Reviews with content warning for Child abuse - Kill For Me Kill For You

I was intrigued by this book, as it was my first Cavanagh not centred on Eddie Flynn. I thought I might miss those wonderful characters in a standalone story, but actually this had me just as gripped. Eddie Flynn or not, Steve Cavanagh is definitely an auto buy author for me. I'm also going to hope for a crossover between Flynn and Farrow since they're pleasingly set in the same world!

As well as the characters, the real draw with Cavanagh's books is the plotting. It's twisty without being frustrating, tense and violent without going over the top, and so intricate but without being overly confusing. There were so many times during this book that I worked out what was happening, and I'd either be proven wrong or be so completely thrown off course that I changed my mind before realising I was right all along. Guessing what's coming next is slightly pointless but so much fun.

I was a bit frustrated by the end, there was a mini cliffhanger (that I'm sure was thrown in on purpose) when I was expecting a neater ending. But perhaps we're not done with this story. Either way it was very cleverly finished.

More Farrow in future books please!

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bibrarian_'s review

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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yvo_about_books's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

4.75

Finished reading: July 27th 2024

“It takes a lot to kill someone. Human beings in crisis cannot think straight; their instinct to preserve life gets sidelined in the sea of their desperation. In the absence of a psychological disorder or crisis or the impairment to rational thinking brought about by drugs or alcohol, it is very hard to kill another living, breathing member of the human race.”

It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of Steve Cavanagh's writing, and I've been waiting impatiently for his newest book to be finally published outside the UK. I loved the sound of the premise of Kill For You, Kill For Me, although I confess I added it to my wishlist even before I learned what it was going to be about... His writing hasn't disappointed me yet, and Kill For Me, Kill For You turned out to be another absolutely fantastic and deviously clever read. This is one of those books where it's best to go in blind in order to feel the full impact of the plot twists... Trust me, you will most likely be picking up your jaw from the floor more than once before reaching that final page. His writing is always engaging, and I was already enjoying the ride from the beginning... But once the first major plot twist bomb dropped, I started to see just how clever and intricate this plot was. My mind is still in awe of what I have just read, and I have no doubt that this book will appear on my list of 2024 favorites. I particularly loved the Strangers On A Train vibe; not a copy of the classic, but rather an ingenious adaptation that will mislead you more than once. The story uses a multiple POV structure, which was perfect for the plot and helped creating maximum impact for certain twists. If you like your thrillers on the dark, twisted and engaging side, I can highly recommend Kill For Me, Kill For You!

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amirahazhar's review

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adventurous dark medium-paced

4.0

What a ride! So many twists and turns, I was completely enthralled. At times, some parts of the plot didn't seem realistic but still addictive regardless. This is my first Cavanagh book and he's a fantastic writer so I'm excited to read his other work.

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tanukino's review

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dark fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

The only thing I was satisfied reading about was the criticism of law in a capitalist world. I also admit that while the first plot twist was super predictable, I wasn't expecting the second or third. So that was fun to read!

I also appreciated this sort of slipppery slope approach to trauma and PTSD. There's a lot to be said about the lack of real support for people who have experienced trauma.

Overall, too many silly coincidences and too little research on how NYC actually is kind of took me out of it. That being said, I zipped through it pretty quickly, and it was certainly fast-paced and engaging. The ending was very unsatisfactory to me personally, but what can you do?

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