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Love You to Death

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When two best friends' hobby of crashing weddings takes a deadly turn, they’re forced to embark on a road trip of survival in this addictive thriller.

How well do we really know our friends?

As the only Black women at an antebellum-themed wedding, Kayla and Zorie should’ve known this heist was doomed from the start. They should never have come, but when their financial situation became dire, they agreed to hit one last wedding.

Jaded and cynical Kayla has spent the last decade trying to fix her life since an angsty teen prank led to her arrest. Now, with her housekeeping job at a subpar hotel and her disappointing, Cinderella-esque relationship with her dad and obnoxious stepsister, she hates the life she’s built. Her only bright spots are her best friend, Zorie, and their favorite weekend pastime of crashing weddings to steal the money and pawn the gifts. But what started as a lark has evolved into a greedy obsession, making each wedding haul riskier than the last.

While trying to avoid the angry bride and groom, Kayla and Zorie's getaway takes a gruesome turn and suddenly the “Wedding Crash Killers” are national news. The best friends are forced to hit the road to dodge the authorities, but their escape plan leaves behind a bloody trail of destruction from Georgia all the way to the bayou. As past grudges resurface, Kayla realizes that the best friend she thought she knew is more dangerous than she could ever have realized.

Sharp, unpredictable, and madcap from start to finish, Love You to Death is the most fun—and deadly—road trip you’ll ever take.

320 pages, Hardcover

First published July 22, 2025

124 people are currently reading
15479 people want to read

About the author

Christina Dotson

2 books106 followers
Christina Dotson lives in Kentucky and holds an MSW from Western Kentucky University and an MS from Murray State University. She is a member of Crime Writers of Color and was a runner-up for the Eleanor Taylor Bland Crime Fiction Writers of Color Award. When she isn't writing, Christina is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and can be found not exercising and watching a ridiculous amount of reality TV. You can learn more by following @christinadotsonwrites on Instagram.

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5 stars
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 371 reviews
Profile Image for Shawnaci Schroeder.
574 reviews5,235 followers
September 27, 2025
4/5
- Had SO much fun with this book! Was it unhinged and at times completely unrealistic? Absolutely! Was it exactly what I needed? 100%!!
- This book was so unhinged and if you like a story where absolutely everything goes wrong, this is a good one to read! It also touches on social issues, racism, and the fear of being black in a world that wasn’t made for us in a way that fit the story so well.
- Finished this book so fast because I really wanted to see how it would it. The ending wasn’t what I expected, but still enjoyed the book so much!
Profile Image for Delaney.
669 reviews490 followers
July 5, 2025
There was just….nothing redeemable about this book. I also wouldn’t call it a thriller, because where was the mystery? What was I trying to figure out, which one of the two main characters I disliked more?

The answer there is, I dislike them both equally. There was absolutely nothing to root for, except hoping they both were held accountable for their horrendous actions. I’m really not sure why I read the whole thing, I suppose I was waiting for an ending that would’ve made the journey worth it. But there wasn’t one.

If you want to read a story about characters with no redeeming qualities, who repeatedly make bad decisions, and offer no intrigue whatsoever. This is the book for you.

Thank you to the publisher for the gifted ARC
Profile Image for AlexTRBG.
321 reviews28 followers
September 24, 2025
Aye yooooo what did I just read!? 😅 literally bad girls gone WORSE!

This book was a wild ride ngl. I don’t think I’ve read anything quite like it before 🫠 The 2 main characters, Kayla and Zorie, were great examples of co-dependency and enabling in friendships. Bc them 2 girls was a mess 😅😅😅😅😅 They had me stressed the whole time. Throughout the whole book I honestly thought they were the same person like in Fight Club 🙃 But no, Kayla and Zorie were just mentally ill and enabling each other to do their worst at each turn.

