A Little Bit Bad

by Cassandra Neyenesch

“Pretty much the platonic-ideal beach read.” —Ada Calhoun, New York Times bestselling author of Crush

I had tried to be a good person and live a nice, normal life. It wasn’t working out. Why was I such a no-but-er? I would be a yes-ander!... And after that moment, I didn’t give another little f*ck what I did.

Perdita Jungfrau thought she was going to be married to her husband forever, so falling in love with Nando, her neighbour's anarcho-Marxist roofer, is a crisis. Life seems to put every possible obstacle in their she’s pregnant, he has a girlfriend, he’s fifteen years younger, she’s terrified of messing up her children and equally drawn towards this magnetic man who entrusts her with his deepest secret.

Now it's three years later and Nando has been murdered.

As her bewildered husband tries to make sense of the wildly unpredictable person his wife has become, Perdita has other things on her mind. For starters, who is the mysterious woman sitting outside her house in a parked car all day? How can she stop her adored baby brother from being pulled under by his opioid addiction? Can someone with a childhood like hers ever be the mother her children deserve?

And most of all, what should she do with the searing memories of the affair which turned her life upside down?

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary, Mystery

352 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 5, 2026

About the author

Cassandra Neyenesch has written for Art in America, The Guardian, Huffpost and Public Books, among other publications.

Reviews

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Little Bit Bad by Cassandra Neyenesch is one of those novels that sets up a fascinating premise and then deliberately refuses to stay in a single lane. At its core, it follows Perdita Jungfrau, a married mother whose life unravels after an affair with her much younger, politically radical neighbor, Nando. Years later, his murder forces her into a present that feels just as unstable as her past, where grief, guilt, and lingering obsession collide with everyday pressures like parenting, marriage, and family crisis. The setup promises intensity, and it delivers that, but not always in a steady or cohesive way.

What stands out most is Perdita herself. She’s deeply flawed, often frustrating, and consistently makes questionable decisions, but she’s also compelling in a messy, human way. The sardonic, dark humor threaded through her perspective helps keep the story from sinking under its heavier themes, and there are moments where her voice really cuts through. At the same time, the pacing feels uneven, and the narrative tone shifts between domestic mundanity and heightened drama in a way that doesn’t always fully settle. It leans into a genre blending structure—part literary drama, part psychological unraveling, part domestic suspense—but it occasionally feels like it hasn’t quite decided what it wants to be.

Ultimately, this is a book that intrigues more than it fully satisfies. The emotional threads; motherhood, addiction, memory, and the long tail of an affair are all interesting in isolation, but they don’t always come together in a fully cohesive way. Still, there’s something oddly absorbing about it, especially if you don’t mind an unpolished narrative that mirrors its protagonist’s own instability. For me, it lands in that middle of the road space: ambitious, occasionally gripping, but ultimately uneven. A solid 3-star read.

[Christie Guillory · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, what a ride through mental health awareness this was. The main character tells a dual timeline story through multiple POV as her internal perspective shifts through different emotional lenses. Perdita is insightful and therapeutic even while her life is messy and chaotic at times. I kept changing who I thought the killer was and then circled back around.
The book took me by surprise, challenged me to think more deeply about mental illness versus internal conflict, and moved me as I reflected back on it.
Thank you, Summit Books and NetGalley, for the ARC and opportunity to provide an honest review.

[Romi · Rating 3 out of 5]

(Thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy of this book!)

I approached this novel slowly, as I wanted to fully absorb its ideas and narrative choices. The premise is definitely intriguing and was what initially drew me in. In particular, the author’s approach to the mystery feels refreshingly unconventional, offering a perspective I have not often encountered in similar works. That originality, in itself, I feel like is one of the novel’s strengths. However, the book did not fully align with my personal reading preferences, though I can easily see it resonating with a specific readership and being well received by many.

For me, the pacing felt uneven, often leaning toward the slow side. At times, several chapters came across as transitional or filler-like, with the central premise only truly coming into focus on a handful of occasions. I also struggled to form a meaningful connection with the characters, which likely contributed to my sense that the narrative occasionally dragged.

Nevertheless, the novel does succeed in delivering moments of drama, which provided a compelling element and offered something to stay invested in.

