Reviews tagging 'Self harm'

How to Kill a Guy in Ten Ways by Eve Kellman

10 reviews

miss_marvel_reads's review against another edition

dark emotional tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

well that was hella twisted but at the same time so well written that i couldnt stop during the last 170 pages
(at the beginning it may have benn a little bit slow but the end made up for it)
loved that there were just a dozen of characters so you couldn't get them confused and all of them at the right amount of screen time (as well as message M which was more dominant at the beginning but played an important role until the end) 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Stalking, Injury/Injury detail, Addiction, Blood, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Vomit, Child abuse, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Drug use, Murder, Sexism, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Torture, and Violence

Moderate: Alcoholism and Alcohol

torturedreadersdept's review against another edition

challenging dark funny tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dysphoria, Sexism, Sexual violence, Cursing, Death, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Blood, Sexual content, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Misogyny, Murder, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Car accident, Eating disorder, Gaslighting, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Outing, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Sexual assault, Violence, Vomit, Sexual harassment, and Stalking

annamorgan27's review against another edition

challenging dark funny fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Sexism, Misogyny, Alcohol, Child abuse, Murder, Blood, Death, Physical abuse, Mental illness, Stalking, Body horror, Violence, Incest, Sexual assault, Rape, Self harm, Domestic abuse, Gore, Car accident, and Injury/Injury detail

alpa's review against another edition

emotional funny mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Sooo good! Throughly enjoyed all the twists and turns in this book. Just when you think something’s going right another surprise comes along 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Rape, Violence, Suicide attempt, Sexual harassment, and Sexual violence

chapters_and_pages's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I absolutely love mystery/thrillers and I haven’t read many where the main character is the killer, but I really enjoyed it!

Millie is sick of men who hurt or intimidate women, so she starts Message M, a hotline for women and girls to call when they need help. A creepy guy following you home? A weird date gone awry? Suspect someone has put something in your drink on a night out? Message M. But Millie quickly realises helping the women isn’t enough, she needs to take out the source of the problem…

Books like these are always tricky to review because I know I shouldn’t root for our serial killer main character, but I kind of can’t help it. Is Millie a good character? God no. Can I understand her motives? Absolutely. A vast majority of women will understand the motivation Millie has because we have all, at one point or another, been made to feel unsafe by a man. Unfortunately, that’s the harsh reality of being a woman, and even though it’s not all men, it doesn’t change the fact that women have to be cautious of every man. 

I’ve read a few other books similar to this (Katy Brent’s How to Kill Men (and Get Away With It) comes to mind) however I think this is the first one I’ve read where our main character is an actual psychopath with no remorse, even when she unintentionally kills an innocent man, thinking he’s someone else. I really enjoyed this because sometimes killers, serial killers especially are just insane, and don’t care about their actions. 

To be honest, I don’t really mind that Millie got away with it in the end, and that she and Nina framed James. The one part I wasn’t to sure about was Nina. Obviously, I can’t speak from experience, but I think if I were to find out that my best friend was a serial killer who had killed about 9 (I think it was around that number at that point…) people, including my boyfriend, I highly doubt I would just get on board and help with the next one. Would I understand her motives and reasoning? Hell yes. Would I want to give her a chance to turn herself in? Possibly. Would I decide to say fuck it and join in? Absolutely fucking not! 

On a completely unrelated note, I loved that the author is from Bristol and the book was based in Bristol because I rarely see my home in books! 

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and I will definitely read Eve Kellman’s future books. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Violence, Domestic abuse, Gore, Stalking, Self harm, Alcohol, Death, Murder, Pedophilia, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Child abuse, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Emotional abuse, Rape, Blood, and Sexual assault

gemloukay's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Millie Masters is a picture framer by day and runs a safety hotline for women at night following an attack on her sister. But when one of the saves becomes an accidental murder, Millie decides that preventing further attacks is more satisfying than simply saving people. Of course her new boyfriend being a detective might be a small hitch in her vengeful plans… 

The was a sharp and witty tale in which the main character reminded me of Villanelle in Killing Eve. She’s blunt and funny despite her murderous streak and you actually want her to get away with it all! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death, and Death of parent

Moderate: Sexual assault, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Eating disorder, Rape, Self harm, Adult/minor relationship, and Alcoholism

cheyennedierker's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

4.5/5.0 ⭐

If you were a fan of Netflix's 'In the Dark,' this book is for you.

Our deeply unhinged female protagonist Millie is bitter, judgmental, self-deprecating, and drifting through life with a handful of imbalanced relationships with her best friend, boss, and family. Then, after her younger sister is attacked, Millie seeks vengeance in the form of a vigilante service line for local women.

"Are you on a date that doesn't feel right? Can't shake the creepy guy at the bar? Worried you're being followed home? Message M."

After a series of over-the-top, ridiculous, and frustrating-to-the-reader decisions, it all comes to a head. It's quick-paced. It's dark-humored. It's sharp. It's heavy in places, so do check the trigger warnings.

ARC | Kindle Version

Thank you to Harper360 and NetGalley for the advanced copy.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape and Violence

Moderate: Suicide and Self harm

harleyqueen's review against another edition

dark hopeful reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Millie runs a help line for women who have run insurance with men who don't understand the word no. But when she gets a call and accidently kills one of the men she questions why should they live and goes on a vigilante killing spree to find her sisters abuser . Maybe the answer she's looking for was a lot closer to home then she realised 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Domestic abuse, and Self harm

beate251's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

"Things are not going to plan, but I’m only a quitter when it comes to work, hobbies, relationships, diets, and most friendships. Not murder."

This is a debut novel? Seriously? I can hardly believe that. It was so unputdownable I spent an entire Saturday in a reading daze, and while I must have had food and gone to the bathroom etc, I have no recollection, I was that engrossed. I love a good revenge novel, and this one had me enthralled. When was the last time you rooted for a sociopathic vigilante serial killer? Dexter maybe? And the ending, wow.

Loved, loved, loved. Such dark, clever, tense fun.

Also, has someone already commented on the nice riff on "How to lose a guy in ten days"?

"No point crying over spilt blood."

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Death of parent, Sexual assault, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Sexual violence, Blood, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Drug use, Suicide attempt, Vomit, Grief, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Murder, Pedophilia, and Sexism

clarke's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

I support women's rights, and more importantly women's wrongs (she did nothing wrong). 

I really enjoyed the jovial writing style, and each reveal of information was well done. Whilst some things were predictable and some silly actions, it was relatively realistic and didn't detract from my overall enjoyment. I enjoyed the relationships in the book, especially the "I'd do anything for you" type of love outside of a romantic relationship. Every character had a purpose, even if very minor, and the ending tied everything up well. I thoroughly enjoyed this and would love to read more like it. Thank you to netgalley for the arc. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Rape, Self harm, Sexual harassment, Fire/Fire injury, Pedophilia, Incest, Eating disorder, Suicidal thoughts, Car accident, Suicide, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Death, and Alcoholism