I loved this book.

We meet Ray "Sugar" Leonard in a chemotherapy session along with other patients, Gog, Luke and Rose.

After one of these sessions, Ray needs a wee (a common side effect) and whilst down in an alley, he's mugged. The problem is that Sugar's would-be mugger ends up dead. Before long, Sugar realises that as he has a terminal illness, even if he's caught, he's probably not going to live long enough to go to prison. This is where Sugar decided to do some "good" before he dies.

The author has dealt really well with a very difficult subject matter. Sugar and all of the supporting characters throughout the book are truly works of art. I loved each and every one of them, for many different reasons.

There are twists, turns and some real shocks throughout. No spoilers from me.

I can not recommend this book enough. It's bloody brilliant.

Terminally Kill was an excellent read, but not for the faint-hearted! Full of dark, death-related humour, it centres around four very different people who bond while spending time together receiving chemotherapy.

Having spent time in hospitals with terminally ill people, I've become rather thick-skinned and also learned to appreciate that tip-toeing around topics like cancer and death is not for everyone. Some like to address their predicament head on. And Steve Jones' novel is definitely head on!

Former policeman Ray ‘Sugar’ Leonard has just left his chemotherapy group to head home when he gets mugged. When his mugger ends up dead, Ray needs to ensure that he doesn't get caught. He doesn't want to spend the little time he has left in prison. Then he tells his new frends what happened...

Terminally Kill is fast paced, very funny, well plotted and with a thoroughly engaging and vivid cast of characters.

Thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for the ARC. All my reviews are 100% honest and unbiased, regardless of how I acquire the book.

#NetGalley #bookreview

“Ray is about to die - but he’s nobody’s victim”
Ray, an ex-policeman and soldier kills a man who is trying to mug him - it was a self defence situation - kill or be killed
He had nothing to lose as he’s undergoing chemo for stage 3 cancer
A wicked dark comedy with the right and wrongs of what Ray had done at the centre of the book
Thanks @steveashtonjones @michaeljbooks & @netgalley for the wickedly funny read

Hilarious, tightly plotted, with wonderful characters. Nothing to lose, so why not do what brings satisfaction, particularly if you can claim the moral high ground. Bit tricky staying on top of that peak though...

A dark and bittersweet crime mystery set in a chemotherapy suite and written by the popular tv presenter Steve Jones. I loved the characters who were well rounded and believable. The humour threaded through the narrative made the bleaker moments lighter. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the arc.

After getting injured in Afghanistan, Ray Leonard joined the police and has just retired after his stint and after his wife was murdered. Now Ray has discovered that he has prostate cancer and is having to attend chemotherapy sessions with a disparate group of strangers. After one session a man attempts to mug Ray but Ray responds instinctively and the man ends up dead. Ray does not want to spend what little time he has left in prison but does wonder about settling a few scores and his chemo group are very supportive!
This is a surprisingly good book! I loved the premise about a terminally ill man and felt Ray was a well-written character. I also liked the ending because it wasn't too obvious. However what I loved was the very black humour employed, it didn't sugarcoat anything.

Loved it..I loved call time and thought that would be a tough one to beat but I enjoyed this one just as much. The characters are all so full of... Character! And so vividly described you can't help but like them. It made me think a bit of a kind worth killing but this is written in a much more light-hearted manner. Still, it does get you thinking about morals and were they right or wrong in their actions. Great read, can't wait until the next book now!
Thanks to the author, publisher and netgalley for my arc

Wow. This book is exhausting in a very good way. The pace starts slowly and then once the idea of murder, and the sight of blood has been glimpsed, the pace is frenetic. The 4 main characters are in chemo club and bond, deciding to rid the world of those that poison it. The author takes four unloveables and through their actions and honesty makes them real and made me care for them. Ray is the centre of it all, the first one to draw blood, the one to suffer so much loss and yet the book comes full circle with him the key part and around what so much turns. A great read and an exciting one that I read in one go I loved it so much.

I've been looking forward to the release of this novel since hearing the author himself talk about it last year at an event publicising his previous novel (Call Time - if you haven't read it yet, please do!). Terminally Kill is a brilliantly funny novel with some dark humour, and really great characters.

