My first Peter Swanson book! I loved this book, it was really different than my usual pick. I wouldn't call it a thriller but definitely a mystery to figure out. It starts with the demise of a romantic relationship and ends with the meet-cute, with a lot of mystery to unpack in between. The two main characters are entirely unlikeable but it makes sense considering what you find out about them as the book goes backwards through time. The last page was a surprise and I need an addendum to update me after that last page.

I was not interested in this style of writing. There were a lot of characters introduced all at once that really turned me off to the book.

I enjoyed the beginning, and I enjoyed the end. The middle was a bit hard to get through so I started listening to the audio book and I’m glad I did, because the narrator is great!

I’ve never read a book that goes in a reverse timeline so it was very unique. You just have to make sure you pay attention and remember the details in the beginning so that the ending hits right and gives you that little ahhha suspense moment.

Overall, it was a fun read, and I always look forward to books by this author!

Kill Your Darlings is told from the perspective of both Wendy & Thom, a married couple with a complicated marriage. The story is told in reverse order which I thought added depth & suspense. It gave new meaning to earlier events as the story unfolded. I loved seeing the story unfold from both POV’s. These 2 characters are messy, flawed & downright unlikeable. I found myself loving to hate them. I questioned their motives & everything about their relationship. If you enjoy thrillers with complex motives, characters with no morales, check this one out. Just don’t expect a happily-ever-after. Thank you to William Morton books & Netgalley for the e-ARC.

Last Christmas, I discovered a Christmas short story written by Peter Swanson. The waitlist was a mile long, and I knew I wouldn't ever get to listen to the audiobook over Christmas (even though it is only a 3-hour book). I hadn't read anything by Swanson, but I figured if that many people were waiting on the book, then he was worth trying. Kill Your Darlings is Swanson's latest novel, and I decided to give it a try.

The premise was interesting. If you are a writer, you may have heard the advice, kill your darlings. These are things that you love about your story, but don't really serve the novel. And both Wendy and Thom are writers. Wendy has published a book of poetry, and Thom is an English professor who is forever working on a novel. So the title piqued my interest given the plot summary mentions that Wendy wants to murder her husband! Is she literally killing her darling?

The story is told in reverse order, with each chapter jumping back in time in various chunks of time (sometimes a year or two, and others 5 or more years). I'm not sure I liked this method of storytelling. Small pieces are shared in each time jump which gives you clues as to why Wendy wants to kill her darling Thom. But I found some of it boring. There didn't seem to be any tension in the story. I loved the bombshell reveal at the very end. If it had been revealed first (if the story had been played in a traditional chronological order) then it wouldn't have been as shocking.

I did not connect with the characters, which is another reason this book felt a little blah to me. I didn't really care about them so I didn't care for a lot of what was going on in their lives.

Swanson was good at connecting the dots between what happened in the present with the events in the past that led to those actions.

I still want to read his Christmas book, and if you want a mystery that isn't written in the traditional manner, then you should give this one a chance.

My review will be published at Girl Who Reads on Friday - https://www.girl-who-reads.com/2025/06/kill-your-darlings-by-peter-swanson.html

Kill Your Darlings is the story of a marriage, but with a twist: It’s told in reverse. We meet Thom and Wendy Graves when they’ve been married for 25 years, and we go backwards in time with them to their relationship’s beginning, when they committed a shocking act that bound them together for life. That’s all I’m going to say about the plot, because it’s best to let this one surprise you; in my opinion, the book description gives away too much.

Telling the story in reverse is A Choice. After I finished it, I thought about if I would have preferred it to be told the traditional way, and I’m still not sure. On one hand, Peter Swanson could’ve wrung a lot of tension out of the narrative if it built up to the events of the first chapter. But on the other, I really enjoyed seeing the reconstruction of Thom and Wendy’s marriage – from unhappy, jaded middle-aged adults to idealistic, passionate youths. Their marriage ends in a terrible place, and it begins with toxicity – but there is so much love at the beginning, too, and watching it gradually wear away in reverse was fascinating to me. So I guess…yeah. The format really did work for me.

