What do you think?
Rate this book
Deadly Animals
WINNER OF THE INTERNATIONAL THRILLER WRITERS AWARD FOR BEST FIRST NOVEL
WINNER OF THE MCDERMID DEBUT AWARD FOR CRIME FICTION
Finding a dead body is not normal. But Ava is not a normal teenager. In this chillingly beautiful mystery, only the obsessive spirit of youth can save a desperate town from the savagery within.
Ava Bonney is a compassionate and studious fourteen-year-old girl with a dark secret: She has an obsessive interest in the macabre and is fascinated by how dead animals decompose. The highway she lives by regularly offers up gifts of roadkill, and in the dead of night Ava loves nothing more than to pull her latest discovery into her roadside den and record her findings.
One night, she stumbles across the body of her classmate. Fearing that her secret ritual could be revealed, she makes an anonymous call to the police. But even when local detectives take over the case, Ava won’t step back—not while teenagers continue to go missing.
Racing alongside the police or against them, Ava is determined to figure out who is hunting her classmates before she becomes the next prey.
WINNER OF THE MCDERMID DEBUT AWARD FOR CRIME FICTION
Finding a dead body is not normal. But Ava is not a normal teenager. In this chillingly beautiful mystery, only the obsessive spirit of youth can save a desperate town from the savagery within.
Ava Bonney is a compassionate and studious fourteen-year-old girl with a dark secret: She has an obsessive interest in the macabre and is fascinated by how dead animals decompose. The highway she lives by regularly offers up gifts of roadkill, and in the dead of night Ava loves nothing more than to pull her latest discovery into her roadside den and record her findings.
One night, she stumbles across the body of her classmate. Fearing that her secret ritual could be revealed, she makes an anonymous call to the police. But even when local detectives take over the case, Ava won’t step back—not while teenagers continue to go missing.
Racing alongside the police or against them, Ava is determined to figure out who is hunting her classmates before she becomes the next prey.
369 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 15, 2024
673 people are currently reading
40483 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,108 reviews
June 11, 2025
4.5* UGH I did not expect to love this as much as I did!
June 12, 2025
Dark, creepy, unbelievably tense at times, sometimes funny, and with a cast of characters I could not get enough of (seriously I hope this is the first in a series)- this was an unputdownable read!!!
It’s about Ava, an unusual girl that has a special interest in animal anatomy, who is perusing her collected burial ground of roadkill, when she stumbles upon the severely mutilated body of a missing boy. What follows is equal parts detective thriller, and coming of age story that follows Ava and her friend as they try to solve the series of grisly murders themselves.
I have to say just as a sort of warning to those seasoned thriller readers 🚨THIS IS PREDICTABLE🚨 so much so that I solved the mystery right at the very beginning when the characters were getting introduced, but I still LOVED IT!!!
This reminded me of one of my favorite shows Happy Valley, in that it was a seriously dark read (I had to put the book last night because the crime scene descriptions upset me so much, it’s SO disturbing and graphic imagining what happened based on the injury details), but as dark as it can be, it’s also kind of endearing and offbeat with the occasional banter and Ava’s and the main detectives inner monologues. Ava was such a compelling narrator that I seriously need a 10 book series ASAP 😂
Yeah, I’m not someone that’s super put off by predicting things, and if you are maybe you might want to steer clear, but I really don’t think this is a book that hinges on the mystery
It’s about Ava, an unusual girl that has a special interest in animal anatomy, who is perusing her collected burial ground of roadkill, when she stumbles upon the severely mutilated body of a missing boy. What follows is equal parts detective thriller, and coming of age story that follows Ava and her friend as they try to solve the series of grisly murders themselves.
I have to say just as a sort of warning to those seasoned thriller readers 🚨THIS IS PREDICTABLE🚨 so much so that I solved the mystery right at the very beginning when the characters were getting introduced, but I still LOVED IT!!!
This reminded me of one of my favorite shows Happy Valley, in that it was a seriously dark read (I had to put the book last night because the crime scene descriptions upset me so much, it’s SO disturbing and graphic imagining what happened based on the injury details), but as dark as it can be, it’s also kind of endearing and offbeat with the occasional banter and Ava’s and the main detectives inner monologues. Ava was such a compelling narrator that I seriously need a 10 book series ASAP 😂
Yeah, I’m not someone that’s super put off by predicting things, and if you are maybe you might want to steer clear, but I really don’t think this is a book that hinges on the mystery
August 11, 2024
4-5 stars
This is the winner of the Val McDermid debut award 2024. Well, if that isn’t a recommendation I don’t know what is.
It’s mid May 1981, the location is Rubery South Birmingham, England. Rubery comes from an old English word- rowbery, meaning rough hill.
13 year old Ava Bonney creeps out of her home late one night to go to her roadkill body farm where she records her observations in her Red Books. Whilst there she makes the shocking discovery of the body of 14 year-old Mickey Grant, who has been missing for two weeks. DS Seth Delahaye is in charge of the difficult murder case and whether he likes it or not, he’ll get Ava’s help. He’ll need it as they’re hunting a monster. Will they discover the perpetrator before another young person goes missing? The story alternates between Ava and Seth.
This is a glide through absorbing read which is very hard to put down. The characters are excellent. Ava is sensational, the way her mind works and her utter brilliance, the huge wealth of knowledge she possesses, her love of animals and their pathology has her best friend John in total awe and ultimately the respect of Delahaye. He is astute and extremely likeable, he’s very kind and empathetic and I like him very much as well as DC Lines who is his partner. We’ll maybe draw a veil over Ava‘s mother Colleen who as mothers go is a pretty poor example. Poor Ava and her sisters have to put up with a lot.
The novel is extremely well written with a carefully thought out plot and told at a pace that matches the unfolding events. It’s dark, moving, shocking, horrifying at times because it takes a macabre turn but there’s bravery of certain characters which stands out amidst the darkness. Whilst the subject matter is very different as it looks at pathology amongst other things it never becomes gratuitous or overblown. The author tells us just enough to understand exactly what is happening.
It captures the context of the time of the early 80s via events, music, language used at the time. It also reflects the local Birmingham parlance.
Overall, this is refreshingly different and I can’t wait to see what happens to these characters next as they’re way too good to be one offs. This is a superb debut and worthy winner of the award.
PS. Why are we using mom throughout?? Apparently according to GR friends from Brum this is what they say! I stand corrected and thank you to those of you who explained! I’m East Midlands (Nottingham) and we say Mum!!!
This is the winner of the Val McDermid debut award 2024. Well, if that isn’t a recommendation I don’t know what is.
