The Kind Worth Killing – Peter Swanson
‘Hello there.’
I looked at the pale, freckled hand on the back of the empty bar seat next to me in the business class lounge of Heathrow airport, then up into the stranger’s face.
‘Do I know you?’
Delayed in London, Ted Severson meets a woman at the airport bar. Over cocktails they tell each other rather more than they should, and a dark plan is hatched – but are either of them being serious, could they actually go through with it and, if they did, what would be their chances of getting away with it?
Back in Boston, Ted’s wife Miranda is busy site managing the construction of their dream home, a beautiful house out on the Maine coastline. But what secrets is she carrying and to what lengths might she go to protect the vision she has of her deserved future?
A sublimely plotted novel of trust and betrayal, The Kind Worth Killing will keep you gripped and guessing late into the night.
My thanks to Sophie at Faber & Faber for my review copy
Can I just write ‘WOW’ and leave it at that? The Kind Worth Killing is a WOW book, it just keeps giving – shocks, twists and that wonderful ‘one more chapter’ element that only the very best of reads can deliver.
Ted Severson meets a woman just before he boards a plane, they get chatting and (under the influence of too much booze) Ted shares too much of his personal worries with this stranger. However rather than this being the end of their acquaintance the couple find themselves sat next to each other on the flight and a plan is hatched that could solve all of Ted’s problems.
Meanwhile Ted’s wife, Miranda, is living the dream, she has snagged a rich husband, is overseeing the redevelopment of a gorgeous house and may just fight tooth and claw to protect her idyllic lifestyle.
If Ted’s problem is Miranda can he make his problem ‘go away’? For Miranda – can she find a way to hang on to all that she holds dear (even if this does not necessarily include Ted)?
A brilliant clash of strong personalities lies ahead. Evil minds will plot and only the most devious will prevail. The police will become involved but such is the duplicity on show that they are clueless and scrabbling around in the dark – they know something is amiss but have no leads to pursue!
In 2014 Sarah Hilary delivered my ‘jaw drop’ moment in Someone Else’s Skin. For 2015 my ‘jaw drop’ accolade goes to Peter Swanson – one scene in The Kind Worth Killing was just so unexpected that I was totally unprepared for what I was reading (and I honestly had no idea where the story was going to head from that point onwards). Once I had recovered from that shock I was so psyched at what I had just read that I was compelled to keep reading, long into the night. I just HAD to know what was going to happen next.
The Kind Worth Killing has more twists than Chubby Checker on a helter-skelter! It is a dream to read and is without any doubt one of the best books I have read for a long, long time.
I am not going to recommend you read The Kind Worth Killing – I am going to tell you that you HAVE to read it! A 5/5 review score goes without saying. Except I did say it (for clarity).
The Kind Worth Killing is published by Faber & Faber and is available in paperback and digital formats: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kind-Worth-Killing-Peter-Swanson/dp/057130222X/ref=tmm_pap_title_0