[Bre Clem · Rating 4 out of 5]

This. Was. Messy.!!!! In the best way lol! What a crazy time line of events - although I know this totally unfolds in real life - the main character shares open and real thoughts about parenthood, having an emotionally distant husband, a brother struggling with addiction, and a never-present dad turned Monk in his later years of life while having an affair with the roofer her neighbor hired for work. If you are into family drama, secrets, “who done it” murders… this one is for you!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Published today, May 5th.

Perdita is a social worker turned stay at home mother to a son with health and social issues. With a husband who won't help with even the most basic chores or childcare, she finds herself estranged from any support systems. When her neighbor's roofer falls from the 2nd story, she rushes to help and so begins their relationship.

This isn't one of those 'will they or won't they' situations, Nando and Perdita are almost immediately completely captivated with each other. Their relationship is challenging for so many reasons, not the least of which is that as they find more time for each other, the rest of their lives begin to fall apart.

Perdita is so complicated, and her singular focus on Nando to everyone else's detriment is painful to watch. It's disheartening to see her repeatedly hand over ownership of her life, knowing what's at stake for her.

I loved the emotional growth and turns this novel took, it was bold and wildly original.

3.5, rounded up because I'm a native San Diegan and it's fun to travel well beaten paths and laugh at the creative liberties.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster | S&S/Summit Books and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

[haslerroberson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story snowballed from ‘a little bit bad’ to ‘pretty bad’ to ‘I think ‘illegal’ is the word you were going for’. And no, we can’t actually blame any of this on the owl witch. At its core, I think this book depicts the extremes
of a midlife crisis and how an intense lack of satisfaction, appreciation and/or companionship can negatively impact one’s psyche and mental wellbeing. Motherhood is one of the most under-appreciated roles out there and it can certainly be isolating (especially if you and your toddler get kicked out of music class), though again, Perdita’s predicament is certainly an outlier. Also, Nando is just a textbook fuckboy. This story definitely went off the rails in the last 25% and I’m still honestly scratching my head, but if you like watching not-so-bad people doing pretty bad things, I recommend giving this a read- it’s literally and metaphorically like watching a car crash.

[Bam cooks the books · Rating 4 out of 5]

*3.5 stars rounded up. Little lost Perdita has a very nice life but just isn't happy--it seems her husband isn't helping out as much as he could with their children and isn't paying her enough attention or really listening to her. She develops a crush on a much-younger roofer working next door and as their friendship develops, she comes to believe he is her soulmate, her one true love. Not surprisingly, this affair doesn't end well.

The story goes back and forth between then and now which can get confusing at times. Perdita is not a very likable character, I just could not relate to her, but her story drew me in and the mystery kept me guessing. Yes, Perdita is a little bit bad.

I received an arc from the author and publisher via NetGalley. Many thanks.

[Remi]

i smell drama, i'll be at the front row of the show

*thank you to S&S/Summit Books for the ARC*

[Mills · Rating 5 out of 5]

I want to begin this review by saying a huge thank you to the team at Penguin Figtree for sending me this proof copy of A Little Bit Bad in exchange for a totally honest review.

I honestly found this book to be so unique, engaging and riveting. I couldn't put it down. We are introduced to Perdita, a mother and a wife. Her characterisation was absolutely perfect, and I just couldn't figure her out, which added an immense layer to the mystery of the book.

I thought that the way in which Neyenesch approached the mystery element was very unconventional and this made for great reading. I spent the entire novel trying to figure Perdita out, understand what was going through her head and process what was happening.

It felt so unbelievably refreshing to read a mystery novel that was unpredictable. This novel did not follow conventional storylines, plot changes, characterisation and tropes that would be expected in a novel of its calibre and yet, I found myself feeling at home in the book and desperately wanting to uncover what had happened to Nando. The book left me feeling on edge, at times uncomfortable, and quite frankly disturbed, but in the best and most controlled way.

An absolute raging success for me and one I will be recommending to all mystery lovers.

A Little Bit Bad is out June 4th.

[Danna Hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! This was one of those books you’re reading and screaming “ Yes! This is fantastic!” the whole time. It’s funny (Hilarious) and relevant and touches on so many things in a woman’s life and loves. Cassandra Neyenesch is an exciting new voice. Straight to the point and unguarded. Voicing thoughts I’ve had before that I never dreamed someone else was thinking. This story is many things. Most of all it’s a great read. I predict this will be one of those books everyone is talking about. Read this and enjoy the ride.

