Love in the Time of Serial Killers
Photo of Francesca

Francesca &
Love in the Time of Serial Killers by Alicia Thompson

Edition
ISBN 9780593438664

Reviews

Photo of aleksandra
aleksandra@aleksandrareading
2 stars
Apr 2, 2024

2.5/5 I honestly thought I will love it. Unfortunately, it turned out to be very mid and boring. "But now here he was, although even in the dark I felt like I could see the color slant across his cheeks. I hoped he never lost that." "I don’t regret giving you my heart, Phoebe. I just wish you’d taken more care with it.”

Photo of Riya
Riya@litheaven
2 stars
Feb 9, 2024

Unique concept but the execution fell flat. I didn’t get what was promised in the summary so yeah, this was a let down.

Photo of Connie Pietranico
Connie Pietranico @cpietranico
3.5 stars
Feb 2, 2024

My first romance novel I’ve read! I thoroughly enjoyed it and didn’t want it to end. I knew from the second Sam was introduced they’d be end game and was so happy when it turned out I was right!

This review contains a spoiler
Photo of anumitaa
anumitaa@anumitaa
3 stars
Jan 10, 2024

this was very cringey very millennial vibes lowkey wanted to burn it at times but it was okay i guess but the main character gave very im not like other girl vibes and i don’t like her

Photo of Aimee :)
Aimee :)@aimees_reading
4 stars
Dec 18, 2023

This book didn’t leave my mind after starting it. Some parts were a bit weird and awkward to me, for example the wedding. However i really enjoyed the idea the character represents and the plot as a whole. Plus i love my true crime as well! The MC was honestly very relatable, and i really felt in touch with her. I couldn’t not help but love all the other character’s too. However i would’ve loved it if the whole serial killer next door went on more, as it seems like a main point but doesn’t last that long.

Photo of Kenzi Linton
Kenzi Linton@delicatedayreads
3 stars
Dec 4, 2023

3.5/5 This book has been on my to be read list for awhile and I had such high hopes for it. From the title to knowing that it involved someone who loves true crime, I was excited to read it. I think that I may have just had my expectations set to high. However, after realizing those expectations were too high and understanding it, I did enjoy the book. Maybe not as much as I hoped for, but it was still a decent read! It’s partially my fault for hoping for more.

Photo of Soph
Soph@soph26
3 stars
Nov 6, 2023

The first 75% of the book is good however the ending feels too cliche and rushed

+2
Photo of Daphney Norman
Daphney Norman@daphney
2.5 stars
Oct 27, 2023

Just an average rom com. The premise of the book sounded interesting, however, I don’t feel it was fully executed. Was very slow in places.

Photo of Ty
Ty@sunkissedfool
3 stars
Oct 18, 2023

It was good and it was cute but that’s it

Photo of Eliza adkins
Eliza adkins @elizareadsalot
3.5 stars
Oct 4, 2023

Yes there’s a flash mob and no there’s not a lot of serial killers

+3
Photo of Samantha Huster
Samantha Huster@lostpoet
4 stars
Sep 19, 2023

I am Phoebe. Phoebe is me. I honestly love the FMC in this book so much. Her obsession with true crime and literature along with her dark humor and sarcastic quips felt very relatable. Thoroughly enjoyed this very well written exploration of being afraid of love more than you’re afraid of serial killers

Photo of kels
kels@kelseysoderberg
4 stars
Sep 3, 2023

so fun to see my own paranoia personified in a rom com leading lady

Photo of Megan BV
Megan BV@megplantparm
4 stars
Aug 1, 2023

The story of Phoebe and her true crime obsession turned doctoral dissertation and Sam who is simply adorable was such a fun read.

I loved them. The side characters are great too and I liked following Phoebe on her journey of figuring out life.

Photo of Yareliz Velez
Yareliz Velez@estella1341
5 stars
Jul 2, 2023

What an amazing read. It had all of my favorite things: humor, romance and all the true crime references. But it also touched on personal matters that I think a lot of people go through and I found myself relating to more than one chapter in this book. There were time I laughed out loud and time I felt my heart breaking with the characters. Just an all in all good book and I hope many others will give it a chance.

+6
Photo of Jessica Van Wart
Jessica Van Wart@jess_mvw
2.5 stars
Jun 11, 2023

Good enough romance novel, not the direction I was expecting it to take. Thought they would play more into her paranoia to add more comedic value. But still enjoyable.

Photo of Lizeth Esmeralda
Lizeth Esmeralda@lee_set
1 star
Apr 28, 2023

Honestly not any better than any other modern contemporary romance book. Phoebe was annoying and I didn't much like her, the character development sucked. It would've been a much better book if Sam ended up being a serial killer after all lol.