It’s mid May 1981, the location is Rubery South Birmingham, England. Rubery comes from an old English word- rowbery, meaning rough hill.
13 year old Ava Bonney creeps out of her home late one night to go to her roadkill body farm where she records her observations in her Red Books. Whilst there she makes the shocking discovery of the body of 14 year-old Mickey Grant, who has been missing for two weeks. DS Seth Delahaye is in charge of the difficult murder case and whether he likes it or not, he’ll get Ava’s help. He’ll need it as they’re hunting a monster. Will they discover the perpetrator before another young person goes missing? The story alternates between Ava and Seth.
This is a glide through absorbing read which is very hard to put down. The characters are excellent. Ava is sensational, the way her mind works and her utter brilliance, the huge wealth of knowledge she possesses, her love of animals and their pathology has her best friend John in total awe and ultimately the respect of Delahaye. He is astute and extremely likeable, he’s very kind and empathetic and I like him very much as well as DC Lines who is his partner. We’ll maybe draw a veil over Ava‘s mother Colleen who as mothers go is a pretty poor example. Poor Ava and her sisters have to put up with a lot.
The novel is extremely well written with a carefully thought out plot and told at a pace that matches the unfolding events. It’s dark, moving, shocking, horrifying at times because it takes a macabre turn but there’s bravery of certain characters which stands out amidst the darkness. Whilst the subject matter is very different as it looks at pathology amongst other things it never becomes gratuitous or overblown. The author tells us just enough to understand exactly what is happening.
It captures the context of the time of the early 80s via events, music, language used at the time. It also reflects the local Birmingham parlance.
Overall, this is refreshingly different and I can’t wait to see what happens to these characters next as they’re way too good to be one offs. This is a superb debut and worthy winner of the award.
PS. Why are we using mom throughout?? Apparently according to GR friends from Brum this is what they say! I stand corrected and thank you to those of you who explained! I’m East Midlands (Nottingham) and we say Mum!!!
December 6, 2024
A brilliant debut, deserving of many 4 & 5-Star reviews!!
Set in 1980s Rubery (South Birmingham), Deadly Animals centers around Ava, who is a fourteen-year-old girl that is anything but normal. She’s exceptionally intelligent and has a secret passion of collecting roadkill during the night and taking them to her special place where she observes the rate of their decomposition and records her findings. Naturally, this is a secret she must keep to herself, as she’s already been labeled as a peculiar child by townsfolk. When Ava is out one evening, she stumbles across the body of a brutally slain classmate and hastily makes an anonymous call to the police to report it. As teenagers in Ava’s town are discovered murdered and posed in eerily similar ways, she is determined to uncover the truth. With her keen intellect and relentless curiosity, Ava races against time to unravel the sinister force threatening her classmates and haunting her community.
This debut novel captivated me with its originality and gripping narrative. Ava, the brilliantly crafted protagonist, was an absolute delight, making it easy to connect with her from the start. Set in a time before the term “serial killer” was coined, the story’s unfolding mystery kept me spellbound as the chilling body count rose. The pacing intensified alongside the unraveling of the dark secrets, creating an atmosphere of relentless tension that made the book virtually impossible to put down!
This book isn’t for the squeamish, as it includes graphic depictions of violence involving children and animals. However, if you can handle the intensity, you’ll be rewarded with a gripping thriller that’s hard to forget. It’s already a standout read for 2024 and has firmly placed Tierney among my favorite authors. Her storytelling is masterful, and I couldn’t recommend this book more for those who enjoy dark, suspenseful novels!
Set in 1980s Rubery (South Birmingham), Deadly Animals centers around Ava, who is a fourteen-year-old girl that is anything but normal. She’s exceptionally intelligent and has a secret passion of collecting roadkill during the night and taking them to her special place where she observes the rate of their decomposition and records her findings. Naturally, this is a secret she must keep to herself, as she’s already been labeled as a peculiar child by townsfolk. When Ava is out one evening, she stumbles across the body of a brutally slain classmate and hastily makes an anonymous call to the police to report it. As teenagers in Ava’s town are discovered murdered and posed in eerily similar ways, she is determined to uncover the truth. With her keen intellect and relentless curiosity, Ava races against time to unravel the sinister force threatening her classmates and haunting her community.
This debut novel captivated me with its originality and gripping narrative. Ava, the brilliantly crafted protagonist, was an absolute delight, making it easy to connect with her from the start. Set in a time before the term “serial killer” was coined, the story’s unfolding mystery kept me spellbound as the chilling body count rose. The pacing intensified alongside the unraveling of the dark secrets, creating an atmosphere of relentless tension that made the book virtually impossible to put down!
This book isn’t for the squeamish, as it includes graphic depictions of violence involving children and animals. However, if you can handle the intensity, you’ll be rewarded with a gripping thriller that’s hard to forget. It’s already a standout read for 2024 and has firmly placed Tierney among my favorite authors. Her storytelling is masterful, and I couldn’t recommend this book more for those who enjoy dark, suspenseful novels!
October 2, 2024
(Rounded down from 2.5)
I am seeing the many great reviews for this debut novel and I am glad people are enjoying it, but it didn’t do it for me.
Starting positive: I enjoyed the main character quite a bit. Due to the structure of the narration, we didn’t spend as much time with her as I would have liked, especially in the back half of the story. But I thought she was interesting, unapologetic, confident, and had a rich set of relationships, some of which were complicated and problematic and others of which were uplifting and empowering for her. So, I liked her quite a bit, and while we didn’t get to spend much time with most of them she had an interesting collection of other children as ancillary characters around her. Additionally, I thought the writing itself was, overall, good. For the most part it didn’t feel forced, the dialogue felt genuine, and it suited the story being told.
