Thank you Netgalley for an audio copy of this book. Seraphina Huntley-Oliver is a serial killer. The kind you would love to have coffee with, go on vacation with, and definitely want on your side if your SO was an SOB. Saffy killed her stepfather when she was 12. He really had it coming. Turns out that all of the men Saffy has killed actually deserved it. When she contrives to cute meet a popular murder podcaster, he has had a body left on his front steps. He’s trying to get away from the mayhem and murder, and yet here she is. This book will make a FABULOUS beach read AND book club read. Give this book to your favorite pal, and get one for yourself. Thank me later!

Thank you NetGalley for this audiobook

Book 2 in my roadtrip and I really enjoyed this one!! It was a touch slow in the middle and I honestly expected more of Saffy's POV and previous crimes but the latter half and ending absolutely paid off. I would love to read more of Saffy in the future and more about her previous murders (I don't really care for John tbh, but it does play into my love of books of psychopath women protecting bumbling detectives ala The Kind Worth Killing). The combination of Saffy righting wrongs via murder while also being wildly rich and uptight was very entertaining and the narrator played her voice to perfection. Definitely keeping my eye out for Eat Slay Love!

Bad Men, by Julie Mae Cohen, was my first read by the author and it was intriguing and quite enjoyable. Told in alternating points of views, it combined a mix of dark murder mystery and charming rom-com which made for an entertaining story.

Narrator Nathalie Buscombe did a wonderful job keeping me engaged and bringing Saffy to life giving her depth and personality. I do feel that Jon’s character would have benefited more if he were narrated by a man as sometimes it was hard to decipher who was speaking.

If you’re looking for a romantic twist on a whodunit mystery with a touch of dark humor then I would recommend giving Bad Men a read.

Thank you RB Media, author Julie Mae Cohen, and NetGalley for this Advanced Listening Copy.

When I started this book, I was unsure if I would like it as the opening was a bit dark. But, the book was far more humorous than I expected it to be, and all in all, it was pretty light! Is being a serial killer okay if you only kill bad men? The protagonist certainly thinks so! If you like a thriller, but need something lighter, this is the perfect summer read!

This was one fun story to read! This one has all of my favorite things-a snarky female protagonist, murder, and some jokes mixed in the plot! Saffy and Jonathan meet by “chance” in the Scottish Highlands while saving an animal stuck in a well. Their romantic connection is tumultuous and has it's challenges, but it made me want to keep reading on. I know female serial killers are rare, but I really enjoyed Saffy’s story. Her black-and-white opinions on what should happen to "bad men" was likely a product of her past. Her snarky comments made me laugh out loud often. They helped lighten the mood in some of the darker moments of the story.

These both ended up being very likable characters. This whodunnit kept me engaged throughout the story with twist after twist right up to the last page. This was a fast and fun read, and I look forward to reading more novels from @JulieCohenAuthor!

1 didn't really care for the narrator, but not because she was a poor performer. I originally read the ebook before listening to the audiobook • I read Saffy's character in a much more snarky and sassy way compared to how she read it. This is just a preference for me. Nathalie Buscombe is an excellent performer and very easy to listen to. 1 just needed more attitude from Saffy than I heard because of my previous read.

I'm not quite sure what to make of this book!

On the one hand, I am a sucker for an outlandish, twisty romp. I do not need it to be even remotely realistic, I just need it to be entertaining. On the other hand, I am still confused about the motivations and actions of most of the characters in this story, which made the whole thing hard to get on board with right from the start.

Bad Men is positioned as the story of a feminist serial killer, but it's hard to find anything particularly feminist about her. Sure, Saffy targets "bad men," but we know almost nothing about why she does that, how she chooses who she goes after, and even how frequently she's doing this. She doesn't seem to care about anybody other than herself and her sister, so it comes across as a bit of an afterthought that she's killing these men in the first place. As a character, she feels quite thin; I wish we knew more about her and her backstory, beyond the abuse in her childhood and a couple of opportune moments with those initial men she killed.

Again, this might not be something that bothers me much if I'm just here for a good time, but it becomes important to the story because I could not, for the life of me, really understand or buy why she's so obsessed with the male protagonist. The synopsis says she needs a boyfriend -- why? And why him? This is so central to the book's entire existence that I couldn't help but keep thinking about it.

Those gripes aside, it's certainly a fun, quick, turn-off-your-brain type of read. I saw many of the twists and reveals coming, but it didn't ruin my enjoyment. It's so fast-paced that you can easily get through it in a single sitting.

