARLINGS four out of five stars.

"ABC's Desperate Housewives meets HBO's Dexter, My Darlings, a chilling suburban noir set in the deceptively serene Washington D.C. suburbs, where a respected philanthropist and PTO president's secret life as a serial killer enthralls readers seeking a deep, psychological thrill.

No one was supposed to know. I've always been so careful. My Darlings, how did we get here?

Evil lurks behind the perfectly manicured lawns, ornate iron gates, and long winding driveways of affluent D.C. - but not for long.

Stay-at-home mom Eloise Williams is PTO president and a respected local philanthropist who sits on the boards of many distinguished charities. In addition to being a doting wife and mother, she is also a serial killer.

But Eloise isn't the only lady in society playing a part. As the hidden lives of Eloise's inner circle are exposed, the body count rises. When stalkers becomes prey, Eloise desperately clings to control.

Money and power can only buy influence and safety for so long. Eventually, the curtains lift, exposing the chilling reality hiding in plain sight."

I mean, it totally makes sense that a housewife would go all killer.

A book releasing in spooky season with stabby vibes? Sign me up! There’s something I love about serial killer books, especially when the protagonist is a woman. My Darlings by Marie Still is touted as Desperate Housewives meets Dexter, and although that’s BIG shoes to fill – it exceeds expectations! The truly unlikeable, rich snooty housewives of DC have no idea that one of them is living a second life. Money can only buy safety for so long.

Eloise is completely devoid of empathy or feelings, a true sociopath who enjoys killing for the fun of it. Some compared this book and her character to the horror genre, as her murders can be rather gruesome. It’s probably not the right book for you if you can’t handle a little stabby action. Your loss. But even our killer has a stalker, and Eloise will do just about anything to ensure her secrets don’t come to light.

If you’re looking for a fast-paced thriller, sufficiently stuffed with gore, murder, and truly despicable characters – this is absolutely the right book for you! (And you’re my kind of people – haha!)

Thank you to NetGalley and Rising Action Publishing for the opportunity to read this digital ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

My Darlings: You would never guess by looking at her, but Eloise Williams, sitting on board of charities, president of PTO & philanthropist is also a vicious serial killer! You will find out what happens when stalker becomes prey in this horrifying thriller!! 5 stars

Thanks to NetGalley and Rising Action Publishing for access to this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

When I think of literary characters that cannot get crazier, I am introduced to Eloise Williams and all the people that surround her in a typical suburban neighbourhood. Frankly, all these chapter narrators made me increasingly uncomfortable and yet I had this compulsion to keep on reading. Now, I feel like I have to cleanse myself with a couple of fluffy books before diving into a thriller again.

I am a mere amateur in the reviewing world but if there is a book in the mom noir genre that needs to be discussed it is My Darlings Select it for bookclub and nominate it for all the thriller awards. You won't regret your read BUT you will want to cut yourself off from talking to human beings for the rest of your natural life.


Expected Publication 08/10/24
Goodreads Review 17/09/24
#MyDarlings #NetGalley

One of the best serial killer books I have read. This is one story you won't forget. The characters are downright wicked and the story is original and well written.

MY DARLINGS
BY: MARIE STILL

About 2.5 Stars for the ending!

I have been putting off writing this review about this thriller by a brand new to me author, Marie Still, called, My Darlings. I had to force myself to read this from an uncomfortable place as things got more uncomfortable especially towards the second half of this. I did like the fast paced, razor sharp tight sentences written with descriptive imagery for the first half. The second half got quite uncomfortable since when I requested this I missed the warnings which I wasn't prepared for the sadistic and misogynistic content. I was expecting what I read in the synopsis to be themed as the ABC series Desperate Housewives crossed with the HBO series Dexter. I haven't watched anything from either series for years and to my recollection they were relatively tame compared to the second half of this which just turned into to be suffering from "the kitchen sink syndrome," with sadistic and graphic content that borders on horror in my humble opinion. I have been known to enjoy a good thriller every now and then, but never have I gravitated towards being able to tolerate reading or watching anything containing graphic, and sadistic behavior done in any shape or fashion. I requested this a while ago, so I'm stuck with getting through whatever I have been approved for, which I will be again forced to endure forcing myself to finish something that is extremely uncomfortable. That's the arrangement with Net Galley is that in order to write a review that is fair and honest to the author, there's really no escaping something by not gauging the entire book. I had been keeping my requests to a minimum, but went against my better judgement, and ended up not being ultra careful. After finishing the ones that I don't remember what they're about, I definitely won't be reading anything like this again.

