This book started out really strong, and had me hooked from the beginning. I liked the premise behind it, and the main character was likeable. Cordelia Black is a pharma rep by day and killer of 'bad men' at night. She has a strong attachment to her 'found family', Diane and her daughter Samantha, and is very protective. I did like the aspect of Cordelia's artistic flair for making art with her victims blood, but that was really it as far as the suspense went.

Once I was halfway in, parts became repetitive (the relationship between the main character and her bestie didn't need to be constantly explained) and sort of fell flat for me. There was a lot of time spent on a situation that I won't go into for fear of spoilers, but it took too many pages, and could have been wrapped up a little better. Also, Mango's story just sort of ended up being 'neat' and I wasn't sure if Cordelia ended up having anything to do with it or was it truly an accident?

Additionally, Christopher, the guy Cordelia began dating (a cop, no less) was a missed opportunity for a good twist at the end, perhaps? And he basically just disappeared towards the end of the book. After their run-in at the hospital, there was no follow up or explanation.

I did like the book's cover art. It was attention grabbing.

I support women's rights and women's wrongs.

This book gave big Dexter vibes and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Cordelia Black was a great main character and someone you could really root for the entire time. The book went at a good pace and helped me stay interested the entire time. I would definitely read a sequel if one ever comes out.

Thank you Netgalley, Emma C. Wells, and Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC.

Definitely worth the read. And definitely worth recommending to others! Thrillers are one if my favorite genre’s and this one did not disappoint. I loved the themes of chosen family as well as a unique code of honor.

From the moment Cordelia Black enters the scene, it’s clear that she’s a force to be reckoned with. Fiercely devoted and tirelessly driven, she is relentless in her pursuit of justice. Her version of justice, however, means taking matters into her own hands, eliminating those who threaten the innocent with a cold, calculated determination.

In This Girl's A Killer, Cordelia leads a double life: by day, she’s a successful pharmaceutical rep, but by night, she’s a vigilante hunting down dangerous men who escape justice. She’s fiercely devoted to her best friend Diane and her goddaughter, and her carefully curated image includes a top-notch hairdresser. But when she becomes the focus of a media frenzy as a suspected serial killer and Diane starts dating a man Cordelia mistrusts, her carefully controlled world begins to unravel, leading to intense personal and moral conflicts.

Cordelia is a likable main character. She's someone you want on your side. And I'm not saying that because of her penchant for retribution. Her unrelenting love for her best friend and her goddaughter reveals a deeply compassionate side that balances her darker tendencies. That's not to say she isn't flawed. Her impulsive decisions and occasional lapses in judgment often lead her into complicated and dangerous situations, making her all the more human and relatable.

If you were a fan of the show Dexter or the Finlay Donovan book series, you'll eat this book up!

I loved this book! Cordelia was a great character that was so interesting to read about. I felt the pacing of this book was perfect and the plot was unique. I found the book to be very entertaining and well written. I definitely recommend other readers pick this book up once it is published.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for the ARC.

This book took a little bit to get into, but once I did - I was completely hooked! Cordelia is a sassy, fearless female. Told from her POV, the reader gets to experience a deliciously dark and completely hilarious insight into the mind of a woman who’s no longer OK with evil men being allowed to roam freely. It gives off female Dexter vibes but with much more dark humor

4 stars rounded down to 3.5

Highly successful pharmaceutical representative by day and vigilante by night, Cordelia Black is fierce and loyal to her best friend, Diane, and her Goddaughter Sugar Bug. She has pulled herself out of the gutter, so to speak, and has left her terrible unfortunate past behind. Cordelia only stalks and kills bad men. Men that hurt women. She's always cool and calculated... until she's not one night.

The twists were for real. I never knew what was going to happen in the next breath. I was surprised to find out this is the author's debut title. I can't wait to see what else Emma C. Wells has instore for the future. Maybe more Cordelia Black books? Or new characters? Either way, I'm excited to follow her along in her journey. Gives this author a try, you won't regret it!!