This review contains a spoiler
Photo of Megan Leprich
Megan Leprich@rescues_and_reads
5 stars
Apr 7, 2023

I don’t think I’ve ever loved a main character more than I love Phoebe. I could relate to her on so many different levels and I think I might have fallen in love with her character just a little. The humor and romance in this book were my favorite parts, I loved all of the different relationships, this was just a fantastic book.

+4
Photo of Bookworm
Bookworm@cheesecake
3 stars
Apr 6, 2023

I found it very hard to get into the book. I LOVE the cover art. Unfortunately, I just found the book very boring. Nothing special. Just an average romcom. I started to skim through it at the end because of how bored I was. I wish I got more into it. I wasn’t terrible. Just an average rom com read.

+2
Photo of Tori Albin
Tori Albin@talbin6
3 stars
Mar 20, 2023

Kept me entertained but it wasn’t an amazing storyline. Just a classic little romance book with a few unique themes that made it a little more interesting.

Photo of Genevieve
Genevieve @laviedegin
3.75 stars
Feb 23, 2023

In a world obsessed with true crime documentaries and podcasts, where people on social media task themselves with trying to solve gruesome murders before the police, where women are warned in all the ways they need to protect themselves from being attacked - can you blame a girl for being paranoid about serial killers? Not really, no.

I rated this 3.75 ⭐s

I really wanted to love this book, the premise enticed me but unfortunately, I was left a little bit disappointed. The beginning was set up perfectly ambiguously, you could've been reading the start of a horror/thriller novel just as much as you could've been starting a romance novel. A young woman, Phoebe, moves back into her childhood home after her father passes away - a place she hasn't lived since she was a teen. Her father wasn't the best of dads, slow to show love, quick to rage, a gaslighter who was prone to violently throwing bowls of jello at the floor and her brother chose to live with him after the divorce? Plus there's a creepy man next door who wanders around at midnight barefoot and hauls stained drop-sheets out of his garage to dispose of. Her brother, the neighbor, a stranger - anyone of them could've been a murderer!

Except this is a romance, not a horror/thriller and therefore, the not-so-creepy-actually-cute guy next door is not a potential murderer but a potential summer fling - or more...

The use of true crime and horror in this book was okay, the dissertation topic Phoebe is writing is super interesting, well described and clearly well researched by the author, Alicia Thompson. But I wanted thrill and excitement, I wanted a proper potential serial killers to lovers story line. I wanted Phoebe to be so neurotically obsessed with writing her paper that she could barely tell reality from fiction but instead this just read like Beach Read by Emily Henry, and unfortunately it was not quite as good as that book.

Sam was an adorable love interest, he's sweet and very kind, shy and nerdy, and the banter between him and Phoebe was super cute. The side characters stories were well fleshed out, Alison, Conner and Shani were all there own individual people who were fun, corny and beneficial to the story. Phoebe was flawed, self-deprecating and frustrating. She clearly needed therapy from past and fresh traumas inflicted by her parents (who clearly also needed therapy - multi-generational trauma at it again) but she became more likable as the story went on, which I think was the point - she relaxed a lot more around Sam, once she finally accepted love is possible and that not everyone gets divorced or murders each other.

Overall, a nice cute romance, great for a palate cleanser between actual horror/thrillers, or epic fantasies in my case - but unfortunately lacked a bit of oomph. This could've been something really unique and interesting, and I'm sad it didn't end up being that but was still a good read in the end.

Photo of Sarah Campbell
Sarah Campbell@wiltedsarah
3 stars
Feb 21, 2023

I had a terrible time getting into this novel, so I opted to listen to the audiobook to keep me in pace. For some reason, I found it hard to get attached to the characters. I loved the idea of this, but the story was missing something. I did not care if the couple ended up together, nor did I really see HOW they fell in love. It all felt fast, and I didn't necessarily feel their connection. I would've appreciated more storytelling on that front, and more about the character's father and the abuse that they seemed to have suffered from him. This was only briefly touched, despite the note at the beginning of the book making me think that there was going to be more discussion about it. Overall, it was an enjoyable book, just nothing I'll think about ever again, and will be gone from my memory in just a week.