All in all, I enjoyed the twists and turns but got kinda annoyed with Kayla’s choices. Other than that, this is def entertaining to say the least lol. I think this would also make a great A24 movie. It gave me very much Zola vibes
Profile Image for Randi A.
843 reviews
May 19, 2025
This book was frustrating because I wanted to root for Kayla but she just kept making dumb decisions. It almost would’ve helped to have some flashbacks or some justification as to why she loved Zorie because from the beginning she’s not very nice and only continues to act impulsively. Without a care for their friendship, the actions just didn’t feel justified throughout.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Profile Image for Joyce.
121 reviews76 followers
February 19, 2026
This was a really unhinged good time. But, they had one too many run-ins for me. Which was extremely annoying. I was definitely rooting for one “bad guy” and hoping the other one was gonna get what she had coming to her. I’d recommend this book to readers that like messy, dramatic, unrealistic, fast-paced reads. It’s also the perfect book to pull someone out of a reading slump.
Profile Image for Erin Clemence.
1,576 reviews423 followers
July 9, 2025
Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.

Expected publication date: July 22, 2025

Love You to Death” by Christina Dotson is a Thelma and Louise-like cross-country adventure, except one character is a sociopath, one is co-dependent and a notoriously bad decision maker, and murder seems to follow them wherever they go.

Kayla and Zorie have been “ride or die” best friends since childhood. Now, as adults, they are both working as housekeepers in a local hotel and Kayla is considering a future in hotel management. To make extra money, the women crash weddings, and steal wedding gifts, although Kayla continues to tell herself that the next time will be the last time. But their last wedding goes terribly wrong when a bridesmaid ends up dead and now, both Kayla and Zorie are on the run. With no one else to turn to, the friends only have each other but Kayla starts to see Zorie in a new light and she wonders if she actually knew Zorie at all.

“Death” is fast-paced and action-packed, with a smooth-flowing plot and well-developed characters. Zorie is completely unlikable (purposely) and although I wanted to root for Kayla, as seemingly the more human of the two, she continued to make ludicrous decisions that had me screaming at the pages. Kayla and Zorie’s relationship went far beyond codependency and into something far more sinister. As an adult, I was confused as to Kayla’s decision-making process, since her recklessness seemed somewhere in the angsty teenager category, but I definitely was invested enough in the adventure to see how it turned out.

Zorie’s pathology was something that intrigued me, from a psychological standpoint, but I was sad to see Kayla dragged along for the ride. The ending played out exactly as it needed to, providing both women with tragic, but realistic, consequences. Even though the women made ludicrous and juvenile decisions throughout, Dotson provided believable reasons behind their choices as the novel played out, which ensures readers will be satisfied with the outcome.

“Death” is definitely an entertaining and compulsive page-turning read, and I loved watching Kayla and Zorie’s adventures (from a distance, thank goodness). Dotson is a creative and passionate writer, and I hope she creates more high-octane adventure stories like this one.
Profile Image for Jackie Sunday.
860 reviews55 followers
June 14, 2025
The old saying is: choose your friends wisely.

However, Kayla missed it by a long shot. At a young age in Georgia, she became best buddies with Zorie. She was glued to someone who was reckless and always seemed to make bad decisions.

With a spirited dialogue, the first part had my attention. Kayla and Zorie found jobs as housekeepers for a reputable hotel where everything seemed fine. Yet, Zorie was highly unstable making quick decisions leading to criminal acts.

Then Kayla got bad news. She lost her job which was the sole source of her income. It’s always about money. Zorie tried to convince Kayla that none of these things would be her fault: burglary, hit-and-run and all sorts of other unlawful acts to come. It was a prime example of a toxic friendship.

About half way, the story slowed down. It was too predictable knowing it wasn’t going to end well especially for two Black women on the run in the south. Sadly, it could be viewed as stereotypical to some readers.

My thanks Bantam and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book with an expected release date of July 22, 2025.
Profile Image for Jourdan McIntosh.
50 reviews48 followers
Read
July 19, 2025
Unfortunately, I had to DNF this a little past the halfway mark and, I will not be giving this a star rating. Normally, when I decide not to finish a book, I’ll skim the final chapters just to see if I missed anything major, but in this case, I didn’t see anything that made me want to go back and finish it.

