After believing she was under a love curse, thirtysomething librarian has met and married Alan, a quiet, unassuming travelling salesman. However, suspicious after his return home one day, she finds out that a woman was killed at his last event. Researching further she finds a trail of deaths coinciding with Alan's work trips. Convinced that her husband is a serial killer Martha reaches out to old college buddy Lily but when Lily starts to investigate the situation becomes a whole lot more complex.
I very nearly gave up on this book and I'm so glad I didn't. The first half is all about Martha developing suspicions and a little of the backstory. It's only at halfway that the plot begins to take off in an unexpected direction. From then on it's a breathless ride and really worth reading.

I loved the Kind Worth Killing so reading A Talent for Murder was a no brainer. I love the continuation of the Lily Kintner and Henry Kimball series and as always the story has lots of twists and turns that kept me gripped until the very end. 3.5 Stars.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the novel in exchange for an honest review.

A Talent for Murder by Peter Swanson (review)

4.25 out of 5

Is Martha being paranoid or is her husband secretly a serial killer?

"A Talent for Murder" is a great, fun story that would make for perfect easy reading. There is some darkness in the subjects discussed but nothing gets too graphic. If you are a murder mystery fan, then this book is well worth your time.

This is my first experience of the Henry Kimball books and "A Talent for Murder" has made excited to read the others. There are some allusions and descriptions of experiences with Kimball that I assume are told in the previous two books but I'm not sure if they fit into the spoiler arena or simply allusions to past events. If this is the final Henry Kimball book I'm not sure this can be regarded as climatic, but I will have to read the others to see if Kimball is more of a pivotal side character who binds the trilogy together rather than someone who spends the majority of time in the limelight.

One of the biggest points of praise for this book, and in particular for Swanson, is the killer's personality. The killer is not simply a one-sided freak but rather a surprisingly nuanced person who both sickens and excites. This is where I probably have my biggest point of criticism; I would have welcomed more time with the killer and the murderous planning and execution. The jumping between POVs keeps things moving swiftly but I could see this story being told completely through the eyes of the serial killer and still being worth the time.

There are minor squabbles with how some story points are concluded or moved on from (impossible to discuss without spoilers) but the overarching story was fantastic and fun. I devoured this book in a couple of days and kept thinking about the book when I wasn't reading it.

This is now my second Swanson book ("Rules for Perfect Murders" being the first) and I've enjoyed both reads. The praise for Swanson's writing of killers makes sense but one of my favourite aspects is his love for literature. Books and stories are characters rather than simple Easter eggs. These are stories written by a book lover for book lovers.

The novel hooks readers with its initial curiosity and delivers a gripping twist in the second half. While the conclusion might feel slightly rushed, the resolution is ultimately satisfying. Swanson's latest is a compelling, layered thriller that solidifies his reputation as a master of suspense.

http://thesecretbookreview.co.uk

I've enjoyed the author's previous books featuring the characters of Henry Kimball and Lily Kintner so was interested to delve into their third book together. The premise of Martha suspecting her husband hooked me immediately but things really got interesting when Lily (who as a character I really like) stepped in to help Martha. It's a dark book full of twists and turns that although dragged in a couple of places, still kept me gripped throughout. I've knocked one star off as the final chapter wasn't to my liking and felt a bit out there.

it was really surprising, considering i wasn't expecting another henry kimball lily kinter novel to be pulled off, for me to have enjoyed this as much as i did. the moment lily got involved in martha's story as well, you already knew that it was going to be something! looking forward to more peter swanson as always.

I love Lily and Henry. This book was such a journey so many twists. Peter Swanson’s stories are always original and never disappoint. I hope we see more stories from Lily and maybe even a bit more of Henry in the future

A newly wed librarian suspects her husband of murder. She makes contact with an old friend in order to allay her fears and in doing so creates mayhem.

This is the third in a series and although it does stand alone, I would recommend reading the series.

I enjoyed the caper and characters. It’s not an edge of the seat thriller, but, a really enjoyable, entertaining, quick read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Faber & Faber Ltd for the opportunity to preview.

I can never resist a Peter Swanson book but I enjoy some of his novels more than others - this one is him back to his best though! I loved this one, it was impossible to put down! This is possible to read as a standalone but it is actually the third book featuring Lily and Henry so I would recommend reading the previous two first. This novel opens with a woman at a convention who is murdered but it's made to look like suicide. We then follow Martha who is newly married and starts to have suspicions about her husband who goes to these conventions where other suspicious deaths have occurred. She contacts her old friend Lily and they start to investigate. We then find out about how Martha and Lily know each other and see some uncomfortable things that happened in the past. This novel is shocking and it pulls the rung from under you a few times, I was completely engrossed in reading this. I had my suspicions about what was happening but there were still things that properly shocked me! I loved this one and highly recommend it!

This is my first Peter Swanson book and my goodness was I impressed. I’ve heard a lot of hype around the author so I will be reading his backlog for sure now. Anyway, this book gripped me and didn’t let me go until I had finished the last page. I will be recommending!

