I absolutely loved this. It was "good for her/them" book. I had to go back and read the ending twice. I really, really, hope that there is a sequel with the way that this one ended! This is about a woman named Jess, and a group of women who have all separately endured domestic violence and all end up in the same support group. Things start happening, fast, after that. You have the detective trying to figure out the who's, and why's and connect the dots. There were a lot of really tough scenes to get through in this, as well. The book is multiple POV, the chapters aren't too long, and it is definitely a 'good for her' revenge vigilante style thriller. "The Caretaker" chapters were my favorite ones. Definitely read this if you like a good for her/ revenge style book! Will be reading more from this author. Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for this ARC!

The storyline was captivating, and at some parts shocking. The facts outlined about domestic abuse and how little actually see conviction was heart wrenching.

The story demonstrated a very strong message and was very informative around the realistic outcomes for people trying to escape domestic violence and build fulfilling and happy lives after. The messages given around the lack of help from authorities and without much to give, they could do very little to help and support survivors of domestic abuse.

Aside from the shocking revilations of the relating this storyline faced, this book was well written and ensured the reader was unable to put the book down. I enjoyed delving into more than one characters story, and liked how they all interlinked with one Serial Killer Support Group.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this ARC, and provide a review, I thoroughly enjoyed it and it was a pleasure to read.

a suspensful, mysterious and reassuring story of feminine rage and moving on in a deadly way
Jess Pendle is trying to move on from a violent ex but is having trouble especially when he starts to stalk her
when she is recommended a support group for others in her situation she finds new friends and the support she needed to get out again
but when he ex, louis, becomes more threatening, jess learns the groups alternative way of coping

Book Review: The Serial Killer Support Group by D.B. Stephen
Rating: 4/5 stars
Confidence: 9/10

D.B. Stephen’s The Serial Killer Support Group is a darkly witty, genre-blending thriller that takes a twisted premise—serial killers in a support group—and turns it into a surprisingly introspective ride. With sharp dialogue, quirky characters, and a plot that unfolds with just the right balance of suspense and satire, the story keeps you hooked from the first session to the final showdown.

What sets this book apart is its ability to be both disturbing and humorous. The killers are oddly relatable in their dysfunction, and the group dynamic makes for compelling drama that pokes fun at self-help culture while delving into deeper questions of morality and identity.

It’s not without its flaws—the pacing stutters slightly in the middle, and a few character arcs feel underdeveloped—but the clever concept and strong voice more than make up for it. Fans of Dexter or You will likely enjoy this unique take on the psychological thriller.

Key Takeaways:
• Dark humor and strong premise carry the story.
• Memorable characters with morally gray dilemmas.
• Slight pacing issues, but overall highly entertaining.

The layers to peel back with this book!

What I thought started off one way, a kind of thrilleresque. Turned into a book on such a deeper level. Kudos to the author for tackling such a tough and real topic that is unfortunately, dealt with across the world. This book really went head first into some real life situations and highlighted the unfortunate parts of life, relationship and how the systems put in place can fail those affected.

I think this book can definitely contain some triggers for those who have been in similar situations, while also giving a great reminder that you never know what goes on behind closed doors and sometimes people need a friend or ear to listen too. I think you walk from this book with a lot of digest and process.

I am a sucker for a book with a serial killer in it so it was a no brainer that ai would pick up this book. Right from the beginning I was hooked, and the short chapters had me reading into the night to find out what would happen next. I was shocked by the twists, very cleverly done.

This is a story about domestic violence survivors. A group of women who have managed to get away from their abusive partners meet once a week to talk and help each other. They form a bond, a friendship that is stronger than any they have known before, especially when the killer who calls themselves The Caretaker, starts to murder their former partners.

This was a tough read at times, and ai really felt for all of these women. The way the police treated them was just atrocious and made me so angry. It was emotional, it was inspiring, it was dark. A fantastic reading that I couldn’t stop reading.

Thanks so much to Harper Collins UK, One More Chapter for my early copy of this book to read. Publishes on May 8th.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️The Serial Killer Support group captured my attention from the beginning and kept it all the way to the end! Although this book addresses a serious and personal-to-me topic, domestic violence, I am grateful that I read it. What starts as a story revolving around Jess Pindle’s experiences with DV, carefully evolves into a story of revenge and support.

