Reviews tagging 'Blood'

Murder Your Employer: The McMasters Guide to Homicide by Rupert Holmes

8 reviews

flower_mail's review

adventurous dark funny mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Violence, Stalking, Blood, Emotional abuse, Transphobia, Forced institutionalization, Toxic relationship, Suicide, Death of parent, and Death

Moderate: Alcohol, Pregnancy, Medical content, Medical trauma, Gore, and Grief

jhbandcats's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny informative mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

A darkly humorous approach to getting rid of people who *really* deserve to be gone from this world. Employers are the main focus here but of course these techniques are universal when the goal is murder. 

The book is a fresh look at an ancient idea - how to get away with murder - and it’s cleverly told from several viewpoints so we get a well-rounded story. Each of the murderers-to-be is a sympathetic character, having suffered greatly at the hands of their future victims, and I was rooting for them all. 

I appreciated the clever wordplay the most, but also enjoyed learning about the varied curriculum (Wump = Wardrobe, Makeup, & Prosthetics; the Track Meet = track your prey, meet up with them for the killing) and the many sets (cozy bars and Chinese restaurants, forests, even a mini-castle accessible only via gondola). 

All in all an entertaining book but something about it just wasn’t 5-star category, and I can’t figure out why. This is the type of book that would normally make me swoon - funny, calculating, sick, a bit gory - but I just wasn’t swept off my feet, unlike a murder victim or two. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Grief, Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Murder, Blood, Bullying, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Violence

madamenovelist's review

adventurous dark funny informative sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Gun violence, Misogyny, Violence, Suicide, and Death

Moderate: Transphobia, Stalking, Religious bigotry, Sexual harassment, Alcohol, Sexual content, and Homophobia

calicat42's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

This book isn’t as dark and menacing as I thought it would be! It actually turned out to be quite an insightful, sometimes comical and sometimes sad, commentary on humans and our institutions. Yes, the apparent commentary is provided through a darker narrative, but I ended up having so many philosophical and moral conversations as I moved through each characters’ stories. I think the use of a darker and over-the-top narrative worked so perfectly! In no way does this book justify such violence (nor should it), but I do think it starts great conversations and it was a fun read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Car accident, Classism, Torture, Blood, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Bullying, Mental illness, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Abandonment, Alcohol, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Murder, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Body shaming, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, and Terminal illness

kat1105's review

adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Pregnancy, Blood, Classism, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, and Alcohol

Moderate: Sexual harassment, Homophobia, Sexual content, and Misogyny

tea_at_mole_end's review

funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Terminal illness, Injury/Injury detail, and Death of parent

Moderate: Homophobia, Murder, Chronic illness, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Suicide, and Violence

Minor: Sexual content, Medical content, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Blood, and Gun violence

honeywine's review

adventurous dark funny informative mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.75

This books starts out a little on the slow side (which is surprising given what it’s about) but once I got around 50 pages in, it really took off for me. It’s definitely a dark comedy with a lot of joke of the “oh hohoho wasn’t that a clever turn of phrase” category. 

By the end, I stayed up way way way too late in order to finish. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Murder, Sexual assault, and Suicide

Minor: Medical trauma, Terminal illness, Homophobia, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Sexual assault, Blood, Cancer, Car accident, and Transphobia

purplepenning's review

adventurous dark funny mysterious medium-paced

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

4.25

Wryly humorous, darkly satisfying, and only a bit too clever for it's own good, MURDER YOUR EMPLOYER is an ambitious and entertaining murder mystery turned inside out. Readers of this case study guide to homicide follow three would-be student assassins in the 1950s as they study, train, and enact their final murderous theses to successfully matriculate from McMasters Conservatory of the Applied [Homicidal] Arts. McMasters is a [poison] Ivy League-calibre "finishing school for finishing people off." The course work is high stakes but each student has such a deserving thesis subject that we can't help but root for high marks.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Alcohol, Death, Infidelity, Transphobia, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, Death of parent, Homophobia, Toxic friendship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Gun violence, Sexual content, and Suicide

Minor: Racism and Pregnancy

Blackmail, assisted suicide, organized crime, vigilante justice, and a scene that plays too dangerously close to homophobic/transphobic for Reasons (those being context, motivation, and era)