Dead Money by Jakob Kerr is a slick, high-stakes thriller that pulled me in from page one. Mackenzie Clyde is the kind of protagonist I couldn’t get enough of—smart, gritty, and just a little morally gray. As she digs into the murder of a tech CEO, the layers of secrets, power plays, and deception unravel in ways that had me guessing the whole time. I loved how Kerr captured the cutthroat world of Silicon Valley without losing focus on the human cost of ambition and greed.

This book has it all—twists, tension, and a protagonist you can’t help but root for, even when the odds stack against her. If you’re into fast-paced mysteries with sharp writing and a badass lead, Dead Money is a must-read. It’s sleek, addictive, and left me wanting more of Mackenzie Clyde. ★★★★☆

This is an explosive story. The plot is filled with many twists and turns. The story is told from the perspective of several characters and from the past and the present. Mackenzie is the main character and the one who leads the tale. The story is set in Silicon Valley and features billionaires involved in murder and mayhem. The author is a great storyteller as he weaves a story that holds the reader’s attention. This a really exciting story that will leave you surprised.

Really enjoyed this! I hadn't really ever read anything about advanced AI technology.. and even though there was a murder mystery behind most of it - what was more intriguing was how the Kerr told a story within story!!

These are my favorite kinds of stories where you realize something is happening behind the scenes and you just aren't quite sure yet? It reminds me of The Woman in the Library with it's complexity!

-Women in Stem read!!

**Thank you to Bantam for the advanced reader copy. I received this book for free, but all thoughts are my own. – SLR 🖤

I did not expect to be so drawn in by this mystery nor addicted to the point where I stayed up til 2am to get to the end. You are taken on a trail throughout the tech world and given little tidbits of info of Makenzie and Eden's relationship that makes you wonder if you're being taken on a ride with Danner. This tale is well thought out and has all the right nuance of someone who has been in tech. I was wholly unsurprised to find Jakob Kerr was formerly of the tech world given how well aligned it is to what being in the tech world is like. This is an amazing novel and I highly recommend to anyone who loves a good mystery full of intrigue!

Across the globe lies Jakob Kerr’s “Dead Money” (Jan. 28, Bantam, $30), an exhilarating and unpredictable thriller that delves into the shadowy depths of Silicon Valley. Mackenzie Clyde, a resourceful “problem solver” for a ruthless venture capitalist, finds herself investigating the shocking murder of a tech CEO whose frozen billions have left the Valley in chaos. As suspects pile up and secrets unravel, Kerr’s razor-sharp prose captures the adrenaline-fueled world of professional gambling while touching on themes of greed, loyalty and the cost of survival. Packed with jaw-dropping twists, a compelling outsider heroine and scathing insights into the tech world’s glittering facade, “Dead Money” is an electrifying debut that demands to be devoured.

An enjoyable read that keeps you guessing with carefully placed red herrings with a back and forth timeline. Tech & venture capitalists figure prominently in this twisty tale that cautions “ follow the money” along with the FBI and fearless interesting female characters. RECOMMENDED

Dead Money by Jakob Kerr is full of intrigue, espionage, plot twists, and danger. However, it was not for me. The language was too vulgar.

Releases Jan. 28th. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This is a smart, fascinating book that kept me guessing. The main character is Mackenzie, a lawyer/investigator working for a venture capitalist firm named Hammersmith Venture. First, let me say that I didn’t know much about venture capitalists or the tech industry in San Francisco. But I learned a lot while reading this book. Mackenzie reports to Roger Hammersmith and investigates people and companies whenever he is interested.

The plot centers around the murder of a CEO startup that Hammersmith has funded. The FBI has taken over the investigation, and Mackenzie is a liaison working with FBI agent Danner. Their dynamic is tricky at first, but it smooths out over the course of the investigation.

A few things I loved about the book:
1. Mackenzie is intelligent and tough. I appreciate a strong female lead.
2. The back-and-forth shifts in time are seamless. Her past is interspersed with the present investigation – but everything in her past is relevant to the plot.
3. The cat and mouse of the investigation is done very well. Information is revealed just when you need to know it.
4. The reveal is excellent. It makes sense in the context of the story, and I didn’t see it coming at all. In fact, the last 50 pages or so are gripping.

