John Marrs you did it again! You Killed Me First was full of twists and turns. There were multiple jaw dropping moments all the way to the end that kept me engaged with the story. Great book!

4.75 stars

An absolute whirlwind of toxic and twisted characters, all of whom are hiding big secrets!

As always with John's books I was absolutely hooked from page one, with short gripping chapters it's almost impossible to stop reading. I did predict a few of the twists in this one but that didn't take away from the experience at all thanks to the incredible character work, I always wanted to keep going to find out exactly what was driving the characters and what other layers there were to the story! As for the ending I thought I knew exactly where things were going but as usual with a John Marrs ending my jaw was on the floor!

A big thank you to John Marrs - Author, Thomas and Mercer Publishing, & NetGalley for my first digital ARC.

My Reaction: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
This was a fantastic twisted tale. This trio of women are all over the top flawed characters with glimpses of realism that make each of them likeable in their own way. With each new chapter, I wasn’t sure who was victim or villain and it was an absolute thrill ride to follow the plot and find out. I loved the build up, the twists & turns, shocking reveals, and the development of both characters and plot. So many unpredictable elements, and even the one part I did predict played out in a way that I didn’t see coming. John Marrs has gained a new fan. I would reread this novel and plan to check out more of his works.

The Book Description that originally caught my attention: Three women. Three smouldering secrets. Who will make it out alive?

It’s 5 November, and a woman awakens to a nightmare. Bound and gagged, she lies trapped in the heart of a towering bonfire. As the smoke thickens, panic sets in – she’s moments away from being engulfed in flames. How did it come to this?

Rewind eleven months: Margot, a faded TV star, and her long-suffering friend Anna watch as glamorous Liv and her flawless family move into their street. The three women soon fabricate the perfect pretence of friendship, but each harbours her own deadly secret – and newcomer Liv senses something is terribly wrong beneath the polished exteriors.

As cracks widen in the veneer of perfection and lies escalate out of control, tension ignites. Bonfire Night is approaching and someone is set to burn…But who will it be?

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS

the first half of the book had no original plot. the same friendship among women who are toxic and hate each other secretly and eye each other husbands blah blah! but the chapters were short so they kept me engaged!
but i liked the plot after the “Bonfire Night” because, from that point, it turned DARKKKK!!
the dissociative identity disorder parts of the book were my favourite! and because of that, even the ending turned out to be good although a bit far-fetched!

thanks to the publisher for the copy!

As a fan of John Marrs’ books, I can confidently say that “You Killed Me First” is hands down my favorite of all his works! Marrs truly outdid himself with this one, blending his signature fast-paced storytelling with such a clever and twisted plot that it kept me on edge from start to finish. The characters are brilliantly developed, each with secrets that unravel in the most shocking ways. Every chapter left me wanting more, and just when I thought I had everything figured out, Marrs threw in another jaw-dropping twist.

The psychological depth and moral dilemmas are brilliantly woven into the narrative, making you question everything about trust and relationships. I’ve read all of Marrs’ books, but You Killed Me First takes the top spot—it’s thrilling, chilling, and utterly unputdownable. A masterpiece in the genre! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you #NetGalley for the #ARC #YouKilledMeFirst #JohnMarrs

No one writes a psychotic character quite like John Marrs! This was a great read, with three lead characters, Margot, Anna and Liv; each despicable in different ways and each hiding a secret or two.

The book starts with an unknown character trapped underneath a bonfire - the action swings into the past as we discover the events leading up to Bonfire night and then the future.

Packed with excellent twists and turns, this is an excellent thriller. Four stars for me as I got slightly confused with some of the ‘ghost’ chapters and this distracted me from the main story.

Thank you to Thomas and Mercer for my review copy

This was my first time reading a book by John Marrs, and he did not disappoint. The story was well-crafted and thoughtfully explored the complexities of female relationships, highlighting how competitive and sometimes harsh they can be. My only critique is that the chapters featuring the ‘dead’ character felt somewhat disconnected from the main narrative at the beginning. However, they did tie up nicely by the end

No notes, everything you could ever want from a thriller. Cremate me with this (no pun intended).

Amazing twists throughout, and fantastic characters who were super well developed and intricately connected. John Marrs villainised every character at some point leaving me literally clueless on who to root for

Massive John Marrs fan right here! I love books that have so many twists and turns, this one did not disappoint and kept me hooked from the start. Completely original and not predictable. Quite possibly my new favourite John Marrs book!