Because of the way it’s told – we know major plot points before we are given the why and how of them – Kill Your Darlings very much becomes a character study more than a novel of suspense, and this was fine with me because I have always loved Swanson’s characters. Neither Thom nor Wendy is particularly likeable or sympathetic, but it was entertaining to get a glimpse into their psyches and motivations. Swanson writes with his typical noir sensibility: smart, plain, but laced throughout with an undercurrent of dread. It’s tense and claustrophobic to know that something happened, but not necessarily why it did, and it kept me riveted.

I was so satisfied by the ending too. Because the first chapter is really the conclusion of Thom and Wendy’s story, I didn’t think the book had any surprises left – but it did. There were a couple of small, clever twists that really brought the entire book full-circle for me.

Kill Your Darlings has been met with mixed reviews, but I thought it was incredibly clever and well-executed. Thank you to William Morrow for the complimentary reading opportunity.

I rounded this up to a 3, but I didn’t enjoy the reverse timeline. I do appreciate how the ending cleared up the questions of what would stem from the beginning of the book, but this really dragged for me. I think others might really enjoy the literary device of unraveling a relationship from the end to the beginning.

Peter Swanson delivers a brilliantly structured psychological thriller in Kill Your Darlings. Told in reverse, this inventive narrative peels back decades of Wendy and Thom Graves’ marriage, dissecting the secrets that bond—and potentially destroy—them . Wendy’s chilling decision to kill her husband kicks off a masterfully executed descent into their shared history, while Swanson’s pacing keeps you riveted from the first preview of murder to the shocking origin of their obsession .

The backward chronology is not just clever—it’s addictive, making you race through each chapter eager to rewind further into the pair’s past . With sharp noir undertones, rich character study, and revelations that hit with emotional and psychological force, this novel is a standout for thriller lovers and NetGalley readers alike.

A beautifully devious ride—Kill Your Darlings is a reverse-engineered puzzle that will linger long after the final page.

Loved the format of this book. As always , Peter Swanson leaves you with a question of “Did that really happen?” Definitely kept my interest in going back to the beginning of these characters lives.

This book had such promise at the beginning, but by the end, was a total slog. I wanted to love it, because I thought the premise sounded terrific, and I enjoyed Swanson's prior work, "A Talent for Murder," but it just...fell so flat. Even the last few sentences, so obviously intended to be a shocking and jaw-dropping end, were so trite that I shut the book with disgust. After this, I probably won't bother to read any more of Swanson's releases.

I couldn’t stop reading Kill Your Darlings, another five star read from Peter Swanson. It was dark, smart, and kept me totally hooked. I read it in just two sittings because I had to know how it would all end.

The book starts with Wendy planning to kill her husband, Thom—but then the chapters go backwards in time to show how their relationship got to that point.

Each chapter jumps to a different moment in their lives, from their early days of dating to raising a child, showing how one major secret from the past changed everything.

Wendy is candid and pragmatic while Thom is warm, fun and charming but not always trustworthy, making their story full of tension and emotion. I loved the way the truth was revealed little by little—secret by secret.

Big thanks to NetGalley, Peter Swanson, and William Morrow for the advanced copy of Kill Your Darlings! This five star read is available now!

Peter Swanson is hit or miss with me but usually more hits than misses; this one was somewhere in the middle. I loved the way the story was told – it starts with the end and works its way backwards but I found the characters to be one dimensional and shallow. Usually, Swanson’s characters are exactly what draws me in – hello, Lily and Henry – but Thom and Wendy were …. shallow and unlikeable so I found it difficult, especially as the story progressed, to invest in how they got where they were.

Aside from that, the academia setting and arrival of discontent in this family drama/thriller was a unique puzzle that I enjoyed unraveling.

My thanks to William Morrow for this gifted copy.

In Peter Swanson's latest offering, Kill Your Darlings, the idyllic facade of a long-standing marriage is not merely cracked, but shattered, then meticulously reassembled in reverse, revealing the dark mortar that has held it together for decades.

This is not just a thriller; it's a forensic examination of a shared secret, a slow-burn psychological descent that will leave readers utterly captivated.

We are introduced to Thom and Wendy Graves, seemingly pillars of domestic tranquility on the picturesque North Shore of Massachusetts. Wendy, a published poet, and Thom, an English literature professor – their lives appear perfectly curated, their son grown, their Victorian home a testament to a quarter-century of shared bliss. Yet, the opening gambit delivers a chilling jolt: "All is well…except that Wendy wants to murder her husband." From this audacious premise, Swanson hooks us, daring us to peel back the layers of a relationship poisoned by an unspeakable act.

