A facinating ride into the world of a woman who can give and take life from anyone she meets. Think morally grey decisions, plenty of mistakes and petty judgements mixed with a dollop of dark humour and glimmers of hope. An Ethical Guide to Murder takes a dark subject yet still managed to keep it light and not too heavy on the moral judgement.

Thea is an interesting character to bestow this kind of power on. She's very aware of her abilities and uses them vicariously, and at first without any deep decision making. She's also rather unpredictable. Just as the reader thinks they know what Thea will do, then she throws up a curveball. It certainly kept me on my toes. She's certainly not likeable, but it's because of this self awareness that I liked her. She's also still very vulnerable and easy to manipulate in certain cases, which makes her more paletable to me. She's human and I think she makes tye same mistakes we'd all make if tye tables were turned.

A really interesting story that delves deep into the human psyche while keeping the plot from getting too heavy at the same time. Really enjoyed this.

Thea has a secret. She is able to tell how long someone has left to live by touching them and can transfer lives from one person to another. She decides to try to use her power for good but at times can’t help but use it for her own benefit. She realises that this power isn’t as simple as she first thought and creates an ethical guide to murder.

I wanted to read this on the premise alone as it sounded like such an intriguing and original storyline. After finishing I can say this is definitely a unique, creative read, which raises a lot of interesting ethical questions and dilemmas. The characters are written well, although I found the majority unlikeable and frustrating.

I liked that there was dark humour running alongside serious subjects and I think it flowed well, however at times it was slow going. The ending was fitting and unexpectedly emotional. I enjoyed this book for the most part and would read more by this author. This is definitely worth reading for those looking for a thought provoking, well written book with a unique storyline. 3.5 rounded up. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this copy in return for an honest review.

This was such a great book, it was easy to read. I loved the dilemma between life and death, those deserving or not. Overall it had me hooked.

Judging by other reviewers, I suspect this will be quite popular. That makes me feel a bit better about finding it difficult to find the positives. I'm afraid I didnt enjoy it and, had I been reading it for my own enjoyment, would have given up on it quite quickly.
The characters seemed to have no redeemable features which meant that I did6care about them.
Not for me, sorry. Thanks to Netgalley.

Ethical Guide to Murder challenges the idea of who deserves life and who deserves death. Thea’s best friend Ruth is set to die and Thea accidentally pulls life to give to her, giving Ruth another 6 months. She is trying to find a way to give her more.

I adore the premise and the philosophical debate about who does and doesn’t deserve death. However, I found it difficult to engage with the character of Thea who acts childish and willfully naive at times. Because the story is told in her head, it was just really tricky to keep my interest.

This isn’t a book for me but I would be interested to read more of Jenny Morris’ books in the future.

‘An Ethical Guide To Murder’ by Jenny Morris is a unique and thought-provoking debut novel which defies genre classification - at times a hilarious dark comedy, but also a slow-burn thriller and a magical fantasy. The book focuses on Thea, who has led a normal (if somewhat disappointing) life working in HR despite her passion for the legal profession and flatsharing at a subsidised rate with her best friend Ruth - an ICU doctor - until a night out changes everything. When Ruth gets in an accident, Thea senses that she has only minutes to live and siphons years of life from an innocent bystander to save Ruth.

Suddenly, Thea has the capability to shorten and lengthen lifespans using just a touch, and with some encouragement from old flame Sam, decides to use her power rather than hiding it away. Killing bad people to save innocent ones whose journeys are set to be cut tragically short has to be the correct action, right? However, to quote ‘Wicked’, no good deed goes unpunished - and Thea’s existence becomes a tangled web of ethics as she loses friends, self-belief and sanity.

Thea herself is an excellently developed character, with an emotional backstory and relatable flaws. While initially the premise feels ludicrous, the novel really does make you step into her shoes and ponder how you would use such an important ability. Ruth and Sam, who to me felt like the proverbial angel and devil on Thea’s shoulders, could have been explored more - I ended up finding Ruth quite frustrating and ruminating on whether Thea deserved better from her childhood BFF.

The book felt like a cross between Eve Kellman’s ‘How To Kill A Guy In Ten Ways’ and Rebecca Serle’s ‘Expiration Dates’. Ultimately, it’s a tale of morality, addiction and guilt which felt far heavier than the cover led me to expect but gripped me from start to gut-punching finish. Four stars!

I received an advance Digital Review Copy of this book from the publisher Simon & Schuster UK via NetGalley. Opinions my own.

Something totally different that will have you questioning your ethics and beliefs. If you really did have the power to control if someone lived or died, is it a straight forward, simple decision? Surely if someone has done something bad that makes it easier? What if they seem a genuinely good person? What if they are hiding who they really are?!
These are some of the questions are main characters will have to ask themselves as they develop their ‘Ethical Guide to Murder’ and can they live by this code?