🔥𝗬𝗢𝗨 𝗞𝗜𝗟𝗟𝗘𝗗 𝗠𝗘 𝗙𝗜𝗥𝗦𝗧
🔪𝔱𝔥𝔯𝔦𝔩𝔩𝔢𝔯
𝙿𝚞𝚋🗓️: 𝙼𝚊𝚛𝚌𝚑 𝟺, 𝟸𝟶𝟸𝟻(𝚂𝙰𝚅𝙴 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙳𝙰𝚃𝙴🚨)
🤩𝕄𝕪 𝕣𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘: 𝟝 𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕣𝕤! ★★★★★

🤏𝚃𝚎𝚎𝚗𝚢 𝚝𝚒𝚍𝚋𝚒𝚝...Three women..all with their own secrets that they may even kill to protect them.

🔥𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚜𝚊𝚢...The TBR had to wait once I got ahold of this ARC because omg, it’s John Marrs! 🎉 And, damnnnn..he totally nailed this one! 💯How he is able to write three women so well, I will never know. 🤨The cattiness was off the charts at times in the best of ways. I mean these ladies were ruthless, but also picture perfect too 💁‍♀️. If you follow Marrs he seems to be the most gentlest of guys, but yet he writes these perfectly wicked novels. 😈🙌🤔It’s always the quiet ones, am I right?!? 😆 His accent & all he shares is just the best & I chapter 39n’(IYKYK) love it!! 💜 There is another cameo of Chapter 39 too so make sure you don’t miss it & the authors note was the best! 🤩This one def has some disturbing shit so if you need to check TW then make sure you do, but I went in blind & loved every second of it. 🤸I will remind yall closer to pub date again on this one because this is a must read! 🔥

This is my 2nd ARC from John Marrs and he never disappoints. He has quickly become one of my favorite authors and I feel so lucky when I get selected for an ARC of his.

This book has so many twists and unexpected surprises. I enjoyed Liv, Margo and Anna so much. Wanting to see where their friendship would go and who would side with who was such a great read. There was no way I would have guessed the ending.

Thank you NetGalley and John Marrs for this early copy. I can’t wait to add a physical copy to my library.

Thank you Netgalley, Thomas & Mercer and John Marrs for the eArc of You killed Me First.

Having read a few of John Marrs' books, I have enjoyed his writing style and especially his speculative thrillers. You killed me first grabbed me and kept hold of me to which I sat and read this one in one sitting! We start off with an opening prologue of someone trapped underneath a bonfire pyre. They have a phone and it rings, to which someone then tells this person..... You killed me first.

Rewind 11 months and we have Liv, who with her family have just moved into a new area and she befriends, Anna and Margot. Most of the book is from these 3 POV as first person. We also have the thoughts of another and so the mystery begins. Not only are you trying to suss out who was in the prologue and why. You are also trying to suss out who these thoughts belong to.

As the story progresses, Johns writing and clever foreshadowing, will keep you guessing and as soon as you think you have sussed it. Something else will come along to undo it all! The plot line is medium paced and holds that until the last 100 pages of the book. It then speeds up as everything unravels . I didn't see the last little twist coming and this is what I enjoy about John Marrs' books. It's like one final kick!

I loved the dynamics between the 3 main characters, Liv, Margot and Anna. The character flaws, secrets and characteristics makes them believable and to be honest, we probably know someone similar off the pages of this book.

Will be looking forward to listening to this on audiobook !

4..75 stars for Storygraph, 5 stars on Netgalley, Amazon and Goodreads

Well, after having read all of Marr's previous books I don't know why I'm so shocked!

My head will be spinning for days....just when you think you've got to the twist you're spun another 180 degrees. This happens over and over and now I need a sit down from being so dizzy.

Marrs style of writing is effortless.

I would highly recommend this to all readers...but block out a few days from your diary as you'll not want to put this down.

Thank so you much to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the ARC.

Thank you to John Marrs, NetGalley and Thomas&Mercer for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC and leave a review.

So, I’m going to start by saying that I have read every single book by John Marrs and have completely devoured all of them. His speculative fiction is some of my favourite books and I loved this slightly tongue-in-cheek story. It’s Desperate Housewives if they were based in the UK and drank tea instead of champagne. Oh, and they all had very traumatic events in their lives and were very slightly psychotic. There were plenty of twists to keep you guessing and the chapters written by the victims was a brilliant addition. You can’t trust anyone in this book, and you never know who is out to get you.