This is about a forty something affluent woman who is a serial killer. Her name is Eloise William's who obviously I don't need to explain why she is an abhorrent sociopath. She lives in a wealthy upscale area of Washington D.C. who on the surface she is a philanthropist who plans fund raising events contributing to those who are less fortunate. She's the PTO President at her teen daughter's school. She has a circle of friends who she lets you know that they are more or less subservient to her. She tells you in the beginning that she is married to her husband for monetary reasons, and he's unattractive. His name is Robert who he's a Corporate attorney that deals in Mergers and Acquisitions, so he wouldn't be much help should she need his expertise as an attorney.

I think that the problem is that there is just one of Eloise's friends that came across as likable out of the entire novel. Her name is Poppy and she got the least attention or focus. The other two are back stabbing women with one friend named Beatrix who is sleeping with their friend Suzanne's husband who is the worst kind of physically abusive cruel type of husband that calls Suzanne a fat pig and whips her with lashes to her back if she isn't at his beckon call for every whim. He throws her to the floor knocking out her teeth. Yet, he tells her that he will kill her if she leaves him. Eloise's daughter get's bullied at school and seems terrified of her mother. See what I mean? These are just some examples of what I abhor reading about. The fault lies with me since there is a warning about several types of gratuitous violence that I missed when requesting. It took the focus off Eloise's serial killing and these are what I mean by "the kitchen sink syndrome."

If you are not bothered by these nonsensical meanderings from the main idea, then this is your book. I think that I definitely like suspenseful driven narratives, but I don't like this type of twisted cruel behavior and I am an outlier opinion. I have respect for the other reviewers who have every right to their opinion who loved this. I just wish that I had seen the trigger warnings at the bottom of the synopsis. So, I take responsibility for my very tortured reading experience with this. I wouldn't recommend this to anyone, but I won't be reading this author again.

Publication Date: October 8, 2024

Thank you to Net Galley, Marie Still and Rising Action Publishing for providing me with my ARC, in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

#MyDarlings #MarieStill #RisingActionPublishing #NetGalley

I absolutely love reading books from the killers perspective, although this novel is from multiple including the killer. This isn’t a who done it type of book, it is a watch the train wreck unfold and how type of book. Definitely very good and hard to put down.

Thank you Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book. These opinion are completely my own.


This book is like Real Housewives and Dexter had a amazing baby book. I loved everything about My Darlings. Marie Still is now one of my top authors to follow

Ooh! This was a fun one. I wasn’t expecting that reveal at all. This was such a quick read- I literally finished it in a few hours. I enjoy Marie’s writing and look forward to more!

This book is Dexter meets Desperate Housewives which sounds like the perfect book. I love the way the author set up this story and defined the characters. My three stars represent the sentiment that the book was excellent in the first half and imo not as great in the second half.

Eloise and the side characters do too much as the book progressed. I almost wish the author would have kept it simple. The quality of twists is better than the quantity. Thanks for the advance review copy.

𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐒: 𝙰𝙳𝚄𝙻𝚃. 𝙲𝚁𝙸𝙼𝙴. 𝙼𝚈𝚂𝚃𝙴𝚁𝚈. 𝙿𝚂𝚈𝙲𝙷𝙾𝙻𝙾𝙶𝙸𝙲𝙰𝙻 𝚃𝙷𝚁𝙸𝙻𝙻𝙴𝚁. 𝚂𝚄𝚂𝙿𝙴𝙽𝚂𝙴. 𝙹𝚄𝚂𝚃𝙸𝙲𝙴?
📖ᴀʀᴄ 🏳️‍🌈⁠

𝘛𝘞: "𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘬 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘯𝘶𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩, 𝘴𝘶𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦, 𝘩𝘢𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘣𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘮𝘶𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳, 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺, 𝘣𝘳𝘶𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘴𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴, 𝘥𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘤 𝘢𝘣𝘶𝘴𝘦/𝘷𝘪𝘰𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘢𝘣𝘶𝘴𝘦, 𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦".

