How to Kill Men and Get Away With It - Katy Brent

 

This thriller/comedy follows influencer Kitty Collins as she accidentally kills a man following her home after the bar one night.  She isn't remorseful, thinking that since he was a bad person anyway that the world is better off without him.  Then, as she comes across other men who the world would be better off without, she discovers a new hobby.  Balancing this new hobby, a budding romantic relationship, and her other friendships makes Kitty a very busy girl.

TW/CW: murder, sexual assault, rape, dismemberment, eating disorder 

My favorite aspect of this read was far and away the voice.  Kitty has such a distinctive voice that hits you right in the face at the opening of the book.  As a character-focused reader, I absolutely love voice-y MCs and how much that voice adds to the overall narrative.  I think it is even more important in this read due to Kitty's newly found hobby.  The character's voice can be the difference between the read having a comedic edge and it being a much darker story.  I do think that Kitty does veer into the 'unlikable MC' territory a bit, especially with her friends.  But as the story progresses, even these unlikable personality quirks become integral to the plot and I think they come full circle to endearing. 

Kitty's friend group is filled with the stereotypical, vapid, influencer types.  Since we are so far in Kitty's POV, we don't get a whole lot of detail about these friends right away.  As the story progresses, we do get more information but they never quite felt like fully fleshed out characters to me - they stayed more on the caricature side of things. I did like how the friend group felt like a real friend group where they might be annoyed at each other at times, but overall they are supportive of each other.  This point is especially emphasized in the last third of the book. 

Going into this read, I was a bit afraid that the murder aspect would either be very sparsely used or would end up feeling monotonous.  However, I was pleasantly surprised that we do get a number of kills and they are all varied.  We get a number of different circumstances, all centered around revenge and feminine rage. Kitty is not one to mince words when it comes to how she feels about predators and the ways men act toward women. However, this world view does get a little heavy handed toward the end of the book.  It is very obvious (and confirmed in the author's note at the end) that a certain cultural moment influenced this plot.  I just thought that when we get to the last 10% or so, that Kitty's voice goes away and the book's 'message' takes over.  However, I thought Kitty was doing a fine job as a character getting the reader to empathize with her world philosophy. 

Overall, this was a fun read that lost steam at the end for me.  I really enjoyed our MC's voice and the variety of kills we get on page.  However, I didn't quite connect with the other characters we see. 

Thanks to NetGalley and Harper 360 for the ARC.  Publication date was June 13, 2023