I didn’t absolutely love this adrenaline thriller. This story follows Peyton- a “deadbeat” alcoholic after a series of unfortunate events. Down on his luck Peyton is given an opportunity to make a whole lot of money by written instruction to kill a “bad guy”. Wanting to set his life right, he considers this offer and the implications.

This book struggled with pacing and was hard to get into as a result. I found the character mostly unlikable and completely un-relate-able. I enjoyed the twist but it felt a little too late for engagement. I did NOT read any previous books by this author, though I’ve heard really good reviews.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for this ARC!

Peyton Collard is a deadbeat, as the title of this novel suggests. His life has been on a downward spiral ever since he served time for involuntary manslaughter. He spends a lot of time trying to convince the reader that he is trapped in his circumstances, but I never bought it. When an anonymous stranger offers him a huge sum to kill a man, Peyton has to make a decision, and it's no surprise, based on the way he never takes responsibility for his actions, that he goes through with becoming a hitman. But as the payouts get higher and higher, so do the stakes.

The book has an interesting premise, but is full of one-dimensional caricatures and a highly unlikeable protagonist. It seems the author wants us to question the growing divide between the have and have nots, and our complicity in global problems, but it feels more self-righteous than thought-provoking. This one was not for me.

I really liked this one! What a great thriller! The short chapters kept the plot moving without making me feel like I had missed out on something. Peyton Collard, our MC, is exactly what the title says, a deadbeat. He makes some of the worst decisions, but gosh dang, you are kept hoping for him to put down the bottle and straighten his ass up. This was a fun journey and a great book if you're looking for a twisty ride!

What a pleasant surprise this was! I absolutely did not come close to guessing what happened. I also really enjoyed the writing style. It was very unique!

I would like to thank NetGalley and Atria Books for providing me with an advance e-galley of this book in exchange for an honest review. Look for it now in your local and online bookstores and libraries.

This was definitely a page turning read. It kept me engaged and I thought the story was quite interesting. It started as a murder for hire book and then turned into who’s hiring for murder and why. There were some very humorous moments and I found myself chuckling out loud.

Written as Peyton’s confession, this story meanders through his transgressions asking the question – What would you do under the same circumstances? Only after discovering his excuses for committing murder weren’t in fact true does he comes to grips with what he had done and attempt to discover who was pulling his strings. His only excuse was to provide his daughter a better life until he realizes the only way to do so was to save himself. In the end the author does ask several philosophical questions that deserve to be considered.

Peyton got played...but got his own back in the end! This was a bit of wild read and I was here for it! This was my 1st book by Adam Hamdy but it will not be my last, I am looking forward to his next one!

This book was simply amazing. A thrill ride from start to finish, I highly recommend everyone read this book. I was enthralled by the characters in the book, and it is unlike any thriller I have read previously. I cannot wait to see what Adam writes next. Add this to your TBR pile and put it at the TOP of the pile.

How much you enjoy DEADBEAT might rely on how well you can suspend disbelief and overlook logistical issues. Deadbeat is a fast-paced thriller with breezy prose that carries you along from one dire situation to another and at that level, it really satisfies the suspense and thriller itch. What tugs against that fast-forward plot current is the continually mentioned anchor of Peyton's guilt over becoming what is, in essence, a serial-killer. On one hand, he takes to the role of a hitman with relative ease while agonizing over his own choices throughout. Initially, he's convinced he's doing the world a favor by ridding it of nasty actors (i.e, people who deserve it) based upon what he reads about them on (planted) search result pages. He's paid incredible sums of money to kill his victims, but becomes victimized (and brutalized) himself by petty criminals. I kept wondering why he didn't think about hiring bodyguards. And having sudden large sums of money on hand doesn't seem to raise enough eyebrows as he buys an expensive car and a new home in a new, ritzy neighborhood, along with hiring a very expensive lawyer. Since he can't put the money in the bank without raising IRS flags, he spends time storing it in furniture in a home he doesn't own (yet), or underground, like a pirate. Then there's the hooker with the heart of gold who seems way too eager to accept his murderous choices. She seems put in place to provide Peyton with the potential for a happy ending—no pun intended. There's a revelation (not exactly a twist) that gives a reasonably satisfying reason for everything that's happened to Peyton, but there are still a lot of "oh, really?" moments throughout that stretch credulity. And yet, if you're willing to cruise along with the story without stopping to ask too many questions, on ponder the implausibilities, you'll enjoy the ride.

Thank you to @atriabooks and @atriathrillers for the physical ARC! Thank you @librofm and@simon.audio for the ALC!
I've been enamored with Adam Hamdy's writing since l stumbled across The Other Side of Night in December of
2022. Once again, Adam Hamdy has come in clutch with another ***** read at the end of the year.
I am stunned at Adam Hamdy's uncanny ability to write two polar opposite books that are absolute bangers. Deadbeat is a compelling novel of one man's desperation and reads like a an action film. I was glued to this novel and finished it in less than a day. I can't recommend this enough, an absolute banger!

3.5
Peyton is one of those guys who doesn't seem to realize that he's not so unlucky as he is a terrible decision maker. There were SO many times I found myself anxious about the awful circumstances that he was putting himself in!

Peyton's life went off the rails when he killed a girl while driving drunk. Now, after another evening in jail, he finds himself bailed out by an anonymous benefactor, though not without strings. The benefactor has offered Peyton payment for killing some folks, along with a description of their offenses. With nothing left to lose, Peyton rationalizes that it's ok to rid the world of these bad people, until some pieces of the puzzle stop fitting.

