Killer Potential is a well-written, haunting novel that will leave you needing more. As my first novel by Deitch, I had no idea what I was getting into. The details within the story were absolutely on point and the storyline baited you and kept you holding on by a string throughout. Different that a lot of novels out today, Killer Potential takes you through the story in a traditional fashion, but the last 20% of the book follows the characters as they reflect on the first 80%. This helped tell the story of before the first page. I really enjoyed this method of writing and would enjoy reading more books by this author.

Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow Publishing for this ARC. This will absolutely be at the top of a lot of lists in the spring!!

A fantastically-paced Thelma & Louise debut thriller (I think everyone is going with this byline, but it’s so apt, I have to as well). This was unputdownable, and I finished it in about two days. The opening paragraph had me hooked.

I love a crime story, and this is… well, that, but told from the perspective of the perps on the run, instead of the police hunting for them. They’re complex, and I loved watching both of their stories unfold…

If you want a fast read in which you can root for the bad guy, this is your book. Thank you to William Morrow Publishing for the early copy of this one in exchange for a review — all of these opinions are my own!

Killer Potential" bursts onto the scene with an electrifying start that immediately drew me in. The unfolding plot grows increasingly tangled and complex, keeping me curious about how it would all play out. For a good stretch, the story felt like it could use a bit more momentum, as not a lot seemed to be happening. Still, there was just enough intrigue to keep me hooked. And the ending? Well, I really liked it—I’ll leave it at that. At times, I found myself questioning certain plot points, especially how a simple dose of honesty might have resolved much of the drama. However, I decided to set those thoughts aside and just immerse myself in the story—and I’m glad I did.

Evie was an excellent student - she was in the gifted and talented program, got a scholarship to a private school, got a scholarship to an elite college, and went on to get her Master's degree. She grew up expecting to be successful but now, as an adult, she finds herself in massive debt and working as an SAT tutor for LA's wealthy kids. When she shows up for her weekly lesson at the Victors' home, she finds the parents dead in the backyard and a woman tied up and asking for help in the closet. After she frees the woman and they are leaving the house, they run into the daughter and her boyfriend. When they leave the house, they are now on the run. Evie's face is plastered all over the news along with a sketch of the woman. Evie knows she's innocent and that the only way to prove it is for someone to stop pointing fingers at them and look into the Victors to figure out what they were hiding besides the woman. As she's refusing to speak and the country hasn't figured out who she is or her ties to the Victors, Evie is left trying to puzzle it out on her own.

It took me a little bit longer than I had expected to get into the story. Like a horror movie, you have to accept that people are making dumb mistakes in the moment (like, I'm not going into a home with the door wide open when it shouldn't be - I am just turning around). And am I willing to let a stinky stranger into my car? Also no. Doubly so when they are refusing to speak. But it's a story so I'm willing to accept that Evie does all of these things. Being gifted and talented does not make one street smart after all. While we're essentially just in Evie's head while she travels with a silent partner, getting hooked into the story was a bit difficult for me as not much seemed to be happening. Then Jae starts communicating with Evie and I became invested. How was this not going to end with them captured and stuck in jail with no way to prove their innocence? I was surprised by the twist and, even after we learned what happened, I was deeply invested in finishing the story. It is mainly told from Evie's POV with the first two parts being solely her perspective. The third part incorporates Jae's POV and I enjoyed being able to read her side.

I’m always leery of anything labeled a literary thriller, but this one really earned the title while embracing both the literary and thriller sides. It’s a very smart book but you can tell it was written by someone who loves thrillers, which is not always the case. This one hits a little too close to current reality a few times, but that just makes it even better..

A debut novel of the most addictive nature — hop in, babe. We’re going along for one hell of a ride.

With a smart and snarky voice, Evie Gordon had me hooked from the first few lines. Her strong character and relatable angst let me know I was going to be invested until the bittersweet end. I wouldn’t call this a typical thriller, but it is absolutely thrilling — a very different kind of joy ride, if you will. You might have to suspend belief just a bit, or you could, like myself, convince yourself that for every spectacular moment of bad luck, inevitably, comes good luck to recalculate the balance in this game of cat and mouse. Just go with it.