The story has high stakes and a fast-paced plot, and Zorie is undeniably unhinged, which could have made for a thrilling ride. But even with all the chaos, the book never truly kept me guessing. I found myself anticipating that Zorie would continue to spiral and make things worse, and that predictability took the tension out of the story.

By the midpoint, the narrative began to feel messy like things were happening just for the sake of drama rather than with any real purpose. Everything that could go wrong did go wrong, and yet, I still didn’t feel invested. I wasn’t rooting for the characters, and I didn’t have a clear sense of what I was supposed to hope for. Was there a lesson? A payoff? I’m not sure. The initial pacing hooked me, but the middle lost steam quickly.

That said, I do think Christina Dotson has potential as a writer, and ya’ll know I have and and will forever be rooting for everybody Black.

This is her debut, and it shows she’s capable of crafting high-stakes plots and intense characters. This particular story just wasn’t for me but I’d still keep an eye out for what she writes next.
Profile Image for Darriona.
152 reviews51 followers
Did not finish
March 9, 2026
DNF @ 30% This book feels too much like One of Them Days and while I enjoyed that movie, I don’t think I enjoyed it enough to endure a book that is so similar. I am already frustrated by this story and I’m not in the mood lmao. But I may revisit another time. The audio is really good tho.
Profile Image for LittleBookLoves.
582 reviews16 followers
May 3, 2025
Love You To Death by Christina Dotson is an interesting story. It began with a fast pace, but around 30% the pacing seemed to become slower. There were times where Kayla would detour from what was happening in the moment to explain about a past experience between herself and Kayla. While it provided additional information about their backgrounds, this kept happening so much that it began to feel disruptive more than helpful to moving the story forward.

Initially, I felt bad for Kyala and Zorie because of their separate childhood issues with their birth parents--Kayla's deceased mother and father who has moved on with his new wife and child as well as Zorie's mother who abandoned her different ways and physically absent father. However, this changed as I read the story. They both continuously made terrible and selfish choices, and they both "lacked ambition" but identified themselves as blameless victims for every situation that they put themselves in. They were both bad influences on each other. Both of them were impulsive and reactive. Also, they were very dumb criminals and it was a surprise that they hadn't been caught sooner because of the continuously dumb choices that they kept making. Granted, Zorie was worse than Kayla at times. Greed and selfishness were big themes throughout this book with numerous characters. So many characters were either being selfish and greedy in general or at the expense of others through an abuse of power and control. The exception to this seemed to be Dez--poor Dez.

While the story wasn't terrible, so much of it is just Kayla and Zorie committing more and more dumb crimes. At some point it became hard to continue reading because of how silly the crime spree was. It was almost like a knock off version of the Thelma and Louise movie, except in the movie someone was killed in an effort to stop a sexual assault. My point is that the story became redundant and boring for a large chunk of the story while I was waiting for them to get caught or experience some retribution from this Confederate family whose wedding they crashed who desired vengeance. For this to be a shorter story, the crime spree seemed to last for a long time. The ending was also predictable. Overall, it was a decent story but not a story that I would read more than once.

Thank you to Random House Publishing and Netgalley for an ARC of this story in exchange for an honest review.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Julie (JuJu).
1,217 reviews219 followers
September 8, 2025
**Debut Thriller** Published July 22, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½ /5

Thanks to #RandomHousePublishing, #Ballantine, and the author for the #GiftedCopy of this ARC provided via #NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

When I picked up Love You To Death, I wasn’t totally sure it would hold my attention. But a few pages in, it took off like the General Lee flying through Georgia (younger readers, you might need to Google that one 😂). Christina Dotson’s debut is a dark, twisted, and emotional ride that mixes the chaos of "Natural Born Killers" with the sisterhood vibes of "Thelma and Louise." Some readers have mixed feelings about it, but I was all in. This book is one wild, bloody ride.

