This book had me on the edge of my seat the whole time. It was gripping, bloody and full of suspense.
Evie is far from a perfect person, and yet I couldn't help but root for her and connect with her. Her relationship with The Woman is fascinating. The way their survival skills complement each other and they have this symbiotic, yet somehow toxic relationship, added a wonderful layer to this story.
Anyone who has feelings about the way the U.S. media and the public consume true crime, especially female killer, will love the commentary this book offers. And for anyone who's always making up stories about everyone else's back story, you'll connect with Evie the same way I did.

Killer Potential by Hannah Deitch is a mystery/thriller debut novel that is darkly humorous and will keep you turning the pages.

Evie Gordon has always been labeled talented and gifted. Straight A student in all AP classes, she then goes on to an elite college. But after graduating she finds herself floundering in the real world. Her job as an SAT tutor for the uber rich of LA is alright but she is still drowning in debt. One day Evie arrives at her clients house for her normal tutoring session. What she finds will change her life forever. The parents of the teen she tutors are dead outside. As she goes to leave the house, she hears someone calling for help. She finds a woman tied up underneath the stairs. But things go from bad to worse when the teenager Evie tutors comes home and finds the two women in her house and her parents dead. Quickly going from SAT tutor to suspected murderer in the eyes of the law and media, Evie and the woman start their escape across the country eluding police and wondering how did things get so messed up.

This is such a great debut novel that is thought provoking and insightful. The writing is very solid and I love the blend of dark humor with the tension of our two main characters. The way Deitch masterfully explores the themes of sexism and academic success and privilege really makes this debut a standout in my opinion.

Thank you to NetGalley, Hannah Deitch, and William Morrow for this ARC. Expected publication date is March 18th 2025.

📚: Killer Potential by Hannah Deitch
⭐️: 3/5

Evie Gordon: formerly a talented and gifted student turned deep-in-student-debt SAT tutor. Everything turns upside down when she arrives to her Sunday afternoon client to find the front door open, the parents of the home dead in the backyard, and an unknown woman stashed away in the house, tied up. What ensues? A Thelma & Louise style tale throughout the USA.

This was a completely addictive page-turner of a read that falls apart at its conclusion and doesn’t quite stick the landing. I was so into this for both parts 1 and 2 (even with a very heavy dose of predictability), but the ending left me underwhelmed.

Thanks to William Morrow via @netgalley for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. Killer Potential is out today, 3/18.

Upon first reading this, I was immediately drawn in. Then I thought I wouldn't like it because the story seemed played out, you know the same old Thelma and Louise story. Then I found myself drawn in again with the interesting love story that started developing. While I did guess the twist about halfway through, I did overall enjoy the story. The writing was well done and the character development was incredible.

WHAT A RIDE!

I am voluntarily leaving my honest review..

This book went left so quickly, all gas no brakes! I love a good whodunit, and the sapphic element was very tastefully written.

There is so much I want to say, but I can't without spoiling it. All Hannah had to do was stick to her first mind, but no! She picked door #2 and tossed her life upside down! I was so invested in this story that I finished it in one sitting. I had to know the outcome. I thought I knew, then I didn't, then I did. I was completely on the edge of my seat the entire time!

This was a good time.

Thank you to Netalley, William Morrow, and Hannah Deitch for the ARC of this book.

Thank you @williammorrowbooks and @netgalley for the e-ARC.

Let’s go on a road trip. Evie Gordon is an SAT tutor for the super rich in Los Angeles. One day she shows up for a session and literally walks into a murder scene. On her way out she hears someone calling for help and finds a woman tied up under the stairs. She unties her and they flee the scene worried they’ll be accused of murder.

And they are. Evie, at least. The other woman isn’t known to anyone. They go on a road trip across America trying to outrun the authorities.