This is incredibly well-written for a debut. I highly recommend Dead Money!

I liked the title of this book and the synopsis was definitely not something I usually read but why not expand my reading and I am glad I did. I enjoyed the expose on the inner workings of start-up tech companies and Venture Capital The reader was also exposed to the Burning Man Festival which I'd heard of but didn't know much about. The characters were fully developed and fleshed out. The ending of a book is very important, and this one was fitting, realistic and satisfying.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House/Bantam for this ARC.

Dead Money is a sharp, fast-paced thriller that pulls you deep into the high-stakes world of Silicon Valley, where money, power, and murder collide.

Mackenzie Clyde is Silicon Valley’s unofficial “problem solver” — a lawyer used to cleaning up the messes left by the ruthless elite. But when a tech startup CEO is murdered, leaving behind billions in “dead money,” Mackenzie must navigate a sea of suspects, all while keeping her own agenda under wraps.

With twists at every turn and a heroine who thrives on being underestimated, this book is a rollercoaster of secrets, ambition, and corporate intrigue. If you love mystery with a smart, unpredictable protagonist and a dive into the dark side of tech, Dead Money is a must-read.

I would give this deeply layered, surprisingly feminist, cerebral Silicon Valley thriller six stars if I could!

Mackenzie Clyde is a "problem solver" aka investigator for Roger Hammersmith, one of the largest venture capitalists in Silicon Valley. When the CEO of one of Hammersmith's largest investments is murdered, he appoints Mackenzie as a liaison to the FBI's agent investigating the unsolved murder. As she gains the federal agent's trust, the two discover multiple secrets floating around the executive team who surrounded the deceased CEO. Just as they think they have a handle on the case, new information throws them in different directions. And as the stakes ratchet up higher and higher, the story culminates into an explosive finale.

This book has so many elements to it that I loved, some that I can talk about, and some that you want to discover on your own. What I can say is that it's an incredibly enthralling exploration and commentary on Silicon Valley and the massive egos operating within it. Kerr's decade of experience in Silicon Valley is palpable throughout the story, and I loved how he packed in so many of the Silicon Valley archetypes while cleverly setting them up against each other. Outside of the wildly entertaining characters and the deep dive into the tech industry, the mystery at the heart of the plot evolves with perfect pacing, and delivers multiple satisfying reveals.

I could be wrong, but reading this made me realize I haven't seen or read many thrillers that take place in Silicon Valley, and I think that also made this story feel fresh and unique. I want to say so many other things, but again, it's worth it to go in with limited knowledge and unravel the mystery yourself alongside Mackenzie.

It's kind of hard to think of book comps for this one, but while I was reading, it really reminded me of the shows Billions and Halt and Catch Fire. If you love legal thrillers, mysteries/procedurals and deeply layered plots, you need to pick this one up!

This is a bit of an odd book. It starts out slowly with the apparent accidental death of the son of a prominent local figure. The setting of most of the plot is the North Shore of Long Island east of New York City. Apparently this particular area is the home of old money or the royalty of America. The protagonist was brought up here too but the child of working class parents but as things sometimes happen, he was part of the group that ran mostly with the wealthy. He’s now the police chief of the area.

A good deal of the story is told in flashbacks. The entire setup and interaction reminded me of an old Steve Gutenberg movie, ‘Diner’ where a mixed group of teens chat about their soon to be entry into the adult world. Here we get the adult players’ adventures when younger.

The cause of death seemed to me to be apparent from the condition of the body but for some strange reason, the medical examiner refused to agree because of some trivial added trauma. For most of the book, the players shuffled around in a rather desultory manner interacting, reminiscing and generally doing not much. There’s a romance portended that everybody aside from the protagonist can see coming about as subtly as a Mike Tyson right cross.

The final act starts about the 70% mark and it changes the entire tone of the novel. Suddenly the action is coming at the reader hard and heavy. This final act has enough exciting movement to replace so much that has been missing so far. The plot wraps up tying loose ends from the plot neatly, but leaves a glaring technical error unresolved.