Kayla and Zorie are childhood besties bonded by trauma, secrets, and way too many bad decisions. They crash weddings and steal gifts to survive. (High risk, low reward—definitely not for the faint of heart.) But everything unravels after one heist goes sideways, a bridesmaid ends up dead, and the two find themselves on the run across the South. Their “ride or die” pact turns into something much darker.

Kayla is the quiet one, the emotional center of the story. She’s flawed, no doubt, but there’s something raw and real about her. I couldn’t help but root for her, even as things spiraled. Her life feels like it was always one wrong turn away from disaster. And Zorie is the disaster. She’s electric, wild, dangerous, and the definition of a beautiful mess. She's a human grenade with a dazzling smile. Their friendship is tangled and totally toxic, but it’s also heartbreakingly loyal.

Dotson does a great job showing how trauma blurs the line between love and survival. Watching them spiral is hard, but I couldn't look away.

The plot is full of sharp turns and “what the hell just happened” moments. The dialogue rings true, the tension never lets up, and the stakes get higher with every chapter. This debut is fierce, fast, and brilliantly unforgettable. I'm sold on this author!
Read it if you love:
Morally messy female friendships
Stories about unhinged women making terrible choices
Crime thrillers that feel like they could go viral
Books that make you feel a little guilty for rooting for the bad guys
Profile Image for Andrea.
344 reviews7 followers
June 26, 2025
This book starts off strong. The vibe? Total Thelma & Louise energy—two best friends, a little chaos, and a whole lot of bad decisions. The wedding crashing angle was super fun at first, and the pace had me flying through the beginning.

One thing I really loved: Christina Dotson is a clinical social worker, and you can feel that background in the way she writes relationships. The emotional messiness between Kayla and Zorie felt real—codependency, trauma, loyalty pushed way past the limit. It added some real depth to the wild ride.

But somewhere in the middle, it started to lose momentum. The plot got a bit repetitive, and I wasn’t as hooked by the end. I wanted at least one of the characters to grow or change in a bigger way, and that didn’t totally land for me.

Still, it’s a bold, unique debut with a ton of voice. I’m definitely curious to see what Dotson writes next.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

#LoveYouToDeath #ChristinaDotson #ARCReview #NetGalleyReads #ThrillerReads #DebutAuthor #ThelmaAndLouiseVibes #BookReview #MessyFriendships #BlackGirlsOnTheRun #Bookstagram #GoodreadsReviewer #ReadWithMe
Profile Image for Nicole.
475 reviews2 followers
July 22, 2025
4.75 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ .75 stars!! Thank you to Christina Dotson for the arc!

Omg! What a wild ride! Kayla and Zorie have been best friends for years and have always been there for each other.

They live together and both work as housekeepers at a hotel, but they are barely making ends meet. In order to supplement their income, they crash weddings and steal the bride and groom’s gifts.

Kayla decides that she doesn’t want to do this anymore but she gets herself into some financial trouble. Zorie suggests that they crash one last wedding and Kayla agrees, and this is where all their troubles begin.

Their story got so messy and there were so many twists and turns and I enjoyed every bit of it! I If you like unhinged characters, that are funny at times and ride or die friends, you will certainly enjoy this! This is fast-paced and was a quick read. Highly recommend!!
Profile Image for OnceUponAStorybook.
493 reviews32 followers
February 15, 2026
Just bad decision after bad decision 🙃 I was already prepared to annoyed with this because it’s a Thelma and Louise retelling, I wasn’t prepared enough.

Kayla really allowed Zorie to ruin her life and it pissed me off. Like I understand how her and Zorie became friends because her father completely abandoned her when he got married so they basically became codependent with each other. However everything that went wrong in Kayla’s life led back to Zorie and it’s sad she couldn’t see that. I know she blamed herself for her and Zorie going to jail for something she strictly did but it was Zorie who talked her into doing it. She honestly should’ve turned Zorie in after the first body, Zorie was killing people left and right, just adding on to the charges that you’re gonna have when you’re inevitably caught.

Kayla really had no backbone when it came to that girl and it was just so frustrating to see. Zorie really didn’t give a fuck about Kayla and it was obvious especially when she revealed that she was the reason Kayla got fired right when she was supposed to get a promotion all because she was jealous. And Zorie kept throwing it in Kayla’s face, her being the reason that she went to jail the first time.

