The writing was fine. The style was casual, such as there was some abrupt sentences and some slang acronym, that I wasn’t a fan of. Turns out that reading nothing but true crime isn't exactly conducive to modern dating--and one woman is going to have to learn how to give love a chance when she's used to suspecting the worst.

Love in the Time of Serial Killers by Alicia Thompson | Goodreads Love in the Time of Serial Killers by Alicia Thompson | Goodreads

I grew fond of Phoebe and her quirks. Her brother was so sweet and of course, the neighbor Sam was totally swoon worthy. I was cheering for all of them to have their HEA. Even though I liked the characters individually, I wasn't super sold on the two of them together. My interest waxed and waned over the course of the story and I wound up just being underwhelmed. When she was a teenager Phoebe’s parents divorced. She left with her mother, and her brother Connor stayed with her father. This scarred her for life. She is closed off to love. She doesn’t trust easily and prefers to be a loner in the company of her serial killer books. Encounter w/ strange man June 3, approx. 2 a.m. White, 5'9", slightly scruffy, shaggy brown hair. Ripped T-shirt, jeans, no shoes. Origin and destination unknown, believed to be night wanderer. There's a lot of exploration of Phoebe as a character and why she views the world the way she does. I actually really enjoyed Phoebe. I liked her dry sense of humor and sort of cynical way of viewing life and love.

It doesn't help that she's low-key convinced that her new neighbour, Sam Dennings, is a serial killer (he may dress business casual by day, but at night he's clearly up to something). But it's not long before Phoebe realises that Sam might be something much scarier - a genuinely nice guy who can pierce her armour to reach her vulnerable heart. They don't know each other as well as you would assume siblings do, just due to the circumstances of their upbringing. Additionally, it can definitely be hard for Phoebe to let down her defenses to connect with people. At this point, she is willing to give it her best shot.

Love in the Time of Serial Killers | Alicia Thompson Love in the Time of Serial Killers | Alicia Thompson

Meanwhile, I felt restless and pent-up and like if I didn't have him inside me right then I would explode. All that said, my biggest complaint was the sheer number of slang and pop culture references. It would’ve been fine if I’d known ALL of the movies, shows, literary references, true crimes, acronyms, etc. that the author used, but since she didn’t explain most of them, it felt like she kept winking and nudging me with her elbow to laugh at her jokes, which I then had to Google for understanding. It pulled me out of the story too often. Love in the Time of Serial Killers is funny, sharp, and thoughtful.” —Sarah Hogle, author of You Deserve Each Other The steam was so surprising! These days it’s super hard to know what you’re gonna get but reader we got dice! The last scene was the hottest and there’s probably enough sex for an unsuspecting Karen to give it a 1⭐️ review. The first scene was short and just this side of explicit but it still worked (because it was more than I was expecting). I was super surprised to get the second scene that we did and it definitely gave the relationship more of an edge and added an extra 🌶. The scenes weren’t super long esp after *penetration* but you had a clear visual of who was doing what and how it was being done and what it was being done with. A little dirty and hot and definitely more than I expected. There were a few other closed door moments. I’d say a little more explicit than the Hating Game and hotter than Beach Read?When I initially spotted this ADORABLE book cover and INTRIGUING title, I just knew I had to read it!! Somehow, Sam had sanded down my cynical edges. I'd built up this armor for so long, and I'd always worried I wouldn't recognize myself without it. But it turned out that I liked who I was with Sam.”