Told in reverse, Kill Your Darlings opens with the end of a relationship—and not a quiet one. It’s a bold structure, diving straight into the aftermath of a couple gone very, very wrong. That first chapter gripped me immediately. It hinted at dark secrets, and moral grey areas, and had me fully on board for a twisty, toxic ride.

But somewhere between that killer opening and the final page I found myself losing steam. The tension is slow-burning and ever-present, but the pacing dragged. A lot of the major revelations came too early, which dulled the impact. I also struggled to connect emotionally with the characters; the disjointed, stop-start nature of the storytelling made it hard to stay invested. Despite some brilliant dark humour and a fun last-page twist, the repetitive structure and distant tone made this fall short of its potential.

That said, I was still curious enough to keep going. There’s something fascinating about a thriller that picks apart a relationship from the end backwards. It just wasn’t quite the knockout I hoped for.

I liked the format of this book - going backwards was a great way to tell the story and I loved the twist at the end.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I loved that this story ran back to front and that last paragraph put an interesting spin on the start of the story.

The Annabel parts (both parts) threw me a little and not sure if I missed something there.

Sadly this was a slow burner as it tells the story in reverse. It did not deliver for me and I gave up. Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC.

I really enjoy Swanson’s brand of crime fiction. He stages his stories in ways that are new to me, and with his killers being characters you wouldn’t expect to be wielding a knife or a gun. This tale is a case in point, told in a non-linear way. In fact, it’s told in reverse. I really didn't expect this to work, but it does. Spectacularly!

We learn that a mature married couple share a secret. It’s one that they most certainly do not wish the wider world to know about. It binds them together, in a way that’s a little uncomfortable. Thom is an English teacher and a drinker. He has an eye for the women, too. Wendy tends house, but she’s also a published writer of poetry. Their union is awkward but pragmatic.

As we steadily delve back into their earlier lives, we gain more knowledge of their previous selves, of the growing enmity between them and of deeds each has logged up in their past. I kept thinking that this was an odd way to digest the tale, and yet it kept unearthing surprises and also presented evidence as to why some subsequent events had transpired.

The ending, when it came, was perhaps surprising and perhaps not – though there is certainly a nice twist at the death. But moreover, I’d become so invested in both of the main characters that I genuinely felt quite emotional when the last page was turned. It's one of my favourite reads of the year, without any doubt.

You can always rely on Peter Swanson to write well-crafted, complex thrillers with a twist. This one too is a fine story about a couple bound by a crime committed in the past that haunts and blights their otherwise perfect lives.
The story is told backwards and at first I thought it could be a bit gimmicky. However, it works beautifully with the odd aha-moment and a satisfying ending.

The reverse timeline seems like a novel and different idea, but it really didn’t work for me.

The beginning of the book was the most entertaining part, the rest just dragged on and on with no real shocker of a twist, and the MMC was the dullest character EVER, Wendy did the right thing! LOL 😂

The slowest of slow burns that just fizzled out. So disappointed as I have read other books by this author and enjoyed them.

Actual rating 3.5.

This was a great, easy binge read that I devoured over a day - it felt quite different to previous books I’ve read by the author, but I enjoyed being surprised!

The chronology felt quite original - the book kicks off with such a shocking and unexpected act of violence and then we just move backwards through time to unravel it all, with a very satisfying and almost funny ending. Whilst it’s hard to like either of our main characters, I found their motivations and behaviours compelling and needed to know how they’d ended up in this situation.

Maybe it's me not "getting" this book. Which is a shame cos the author is one of my favourites and I usually love his books. But this one just fizzled out at the end, leaving me cold. Maybe I missed the point.
It's a story that is told backwards chronologically. It is basically the story of a couple, Wendy and Thom, beginning in 2023 with Wendy contemplating killing husband Thom. We then go back in time, in chunks to find out how we got where we started, ending up eventually when they meet in 1982.
It's kinda like a series of linked short stories, or vignettes. Each ending where the previous began, sometimes only hours apart, more often years. The "main event", the thing that ties them irrevocably happening somewhere in between.
But, as I said at the beginning, it didn't really work for me. Not sure if it's the story or the unique method of telling it that just didn't gel with me I have no idea. Maybe I was expecting too much, my expectation set too high. Or maybe I just missed the point. I guess it probably also didn't really help that both Wendy and Thom also left me cold as characters and I simply didn't care about them and how they got to the point in their relationship that they did.
There were also things that I read about in the past and thought would have been more important in the preceding chapters but just fizzled out. Or maybe they didn't and I just missed them which would be a shame and a victim of the way the book is delivered...
Maybe it would work better for me if I started the whole thing and read it backwards. But, atm I have no time to do it, so many books on my tbr, but I might well revisit it in the future. For now though, I am happy enough to just admit that this one wasn't the book for me but this in now way spoils my relationship with the author and I will no doubt pounce on his next one as soon as I can.
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Kill Your Darlings by Peter Swanson was an interesting read, a thriller in reverse. The end is the beginning and the book works backwards from there.
This isn't really a concept that I'm a huge fan of because the ending is revealed before the story unfolds.

I found the overall plot good, but quite slow at times, some parts interesting and others not so much. The ending was a little underwhelming too, the twist wasn't a big dramatic moment as you'd expect to find in a classic thriller.

Although Peter Swanson is still a favourite author of mine, this book wasn't for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

After forty years, Thom Graves has become an incredible disappointment to his wife, Wendy – he drinks too much, flirts with other women, and worst of all, is in danger of revealing their dark secret. But how far is Wendy willing to go to stop him?