This was not a fun time because I didn’t really feel bad for them. All that happened could’ve been preventable and they kept making the situation worst than it had to be.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Elaine.
2,121 reviews1 follower
September 8, 2025
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Love You to Death.

I was excited my request was approved because the premise gave me serious Thelma and Louise vibes and I love that movie.

** Minor no Thelma and Louise vibes/spoilers ahead **

Kayla and Zorie have been BFFs since they were kids; they're each other's ride and die.

When their hobby of crashing weddings to rob them of gifts goes horribly awry, the two BFFs find themselves on the lam from cops, former colleagues, and themselves.

There are many stereotypes to shake a stick at in the premise; Kayla and Zorie have no friends but each other; no ambition, and sabotage each other so they remain on equal footing.

Zorie is, not surprisingly, the more dominant of the duo with a strong personality, not unlike criminal duos in which the stronger personality is the ringleader.

Kayla has a cliche childhood; her parents were the loves of each other's life until her mom died of cancer and her doormat dad eventually married an evil stepmother with a more successful daughter than Kayla.

And she's dating Kayla's ex. What are the odds?

The beginning drew me in, setting the scene and the womens' present circumstances, but it quickly off the rails.

A story about a toxic friendship you can't let go of quickly became psychopathic.

I do understand the psychological need to stay with a friend or a partner who is dangerous.

You become accustomed to their behavior and personality and don't know how you'll survive without them.

In a way, you need each other because you feed off each other's negativity and dark side.

There's a lot of blood and mayhem, violence and finger pointing; as Kayla and Zorie make one bad decision after another and events continue to spiral, it becomes harder to suspend disbelief.

Also, there are quite a number of scenes and interactions where a guy or sleazebag hits on Kayla only to be rebuffed; oftentime, the guy has to comment on how beautiful she is.

Like the author needs to remind the readers that even though Kayla is just along for the ride and makes dumbass decisions, it's okay because she's hot?

Readers already know the narrative won't end well and I couldn't help but wonder what's the point of the story.

That toxic relationships are hard to get out of, that things can quickly spiral out of control, that sometimes we love the bad people in our lives because we're all a little bad?

I wished I liked Kayla but she was too immature and a brat to realize she needed to get away from Zorie because she had no one else.

And sometimes that's why we find ourselves in bad relationships and in a hole we can't get out of.

The motto of the story is...I'm not sure.

Is there supposed to be one? Maybe not.
Profile Image for Monique B..
205 reviews12 followers
August 15, 2025
3.5 ⭐. This book really breaks down "ride or die" in more than one way! 😅

I'm not gonna lie, the tone of this one was all over the place. At times it felt comedic...then it became serious...then adventurous...then gory/horrific and even suspenseful. IDK. It was wild. I haven't read anything like it.

Overall I was curious as to why Kayla & Zora were SO close, that Kayla never went her own separate way. It kept my interest, even though I felt the ending was kind of abrupt.
Profile Image for Sierra.
Author 2 books471 followers
January 24, 2025
Dotson delivers a high octane, whip-fast adventure that beautifully explores the nuances of how abuse and poverty in the US perpetuate in the choices we make throughout our lives. Trust between friends and who we decide is our family is also a current. I devoured this book; I only stopped reading for sleep. An absolute dynamite read.
Profile Image for Morgan.
408 reviews2 followers
July 23, 2025
3.5 rounded down out of 5.

This is the perfect recipe for a fast paced/action packed thriller. The characters, however, did not always strike the landing, in my opinion. Some of the choices they made were a little frustrating and hard to believe.

I will say that for this being the author’s debut, this was great! The plot was interesting and had some nail biting moments. The way the author builds suspense and continuously kept upping the stakes, was wild! Just when you think it can’t get worse, it does and will. I wasn’t expecting the story to go that off the rails, but wow was I invested in the ride!

