The synopsis pulled me in and the prologue was written well but I have to say I was a tad disappointed.

Don't get me wrong this was a good enough read but this was mostly about Saffy trying to get into a relationship with Jon, I though there would be more of Saffy being a badass killer. I would have loved Saffy's story to have been the main focus rather than Jon, I didn't get much character development from him and I would have loved to have had more insight into Saffy's hobby.

Yes there was some suspense as the story progressed but the final twist was easy to figure out. I thought the ending was too fast paced given the slower pace of most of the story, it felt like we were cramming a lot of information and events at the last second and it felt rushed.

If you go in without any expectations then I believe you will enjoy it more. Personally from the blurb I got How to Kill Men and Get Away With It vibes so that could be why I was dissapointed.

Well, this really is a book of two halves. The synopsis mentions a feminist serial killer, so my brain thought thriller. However, the first half reads like a slightly quirky rom-com, but then the second half steered me back towards my more traditional style of reading.

Bad Men’s protagonist is Saffy, Seraphine Huntley-Oliver. A young, wealthy woman, with a voice, in my head, that sounds exactly like Georgia Toffolo. She certainly isn’t your everyday twenty-something, she committed her first murder at just twelve. Bizarrely, she has set her sights on Jon, who has come to her attention by catching a serial killer. On paper, not exactly a match made in heaven.

I must admit, while I was enjoying reading the first half, I was wondering when the book would take on the feel of a serial killer read. It happened during the second half, I felt Saffy was channeling a Sweetpea vibe.

It was an easy read, it passed the time quickly on a rainy day. If you are looking for a serious, high gore, dark thriller, having been drawn in by the serial killer tag, then you might be disappointed. If you are looking for a rom-com, with a quirky, darker edge, then this could be the book for you. I did guess quite a lot of the twists, but maybe I just read far too much in the thriller genre.
I’m still not quite sure what genre I would classify the book as, but I think it will be read and enjoyed widely on many holidays this summer. 4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Saffy is a serial killer, only killing 'bad men', she has a crush on a crime podcaster and she knows how to get her man.

It started off when Saffy was a child, and it had me hooked but I have to say as the story developed I was a little disappointed, the focus becomes all about her crush with Jon and not much about her killing. It took me a while to finish this one as I had high hopes for it and felt a little flat in the middle and then suddenly it was concluded.

It was an ok read and if there are plans for a second book/series I'd still give it a go!

Thanks to NetGalley for the download

Honestly, I was quite disappointed by this book. I expected it to be centred around Saffy and her being a serial killer. It did start off like that but it quickly centred around other serial killers.

The story was then told mostly from Jon's POV which isn't what I expected. For Saffy's part of the story, it focused more on her crush on Jon than anything else.

I'd say it's more romance focused than crime/thriller. It's actually a similar concept to LOVE IN THE TIME OF SERIAL KILLERS (book).

3.5⭐️

A fast paced and humorous piece of contemporary fiction.

This books concept was clever. Who wouldn’t love a female serial killer ridding the world of the big bad men? I couldn’t wait to start this read and the Prologue was fantastic. Cohen sure didn’t hold back!

I liked this read and was very hooked to begin with. I loved the Dual POVs of Saffy and Jonathon. Saffy was funny, jealous and complicated and this mix worked very well, but she was also so damn annoying! Her narcissistic qualities were quite unbearable. Jon on the other hand, an author and host of a true crime podcast, was very likeable and I loved how his character had an emotional edge to him. There is more emphasis on his character and I would say that he is the main protagonist.

I’ve seen this book compared to How to Kill Men and Get Away With It, but I only feel like there were minuscule similarities. I liked how when you was reading, you never knew where the story was going and then at other times you knew exactly what was coming up. This varying predictability was great.

I found that some chapters were randomly thrown in at times and I don’t think they held as much significance as the others, but overall this book flowed well.

I read this as a buddy read with Jannah @thebook_worm20 and Em @bitofabookworm_ and we all thought it was a good, fast paced and bingeable read. We did discuss how we thought this book was like two separate reads in one and we also agree that this is not a thriller. I loved our chats throughout and I look forward to future BRs. 🥰

Thank you @netgalley, @zaffrebooks, and @bonnierbooks_uk for this ARC of Bad Men which will be published on the 20th July 23! 💚

💬 (quoted from ARC):
-‘I don't kill women. There are too many people out there killing women already.’
-‘Feelings make you vulnerable. They're things for other people to exploit and manipulate.’

⚠️ Please check out the trigger warnings! ⚠️

Saffy can't stand bad men. So much so, that her favourite hobby is murdering them! In fact there is very little grey area with Saffy, we know what happens to those she doesn't like, and those she loves she would do anything for... literally! And being a hot, ex-model heiress gives her the means and opportunity to carry out her activities with little attention. But when she finally meets her podcast crush Jonathan, her sight are well and truly set on him and she will stop at nothing to get her man!

Jon is also obsessed with murder, in a slightly different way, in that he loves to try to solve them. But when he finds himself closer to a case than he wants to be, a chance encounter with our new favourite man-hunter brings him closer than he knows to the danger he is trying to avoid.

Really enjoyed this, particularly Saffy as she is such a great character, infact my only small gripe is that we don't get to see more of her... activities!

This is a very quick, easy and enjoyable read. There is nothing particularly deep or thought provoking about but it's none the worse for that and is a fun read.

Despite her hobby, Saffy is a great character, funny and lively and and aiming , albeit not in the best of ways, to make life better for women.