Other than that, well, I had some problems. While I liked that the chapters switch POV, giving us the adult/detective perspective along with the child’s, the adult perspective was often dense and dull. And this narrative technique didn’t make the book feel urgent, instead it felt like it dragged on, way longer than it needed to. The pacing really made this difficult. Especially as the killer was pretty clearly indicated at somewhere like 30% - 40% into the story. At first I thought it might be a red herring, but then it just felt like all the “clues” were hitting me and all of the characters over the head again and again, without any other potential culprits. Knowing the killer that early can still make for a tense game of cat and mouse, but that wasn’t the case here, it felt like it just made everything slower, and frustration with the characters get more pronounced. The world building and setting felt really generic. I could place it in any small town in the early 80s, sure, but nothing felt specific or really brought me to that time or space. The adult characters all felt like caricatures. Firstly, the amount of disclosure and child endangerment to a 14-year-old child was appalling, especially but not including he final sequences of the story, even for 40 years ago. Plus, there was what felt like an apotheosis of the police, every one of them always a shining example of doing the right thing, and yet they also seemed wildly inadequate at their jobs in any meaningful way. Often stories with child protagonists have somewhat incompetent adults, that is a familiar trope, but here it felt like we were expected to side with them and be impressed by them, our protagonist was, she never felt she was working against them, and that just made them more frustrating. And while the actual culprit and their motivations were interesting enough, it was laid on really think in the final chapter and the epilogue in a way that felt a little icky. It is hard to really say why without spoilers but what could have been an interesting psychological grey area was just given a heavy-handed black & white solution that basically absolved individuals for things in ways that felt unsatisfying and felt like it was kneecapping the more complicated and messier ending she had created. I think these things piling up are what turned me off, as any one or two of them would have been fine… But mediocre world-building, slow and drawn-out pacing, a mystery that isn’t much of a mystery from very early in the story, poorly developed and unbelievable adult characters, and this attempt at the end to have your cake and eat it too that just neutered the potentially interesting psychological exploration of the culprit… Add all of these together and it just made the whole back half of the book somewhat of a chore, and not very satisfying at that.
The main character is really promising, as are many of the (child) ancillary characters. And while the culprit was very obvious, none of the clues or indicators subtle, the overall idea behind the murders and violence and pathology also had a lot of potential. If the story was a little faster paced, the clues a little more subtle, a few more (believable) red herrings thrown in, and the adults not be cartoonish, and it would have been a really stellar read. So, no, it didn’t work for me, but it feels like there is a lot of potential and it is still impressive as a debut novel. And it was willing to violently murder children, which not everyone is willing to do, so the author definitely gets kudos for being willing to go there. Hopefully her future work will be tighter and hit a little harder for me.
I want to thank the author, the publisher Henry Holt & Company, and NetGalley, who provided a complimentary eARC for review. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I am seeing the many great reviews for this debut novel and I am glad people are enjoying it, but it didn’t do it for me.
Starting positive: I enjoyed the main character quite a bit. Due to the structure of the narration, we didn’t spend as much time with her as I would have liked, especially in the back half of the story. But I thought she was interesting, unapologetic, confident, and had a rich set of relationships, some of which were complicated and problematic and others of which were uplifting and empowering for her. So, I liked her quite a bit, and while we didn’t get to spend much time with most of them she had an interesting collection of other children as ancillary characters around her. Additionally, I thought the writing itself was, overall, good. For the most part it didn’t feel forced, the dialogue felt genuine, and it suited the story being told.
Other than that, well, I had some problems. While I liked that the chapters switch POV, giving us the adult/detective perspective along with the child’s, the adult perspective was often dense and dull. And this narrative technique didn’t make the book feel urgent, instead it felt like it dragged on, way longer than it needed to. The pacing really made this difficult. Especially as the killer was pretty clearly indicated at somewhere like 30% - 40% into the story. At first I thought it might be a red herring, but then it just felt like all the “clues” were hitting me and all of the characters over the head again and again, without any other potential culprits. Knowing the killer that early can still make for a tense game of cat and mouse, but that wasn’t the case here, it felt like it just made everything slower, and frustration with the characters get more pronounced. The world building and setting felt really generic. I could place it in any small town in the early 80s, sure, but nothing felt specific or really brought me to that time or space. The adult characters all felt like caricatures. Firstly, the amount of disclosure and child endangerment to a 14-year-old child was appalling, especially but not including he final sequences of the story, even for 40 years ago. Plus, there was what felt like an apotheosis of the police, every one of them always a shining example of doing the right thing, and yet they also seemed wildly inadequate at their jobs in any meaningful way. Often stories with child protagonists have somewhat incompetent adults, that is a familiar trope, but here it felt like we were expected to side with them and be impressed by them, our protagonist was, she never felt she was working against them, and that just made them more frustrating. And while the actual culprit and their motivations were interesting enough, it was laid on really think in the final chapter and the epilogue in a way that felt a little icky. It is hard to really say why without spoilers but what could have been an interesting psychological grey area was just given a heavy-handed black & white solution that basically absolved individuals for things in ways that felt unsatisfying and felt like it was kneecapping the more complicated and messier ending she had created. I think these things piling up are what turned me off, as any one or two of them would have been fine… But mediocre world-building, slow and drawn-out pacing, a mystery that isn’t much of a mystery from very early in the story, poorly developed and unbelievable adult characters, and this attempt at the end to have your cake and eat it too that just neutered the potentially interesting psychological exploration of the culprit… Add all of these together and it just made the whole back half of the book somewhat of a chore, and not very satisfying at that.
The main character is really promising, as are many of the (child) ancillary characters. And while the culprit was very obvious, none of the clues or indicators subtle, the overall idea behind the murders and violence and pathology also had a lot of potential. If the story was a little faster paced, the clues a little more subtle, a few more (believable) red herrings thrown in, and the adults not be cartoonish, and it would have been a really stellar read. So, no, it didn’t work for me, but it feels like there is a lot of potential and it is still impressive as a debut novel. And it was willing to violently murder children, which not everyone is willing to do, so the author definitely gets kudos for being willing to go there. Hopefully her future work will be tighter and hit a little harder for me.
I want to thank the author, the publisher Henry Holt & Company, and NetGalley, who provided a complimentary eARC for review. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
May 14, 2024
Ava is a precocious 13 year old girl with an intense interest in forensics and the various stages of decomposition. To aid this interest she studies roadkill and makes careful notes, and it's late one night, during a study of one of her "subjects", that she discovers the concealed body of a missing local boy.
I enjoyed this so much, an intriguing tale filled with engaging characters, perhaps a little suspension of disbelief required, but a cracking read nonetheless. Ava's a great character, well read and wise beyond her years, I loved that she showed such respect for the deceased animals she studied. I also loved that it was set in Birmingham in 1981, I spent a lot of time there in the early 80s, the familiar slang was a joy, I was born and raised in nearby Worcester, and it reminded me of home.
Worth bearing in mind, the story is perhaps not for everyone, there are detailed descriptions of harm to both children and animals, harrowing and heartbreaking at times, so reader discretion required.
This debut novel has been my best read of the year so far so I'm eagerly on the lookout for Marie Tierney's next book.
