The cover of this book immediately had me kicking my feet and giggling after reading the summary. This is such a quick read that never leaves you wanting more of each chapter. These women are hilarious (props to Gloria), and this book is one I will always recommend for anyone in a book slump.

What a hoot! This fun start to a new cozy series (I hope) sees Kat, Olivia, and Elle band together for revenge on the awful Tucker but then he ends up dead and they're in the soup. Well, you can't keep this intrepid trio down because they're determined to find out who really did it. Turns out Tucker was cheating on more than his romantic interests, he was stealing money as well. Classic cozy situation but this one made me laugh more than normal because of the characters. I liked that Kat, a chemist doing her post doc, put her knowledge to work in this, well, different way. I also liked how the three women bonded. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. I really enjoyed this.

Let the hilarity ensue. The Ex-Girlfriend Murder Club is a perfect addition to your beach bag this summer! That is not your stuffy murder mystery oh no. The Ex-Girlfriend Murder Club is bringing a whole new group of readers to the table for this laugh out loud story. Chao did not disappoint.

What Gloria Chao has done is given us a charming, cozy and very funny, murder mystery centered on three women who, while unlikely friends at first "bond" over their cheating ex. It strangely relatable and for me, a page turner. We get to go on this adventure with the ex-girlfriends (yes, three of them) while they try to not only get their revenge on their ex but then the adventure of having to solve what in the heck actually happened in order to keep their names clean, we have a prime suspect in the group - DUN DUN DUN! It is a charmer and a book that will pass your time, leaving you wanting more in what I hope to be a series of shenanigans!

I received this as an advance reader copy from NetGalley and I have left my honest review.

This novel combined two of my favorite elements in a story. A great mystery combined with several laugh out loud moments.
What are the chances of 3 women dating the same man? Even better, what are the chances the man is found dead while you are plotting revenge against him? Do not pass this book up. A fun and fast paced summer read that everyone will be talking about.

Kathryn Hu is a post-doc student at Harvard working in a chemistry lab, where her social awkwardness makes her stand out even there. Her one bright spot is her boyfriend, Tucker Jones. Tucker is not only gorgeous, he’s thoughtful, kind, and can always make her feel better. One night she leaves early and decides to surprise him at his place–only to surprise him proposing to someone else. WHAT??!! To make matters worse, Tucker seems to think the situation with Kat can be mended.

Instead, Kat and Olivia bond together over their pain. Imagine their horror when they realize their group of cheated-upon girlfriends includes at least one more person, Elle. The 3 of them declare, solemnly over drinks, “Tucker Jones must die!” And so they plan a revenge that includes creatively trashing his condo. Much to their dismay though, they discover his body. They know they’re innocent, but given their strong motives, not to mention the DNA they’ve just spread all over the condo, will anyone believe them? Much less the extremely attractive detective assigned to the case?

The Ex-Girlfriend Murder Club (which, Kat wants to assure you, doesn’t mean they want to murder anyone!) is a delightful read! Kat’s social awkwardness and propensity to give you the origin of any idiom, plus the genuine friendship that forms amongst the 3 women, ensure plenty of laughs and groans. The plot is snappy and fast-moving, with plenty of twists and turns and a very satisfying ending. The perfect summer read! Highly recommended.

💘First, thank you for Harlequin publishing and the fabulous Gloria Chao for an ARC via NetGalley 💘
💘All the reviews I post are my own honest reviews!

4.5⭐️
Wow… just Wow!!! Gloria Chao had me completely fooled! When I thought I had the murder solved I got completely blindsided by the ending revelation! Not to mention how funny this was, the girls are hilarious, I don’t think I laughed this much in a while. Also… Tucker is an ass, I don’t wanna say he deserved to die but, oh well 🤷🏻‍♀️
Also, I loved Kat’s parents soooo much, every time they showed up I would die laughing 🤣

I don’t wanna write much and accidentally spoiler something, but I wanted to know what happened with nonbarista and the other guy that got arrested, were they released? Lol

If you’re looking for a fun, mysterious, and quick read…This is the book for you!!

John Tucker Must Die... but like, the adult edition. With a whodunnit murder mystery. And surprisingly touching life lessons hidden under a glitter bomb of absolute chaos.

I had so much fun with this one! Gloria Chao’s The Ex-Girlfriend Murder Club is laugh-out-loud funny with a sharp, twisty plot and three chaotic, lovable exes who band together when they discover they’ve all been duped by the same smarmy guy. Spoiler: Revenge gets a little complicated when you find a body in his closet.

Our FMC, Kathryn Hu, has a dry wit, a string of unlucky breaks, and a habit of applying her "laws of luck" to everything, which had me cackling more than once. The dynamic between the women is the real heart of the story, and their evolution from betrayed strangers to something like a chosen family made this such a standout.

