This book was provided to me via NetGalley in turn of my honest review. Honestly some parts of this book were good but other parts were hard to get through. I figured out the "plot twist" pretty early on but I must admit at the very beginning the author had me fooled.
The main character was very selt-centered, narrow, pretty unlikeable and on top of that the author made it seem like everyone wanted her attention. Super off-putting to me. Her obsession with this murderer was not enjoyable and her neediness to be liked and to flaunt what she's capable of was not necessary to me.
The ease with which the murders happened is also mind-boggling to me. The descriptions of all the drunks and poor, homeless people was over the top for me.
The book had me hooked on the mystery of the ninth victim, just for the author to drop it in the end and not tell us anything (I waited the whole book for the reveal).
The other reporter.. I have no idea why he cared so much about the main character's business, it felt very immature. Journalism seemed very twisted and a sorry excuse of a job here, I would not be proud to be a journalist if I were these characters. Let me make it clear, I disliked EVERYONE in this book. Not one likeable character..
2 stars as I truly was hooked on the offered mystery.
Maybe this book just wasn't the scene for me.

It was very hard for me to get into this book. The writing style lacked emotion, not a whole lot going on, and the killer was both obvious and made no sense. A good portion of this story is descriptive fluff and not laying the foundation for the mystery. And yet, it’s told in a cold and unfeeling manner. If that was the authors intention then they nailed it. But for me, it was hard to care about a story that read like the author was bored while writing it.

70/100 or 3.50 stars

This was a fun thriller that I was able to devour in one sitting. I was able to predict what would happen, but I still enjoyed my time reading and wanted to keep reading to see if my predictions were correct (they were). I liked the way this story ends, as I can see how some readers would have no idea what is going to happen next. I figured it out and still had a good time!

The best part about this is the complexity within the characters around psychopathy and how that impacts their lives throughout the novel. It was a bloody good time, and I would be interested in picking up future work from Barnett!

This book was a good, short read. However, I wasn't a huge fan of the MC and found a lot of inconsistencies that were a bit frustrating with her character. For example, she's obsessed with serial killers, true crime, and enjoys torture porn, but is terrified of the dark/what's waiting in the dark and needs pills to sleep? That doesn't make sense and she constantly flip flops with this behavior throughout the book. There was also a lot of telling and not showing which made the plot drag. Overall, it was an okay read. It just didn't catch my attention and hold it.

I really struggle with books when I don’t like any of the characters and can’t connect with any of them. Unfortunately, that was the case with this book. It started off with some promise, but I just couldn’t continue rooting for anyone.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

A fast paced, twisty thriller with a true crime obsessed main character- Yes please!

Kelli, a journalist living in a small town, previously was involved in the capture of a prolific serial killer. The book is set a number of years later when Kelli herself is now old news. She’s looking for the next thing that could give her a boost and get her back into the game when a suspicious death occurs in the forest behind her house. Kelli is immediately all in and to her surprise finds that dead bodies are not the only thing close to home.

I really enjoyed this novel, it kept me on the edge of my seat and wanting to keep going to see what was going to happen next. It was a great choice to make Kelli an unreliable narrator!

If you’re looking for your next read and really want to be hooked in, I’d definitely recommend checking this out!

Thank you to the publisher, author and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I liked “how to get away with murder” it has great pacing, lots of twists and turns and was written well. I will say I did clock the killer before the end but I also normally do so I wouldn’t say it’s predictable and boring. It reminded me of AGGGTM series or the truly devious series.

Would recommend !

An easy enough read which kept me interested. I wasnt keen on the way the main character was written, unfortunately, which felt like a female being written by a man. Thanks to Netgalley.

This book is perfect for fans of true crime!
Pretty detailed/gory 👀
I think it was well written. I seen a couple things coming, had some guesses that were wrong! 😅
Overall, I enjoyed the book and the ending.

I love an unreliable narrator. Kell is obsessed with true crime. She caught one serial killer and now that there has been a murder close to her home she is ready to get into action again. The writing and the way the story was told was unique. I was so deeping invested in this book. It was dark and psychological. There were good twists and the ending was satisfying. I highly recommend this book!

I started off hooked and addicted to this one. It had me captivated from the very beginning and had great potential. However unfortunately
for me it got a bit too complicated in the middle of the book with too many stories. I would however recommend this one as I know some fans of true crime / thriller books will love this one. I didn't hate it but I feel it lost its vibe.

"I guess rule number one of committing the perfect murder would be convincing everyone you weren't contemplating murder at all."

So says Kelli Amari, obsessed with serial killers, a journalist who rose to fame when she herself caught a serial killer. Now firmly back in her small town in the British countryside, having fallen short of the meteoric career she was hoping for after her big break, Kelli is frustrated and more than a little bitter with her life's trajectory, So, when a body is found in the woods behind her house, Kelli is understandably delighted. This could be, after all, her second chance to prove herself, her redemption!

"How to Get Away with Murder" was on the shorter side and fast-paced, which made it an easy, quick read. And props for a shockingly high number of twists in relatively short a book - though most of them were predictable, including the red herrings, I appreciated their placement in the story and thought they were well done.

That being said, while the book started out strong and with some of the dark humor promised in the blurb, it did not live up to its promise for me. Let's start with our unreliable narrator Kelli, who is not only absolutely unlikeable, but - much worse in a book such as this - not nearly as clever as she thinks she is. She constantly makes stupid decisions, one of them being to continue a disturbing relationship with the murderer she "caught" (no thanks to her own skills, though), another one being binging on seriously dark serial killer materials instead of going to therapy, and then being too afraid to go upstairs to bed. And don't even get me started on her actions during the actual murder investigation. That is all well and good - not all characters have to be likeable and/or clever, after all - until, in the second half of the book, we are suddenly told something about Kelli's background that seems meant to not just make her more likeable, but also explain her actions (spoiler alert: it didn't, and it only made me dislike her more, because whyyyyyy was there such a weird cover story that just dragged someone else into the mess?). Something traumatic was made to feel like a cheap plot twist, which really irritated me, even more so because it felt both entirely unnecessary to the plot and ineffective. A redemption arc for Kelli, this was not!