All the shiny stars for this one ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I enjoyed this so much, an intriguing tale filled with engaging characters, perhaps a little suspension of disbelief required, but a cracking read nonetheless. Ava's a great character, well read and wise beyond her years, I loved that she showed such respect for the deceased animals she studied. I also loved that it was set in Birmingham in 1981, I spent a lot of time there in the early 80s, the familiar slang was a joy, I was born and raised in nearby Worcester, and it reminded me of home.
Worth bearing in mind, the story is perhaps not for everyone, there are detailed descriptions of harm to both children and animals, harrowing and heartbreaking at times, so reader discretion required.
This debut novel has been my best read of the year so far so I'm eagerly on the lookout for Marie Tierney's next book.
All the shiny stars for this one ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
August 19, 2025
Загалом люблю такі історії, коли діти допомагають із розслідуванням і є дуже розумними, але тут це вже видавалося трохи казковим + психологізм не дотягнув. Книжка не маленька, але було багато ходінь туди-сюди, які можна було б замінити соціальним аспектом, який на початку почала прописувати авторка, а тоді, мабуть, забула 🥲
April 14, 2025
Dla mnie mistrzostwo: świetna, wciągająca historia i do tego totalnie klimatyczna oraz odjechana.
February 24, 2024
What a debut! I haven't read anything that held my attention like this for a long while. It's definitely worthy of more than a five star rating, it was absolutely brilliant and my new favourite crime novel!
It was such an absorbing plot and with the chapters being fairly short, it was all too easy to keep on reading into the early hours.
Ava was such a fascinating character and her passion for bones and decomposing animals was fascinating, albeit a little bit of a strange hobby for a young girl.
Deadly Animals is a phenomenal book by a promising new author who's future works I'll definitely be investing in!
It was such an absorbing plot and with the chapters being fairly short, it was all too easy to keep on reading into the early hours.
Ava was such a fascinating character and her passion for bones and decomposing animals was fascinating, albeit a little bit of a strange hobby for a young girl.
Deadly Animals is a phenomenal book by a promising new author who's future works I'll definitely be investing in!
November 12, 2024
[TW/CW: Gory scenes, blood, graphic sexual abuse, toxic family relationships, underage sexual abuse]
*****SPOILERS*****
About the book:
Fourteen-year-old Ava Bonney is unlike other children. She has an obsessive interest in the rate at which dead animals decompose. The motorway she lives by regularly offers up roadkill, and in the dead of night, Ava likes nothing more than to pull her latest discovery into her roadside den and record her findings.
One night, she stumbles across the body of her classmate Mickey Grant, and fearing that her secret ritual could be revealed, she makes an anonymous call to the police. When Detective Seth Delahaye is given the case, Ava won’t step back—not when teenagers in her sleepy South Birmingham town are going missing.
Release Date: November 12th, 2024
Genre: Mystery
Pages: 368
Rating: ⭐
What I Liked:
1. Cover is pretty
2. Lots of in-depth character development
3. Some parts of book interesting
What I Didn't Like:
1. Boring
2. So unbelievably slow
3. Found myself not caring about characters
Final Thoughts:
Perhaps the problem with this book lies with me. I found this book very slow and boring. I found myself wondering about other things as I was reading it. There's a lot to digest in this book and I think I stopped carrying 20% into it. The characters have a lot of in-depth descriptions and I never felt like they were underwritten, but I just didn't care about who did it or why they did it, which if you don't care about those things then the book's not for you.
There is a lot of sensitive subject matter in this book such as sexual assault of minors that really is just kind of joked about at certain points in the book. Those parts made me feel uncomfortable. I don't think two PC Detectives would be making jokes of a situation of this matter
I got 50% into this book before I decided it wasn't for me and I was just going to dnf it.
IG | Blog
Thanks to Netgalley and Henry Holt and Co for the ebook & thanks to Macmillan Audio for the audiobook. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
*****SPOILERS*****
About the book:
Fourteen-year-old Ava Bonney is unlike other children. She has an obsessive interest in the rate at which dead animals decompose. The motorway she lives by regularly offers up roadkill, and in the dead of night, Ava likes nothing more than to pull her latest discovery into her roadside den and record her findings.
One night, she stumbles across the body of her classmate Mickey Grant, and fearing that her secret ritual could be revealed, she makes an anonymous call to the police. When Detective Seth Delahaye is given the case, Ava won’t step back—not when teenagers in her sleepy South Birmingham town are going missing.
Release Date: November 12th, 2024
Genre: Mystery
Pages: 368
Rating: ⭐
What I Liked:
1. Cover is pretty
2. Lots of in-depth character development
3. Some parts of book interesting
What I Didn't Like:
1. Boring
2. So unbelievably slow
3. Found myself not caring about characters
Final Thoughts:
Perhaps the problem with this book lies with me. I found this book very slow and boring. I found myself wondering about other things as I was reading it. There's a lot to digest in this book and I think I stopped carrying 20% into it. The characters have a lot of in-depth descriptions and I never felt like they were underwritten, but I just didn't care about who did it or why they did it, which if you don't care about those things then the book's not for you.
There is a lot of sensitive subject matter in this book such as sexual assault of minors that really is just kind of joked about at certain points in the book. Those parts made me feel uncomfortable. I don't think two PC Detectives would be making jokes of a situation of this matter
I got 50% into this book before I decided it wasn't for me and I was just going to dnf it.
IG | Blog
Thanks to Netgalley and Henry Holt and Co for the ebook & thanks to Macmillan Audio for the audiobook. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
September 21, 2024
It's a great book. I did like the main character Ava, who's 13, but has a head for science. When young boys start to go missing and are then found murdered, Ava investigates. She forms a connection to the main detective, Delaheye. Ava is fascinated by decay and anatomy, She finds 2 bodies with one she preserves evidence. Whilst I did love Avas relationship with the police I also do not believe that they would have shared the detail they did with her. I did guess the murderer early on, but this did not affect my enjoyment of the read. It's a super gory debut.
September 4, 2024
This was definitely a unique tale that I would classify as thriller/ horror/ police procedural.
Ava is a a fourteen-year- old girl with an obsession with the bones of animals. One night she sneaks out to visit her roadkill collection and instead finds the body of a boy who has been brutally murdered.
Detective Dalahaye visits Ava for information and she soon assists the police with her knowledge as she finds another boys body. Who is killing these boys and could it be a wild animal? Wolf or human?
I really loved Ava’s and Delahaye’s characters! Their relationship was neat to watch unfold. Tierney did a fantastic job with characterization and I really look forward to reading more by her.
This is perfect for spooky season. Be aware of TRIGGER WARNINGS— child death, brutal murders, child abuse
Thank you so very much @henryholtbooks and @marie.Tierney971 for my awesome copy! I loved it!
