Do you like a good-old-fashioned revenge story? Then you’re going to love How to Kill Your Family by Bella Mackie. An absolutely wild ride, this story is a darkly funny, witty, deadpan take on what would happen if you let your darkest desires take charge and killed the family that had abandoned you…

24-year-old Grace Bernard is our narrator. She grew up in a small flat with her mother who struggled to make ends meet. Their situation was compounded by the fact that Grace’s father, Simon Artemis, is a multi-millionaire but refuses to have anything to do with Grace and her mother as is married and has another family.

He is also happens to be a morally dubious, self-centred person so, when her mother dies, Grace decides its time to avenge her – by killing her father and all his significant others…

When we meet her she is in prison, but significantly:

'The justice system in this country is a joke, and there is nothing which illustrates that more than this one sentence: I have killed several people (some brutally, others calmly) and yet I currently languish in jail for a murder I did not commit.'

I must stress here the deadpan, hilarious nature to the tone of How to Kill Your Family. It’s an absolute abandon reality and go with it vibe. In a variety of ingenious ways (from a frog sanctuary to a Big Brother style remote CCTV system via a sex club), Grace does indeed proceed to kill her family in a truly entertaining way.

I totally enjoyed this – the plot was different to any I’ve read recently, there were moments of page-turning tension scattered throughout and any book that makes you feel like you’d love to go for a drink with a lead character who, despite her worrying bloodlust, feels intelligent, complex and fully formed (if, yes, psychopathic – they are notoriously charming, after all…) A great testament to clever writing and strong character development. Definitely add this to your TBR!

I really enjoyed this for the most part but it was a bit too long and the ending infuriated me, it felt like it had been tacked on in order to be reactionary.
The overall premise is fantastic, I love the fact that she is imprisoned for something she didn't actually do whilst blithely getting away with murder. But she's immensely unlikeable and self absorbed, which frustrated me, I'd have liked to have had more sympathy for her.
Definitely an interesting one for book clubs.

**Listened to the audio book and read along to the kindle version**

I really like Bella Mackie's writing, and I enjoyed her first book - non fiction - all about the joy of running and how it changed her life. So when i found out she was releasing a fiction book I was super excited.
However, I was left disappointed by this. I'm a big fan of CJ Skuse's Sweetpea books, and this book just reminded me of that. It had similar plot, and had the same dry sense of humour (but no where near as funny as Sweetpea)
The opening chapters of this book were really intriguing and definitely got me interested from the beginning - but overall the plot was very slow paced and I lost interest by the end. It was as gripping as I had hoped.

I liked the narrators of the audio book, they helped to bring it to life. We spend more time with the female narrator - and I did prefer her.

Overall this book was a real let down. I definitely would read what Bella Mackie does next - I just hope it's a bit more gripping, and a bit more original than this book.

I’ve been lucky enough to read some really gripping crime novels this year, and ‘How to Kill your Family’ is another great read. In this darkly sarcastic novel, the serial killer tells you all about their inventive killing spree as though you’re their best friend, and their chatty narrative makes you forget that there’s anything wrong with what the anti-hero is doing at times. There is a huge amount of black humour, and the protagonist is wickedly persuasive in her justification of her evil deeds to the extent that you do find yourself championing her cause in places.

There’s a big twist at the end which I’m not convinced that I liked as much as the rest of the novel, but it was needed to prevent a very predictable ending. This is a new type of crime thriller and the cheeky little narrator is a refreshing voice for the genre. I think that this will charm readers of YA and crime alike.

This book was amazing! I had high hopes going into it as I'm a fan of Bella Mackie and it really didn't disappoint. Fantastic writing and story - I really liked the main character Grace. I really have no complaints. Absolutely recommend this is if the description appeals to you.

WOW! This is most definitely a 5⭐️ read for me! This book is so fantastically and intelligently written that I found myself laughing out loud, agreeing with many of the main characters' observations about society that I couldn't help but love Grace. Grace is the protagonist in this book, who is serving time in prison and telling her story of her revengeful killing of her uber rich, capitalist, hedonistic family members.

The societal/millennial observations are spot on and her dark, sarcastic humour makes this book an absolute page turner until the very last page. I LOVED it!

Grace has had a rubbish life. She was dealt some tough cards and felt she was owed some juicy revenge. So she took it in an interesting and twisted way. Things don't go exactly to plan however and she ends up in jail for something she didn't do. This was written in the first person and was chatty and easy to read. I found it quite humorous in places and enjoyed the ending. Well worth a read.

This was a fun read! The main character is sarcastic, calculating and laser-focused on her revenge, and this reminded me a bit of They Never Learn and The Kind Worth Killing. But two things bothered me a bit: first, how endlessly rambling the MC is. She just goes on and on talking and judging everyone and it got a bit tiring. She has a witty and judgmental opinion about everything. Secondly, that ending! It did not feel quite as cathartic or satisfying as I hoped. It kind of ruined what had been a pretty strong book until then. But still, this was an entertaining read and I think if you love MCs who are remorseless murderers and lighter, funny reads, you'll like this!

This is a very stylish, dark comedy full of very spot-on and current social analysis. A well-paced easy-read that is perfect for holidays. If you enjoyed Michael Winterbottom’s film ‘Greed’ and love an independent, fearless female protagonist you will really enjoy this story and love Grace, whose viewpoint it is told from.