Loves:
💜 Multiple POVs- including the serial killer
💜 Differing experiences with DV
💜 Twisty
💜 Short impactful chapters
💜 Strong friendships that come from shared experiences

Dislikes:
💔 Geoff’s storyline
💔 Not getting more info about DS Jones 😡

Hopes:
🤞🏼A sequel- how does The Caretaker idea spread and how is it used
🤞🏼A prequel- maybe about how the idea of the Caretaker was formed

Thanks to NetGalley and One More Chapter for the ARC. This one is for sure being added to my recommendation list!!

Really enjoyed this one! Easy to read and immediately gripped by the story and the characters. Didn't guess the twist either but I did think it was too easy 🤣🤣
Highly recommend for lovers of female revenge thrillers!

This book suprised me. I loved it. As a lover of true crime as soon as I saw the title I jumped at the chance to read it. It was fast paced, short chapters, and unpredictable. This book was all about revenge.

Who Is The Caretaker?


Jess Pendle is the member of a support group filled with women who are navigating the world of domestic violence. Detective Inspector Sophie Salam is investigating a murder that leads her directly to the support group. When the abusers of the women of the group end up dead, the victims, the police and the public are all left asking, "Who is the Caretaker?"

DB Stephens does a creditable job of describing domestic violence, murder and autism without shying away from the tough bits that add nuance and depth to the story. The book is fairly fast paced and can be easily read in one sitting. Although the ending really leaves one with a bit of an eye-roll, the story is very good. And don't worry, it may be book one of the series but doesn't leave on a cliffhanger.

The Serial Killer Support Group has been my favorite noir-ish read this year. This is the first in a series and I can't wait to read the next.

This was an outstanding story! I mean, let’s be honest. This is what every victim dreams of doing (even if they don’t say it). Not only were the pacing and characterization on point, but it was an absolute page turner. And the content was really well done. Either the author has experience with being a victim of abuse or he had someone who was act as a sensitivity reader. I was really impressed with how well he was able to target what it’s like to go through something like that. All the feelings, the actions of the victimizer and the victim, I mean it was like reading my own story. Really well done. (Although I feel like I need to clarify now, I took myself back, but not like these women did!) I’m really excited to find out this is going to be a series because I’m definitely reading the next one!

Huge thanks to HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter and NetGalley for sending me this ARC for review! All of my reviews are given honestly!

The premise for this book was fantastic. I think that a lot of people will love this book. Please do check the TW before going into this. It was a bit too rough for me, but that was my fault for not checking the warnings before agreeing to read this book. If I didn't have such a weak stomach, I'd have gave this book 5 stars without a doubt. Loved the premise of taking care of justice when it is for the greater good of society. Obviously not in real life, it's just fun to think about karma getting those who will still do harm. Thanks, NetGalley!

While I did enjoy this. I found myself losing interesting once we knew the reveal. I felt it happened too soon for me.
I missed the suspense of trying to figure out who was behind the murders.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter for this ARC.

This is the story of four women, Jess, Hannah, Kerry and Madison, who have escaped their domestic abusers and come together in a weekly support group to talk about their lives. It soon turns out their exes still make life difficult for them and the police does not help because everything they do, be it stalking or threatening behaviour, is apparently not considered a crime.

But there is the Caretaker, and he looks after those women. Suddenly, their former partners suffer violent accidents and even deaths, and interestingly those deaths all have a connection to how they have mistreated women before. Then the Caretaker releases some videos explaining his motivation, and all hell breaks loose.

DS Sophie Salam, who has a 6 year old autistic daughter named Lottie, is tasked with finding the killer. Her first suspect turns out to be innocent but then she gets an inkling. In the meantime, she bonds with Jess who is a carer for a family with two special needs kids and can therefore relate to Lottie.

This quite complex story is told in the first person POV of Jess and the third person POV of the Caretaker and Sophie. The twist is kind of hinted on in the blurb and therefore a bit obvious but it doesn't hinder the enjoyment of the story. I love serial killer stories, especially if they are vigilante women out for justice and revenge. The Caretaker is an exquisite twist on that, and I loved the female friendships that formed out of shared experiences. These women have created a safe space and would do anything for each other.