As I say, something completely different, a step away from reality, but certainly gets you thinking of people in some positions and how their decisions can affect others.

A good read with some questionable characters, just who can you trust? Who is truly out to do no harm?
A thought provoking story with an ending you will not see coming.
I look forward to more from this author.

Woah, what on earth did I just read, just wow! This is a book that will absorb you, while also making you ponder big ethical dilemmas.

And I am astounded to learn that this is a debut novel. Makes me very excited for this author's writing career if this is the level of book she is writing as a starter.

Ok you have to suspend your belief in reality to understand and totally believe Thea's power, I believe this is distinctly more paranormal than anything I tend to read, but I was drawn in from the title. And after starting to read, I just had to keep reading to find out what would happen.

And I never ever ever predicted that ending, although it makes total and utter sense.

If you were able to kill people undetected, but also able to give additional life to others would you be able to decide who was deserving? That is what Thea is struggling with throughout this book, while also having to live a double life.

There is her best friend who she is suddenly able to save from a very premature death, there are people she is completely convinced she should kill, and there is a man egging her on having discovered what she is able to do.

This will certainly get you thinking, and I have no idea what I would do in Thea's position, besides attempt to avoid all physical contact with everyone for the rest of my life.

Utterly brilliant and easily the best book I've read so far in 2025!

Thank you to Simon & Schuster and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

Thank you publisher for thsi arc.

A pretty easy read. It's more of a character driven type of mystery, so if that's a style of mystery ou enjoy, give this a try. I do enjoy a character study and thoroughly had a good time.

The premise is so interesting, and I am glad to be able to read it early. As mentioned in the blurb, this story explores the concept of who truly deserves to die. It does make you contemplate the nuance of a person and how people who do things for a greater good can also do truly horrible things behind the scenes as well. The story shows how dangerous it is for one person/group to be able to decide whether someone can live their life as it should be, or if someone deserves to live more than another. It feels like a microcosm of the unfair justice system in many countries that still has death penalty, and as someone who doesn't currently have much other knowledge on the topic, I don't think it's my place to talk about the issue.

This did have me crying at the end in a way that surprised me at how invested I had actually gotten into our main character and those around her (iykyk). It showed quite a realistic potrayal of the nuance and flaws of people in the real world.

The plot was always constantly moving but it did feel a bit slow at the beginning.

Overall, I would recommend if you enjoy a more character driven mystery thriller and the premise piques your interest.

Thea has a secret! We soon discover Thea's secret and how she struggles with the knowledge. This leads Thea to setting down on paper "The Ethical Guide To Murder" as a guide in helping to come to terms with she can do. Thea lives in London with her best friend, Ruth and works in HR with Zara. One night, Thea finds out that Ruth hasn't got long to live. What should she do? She has to decide and to live the action of doing good. I found the book made me think about what I would do if I were in that situation! The story was cleverly plotted and very easy to read. The ending came as a total surprise to me.

Thea has a unique power - she can see how long people have left to live just by touching them, which is unsettling enough, until she finds out her friend has days left to live. But when she realises she can save her, at the expense of another person's life, Thea had a very difficult decision to make, one that will affect her own life immeasurably.

This was a great concept for a book. Easy to read, despite the subject and very thought-provoking.

This was a brilliant an unexpected novel. Thea has the power to take life and gift to others and with great power comes great responsibility. This novel kept me up all night reading as Thea tried to navigate the ethics and morals surrounding her power.
I have to ad that I disliked the ending and would've liked it to go in a different direction but it shows how much I enjoyed the book that I still gave it 5 stars

I do seem to read an awful lot of murder books, particularly ones that involve female serial killers, which is quite worrying. And you'd think I'd get bored of them after a while. And yes, whilst there are certain elements that are repeated, this just had a bit extra which made it stand out on its own.

I mean, it's not an every day debate I have with myself, but it dose pose the question about who gets to decide who lives or die. Can anyone who murders someone else - no matter how horrible they are - really be considered good? Are there exceptions to the rules? Is it okay to kill Hitler but not the bully down the road? Is murdering a murderer somehow justified? Where is the line?

This book ruined a perfectly planned early night, as once I started it, I struggled to stop it was so good. I read it in under a day, it was so all absorbing and so addictive.

It is really original, fresh and unique, and really fun. It had me hooked instantly and held my attention throughout, and I even had a little cry at the end. I wasn't sure how Jenny would end it but there wasn't a more perfect way. It went in directions I wasn't expecting and that kept me on my toes.

It is absolutely beautiful. It reminded me slightly of Kirsty Greenwood's The Love Of My Afterlife - another book I loved. They are both so magical.