Ray 'Sugar' Leonard has cancer. Chemotherapy sessions mandatory. He doesn't want to engage with the others in his sessions at first. just wants to go to the hospital, have the treatment and leave again. But the bunch of misfits that he finds himself with don't exactly understand the art of silence and are keen to make friends.

In the room there's Gog, a scary looking, softly spoken Welsh bouncer, young Luke, sharp suited (and mouthed), who wants to be everyone's best mate, and Rose, a small elderly lady with the pottiest mouth you ever heard!

Ray is slowly won over by their individual 'charm' and starts confiding in them things he's never told anyone else. This is reciprocated by the others. With each of them being sworn to secrecy. A 'what's said in chemo, stays in chemo'... type scenario.

Ray is what you might describe as a seasoned professional. Ex-Military and a retired Police detective, Ray has seen his fair share of violence and unjust behaviour. When he is attacked in an alley, he doesn't hesitate to fight back, not realising he still had it in him.

Ray is dying, and realises he has nothing to lose by teaching his scum bag attacker a lesson. That said, he didn't quite mean to end his life... but he's seen enough crime scenes to know how to cover one up. And begins to wonder if he couldn't use his 'skills' to take a little justice and revenge back for himself before his life on this earth ends.

I don't want to spoil anything, but I absolutely loved this, and some of the twists towards the end of the novel were so clever! I can't wait to read the next offering from Mr. Jones.

A really funny story with a darkly gritty edge. I absolutely loved the characters in this, there was so much nuance and humanity mixed in with a large dollop of humour. Ray was a fascinating lead, I really enjoyed following his exploits.
A murder mystery with a difference, this is a definite recommend but with trigger warnings for cancer and suicide.

Absolutely brilliant. A well written, tightly plotted and paced book which despite what could be a grim setting was surprisingly full of humour. A random group of four are placed together to undergo daily chemotherapy sessions - Ray an ex military/retired policeman, Luke a dodgy investment broker, Gog a Welsh giant and Rose an elderly lady. Ray has an unfortunate encounter one evening which he reveals to the group after Luke suggests a truth or lie game with the premise that what goes on in Chemo Club stays in Chemo Club. The characters are so well described that you feel you know them and the motivations are completely believable.
In the interests of full disclosure, I admit to enjoying Steve Jones’ previous book, which I bought for my husband who devoured it, as I had done. I’m off now to buy Terminally Kill for him which I’m sure he’ll enjoy as much as I did. Can’t wait for the next one Mr Jones!

I wasn't overly impressed with this author's debut book- Call Time - however I did see the potential in his offering so I was willing to give him another chance. And I am blooming glad I did just that. This book was brilliant!
We start in a group chemotherapy session where former cop Ray "Sugar" Leonard joins fellow patients Gog, Rose, and Luke as they chat and get to know each other. After one such session, Ray is caught short (apparently a symptom/after effect) and rushes into an alleyway to relieve himself. And promptly gets mugged, although things escalate when his self-defence attempts leave his attacker dead. His military training kicking in despite his weakened state. Long story short, and with his brother-in-law John (still a cop) investigating, this act will define the rest of the book. Ray is terminal, with nothing to lose, and the mugger was a low-life... Can you see where I am going. Being terminal and unlikely to get as far as being banged up for his crimes, Ray realises that he can do some - shall we call it - sanitising before he goes... take one for the team if you like.
Shocking I know, but to be honest, I would be lying if I said that that very premise hadn't crossed my mind and, although controversial and I am not advocating such behaviour, it's a rather neat trick if you can pull it off and we all know at least one person who...! Although, that said, it's a bit of a brave topic to base a book around. But yeah, wholly credible!
Things get more serious when Ray starts to focus on the man who killed his wife, at the same time as he opens up more to his chemo group. What happens in Chemo Club, stays in Chemo Club... Especially when John shows him something he has found, something belonging to his late wife...
After the shaky start of Call Time, he smashed it out of the park for me with this one. It's hard to say I loved a book which centres on cancer and chemotherapy but it is handled so blooming well, with some of the greatest characters I have met in time that it never got too dark. Ray is wonderful, as is his step-daughter Chaynnie, the both of whom are still hurting from the loss of Odette, mother and wife. And the other members of Chemo Club and nurse Donna absolutely excelled. Other characters who I will leave you to meet and get to know as the author intends (spoilers) are just as well crafted and all did a stellar job. The overall story was both compelling and intriguing and delivered shock after twist as it travelled towards the final denouement, and an ending that, again, I will leave you to discover, but one which I felt was the only way it could go, and which wholly satisfied.
So the lesson here is never sack off an author on one book that didn't suit. I'm so glad I gave him a second chance and I am really looking forward to seeing what he serves up for next time. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Ex-Marine and ex-cop Ray Leonard is having Chemo for Prostate cancer. He shares every session with Rose, Luke and Gog. They agree fairly early on that what happens in Chemo club stays in Chemo Club. Even if it is murder.
Ray is set upon when he has to take an urgent call of nature and things get out of hand, even though it is self defence. He's not sure if he's gotten away with it, but does admit what he's done to the club and they rally around as they all agree it was self defence.
Things start getting out of hand and it looks as though he might be blamed for something he didn't do. Fate seems to step in and give him a hand.
A novel look at life when you're on borrowed time.
A very enjoyable read.

