The Kind Worth Killing
Page turning
Suspenseful
Unpredictable

The Kind Worth Killing A Novel

Peter Swanson2015
A devious tale of psychological suspense so irresistible that it prompts Entertainment Weekly to ask, “Is The Kind Worth Killing the next Gone Girl?” From one of the hottest new thriller writers, Peter Swanson, a name you may not know yet (but soon will), this is his breakout novel in the bestselling tradition of Paula Hawkins’ The Girl on the Train—and is soon to be a major movie directed by Agnieszka Holland. In a tantalizing set-up reminiscent of Patricia Highsmith’s classic Strangers on a Train… On a night flight from London to Boston, Ted Severson meets the stunning and mysterious Lily Kintner. Sharing one too many martinis, the strangers begin to play a game of truth, revealing very intimate details about themselves. Ted talks about his marriage that’s going stale and his wife Miranda, who he’s sure is cheating on him. Ted and his wife were a mismatch from the start—he the rich businessman, she the artistic free spirit—a contrast that once inflamed their passion, but has now become a cliché. But their game turns a little darker when Ted jokes that he could kill Miranda for what she’s done. Lily, without missing a beat, says calmly, “I’d like to help.” After all, some people are the kind worth killing, like a lying, stinking, cheating spouse. . . . Back in Boston, Ted and Lily’s twisted bond grows stronger as they begin to plot Miranda's demise. But there are a few things about Lily’s past that she hasn’t shared with Ted, namely her experience in the art and craft of murder, a journey that began in her very precocious youth. Suddenly these co-conspirators are embroiled in a chilling game of cat-and-mouse, one they both cannot survive . . . with a shrewd and very determined detective on their tail.
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Reviews

Photo of Aims
Aims@aimz
4 stars
Oct 29, 2024

Just a really easy read of a thriller. Not groundbreaking but really enjoyable, and little plot twists which keep you on your toes. Thought it was a little slow to start, but picked up pace and stayed there.

This review contains a spoiler
+2
Photo of Zubi Mendi
Zubi Mendi@heartbeat
2 stars
Aug 27, 2024

Story had good direction initially but fell extremely flat during the latter half. So many out of character moments that really didn't make sense. I can understand that it may have been to set things up for the sequel but the entire second half of the book felt like a rug pull. First half very memorable but the second half extremely forgettable. chalked.

Photo of Paper boy
Paper boy@paperboy
2.5 stars
Aug 26, 2024

Lacklustee ending. The character development is lacking and the ending sucked. Detective kimball character sucks

Photo of Aidan
Aidan@aidan4253
2.5 stars
Aug 26, 2024

fantastic foreplay with a dull climax

Photo of Jay Tan
Jay Tan@jatan
1.5 stars
Aug 26, 2024

good build up, poor ending. monotonous, random conveniences and luck, lots of unimportant details. ruined characters that were built up in the first half

Photo of victor
victor@verrer
3 stars
Aug 23, 2024

too many murders. first chet, then eric, ted, miranda, brad and then kimball was stabbed. way too many. surprised that roberta didn't pull the gun to kill lily atp. the plot twists didn't surprise me at all. like i just knew that lily and brad were going to kill miranda in the end, although it seemed that brad was on her side and that her plan with brad to kill lily was going to work. the only thing i didn't expect was when lily stabbed kimball, i really didn't see that coming. but i enjoyed reading the book and i liked the characters and how each chapter was from the perspective of different characters, not just from one. lily was a very nice character. she managed to be so calm in such stressful situations. i could never.

i think three stars is the perfect rating for it. i'm looking forward to reading the second part.

Photo of Madii
Madii@alieco
5 stars
Jul 30, 2024

I really enjoyed this book. I've been in a reading slump for more or less 2 months and this book helped me get out of it. The writing style is very easy to understand. The plot was borderline predictable and before you know it, what you predicted does not happen. I didn't struggle understanding the story. Would highly recommend it. 5/5 ⭐.

Photo of Issabelle :)
Issabelle :)@issabelle13
3.5 stars
Jul 23, 2024

This book was so good! It took a while for me to get into but when I got into it I was hooked! The ending has also led to the second book extremely well.

+4
Photo of emelia grace ilgner
emelia grace ilgner@emeliagrai
4 stars
Jul 4, 2024

this was a good read. i was excited to come back to it every time i had to step away. the characters are quite obviously written by a man, and also none of them very likeable, but nonetheless, it was a fun and exciting read. the closest i’ve gotten to “gone girl” in a while, so if you liked that, you’ll like this.

Photo of Nabila Azahra
Nabila Azahra@nabilazhhr
5 stars
Mar 24, 2024

i loved it. the writing. the alternate pov between characters. the character. the twists. the ending. the way she makes murder sounded like a good idea. and an easy job too. i fucking love every single page of it.