4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Ava is a a fourteen-year- old girl with an obsession with the bones of animals. One night she sneaks out to visit her roadkill collection and instead finds the body of a boy who has been brutally murdered.
Detective Dalahaye visits Ava for information and she soon assists the police with her knowledge as she finds another boys body. Who is killing these boys and could it be a wild animal? Wolf or human?
I really loved Ava’s and Delahaye’s characters! Their relationship was neat to watch unfold. Tierney did a fantastic job with characterization and I really look forward to reading more by her.
This is perfect for spooky season. Be aware of TRIGGER WARNINGS— child death, brutal murders, child abuse
Thank you so very much @henryholtbooks and @marie.Tierney971 for my awesome copy! I loved it!
4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
May 26, 2025
Це було дуже цікаво, і здається це перша прочитана мною книжка, де головній героїні 13 років і вона якось пов'язана з розслідуванням. Було б 5 балів якби не одне але, а саме те, що всі акцентували увагу на педофілі, ніби це він вбивав, але це ж занадто очевидно, і я б ще зрозуміла якби був сексуальний мотив, але ж ні, і я так до кінця не зрозуміла де він подівся, бо десь на половині книжці він був, а потім зник і його не знайшли. Натяк на хто може бути вбивцею був ще на початку, якщо не помиляюсь, і це сказала навіть сама Ейва, то я не здивована якось, але чомусь слідчі на початку навіть і не думали про це, окей може це і виглядає як щось неможливе, але ж можливо. Саме цікавий для мене факт був той, що тут були 2 підозрюваних і тільки через те, що один педофіл, а інший мав якусь сварку з вбитими, якось мало тут підозрюваних було, і здається підозрювали чоловіка з спецзакладу, у якого Альцгеймер, якщо не помиляюсь з діагнозом. Тобто, а людина, яка виглядає звичайно для них не аргумент? Тобто, підозрювати треба тільки тих, хто якось виділяється😀
January 17, 2025
This one was a little slow for me. The narration didn’t do much to get me excited to keep listening, it was a little dry and monotone. The story was pretty good and had promise but it felt more convoluted than was necessary which made me lose focus more than a few times. Thanks to NetGalley for the chance to review!
February 29, 2024
So first things first: if you are sensitive to the deaths of animals (see title) or the deaths of children (see plot description), you may wish to stay clear. There’s also a certain gruesomeness about much of it.
That being said, it’s a fabulous book!
Ava is wonderful. Somehow the author manages to create a girl who has such dark interests and make her positive and charming! I also liked so many of our other characters.
Now, I will admit that I realized our *who* way too early in the book. The problem was that I adored them and kept hoping against hope that I was wrong. But while there was a soupçon of disappointment in that, it didn’t ruin the read for me. Instead, I was still rapt – just a mixture of rapt and incredibly saddened.
Dark as the book is, it’s full of engaging characters, fabulous friendships (some unexpected), and a plot that becomes a real adventure.
There’s room for a sequel here and I truly hope the author brings us back to this world!
• ARC via Publisher
That being said, it’s a fabulous book!
Ava is wonderful. Somehow the author manages to create a girl who has such dark interests and make her positive and charming! I also liked so many of our other characters.
Now, I will admit that I realized our *who* way too early in the book. The problem was that I adored them and kept hoping against hope that I was wrong. But while there was a soupçon of disappointment in that, it didn’t ruin the read for me. Instead, I was still rapt – just a mixture of rapt and incredibly saddened.
Dark as the book is, it’s full of engaging characters, fabulous friendships (some unexpected), and a plot that becomes a real adventure.
There’s room for a sequel here and I truly hope the author brings us back to this world!
• ARC via Publisher
February 16, 2024
AD/PR - 4.5* - When I saw that Chris Whitaker (author of my fave crime thriller EVER - We Begin At The End) called Deadly Animals “Exceptional in every way” and “a shockingly beautiful, rare and heartbreaking gem” I just had to have it! I’m happy to report he was absolutely right. What a debut and such an exciting new talent in crime fiction! This book is brilliant and brings something new to the genre that I’ve never seen before!
Ava is a truly wonderful and fascinating main character. Yes she has a macabre hobby of studying animal decomposition, but she only uses already dead specimens. She’s fiercely intelligent for an adult never mind a thirteen year old and I learned so much from her facts and knowledge! DS Delahaye is the perfect balance to her character and allows us to see events from the police side. I loved his interactions with Ava too! This dual PoV worked so well and kept the plot moving at a fast pace. I also thought the setting of 1980’s Birmingham really added to the gritty vibe.
Deadly Animals is detailed in its descriptions of murder and dead bodies with forensic detail and pathology but never feels gratuitous and I was morbidly fascinated by it all. The plot kept me totally absorbed and I loved how it all played out and came together. I soooo hope this becomes a series because Ava is too interesting and incredible a character to leave at one book!
Overall a dark and very twisted tale that’s gruesome in places and totally addictive. It’s a completely fresh twist on the crime thriller genre and also manages to be both funny and heartbreaking despite its gory subject!
Ava is a truly wonderful and fascinating main character. Yes she has a macabre hobby of studying animal decomposition, but she only uses already dead specimens. She’s fiercely intelligent for an adult never mind a thirteen year old and I learned so much from her facts and knowledge! DS Delahaye is the perfect balance to her character and allows us to see events from the police side. I loved his interactions with Ava too! This dual PoV worked so well and kept the plot moving at a fast pace. I also thought the setting of 1980’s Birmingham really added to the gritty vibe.
Deadly Animals is detailed in its descriptions of murder and dead bodies with forensic detail and pathology but never feels gratuitous and I was morbidly fascinated by it all. The plot kept me totally absorbed and I loved how it all played out and came together. I soooo hope this becomes a series because Ava is too interesting and incredible a character to leave at one book!
Overall a dark and very twisted tale that’s gruesome in places and totally addictive. It’s a completely fresh twist on the crime thriller genre and also manages to be both funny and heartbreaking despite its gory subject!
January 1, 2025
*Oh Ava*
I just adored the main character Ava, at 13 years old she is bright beyond her years. She is bold and stronger than some of the boys re death or her hobby of collecting roadkill.
She has no interest in playing at school when she can find roadkill and study them. She is fascinated with how they die and the decomposition process.
The one thing that I love about her is that she does not care about what people think of her. She does her thing and she has a natural enquiring mind.
She loves to sneak out at night and on one such occasion, she stumbles upon a body. It is someone she knows well.
Ava calls it in and gives a false name and changes her voice.