My one issue was with the characters. I found it hard to understand what Kayla’s real goal was here. She kept wanting to change her path but never made moves to do so. She also kept making sooo many bad choices! I could not understand why she did it! Zorie was such a wild card, but an interesting character to this story. I almost would have liked a dual POV for this, I think it would have added an extra layer to the story and maybe a better understanding of both Kayla and Zorie.

Overall, I would recommend this book. The plot is so action packed from the beginning and does not let go until the very end! It was so interesting, but I’m left with a few questions that I still want answers to! I just wish we got a little more from the main characters, beyond the just terrible decision making. But, I will say I’m very excited to pick up more from this author in the future! I think they’re going to write some great action packed stories!

And as a side note. I am still thinking about that ending! Still wild!

***Thank you so much to Random House Publishing and NetGalley for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Profile Image for Nina The Wandering Reader.
470 reviews482 followers
February 15, 2026
(3.5/5 stars rounded up to 4 for Goodreads...)

This book felt in so many ways like that film with Keke Palmer and Sza ( One of Them Days ) which I absolutely loved. We get two ride-or-die besties in need of money, on the run from trouble and past sins. But, unlike the film, this story takes a much darker turn and I began thinking "Oh this is NOT a healthy friendship at ALL."

I enjoyed this book in the sense that the plot was absolutely bonkers, entertaining as hell. I've stated before that I love books where Black women characters get into unhinged-white-women- trouble. And the trouble our leading ladies get into definitely gets steeper and steeper. But there were some moments that felt repetitive, the desperate choices being made by the protagonists had me at some point screaming "Y'all, need to break up!!!!"

So I'm going back and forth between a 3-star and 4-star rating. But I definitely had a good time reading this one and will definitely be reading more from author Christina Dotson!
Profile Image for Meredith Schorr.
Author 15 books959 followers
July 29, 2025
Wow! This book had me biting my nails the entire time. Suspenseful, action packed, fast-paced, full of twists and turns, and crazy high stakes! If you look up toxic friendships in the dictionary, there might be a picture of Kayla and Zorie from Love You to Death! Christina Dotson is an author to watch and I'll be watching.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my complimentary ARC. All opinions are my own.
Profile Image for Amanda Clark.
17 reviews2 followers
March 2, 2026
I don’t know who is more stupid... Zorie or Kayla?
I can’t decide who I dislike more?
This was not a thriller. Everything was so predictable.
The only redeemable quality of this book was that it was fast to read..
Profile Image for Janalyn, the blind reviewer.
4,721 reviews144 followers
April 30, 2025
Love You To Death by Christina Dotson, Zara and Kayla crash weddings so they can steal the money that’s given to the bride and groom. During the week they work at a three star hotel or at least they did until Kayla got fired letting someone into a hotel room after being given a great tip. so despite the fact Kayla wanted to stop their wedding crashing they’re going to do it one more time to make ends meet until she can find another job only things go deadly wrong at the next wedding. First of all it’s for a white couple who are having an antebellum wedding theme with a banner that says the south will rise again. That should’ve been their first clue to get the hell out of there let me just stop the review right here and say this is the funniest part of the book when Kayla was Twerking and dancing with Billy I couldn’t stop laughing. moving on when leaving the parking lot after a mad dash for their car. They accidentally run over the maid of honor and soon they learn she dies and they’re wanted for murder. They decide to make a run for it and leave town. in a hoopty that Zara who has the worst taste in men received from her boyfriend after he steals all the money they stole from the wedding. they’re trying to get to New Orleans and more than once Kayla will question the bad decisions Zara makes but always sticks by her side. I thought this book was going to be hilarious but sadly it was not I do think it’s only fair for me to say I don’t know why but stealing under any reason gets under my skin it could be to save your mom‘s life and it would still irk me that someone decided to be a thief. I cannot think of why it is but for some reason stealing and lying is something that he irritates my soul and I guess I could say it triggers me not in the way trauma or mental illness triggers others but it just gets under my skin having said that I push through because as I said there were some really funny parts to this book but soon I just was shaking my head and hoping the book would be over soon. From her pulling a gun on the singer who was so nice to them to robbing the gas station that was just so many times in this book I just don’t understand the choices she made not Zara or Kayla I did not like this book I am sorry I do appreciate the lol moments but they weren’t enough to overcome the irritant this book became. Not to mention the ending was such a letdown there’s no redemptive moment no moment where you say oh at least she did that there’s nothing to redeem either one of these women. I totally understand the ride or die motto but if someone loves you they’re not going to want you to go to prison shoot someone or do anything that would put your life in jeopardy. #NetGalley, #TheBlindReviewer, #MyHonestReview, #ChristinaDotson, #LoveYouToDeath,h
Profile Image for Geonn Cannon.
Author 114 books228 followers
July 27, 2025
I hated this... the writing wasn't terrible, but the characters. I understand loyalty to a lifelong friend, but WHY were they friends?! Zorie didn't exhibit a single trait that made it believable Kayla would spend her entire life dragging her around. A thief, a liar, a manipulative grifter, only coming to Kayla when she needs rescuing or some kind of escape. The book is supposed to be about Kayla discovering the darker side to her friend. How did she ever NOT see it? They weren't friends, there was a sociopath (which the book even diagnoses her as!) and an enable. There wasn't a single scene that explained or justified Kayla's loyalty to this leech. And even if they did have moments of normal bestie behavior, I lost all respect for Kayla for not dropping this piece of shit from the first steps of their journey. I would have cut ties with her right then and there, let alone after a body dropped.