The book itself seemed like it was equally confused about what it was going to be - a darkly comedic take on our society's obsession with murder and true crime, or an intense, suspenseful thriller? While the first half of the book is somewhat humorous, the second half takes itself much too seriously, and by trying to be both, "How to Get Away with Murder" fell flat for me. Finally, it was so procedurally frustrating (not just filled with inept police, which is almost a mandatory requirement in stories like these, but there was no understanding of criminal procedure), it took me right out of the book.

Overall, this would have been closer to a 2.5 star read for me, but the final twists - though not unexpected - were satisfying enough to elevate my rating to 3 stars. This was a debut novel, and it definitely felt like one at times, but I would read more books by this author.

TW: murder (duh), torture, domestic abuse, substance abuse, child sexual abuse, attempted rape.

<i>Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

"How to Get Away with Murder" is slated to be released on January 27, 2025.</i>

First, thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for allowing me to read this book and exchange for an honest review.

This book follows Kelli, a journalist and true crime fanatic who has already cracked one case and is ready to take on another when her boyfriend is accused of murder. Overall, How to Get Away With Murder is an engaging read, although it was darker than I anticipated. I actually often enjoy dark books, so this did not affect my rating, but I will note that it was a bit darker than I expected from reading the back cover. This is a quick read, and there are definitely twists and turns along the way. However, I really struggled to connect with any of the characters, and this made it hard to care about them. And although I will leave this vague to avoid spoilers, I will admit that my overall rating went down by a star when I got to the very ending (which left me frustrated rather than shocked).

Overall, I would give this book a 3.5 and will round it to 4. I wish I could go back and simply not read the last chapter haha, but I would recommend this book to anyone who’s looking for a quick, twisty-turny thriller.

This book was not for me. Noe of the characters were particularly likeable, and the main character was just annoying. All the actions were farfetched and really didn't make any sense. It's a no from me dog.

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the Arc. This did not influence my review or my rating.

Honestly, this is the first time I did not guess the murderer so that was cool. This main character is an awful person and also a completely unreliable narrator and I really enjoyed it. The fact that no one was a good person made me pretty happy since I think that is pretty rare. The author did not attempt to make the characters good and the characters didn’t pretend to be good. I think true crime fans have a glorified way of looking at crime. A lot of these crime journalists are not sane or even morally good. In fact there should be more conversation around how victims and their families are treated by the media.

Anyway since the book is not out yet I will not spoil anything but I think it’s worth the read because it is an easy thriller to read.

I really liked this book!! I do love the format and the unique way the writing was. I was entertained and intrigued the whole way through, and I really enjoy the way this authorwrites, I recommend this book!!!

Thank you to NetGalley, to the author, and to the publisher for this complimentary ARC in exchange for my honest review!!!

***advance review copy received from NetGalley in return for an honest review***
A pacy murder mystery that would be perfect for readers who enjoyed A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder. I will admit that I twigged the killer ahead of the reveal, but the final ending was so good that it earned the extra star for me. A very satisfying read.

Release Date- 27th January 2025.
thank you to NetGalley & ps published for gifting and allowing me to read an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest rating and review.

˚୨୧⋆｡ 4 ☆

Our main character in this novel is Kelli, and similar to Pip from aggtm she is a small town journalist that is obsessed with true crime and documentaries. in this novel we learn that Kelli had caught a prolific serial killer and had her section of fame through being featured in a documentary. Kelli wants more from the criminal action for her to get stuck into, so when there is a murder close to her home, Kelli can’t refuse this chance.

Through most of this book I was thinking “this is a nice cozy comedy mystery” and then bam! we get to the second half of the novel (150 pages+) and we got into thriller territory. I personally did not see any of the twists coming and I absolutely love thrillers and it’s so fun to try and discover who it is, and like per usual I was incorrect. I was completely shocked by the correct and guilty perpetrator. Some of Kelli’s actions I did predict as she was subtle and I feel like there were many suggestions leading up to that.

Overall, this was such an enjoyable and fun arc read and I loved it.
First book of 2025 💫🎊

I can't remember the last time I skim read a book but this one drove me to it.It started well but then desends into a hot mess,nothing seemed to flow right and there was a lack of detail at crucial points.
Normally, you can take to at least one character in a book, but there just weren't any likeable ones in this one.
The plot line went from rushed to slow, and it was hard to engage. There was a big chance for this to be a really good, interesting read, but the writer has sadly missed the mark for me.
I hope others enjoy more.
Thanks to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for the Arc.

A great read! Twisty, witty and just a little bit unhinged!

Meet Kelli, a small town journalist who is obsessed with true crime. After she caught a prolific serial killer and had her 15 minutes of fame, Kelli has yearned for more criminal action to get stuck into, so when there is a murder close to her home, Kelli is all in!

Kelli is a brilliantly unreliable narrator and her antics absolutely grabbed my attention! Is she an amateur sleuth, or a deadly psychopath?

Tam Barnett cleverly builds up the suspense whilst casting suspicion on a number of possible killers. There's plenty of dark humour and some jaw dropping twists, which lead to an exquisitely shocking ending. Loved it!

5 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, Tam Barnett and Boldwood, for an ARC in return for an honest review.