A group of people receiving chemotherapy treatment form an unlikely bond in this gripping, funny tale of murder. I wasn’t expecting to like this book as much as I did , but the plot line along with the characters really drew me in. It’s a tale of friendship, life lessons and putting the world to rights. Thank you to NetGalley, Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House and the author for the chance to review.

Former policeman Ray Leonard is undergoing chemotherapy and it is there that he meets three others going through the same; Gog, Rose and Luke. When he gets mugged on the way home his training kicks in and the his attacker ends up dead. He comes to ponder who else deserves this fate, seeing as he has nothing to lose. Sharing his thoughts with his new friends, it seems he isn’t the only one with these thoughts in mind.

I wanted to read this as the concept sounded very original and intriguing. The story ended up not being exactly what I expected but good all the same. The characters are brilliantly written with engaging personality traits. I enjoyed their connections with one another also.

The subject matter, although dark, managed to come across in a respectful way and there was plenty of humour to help make the novel less uncomfortable. There’s also a few twists and gritty moments within this story, creating suspenseful, action packed moments. I did find that the plot bounced around a bit randomly at times, however overall this was a decent, unique character driven crime novel. 3.5 stars rounded down. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this copy in return for an honest review.

This isn’t my usual genre but it had me thinking about it and telling people about it for days and weeks afterwards. Such a clever premise for a novel as who doesn’t love the idea of adding purpose and righting some wrongs once you find out you have nothing to lose. I loved the characters in the story, particularly the step-father/daughter dynamic- so bittersweet to know their love was so strong but also know she was facing more loss. In parts I found it a very tense read but still loved it.

I love the dark humour in this book, such a range of emotions through reading this group. It definitely felt like unlike anything I have read before.

Terminally Kill is a totally unpredictable story, even the ending came before I expected it to! It's unlike any other book I've ever read and I'm not sure what it was about it that I liked. The dark humour of the chemo treatment room was right up my street but whilst I enjoyed the four main characters I didn't really believe in them. Retribution and justice have been entertainingly used as the main topic and gave me a lot of food for thought.

Brilliant story and one I think we can all relate to, at least from a feelings respect! The characters were well written and you felt the journey was real as you went along the way. Plus a great twist!

I read Steve's last book Call Time last year and loved it so was so excited when I get an email from @netgalley saying that his new book was available.

I devoured it in one weekend.

I loved it!

There's something about Steve's writing that I really enjoy, it could be that we're around the same age (if Wiki is right I'm 9 months older), so a lot of references, situations or topics are more familiar to me. I'm not talking about time travel or vigilante killers, more the conversations that are had between characters.

In Terminally Kill a group of strangers have their Chemotherapy sessions at the same time and although to begin with have a fairly shallow relationship they learn more about each other, and I really loved the way that the past of these characters was revealed, there was just enough to give motivations and meat to them, but not so much that it became distracting and too much detail.

The main character Ray who is an ex soldier, ex detective, father and widower is so well written and I really felt his emotions and motivations for his journey through the book.

There were times when my heart was racing when characters got in sticky situations and there were times when I was in tears.

I keep seeing memes about how it's normal to love a book and then forget all about it instantly, but I haven't had that with these at all, and I think it's because they stand out as something different to what I've normally been reading.

I'm now eagerly awaiting book three!