Read if you don't mind eavesdropping on a toxic relationship for an entire book, I guess. Zorie's a fucking monster, and Kayla isn't worth rooting for after skipping countless opportunities to escape from her clutches. It's like watching someone stick with their kidnapper because he was kind of nice when they were kids.
Profile Image for Laura Michelle.
585 reviews21 followers
October 29, 2025
3 1/2 ⭐️

This book was a wild edge of your seat ride! I loved Kayla and Zorie and couldn't wait to read what was coming next with each page. Yes, many things were "far fetched," but this is fiction. I never complain when a fiction book has unrealistic scenarios. Those scenarios are part of why I love fiction so much. It's outlandish and hard to believe. That makes it exciting. I knew every chapter was going to bring chaos, and Christina Dotson did not disappoint.
Profile Image for Krishana.
122 reviews
January 8, 2026
Love You to Death by Christina Dotson
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5/5 stars)
Psychological Thriller • Unhinged Black Girls • Southern Chaos

Initial Thoughts
I know the year is early, but this is 1000% my favorite book of 2026. It’s a psychological thriller and it is just completely unhinged. 5 out of 5 stars. You have to pick this book up immediately and read it.

If you really like SZA and Keke Palmer’s movie One of Them Days—which was kind of like a Black girl’s version of Friday, but way more psychological, way more thriller, way more unaliving, way more chaos—this is the book for you.

What It’s About
This story follows two best friends, Zori and Kayla, who are codependent on each other. Kayla is our main character, and she’s an unreliable narrator, which I love. They’re both working as maids at a hotel, and Kayla is dealing with PTSD from her mother’s death—her mom died of cancer when she was eight. Her dad really tried to figure out how to be the best dad he could, but ends up with a woman who basically treats Kayla like Cinderella, and she doesn’t deserve that.

Kayla has goals—she wants to become a manager at the hotel—but things go awry after an incident there. So she and Zori decide they’re going to do one more heist, stealing wedding gifts from newlyweds. But for some reason, they decide to go to Hicktown, USA in Georgia, where the groom is out here doing Confederate cosplay, and try to rob them.

From there, it spirals into a hit and run, and now they are literally on the run, taking us all over the South. They stop and interact with people along the way as they’re running from the police.

Zori is the friend who kind of can’t get it together and is constantly having Kayla do things she shouldn’t be doing. But Kayla lacks accountability, and we continue to see this throughout the book.

What I Loved
• The pacing was amazing.
• The story was nonstop.
• It was beautifully written.
• I could not put it down—I consumed and inhaled this book.
• The audio version was amazing and I definitely recommend it.

