Damn. I'm so conflicted. The whole time I was reading this I was asking if anything happy was going to happen. Then the twists and bang ending came along because it's Adam Hamdy and that's what he does. I'm still conflicted. This book is one of those books about the morally gray tough choices that we don't ever want to have to think about. Would you kill an innocent person to save your kid? Dive into this book to reason out if you would....

A single dad, a need for money, and an offer he can't refuse! Deadbeat was gripping from the very beginning and kept me turning the pages. I wanted to know how things were going to play out as the tension and danger mounted in this thriller of a book!

Peyton Collard is considered a Deadbeat by many who know him. He has a drinking problem, is divorced, behind on child support, and has had a run in with the law. He has been offered a large sum of money to kill an evil man....

I enjoyed the questions which this book brought up such as what makes a good man become a deadbeat? What will one man be willing to do for those he loves? Does doing a bad thing make you a bad man or a man who had nothing left to lose? Not to mention the one glaring question going through Peyton's mind, who hired him and why? Now, that is the question!

This book proved to be a fast and thrilling ride. I wanted to see what was going to happen next. There is more at play in this book than meets the eye and I wanted to get to the bottom of it along with Peyton.

I enjoyed the mystery in this book as well as the mounting tension, dread, and danger. As this book and Peyton begin to spiral out of control, I enjoyed the twists, turns, and revelations. If you are familiar with Los Angeles, you might enjoy the places and streets mentioned as I did. Plus, I enjoyed Peyton's internal struggles which mirrored my own. Was he a good man doing bad things or was he a bad man doing bad things but with good intentions???????

The ending did come out of left field and was shocking while providing some aha moments as well. I never saw that coming – hats off to anyone who does! I’m a little conflicted about my thoughts on the ending but not enough that it affected my enjoyment of this book.

I absolutely loved this book! It was a gripping page turner I read in two days. I'll definitely be reading more books this author puts out!

Every twist, every revelation had me gasping for breath. This is not just a thriller; it’s a raw, visceral experience that leaves a lasting impact. I absolutely loved every second of it!

I'm sorry, but I flat out did not enjoy this book. The style is a thicket of overworked metaphors. The incompetent and beyond unsympathetic protagonist's interior monologue is a relentless repetition of the exact same thought process -- inducing me toward lightly skimming over whole pages. The plotting veered from an unconvincing recycling of very cliched tropes and implausible action to an outright ludicrous finale and a morally dubious denouement.

There was a gem of a fun idea here, and a suitably scuzzy milieu. But it was a hard slog to get through, and there was no real reward at the end.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Deadbeat.

I read the author's previous book, The Other Side of Night, which I didn't love, but did like parts of.

Deadbeat is about Peyton Collard, how used to be a good man, had a good job, wife, and daughter. Then he screwed it all up after a terrible accident and an innocent life was lost.

Now, a barely functioning alcoholic living a shattered life, his fortune seems to change when he's offered a ridiculous amount of money to kill a bad man.

As Peyton weighs the pros and cons of perpetuating this heinous deed, he finds himself falling headlong into a conspiracy that started long ago.

And it will soon be too late to turn back.

I didn't like Peyton, but I don't think you're supposed to.

He's barely struggling to get by, unable to pay child support, he's weak, he's a loser, and always turns to booze. Yep, he's a deadbeat.

Yet, as the narrative progresses, I still didn't like Peyton. I didn't dislike him but I wouldn't want to hang out with him in real life.

I wasn't a fan of the constant internal monologuing as he tries to rationalize committing murder.

I know the point is to be in Peyton's head but his thoughts are repetitive and boring and slowed the pacing of the story a lot.

I guessed who the anonymous patron was from the get-go (it's not hard) but not the reason for it, which I thought was a good twist.

But that ending...it's too corny, too cheesy, too pat.

I thought the ending was more difficult to suspend disbelief for, even after everything Peyton went through.

I was instantly hooked by the totally unique premise and had no idea where the story would go next. I also loved how conflicted I felt about the main character throughout the story. Sometimes I felt like he was a piece of shit and other times I truly felt sorry for him. The ending seemed a bit farfetched compared to the rest of the story, but overall a really fresh, interesting read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for an ARC of Deadbeat.

I read a lot of books and often feel like I am reading the same couple plots over and over again, but that was absolutely not the case here! I was instantly hooked by the totally unique premise and had no idea where the story would go next. I also loved how conflicted I felt about the main character throughout the story. Sometimes I felt like he was a piece of shit and other times I truly felt sorry for him. The ending seemed a bit farfetched compared to the rest of the story, but overall a really fresh, interesting read.

4 stars!