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3.56 AVERAGE
3.56 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
**Debut Thriller** Published July 22, 2025
Thanks to #RandomHousePublishing, #Ballantine, and the author for the #GiftedCopy of this ARC provided via #NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
When I picked up Love You To Death, I wasn’t totally sure it would hold my attention. But a few pages in, it took off like the General Lee flying through Georgia (younger readers, you might need to Google that one 😂). Christina Dotson’s debut is a dark, twisted, and emotional ride that mixes the chaos of "Natural Born Killers" with the sisterhood vibes of "Thelma and Louise." Some readers have mixed feelings about it, but I was all in. This book is one wild, bloody ride.
Kayla and Zorie are childhood besties bonded by trauma, secrets, and way too many bad decisions. They crash weddings and steal gifts to survive. (High risk, low reward—definitely not for the faint of heart.) But everything unravels after one heist goes sideways, a bridesmaid ends up dead, and the two find themselves on the run across the South. Their “ride or die” pact turns into something much darker.
Kayla is the quiet one, the emotional center of the story. She’s flawed, no doubt, but there’s something raw and real about her. I couldn’t help but root for her, even as things spiraled. Her life feels like it was always one wrong turn away from disaster. And Zorie is the disaster. She’s electric, wild, dangerous, and the definition of a beautiful mess. She's a human grenade with a dazzling smile. Their friendship is tangled and totally toxic, but it’s also heartbreakingly loyal.
Dotson does a great job showing how trauma blurs the line between love and survival. Watching them spiral is hard, but I couldn't look away.
The plot is full of sharp turns and “what the hell just happened” moments. The dialogue rings true, the tension never lets up, and the stakes get higher with every chapter. This debut is fierce, fast, and brilliantly unforgettable. I'm sold on this author!
Read it if you love:
- Morally messy female friendships
- Stories about unhinged women making terrible choices
- Crime thrillers that feel like they could go viral
- Books that make you feel a little guilty for rooting for the bad guys
challenging
sad
tense
medium-paced
2.5 stars. This was such a long train wreck. There is no mystery here, you are just tense the whole time because they keep doing terrible things and getting into worse situations. The writing is fine, but what on earth, make better choices. be better people. I was trying to look at this with an open mind, I did just read the New Jim Crow about cycles of poverty and crime, and this started out that way, they didn't have a lot of good options, but they never chose the option that would have done the least harm. "don't be mad at me!" "i'm a good person!" no, you have killed people and I am mad.
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Love You To Death
Christina Dotson
Kayla is impressionable. Zorie is the impressionist. At least that’s the roles that they both play in their relationship. No matter what appears to have gone awry the duo have each other’s back. Or do they 🤔👀😏?
Kayla’s point of view is the primary perspective of the novel. She expresses her discontentment with her current position in life, but her actions aren’t making things better either. It’s somewhat of a snowball effect. She also has a hard time accepting the consequences of her actions.
Zorie is, in fact, the wild card. She’s been able to navigate life even with her affinity for chaos, rather well. Her issue is she almost always takes things a little too far. Her inability to be rational in particular situations creates an even more dangerous situation.
The dynamic of their relationship changes throughout their journey, but they never really stray far from each other. The codependency is real.
I think this novel is dynamic, in the way in which Kayla develops throughout the novel. There is a lot of tension between what she knows is the “right “ thing to do, and what she has planned with Zorie. It takes her a long while to understand her role in the chaos. In some ways, it felt like that issue would be something she would have to grapple with indefinitely.
Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the ARC.
#LoveYouToDeath #ChristinaDotson #readandtellwithshantel #netgalley #randomhousepublishinggroup #Ballantine #ARC
OutKast- Hey Ya!
Want a BFF story that sucks you in and then basically drives off the road in a more literal sense than Thelma & Louise? Well then this is the road trip book for you! Besties Kayla and Zorie have each other's back, or atleast think they do. Supporting each other through numerous family and other disasters, they end up trying to steal from one last wedding reception. This sets off a chain of somewhat ridiculous and unbelievable events that you won't be able to stop reading about. A great summer read, preferably when there is nothing to interrupt you!
Thanks to Random House Ballentine for a copy of the book. This review is my own opinion.
Thanks to Random House Ballentine for a copy of the book. This review is my own opinion.
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Down on their luck Kayla and Zorie decide to do one last heist but it quickly turns into a nightmare causing them to go on the run. As their time on the run progresses Kayla begins to question if Zorie, her best friend, is the person that she grew up with and if the two of them will survive this experience.
This was a wild ride. I found myself oscillating between feeling sympathetic for the girls and rooting for their demise. There were sections that dragged a little for me but overall it was an engaging read.
This was a wild ride. I found myself oscillating between feeling sympathetic for the girls and rooting for their demise. There were sections that dragged a little for me but overall it was an engaging read.
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
When a hobby turns from thrilling to deadly for two best friends, they go on the run, but as they try to survive on the road, one begins to question just how well she knows the other in Christina Dotson’s Love You To Death.
