Kill Your Darlings

I love how Swanson always ends his books with a devastating wrench in the story. Because the story was told in reverse I kept wanting to reference back to previous chapters. It’s still not clear to me how or what made Wendy’s feelings change so drastically toward Thom.

Praise for the book #KillYourDarlings by #PeterSwanson. Peter Swanson is one of my favorite authors and this book is just one of the reasons why. This story is told in reverse and it was perfectly done. Thomas and Wendy have been married for over 25 years and have a son named Jason. They also have a big secret from long ago and will do anything to protect it. Wendy had grown tired of their marriage and wants to kill her husband. The fantastic plot twists that keep coming are just amazing and the last one is the best! Never saw that coming.

Mutually assured destruction is a solid foundation to build a marriage on, right? That’s essentially the premise of Peter Swanson’s newest thriller and while I can’t say either Wendy or Thom was in the least relatable, they were both fascinating sociopaths I wanted to know everything about. The unique narrative structure takes the reader from the present, where Wendy really wants to kill her husband, through the years to when they first met in the 8th grade. Along the way they make several questionable choices and one really big bad one that is obliquely referred to throughout the book until it’s revealed to the reader exactly what they did so many years ago.Considering the playful format and the constant references to the Bad Thing, I really hoped for a little more oomph to the big reveal. The thing they did was bad, sure, but what made these two relatively average people willing to do it? I feel like a little too much time was spent dancing around the central crime of the story when more time spent with Wendy and Thom in their childhoods and early relationship would have made the basis of their commitment to one another more believable. Additionally, there was a small scene with a side character early on that made me think “this will be important later” and then it was… but it was basically left on the side of the page to die rather than become consequential to the story.Fifty more pages of resolution and reflection would have made this one a huge success for me but regardless it was a very dark and fascinating portrait of a marriage that will leave you with a lot to ponder. And despite my criticisms of how the resolution played out, the last chapter was actually quite a clever way to leave things.Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for the opportunity to be an early reader of this title, available now!

A slow burn tale of domestic suspense, Kill Your Darlings centered around one heck of a dastardly pair. Told in reverse order, starting with the end, it was a classic Swanson move to focus not on the growing love story, but the demise of it instead. You see, this sweet romance ended—or should I say started—off with quite the bang. Instantly grabbing my attention with the promise of many a dark secret, I flew through this novel in only a matter of hours. After all, with quirky characters, plenty of dark humor, and a gasp-worthy last page, it had all of the pieces to make it an out-and-out winner, including one heck of a twist, even if it took a while to get there.Unfortunately, though, there was plenty that let me down between the attention-grabbing start and shocking last page. The definition of a slow-boiling suspense/thriller, while there was tension imbued within every page, we found out the big plot points way too early on. My biggest pet peeve, though, was how unattached I was to the handful of characters. Perhaps it was due to the original format, but the stop-and-start narrative kept me from really connecting. Alongside of unnecessary details and a repetitive feel, I’m truly sad to report that this newest release by one of my all-time favorite authors landed with a thud rather than a bang.All said and done, despite being less than blown away by this clever spin on a love story’s undoing, I was nevertheless hooked from beginning to end. Was this down to my preexisting love for the author—or the tension and intrigue that oozed from the pages? I’m not sure I’ll ever be 100% sure, but I am positive that while this wasn’t my favorite by Swanson, it was still an overall good read. An intense character study of the dual POVs, as well as marriage, it made me think long and hard. Just the same, it wasn’t the slam dunk that I was expecting, as I much prefer Swanson’s edge-of-your-seat thrill rides over this puzzle-like read. Rating of 3.5 stars.

This is my least favorite by this author. Very disappointing.