Photo of Nash
Nash@shereadsbetweensips
4 stars
Feb 13, 2023

I had a lot of fun reading this book. The very first thing that grabbed my attention was the title. I'm pretty sure there's more people like me out there but I have a deep love for romance novels and also thrillers and true crime. I spend my free time from adulthood and books, listening to true crime podcasts and occasionally watching documentaries. So, when I read the title I said ''I need to read this asap". I think that our main character in this novel is an odd ball, which is why I love her. The very first thing she thinks when a handsome stranger offers her help is that "He probably wants to murder me". She even gave him a news-worthy-serial-killer name. It is truly hilarious. I felt the whole story to be wholesome and clever. There are a lot of facts about crimes included, which is incredibly good. No one want just random lines written about something that truly happen and that it was devastating to a lot of people. The romance portion was incredibly good. Spicy when it had to, swoon-y when it was appropriate. I would love to read more from this author and definitely will be looking forward to it. Thank you Netgalley and Berkley for the opportunity.

Photo of Gillian Rose
Gillian Rose@glkrose
4 stars
Feb 11, 2023

This was a lot of fun. So many references to my own childhood and life. If I had a complaint, it would be that the serial killer thing was resolved much too quickly and the romance was a tad too instalove for me. But that's a nitpick because I did like Phoebe and Sam. And Phoebe reconnecting with her brother and his wild plans for proposals was sweet. I also think it tackled grief pretty well. A solid effort, will read more from her.

Photo of Des
Des@mechaderay
3.5 stars
Feb 10, 2023

I had really high expectations for this book and while I really enjoyed it, the main character was not cohesive enough for me. It almost felt like one person wrote most of the pages and then for the romance part someone else wrote.

I thought mixing the true crime fascination was a fun twist and combined two things I really enjoy.

Grumpy/Sunshine

🌶️🌶️🌶️/5

A few spicy scenes, but doesn’t take over the whole book.

Highlights

Photo of Aimee :)
Aimee :)@aimees_reading

"But does the bedroom count as a second location? Or is that okay?"

I tilted my face toward his for another kiss. "I'd go anywhere with you," I said. "Take me there."

Page 330
This highlight contains a spoiler
Photo of Aimee :)
Aimee :)@aimees_reading

"I'm not afraid of that word anymore," I said. "I'm still afraid of a lot of things, most of them very specific scenarios involving being taken to a second location. But I'm not afraid of this, of loving you or being loved by you."

Page 330
This highlight contains a spoiler
Photo of Aimee :)
Aimee :)@aimees_reading

"I love you," I said. The words weren't nearly as hard to say as I'd thought they'd be, so I said them again.

Page 327
This highlight contains a spoiler
Photo of Aimee :)
Aimee :)@aimees_reading

Most of all, I wanted Sam.

Page 320
This highlight contains a spoiler
Photo of Aimee :)
Aimee :)@aimees_reading

“I don't regret giving you my heart, Phoebe. I just wish you'd taken more care with it."

Page 287
This highlight contains a spoiler
Photo of Aimee :)
Aimee :)@aimees_reading

"It's too easy," I said, moving closer to him in the water.

"What is?"

"Making you blush…"

Page 183
This highlight contains a spoiler
Photo of Aimee :)
Aimee :)@aimees_reading

"You have paint in your hair," I said.

"You have paint on your—" His gaze dipped to my breasts before coming back up to meet mine.

Page 182
This highlight contains a spoiler
Photo of Aimee :)
Aimee :)@aimees_reading

"I could get used to this," I said, referring to more than the pool.

Page 182
Photo of Aimee :)
Aimee :)@aimees_reading

"The updated version with the foreword where she completely disavows her relations with Ted Bundy. If that doesn't convince you that romance dead, nothing will."

Page 176
Photo of Aimee :)
Aimee :)@aimees_reading

Fuck that. I'd rather be seen as a little rude than risk being taken to a second location.

Page 4
Photo of Aimee :)
Aimee :)@aimees_reading

Which of those options honestly scared me more—that he could be up to some dark shit, or just that I had a crush?

Page 102
Photo of Sarah Campbell
Sarah Campbell@wiltedsarah

I’d never admit this out loud, but sometimes I was grateful to people who were automatic huggers. It took the pressure off me to initiate anything, and it felt nice, being embraced, even for a few seconds, by someone you cared about.

Page 137
Photo of Emma Wolfe
Emma Wolfe@lilwolfey04

I don't regret giving you my heart, Phoebe. I just wish you'd taken more care with it.

Page 287
Photo of Emma Wolfe
Emma Wolfe@lilwolfey04

I'd need at least a half hour on You- Tube University to figure that one out, and then I'd probably kill my phone battery, too.

Page 84
Photo of Emma Wolfe
Emma Wolfe@lilwolfey04

I was tempted to get back in the car, to drive to a local gas station and sit in the parking lot for one full podcast episode, then circle the block a few times before pulling into the driveway again.

Page 3