Chao’s writing is vibrant and cinematic — I could see every scene playing out in my head like the dark comedy film this needs to become. Hollywood, are you listening?

Many thanks to NetGalley and Mira Books for the ARC!

4.25 stars from me!

This book had such a fun premise, but it ultimately read as clunky and awkward. I wanted to root for the characters but found that it was hard to connect with them. It was like there was a wall between them and the readers. While I was interested in the plot, there were several times I considered DNFing because I just wasn't *that* interested. I kept waiting for a pickup that never happened.

This is a funny mystery about 3 women who discover they are the same man. They’ all decide to group together and start pranking him, but come to find his body. Since the crime scene is covered in their DNA (and they clearly would have a motive) the 3 women try to solve the murder.

This book is such a fun quick read, I seriously couldn’t put it done! I will give warning that there is quite a bit of humour about poop.
None of the characters appear to be able to make good decisions either, which makes you take the book less serious.
All in all I cannot wait for the next book in this series.

Easy read. A little slow to start, but the characters were too fun to ignore. When three ladies find out they are dating the same person, and he ends up murdered, let the bonding begin.

Three very different ladies I will stress too. Kathyrn Hu is a chemist with tiger parents. Olivia is a top lawyer and Elle is a writer. These ladies bond together to solve the murder.

Perfect summer read that will have you laughing out loud. As well as a great plot twist at the end. Thank you to NetGalley and MIRA Publishing for this advance read.

4⭐️ | John Tucker must die... but like, with murder 😅🔪

This was so much fun—equal parts chaos, comedy, and cozy whodunnit vibes. Three girlfriends. One cheating ex. Zero plans to actually kill him… until he turns up very, very dead.

Kat, Olivia, and Elle are the most chaotic girl gang I didn’t know I needed. The murder mystery is twisty enough to keep you guessing, but the real fun is in the friendships, hilarious lies, and undercover shenanigans (plus a cute detective 👀).

Perfect for fans of Dial A for Aunties, Finlay Donovan Is Killing It, or anyone who likes their thrillers with a heavy dose of comedy and caffeine.

It all kicks off with our protagonist, Katherine, having a terrible day. She's inherently awkward and struggles to navigate social blunders. After she spills coffee all over herself, filling the room with the pungent aroma of stale brew, her boyfriend, Jack Tucker, swoops in to save the day. Who says happiness can't be bought with sweets? At the very least, it buys Kat a reprieve from her fellow students' judgment.

Driven by a desire to surprise him, something she's never done before, Kat overhears Tucker "rehearsing" a marriage proposal. Naturally, she bursts out of the closet, enthusiastically blurting "Yes!" Only then does she discover the proposal was intended for Olivia, not her. As a bewildered Olivia mutters, "You're going to get murdered!" Tucker, ever the smooth operator, pivots and proposes to Kat. What?! Thankfully, despite her utter humiliation, Kat takes the ring and makes her exit. It's one of the rare times she stands up for herself.

As these two ladies decide to meet up and try to give each other the engagement ring, the duo decides to go on Kat’s prepaid, nonrefundable vacation that Kat was supposed to go with Tucker.. But wait! As they enter the cabin, they find yet another girl, Elle, already there, along with Tucker himself. The three humiliated and angry women, now united in their shared awkward predicament, break off from Tucker and decide to prank his place mercilessly. The joke, however, is on them when they discover a dead ex-boyfriend in the closet. Tucker has been murdered!

Now, with an unknown killer on the loose, a relentless podcaster hot on their heels, and the police closing in, deep friendships blossom. It will take the combined talents of this unlikely trio: The Brains, The Guts, and The Heart, to clear their names and escape being the prime murder suspects.

This is a great story that truly reminds me why I cherish reading so much. It whisked me away from reality, offering a delightful blend of hope, laughter, and pure enjoyment. A fast read and short chapters.

Spoiler Alert: If you examine the cover closely, pay particular attention to the binoculars; they reveal a bit of the mystery. Brilliant cover!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of the book as well as the audiobook
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This was really fun and perfect for fans of Elle Cosimano's Finlay Donovan series. Several young women discover what they all have in common is dating the deceptive Tucker. When they discover him DEAD, they have to prove that they didn't kill him (and make sure each other are telling the truth about that!) Definitely a fun, summer must read.

arc book review
upcoming pub date: 6.24.25
genre: women’s fiction, mystery and thriller, romance
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

about:
three women dating the same man band together to get revenge, but when they discover his body, they’ll need to solve who did it before they go down for it.

my thoughts:
this book is like the other woman meets john tucker must die meets finlay donovan is killing it wrapped up into one with a satisfying ending! i love all three of those so this was a good one for me! i read this in 3 days and enjoyed their wild ride as much as i enjoyed the origin stories of idioms and the fmc is in stem! the main reason it’s not five stars for me is because of the podcast subplot. it either needed to be amped up and made bigger or taken away, imo. still, this one releases in a week and you’ll want to add it to your tbr pile when it does!

thank you @harlequinbooks for the early read opportunity! it was a fun ride!

