A review by maaikereadsbooks_
How to Kill Men and Get Away With It by Katy Brent

dark fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

Many thanks to HQ Digital and Katy Brent for the advanced copy of How To Kill Men and Get Away With It via NetGalley, in return for my honest and unbiased review. Quick note: I don’t recap plots in my reviews, as it’s easy enough to read the book’s synopsis and blurbs, I purely focus on my feelings & opinions of how the books makes me feel. 

Well…one thing we don’t have to be worried about is Katy Brent being a serial killer. But, then again, it could be an elaborate double bluff, and she’s actually one of the most successful murderers the world has ever seen. Or not seen. Because she certainly has no knowledge of, or perhaps respect for, forensic science. Or detectives. Or CCTV. 

It’s probably quite obvious that I did not enjoy this book. Besides the blatant unrealistic-ness of every single crime scene in the book, the entire thing was vapid. I’m probably not the target audience. I don’t ‘get’ influencers. I wore wide leg trousers the FIRST time they came around. I couldn’t care less what brand Kitty’s eleventy billion couches are. Or her clothes. Or shoes. I’d hoped for some kind of redemptive arc where the brands were ditched by the end of the book, but nope. 

Brent grabbed every trigger she could think of and threw them into this book. Some were handled relatively well…some…not so much. As someone who has personal relationships with several of the larger ‘headline’ triggers, I did bristle at how they were brushed aside and not properly dealt with. 

Overall, if you have any interest in forensics or have a scientific mind, I don’t think you’ll enjoy this book. If you like influencers, brands, or the Chelsea set, you probably will. I probably just overthought it too much to be able to enjoy it. 

Spice: 3/5 

Trigger warnings: Alcohol abuse, Animal death, Blood/Gore, Cheating, Child abuse, Death, Death of a family member, Drugs, Eating Disorder, Fatphobia, Guns/weapons, Incest, Kidnapping, Mental Illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Murder, Paedophilia, Physical or mental abuse, Poisoning, PTSD, Rape, Self Harm, Sexism, Sexual abuse/assault/harassment, Slut shaming, Torture, Violence 

Rating 2/5 

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