I’ve given it four stars because although I love John Marrs writing style, and his very unique voices I did find I enjoyed previous books a little more

Receiving an ARC (advanced reading copy) of a John Marrs book is like winning the lottery. Today I hit the jackpot, which how I find myself reading You Killed Me First, 6 months prior to its publication date.

When I start a John Marrs book, I am completely engrossed. I eagerly read from dedication to acknowledgements quickly. When I finish a John Marrs book, I find myself staring at the wall in silence, trying to process everything I have just read. You Killed Me First was no different.

The book starts on Bonfire Night, with a chilling first chapter. A woman is trapped, bound and gagged, whilst literally everyone around her enjoys the fireworks. We then backtrack by 11 months, to understand all that has happened, and there is a lot, trust me.

We have two seemingly separate storylines. The first finds three women, I wouldn’t call them friends. Existing and competing in their social circle, air kissing and showing their alleged best selves, for public consumption.
The second strand is intriguing, and quite bewildering initially. As the pages turn, all becomes clear.

The characters are very well developed, completely believable, and in some instances, morally repugnant; exactly as you would want and expect from this author. These characters don’t leave you sitting on the fence, they invoke strong reactions in readers.

I adore the Chapter 39 reference, within Chapter 39. I guarantee all John Marrs’ fans will lap this up, Chapter 39 has now reached cult status. (Personally, I don’t have the tattoo) If you have no idea what I’m talking about, you need to read Keep It In the Family.

This book is everything you want from a John Marrs book. It’s gripping, thrilling, eyebrow raising, and so Chapter 39ing good! My favourite line in the book is: “Christ, she’s skinny. It’s like comforting a chopstick”

5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ from me.

Another amazing book by John Marrs! So many twists! You think you know where it's going and then bam, you're taken a different route.!Loved it!

So good! Kept me guessing the whole time with unpredictable twists and turns. I finished this in 2 days, could not put it down!
This review was also posted on Goodreads.

John Marrs is back with a BANG!

So fortunate to obtain an ARC of his new thriller, 'You Killed Me First', from NetGalley, with its release due in March 2025.

Marrs manages to encapsulate multiple POVs in this slow burn masterpiece. Liv, Margot and Anna all have their secrets and in typical Marrs fashion the reader is kept wondering WTF as the story develops until it's final page where your brain, soul, heart will be blown to shreds.

Fuck I love John Marrs!

A new John Marrs book will always skip the TBR line and this one did not disappoint. Just when you think you have it figured out, the twists keep twisting. The character development is masterful, the plot is compelling, John Marrs is brilliant.

Margot is the woman you love to hate. She is vain, manipulative, selfish...everything you would expect from a defamed pop star. Anna is timid and people pleasing. She clearly isn't happy in her marriage, and she is internally dealing with childhood trauma. They make an unlikely pair, but they have a routine. Anna needs Margot, Margot needs to be needed.

Enter Liv, new to the neighborhood. She knows what she wants and she does what she has to do to get it. She sees right through Margot, she genuinely befriends Anna. She threatens the dynamic.

But everyone is hiding something, because...of course they are. When everything starts coming to light, there's mutually assured destruction games on the horizon. You won't see the end coming.

Thank you John Marrs, Thomas and Mercer, and Netgalley for the advanced copy!

This book starts off on fire. Literally. Well, not the actual book, but one of the characters seems to be the main course at the community bonfire.
We then go back and meet Margo, Anna, and Liv. Each of them has secrets, and wow, they are mind blowing, life altering, no way, she did not just do that, secrets.
Margo’s motto is: What Margo wants, Margo should get. But what does she really deserve?
Liv just wants her new business to succeed. But how did she find the necessary funds to make her dream become reality?
Anna is the nice one. Unassuming without a mean thing to say about anyone. They do say, though, look out for the quiet ones.
Which one of these women is the main course on the bonfire menu? You will have to read this book to find out.
When everything comes together, and I thought I had gasped my last, ‘what’, the author pulled the rug out from under me with the ending. Holy smokes, I would not have been surprised if my Kindle caught on fire. I was flipping the pages so fast, that my hand got a Charlie horse. I did not even know that could happen.
Characters that do the most awful things, but somehow I still rooted for each of them at different times. Well, except for one woman who shall remain nameless. Another great read by John Marrs.