Kayla is such an unreliable narrator, and there were so many times where I was like—girl, I don’t know if I should believe you or not. You’re just a liar. A plain and simple liar. And I don’t know what to do with this information.

This book just sucks you in. It’s vivid. You feel like you are in the passenger seat with them, like you’re number three in this Bonnie, Clyde, Thelma & Louise situation—and you want out, but you also want to see what’s going to happen. It’s too much, but you can’t look away.

Final Word
Please read this book. If you like messy narrators, chaotic friendships, wild road trip energy, and psychological thrillers rooted in Black womanhood—Love You to Death is the one. This book does not let up, and I loved every second.
Profile Image for Ashley Sawyer.
510 reviews39 followers
July 27, 2025
Bonded by trauma and numerous bad decisions Kayla and Zorie are childhood best friends. Kayla has been trying to right her wrongs from a teenage prank a decade ago that led to her arrest. Making a living as a housekeeper just isn't cutting it and she is in desperate need of something else. Her past time of wedding crashing and stealing the cash and gifts with Zorie add a much-needed adrenaline rush, not to mention spare cash. But their one last heist goes spectacularly FUBAR when someone ends up dead. Now Kayla and Zorie find themselves with no choice but to flee. From Georgia to the bayou, past issues start to rear their ugly heads, and Kayla has to come to terms with the knowledge that she might not know her best friend as well as she thought.

While Love You To Death starts with a strong premise, I had a couple of issues. The first part starts off steady but then I feel like it slows way down and gets a bit repetitive. The last part picks back up but the ending, while a bold choice, just didn't land for me. I do love the fresh take on the thriller that Dotson was trying for and the dialogue is authentic. Overall, being a debut, I think this one had its fair share of standout moments, it just wasn't quite the KO it could have been.

Thank you to NetGalley, Christina Dotson, and Random House Publishing Group / Ballantine for this ARC! Publication date was July 22nd, 2025.
Profile Image for Justine.
690 reviews25 followers
September 2, 2025
I didn’t know much about this book going in and it was a pleasant surprise. This is an action thriller with friendship at the core. Although I spent a lot of time frustrated with Kayla and thinking ‘You have to get away from Zorie!’, I completely understand why she felt that she couldn’t. The author set up the basis of their friendship so well at the beginning of the book and then kept adding layers throughout the story, making the reader feel completely wrapped up in their private world. The dialogue between the two main characters was also fantastic.

If you’re looking for Thelma and Louise vibes and a cracking pace, this might be the story for you.
Profile Image for Quaterria Brown.
325 reviews20 followers
September 26, 2025
Zorie and Kayla are the definition of real ride or die friends!!! 

These two best friends are struggling from low finances and decide to hit one last wedding to steal money and gifts to pawn. After things quickly go awry, Zorie and Kayla have no choice but to go on the run in a road trip from hell to get away. 

"A single choice can determine your entire life."

Zorie had me stressed with her wild, absolutely reckless antics the entire time. Shoot her and Kayla were both pretty unhinged but this crazy, extremely messy getaway journey was thrilling and highly entertaining. 

4.5 stars
Profile Image for Darcy J..
342 reviews
January 15, 2026
2.5⭐️ rounded up to a 3 for Goodreads

This might be spoilerish. Read with caution.
The FMC made bad decision after bad decision at every turn. I'm not sure if she was too trusting, not aware, or just plain...not smart.
Her inner monologue made sense but she did opposite of her thoughts every time.
The thrill wasn't there for me. The stupid decisions they made as a team overshadowed a lot, including the plot and the crime.

I was more interested in the family dynamic of both women rather than the crime. I would definitely read a book about their family history and backstories instead.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Monica B.
208 reviews18 followers
January 13, 2026
This was surprisingly entertaining! I almost DNF because of the poor decision making but I am glad I kept reading! This was a WILD ride! Although it’s fiction, there are several people with toxic co-dependent friendships. 4 stars
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