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

The book tells the story of Peyton Collard who is a deadbeat alcoholic. He gets into a terrible accident that changes his life and leads him down a very slippery slope. You see Peyton, doesn't have a job and is a deadbeat dad who has left the financial burden of caring for his daughter Skye to his ex-wife Toni whom he owes over 12,000 to. With no prospects or the willingness to find a job, Peyton accepts a financial job opportunity that will change his life forever. The job offers an enormous sum of money, and all he has to do is one thing: kill a man.

Peyton is rather a despicable character who never takes accountability for his actions. In fact, he plays the victim and blames everyone else for his circumstances. The story is told from the POV of Peyton, and he is quite a character! I couldn't put this book down. now there were somethings that I questioned like fingerprints on one of the guns that he used. I also thought Toni was a rather passive voice and I am not sure of who she is. Her character didn't have enough depth for me, but I did feel for her to put up with such an ex like Peyton who she will forever be tied to because of their daughter. She herself was a bit of a contradiction because on one hand she didn't want Peyton's dirty money but on the other hand she turned a blind eye and accepted money from him. She could have been a bit tougher with Peyton, because he truly deserved it. I did like the dynamic between Peyton, Toni, Skye and Toni's fiancé Jack.

I also found the situation at Frankie's house incredulous to believe lol. If you read it then you know, if not you will be laughing when you get there. Peyton himself as a hitman is like the three stooges lol. This book was fun, entertaining and a quick read. It had a great plot, and the story was executed well. I couldn't put this book down
I will end this review with a quote from the author's acknowledgments. "I think when all is said and done, the best I can say about Peyton is he's a mirror we hold up to ourselves. What we see in him is a reflection." That would be a very scary world

Really enjoyed this book although it lacked the emotional depth of THE OTHER SIDE OF NIGHT. The fast paced nature of the plot kept me engaged and there were a few unexpected developments along the way. I will continue to read Hamdy's work in the future.

Deadbeat by Adam hardy was a fast-paced, page turning thriller. Peyton is a down-on-his-luck father who was just released from prison for a drunk driving accident in which he claims the life of a young girl. Peyton is ready to call it quits on his life when he receives a mysterious phone call from an anonymous source-if he kills a target from the pastor he will be paid handsomely. The target is not a good person and Peyton is able to do it thinking he’s a vigilante. Another target arrives with more money and then another. However, Peyton looks deeper into the victims and realizes he’s been manipulating into killing-but by whom and why?
Peyton may die himself to find the answers. The novel reads like an action movie at times as it is very plot-driven. However, even with the heavy plot, Peyton is a sympathetic character and one the reader can’t help but root for in the end. The suspense and twists are well-done! Really enjoyed it.

Thanks to the publisher for providing the ac via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I felt like I was watching a mini series on tv as I was reading this. Peyton is a hard on his luck man who just can't get out of his own way. He is in such a downward spiral that all of his decisions are tainted with darkness and doom. Even when he thinks he's doing something that will better his daughter's future, it is morally wrong.
<i>Deadbeat</i> is a story about how one bad decision that you think you are making solely for yourself actually makes many, many changes to other people's lives. What you decide to do can affect people you didn't even know existed.

The book was interesting. I enjoyed the concept but felt that it was channeling an action movie that did not have a large enough payout. I did not enjoy the drunken haze aspect to the story, but understand why it was necessary to the character development.

I absolutely LOVED "The Other Side of Night" by this author and so I was thrilled when I was able to snag an advanced copy of his latest book on Netgalley. Unfortunately, this one wasn't as big a hit with me. The writing was a little clunky and the story was pretty far-fetched but also somehow not that exciting or interesting, oddly, while being an action-packed thriller. The main character wasn't super rootable which is fine except that it meant I didn't care that much about the mystery as a whole. I think part of the point of the story is that people's choices often don't make sense when they don't see a way out of the hole they're in -- kind of like the premise of Squid Game, actually.

I will definitely read this author again, but I think I will stick to his more literary, experimental works. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for sharing a copy of this book with me.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for this arc. I was sent a copy in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts are entirely my own. I received both a digital and physical copy of this book.

Peyton Collard is a divorced drunk who seems to be drinking his life away. Peyton went to jail after drinking while celebrating a new job and accidentally killed a young woman which unknown to Peyton will cause a chain of events that he has to go through during this story. We go through this book while Peyton tells his story and seems to be talking to the detective who stumbled onto the case. Peyton finds out from his ex wife Toni that their daughter may have diabetes after she ends up sick and not acting like herself. Peyton goes to his house in a bad part of Los Angeles and finds an envelope with cash and instructions to kill a man that this mysterious person wants dead and tells Peyton that this man is evil. Peyton goes to check the guy out and looks him up online and finds an article that all turns out to be fake. Peyton does this two more times and even pays his wife child support and gets a new house and even money to put his daughter through college. Peyton later finds out that every job was a hoax and that he killed innocent people who all happened to have deceived organs from the young woman that Peyton accidentally killed years earlier. After failing to kill an elderly woman who owns a family restaurant Peyton is wanted for murder and learns that the father of the young woman he killed had hired him and wanted him to kill those people to get their organs that have a protein that would save his life since the night his daughter died she was on the way to the hospital to help save his life. The police officer who has been after Peyton for the murders he committed goes to Joseph’s house to ask him about his daughters organs and she ends up drugged and Peyton saves her and Joseph is killed by his own security robots. Peyton gets the money Joseph was going to pay him and starts a new life with a woman who loves him even after what he has done and he has his daughter in his life.

If you were given a life changing amount of money to kill someone you don't know? Peyton is struggling with this offer as he has nothing else going for him. This book was so good!