A review by hellokatya
Love in the Time of Serial Killers by Alicia Thompson

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

i went into this book excited for a romance - the last book i had read felt too focused on the world, rather than on the relationship, felt like a full season of a tv show - i wanted a more focused romance. 

coming out of this book, i was happy that it encompassed both aspects. i got a lot more romance, almost felt nostalgic for the world focus, and still knew what was happening around the central relationship. 

i was not pleased with the ending. while this book will most definitely be put on my top 5 of the year, it could have gone so much higher - especially with the rating. 

i thought the ending, phoebe deciding to cut things off with sam and focus on herself, her career, was such a satisfying and realistic ending. i didn’t want her to throw away her life dreams for a man who was only going to distract her and hold her back. she hadn’t known him long, he had Been distracting her from everything she needed to accomplish, she originally wanted a fling and made that very clear to him ⏤ there weren’t many redeeming factors for her here. she spent the majority of their time together worrying about what it was, although there was a lot of acceptance and love for herself. character growth.


maybe it’s the cynic in me, but i felt the book was more justified with them being apart from eachother and moving on. also, the declaration of love could not make me take it seriously. again, they hardly knew eachother and had only been romantically involved for a few months, most of which she was restating that she did not want and could not give what he was looking for.


i do think her journey of opening herself up to people, breaking down her walls she’s spent so long building, and becoming a better version of herself was truly beautiful. 
she was a very closed off and walled up woman. she would not let people in further than she was comfortable with, and kept everyone an arm’s length away. she was not insecure in her body, but she became more comfortable with her sensuality, and it was beautiful to hear someone outside of a petite build love the way she looks and feels. 

the sex scenes weren’t particularly uncomfortable, but some of the language could’ve been workshopped more. might be a bit of my homosexual preference, but i just was not super interested or particularly entertained by the sexual encounters. 

i would definitely recommend this book. it was a humorous and interesting take on a romance, phoebe felt very real and well rounded. seeing her personal and academic growth put a smile on my face and a took a laugh from my mouth. there were numerous occasions that it was truly laugh out loud funny, i could not have asked for a better book at this point in my reading career.