🔬what was the last book you read where the fmc was in stem (science, technology, engineering, mathematics)?

** Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing, and Gloria Chao for an eARC via NetGalley of The Ex-Girlfriend Murder Club so I could provide an honest review **

The Ex-Girlfriend Murder Club was incredible, in my opinion. It had me laughing throughout, and I was invested in the story right from the first page. Gloria Chao has blended comedy with a cozy murder mystery where unlikely friendships are formed in unfortunate circumstances.

The characters are quirky and lovable. The story is injected with wit, charm, idioms, and a slightly mysterious edge with what I found to be a pleasantly shocking twist - really, I didn't see that one coming. I found that I could relate to each of the FMCs in various ways which made this read that much more hilarious to me. The dialogue and tone felt fresh and unique. I was so captivated by the story that I couldn't put the book down. I needed to know what happened.

Overall, this was beyond a satisfying read for me. I LOVED it and would absolutely recommend. Think John Tucker Must Die meets The Other Woman meets Nancy Drew.

Included on June issue of the BookTrib Chill Quill: Beach Reads with a Body Count: https://booktrib.com/2025/06/17/the-chill-quill-beach-reads-with-a-body-count/

“The Ex-Girlfriend Murder Club” was a really fun and fast paced read. I laughed out loud so many times as I was reading this. It’s a bit silly but definitely one of those heartwarming story’s that just makes you smile. I could tell the author just had fun writing this one. This is definitely perfect for fans of “Dial A for Aunties”, the “Finlay Donovan” series, the “Vera Wong” series and the movies “The Other Woman” and “John Tucker Must Die”. I really enjoyed the main characters; Kat, Olivia and Elle were hilarious as a trio. I loved the found family /sisterhood moments between the three women and the pranks that they did to their ex-boyfriend were hilarious! They were all quite different personality wise but they really worked well together. The pacing was done really well and I thought the different layers of clues and mystery kept me on my toes. I did appreciate the small bits of romance that were included, but I’m glad it didn’t shift the focus of the story. The writing is excellent and the cliffhanger chapter endings always made me want to just read one more chapter. I didn’t really enjoy the bits with the podcast, it was a little distracting and took me out of the story sometimes. I did want an epilogue just to see where everyone is after the end of the story. Thanks to Gloria Chao, Netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing /MIRA for an e-arc in exchange for my thoughts. I hope that this is not the last we see of these characters.

This was a quick and fun read, with a nice amount of humor throughout balancing the tension of the murder mystery. The pacing was a little uneven but the progression of the investigation (along with Kat's growing friendship with Liv and Elle) was enough to keep me engaged. Kat is likable and relatable (even with her pun game and dad jokes), as are Liv and Elle. The initial bonding over infidelity was a fun plot point; well, up until the dead body. Just like with most works of fiction you'll need to suspend disbelief, if you nit-pick you'll definitely lessen your reading enjoyment. There was definitely enough to keep me guessing. I enjoyed the blend of murder mystery and female friendship, with a dash of romance thrown in (it's definitely not the main focus, just a head's up). I really enjoyed this author's writing style, she's a new-to-me author but I would read her again! It looks like this is the start of a series, I'm looking forward to the next installment. If you enjoy twisty murder mysteries with a sense of humor then this is the book for you. Publishes June 24, 2025. This review was based on a complimentary ARC of the book, all opinions are my own.

The Ex-Girlfriends Murder Club

Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing, Harlequin Audio and Mira for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This book genuinely surprised me. I didn’t think I’d enjoy it as much as I did. It was very cute, funny, engaging and entertaining. I went back and forth between audio and ebook and really enjoyed the audio production and narration as well and would recommend either reading physically or via audio. There was a good twist and reveal at the end and lots of humour throughout. I also enjoyed hearing about the origin story for different idioms.

For those that loved the movies The Other Women and John Tucker Must Die - this is the book for you.

📖 Kat surprises her boyfriend at his condo mid proposal - to someone else! The next time she’s at his condo, she arrives with his nearly-fiancée and another girlfriend they’ve met along the way to seek harmless revenge and they discover his dead body.

First and foremost, thank you to the publisher and the author for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. I loved this story and it was definitely worth the read! I absolutely loved this book!!!