Provocative, measured, and surprisingly emotional, I can honestly say I haven’t quite read anything like it. The two women are relatable even in their most dramatic choices-- you can't help but root for them. It’s Bonnie and Clyde, Thelma and Louise — but thankfully, make it gay. It’s gritty, it’s edge of your seat while biting your nails, and I found it impossible to put down.

This has a lot for my students. I think they will enjoy the suspense aspect of it, the being on the run and the book brings up lots of issues , philosophical and political and emotional for lively class discussion. I found the book very interesting myself so overall a very good read

This book was fun. I mean that as the upmost compliment because books seem to struggle with genuine fun...even if its supposed to be disturbing. I adored the pace, wanted to be on the run. Evie is a compelling and unlikely lead. This was fantastic, and a debut... wild. Also. lets take a minute for that cover... she is pretty.

Thank you NetGalley and Publisher for allowing me to read and review this book.

I very much enjoyed this book. The writing was great and the characters were well developed. I hope to read more from this author in the future.

Thank you #Netgalley and Hannah Deitch for this ARC of #killer potential. This book had me hooked from the beginning. The ride starts right away with this book and keeps you guessing about what really happened all the way to the end with a surprise twist. I love the inner dialogue/daydreaming of Evie. It makes her feel so real and multidimensional. We have all battled with the was this the right choice, why did I make this choice and how did I actually end up here. I will recommend this book to everyone this year.

at no point did i know where this was going... which i loved. killer potential is the story of two women (who do not know eachother) on the run following a tragedy in the home of an uber-rich family in california, and the secrets they uncover about eachother and the family. this book came to me at the right moment, and i couldn't put it down! a literary thriller in the best way.

Wow! What a ride this book is.
Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow publishing for this arc in exchange for my honest feedback.
Evie Gordon, never the nice girl finds herself in the middle of a murder scene at one of her SAT students’ home. She tries to get out of dodge but hears someone calling for help. She finds the voice, who is tied up in an under the stairs closet and saves her only to inadvertently become suspect number one in the murders.
Now on the run Evie, who is book smart but not street needs the mystery girls help to survive life on the run.
This is a story of bad decisions and wrong moves but also about trust and friendship. I throughly enjoyed this book…I will say it took me a minute to get into but once they were on the run I was quickly hooked and need to find out how the story ended.
Thriller, who-done-it, wild ride!

In all the times I've read or watched a story about running away from the scene of a crime the main character didn't commit, I've always been baffled by their life choices. This was honestly the first time I've related tenagagedin character quite a bit. Maybe it's because I'm a former "Gifted and Talented" student. Maybe it's because I just came off 7 months of unemployment. But I really found the voice of Evie–former Gifted student and SAT prep tutor – to be incredibly relatable. So I found myself going, "Yeah I think I would do that" every step of the way.

Overall this was a really fun read, it kept me engaged, and while I did guess the "twist" I still liked getting to know about how we got there.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book.

Great premise, sadly I absolutely could not suspend my disbelief. When I kept saying WHY out loud too many times, I knew I was done. DNF'd.

Evie Gordon is on the run. She walked in to her most recent SAT tutoring session to find a murder scene, and now she is the number one -- more like only -- suspect with her face plastered all over the news. The only survivor is on the run with her, but she won't speak.

This may be a good fit if you enjoy:
- books about women on the run
- a little romance in your thrillers
- novels with a strong internal dialogue

This was a wild one! Evie is a fugitive which creates an exciting plot, but this book is also very character driven with a strong voice. I gasped at some of the reveals and enjoyed seeing how everything unfolded. The relationships between the characters were complex and nuanced. Given we spend so much time in Evie's head, there were some shifts in pacing, but I flew through this one, especially the end.

Rating: I really liked it! (4)

Thank you William Morrow and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Fun popcorn thriller that was an easy read, and I think a lot of readers will enjoy this. It just wasn’t my cup of tea. I know this is fiction, but this was a little to out there for me in terms of things that could actually happen.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Killer Potential.

