Reviews with content warning for Grief - The Murder After the Night Before

This was a quirky, witty + fun read, jam packed with twists + turns but also humour, sarcasm and tones of sexism, feminism + grief. I loved Brent’s HOW TO KILL MEN AND GET AWAY WITH IT and this had very similar vibes. Murder, scandal, mystery, dark comedy + a bunch of suspicious characters made for a pacy + gripping read. There was a big focus on the dark side of social media + the violence and judgments women face on a daily basis, which added a lot of depth to the plot. I was also convinced I had the murderer sussed but was shocked!

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jazzy_t's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny sad tense fast-paced

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

4.75

Wowie. A great book! So really beautiful moments mix with such heartbreak. I generally feel so much for the characters, and as its said in the book it's hard not to fall in love with Posie!

I would say maybe the last few chapters let this book down slightly. With one being confusing, it's explained but also does leave some questions. And the final chapter being amazing but also extremely frustrating but that is probably the point!

I would love to see more from these characters I feel there is scope there, I'm not sure I'm ready to say goodbye!

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claireogdenlibrary's review

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dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

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

5.0

This is the best book I have read in a long time and something I would never normally choose. It was engrossing and I was completely immersed, absorbed and invested 100%. The story unfolds and unfolds and keeps on going and isn’t anything you think you know it is going to be. Highly recommended and I can’t wait to read more by this author.

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ntc10's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

2.5

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. The Murder After the Night Before follows Molly starting the morning after her work Christmas party. She’s hungover, can’t remember anything about the night before, and a video of her has gone viral. Molly’s day keeps getting worse when she later discovers her roommate and best friend, Posey, dead in her bathroom. Molly is sure that Posey’s death was not an accident but the police refuse to investigate so Molly decides to find out the truth for herself, and Posey.

I was really excited about the concept of this book but was ultimately disappointed with the execution. The cover and description made me think this book was going to be a romp following Molly trying to retrace her steps from the night before to get answers in the same vein as The Hangover. However, I was disappointed that this book is barely about the night she can’t remember and instead is about her trying to solve the mystery of the missing person's case Posey was writing an article about. It also bothered me that Molly would just conveniently start to remember parts of the night before, without anything jogging her memory, when it was necessary to move the plot along.

Another issue I have is the fact that nowhere in the book synopsis is sexual assault mentioned or given a trigger warning, but the reason Molly goes viral is that someone posted a video of her performing a sexually explicit act on the night she can’t remember. This storyline was very dark and while I thought it was handled well it surprised me and I don’t think topics of this nature should be a surprise to readers. Nothing about this book was light-hearted or funny. Even before the start of the book Molly has very low self-worth, doesn’t like her job, and is deeply unhappy. There’s nothing wrong with covering these topics, it just wasn’t what I was expecting from this book.

However, I did think this book had a few redeeming qualities. I thought it was charmingly British and had well-written supporting characters that were interesting and integral to the plot. I was also impressed that I didn’t guess the plot reveals and was surprised by the ending. This book deals with a lot of hard topics like grief, alcohol abuse, and sexual assault. Readers who are looking for a mystery that is equal parts character-driven and plot-driven covering more hard-hitting topics should check this out.

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chapters_and_pages's review

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dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

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

5.0

I really enjoyed Katy Brent’s first book, How to Kill Men and Get Away With It, so I knew I had to read this one as well and I’m so glad I did!

In one day, Molly Monroe’s life has completely fallen apart. She’s woken up the hangover from hell, a stranger in her bed and a video that has gone viral on social media that she has no memory of. All she’s sure of? Something bad happened last night. As if that wasn’t enough, her best friend is now dead. With the police and everyone around Molly convinced Posey’s death is a tragic accident, Molly knows something much worse is at play.

I must admit, it took me about 100 pages to really become convinced by this book, but once I was, I could not put it down. I really enjoyed Molly as a character, and you just can’t help but feel sorry for her as she’s going through the week from hell.

This book was full of twists and turns, and while I had an inkling about some, others did take me by surprise.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would highly recommend!

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