2.5 stars.

Unfortunately, I did not really enjoy this one. After loving He Started It by Samantha Downing, I was really excited for this release, but it did not live up to my expectations.

This book really lacked focus and direction for me. It felt like there was a lot going on and I wish there was some sort of mystery to drive the story. I also feel like this book really lacked the 'twisty' aspect of a good thriller, as there were really no significant plot twists here.

I did like the concept, but the execution was not my favourite.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for providing an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

A darkly witty and suspenseful story from a seasoned thriller and mystery author, Samantha Downing. When a retired serial killer’s quiet retirement is threatened, she is forced to dust off her skills once again. But everything is a challenge when you are older, even murder.

Lottie Jones' life of church bingo and early bedtimes is upended when an investigative reporter decides to follow up on a story of cold cases and Lottie is her subject. Meanwhile, Lottie’s son is newly engaged to wife number two and Lottie’s well-kept family secrets start to emerge amidst the wedding planning.

Downing makes a murderer a relatable and flawed character in this humorous tale. The family dynamics and cast of characters combine to create an unputdownable novel. I will definitely be recommending this one to readers of Harlan Coben, Lisa Gardner and Heather Gudenkauf.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC in return for my honest review.

Thank you Berkley & PRH Audio for the gifted copies!

Too Old for This
Samantha Downing
Publishing Date: August 12, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

🎧 Narrator: Elizabeth Wiley 🎧

A book about an elderly serial killer… say less. I love books that feature older characters, so a thriller that does so had my attention immediately!

Lottie is a retired serial killer. Retired, until an unexpected guest leads to a series of unfortunate events that take her out of retirement and closer and closer to being caught.

This book was a hoot 🤣 it was absolutely ridiculous in the most fun of ways. Lottie is the morally gray (ok black) character that you can’t help but love. I loved her sense of humor and sarcasm. I also loved how Downing really wove in the challenges of being an elderly person, from aching joints to unsuccessfully navigating technology, this made Lottie feel even more relatable and genuine. I found myself rooting for her and then having to dial it back, because we don’t root for those who unalive people?

If you need a fast paced, laugh out loud worthy, palate cleansing read.. look no further.

🎧 I read this one with my ears and Elizabeth Wiley was perfection in her narration! She brought Lottie to life masterfully. She is a narrator I will definitely keep my eye out for in the future!

My god this was dry.

While the plot and concept was fine, this was just so monotone and lack luster.

I did really like Lottie’s character and the roll of playing ‘elderly and naive’ to throw people off her track, but I just found nothing exciting about this and felt it to be told so cookie cutter.

What a wild, crazy ride! A must read, keep you on the edge of your seat, hair gripping, what the heck is happening masterpiece. 5 🌟 would read again!

Literally a new favorite. Lottie was the best. Her inner monologue was so great. It was funny, heartfelt, and exactly what I would want in a grandma serial killer.

Thank you PRH Audio for the ALC and Kathleen Carter Communications/Berkley, #partner, for the finished copy of Too Old for This in exchange for my honest review.

I am still relatively new to Samantha Downing’s books, having only read her last book and listened her an audio-only story–I know, I know…I clearly need to change that ASAP! But when this book landed on my doorstep, I didn’t hesitate…and what a fun, twisted tale it is!

Don’t get me wrong, this book is dark, but it’s also laugh-out-loud funny! Lottie may just be my new favorite character, as unhinged as she is…and I mean that in the best way possible. I think it takes a lot of skill on the part of the author to have you rooting for a serial killer the way you find yourself rooting for Lottie and we all know Downing has got those skills in spades. This book had me unable to tear myself from this story once I started it and I haven’t stopped thinking about Lottie since I finished it…that’s how amazing a character she is! ⁣

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Audio thoughts: I listened to this in one go…that’s how amazing it was and the narrator, Elizabeth Wiley, certainly brought her A-game to this performance. I loved the way she brought Lottie to life.⁣
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Final thoughts: This was one of my most anticipated reads of the summer and it delivered in every way possible and then some. Whether you pick this up on print or audio, the hype for this book is real!

Too Old For This by Samantha Downing came out this week! Thanks to Berkley for my copy.

A retired serial killer’s quiet life is upended by an unexpected visitor. To protect her secret, there’s only one option left—what’s another murder?

This was an interesting book. I loved the first half and seeing Lottie get pulled back into her old world. I loved that we got Lottie’s point of view. The second half of this book is a little far-fetched but still entertaining. My only question at the end of the book is how many bodies were there? I can see this being a great movie!

I really enjoyed this thriller. The main character is forced out of her retirement as a serial killer and finds herself in a position where she needs to keep killing to cover everything up. It was funny at times, and I liked how it started out fast paced and got me pulled in. I would read another one of this author’s books.

This is a story about retirement readiness!

Even if you love what you do, you eventually have to retire and relax- it's inevitable! I found myself actively hoping our protagonist would not get caught- is she terrible? Yes! But she's also a sweet and thoughtful grandmother who deserves to relax. This one was such a good time and I would recommend it to anyone with both a sense of humor and a love for cat and mouse thrillers.

Thank you so much @prhaudio & @berkleypub for the eArc & ALC! I'm having such a good time with this one- what a PERFECT opening.

I have no notes. All I can say is I’m a super fan of Ms. Lorena Mae “Lottie” Lansdale. Maybe I should be evaluated for that, but I found. Her charming, witty, and now matter how much she called herself old, I found her sharp as well. What does a retired serial killer who’s now managing old age, adult children, grandchildren, and senior living get up to? Well, that’s Lottie. Also, how does that retire serial killer manage people digging into her past, well only the way a serial killer can so I found out.

