Quick Synopsis

For fans of The Silent Patient and Gone Girl, a razor-sharp and Hitchcock-inspired psychological thriller about two ordinary women who make a dangerous pact to take revenge for each other after being pushed to the brink.

Publisher’s Synopsis

One dark evening on New York City’s Upper West Side, two strangers meet by chance. Over drinks, Amanda and Wendy realize they have much in common, especially loneliness and an intense desire for revenge against the men who destroyed their families. As they talk into the night, they come up with the perfect plan: if you kill for me, I’ll kill for you.

In another part of the city, Ruth is home alone when the beautiful brownstone she shares with her husband, Scott, is invaded. She’s attacked by a man with piercing blue eyes, who disappears into the night. Will she ever be able to feel safe again while the blue-eyed stranger is out there?

Intricate, heart-racing, and from an author who “is the real deal” (Lee Child ), Kill for Me, Kill for You will keep you breathless until the final page.

Book Review

Earlier this year, I was excited to discover Steve Cavanagh would be releasing a new novel. About 2 years ago, I read one of the novels in his Eddie Flynn series and was very pleasantly surprised. However, I found that Kill for Me, Kill for You did not work as well as Th1rt3en. That being said, I think it will be a super popular book that a lot of people love.

Kill for Me, Kill for You is a psychological thriller that starts with the concept of Hitchcock’s Strangers on a Train. Two grieving women meet and decide to swap murders in revenge of their murdered children. But fear not, Steve Cavanagh puts a new spin on the old tale and still keeps readers guessing.

Kill for Me, Kill for You is primarily told from two perspectives – that of Ruth, a woman who is the victim of a home invasion, and Amanda, a woman whose spouse and daughter have died. Sprinkled here and there are two additional perspectives from Ruth’s husband, Scott, and the detective on the cases, Farrow. Cavanagh keeps you guessing on how all of these perspectives will converge.

Based upon my previous experience with Cavanagh’s novels, I expected Kill for Me, Kill for You to be faster-paced and pull me in quickly. However, nothing substantial occurs until about 20 percent into the story. That first fifth of narrative is filled with background about the women and the crimes experienced. Once Amanda goes to group therapy, the narrative begins to pick up in pace.

Perhaps I read too many thrillers and watch too many procedurals, but the fact that these two women thought the authorities would be unable to connect them seems naïve. This is particularly so when you consider the knowledge Detective Farrow already possesses about their lives. I typically do not complain about believability in thrillers, but the fact the women are so easily convinced their plot will work seemed a bit ludicrous.

I may have been more accepting of their plan if the two women were more fleshed out characters who felt real. However, all the women in this book felt one-dimensional. While I thought Cavanagh had ample opportunity to develop the novel’s characters, it was readily apparent that he was unsuccessful at embodying a woman’s voice, thoughts, and perspective. Consequently, the entire narrative became less believable.

Finally, while the final twist is a fun one, it did not sit well with me. I think the main character’s lack of reaction is what bothers me most. The plausibility of that reaction seems extremely unlikely, and so, I am left sitting uncomfortably with the ending. Every time I think of it, I realize a little more how it does not quite fit.

Overall, I did not love nor did I hate Kill for Me, Kill for You. I found some of the twists super predictable and others I met with mediocre reception. The writing and short chapters propelled the story forward, but the women’s voice and development fell short. I think this novel will have an audience with those that love domestic thrillers with a lot of twists and who do not need everything to be plausible.

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