Jon is also a interesting character and you can see why Saffy falls for him. The little twist at the end is a nice touch too, especially when we discover what Saffy has to say about it.

I did almost stop reading when the poor little dog was down the well, that was so horrible but if Girl can reluctantly forgive then I suppose I can too.

My main complaint about this book is that i would have preferred to read more about Saffy's eliminating projects as well as reading about her pursuit of Jon so 3.5 starts rounded up to 4.

Bad Men by author Julie Mae Cohen was such a unique read, never having read something like this novel before I was surprised to find that I really enjoyed it.

Main character Saffy is such a fabulous character to read about and I really hope the author would consider writing more novels with Saffy in them.

Saffy is an unusual woman, she kills men - only bad men so that's not too bad is it!?! Something/someone stands in her way and that comes in the form of a good man Jonathan who happens to be a true crime podcaster. This makes for a really interesting and compelling dynamic and I loved that he is a crime podcaster.

It was interesting to see how Saffy and Jonathan teamed up all the time with Saffy having a major crush on him and how there is a murderer in situ right next to him - will he find out what Saffy has been doing as her hobby!

Thanks to Netgalley, Julie Mae Cohen and the publishers for allowing me a copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

3.5* rounded to 4.

I enjoyed this book & the premise but felt like it has been marketed as a thriller, which it isn’t. It felt more like a quirky romance.
I didn’t love Saffy & much preferred Jon & his chapters. The ending was creepy! Would have preferred more of Jon & less of Saffy which is a shame as I was hoping for more of a Sweetpea vibe.
Full review to follow on my Instagram @the.readinglife.

Saffy Huntley-Oliver is a closet serial killer. But it’s fine because she only kills the bad men, not the good ones!

Whilst planning her favourite pastime, she realises that she’s got a massive crush on Jon. Unfortunately for Saffy, Jon is a true crimes podcaster but also scrutinises serial killers.

I really enjoyed this book and struggled to put it down. Well-written with a strong storyline.

Thank you to NetGalley, Bonnier Books UK, and Zaffre for an advance reader copy in return for an honest review.

Jon’s life is a mess. His wife is leaving him because he’s obsessed with murder and his podcast, and now a dismembered body has turned up on his doorstep.

Meanwhile, Saffy is living her best life. An avid feminist, she is taking down the patriarchy - literally - man by man. Any misogynist is fair game. She’s also in love with Jon, and will do literally anything to get to him.

For fans of ‘How to Kill Your Family’ and Killing Eve - this book has it all. Glamour, humour and plenty of murder. Of course, we know what Saffy is capable of from the start of the novel - but who is it threatening Jon - and can she save him before it’s too later?

I must admit that I probably wouldn’t have requested this book if I hadn’t listened to Julie at an author event at Bert’s Books.
Then I would have missed meeting Saffy!
This is a very dark story in places but also a fun read - loved it.

badass feminist serial killer, an uncontrollable crush and a plot that I devoured! What a brilliant read, it kept me hooked and I needed to know what was going to happen!

I throughly enjoyed Bad Men. This book took me a little by suprise, as it was not quite what I was expecting. However, I found myself loving the direction it went in.

I must admit I was a little enamoured with Saffy, despite her murderous tendencies. Such a fabulous character, witty with a caustic humor.

Jon, a true crime pod caster was also really likeable and human despite his flaws, and the two characters contrasted well.

The love story at the centre between Saffy and Jon was really different. I'm not a huge fan of 'fluffy' romance but I really enjoyed this angle. It is interspersed with a crime plot too, as they fight to discover the real Bin Bag Killer.

Bad Men is an entertaining and darkly humorous read that I couldn't get enough of.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bonnier Books / Zaffre for the eArc in exchange for a honest review.

A work of delicious devilish joy! Julie Cohen’s story of a feminist serial killer falling in love is dark, dry, hilarious and so satisfying! I hope this is a series and that it makes it onto screen - Saffy must be played by Phoebe Waller-Bridge.

I enjoyed this book but it wasn't entirely what I expected. I thought it would focus more on Saffy.

Story was still good though.

This was without a shadow of a doubt a Page-turner. Great pace, very tongue-in-cheek and entertaining. I love a feminist take on murder but I had a lot of problems with our protagonist! This novel reminded me of "A Certain Hunger", but *whats-her-face* was a lot more shallow and very annoying in her self-entitlement. Bottom line - I just can't forgive her for the episode with the dog. Killing bad men is one thing, but adopting a dog to throw her in the well is a big no-no. The male protagonist was nice and fairly plausible as opposed to the female lead. The detective element was also fun. I'd say this is a great beach read but I can't see much scope beyond that. So much so I can't remember any of the names already!

Bad Men! Wow what a turn around, love Julie Cohen, but think I love Julie Mae Cohen a little bit more! Definitely on the darker side, but absolutely amazing story!
Saffy is beautiful, cool, witty, rich, talented and also a murderer! Despite that you can’t help but like her! She may kill people but only the bad guys!
Saffy finds herself falling for Jon, a true crime podcaster, author and amateur detective who has managed to solve murders, he tried to hide himself away, However Saffy is not used to not getting her own way! A delicious novel resulting in romance, murder and a happy ever after

I really enjoyed this novel and I read it super quickly. I was in awe of the two main characters and found the main protagonist a real badass who goes after what she really wants - even though she has to kill a few people along the way...

A fantastically dark comedy involving a serial killer and a crime writer who sets out to solve miscarriages of justice and other crimes that have the police stumped.

A compelling book that’s both funny and gruesome. Loved it!