First off, I LOVE this premise. I read the description as a Dexter-esque story but as a woman. I am all about women taking their power back, even as a serial killer. Once I got started with this book, I was hooked with the story of Saffy and her sister and what happened with their stepfather. Unfortunately, as the audiobook proceeded, it seemed to lack that initial intrigue that the beginning offered. The two mentions of farts within the first 25% of this audiobook had me side-eyeing a bit and made me take this book less seriously. I found Saffy to honestly be a terrible feminist when that was kind of the whole premise. The way she talked about women was not how I'd picture a serial killing feminist acting at all. The real killer was not a surprise to me either. On top of the things I've listed here, I thought the reader would get much more of how Saffy completes her murders, just how we did in the beginning portion of this book. I wanted all of the gory nitty gritty details and didn't get any of that with any other murder that took place. I honestly just feel terrible for John and the mess he was put in with Saffy, his wife, the real killer, etc. Poor guy! I wouldn't say this was a bad book by any means, but it was lacking in a lot of intrigue, mystery, and gore, in my opinion.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.
This was a very entertaining audiobook. Loved the narrator and different timelines and POV's. It took me a little bit to really get into it and follow along but once I did it was well worth it. Some suspense, humor and romance all in one good book. It was a really fun listen.

This book was a lot of fun. Told from alternating points of view - I never got bored with either of the two narrators of the book. The author kept things engaging even while switching back and forth, and it was fun to uncover new elements to previously told scenes when shown through the eyes of the other narrator. It was very easy to root for the anti-hero in this one and I had a good time all the way to the end.

Thanks NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 Stars

Saffy kills bad men believing that by doing so, she's making the world a better and safer place for women. She's also a little obsessed with true crime podcaster Jonathan - who finds himself being investigated for murder. When Saffy and Jonathan team up - things start getting interesting.

I was super intrigued by a book about a woman serial killer. I will say that I was expecting more of a serial killer story and less of the "obsessed with man" story, but this was still a fast-moving, kind of fun read. I really liked the dual POVs (both Saffy and Jonathan) and the audio narration was solid.

This wasn't one of my favorite listens/reads, but it wasn't one that I regretted finishing. It was a quick read with a different vibe and a nice change from the same old storylines.

Thank you NetGalley and RB Media for the ARC Audio of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I read a book similar to this plot just a few months ago. This one was okay in comparison. I liked Saffy and I REALLY enjoyed the narration, but I feel like the blurb portrayed this story to be different than it really was, which was a romance essentially. Which....is fine. But I want people to be aware when they read that I feel like the blurb is a little deceiving.

I loved this thriller with a feminist twang and humorous angle. I will say that the reveal at the end was very predictable, but otherwise I enjoyed it all the way through!

My rating guide:
1- Hated it, don't read this
2- Not for me, you might like it
3- Very good! Add to your long list
4- Loved it, you need to read
5- NEW FAVORITE!!! READ IT NOW!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this book for free in exchange for my review! All opinions are my own.

4.5

I really, REALLY enjoyed this murder mystery thriller that has a true crime podcast finding himself in the snare of a supermodel serial killer as they team up to find out who's framed him for another murder.

Red herrings abound in this twisty anti-hero story perfect for fans of books like the Killing Eve series or How to kill men and get away with it by Katy Brent. This was also great on audio narrated by Nathalie Buscombe.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review!! I can never get enough of clever women taking justice into their own hands against "Bad men."

CW: sexual assault/rape of a minor

Thank you RB Media and NetGalley for access to this e-book in exchange for an honest review.

I read this book and listened to the audiobook. I think the narrator did a great job bringing Saffy to life. The book itself only earned one star from me, but I give the audiobook two stars because she was such a perfect fit for Saffy.

Here is my review on the story itself:
This book sounded amazing. I expected it to be full of murder, secrets, twists, and turns. Unfortunately, it was more about a love story between two people who shouldn’t be together. When a book is supposed to be able a female serial killer, we should have much more insight into that side of her. There was more “I imagine…” style scenarios than actual killings. Anyone can imagine killing someone, we aren’t reading this book for that purpose - we want her to take action on those thoughts!

The book started out strong and I enjoyed reading about Saffy’s past, but it quickly turned into present day and went downhill from there. We learn more about her love interest and his ex-wife than her.

The characters feel undeveloped and forgettable. This isn’t a book I recommend.

Thank NetGalley for the ARC of this audiobook. This book felt like I was reading two books. Half of the storyline I was glued into and the other half I was struggling to follow along. It needed the explanation at the end for me to understand why these characters even belong in the same book. The book was okay, The plot was exciting, the characters were interesting and had depth to them. Some pieces of the story didn’t flow as well for me.

Bad Men was a quick read that kept me waiting to see what would happen next. Saffy has taken it upon herself to kill bad men. The first time it wasn’t planned - but after that she realized she had an aptitude.