Phew! This is a debut. It’s a little dark, a little funny, and very twisty. Evie is super smart and witty and the entire book is highly entertaining. It’s definitely more of a popcorn thriller. You have to suspend belief. There’s also a romance that I didn’t need (as an FYI I never need romance - but I especially despise what feels like a forced romance). Overall, great for a debut and I was entertained throughout.

This is a really interesting concept! After stumbling upon a murder scene, an SAT tutor who's adrift in life becomes the primary suspect in the brutal murders and goes on the run with a mysterious woman who also happened to be at the scene. Our protagonist makes a lot of bad, bad decisions, but that's what keeps her on the lam, so I can't be too mad about it.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book, releasing today!

Should probably give this one a 2.5 but I try to be nicer with debut novels, so I'll round up to a three. I think this book ended up on my radar thanks to an offer of the ARC from NetGalley that described it as "sapphic Thelma and Louise" and like...I guess, but this one didn't work that well for me and I'm not sure why. I found Evie pretty identifiable but just didn't end up being that invested in her and Jae-the ending was kind of predictable although I did like the way things wrapped up in the story. I don't know if it was the writing style? The way some of the plot points and character reactions felt a little unbelievable? The book was a slow starter but the pacing evened out and once it got going the book moved along quickly, which I appreciated (I can see how other authors might have gotten bogged down in the "on the run" portion which didn't happen here, although we did take quite a circuitous route around the country). The creativity is there and I think a lot of the complaints I have are pretty common in debuts, so I'm definitely interested to see what Deitch does next!

Sunday afternoon Evie Gordon, a SAT tutor, has an appointment for a tutoring session with Serena Victor, a seventeen year old from a very wealthy family in Beverly Hills. Once Evie arrives at the Victors she find Peter and Dinah brutally murdered along with a women tied up in a closet. Evie is now the prime suspect to the murders and fleets the scene along with the women she rescued from the closet!

I found myself giggling at the very beginning before I realized this was not supposed to be a giggling fun time kind of book and it went serious rather quickly when she found Peter and Dinah. Once I pick up the book I had a very hard time putting it down. I needed to know who had murdered them and if Evie got caught while on the run. However, if I did put it down I found myself having a hard time picking it back up. For a debut novel I think Hannah Deitch did a great job on this book!

I love the cover of this book, and it's what made me read it! I thought this was a really good debut. The story was fast paced and really fun, but you really have to suspend disbelief for this one. The story started out really strong, so I was hooked in right away. It was a page turner, for sure. I enjoyed Evie's character. I felt she was really well written, even though some of her decisions were pretty out there.

Overall, good book. I will look for more from this author in the future!

Thank you to William Morrow for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Whaaat did I just read was definitely the vibe when I finished. I did not see the twist coming because it plays on the assumption that we will think people are terrible, but there's a spin on that belief. Don't get me wrong, pretty much everyone, even our lead Evie, are not great. We're inside her head experiencing her darkest and sometimes most illogical thoughts after she's been accused of murder.

It's two women on the run, following their own media coverage to stay ahead of the hunt, slowly learning things about herself and the mysterious woman by her side, and having to resort to all kinds of criminal deeds in order to survive and evade law enforcement.

It's imperfect, messy, twisted, and yet you completely feel for Evie. The narrative is more important than the evidence or the truth, and that plays out in the end in ways you won't expect.

Somehow a thriller and a romance with an ending that's going to punch you in the chest and make you lose your breath.

This was an interesting thriller. Thrillers are often hit or miss for me and while I guessed the plot twists relatively early on, the characters and especially Evie really drive this story forward.

Killer Potential is everything I never knew I needed in a thriller. A sapphic, eat-the-rich Bonnie and Clyde? Say less. There may be readers who are turned off by the introspective prose and relative lack of action (there are plenty of great action sequences and an excellent plot twist, but it isn't wall-to-wall action. Think less Fast and Furious, more killer character building and insight into class consciousness and the myth of upward mobility). But to me, it was the perfect blend of action and insight. Deitch is clearly talented - the fact that she was able to flesh out Jae so fully before she even spoke a word is simply *chef's kiss.* And don't even get me started on the dynamic between Jae and Evie. So hot. So deep. So brooding.

