Kate Weston's "How to Make a Killing" is a sharp, darkly comedic dive into the world of the true crime obsession. The novel follows Daisy, a socially awkward teenager with a who's love of true crime podcasts leads her to a real life mystery at her new boarding school and giving her more than she bargained for.
Weston deftly balances the grim subject matter with some well paced humour through Daisy's ink black cynical internal monologue and the cast of characters she encounters. The pacing is brisk, keeping the reader guessing as Daisy navigates friendship troubles, teenage love , and deadly circumstances. While the plot has its twists and turns, it's the believable voice of a modern teenager that truly shines, the teenage anxiety rings true even if not ever twist is truly believable. The ending is satisfying and near delivers a conclusion to this entertainingly story. "How to Make a Killing" is a genuinely fun and insightful read for anyone who enjoys their mysteries with a side of satire.
Thanks Netgalley

This is a lovely summer read with just enough mystery and murder but lots of humour. The scne is a quanit village with the 2 estate agents,on being all male and one being all female, The men are more interested in playing cricket and socialising while the ladies are all highly ambitious to the extent that they are jealous of each other, they are very catty and very much self aware. The characters were really well described and I can honestly say that I did not like any of them.

A great book with the right degree of mystery and intrigue whilst also being light hearted in places. A good read that keeps you engaged.

🔪 How to Make a Killing by Kate Weston was an entertaining read with a decent mystery, but it didn’t quite grab me fully. A solid 3⭐️ for fans of light crime thrillers.

#BookReview #HowToMakeAKilling #KateWeston #ThreeStarRead #CrimeThriller #BookstagramUK

The perfect beach read! It’s got everything from insta-influencers to cold blooded murder, with female friendships and jealousies a plenty thrown in for good measure.
This is such a fun read, a lovely bit of escapism and lighthearted murder!

Thank you to NetGalley and Headline for this ARC.

This book is about an all female estate agency called Harrington's. Amanda, Bella, Hannah, Olivia and Claire are hugely ambitious and competitive with each other. When Bella is found murdered at a client's open house, there are plenty of motives as she had antagonised everyone. But she was far from being the only one as each one of these women is unlikeable, bitchy and backstabbing. There is certainly no sisterhood or friendship here, however hard Amanda the owner wants to portray that.

To me this book was a huge disappointment. Most of the murders were right at the end, I couldn't find the humour, and each protagonist was just an awful human being. This is a story full of secrets, lies, suspicion and betrayal. The men aren't any better though - they really all deserve each other. The book was overlong and the story could have been wrapped up sooner, especially as the twists were ludicrous.

This is a great read. It takes competitive colleagues to a whole new level. It didn’t exactly go in the direction I was expecting. Weirdly cosy yet dangerous.

The characters were just awful people but exactly what this book needed and I loved them! This is a great book, an easy read with a lot happening. Plenty of dark humour and twists throughout, I really enjoyed this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC in return for my honest and unbiased opinion.

Witty, funny, and who done it. I really enjoyed this book. I love murder mysteries. Estate agents are ones to look out for since they’ll do anything for a sale. Entertainingly gripping as I continued on through the chapters.

3.5 Stars

How to Make a Killing is a chaotic dive into the world of estate agents, full of wit, murder and office drama. The plot dipped a little through the middle, but it’s fast-paced and entertaining throughout. Think Killing Eve meets Selling Sunset, with a British twist!

This was a pretty good story, not my normal choice but it was worth the read.

The characters were likeable and the mystery kept me reading.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for gifting me this arc in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

I've read Kate Weston's adult fiction as well as her YA, and I do prefer her work for a younger audience. I didn't end up loving this one, unfortunately; I just didn't enjoy reading about the characters that the story was about. Don't get me wrong, I was looking forward to reading this one, and the synopsis sounded like something that I usually do enjoy, but I just didn't end up having luck with it in the end.

3.5 stars
Where do I start with this review? At the beginning of this book, I wasn't sure how I felt about it. I was enjoying it but it wasn't anything special. But as I read more I did start to really like this book.
I liked the characters a lot in this. Their friendship and banter throughout was brilliant.
I really enjoyed the witty writing style which had me chuckling for the whole book and I found it to be such a quick read, despite it being over 400 pages.
Having said that, this book really didn't need to be as long as it was. Whilst I did like the characters, by about the 70% mark I was beginning to tire of them slightly. The plot definitely could have been wrapped up quicker in my opinion.
However I did really like the ending. I thought it was well written and it really did draw me back in.
I recommend this if you are looking for a entertaining, fun, easy read that is packed full of drama and gossip.