Photo of yel
yel@ashuulinksu
4 stars
Feb 24, 2024

Date read: February 3-February 4, 2020 Actual Rating: 4.00 STARS So basically, this was about getting away with murder, featuring Lily Kintner. The very title definitely caught my attention, but I didn't give this a high expectation as I had a fair share of disappointment with thriller mysteries in the past. It was not that easy to please me with this kind of genre. But this book was really very engaging to me from the very start. It was not particularly an easy read, but it was really a kind of read that would make you flip through the pages as quickly as possible until you get to the very end. It would make you anticipate every chapter and would certainly keep your interest in check. And that was what I was looking for in this genre, and I was glad I was able to find these qualities in this book. At first, it was kind of ridiculous to me on how it was easy for the characters to turn the topic of killing into some kind of a casual talk. But as the story progress, I was kind of amused by the turn of events. There are definitely twists, though not that big and mind-blowing, but still a decent twists that got me more engaged to the story. I was actually rooting for Lily after reading her first kill with her first human victim, the pedophile painter Chet, and then with her boyfriend Eric who was cheating on her. I know, it was kind of sick on how she justifies her kills. On how it was better, according to her, if those kinds of people would just disappear from the face of the earth by killing them It was wrong of her but I still empathized with her. I understand where she coming from. And I kind of wished she would really get away with her murders. I really liked all the meticulous and calculated planning. How she appeared so casual and calm despite what she did. She was really smart, I'd give her that credit. The thrill towards the ending when she was followed by the detective and I didn't even know if she would get caught or not, I was bracing myself. Though I kind of wished she would get away with what she did, the open indication at the very end where her secret in the meadow about to be exposed, I thought it was the best way to deal with the ending. That even with her thorough plan all throughout her life, it was impossible not to get caught forever. I liked it a lot. First Peter Swanson read and I totally loved it. I hoped I would find a good thriller mystery like this again.

Photo of Anjorin Molayo
Anjorin Molayo @bookishtems
5 stars
Jan 7, 2024

There had better be a book 2 of this story because it can’t just end like this. I loved the fact that I couldn’t predict what would happen next until the end.

Photo of Gwyn Dill
Gwyn Dill@gwyndill
4 stars
Dec 30, 2023

Well written with quite a few good twists!

Photo of Megan Christensen
Megan Christensen@megan_ani_reads
5 stars
Sep 8, 2023

I will always root for the killer if she's a woman

Photo of Adeline
Adeline@reliures
4 stars
May 17, 2023

4.25

Photo of Tabea
Tabea@attako
4.5 stars
May 7, 2023

The biggest plottwist was probably around halftime, but other than that I was still suprised throughout the entire book. The plot was very clever and rounded up nicely in the end. I was very captivated by Lily and her actions too, that girl had some serious issues and I don’t think anger management sessions will fix that 😃

+3
Photo of Victoria
Victoria@veespages
3 stars
Apr 8, 2023

Bumped this up to 3 stars (from 2). The ending was so bad and it didn't save from all the predictability of the rest of the book. Buuut, bumped it up because I saw that there was a sequel (THANKFULLY) so hopefully, that makes up for the ending of this book.

Photo of Leon
Leon@annadaliah
5 stars
Feb 18, 2023

Eins der ersten Bücher was mich vor der Hälfte komplett überrascht hat! Wirklich mega spannend und psycho, ein minimales bisschen gay und so viel Mord** mehrere Plottwists, die ich nicht erwartet habe, bin verliebt.

Photo of molly obrien
molly obrien@thebookwasbetter10
5 stars
Feb 15, 2023

Who would've thought there would be more twists than a M. Night Shyamalan movie. Absolutely riveting and couldn't put it down, finished it 4 hours, I had to know how it ended!































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































Photo of Sarah Pino
Sarah Pino@hoysarah
4 stars
Feb 10, 2023

i- wow

Photo of Lulu Evensen
Lulu Evensen@lulu444moonfairy
3.5 stars
Feb 8, 2023

I loved this book mostly because of Lily, i found her character and backstory quite interesting. The writing was fast paced and easy to understand

Will reread it soon, review to be updated.

+5
Photo of Jacqueline Englund
Jacqueline Englund@jackiereads
4 stars
Feb 6, 2023

This was a wild ride. At times I felt like it seemed a little forced, bit overall this was an enjoyable mystery with many twists and turns.

Photo of Alexa M
Alexa M@alexasversion
4 stars
Feb 6, 2023

4/4.5 really good thriller! entertaining and twisty and that last page ! whew. fun all around

Photo of Jasmine
Jasmine@lovelyximperfect
5 stars
Jan 21, 2023

5 Stars This book gave me everything I could possibly want from a psychological thriller!! The pacing of this book is incredible, I got so addicted to the jumping from multiple povs waiting for everything to play out. I think this might just be one of my favorites in this genre, damn it was so amazing I wish I had read it even sooner!

Highlights

Photo of Tabea
Tabea@attako

“Truthfully, I don't think murder is necessarily as bad as people make it out to be. Everyone dies. What difference does it make if a few bad apples get pushed along a little sooner than God intended? And your wife, for example, seems like the kind worth killing.”

Page 35

mmm I love it when the title is quoted in the book

Photo of Gemma McCarthy
Gemma McCarthy@geesmcc

“I go by Miranda now," Faith had said to me, then. "I don't think I knew that. So you've lost your faith." She laughed. "I guess you could say that. This is my fiancé, Ted."

AH!

This highlight contains a spoiler
Photo of Gemma McCarthy
Gemma McCarthy@geesmcc

And your wife, for example, seems like the kind worth killing

Page 35
This highlight contains a spoiler