The style of writing was very odd with the POV’s being managed differently I.e. written in first or third person. This was a new thing for me and ended up a distraction. So that’s not to say everyone will find it odd. However even if I ignore this quirky style I still only emjoyed this book enough to rate it three stars. The first half was riveting but the twists soon came and left not much drama.

Whilst I couldn't read the arc I received I just bought the book and read it and wowsers what a read.

I would recommend this to others I couldn't put it down

Maggie, a mature 'newly-wed' becomes concerned that her husband, Alan, has a dark secret - she believes he may be a serial killer! She enlists the help of her friend, Lily, to investigate. All is not as it seems ... enter Ethan Saltz, someone from Martha and Lily's past. Whose secret is the darkest?
I won't say more as it would ruin the plot. Suffice to say, I will be reading the two books published prior to this which feature some of the same characters.

I am huge fan of this author and had high expectations for this book. Maybe my expectations were too high, I found this disappointing - hard to live up to A kind worth killing. After the reveal, I found the remainder of the book tedious. A very good thriller none the less, just not one of the authors best.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC

I am a fan of this author but this book is a little slow and I think you have to accept this as his writing style. It will not put me off reading this authors other works. I did enjoy this book though.

3.25 stars
🌕🌕🌕🌘

🧠 My thoughts
The first book I read from this author was “The Christmas Guest” and I really liked the book because it was short, concise but pretty well-written. However, this book disappointed me, and let me tell you why.

First of all, I was not sure if this author had changed his writing style or because “The Christmas Guest” book was too short for me to notice but the writing style was super dry for a crime, mystery book. It almost felt like I was reading a non-fiction. However, I had to give the author some credit that despite the writing style being almost intolerable, the plot kept me reading because I wanted to know what happened next.

Next, I didn’t understand why for different characters, the POVs were switched in a strange way. For example, Lily's part was written in the 1st person's POV but for other characters, it was written in 3rd person. Due to this inconsistency, it felt to me that the book was incohesive and it bugged me badly.

The plot twist was already revealed in the second half of the book. The book was still interesting to read but somehow it took away a part of my enthusiasm to finish the book. The biggest plot twist was saved for the very end but for me, it was not really hard to guess. Therefore, overall, this book was quite enjoyable but not really good or even outstanding.

Thanks NetGalley, Faber and Faber Ltd publisher, and the authors for a great advance copy of the book in exchange for my honest review!

Having enjoyed a previous Peter Swanson book, I had high expectations for "A Talent for Murder." Unfortunately, this one didn't live up to them, possibly because I hadn't read the first two books in the series. The story reveals the murderer early on, which took away the suspense I was looking for. Without the twists and turns typical of a good mystery, the plot felt flat. The premise itself was underwhelming, leaving me disappointed. Overall, it lacked the excitement and intrigue I anticipated, earning it only two stars from me.

Thanks to Netgalley and Faber and Faber for an advanced copy of the book.

A Talent For Murder is the third book to feature Lily Kintner and Henry Kimball.

Martha, a college friend of Lily, gets in touch when she believes her new husband may be involved in a few suspicious deaths. Lily had helped Martha to end a damaging relationship many years before, so Martha senses that Lily may be able to help her find the truth.

I thoroughly enjoy both Lily and Henry’s characters, and I love their complex, platonic relationship. To truly understand them, you should really read The Kind Worth Killing, then The Kind Worth Saving first. As they have an interesting shared history. I didn’t find myself able to connect with the other characters in the book.

I can’t pinpoint why, but the book didn’t wow me. I think I was reading it more for the Lily and Henry update, rather than the main storyline, which didn’t hit the mark for me. It’s a 3.5⭐️ read for me.

Martha, a librarian, becomes suspicious of her husband and his frequent trips away on business. She calls an old friend to help her look into what he is up to.
I enjoyed this book but found it a little slow in places hence the 3 stars.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC

A Kind Worth Killing was one of my "all time favourite psychological thrillers" and I even read it twice when I found out there was a sequel, The Kind Worth Saving. Firstly, to see if it was as good as I originally thought and secondly to remind myself about the book. I can categorically state that the first 2 books in this series are absolutely amazing and I was so delighted to see that there is yet another book featuring Lily Kintner and Henry Kimball which is available NOW.

I don't want to give much away and the blurb above explains some of the storyline. Martha who seems to have had bad luck with relationships and is convinced she has had a "love curse" put on her at University, is now married to Alan. He seems nice enough. He travels most of the time for work selling his wares to teachers and educational support staff at various conferences around the country.

It's only when he returns from a conference where a teacher has been killed does Martha begin to wonder if her husband is involved. Reaching out to her old friend Lily Kintner from her university days, she asks Lily to help investigate Alan and what looks like several other dead women at the same venues her husband has been attending over the years.

I'm absolutely NOT going to give anything away, but if you have read The Kind Worth Killing and any of Peter's previous books you will know to expect the unexpected and to be shocked to your core throughout. I've mentioned it in previous reviews about this series and I will mention it again... "It wouldn’t be a Peter Swanson novel if he doesn’t kill off some really fascinating and important characters mid-way through the story whilst literally turns the narrative upside down and leaves the reader reeling."

Absolutely BRILLIANT and once again proves that Peter Swanson has a real Talent for Writing!