I listened to the audiobook version of this and thought that the 2 points of view of Haze and Fox were both narrated well in the main - although why you would decide someone called Hamish speaks with an Irish accent remains a mystery 😂 but luckily that was a walk-on character!

The idea of a central character who is a serial killer isn’t new but even Jeff Lindsay (Dexter) didn’t come up with a married couple working ‘to make the world a better place’ .

I loved the fact that Fox and Haze take parenthood seriously and try to curb their natural instincts in order to make things safe for their daughter. I also loved the fact that they both come from different types of dysfunctional families but neither are asking for reader sympathy to excuse themselves.

Lots of interesting subplots used to create tension, jeopardy and red herrings and a clever way of tying them together later.

Okay, so the story is thankfully far-fetched but it’s not pretending to be what it isn’t. I’m not sure what the name is for this new type of comic murder fiction - Dark Suburbia? - but it is fun to read.

With thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, Headline Audio and Asia Mackay for an arc of the audio version of this novel.

In A 'Serial Killer's Guide to Marriage' by Asia Mackay, Fox and Haze are a perfectly matched couple. Both have a thirst for killing bad men: Haze in a flurry of chaos, and Fox with meticulous precision. With money behind them, they can travel the world attending glamorous party's and killing. However, when their daughter Bibi comes along, everything has to change.

Mackay writes with humour. She also has a good understanding of what its like to be a new mother. Whilst the draw of the book is the premise of a married couple who like to kill, the real story is about how marriages change over the years, and how difficulties can be perpetuated by miscommunications. Mackay does this well, but there were times I found myself wanting her to get on with it. Plus as the novel went on, the humour was less present. This is a good book, but not one I would rush to recommend.

I absolutely loved this dark humour, original, twisted and a clever thriller with this unique married couple, Haze and Fox. They used to kill people and were know as serial killers but now they would kill for a normal life. Definitely fast paced thriller just the way I like it

An absolute great read. Very entertaining and fun

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House

True crime is my 'thing' so I was thrilled to be accepted for an eARC of this thriller. In <I>A Serial Killer's Guide to Marriage</I>, Haze and Fox are a married couple with baby Bibi – yes really – bonding them in suburban England beyond their initial interest-in-common: murder.

Through fun, witty dialogue, even funnier internal monologues from each main character, and a switching POV, this book becomes a page-turning mystery-thriller with a wild ending. I thought this would be a serious, dark book, but I'm glad that it was a racing mystery-thriller with humour, wonderful characters, style and adrenaline. The author brilliantly weaves in social commentary of what is morally right, and this was a great palate cleansing read. It has <I>Mr and Mrs Smith</I> vibes and definitely feels cinematic and compulsive in many ways.

Hazel and Fox have the dream life. He is an investment banker from a wealthy family. She, a successful artist, with a waiting list for buyers for her work. They can travel the world in five star luxury, have a fabulous home in the suburbs with a dream house, are a gorgeous couple who have the hots for one another, have an amazing marriage, and an adorable young daughter, Bibi. On appearances, they are the envy of all their neighbors and all the mothers in Hazel’s mom and baby groups.

In reality, they are retired serial killers. Retirement is not working out so well for Hazel, who is finding the itch to kill growing harder to ignore. She misses their life of travel, killing those who deserved it. Of picking prey, going on the hunt, and removing despicable humans from the world, while getting her fix in. Getting pregnant put an end to that, with Fox insisting they have to be safe, cautious, and ever so careful, all for Bibi’s sake. She is starting to take out her frustration on Fox and their marriage.

Hazel tries her best. But out on a run one day something happens that sets a spiral of events into play. Each begins to suspect the other of hiding something. Their marriage begins to fray. For most couples, when things get tense, counseling and intense therapy may be the answer. For Fox and Hazel, they may literally kill one another if things get too heated. Can they put their issues aside and save their marriage, and one another?

This is a dark comedy, thriller of a read. Hazel in particular has a dry and biting wit to her which is entertaining to read. The story covers the traditional trope of the stress of marriage and children with the spin of a pair of serial killers trying to mask themselves and fit into the suburbs and play normal and nice. Their efforts are suffocating to them, and you start to empathize with them. You want them to break free and continue to be themselves, especially given their target group. They are good serial killers after all, right?

