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amymcgarva's review
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
emily_b_swales's review
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
abrook's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
caseyandthebooks's review
dark
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The dating scene really is dead ☠️ First of all, I loved this!! We’ve all had a dating app nightmare or 2, whether it’s getting ghosted, going on a terrible date with an overly touchy feely weirdo or simply the dreaded ‘Send Nudes’ message. Nothing worse right? How about your dating app matches showing up dead & you being the number 1 suspect? God this was so much fun 😂 I must admit I clocked on to the killer really early on and only doubted myself once but despite that Don’t Swipe Right was a great read! Our main character reminded me of me so much and I don’t actually know if that’s good or bad at this point 😂 The dates were all realistically terrible, the motive was .. undersrandable.. kinda 👀 and it was such an easy read with some great banter between the main character and everyone she came into contact with. So glad I found this & would 100% recommend!
litwithleigh's review against another edition
3.0
HONDA CIVIC RELIABLE 3-STARS!!!! THIS IS NOT A BAD BOOK!!
Writing: fine | Plot: fun | Ending: oh fr??
SYNOPSIS
Gwen is tryna get back in the saddle after a traumatic breakup, but things goes from bleak to abysmal when her dates start getting picked off one by one.
MY OPINION
This was one of my most-anticipated reads of the summer and I'm so glad it didn't disappoint. For those unfamiliar with the Honda Civic Reliable rating, this means it's a SOLID book that I would still happily recommend but it's just lacking that je ne sais quoi to take it into 4/5 star territory. Some people may refer to these as 'popcorn thrillers'. It came and did what it needed to do, and that's that.
Also, hats off to the author for a great FMC. It's low-key daring when men try to write snarky, young women because most of the times it veers into super-bitch territory (AHEM Harry Hole and Ragdoll series). I won't say that Gwen will be everyone's cup of tea, but think of her as a grittier Finlay Donovan or like the FMC of any Lindsey Kelk book. She's certainly not perfect and she definitely uses humour as a shield to ward off feeling things, but she's funny and trying her best.
Not only does Chilton do a great job capturing the voice of a snarky 29-year-old woman who's hit a couple speed bumps in life recently, but he did a fantastic job writing realistic and cringeworthy dates. I guess my expectations for men writing women's experiences is resting at the ocean floor with the 16-eyed critters that haunt my dreams, but I was really impressed with how he captured the dates and our knee-jerk reaction to be 'nice' and try not to upset the beast. My only issue was Gwen trying to right the ship when Josh revealed himself to be a racist douche. She seemed more upset with him calling her posh than him nearly chanting Make Britain Great Again in the middle of mini-golf.
Comedic thrillers can be hard to pull off because most of the time they start of super funny and punchy but lose steam as they go along. I thought the jokey jokes were pretty evenly dispersed throughout the book, and there were several legit laugh out loud moments. Chilton does get a lil deep with it when necessary but overall it's a pretty light read. A good palate cleanser if you just finished Pretty Girls by Karin Slaughter or something equally gory and depraved.
Like the Finlay Donovan series, yeetage of disbelief required. This is citizen and lowkey cop gone rogue. And like miss Finlay and her horny detective, we have a (unnecessary IMO) love story between Gwen and Dandy Lyons that includes sex in his superior's office (professionalism? never heard of her LOL). This was my least favourite part but I guess Dandy needed a reason why he was risking it all for the biscuit (yeah, I said it). My second least fave part was the ending. I'm not gonna get into any spoilies but I can't say I'm rockin with that choice. CONSIDER YOURSELF @-ed GWEN (iykyk). This could be a great book club discussion though.
Overall, a funny and low-stakes (feels weird saying that given all the death) murder-mystery that can be read in an afternoon while you ignore your responsibilities.
PROS AND CONS
Pros: legit funny, good balance of jokes throughout, serious when needed, 'fun' and interesting premise, everyone's a suspect, fast-paced, bingeable
Cons: love story between detective and Gwen, sometimes they went a lil too rogue, some eyeroll moments (the taser scene at the end.... plz), not on board with Gwen's decision when her and the baddie meet face-t0-face
____________________________
For some sick reason, do you want to hear more of my nonsense? Check out my podcast: Novels & Nonsense streaming everywhere.
Writing: fine | Plot: fun | Ending: oh fr??
SYNOPSIS
Gwen is tryna get back in the saddle after a traumatic breakup, but things goes from bleak to abysmal when her dates start getting picked off one by one.
MY OPINION
This was one of my most-anticipated reads of the summer and I'm so glad it didn't disappoint. For those unfamiliar with the Honda Civic Reliable rating, this means it's a SOLID book that I would still happily recommend but it's just lacking that je ne sais quoi to take it into 4/5 star territory. Some people may refer to these as 'popcorn thrillers'. It came and did what it needed to do, and that's that.
Also, hats off to the author for a great FMC. It's low-key daring when men try to write snarky, young women because most of the times it veers into super-bitch territory (AHEM Harry Hole and Ragdoll series). I won't say that Gwen will be everyone's cup of tea, but think of her as a grittier Finlay Donovan or like the FMC of any Lindsey Kelk book. She's certainly not perfect and she definitely uses humour as a shield to ward off feeling things, but she's funny and trying her best.
Not only does Chilton do a great job capturing the voice of a snarky 29-year-old woman who's hit a couple speed bumps in life recently, but he did a fantastic job writing realistic and cringeworthy dates. I guess my expectations for men writing women's experiences is resting at the ocean floor with the 16-eyed critters that haunt my dreams, but I was really impressed with how he captured the dates and our knee-jerk reaction to be 'nice' and try not to upset the beast. My only issue was Gwen trying to right the ship when Josh revealed himself to be a racist douche. She seemed more upset with him calling her posh than him nearly chanting Make Britain Great Again in the middle of mini-golf.
Comedic thrillers can be hard to pull off because most of the time they start of super funny and punchy but lose steam as they go along. I thought the jokey jokes were pretty evenly dispersed throughout the book, and there were several legit laugh out loud moments. Chilton does get a lil deep with it when necessary but overall it's a pretty light read. A good palate cleanser if you just finished Pretty Girls by Karin Slaughter or something equally gory and depraved.
Like the Finlay Donovan series, yeetage of disbelief required. This is citizen and lowkey cop gone rogue. And like miss Finlay and her horny detective, we have a (unnecessary IMO) love story between Gwen and Dandy Lyons that includes sex in his superior's office (professionalism? never heard of her LOL). This was my least favourite part but I guess Dandy needed a reason why he was risking it all for the biscuit (yeah, I said it). My second least fave part was the ending. I'm not gonna get into any spoilies but I can't say I'm rockin with that choice. CONSIDER YOURSELF @-ed GWEN (iykyk). This could be a great book club discussion though.
Overall, a funny and low-stakes (feels weird saying that given all the death) murder-mystery that can be read in an afternoon while you ignore your responsibilities.
PROS AND CONS
Pros: legit funny, good balance of jokes throughout, serious when needed, 'fun' and interesting premise, everyone's a suspect, fast-paced, bingeable
Cons: love story between detective and Gwen, sometimes they went a lil too rogue, some eyeroll moments (the taser scene at the end.... plz), not on board with Gwen's decision when her and the baddie meet face-t0-face
____________________________
For some sick reason, do you want to hear more of my nonsense? Check out my podcast: Novels & Nonsense streaming everywhere.
biancarose88's review
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
anto88's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
fredrikamarias's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
2.75
I wanted to yell at the main character for being so incredibly stupid for the most part of the book, my god. Also figured out the killer relatively early on. This was an entertaining, fast-paced read but nothing I would go for again.