As someone who works in an Estate Agency albeit not on the front line, after seeing the blurb for How to Make a Killing, of course I was going to read it and what a fabulous read its been with all its dark humour and all the delicious bitchiness among the staff at Harrington Estates. First up there’s Amanda Harrington, owner/yummy mummy/blogger. She runs her agency as a sisterhood and worships at the shrine of Michelle Obama. Then there’s the new girl Bella, all smiles and slyness who will stab you for the sale. She’s pushed out Hannah, the agency’s previous golden girl who ‘shock horror’ since the arrival of Bella has actually had to sell some of her designer handbags to make ends meet. Her bestie in the office is Olivia, on the surface a woman with everything but underneath a seething mass of doubt and insecurities and rounding out the coven is Claire, nice but dim….or is she just a good actress? They’re all just one step from turning on each other in a designer clad, perfumed version of Lord of the Flies so when Bella is suddenly found dead which one of her colleagues finally snapped but then again you can’t forget about her on/off boyfriend Brick, a pretentious artist or her latest client Tom who apparently is a bit of manslut but when the body count starts to rise who’s going to be the next victim.

Told from multiple points of view, and with a fantastic flow to the writing, this entertaining whodunnit was laden with twists and turns and had me absorbed from the opening chapters. None of the characters were particularly likeable but that just just added to their appeal as they plotted and schemed to throw each other into the waiting arms of the law and as for the twist in the tail, and the big reveal as the identity of the homicidal maniac was unmasked, well, kudos to the author, it took me completely by surprise but looking backing and thinking about it, the clues were there.

Thankfully, fiction was definitely stranger than fact in this case…. although perhaps the competition and bitchiness in the office were spot on, we draw the line at actual homicide in our agency…. although a girl can daydream about the many uses of a ‘for sale’ board

How To Make A Killing by Kate Weston was a great read.
The main characters in this funny but dark thriller were typical competitive women selling houses.
Amanda owns the agency and has certain standards, her three employees Olivia, Hannah, Bella and Claire are all the same. They put forward a public face, which is so false! They are not as they seem to the general public!. Slowly but surely we find out almost all we need to know…
They all start vying to sell a million pound property, but Bella, who wins the chance to sell the house, is found dead in the grounds as the open day had just ended.
Brilliant, this story was an easy read but quite funny. I enjoyed it.
Many thanks to Headline Books for the opportunity to read this arc copy via Netgalley. My opinion is my it own.
#Netglley, #HeadlineBooks, #KateElizabethWeston

Kate Weston’s How to Make a Killing is a brilliantly chaotic comedy that had me hooked from the first page. The story centers around what’s meant to be a close-knit team, but it quickly becomes clear that dysfunction runs deep and that’s where the fun begins.

Weston’s writing is razor-sharp and genuinely laugh-out-loud funny. The characters are outrageous in the best way, and the constant twists kept me guessing (and grinning) the whole way through. The mix of dark humour, tension, and unpredictability makes for an irresistible read.

Darkly funny, sharp, and wickedly entertaining ☠️💷. How to Make a Killing is a bold, satirical thriller packed with clever twists, flawed characters, and razor-sharp humour. Kate Weston delivers an addictive, page-turning plot that keeps you guessing while exposing the messy side of ambition. I adored the biting wit and fast-paced drama. Perfect for fans of dark comedies with edge.

A group of five deeply unlikeable female estate agents are in fierce competition with each other. Soon the competition switches from who can sell the most luxury properties to who can live the longest when one of their number dies at an open house event. With lots of twists and turns, this book keeps you guessing. Even though the women are not nice people you end up rooting for some of them! I am so glad I’m not an estate agent, but I did enjoy trying to figure out the groups secrets & whodunnit. Would recommend to anyone who likes a bit of dark humour, murder & office scandal.

How to make a killing is a brilliant book! We all know that estate agents get a bad press and from this you can absolutely tell why! Harrington estates team will literally kill to make a sale!!! Loved it.

This was rather a dark but in places humorous tale of women estate agents. It started with the close knit women working hard for their boss, Amanda. Almost licking her expensive shoes every time she spoke, Bella, Olivia, Hannah and Claire were all determined to be the best employee possible. Of course, this was all a lie as women do not always get along and will do anything for praise from the boss, especially at their colleagues expense. When a huge mansion owned by a very good looking man is potentially to be sold, they almost fall over themselves to be in line for the credit for the sale. However, at an open house event, Bella is found dead in a fountain in the garden. Is it murder? Who was so desperate to remove her from the proceedings to actually kill her? The story becomes more and more bizarre and eventually unravels itself. I personally found it all a bit too ridiculous and I only really laughed at Amanda’s husband’s fetish. The artwork was also something to behold. A lighthearted book albeit full of murder, crime and backstabbing. It’s an easy read that proves that some women are not powerful and tight knit but just out for themselves.