Cordelia Black is the hero you never knew you needed! She is smart, loving and driven. Her life is dedicated to her best friend and goddaughter and one other interest - Cordelia likes to eliminate bad mend.

Living in Louisiana, Cordelia dons, different disguises to locate the men that she needs to "address." No one knows any better until the local news begins to mention potential "serial killer." Cordelia is stuck with a policeman in her life and a horrible man that her bestie is dating. What should she do? Fun and unique, here's to a great heroine and book 2!

#poisonedpenpress #thisgirlsakiller #emmacwells

Cordelia Black is our new Dexter and you want her on your side! Thanks to Net Galley for the advance copy. Cordelia is fierce, smart, loyal, hilarious and creepy all at the same time. If you are in her circle, she will (truly) kill for you. Cordelia is out to right the very wrong things in our world and I look forward to going along with her on her next mission.

3.5 🌟

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

The title of this book is what caught my eye in the first place. This book is tension filled throughout and the question on my mind constantly was is she going to get caught? The ending of this book does answer that but it also leaves room for another story in this world. This book was wild and there were so many gross parts. There are massive trigger warnings for body horror. So maybe stay away from this book if that affects you.

Cordelia Black is an interesting complex character with many layers. We get a glimpse of her childhood and her past trauma. I did wish we got more of it so we know why she is the way she is today. It would help with understanding her character even more. Her best friend wasn’t that memorable and I forgot about her when she wasn’t part of the story. Her best friend’s daughter wasn’t that memorable either. The author tried to insert some sort of relationship with Cordelia and the police officer Christopher but I felt like that part of the story wasn’t as necessary.

The beginning and towards the end were the most interesting parts of the story. The middle did drag for a bit and that made me less likely to read more of the story when I was reading it. The author’s writing was really easy to read and didn’t affect my enjoyment of the story. Give this book a try if you like horror and thriller novels!

Thanks the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is probably going to go down as one of my favourite reads of this year! A serial killer with a big heart and good intentions is not something I thought I would be putting together in a sentence but this is what this book brings you. The author managed to make a blurry edge around hero and villain and as a reader you can make up your mind on what you think she is. I finished this book far too quickly and can't wait to see what the author is going to release next!

This is a debut book from author, Emma C. Wells. This was a comical book about a women who is successful at her job by day, but by night, she murders bad guys. Cordelia Black had a traumatic upbringing but meet her bestie, Diana, and became godmother to her daughter. I loved Cordelia’s relationship with them. Cordelia is a successful pharmaceutical sales representative who loves luxuries in life. She also does not like bad men. Cordelia’s character’s inner thoughts annoyed me, she spoke of how meticulous she was but made mistake after mistake. Overall, I enjoyed the book. I look forward to whatever is next for this debit author, she has a ton of potential.

Cordelia Black is one killer character!

The premise of This Girl’s a Killer drew me in first—we rarely hear about female serial killers being the protagonist and wow this one delivered! I loved her internal monologues and getting a glimpse inside her head as she relished ending one of her ‘bad men’ and I especially appreciated how unapologetic she was about her desires. A great anti-heroine! My heart raced as her problems stacked higher and higher!

It seems they left the door open at the end for possible future books and I hope we see more of her in years to come! Such a fun time!

3.75 stars
Thank you Netgalley and Poisened Pen press for the e-arc of this book.

This book was a quick read. I wanted to keep reading, I was invested.
Cordelia kills men who, as she says it, have smoke in their eyes. Who do real despicable stuff and deserve punishment. She is real clean and methodical about it.

Along the way you learn why Cordelia is the way she is and why she does what she does. She has a though past and Diana and Sugar are her new found family, she does everything for them. That's what Ilove about this book. Cor does criminal things, but you kind of see why.

There were some small plottwists I liked in the end which made the story better. Halfway I thought i was going to give 3 stars, but this bumped it up. I would have loved to see more of McSmiley in the end. In my opinion he just vanished from the story, but he could have made it more interesting.

Other, similar stories like this book have a funny side to it. This story was a bit too serious for my taste.