When detective Delahaye gets to the victim he is shocked. This case will be like no other. The body looks like it has been ravaged. There is a reason for this, I will not divulge.
But, Ava seems unaffected by what she found and she also stumbles upon another body. She treats this next case with so much care and she is determined to find out who or what is behind it.
I love how she forms a trusting relationship with detective Delahaye. He is onto to her and she knows it as he does not want her to put herself in danger. She finds clues and this in turn helps the police.
This to me is a strong debut. The author mentions that there will be a book two. I for one will be adding it to my list as and when it is available.
I just adored the main character Ava, at 13 years old she is bright beyond her years. She is bold and stronger than some of the boys re death or her hobby of collecting roadkill.
She has no interest in playing at school when she can find roadkill and study them. She is fascinated with how they die and the decomposition process.
The one thing that I love about her is that she does not care about what people think of her. She does her thing and she has a natural enquiring mind.
She loves to sneak out at night and on one such occasion, she stumbles upon a body. It is someone she knows well.
Ava calls it in and gives a false name and changes her voice.
When detective Delahaye gets to the victim he is shocked. This case will be like no other. The body looks like it has been ravaged. There is a reason for this, I will not divulge.
But, Ava seems unaffected by what she found and she also stumbles upon another body. She treats this next case with so much care and she is determined to find out who or what is behind it.
I love how she forms a trusting relationship with detective Delahaye. He is onto to her and she knows it as he does not want her to put herself in danger. She finds clues and this in turn helps the police.
This to me is a strong debut. The author mentions that there will be a book two. I for one will be adding it to my list as and when it is available.
July 4, 2024
Good lord this made me angry.
Very readable and I was very engaged through the first half, despite some occasionally clumsy writing and Tierney’s outrageously sympathetic description of the police force. The main detective character, Delahye, mentions leaving the Met after an anti corruption effort because it made working there so complicated… I mean come on! There’s another scene where all the local cops show up to symbolically mourn at the house of a dead child. This veneration of the police, who act consistently heroic throughout, is totally unrealistic. (Ironically by the end Delahye also makes some fairly unprofessional decisions in his conduct toward the main teen character, but it’s clear this is supposed to be a good thing.)
I did really love Ava, that teen, which kept me engaged with the book for a long while: she’s precocious but I found her believable, and her appetite for gore combined with her complex family situation felt distinct but real to me. Unfortunately, the book veers into some implausible places as it nears its conclusion, and Ava is sidelined for a while, and then given way too much access to police information. There’s a way to take a young character seriously while also acknowledging that she remains a child.
I was most of all troubled by the implication that the murderer’s actions
Very readable and I was very engaged through the first half, despite some occasionally clumsy writing and Tierney’s outrageously sympathetic description of the police force. The main detective character, Delahye, mentions leaving the Met after an anti corruption effort because it made working there so complicated… I mean come on! There’s another scene where all the local cops show up to symbolically mourn at the house of a dead child. This veneration of the police, who act consistently heroic throughout, is totally unrealistic. (Ironically by the end Delahye also makes some fairly unprofessional decisions in his conduct toward the main teen character, but it’s clear this is supposed to be a good thing.)
I did really love Ava, that teen, which kept me engaged with the book for a long while: she’s precocious but I found her believable, and her appetite for gore combined with her complex family situation felt distinct but real to me. Unfortunately, the book veers into some implausible places as it nears its conclusion, and Ava is sidelined for a while, and then given way too much access to police information. There’s a way to take a young character seriously while also acknowledging that she remains a child.
I was most of all troubled by the implication that the murderer’s actions
August 16, 2024
Deadly Animals is an original, unusual and interesting crime novel.
Set in Birmingham in the 1980s, there's much to appreciate: the exploration of friendship and kindness amid darkness, particularly evident in the bond formed between Seth Delahaye, the lead detective on a murder case, and 13 year old Ava Bonney who is a highly unusual young person; and lots of convincing period detail and social commentary.
A great debut novel from Marie Tierney and I would guess the two lead characters are going to reappear in the future. It would be criminal to leave their obvious potential unfulfilled.
4/5
Set in Birmingham in the 1980s, there's much to appreciate: the exploration of friendship and kindness amid darkness, particularly evident in the bond formed between Seth Delahaye, the lead detective on a murder case, and 13 year old Ava Bonney who is a highly unusual young person; and lots of convincing period detail and social commentary.
A great debut novel from Marie Tierney and I would guess the two lead characters are going to reappear in the future. It would be criminal to leave their obvious potential unfulfilled.
4/5
August 25, 2024
Very frustrating read because I was SO excited starting this book, it completely grabbed me and I loved how vivid but uncensored the writing style was. Thing is, I have no idea what happened around the two-thirds mark? It’s as if two different people wrote this book!! Just got really stupidly weird, and unfortunately completely lost me by the end of the final act
Clear wrongdoer, which in the beginning really didn’t spoil it for me, but started to get annoying as neither the genius 13 year old pathologist nor the professional police detective noticed increasingly obvious signs
Idk, first two thirds were an EASY five stars, last third was like two if I’m being generous
Clear wrongdoer, which in the beginning really didn’t spoil it for me, but started to get annoying as neither the genius 13 year old pathologist nor the professional police detective noticed increasingly obvious signs
Idk, first two thirds were an EASY five stars, last third was like two if I’m being generous
March 22, 2024
FINALLY my first 5 star book of 2024!! So happy I could cry 😭
Listened to the audiobook and I was COMPLETELY taken in and transported to Birmingham in the 80s.
This story is insanely dark and twisted, but oh-so-addictive.
Very much on the lookout for Marie Tierney's next book (and I hear it's still mostly the same characters a little older 👀)
Listened to the audiobook and I was COMPLETELY taken in and transported to Birmingham in the 80s.
This story is insanely dark and twisted, but oh-so-addictive.
Very much on the lookout for Marie Tierney's next book (and I hear it's still mostly the same characters a little older 👀)
March 18, 2025
4.5*
Deadly Animals is a dark and intriguing read, told from the perspective of 13-year-old Ava Bonney, a resident of a housing estate in 1981 Birmingham.
During the summer, three local boys disappear and are later found dead and mutilated in secluded areas around the suburb of Rubery. These are areas well-known to Ava Bonney, a curious and intelligent child who has an unusual fascination with the process via which dead animals decompose. She's not bloodthirsty, by any means, and treats the dead roadkill with reverence and respect while recording the process of skeletonization in her red notebook.