There is a lot more in this story that I won't give away as you will want to read it to uncover it. But there are plenty of twists, things I did not see coming at all. I love how well the dual POV worked in this story, breaking up the tale well, building more suspense and confusion at times, and at others giving us back story and clarity. It is very well written, with the pace well maintained throughout. It keeps you engaged and guessing until the end, and hoping for the best outcome, then questioning yourself for rooting for two cold blooded, twisted killers!

*I received this book from NetGalley for review, but all opinions are my own.

This is a playful, slightly offbeat novel that packs a lot of energy into its short chapters making it a fun, easy read.
However I found the characters leave much to be desired. Haze comes across as self-absorbed, while her husband, Fox, seems quite controlling. and I found it difficult to relate to them both.
The short chapters, while contributing to the novel’s fast pace, also meant that I kept turning the pages otherwise I might have given up halfway through.,
Overall, this book is a fun, quirky romp that offers in terms of creativity and wit but for me fell short on character engagement. It’s perfect for those looking for a light, amusing read, but less so for anyone hoping for a more emotionally resonant story.

💭 ᴍʏ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛꜱ:
I adored this setup. Looking inside the mind of serial killers, while they navigate their way as a new family. I loved Hazel & Fox. The quick chapters got me hooked quickly and then you want to see how they’re gonna get themselves out of the mess! It has such a quick pace story with continued suspense. I couldn’t get enough. Nearly binged it in one sitting!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

🤓 ʀᴇᴀᴅ ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ʟɪᴋᴇ:
Quick read
Short chapters
Multiple POCs
Continued suspense
Detective stories

ꜱʏɴᴏᴘꜱɪꜱ:
𝘏𝘢𝘻𝘦𝘭 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘍𝘰𝘹 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘣𝘢𝘣𝘺. 𝘌𝘹𝘤𝘦𝘱𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘴𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺'𝘳𝘦 𝘦𝘹-𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳𝘴.

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭. 𝘈𝘯 𝘦𝘯𝘷𝘪𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘓𝘰𝘯𝘥𝘰𝘯 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘺𝘭𝘦, 𝘧𝘪𝘷𝘦-𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘣𝘢𝘥 𝘮𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭. 𝘕𝘰𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘴 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘶𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳.

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘏𝘢𝘻𝘦𝘭 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘨𝘯𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘨𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘶𝘱 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘣𝘶𝘳𝘣𝘴; 𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘺 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘢𝘭.

𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘏𝘢𝘻𝘦𝘭 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯. 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘍𝘰𝘹'𝘴 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘥𝘰𝘰𝘳, 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘥𝘰 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺.

A couple who kills together stays together… or will one of them find themselves under a suburban patio?
Haze and Fox have a mutual hobby of taking out bad men, traveling Europe living an envious lavish lifestyle until Haze falls pregnant and Fox suggests they hang up their knives for the future of their daughter Bibi. What could possibly go wrong.

A Serial Killer’s Guide To Marriage has very similar undertones to How to Kill Men and Get Away With It which for me was great as I really enjoyed both books. It’s a bit dark and twisted but at the same time it was fun and lighthearted. It touched on many normal points people struggle with in marriage but with the dark twist of being based around murder.
I felt that the characters were built well and I really got to know each of them. I really enjoyed it from start to finish and I am keeping my fingers crossed that Asia Mackay considers a sequel.
I will definitely be recommending this book to others.

Certainly a very different murder story from the many I have previously read. Although other reviewers found it humorous I can't say I did but well done to the author for originality. Read in a day. Thanks to the and NetGalley for the chance to ARC this book.

Does a serial killer ever really retire? Absolutely not, they just find a new cause to kill for 🫣.

A baby will never slow down Hazel and you know I support her rights and wrongs!

I really enjoyed this book and it was interesting to see the limits and moral compus of two people that have committed some of the wildest crimes

What a fun book! I was completely absorbed by this dark and twisty story and couldn’t put it down, I lived the two main characters and I hope for more from the author!!

Absolutely loved this book, and it's one I'm going to be buying. Hazel and Foxe are falling into suburban dullness whilst both, in different ways longing for their previous pre baby life, something a lot of us can empathise with. They just also happen to be serial killers.
I laughed out loud several times, an excellent dark comedy and highly recommended.