[Olivia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did not enjoy this book. The characters are not relatable or enjoyable for that matter. Perdita makes some very questionable choices and is just over all messy. The ending did shock me, I did not see that coming.

Thank you to Netgalley, Simon & Schuster, and Cassandra Neyenesch for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Publication date for A Little Bit Bad is May 5, 2026.

[Get Your Tinsel in a Tangle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perdita Jungfrau is the kind of woman who absolutely did not plan to blow up her entire life over a man who literally fell off a roof… and yet here we are. Married. Pregnant. Two kids deep. Husband emotionally clocked out like he’s on a permanent silent retreat. And then in struts Nando, the neighbor’s anarcho-Marxist roofer, fifteen years younger, bleeding from the face and somehow still charismatic. Of course she falls in love. Honestly, if a hot revolutionary with a hammer looked at me like I was the only person in San Diego, I too would ruin my life.

A Little Bit Bad opens with the murder. Nando is dead. Shot. Which means the entire book has this humming undercurrent of dread because we already know this chaotic situationship ends in a body bag. And instead of a neat whodunit with a corkboard and red string, we get something way messier. We bounce between the fever dream of their affair and the aftermath, where Perdita’s husband is trying to figure out who he married and Perdita is trying to figure out… well… herself.

And here’s the thing. Perdita is not always likable. She is selfish. She is obsessive. She is spiraling while insisting she’s totally fine. But she is fascinating. The book lives inside her head and that head is loud. She’s juggling guilt over the affair, panic about being a bad mother, trauma from a chaotic childhood, and the slow devastation of watching her baby brother sink into opioid addiction. It’s domestic drama meets existential crisis meets “why is there a mysterious woman sitting in a car outside my house every day.” Casual.

The dual timeline structure is either going to thrill you or test your patience depending on your tolerance for emotional edging. Just when you think you’re about to get clarity about the murder, we’re back in the sweaty glow of rooftop flirtation. Just when the romance feels intoxicating, we’re slammed back into the present with grief and suspicion. Around the last quarter, though? Oh. The shift. Suddenly the pieces click and you realize you maybe shouldn’t have trusted everything you were being fed. I love when a book makes me side-eye myself.

Nando, for his part, is written with this magnetic, slightly unhinged charm. He’s ideological and impulsive and very young in that intoxicating way where everything feels like it could be revolution or disaster. Sometimes both. Their connection feels reckless and real and occasionally a little try-hard in that “look how edgy we are” way, but it works because Perdita wants to feel alive. And he makes her feel incandescent.

What I appreciated most is that this isn’t really about the murder. It’s about identity rot. It’s about being a woman who did everything “right” and still feels like she’s suffocating. It’s about desire colliding with responsibility. It’s about how mental health can blur your own narrative until you’re not sure which version of yourself is telling the story. That’s where the book gets sharp. That’s where it stings.

Did it drag in places? Yes. There are stretches where you can feel the pacing wobble and you’re like, are we circling the runway or landing this plane. But when it lands, it lands with purpose. I didn’t always like the ride, but I respected the audacity of it.

By the end, I felt equal parts unsettled and impressed. It’s not a clean thriller. It’s a messy, morally gray character study wrapped around a murder. It’s suburban dissatisfaction with teeth. It’s a woman trying to decide if she’s the villain of her own life or just someone who wanted more.

For me, it’s a solid 3.5 stars. Compelling, chaotic, occasionally frustrating, but undeniably memorable.

Whodunit Award: For Making Me Question Whether the Real Crime Was the Murder or That Husband’s Emotional Availability

Huge thank you to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for the ARC. Nothing says “have a relaxing week” like handing me a morally messy housewife, a hot anarchist roofer, and a murder. I had the best time spiraling.

[Goodshelftalk · Rating 4 out of 5]

A genre-bending murder mystery meets obsessive love story, rife with dark humour and blistering social commentary.