Another excellent book from Peter Swanson. I've read several of his novels and he never disappoints. Great characters and story, a good pace, and whilst not a page Turner it keeps you reading. The story flips from multiple points of view and timelines but is written so expertly it is easy to follow.

My thanks to #NetGalley for this free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Such a strong book with a really courageous ending that didn’t need to return to the beginning, or the end depending on how you see it, to over explain. It just ended, and left me wanting more. Thom and Wendy could be anybody but with a shared past loaded with secrets, and an uninspiring present something had to give. It took me a little while to settle into this book as it works its way back to the beginning but I really enjoyed it overall. Thank you to Netgalley for the advance reader copy.

When you push your husband down a flight of stairs, it wasn't intentional was it ?
Is this the first accident? Looking back over the marriage from meeting as teenagers, moving away. Meeting each other again at college but not connecting.
Dissatisfaction with life and the marriage what options are open?

This was a great read full of complicated characters and strained relationships.

Swanson tells the story backwards. We begin by meeting Thom and Wendy, a middle aged couple, as Wendy is considering killing Thom. We get a sense that she is disappointed in him - he drinks too much, tells the same stories over and over again, is maybe a little boring to her. As the story develops we learn that a huge secret has tied them together for decades, and is perhaps the reason why she has put up with so much in her marriage.

Thom has had a string of affairs, which initially seem a bit perplexing. There's no specific reason given, so it seems this is just what he does, even though he appears to love Wendy. But as the story goes on, it seems that Thom may be suffering from trauma as a result of things in his past, and maybe his affairs are a way of blunting those feelings.

I was really drawn in by the telling of how Thom and Wendy's relationship developed, from a meeting on a school trip aged 14 to the present day. It's interesting to read about how the power dynamics between them have changed over time. And there's more to both of them than initially meets the eye.

Swanson is a great storyteller, and the book flows along easily. I found it hard to put down a lot of the time. The characters are completely believable and engaging, and many readers will be able to identify with lots of aspects of this. I don't want to say too much on the plot and give things away, but suffice to say there are enough surprises and secrets revealed along the way to keep the reader's interest.

I would definitely recommend this and thanks to Netgalley for the access.

I've enjoyed many Peter Swanson books but unfortunately Kill Your Darlings wasn't for me. Make no mistake about it, it's a well written book by a skilled writer but it's also a very slow burn, character-driven book and there just personally wasn't enough going on for me and I found myself putting off picking it up. I've read a few books where the story is told in reverse order but in this case, the most 'exciting' part happens fairly early on and everything else is just pretty mundane, so it struggled to hold my attention. I also didn't really connect with or care about any of the characters which didn't help either.

Kill Your Darlings by Peter Swanson

Wendy and Thom were teenage sweethearts and are now in their 50s. How has it come to be that Wendy now wants to murder Thom - his drinking, multiple affairs, or something much more sinister? Starting at the end and working its way back to the beginning when they first met, there are many twists and turns along the way.

I loved this story - funny in places, smart and yet horrifying! This author is new to me but I always love a book about academics and this one was great. Very perceptive observations on human nature, great characters (loved the awful Texas contingent!) and very compelling as more and more of Wendy and Thom's relationship history is revealed. And I LOVED the end! Very highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.

I'm a long time fan of Peter Swanson and I really enjoyed this most recent offering. It was clever and engaging story, and the ending came together quickly and nicely. Good page turner. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance reader copy.

Thank you Faber & Fable and NetGalley for this early copy in exchange for an honest review.

First of all, as a big Peter Swanson fan I was so excited to get approved for this book! Rules for Perfect Murders was masterfully done, so my expectations were high to say the least. Kill Your Darlings didn't quite hit the same, but I do love a dark story with messy characters! Who doesn’t love a couple with a deadly secret and a brewing storm of guilt and betrayal?

The reverse storytelling structure was new for me, kind of gave me Freida McFadden vibes, which I wasn't mad about! It took a little adjustment, but overall I think it worked well for this book, and gave the story a unique rhythm. It definitely helped me get more into the dynamics between Thom and Wendy, and it was interesting to see how their relationship changed throughout the years from 2023 all the way back to primary school. Difficult and miserable characters are my guilty pleasure, and there's plenty of misery to go around in this book, and I LOVE that!

On the other hand, this is one of those stories where the ending is a little predictable, which isn't necessarily bad, but I'm not sure I expected that from Swanson. The tension was well-built, but I was hoping for one last twist or emotional punch that never really came. It also dipped a little into cliché at times, such as the classic “I feel guilty so I’ll drink and sleep around” vibes, but that didn’t take away too much from the experience for me.

Overall, it's a smart and satisfying thriller. Not my favourite Swanson book, but definitely worth the read if you enjoy slow-burning secrets and watching relationships quietly rot from the inside out!

Very good. Clever - but not too clever- travel back in time device unravelling a murderous history which, while not unpredictable, does keep you guessing.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for granting me an ARC of this book.

I’ve given this 3 stars because it did keep my attention and I wasn’t bored. However, I felt like nothing really happened! Strange to say that about a book where at least 2 people are murdered, but there you have it.

Telling the story backwards in time was also fairly difficult to get my head round, and I am not sure if it added anything more to the story.

I was waiting for there to be a twist or a ‘back to the future’ chapter at the end, but it finished fairly abruptly without either.

It’s a quick read (less than 300 pages) so easy to get through, but definitely not as good as previous books I have read by this author.