It’s what I imagine Dexter will feel like when he’s elderly and Harrison is married with children. The navigation of that plus keeping your past life in the past. This book was a breath of fresh air and I can’t wait to read more from this author!

This was just a fun read, nothing earth shattering. I enjoy these stories where we have an elderly main character. It is a fun twist on the regular story!

This was so unhinged—and I loved it! Grandma is a retired serial killer who has to come out of retirement to deal with some people who just won’t mind their own business and leave the past where it belongs. This was amusing and so much fun to

This wasn’t really a thriller, in my opinion—it definitely read more like literary fiction. The focus is all on our main character: her thoughts, motivations, and interactions with others. If you were ever rooting for Joe Goldberg, this will probably thrill you. This is kind of a “good for her” story—ya know, if you’re okay with rooting for the serial killer. 😉

This was a fast and entertaining read. If you’re looking for shocking twists or an edge-of-your-seat story, this isn’t it. But if you’re down to meet the craziest church grandma you’ll ever come across—give this one a shot.

This had short chapters, and each one left you dying to read more. All in all, it was addictive, bingeable, and just a really good time.

Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for this ARC!

Should I start toting a hammer with me everywhere I go? Would you be concerned if you found out I did?

You probably would be after reading this delightful send-up of a serial killer novel from Samantha Downing.

If there’s one thing Downing does best, it’s getting you on the side of the killer, and that’s never been more true or more fun than it is here in her latest, about a retired (whoops, not quite) serial killer who just wants to live out her days going to church and visiting with family.

But alas, people just keep showing up and, y’know, needing to be murdered. And what fun it is to follow Lottie as the bodies pile up and the excuses wear thin. But Lottie’s no quitter, and sometimes covering up a murder necessitates another murder, which is how you find yourself chopping up a body in your garage when well into your 70s.

Would I actually want to know Lottie? Of course not, but she’s a delightful anti-heroine, and as for her victims? Well, you might say each and every one of them had it coming.

If everyone handled their grievances this way, there would be no one left to read this book.

Septuagenarian Lottie has a whole lotta skeletons in her closet. A knock on her door threatens to unbury the first murder she got away with.

I didn’t find little old Lottie as endearing as other readers, To me, she seemed too easily provoked. Like if I accidentally bumped her with a shopping cart, I could wind up with a hammer to my head.

Does her serial killer past finally catch up with her, or does she escape with her hands wiped of blood once again? I’m not telling. But I’m clearly in the minority when I say I was mostly rooting for her to get caught.

Too Old for This is one of those books that sneaks up on you. You do not expect to enjoy rooting for a character like Lottie but you end up loving every minute of it. It is funny, twisted, and oddly charming all at the same time. Imagine a small town church bingo night colliding with bloodshed and somehow it just works. If you enjoy thrillers with a dark sense of humor, characters who are messy but magnetic, and a story that keeps you grinning even when you know you should not be, this one is worth picking up.

👯‍♀️Freaky Friday👯‍♀️
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I’m so far behind on book reviews so I’m coming at you live with a double dose today!
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Too Old for This- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ thank you @berkleypub and @netgalley ! Samantha Downing is one of my favorites, she’s just a master at thrillers. This was fun and followed a retired serial killer who’s forced to return to her former life when a woman wants to interview her for a documentary. The premise of this was unique and hooked you right away. I love following a terrible main character that you just can’t like. 🤣it was totally unique, no one writes an awful character quite like Downing. I will say at times I did have to suspend belief that an old woman was able to carry out these crimes. However it was still a fun read!

Thank you @berkleypub and @smariedowning for my gifted ebook. Too Old For This is out now.

I picked this book as my most anticipated read of 2025 and I specifically saved this book to read on my vacation! And it more than lived up to the anticipation. Samantha’s books always are twisty and have a unique spin to the genre, in this case the main character is 75 years old.

This is another absolute winner from Samantha! I am obsessed with serial killer books and shows like Dexter and this was everything I hoped it would be. Lottie was an incredible character and I loved that she leaned into her age to get away with literal murder. We met us with 3 different sets of friends while we were away and I recommended this book to each one of them. I feel like it’s a good book for many age groups that enjoy fun thrillers.

This goes up there with For Your Own Good as one of my favorite thrillers of all time. Make sure you read this soon!!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

We are supposed to hate serial killers, but why did I wind up liking Lottie? Is it because she is a retired serial killer just trying to life her life at age 75? She's going to church bingo, minding her own business, when along comes a blogger who wants to expose her old life, and that's were the wild ride begins.
This book is full of dry humor and a cat and mouse chase that kept me engaged to the very end. I am a new fan of Samantha Downing!
Thank you to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

4.25/5 stars, rounded down

Thank you Berkley Publishing for the advanced reading copy!

This book was pretty different from what I expected, but I still enjoyed it immensely! I love Samantha Downing's writing style and her plots are always so twisty and suspenseful. TOO OLD FOR THIS strayed a bit from her usual vibes -- a little more lowkey in my opinion but had tons of twists and turns anyway. Elderly serial killer?! SO fun and unique. I thought there was a little bit too much about her being old/moving/anxious thoughts for this to be a reallllly great thriller and I expected a few more shocking twists, but I was entertained the entire time and enjoyed it overall!