I am all game for vigilante justice theme, but glorifying the enjoyment during a gruesome torturous kill is something where I draw the line.
It is inappropriate and not a right message for young minds when Cordelia explains how much satisfaction and enjoyment she feels to see terror in eyes of victim while slicing their jugular vein in name of justice. She looks forward and excited to go for a kill. It sounds like a hobby for her and not a soul wrecking activity generated out of childhood abuse and trauma. The explanation of creating paintings from blood and hanging in her house is quite gross, along with scenes of picking and eating food stacked next to a chopped up dead body in the fridge.

By the way its not all gore. It does transition into a light-hearted women's fiction. There is strong female friendship, charming boyfriend, date and movie nights, lovely poodle, cute tween and of course bad hair days. All of this somehow ensures a fast paced and engaging narrative. The book does not attempt to be a psychological thriller nor a sad story of an abusive childhood seeking justice. It gives just enough backstory of FML to ensure reader does not judge her actions. By the way, Cordelia is little too obsessive and possessive about her best friend Diane, to an extent that one wonders of her actual feelings for her.

As a debut attempt, the pacing is amazing as a situational thriller. But not an appropriate social message, trigger warnings should be added and marked as an adult read. Pick it up for strong female friendship and killer (pun intended) female lead.

This book was so good!
It took me a couple chapters to get into it but once I did- I couldn’t put the book down.

Cordelia Black is a pharmaceutical sales rep by day and a vigilante at night. She takes care of men who use their power to take advantage. She is a great main character and you root for her to get ahead everytime. The ending was great. I hope there’s a second part to it!

A great female ‘Dexter’ character. Nothing was too gory and honestly there is quite the comedy of events that happen and you really are rooting for Cor the whole time. You don’t want her to get caught!

The characters are great, sarcastic, witty and very authentic in the way they are written. I have to say Mango is my favourite but that might be because I also have a dog like Mango. This was honestly such a fun read and it ended too soon!

Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC of this book for an honest review.

3.5!
I did not guess what was going to happen and I really liked the writing it kept me very engaged throughout the story!

He had it coming… boy did he have it coming!!

Favourite quote:
In a man’s world, strong and feminine were rarely synonymous.
Fuck that.
Not only did I kill monsters, but I turned a profit doing it 💅🏻

Frankly I will never get enough of this female serial killer genre! Perfect for fans of Bella Mackie and Katy Brent, everyone will be talking about Emma C. Wells soon enough.

Cordelia (our main character) is the most bad ass girl boss murderess ever. Such a great concept making her a pharmaceutical rep and the relationship with her best friend and goddaughter was perfect. The characters had depth and felt real.

Obviously everyone should check their own triggers for books of these nature but I felt the author perfectly balanced the line and it never felt, for me, triggering or done in a tasteless way. Always just enough information to get the gist of how bad these men are and why you want them dead, but without over describing in a triggering way.

Thank you so much to netgalley for an arc of this book. Once I started it, I couldn’t stop. It’s 2.30am and I just finished it and had to share my thoughts.

Somewhere past the halfway mark, this novel gets stressfully suspenseful.

We meet Cordelia Black when she’s late delivering cupcakes to her goddaughter’s school. As she hurries to make bring the baked goods to the daughter of her best friend, her chosen family of Diane and Samantha, aka Sugarbug, it's casually mentioned she has a predator drugged and tied up, waiting for her to take care of once she ends her day as a successful pharmaceutical rep. That’s what she does when she’s not working or spending time with Diane or Samantha—she murders rapists and pedophiles and then uses their blood to make artwork.

Except for the murdering of bad guys, she and Diane do ordinary things like use dating apps. Cordelia even dates a cop, who happens to be stressed out at work because of all the men who have gone missing . . .

Cordelia has stresses at work, too, when the safety of the drug she uses to incapacitate the bad men gets called into question. When Diane starts dating a man that Cordelia doesn’t think is a good guy, but she doesn’t yet have enough information for her to execute (she considers herself an executioner, not a murderer—she doesn’t take men out simply because she doesn’t like them), things spiral.

NetGalley provided an advance copy of this novel, which RELEASES SEPTEMBER 10, 2024.