To read this, and other book reviews, visit my website: http://makinggoodstories.wordpress.com/.
Best friends since childhood, Kayla and Zorie have supported and covered for one another throughout whatever plans and ideas each has chosen to pursue, even if it means that a teenage angst-fueled outburst of vandalism has marked their past with a felony. Working as hotel housekeepers, the pair supplements their income by crashing weddings to steal the money and gifts, but for Kayla the thrill has lessened and the danger of getting caught has increased, making this pastime a riskier endeavor undertaken more at Zorie’s behest; however, when Kayla is fired, money is tight and she agrees to one last wedding with Zorie, which takes a deadly turn as they make their getaway, forcing them to either accept a return to prison or flee from the authorities. Electing the latter, they go on the run with a goal to get to New Orleans, leaving more destruction in their path from Georgia, in addition to confrontations and realizations about their friendship that surface, leaving Kayla wondering if she truly knows Zorie and the lengths she might be willing to go to survive.
In a rapidly unfolding and chaotic story, the friendship between Kayla and Zorie is presented and explored with their differing personalities that might not seem to mesh, and the dynamic that binds them together is called into question as chance constantly alters the course of both their lives. Though going beyond the realm of realistic and venturing more into a dark comedy of errors, the escalating and compounding events heighten the sense of danger and drama as their friendship fractures under the stresses of trying to evade the repercussions of their actions and the increasingly erratic behavior that Zorie exhibits, causing Kayla to wonder why their friendship has endured and what responsibility she might have for Zorie’s actions. While there was detail provided about each woman’s background for context regarding their behavior and how they became friends as kids, as well as for why they made, and continued to make, certain bad decisions, it was limited in depth and fairly repetitive, making it difficult to fully engage with their characters despite the evident traumatic issues they were attempting to cope with that made them complex and interesting characters, though perhaps it was at the expense of the wild events of the plot that propelled the story toward its quick conclusion.
*I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
To read this, and other book reviews, visit my website: http://makinggoodstories.wordpress.com/.
Best friends since childhood, Kayla and Zorie have supported and covered for one another throughout whatever plans and ideas each has chosen to pursue, even if it means that a teenage angst-fueled outburst of vandalism has marked their past with a felony. Working as hotel housekeepers, the pair supplements their income by crashing weddings to steal the money and gifts, but for Kayla the thrill has lessened and the danger of getting caught has increased, making this pastime a riskier endeavor undertaken more at Zorie’s behest; however, when Kayla is fired, money is tight and she agrees to one last wedding with Zorie, which takes a deadly turn as they make their getaway, forcing them to either accept a return to prison or flee from the authorities. Electing the latter, they go on the run with a goal to get to New Orleans, leaving more destruction in their path from Georgia, in addition to confrontations and realizations about their friendship that surface, leaving Kayla wondering if she truly knows Zorie and the lengths she might be willing to go to survive.
In a rapidly unfolding and chaotic story, the friendship between Kayla and Zorie is presented and explored with their differing personalities that might not seem to mesh, and the dynamic that binds them together is called into question as chance constantly alters the course of both their lives. Though going beyond the realm of realistic and venturing more into a dark comedy of errors, the escalating and compounding events heighten the sense of danger and drama as their friendship fractures under the stresses of trying to evade the repercussions of their actions and the increasingly erratic behavior that Zorie exhibits, causing Kayla to wonder why their friendship has endured and what responsibility she might have for Zorie’s actions. While there was detail provided about each woman’s background for context regarding their behavior and how they became friends as kids, as well as for why they made, and continued to make, certain bad decisions, it was limited in depth and fairly repetitive, making it difficult to fully engage with their characters despite the evident traumatic issues they were attempting to cope with that made them complex and interesting characters, though perhaps it was at the expense of the wild events of the plot that propelled the story toward its quick conclusion.
*I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Received an ARC via NetGalley.
I didn’t particularly like the characters but this hooked me in all the same. You don’t know whether to root for or against them, bc their choices just get worse and worse. But following them on their journey as they try to outrun the consequences makes this difficult to put down. It’s so tense!
I think the dynamic, in its complete dysfunction, was compelling too. I get why Kayla couldn’t turn her back on Zorie, even as she got worse and worse, but I was still hoping she’d make better choices.
I didn’t particularly like the characters but this hooked me in all the same. You don’t know whether to root for or against them, bc their choices just get worse and worse. But following them on their journey as they try to outrun the consequences makes this difficult to put down. It’s so tense!
I think the dynamic, in its complete dysfunction, was compelling too. I get why Kayla couldn’t turn her back on Zorie, even as she got worse and worse, but I was still hoping she’d make better choices.
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was a wild and chaotic ride. A little bit Thelma and Louise. It started out really strong and ended pretty strong. The main characters were not particularly likeable. But maybe that was the point? The overall story felt like it lost a little bit of steam towards the middle and became a little bit repetitive. But it ultimately came back together for a decent ending.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.