Domestic and emotional abuse including gaslighting by violent men who can be oh so charming on the outside is portrayed very realistically and is very upsetting, as is the misplaced guilt of the affected women. The male author knows exactly how abusive men tick - maybe someone should check his background out too???

The murders are quite grisly, but hey, these are bad men. There isn't a lot of dark or other humour to be found here but the dynamic between all the women, the caretaker and the female police officer is so interesting and DS Salam is a fascinating character.

If you are wondering about the open ending, please be advised that this is the first book in the Secret Vigilante series, so we can dive into Sophie's story, and the expansion of the Caretaker role sounds quite promising too. I am very much looking forward to it!

I feel like I shouldn't have liked this but I loved it! We are told the story of a support group of domestic violence victims and the system that repeatedly lets them down, for reasons that we can debate for hours. As we learn about this close group of ladies, they welcome one more, Jess, into their group. Then the fun starts, a vigilante begins 'taking care of' the perpetrators that were, for the most part, ignored by the police.

You shouldn't want to root for the vigilante to keep striking, but you do. You get attached to these ladies and you want to support them, learn more about them and dare I say join their friend group. This was the best part of this story, the women don't come across as victims, they support each other and move forward. It leaves the reader with a complex set of emotions but I loved every minute of it and am looking forward to the next in the series.

I really thought I had this sussed.
I started reading and was enjoying the story, but was thinking “this is really obvious” until around 2/3 of the way through and I was just like huh… not what I thought.
This was a great twist, I loved the storyline and touching on taboo topics such as domestic violence and the lack of action that comes from reporting incidents.
It was action packed, intense and all the while I’m questioning my morals for standing with the “bad guy”.
A quick, enjoyable read

Thanks to NetGalley and harper Collins/one more chapter for letting me read

When Jess Pendle attends A&E on New Years Eve she isn’t expecting her life to change quite so much. Accepting a leaflet for a support group, Jess expects to throw it away when she gets home, but something stops her. Gathering her courage Jess decides to attend the group hoping that
speaking to others who have gone through the same experience might just help her.
But Jess gets more than she bargained for, and what she finds out about her new friends shocks her to the core.
This story gripped me from the very first page and didn’t let go. There is an amazing twist that comes at the perfect moment and I didn’t want to put it down.
If you want a book that will have you on the edge of your seat, make you go from feeling angry to sad, and every emotion in between you must read this.

The Serial Killer Support Group by Do Stephens is a darkly humorous and unique take on the crime genre. The premise of a support group made up of the families of notorious serial killers is both intriguing and unusual, offering a fresh perspective. While the plot has some engaging moments and clever twists, the pacing can feel slow at times, and certain character developments are somewhat predictable. The mix of humor with dark themes is hit or miss, with some moments feeling forced. Overall, it’s an interesting read with a strong concept, but it doesn't fully reach its potential. A solid 3-star book for those looking for something offbeat, though it may not be for everyone.

The Serial Killer Support Group by DB Stephens had so much potential, but it fell flat for me.

Jess Pendle's character was well written, but the story fell flat for me.

Again, I like the idea of this, but there is unfortunately another book with this same title that was so incredible, I may of compared it to that book.

Not for me, but I know fans of serial killer books (Like myself) will enjoy this.

I loved the premise. It's always so satisfying ro read a good revenge story!

When after being beaten (again) by her boyfriend Jess gets the help she needs to walk away from abusive relationship. Joining a support group for women like her she finally feels like there is a chance of normal life. But it isn't coming easy and fast because abusers never want to be in the wrong and they won't let go easily. The only way how to stop them is to kill them...

This was a fast-paced action based thriller that could help get out of reading slump. Although i want to say that this was a popcorn thriller it also got real dark with some scenes.
I missed deeper introduction with the inner worlds of characters and some kind of closure for Jess's and Sophie's friendship. But i really liked the ending that gave a feeling pf contiunity. I recommend this for those who like more action driven and fast thrillers and like me likes to read about revenge.

Thank you Netgalley and One More Chapter for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.