When Grace's one night stand of a father refuses to acknowledge her she decides when she grow up to kill him and his family. She writes the diary of the killings while in jail for a murder she actually didn't commit.
I liked how the story had two strands, her writing it while in prison and as the killings unfold.
I found this an enjoyable story.

Adored this. Funny and frank and gripping with brilliant characterisation. Can’t wait to read more from Bella Mackie.

I enjoyed this book, just not quite as much as I was expecting to. The plot is intriguing and Bella is actually quite likeable but it felt a bit all over the place. There’s a fair bit of dark humour/satire which I enjoyed but overall only so/so for me.

Thanks to Harper Collins UK and Netgalley for the ARC.

Found myself drawing some parallels to "My Sister The Serial Killer" while reading this - I feel like if you enjoyed that, you might enjoy this too.

The protagonist, Grace, has had a challenging and traumatic upbringing. After the death of her Mum, Grace seeks revenge on her biological father and his family, for turning his back on Grace and her Mum.

It's got a decent plot, but I found as it went on my interest waned - I prefer a thriller with more pace and tension. There are some darkly funny parts and some unexpected twists, and Mackie did well to carve out such a ruthless protagonist.

I received a copy of this e-arc in exchange for an honest review thanks to NetGalley and Harper Fiction.

WOW!

This was such a fascinating book! It felt like a non-fiction book. I kinda wanted it to be real.

It flicks between past and present so you follow the story of Grace carrying out the murders and her in prison writing her story.

I feel like it was so morbid of me to be interested in the exact detail and lengths that Grace went through for each of the 6 murders.

She purposely did the research on each person to figure out the best way to kill them without it being suspicious. It could be days or weeks of surveillance which shows real commitment.

Grace had a goal, she wanted to reach that goal, she was committed to it. Did she reach that goal? Was it all worth it? You’ll have to read it to find out.

That ending though! Omg. I so want to know how Grace reacted to that!

100% recommend this book to those who love crime with dark humour.

I haven’t read any books by Bella Mackie before and I was really looking forward to reading this one. Having read it I thought it was ok but I don’t think I’ll be racing to buy another of her books.

It started well, introducing 28 year old Grace who has been on a mission to kill all of her relatives. I liked Grace’s voice and thought it was a good concept. As the book went on however the pacing was a bit all over the place and the ending left me feeling very unsatisfied.

It’s a shame because the book had real promise.

I haven’t watched Killing Eve but I feel this would be the perfect accompaniment to the series if you’ve a fan of Villneuve. Grace Bernard is in prison for a crime she didn’t commit. However, it isn’t that she’s guilt-free – she’s responsible for quite a few murders (six, if you’re counting) by the age of 28. Oh, and they’re all relatives, some disposed of in a quite, calm way, others in a less than organised fashion. On learning that her millionaire father – a man who chose not to have anything to do with her – also chose to have nothing to do with her ill, then dying mother, Grace calculatingly decides to end the lives of those closest to him. But this is not just the confession of someone trying to repent for their sins… Grace is more than delighted at getting rid of her family. Funny and witty throughout, it feels like a romp, full of humour and insight, but also terrifically engaging. Bella has created a character on whose side you’re on, and you are sort of willing her on.

From the description, I loved the concept of "How to Kill Your Family" by Bella Mackie as it promised an interesting plot and focus on social/class issues. However, I found the execution quite juvenile and not very well polished. The pace is also very uneven, the writing seemed quite rushed towards the end.

For me, the deus ex machina plot twist at the end felt lazy and more suitable for a visual medium, such as film or series, where it could be easily hinted, the unexpected character lingering somewhere in the background at all times. Also, the entire narrative of the book, first person, diary-based perspective, which is then used as the base for the plot twist, seems very out of the character of Grace, who portrays herself as very cautious and extremely careful.

However, I'm giving an extra star for the accurate depiction of London's high-end sex parties and clubs scene.

I was really excited to read this novel when I received a free preview copy from NetGalley, having enjoyed Bella Mackie’s articles and her Instagram stories. This is a very dark comedy, about Grace, a young woman seeking revenge on her father and his family for refusing to acknowledge her as his child. The motivation for Grace to attempt to murder several members of her family never seems fully convincing, even if we’re convinced the Philip Green a-like Simon Artemis is a dreadful human being. This would make a quick beach read and it is a page turner but some of its satire, such as the influencer critique, seems unoriginal, and the twist at the end felt a bit deus ex machina. I’m honestly surprised by the number of five star reviews this novel has received so far

How To Kill Your Family by Bella Mackie

Synopsis
Kill my family
· Make a claim on their fortune
· Get away with the above
· Adopt a dog

Meet Grace Bernard.
Daughter, sister, colleague, friend, serial killer…
Grace has lost everything. And now she wants revenge.
How to Kill Your Family is a fierce and addictive novel about class, family, love… and murder.

Review
When I started this book, it felt similar to ‘Sweetpea’ by CJ Skuse but then I realised it just wasnt as funny or rude.
It wasnt a bad book, but I did get bored in the middle.
The ending however really suprised me and I didnt see it coming at all.
So overall, average book with a great ending.

Rated 3/5
Thanks to Netgalley for an advanced copy in return for an honest review

Outstanding, mesmerising, and totally unputdownable. In a weird way, I could totally relate to Grace’s thought processes and actions, making the story that much more exciting. I think it casts a very real light on classism and privilege, and it’s executed in such a clever way. Fans of Kill Bill and Killing Eve will enjoy this!