Ava's proclivities mean that her nocturnal excursions around Rubery mirror those of the killer, leading her to discover the bodies of the first two victims. Her inclination not to involve herself doesn't extend to keeping her discoveries hidden from the police, however, and she adopts a "posh" adult woman's persona to phone in the location of the body, and later additional information that she thinks will help the police. She displays a remarkable level of common sense and the principles of crime scene management when she and her best friend John discover the second body together.
Over the course of the police investigation Ava develops a bond with Detective Sergeant Seth Delahaye, who recognises in Ava an uncanny crime-solving ability. In parallel, they investigate the dark series of crimes and apparent connection to a now-abandoned dog-breeding property nearby.
Deadly Animals is an engrossing read with a brilliant central character, bringing to mind Alan Bradley's popular series featuring precocious teenage sleuth Flavia de Luce. Marie Tierney creates a convincing yet not overly-nostalgic setting in 1980s Britain, which resonated with me, as I lived in the UK as a child over that period.
Deadly Animals is the deserving winner of the Val McDermid Award for Best Debut at the prestigious Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Awards in 2024. I'd highly recommend it to any reader who enjoys dark, twisty crime fiction and protagonists who bring a little light and joy to the gloom.
Deadly Animals is a dark and intriguing read, told from the perspective of 13-year-old Ava Bonney, a resident of a housing estate in 1981 Birmingham.
During the summer, three local boys disappear and are later found dead and mutilated in secluded areas around the suburb of Rubery. These are areas well-known to Ava Bonney, a curious and intelligent child who has an unusual fascination with the process via which dead animals decompose. She's not bloodthirsty, by any means, and treats the dead roadkill with reverence and respect while recording the process of skeletonization in her red notebook.
Ava's proclivities mean that her nocturnal excursions around Rubery mirror those of the killer, leading her to discover the bodies of the first two victims. Her inclination not to involve herself doesn't extend to keeping her discoveries hidden from the police, however, and she adopts a "posh" adult woman's persona to phone in the location of the body, and later additional information that she thinks will help the police. She displays a remarkable level of common sense and the principles of crime scene management when she and her best friend John discover the second body together.
Over the course of the police investigation Ava develops a bond with Detective Sergeant Seth Delahaye, who recognises in Ava an uncanny crime-solving ability. In parallel, they investigate the dark series of crimes and apparent connection to a now-abandoned dog-breeding property nearby.
Deadly Animals is an engrossing read with a brilliant central character, bringing to mind Alan Bradley's popular series featuring precocious teenage sleuth Flavia de Luce. Marie Tierney creates a convincing yet not overly-nostalgic setting in 1980s Britain, which resonated with me, as I lived in the UK as a child over that period.
Deadly Animals is the deserving winner of the Val McDermid Award for Best Debut at the prestigious Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Awards in 2024. I'd highly recommend it to any reader who enjoys dark, twisty crime fiction and protagonists who bring a little light and joy to the gloom.
August 19, 2025
I wanted to love this one as the female main character is intelligently disturbing, but the killer is revealed so early on that it made the rest of the book seem pointless. There are times when the killer can be identified early in a story, but the author has to make the rest of the book super interesting to keep my attention and sadly that wasn’t the case here. I will say though that as a debut I found Deadly Animals to be very unique. But the lack of mystery made it feel sort of boring as the story progresses. Would I recommend it? Maybe. You need to have a strong stomach and be fine with a mystery that isn’t hard to figure out.
𝗠𝗬 𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚: ⭐⭐⭐
𝗠𝗬 𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚: ⭐⭐⭐
June 17, 2025
I listened to this over the weekend while I was working and although it kept me interested, I felt something was missing. I can’t quite put my finger on it though…..
The narrator was great and although the listening time was just over 12 hours long I flew through it. I loved Ava’s character so much and thought the story overall was quite interesting. I guessed the murderer early on because of the obvious clues the writer left and I’m thinking you’ll likely figure it out early on too but that’s all I’ll say because I don’t want to spoil it for you 😉
The narrator was great and although the listening time was just over 12 hours long I flew through it. I loved Ava’s character so much and thought the story overall was quite interesting. I guessed the murderer early on because of the obvious clues the writer left and I’m thinking you’ll likely figure it out early on too but that’s all I’ll say because I don’t want to spoil it for you 😉
November 12, 2024
Deadly Animals (audio): with bonus author interview at the end
3⭐️
Overall I liked the story and would recommend to others who enjoy thriller with a splash of horror (tw: animal and children deaths). This was a rare instance where I think I would have liked the ebook version over audiobook. Nothing against the narrator! She did a fabulous job. But I found it difficult to focus for this one. I struggled to keep some of the secondary/minor characters straight due to my lack of focus, but if I were reading it I could back track and double check things easier. I think I would have really liked this as a short story.
Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this audio ARC. This review will be shared on NetGalley, Goodreads, and Amazon.
Audio Pub Date Nov 12 2024
3⭐️
Overall I liked the story and would recommend to others who enjoy thriller with a splash of horror (tw: animal and children deaths). This was a rare instance where I think I would have liked the ebook version over audiobook. Nothing against the narrator! She did a fabulous job. But I found it difficult to focus for this one. I struggled to keep some of the secondary/minor characters straight due to my lack of focus, but if I were reading it I could back track and double check things easier. I think I would have really liked this as a short story.
Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this audio ARC. This review will be shared on NetGalley, Goodreads, and Amazon.
Audio Pub Date Nov 12 2024
January 9, 2025
Deadly Animals is so unique, I’m not quite sure how to even begin to describe it. Although I’ve read plenty of books featuring these themes – neurodivergence, complicated family dynamics, police investigations, clinical disorders – the way Marie Tierney combined them in this novel feels like something entirely new and like nothing I’ve ever read before.
I think I expected, based on the bright cover and the tone of the blurb, for Deadly Animals to be somewhat light-hearted, quirky, and YA-feeling despite its heavy themes. And there are moments of levity, to be sure, but this is a dark, macabre, and chilling mystery overall. It’s about a teenager named Ava Bonney, fourteen years old in 1981, who is fascinated by the rates at which dead animals decompose. She collects roadkill and stores it in her secret den and checks on it at night, recording her observations. But one night during a routine check of her specimens, she discovers the body of one of her classmates. Afraid her macabre activities will be discovered and judged, Ava places an anonymous call to the police…but when another teenager goes missing, Ava can’t keep herself from getting more involved in the investigation.