This was such a fun and fast paced read even if the main characters were serial killers.

Whilst we explore their love for killing we also see the complexities of marriage, parenthood and everything that comes with giving up something you love, in this case killing people. Hazel reminded me very much of Rhiannon from the Sweetpea book with her twisted love for killing.

There were plenty of twists and secrets which were all brought together so well at the end.

Thoroughly enjoyed and looking forward to future books from this author.

A Serial Killer’s Guide to Marriage didn’t quite meet my expectations. With so many books on the market exploring similar themes, this one didn’t stand out for me. The writing style felt quite amateur, and the characters lacked depth, which made it hard to stay engaged. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get past the 15% mark.

With thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for an advance review copy.

Billed as a thriller/romp in the style of Mr and Mrs Smith, this should have been amusing. The premise holds promise - a glamorous serial killer couple who roam across Europe killing bad men, give it all up and move to the suburbs for a quiet life when they have a baby, and find their addiction to killing rather harder to give up than they'd imagined.

Unfortunately, I found the reality to be plodding, not especially amusing, repetitive and quite predictable; the novelty wore off very quickly and it just didn't do enough to keep me interested. It could do with a LOT of editing. And both characters are deeply annoying - Hazel is a selfish child-woman whose one mood seems to be dissatisfied grump, and Fox, who is meant to be the dashing foil to her manic pixie dream child, came across to me as manipulative and controlling. This one really wasn't for me.

Going into this I was unsure if I would enjoy it. I've tried this author before and didn't love it.
But I'm glad I gave this a shot. I enjoyed this. The pacing was good. There was always something happening to keep you interested. While the ending didn't really work for me. I also expected it to go a different way. So in a way I'm glad it wasn't too predictable in that sense.

It is not very often that I am flummoxed over a book because I have a very wide range of genres, but I am really not sure about this one, I have given it four stars because, although it drags on a bit, it is well written and an interesting concept. I do like to connect with the main characters in my books and empathise with them, these two characters were definitely unlikeable for me, this of course is just my opinion.
Hazel and Fox Mathews had lived a charmed life, travelling the world, she an artist, he wealthy, mainly due to his trust fund which his objectional parents were trying to relieve him of, but they had secrets, secrets that they were very careful to hide.......they got their adrenaline kick from killing men, not just any men, they were selective, but men who deserved to die, they were doing society a favour.
All this came to a stop when their beloved daughter, Bibi, was born, they had settled in London and they never killed in their own backyard............but the urge never left them and when haughty, opinionated, Haze befriended needy Jenny things were about to get awkward, Jenny also had a secret, a secret that could change their lives.
The lives of Haze and Fox were spiralling out of control, both had secrets now from one another, communication was zero.
I must admit to wondering how this story was going to end and although the end was a bit OTT, it wasn't what I expected.
Thank you Net Gallery for this ARC, my review is voluntary.

Haze and Fox are the perfect couple. Young, beautiful and rich. Their shared hobby of killing dispicable men brought them together but now married with a young daughter, Fox calls time on their dangerous pastime, terrified they will be caught and forced to be separated from Biba.

Settling down into a normal life is hard for both of them and they are both tempted back to their old life. Will they give into temptation and ‘cheat’ on each other?

Filled with dark humour and twists this is the perfect thriller. Haze is very cool, I would definitely want to be friends with her!
I really hope we get to catch up with Hazel and Fox in a few years!

This was a really interesting read, I really enjoyed the concept of this novel.

In A serial Killers Guide to Marriage, we meet husband and wife duo Fox and Hazel, both ex-killers and have a little baby. They are trying to put their past behind them and be a normal happily married coupled but Hazel has the urge to kill and she does act upon it and then the story really kicks off.

This read is definitely a killer read and is twisty, funny and a different outlook on a killers way of thinking/living.

I found this novel to be quite refreshing with lots of dark humour sprinkled in throughout the novel.

Thanks to the author, Netgalley and the publishers for allowing me an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This is very cleverly written book , and I just loved the audio version. I did go between book and audio which was very handy. I loved how original and different this is. The ending wrapped everything up nicely and this is definitely one to be read in one sitting. I also loved Jenny as a side character! Looking forward to what comes next from the author. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for this arc.