What truly sets Kill Your Darlings apart is its audacious narrative structure. The story unfolds in reverse chronological order, a masterful stroke that transforms conventional suspense into an almost archaeological dig. We move backward through pivotal moments: a fiftieth birthday party brimming with unspoken tensions, the seemingly joyful purchase of their home, the profound event of their son Jason’s birth, and a truly unsettling "mysterious death of a work colleague." Each step backward is not a retreat, but an advance into the murky depths of their past, each revelation a disquieting brushstroke on a portrait of a marriage defined by a single, terrible conspiracy.

Swanson crafts Thom and Wendy with a chilling authenticity. Their love, their resentments, their shared history, and the ever-present shadow of their collective sin are rendered with a precision that makes them feel unsettlingly real. The brilliance lies in how their long-kept secret, initially a binding agent, slowly becomes the very acid dissolving their union. As the narrative peels back the years, we witness the fraying edges of their pact, the creeping paranoia, and the dawning realization that perhaps, the only true way to bury their past is to bury each other.

Kill Your Darlings is a sophisticated, deeply unsettling thriller that will appeal to fans of psychological suspense and those who appreciate narrative innovation. Swanson expertly builds tension not through jump scares, but through the creeping dread of revelation, the unsettling question of who these people truly are beneath their polished exteriors. This is more than a whodunit; it’s a whydunit layered with a how-long-can-they-get-away-with-it. Prepare to be engrossed, to question the very nature of trust and commitment, and to be utterly enthralled by a marriage teetering on the brink of ultimate betrayal. Highly recommended.

I always love a Peter Swanson book. Kill Your Darlings was no exception. This book was unique for the author. It is told backwards. There’s no question of “ who-dunnit”. You know right away. It’s more of a question of why did they do it.
It took me a minute to get used to reading it in reverse, but once I got used to it, this is one of my favorite stories of his. It’s a tale of a marriage with many little and big betrayals. Every chapter you find something new out and it just adds layers of mystery to their story. Both main characters were somewhat unlikable, but in a good way. That’s not a dealbreaker for me in a book. I think you should definitely give this one a try. It was a pretty cool reading experience to race to the beginning so to speak to find out how all of this got started.
Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

I wanted to like this book more than I did because I normally enjoy this author’s books. At times, it as confusing going back and forth with the dates/times. Overall though, the plot was decent and I could see this being a very good movie I’d watch.

I really wanted to like book because I enjoy the authors other books. Though this did not draw me in, I like the premise but just seem to lose interest as the story went on. It was okay and I did finish but it was not my favorite.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.
3 star

2.5 stars
This was a well written book, very poorly executed. It constantly went back and forth in the timeline so much that it became repetitive in going back/forth to recapitulate points already made along the way. I’m not sure why the decision was made to organize things the way they were, but it was a big miss for me.

Kill Your Darlings is a structural marvel—an evening-bending narrative that rewards close reading (or listening). If you're into psychological thrillers that play with time, guilt, and moral unraveling, Swanson’s reverse-chronicled tale is captivating. Just go in prepared for a suspense style that builds differently than a typical forward-moving thriller.

Kill Your Darlings was a WOW read for me. Starting at the end and ending at the start this murder story was a compelling page turner. It starts, or actually ends with a murder then backs it up to the significant events revealing relationship between Wendy and husband Thom, motives and hushed secrets. The suspense is almost unbearable. The chatacters were insanely fascinating and very unpredictable. The twisty plot and completely unexpected ending easily made this a five star read. Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the wonderful opportunity to read Kill Your Darlings in exchange for my honest review.

This is the story of Wendy and Thom Graves. Married for over 25 years, Thom teaches English Literature and Wendy published a poetry book years ago. They have a son, a nice house, and a good living. But, Wendy is unhappy and wants to murder her husband. The book moves forward from there by going backwards in time.

I appreciate the effort to try a fresh take on a story. Unfortunately, this book was more "meh" than "wow." I enjoyed the concept of starting with the ending and working backward, but it didn’t quite work. The pace dragged too much, and the characters weren’t likable enough. I also found the suspense in the story to be rather weak. I couldn’t stay engaged.

Thank you Netgalley, author, and publisher for the ARC.