I listened to the audiobook, and there’s a fascinating conversation at the end between the narrator (Olivia Dowd) and Tierney. Tierney talks about how Ava’s character is the result of what happens when you allow a child (a female child, in particular) to pursue her interests without judgment or influence, and she’s inspired by Tierney herself. Ava is the beating heart of this novel, and she’s conveyed with so much love and empathy. She is a genius intellectually, but somewhat immature emotionally, and processes the world in her own peculiar, particular way. It was honestly a joy to spend time with her in this book, despite the darker aspects of the plot.
Tierney’s writing is unsentimental and scientific, especially in its descriptions of crime scenes and dead bodies. She certainly doesn’t shy away from the uncomfortable realities of police investigations. And yet, there is so much emotion to be read between the lines, in a novel that is rich with atmosphere and unfolds with careful, deliberate pacing. It’s just so intriguing, and it makes me so excited to read whatever Tierney writes next. Based on that conversation at the end of the audiobook, it’s going to be another book about Ava – and I can’t wait to spend more time with her.
I think I expected, based on the bright cover and the tone of the blurb, for Deadly Animals to be somewhat light-hearted, quirky, and YA-feeling despite its heavy themes. And there are moments of levity, to be sure, but this is a dark, macabre, and chilling mystery overall. It’s about a teenager named Ava Bonney, fourteen years old in 1981, who is fascinated by the rates at which dead animals decompose. She collects roadkill and stores it in her secret den and checks on it at night, recording her observations. But one night during a routine check of her specimens, she discovers the body of one of her classmates. Afraid her macabre activities will be discovered and judged, Ava places an anonymous call to the police…but when another teenager goes missing, Ava can’t keep herself from getting more involved in the investigation.
I listened to the audiobook, and there’s a fascinating conversation at the end between the narrator (Olivia Dowd) and Tierney. Tierney talks about how Ava’s character is the result of what happens when you allow a child (a female child, in particular) to pursue her interests without judgment or influence, and she’s inspired by Tierney herself. Ava is the beating heart of this novel, and she’s conveyed with so much love and empathy. She is a genius intellectually, but somewhat immature emotionally, and processes the world in her own peculiar, particular way. It was honestly a joy to spend time with her in this book, despite the darker aspects of the plot.
Tierney’s writing is unsentimental and scientific, especially in its descriptions of crime scenes and dead bodies. She certainly doesn’t shy away from the uncomfortable realities of police investigations. And yet, there is so much emotion to be read between the lines, in a novel that is rich with atmosphere and unfolds with careful, deliberate pacing. It’s just so intriguing, and it makes me so excited to read whatever Tierney writes next. Based on that conversation at the end of the audiobook, it’s going to be another book about Ava – and I can’t wait to spend more time with her.
November 12, 2024
Thank you to Henry Holt and Co and Macmillan Audio for the gifted copies to review.
What an AMAZING debut!! Holy cow this was phenomenal and I DEVOURED the physical copy yesterday, and if you know me, that is truly saying something. This was creative, a little out there but it worked for me, and I could not get enough of Ava. She is obsessed with the rate at which dead animals decompose, and before we go much further, the animals in here are already dead, so there is not animal cruelty in this story (other than a past tense reference but it is a spoiler so that is all I will say). There is however cruelty against children, so if that is a TW then this might not be for you, but it did not bother me.
Now, back to the story. Ava finds roadkill in the dead of night, analyzes her findings, and records them. And then one evening she stumbles upon the body of her classmate Mickey Grant, and makes an anonymous call to the police so as to deter them away from her late night escapades. However, when Detective Delahaye takes the case, Ava ends up working it on her own and eventually they cross paths as more teens go missing. This was everything I love in a thriller - unique premise, fast paced, and the ending was INTENSE but also heartfelt. I was with these characters and this small town the entire time and did not want this to end. All the stars for this one and I cannot wait to see what Tierney writes next.
What an AMAZING debut!! Holy cow this was phenomenal and I DEVOURED the physical copy yesterday, and if you know me, that is truly saying something. This was creative, a little out there but it worked for me, and I could not get enough of Ava. She is obsessed with the rate at which dead animals decompose, and before we go much further, the animals in here are already dead, so there is not animal cruelty in this story (other than a past tense reference but it is a spoiler so that is all I will say). There is however cruelty against children, so if that is a TW then this might not be for you, but it did not bother me.
Now, back to the story. Ava finds roadkill in the dead of night, analyzes her findings, and records them. And then one evening she stumbles upon the body of her classmate Mickey Grant, and makes an anonymous call to the police so as to deter them away from her late night escapades. However, when Detective Delahaye takes the case, Ava ends up working it on her own and eventually they cross paths as more teens go missing. This was everything I love in a thriller - unique premise, fast paced, and the ending was INTENSE but also heartfelt. I was with these characters and this small town the entire time and did not want this to end. All the stars for this one and I cannot wait to see what Tierney writes next.
November 8, 2024
Such an enthralling book. I wasn't expecting much from what seemed like another police procedural with a YA twist, but this audiobook kept me rewinding so I could catch all the intensity and detail.
"Monsters should look like monsters, John thought. Otherwise it was unfair."
There was so much complexity wrapped into this novel about a serial killer of children in the early 1980s in South Birmingham, England. I was rapt through the entire experience.
Especially interesting was the bonus wrap-up between the narrator and the author in the afterward, which brought home so much of the scenery, characterization and plot. As a first novelist, Marie Tierney dazzles.
"Monsters should look like monsters, John thought. Otherwise it was unfair."
There was so much complexity wrapped into this novel about a serial killer of children in the early 1980s in South Birmingham, England. I was rapt through the entire experience.
Especially interesting was the bonus wrap-up between the narrator and the author in the afterward, which brought home so much of the scenery, characterization and plot. As a first novelist, Marie Tierney dazzles.
November 5, 2024
Deadly Animals follows a peculiar 14 year-old girl as she helps a detective in a serial killer investigation. Ava loves to study dead animals and how they decompose. I went out of my comfort zone on this book, as I am a little squeamish with reading about things like decomposing flesh, but I found that only the first few chapters were the tough ones to get through. Once I knew Ava's personality, I was with her til the end of the book. I didn't love when you find out who the killer is, as I prefer as close to the last page as possible, but it made for a thrilling ending to see everything come together. Truly a unique premise and main character.
There are numerous trigger warnings for this book. While there is animal/child cruelty/death, it happens in past scenes where you are reading about the discovery.
I received an ARC and ALC from Henry Holt & Company | Henry Holt and Co. and Macmillan Audio via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
There are numerous trigger warnings for this book. While there is animal/child cruelty/death, it happens in past scenes where you are reading about the discovery.
I received an ARC and ALC from Henry Holt & Company | Henry Holt and Co. and Macmillan Audio via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,108 reviews