"𝙉𝙤 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙨𝙪𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬. 𝙄'𝙫𝙚 𝙖𝙡𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙨𝙤 𝙘𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙛𝙪𝙡. 𝙈𝙮 𝘿𝙖𝙧𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨, 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙙𝙞𝙙 𝙬𝙚 𝙜𝙚𝙩 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚?"

𝗦𝗨𝗠𝗠𝗔𝗥𝗬: ⁠
When I saw 60+ chapters, I was thought it was going to be a whole day but the moment I started reading, I just couldn't stop and it didn't even take the whole day. The whole female serial killer is intriguing as it is because the moment I saw that, I was already sold. The plot with the darlings was really intriguing because you could actually see that Eloise saw no wrong in what she was doing. And those last moments with her darlings, it was well scripted, I don't even know how to describe it without coming off like a psycho myself.

𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦: ⁠
There was a collection of characters and I usually don't like multiple POVs, but I did see the importance in this one since it was a mystery thriller. The watcher's POV was a mess, holy cow. I loved Eloise's POV but my favourite POV was Eloise's daughter's POV, Bryony because that ending was definitely more flabbergasting than the justice?? Like girl... YES. What she did in her final POV, the final chapel, it was justice in two ways. I LOVE IT.

𝐒𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞: There is a korean tv drama titled "The Glory". Eloise gave off the same vibes as that girl/woman who bullied the main character.

⁠
𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙪𝙗𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘼𝙍𝘾 𝙘𝙤𝙥𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄 𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙚𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙫𝙞𝙖 𝙉𝙚𝙩𝙜𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙮 𝙨𝙤 𝙄 𝙖𝙢 𝙫𝙤𝙡𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙡𝙮 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙢𝙮 𝙝𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙧𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙚𝙬.

This was a blast to read, the content warnings hooked me in alone! I was engaged with the book from the very beginning. At times it felt a little over the top? But it didn’t deter me from finishing it and still loving it.

This book was a little predictable in parts, but really kept me engaged for most of the book. I have never read a book by this author but I can tell from this book I would enjoy reading another if given the opportunity

The synopsis drew me in right away--promises of desperate housewives meets dexter--it delivered! This is a quick read that you won't want to put down. A modern housewife who is actually a serial killer, Some of it is a bit extra and over the top but I like the drama and flair as I am a die hard lifetime movie watcher so cheesiness comes with the territory.

Damnit, Marie Still! This story was so utterly haunting from the first page and until the last. I was completely obsessed and could not put it down! Finished it at three am, and it was totally worth staying up for!

I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

During the day, she's the queen of PTA and suburban picture perfect, except for her little hobby of killing spree. The dark humour adds a unique flavour to keep readers on edge. Gripping and compelling read!

4.5
Loved the book very much
Only reason why I didn’t give it 5 stars is because I feel the end was very rushed.
Pace was great and very good story

Thank you, NetGalley, for this ARC of 'My Darlings', by Marie Still, in exchange for an honest review - expected release date 10/8/2024

This book is advertised as Dexter meets Desperate Housewives, which caught my eye. The fact that the main character/serial killer was a female was also intriguing. The cover is great, too.

Eloise is a stay-at-home, PTO president, brunch going, demanding, helicopter mom with a twist - she's also a psychopathic serial killer. Her character was well thought out, well-explained and fully developed. All the other, secondary characters were more one dimensional, I wish she'd gone into more detail and created more depth with them, especially the daughter Bryony (that name errrgg, cringey).

Overall, the story paced well and it was worth the read, I finished it in less than 24 hrs! It didn't drag on, there was enough action to keep my interest and everything tied up in a nice, neat little bow - no loose ends! If you like thrillers and don't mind a little gore and violent descriptions, this book is for you!