Thea is a wonderful main character. She's not perfect. In fact, she 's very far from perfect. And if you take the magical elements away, she is very real and familiar, like a friend. But she is of course in a very morally grey area. Yes she's killing people, which is bad, but she's killing people to help other people, which I suppose is good. No matter her actions, I always found myself on her side, ignoring what everyone else had to say against her.

There are a number of secondary and background characters, not all nice or good or likeable, some potentially straying into a bit of a caricature, but I'm okay with that, it works in this unusual world Jenny has created.

It's got a bit of everything; it's contemporary fiction with some romance, and obviously thriller and crime, and also some comedy, which I wasn't expecting.

I do believe this is her debut novel? Correct me if I'm wrong. But if it is, then it's such a fantastic start to what I hope will be a productive career.

It's not very book-reviewer-ee to just say it was a really good book and I really enjoyed it, but at the end of the day, I did really enjoy it, and it was a really good book.

Thank you so much Likely Suspects for sending me a copy of this book!

Thea has a God like power. She can see how much time a person has left before they die. She is also able to take away someone’s time and transfer it to someone else.

She uses her power to save her best friend Ruth on a night out. Following this, she realises she can use her power for good. But how can she really decide on who gets to live and who dies?!

The plot reminded a little bit of the Justin Timberlake Movie, In Time. However, this book has a completely different take on a similar concept.

It’s hard to write down my thoughts and feelings as they were constantly changing as I read the book and obviously, I don’t do spoilers! I went through the biggest emotional rollercoaster! 😅

This was a great debut!

Thea discovers she has a 'gift' as she sees when her best friend Ruth will die and goes on to save her, what happens next sets off a chain of events that will have everyone questioning their own morality.
I didn't particularly like theas character i found her very niave, at times felt like sam could get her to do anything he pleased. Ruth I liked to begin with but then found her very judgemental, I'm sure others felt different as this book will definitely get people talking!
Grandad and diego were my favourite characters they were definitely the most likeable.
I wasn't overly satisfied with the ending, don't want to give anything away but I guess I just wanted a happy ending, nevertheless this book was a really great read and I'm sure will have book clubs across the country debating this story
Thank you

I’m not even sure where to start reviewing this book! It was absolutely brilliant and I don’t think any words I write will do it justice, without major spoilers!

Such a unique book - I haven’t come across anything like this before and I absolutely loved it! Definitely one that got me thinking too and debating with myself what was actually ‘ethical’! Twists and turns galore in this book and I was never too sure where it was going. I loved the ending and seeing how much Thea had changed across the course of the book.

This is a must read for everyone as it has a bit of everything in it - thriller, contemporary, fantasy, drama, dark comedy!!

Thea is a 26 year old woman who on a night out discovers she has the power of life and death over people.. Immediately she's conflicted.. Should she carry on using this power or not?

This is a highly original book. Normally I hate anything with even a hint of the supernatural but this was much more about the difficulties Thea faces in dealing with her power than about the power itself. It would be a great book for a book club read as there are so many ethical questions to discuss. it also had a great (if somewhat predictable) ending which was very satisfactory, A very enjoyable read. Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC.

I really enjoyed this book, it seemed to just flow and the writing style was really appealing to me. The story line is focused around Thea having the power to take and prolong life which is put to the test when her close friend Ruth has an unfortunate accident.

I would definitely recommend this book - it does bring up some important issues around who should decide on who lives and dies but it had me compelled to finish this book as soon as possible.

Thanks to Netgalley for this ARC.

If you could save a loved one by killing someone else, would you? Thea is faced with a moral battle that becomes a legal battle.

This book became so thought provoking while remaining humorous. The plot became repetitive in the middle, which is why I have taken a star off, but overall I enjoyed the story and it was definitely true to the comparisons.

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster UK for the ARC

I once read a brilliant trilogy where the young MFC could see people’s death dates, so when I read the blurb for this, I was fascinated as Thea’s ability in this story takes seeing the death date to a whole other level!

When her best friend is about to die, Thea discovers she can take life from someone and pass it to another person, so that’s what she does. And as long as she only takes life from bad people, she’s doing nothing wrong… is she?

I enjoyed getting to know Thea. She felt like a really relatable person and I could empathise with her frustrations at work and with her life in general. Her relationship with her Grandad is an important part of the story and one that I loved reading about. The writing is brilliant and I flew through this fantastic story.

Despite her good intentions, Thea finds that she is creating more problems than she is fixing and when she begins to doubt the intentions of the one person who knows the truth, Thea tries to put right her wrongs.

The impact of Thea’s actions are far more wide reaching that I would have imagined and there is a lighthearted element to this book, but also a deeper meaning too. Who has the right to decide who lives and who dies?

5 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, Jenny Morris and Simon and Schuster for an ARC in return for an honest review.