Brand new author but wow, he knocks this one right out of the box. He knows the tech industry inside and out and manages to rip it up while taking down the male hierarchy and building a female character who absolutely owns the entire novel. I guess I can call this a tech thriller, not a legal thriller, even though the main protag is a lawyer, and the plot is ostensibly about the murder of a billionaire tech tycoon. I pretty much guessed most of the intrigue after a third of the book, but the action was so intense, so cleverly built, step-by-step, that it was impossible not to go along for the ride. And even having figured the intrigue, I was thrown off by the twists and turns just as if I were on a good Disney ride. I enjoyed having the woman in charge for a change!

Twists, turns, suspense, excitement and mayhem are plentiful in this story. I couldn't put it down.

This was an excellent book. I’ve read several books set in venture capital or startup cultures, but I think this story used that setting to tell a great murder mystery. While technically a lawyer, Mackenzie uses her skill to become an investigator for her VC boss, When the CEO of one of their big investments is murdered, she has to team up with the FBI to track a killer.

That alone made for a top-notch plot, but intermixed are chapters from Mackenzie’s past which explain how she ended up where she is and why being aligned to money and power have become so critical to her.At a certain point as a reader, you realize those chapters are extremely important to what is happening during the present which make the outcome even more clever and entreating.

I was gripped from the get go and would definitely recommend for anyone who enjoys character driven investigate stories set in the tech world.

There’s the tech world combined with a murder of a CEO. I just felt this book was dry, technical and not very interesting. Just didn’t hold my interest and I didn’t care for any of the characters.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Worth The Risk 💻 🔫
I truly loved this book. It was so smartly written. So thoroughly thought out and had so much depth.
I was hooked from beginning to end. Highly recommend!
Mackenzie Clyde knows what she wants and is fully prepared to take the risk to get it.
With her mother’s advice ringing in her ears, Mackenzie heads to Silicon Valley. Always ready to take the once in a lifetime opportunity to get the leg up in life. But this time she may have bit off more than she can chew.
With the hot new billion dollar startup CEO murdered, and Mackenzie’s boss with money on the line, she finds herself riding shotgun with the FBI. The search for the killer is a twisty ride with billions in dead money frozen in his will until his murderer is found.
Will the risk be worth the reward?
Thanks so much to @netgalley for this ARC
Highly recommend adding this one to your TBR and picking it up January 28th!

This book had me hooked right from the opening—a murder scene combined with a blunt, no-nonsense character and a dash of human psychology. It’s such a strong start, and I couldn’t wait to see where the story would go next. Mackenzie, in particular, is a fascinating character. She’s an excellent blur, and I found myself rooting for her even though I couldn’t quite pin her down. Is she the protagonist? The antagonist? I’m still not sure, and I loved that ambiguity.

I did figure out the ending about halfway through, but that didn’t take away from the experience. The way Kerr weaves the characters and plot together is impressive. Plus, I learned so much about Silicon Valley along the way, which added another layer of interest for me.

For a debut novel, this is a winner. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for Kerr’s next book!

I would like to express my deep gratitude to Random House Publishing Group - Ballatine and NetGalley for their generosity in allowing me to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House-Ballantine for the advanced reader copy.

The premise of this book--that Travis Canon, one of the wealthiest tech entrepreneurs is killed in his private office that isn't accessible to most other people and Mackenzie, the investigator for the VC firm that's supporting Canon's company, is asked to be part of the investigation into his murder--sounded interesting enough, but the execution of the book was so great. I didn't know what the chapters set in Mackenzie's past would amount to, but the way everything in the past and present intertwined to tell a smart, compelling story. An awesome debut novel.

I was all in the moment I read the book description, and this one did not disappoint. Loved the strong female lead, and she didn't feel cliche coming from a male writer. You can tell, Jakob lived the Tech life in Cali - from the descriptions of office buildings to the characters themselves. All spot on! I can't believe this is his debut novel as it was perfectly executed. I will definitely be watching whatever Netflix movie comes from this.