Kill All Your Darlings

By: David Bell

Narrated by: Jon Lindstrom

A Most Anticipated Summer Read by SheReads * Motherly * Palm Beach Daily News * Frolic * Crime Reads and more!

"Fans of Jean Hanff Korelitz’s The Plot may want to check this one out." (Publishers Weekly)

"Sounds like Wonder Boys times Patricia Highsmith. Yes please!" (Crime Reads)

When a student disappears and is presumed dead, her professor passes off her manuscript as his own - only to find out it implicates him in an unsolved murder in this new thriller from the USA Today best-selling author of The Request.

After years of struggling to write following the deaths of his wife and son, English professor Connor Nye publishes his first novel, a thriller about the murder of a young woman.

There’s just one problem: Connor didn’t write the book. His missing student did. And then she appears on his doorstep, alive and well, threatening to expose him.

Connor’s problems escalate when the police insist details in the novel implicate him in an unsolved murder from two years ago. Soon Connor discovers the crime is part of a disturbing scandal on campus and faces an impossible dilemma - admit he didn’t write the book and lose his job or keep up the lie and risk everything. When another murder occurs, Connor must clear his name by unraveling the horrifying secrets buried in his student’s manuscript.

This is a suspenseful, provocative novel about the sexual harassment that still runs rampant in academia - and the lengths those in power will go to cover it up.

©2021 David Bell (P)2021 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"With hints of Patricia Highsmith’s The Talented Mr. Ripley, this is a riveting thriller." (Palm Beach Daily News)

"[A] brisk suspense novel.... Fans of Jean Hanff Korelitz’s The Plot may want to check this one out." (Publishers Weekly)

"Grabs you by the throat and never lets go. Kill All Your Darlings will keep you reading late into the night with a twist you’ll never see coming.” (Liv Constantine, best-selling author of The Last Mrs. Parrish)

“You can’t tell a book by its author”

I wasn’t sure if this book was for me, but I was pleasantly surprised. My first book by David Bell definitely won’t be my last. “Kill All Your Darlings” involves unique mysteries, complete with several intricate and tangled subplots; listen thoroughly; you do not want to miss anything. Though narration by Jon Lindstrom was well presented, I found his vocals a bit off with his female characterizations (then again, perhaps it was me). That certainly did not keep me from listening. Bell and Lindstrom are perfectly paired and I look forward to more thrillers by this skilled duo. Highly recommended with 🍒🍒🍒 on top. Worthy of a treasured credit. I was thrilled to have found it during an Audible sale. Complexellent? Indeed!

✍️👏🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟✍️👏

Average thriller

The storyline was fine. Nothing too shocking or thrilling but decent writing. The characters seemed a little 2 dimensional.

Fizzled out

Really strong and gripping first half, but it started meandering and losing its appeal in the second. It could have been significantly shorter and punchier. A real shame given how interesting the premise is!

Great mystery!!

Definitely a must read! From the very beginning it catches your attention and keeps your attention throughout the whole book! And I can say at the very end I was shocked!
Awesome book David Bell!👍🏼👍🏼😊

I Love It

David Bell is extremely talented, and I am a young aspiring writer myself! He painted the visuals throughout the entire book!

Great listen!

I enjoyed this book very much, as with all of Bell's books. I also thought the narrator did an excellent job! I'm not sure where the title came from, unless I missed it somewhere in the story, but still enjoyed the book, the characters, the story, and love David Bell's books!

The Twists! The Turns!

I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. Loved loved loved it! Bell is a talented story teller!

A good read.

I enjoyed the story line and the different perceptives. Could have been better with a male and female voice for the different characters. But I still found the narrator good.

Interesting story, compelling

Great narration for male voices but not so much for female voices. Distracted me. Good story but I guessed early on who the major perpetrator was although still interesting and a worthy read…

Captive and Exciting

David Bell is a fabulous writer and storyteller. He finds a way to capture your attention from the opening chapter and holds tight to the very end. Kill All Your Darlings takes you on a journey of twists and turns; many you never see coming. The narrator Jon Lindstrom reads in such a way you feel you’re sitting in the room with the characters.