Great title and premise! I was excited my request was granted.

There are sa few sex scenes and discussions of same sex relationships if some readers are sensitive to these topics.

Evie Gordon is a smart cookie but having brains isn't everything. One day she walks into a crime scene and her meager existence explodes into a Lifetime movie,

From the premise, I was envisioning a Hitchcockian-esque thriller; falsely accused and on the run, hoping to figure out a way to clear your name.

I only got one part right; running from the law, and everything else required a high suspension of disbelief I couldn't fake.

It's hard to believe two women could evade the police for so long considering how many security cameras and facial recognitions scanners there are in our country now.

The book gives off Thelma and Louise vibes but Evie and Jae are nothing like those likable, engaging, and memorable characters.

It's pretty convenient that Jae is as skilled at pickpocketing and nicking like the Artful Dodge because it was just Evie on the run alone, she would have been picked up in 20 minutes.

Evie talks constantly about how smart she is; yes, she's book smart but obviously not street smart.

We're in Evie's head a lot as she monologues constantly about how smart she is, how much her loving family supported her academic dreams.

But, she's still a nobody from a small town she doesn't want to return to with her tail between her legs.

Evie is annoying, bratty, and entitled; she's surprised her big brains didn't give her everything she dreamed of; success, money, a big house.

I'm not sure how I feel about Jae; I didn't like her but I didn't dislike her.

She reads like a cliche stereotype of a rebel, of a good girl turned survivors because of her difficult childhood and hardships.

There are moments of blood and violence as Evie and Jae hide and evade capture, resorting to acts of violence to protect one another. But the narrative eventually devolves into them romancing each other.

There's a 'twist' I saw coming, especially when you realize Evie is doing nothing to find the real killer and clear their names.

And here's my biggest gripe; I've said it in so many reviews and I'll keep saying it again until I'm blue in the face, apparently.

Every novel doesn't need to have a romance.

The main characters don't need to hook up or get involved or married, etc.

The sudden romance between Evie and Jae was forced, contrived, and unnecessary.

The tone of the narrative soon shifted from suspenseful to a YA novel, romanticizing their plight and imagining a future together.

The ending is realistic; neither happy nor sad, but again, unnecessarily corny and romance-y.

The writing was good, but heavy on metaphors especially when discussing the feelings the characters have for each other. 🙄

I am sorry to say that I struggled a bit with this one. I wanted to love it but couldn’t get past the glaring inconsistencies. I think I will likely be an outlier and that this will be a win for many thriller lovers.

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and publisher for an ARC of this great read for my honest review.
Absolutely. Put. This. On. Your. TBR.
I loved this book! The Bonnie and Clyde and whodunit feel had me hooked from the first chapter. I fell in love with both main characters and was always hoping for the best while trying to figure out how this story was going to have a good ending for either character.

This really makes you realize how quickly the public can pin you as a murderer and want you burning at the stake, even without all of the details. My heart ached for both characters for different reasons all the way to the end, but the writing style was great from start to finish! The ending left me wanting so much more but also gave me a good stopping point. I highly recommend checking this book out and I’ll be looking into other books from this author as well!

There is a little bit of sexual tension and some more descriptive sex scenes, but it is not overwhelming for those interested in skipping these parts.

#killerpotential #netgalley

The story follows Evie Gordon, an SAT tutor who unexpectedly stumbles upon a shocking crime scene at a client’s home. From the very start, the author’s writing is vivid and richly detailed, creating a clear and gripping picture. However, I found it a bit challenging to fully engage with the story initially due to its fast-paced opening.

One of the standout aspects of the book is the intriguing dynamic between the main characters, Evie and Jae. Jae’s mysterious nature adds an air of suspense that keeps you guessing, especially as their interactions evolve and reveal unexpected layers.

As for the ending, it was a mix of the expected and the unexpected, with a plot twist that truly caught me off guard.
Thank you to NetGalley, author Hannah Deitch, and William Morrow for providing me with an advanced copy for review!