Fans of Bound, Parasite, and Luigi Mangione, look no further! (These things may seem unrelated, but that is the magic of Killer Potential). A definite 5 stars from this formerly Talented and Gifted gay.

If you're truly able to suspend your disbelief, this might be something you'd enjoy. If not, this probably isn't for you. We're told Evie is intelligent, but I didn't find most of her actions very smart. She enters a home immediately after a couple has been murdered and ends up being a fugitive suspected of murder on a cross country journey with the stranger she finds at the scene of the crime. Even though I make a point to suspend my disbelief, I found myself questioning some situations no matter how hard I tried not to. I wasn't surprised when the killer was ultimately revealed; I'd guessed the culprit pretty early on. That being said, this is a well written book and will likely appeal to many readers.

I received an advance review copy for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

3.5 stars. I really didn't know what I got into with this one. At first I thought it was going to end up being a light, kind of over the top even funny read about a woman running from the police when she really didn't need to. Then it really took a dark turn.

The story is about two women who get caught up in a murder and hit the road on the run. It has some really dark stuff along the way. There's a little romance, some subterfuge, some family love and all the rest is them running from one end of the country to the other in order to evade the authorities. I still don't know just how to feel about this book.

Thanks to William Morrow Books and NetGalley for the ebook. All thoughts are my own.

This is one extremely warped version of Thelma & Louise. But all along the reader can feel how off kilter Evie is and of course the thought comes up: is she a reliable narrator? And throughout the book, the answer seems to change, keeping the reader off kilter! I really enjoyed the ride and how Evie developed through the story. As always, I wasn't a fan of the sex. I never am, but it wasn't too bad and I only had to skim a few pages. I am still not sure how I feel about the ending. I had a different one in mind, but it still worked for me! I look forward to more offerings from this author.

This book took a second to find its footing, but once it did, I couldn’t put it down. I could never predict where the plot was going and devoured every twist and turn. The two main characters were compelling, and I was on the edge of my seat the entire time trying to figure out how they would make it out of the situation, because I was really rooting for them. I will definitely be recommending this one.

Beautifully written and laugh-out-loud quippy, this book wasn’t what I was expecting it to be. Evie Gordon is an SAT tutor, living a laid-back lifestyle and using her tutoring job as a means of supporting it. However, when she stumbles upon the brutal murder of her client's parents and discovers a woman tied up under the staircase, everything she thought she knew about her life is turned upside down. What starts as a Thelma & Louise-style plot evolves into a multifaceted narrative full of depth, humor, and unexpected layers.

The internal dialogue was one of the most compelling aspects of the book. Evie’s reflections on her background, growing up without money, and her fascination with wealth added a lot of texture to her character. It was refreshing to see these internal struggles portrayed with such realism. Her internal monologue brought an authenticity to her decisions and struggles that truly made her journey feel significant. These reflections weren’t just an aside—they were integral to the plot, giving the story a more introspective and heartfelt tone.

Overall, this book was a lovely, introspective read that resonated with me in unexpected ways. It’s not just a mystery or a romance, but a nuanced exploration of identity, class, and the quiet moments that define us.

This book hooked me from the beginning and did not let go! With a unique premise of a woman on the run, I really liked how the plot was set up and how details were revealed throughout. The MC was super cool and I liked her honesty and vibes throughout even though she was really going through it. There were a few twists that I didn’t see coming and I like how it ended. Overall, this was a super strong debut that I highly recommend!

This book started off really strong for me. However I found myself starting to drift out of focus in part 2. The book picked back up and ended pretty solidly despite the unexpected ending. This was a very unique plot line that I did really enjoy. I loved getting pieces of Jae’s perspective sprinkled in.