was really excited by the premise of this book and it played out so well! It read like the trolley problem on steroids - there was a surprising amount of philosophical thought going on in my head whilst reading this. The plot was fun, straight forward and easy to read. The characters are all a bit flawed, which are my favourite type of character. I kept guessing how I’d thought it would end right until the very last pages, it wasn’t what I expected but it was a satisfying conclusion. A great read.

I don’t even know where to start with this… other than I absolutely LOVED it and I’ve recommended it to everyone I’ve seen since!
Some fantastic characters, the story was both shocking and funny in equal measures. This book really makes you think about people on a much deeper level… who is considered to be good or bad? What makes one person better than another? And what would you do if you held the power to take and give life to those around you?
Brilliant brilliant brilliant!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for my ARC of this wonderful book!

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for this ARC.

Thea is a normal 26 year old who hates her boss Zara and loves her gay BFF Ruth. Her parents died in a car accident when she was eight, and she was brought up by her lovely Grandad who has always tried to instil the difference between right and wrong in her.

One day when she touches Ruth's arm she suddenly gets a flash telling her that Ruth will die tonight at a specific time. But that's not all. When Ruth gets a head wound in a bar that night Thea accidentally touches the man who shoved her over and transfers his remaining life into Ruth. He dies and Ruth lives.

What do you do when you discover you have the ability to play God and redistribute lifespans, either by killing someone or decimating their given years to pass on to other people?

Thea reacts by creating an Ethical Guide to Murder, with the premise of only killing really bad people and giving their years to really good, deserving people. Every chapter starts with an excerpt from this guide, justifying her reasons.

But how do you know whether someone is all good or all bad? Thea's superpower creates all kinds of ethical dilemmas and unforeseen repercussions, because people aren't always what they seem. A case in point is what happens when Thea finally finds the person responsible for causing the fatal car crash in which her parents died. Oh, and the charity guy who seemed so deserving at first.

This is an at times uncomfortable book that constantly makes you examine your own morals and question what you would have done with this ability. I didn't find a lot of dark humour and I felt this book was very different to my usual revenge or serial killer reads. There is an undercurrent of rage at the unfairness of life, which seems to reward a lot of undeserving people while punishing deserving ones. So why not redress the balance?

The premise of the book is intriguing but then it gets bogged down by moral questions and some inconsistencies in how Thea's talent works, slowing the pace down. There weren't a lot of characters I actively liked, except Grandad. Especially manipulative lawyer Sam and the awful guy we first think is a hero are pretty hard to stomach, but everyone else is flawed too.

I can't say that I saw the ending coming and I'm not sure how I feel about it. At least Thea is consistent in how she approaches retribution and making amends. If you're expecting a deranged serial killer, this isn't her. She honestly tries to do good but it becomes a curse to her.

I liked the writing style and that the book makes you think. It's a very unique story examining what would happen if we could suddenly decide other people's lifespan and why. Points for originality in this interesting debut novel!

"Right and wrong are not mutually exclusive concepts. Having a good reason to do a terrible thing doesn’t make it any less terrible. Especially if you’re the one deciding what’s moral and what’s not."

3.5 stars

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.

Pushing daisies meets cat woman, this book introduces us to a woman with the power to move life between people, and shows us how easy it is for lines to be blurred. It’s quite dark, yet doesn’t come across as oppressively so. The ending is most satisfactory and overall it was a very original and interesting read

This was a really easy read, but it had some really interesting concepts and would make for a great book club book.
I really liked the fact that Thea was so morally ambiguous, she was trying desperately to do the right things but she had some warped ideas.
This was funny, really quite dark and thought provoking, and it was really entertaining. I have high hopes for this one. It would make for a great tv adaptation.

You wake up one morning and it seems like today is like any other day…until you hug the person you love most in the world and discover you know exactly how long they have to live; within twelve hours they’ll be dead. As the timer ticks down to zero and their death occurs you realise you can save them - you just have to transfer years of life from one person to another and you have the ability to do so. Once you’ve saved your love one, which not use your power to make the world a better place? Why not take all the life a sexual predator has left and give it to someone who helps the homeless? This is the reality Thea is facing when we meet her in
An Ethical Guide To Murder.

It’s a really original and thought provoking concept for a novel. Sure, Thea is irritating and bizarrely naive at some points in the novel, but I couldn’t put the book down and when life (!) forced me to stop reading, I found myself thinking about the book. You’ll question your own morality as you read. I thought the ending was really apt, cleverly written and poignant.

I would certainly read another book by this author. I’ll be recommending this book to readers who love unreliable narrators, ethical dilemmas, books that make you think and female protagonists who aren’t adverse to leaving a trail of bodies in their wake.

Thank you to the author, published and NetGalley for a chance to review an advanced copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.