Kirsten McDougall- She’s A Killer- @CursesMcD @GallicBooks

ALICE: 30-something, IQ of 159 (almost a genius), only communicates with her mother in Morse code. Her imaginary friend is back.

ERIKA: 15, daughter of hot ‘wealthugee’ who loves Russian literature, genuine genius, killer eyeliner and killer instincts.

The climate is in crisis and wealthy immigrants are flocking to New Zealand for shelter, stealing land, driving up food prices and taking over. But Alice has far more important things to worry about: hating her best friend’s husband, getting free wine and quiet-quitting her dull day job. Until she meets Erika. Now, Alice is about to find herself drawn into action of the most radical – and dangerous – kind. Just what is a slacker to do?

Already assured a spot in my Top 10 of the year, She’s A Killer by Kirsten McDougall is an absolute tornado of fresh air in the thriller genre. I totally loved this book in all its weird, wonderful, mordantly funny, did I mention weird, cleverness, yet crucially, at it’s heart a chilling treatise on the burgeoning pressure, and increasingly damaging effects of climate change for communities across the globe. Billed as an eco-crime thriller, this sassy and whip-smart book is one to be savoured…

Alice is an absolute gem of a character, highly intelligent but lacking in empathy and also imbued with a self destructive CBA (can’t be arsed) attitude to life. She inhabits a small claustrophobic world of tedious job, shabby flat, ineffectual relationships both with the opposite sex, increasingly with her best friend Amy (and yes, we all hate Amy’s husband Pete too- what a c**k) , and, oh yes, a dysfunctional relationship with her mother too- don’t mention the pineapple. She also has an up-and-down relationship with her imaginary friend Simp too, but that’s a whole other level of weirdness in the story. Then there’s weird Brian, an ex-workmate, boring Alan, her mother’s latest squeeze, but, hang on a rooting-tooting minute. Who is this ?

Pablo.

An intriguing intelligent, attractive man who sets Alice’s world, and lady parts, aflame. But there’s always a catch. This being his teenage daughter.

Erika.

And this is where Alice’s real troubles begin, as McDougall sucks us in to a dark Fargo-esque adventure with petty jealousies, physical violence, a hugely uncomfortable road trip, murder and a hapless central protagonist whose (almost) genius IQ belies her sheer ineptitude at life itself.

All of this plays out against a clever allegory to the current migration crisis, where the richest inhabitants- ‘wealthugees’ of countries ravaged by the effects of climate change, move to still functioning countries, and infiltrate society to the detriment of the existing population- in this case New Zealand. McDougall references the devastating effects of flood, famine or heat across the globe, and how less scrupulous members of society are harnessing resources and land, and stock piling essentials to ride out the climate change crisis. It’s clever, it’s pertinent to the world we currently live in, and depressingly prescient of how the world will potentially come to be at the current rate of environmental destruction.

What more can I say?

She’s A Killer is a dark, twisty joy from start to finish. Highly original, very funny, yet cut through with the most important issue facing the world today.

Absolutely loved this one.

___________________________________

Kirsten McDougall is a novelist, short story writer and works for a union. Her 2017 work Tess was longlisted for the Ockham NZ Book Awards and shortlisted for the Ngaio Marsh Award. She’s a Killer was longlisted for the 2023 Dublin Literary Award and Ockham NZ Book Awards 2022. She lives in Wellington, New Zealand.

 

(With thanks to Gallic Books for the ARC)