But now Saffy is interested in Jon, a podcaster who helped catch a serial killer. I’ve seen some reviews that felt it was too much about this relationship and not enough about Saffy - may be better to go in with those expectations. I didn’t have any expectations and was very much along for the ride.

I listened to this audiobook in just a couple sittings and thought it was the perfect way to read it - the narrator did a great job bringing Saffy to life for me. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the free audiobook and ebook to review.

Thank you to @netgalley and @overlookpress @abramsbooks for the ARC book and to NetGalley and @recordedbooks for the ALC.

This was a really crazy and twisty book. I really enjoyed this one! It was recommended that I request it from NetGalley from a fellow bookstagrammer and I’m so glad I did. The story follows Saffy a gorgeous socialite woman who doesn’t like men who do really bad things. She finds herself mixed up with Jon a true crime podcaster and a wild and crazy story ensues. I would rather not say too much about this book as this book is so exciting it’s better to go in blind. With that being said, please Check the trigger warnings before diving in to this book.

I am so glad that I was able to read and listen to this book because I think the audiobook made the book much more enjoyable and definitely helped to dial up the suspense in the novel. Nathalie Buscombe does a really good job and I really like how she did both American and British (Trans-Atlantic) accents. Her voice kind of reminded me of Miranda Raison’s who has narrated books such as Lessons in Chemistry and The Husbands. I would definitely listen to another book narrated by her in the future.

As far as my rating, I decided to give this book 4 ⭐️, due to the fact that some of the content was a little darker than I was expecting, and also I thought it would’ve been better if Jon’s part of the story had been narrated by a male audiobook narrator. However, some people might not care about this.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would definitely consider reading another book by Julie Mae Cohen in the future! ✨

𝗥𝗘𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗘 𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘 - May 7, 2024

𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗 𝗜𝗙 𝗬𝗢𝗨 𝗟𝗜𝗞𝗘 - Trume Crime podcasts, Finlay Donovan series

𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗞 𝗬𝗢𝗨 𝗧𝗢 𝗡𝗘𝗧𝗚𝗔𝗟𝗟𝗘𝗬 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗣𝗨𝗕𝗟𝗜𝗦𝗛𝗘𝗥 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗩𝗜𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗠𝗘 𝗪𝗜𝗧𝗛 𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗦 𝗕𝗢𝗢𝗞 𝗜𝗡 𝗘𝗫𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗚𝗘 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗠𝗬 𝗛𝗢𝗡𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗩𝗜𝗘𝗪!

Our heroine/narrator Saffy is not your typical serial killer! She hunts and kills Bad Men similar to Dexter (she even mentions this) and is perfectly content in doing so. That is, until she becomes enamored with a popular podcaster, Jonathan, whose specialty is none other than murder. When Jonathan finds himself the suspect of a murder when a body part shows up on his doorstep, he is unknowingly in great hands with his new girlfriend, Saffy.

I enjoyed this very much and highly recommend reading this book. Saffy is a believable and likeable serial killer and Jonathan is kind of dopey and loveable. Dual points of view give the reader an opportunity to hear from both of them. We get a glimpse into Saffy as a serial killer and a girl in love. We learn about Jonathan's personal life and how his life is affected after becoming infamous.

Without giving too much away, this is a fun ride with an open ending...maybe we will get more of Saffy and Jonathan?

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Bad Men is a dark and bloody rom-com of a novel, where a serial killer falls in love with someone who writes about serial killers.

The title Bad Men refers to two types of bad men in this book: those who prey on women and those who are serial killers. Why is it, asks the sociopathic narrator, that only the latter are hunted down and punished? Taking matters into her own hands, this wealthy narcissist manages to look good whilst delivering her own brand of justice.

In short, twisted absurd fun with excellent audiobook narration.

My thanks to the author, publisher, and #NetGalley for an advance copy of the audiobook for review purposes.

You know that saying, "Behind every great man is a great woman"? What it really means is this: Behind every man, no matter what his merit, there is a perfectly normal woman working her ass off to make sure that everything works out the way it's supposed to.

I love any book about psychotic women, but this one was especially good. Bad Men follows Saffy Huntley-Oliver, a young, female socialite who just happens to be a serial killer of misogynistic men, and Jonathan Desrosiers, a true-crime podcaster who is framed for a murder he didn't commit.

This book is thrilling and twisty with just the right amount of levity to make the reader laugh. I stayed past my bedtime (9 pm - don't judge me) because I couldn't put it down and literally had to check under my bed before I could sleep (no murderers - just hair ties and socks). I highly recommend it if it sounds like your thing!