Cassandra Neyenesch’s debut novel 'A Little Bit Bad' is one of those delicious books that reveals the things we’re not supposed to say out loud but relish to read in private. Billed as a 'Big Swiss' meets 'All Fours', 'A Little Bit Bad' has joined the ranks of recent novels about relatable, albeit unhinged and messy women. It does seem that ‘unhinged and messy women’ is officially a genre now and I, for one, am loving these raucous lady romps that have materialised from the dust of Thelma and Louise’s car crash. This recent literary trend is so exciting that, if I wasn’t so fickle and indecisive, I’d get a tattoo proclaiming ‘unhinged’ and ‘messy’ across my ass cheeks for when I want to moon the institution of patriarchy. Which if I am being honest, is frequently.

Listen, forget spicey hockey novels this is the mommy porn the world needs right now. In fact, A Little Bit Bad speaks to the plight of a large spectrum of women, not just mothers but all women dating, in relationships or even having casual sex with men in these fraught times. Women who are caught in the daily wash cycle of regressive legislature and the rolling back of rights, the latest mantrums in the manosphere, and basically ping-ponging within the dichotomy of not being enough of one thing or too much of another. So, for those evolved men out there who want to know what’s really going on in the heads of women, well here’s your manual, put A Little Bit Bad on the ‘Women 1.01’ syllabus.

In essence, Perdita is highly relatable. Most women would recognise at least parts of themselves in her thoughts, her struggles, her chaos, even her “self-inflicted” crisis’. She is an encapsulation of the current status quo, a character that represents the intersection where women’s longstanding frustrations collide violently with their expanding self-awareness and latent yearnings. Neyenesch brilliantly observes and articulates the casual misogyny, subtle and overt domestic inequalities, hypocrisies and gaslighting that have collectively built a bonfire of contempt and fury for many women. Perdita just brought some gasoline and a match. Someone had to do it.

Veering into the MILF market, A Little Bit Bad offers new talking points around women’s self-empowerment and sexuality post-forty, particularly through relationships with significantly younger ...

For the rest of the review go to https://substack.com/@goodshelftalk

Many thanks to Cassandra Neyenesch for the advanced copy

[Linda (The Arizona Bookstagrammer) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Simon & Schuster @simonandschuster S&S/Summit Books @summitbooks Netgalley @netgaalley and Cassandra Neyenesch @cassandraneyenesch for this free book!
“A Little Bit Bad” by Cassandra Neyenesch⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Genre: Very Dark Comedy+Murder Mystery. Location: San Diego, California, USA. Time: 2007-2010.

San Diego suburban housewife Perdita Jungfrau fell in love with Nando, her neighbor’s anarcho-Marxist roofer. She’s pregnant, he has a girlfriend, he’s 15 years younger, she’s terrified of messing up her children, but obsessed by him. Now it’s 3 years later, and Nando has been murdered. She wonders: What about the affair that turned her life upside down? How can she stop her baby brother’s opioid addiction? Can someone with a childhood like hers ever be the mother her children deserve? And who is the mysterious woman sitting in a car outside Perdita’s house all day?

Author Nenenesch’s novel covers infidelity, obsession, family drama, addiction, marriage, and murder. I thought this was going to be a funny, light book. Nope, not at all. This is the story of a wildly mercurial woman teetering on the edge, trying to hold it together for her children while caught up in an obsession. Narrator Perdita has a wickedly dry, caustic voice (which I loved!). She digresses constantly-you’ll learn more about obscure music genres than you ever wondered about.

Neyenesch will surprise you with the twists and turns of Perdita’s story. Her book flips back and forth between the beginning of her obsession and the time just after Nando’s murder, but it’s all labeled so you’ll be able to follow. I must say thank you to publishers Simon and Schuster. In our current political climate, this messy, unpredictable book exists because “Simon & Schuster strongly believes in freedom of expression and stands against censorship in all its forms.” It’s a “Women on the Verge” book, it’s full of chaotic, unreliable characters, it isn’t easy to read but her complicated narrative will draw you in. It’s 4⭐️s from me 📚👩🏼‍🦳 #netgalley #alittlebitbad

[Michelle Beginandendwithbooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don’t want to give too much away, but this book was a ride. It started with some “a little bit bad” decisions and careened into chaos.

Living in San Diego, Perdita, the main character, is a mother and social worker. The most tender part of this story is Perdita’s love for her much younger brother and the child she sees in the adult with addiction he has become.

Perdita’s voice captures the more mundane parts of early motherhood and the lack of freedom and loss of self control that comes with being the full-time physical caretakers of babies and toddlers. At times, Perdita’s husband is an infuriating coparent, at least from Perdita’s point of view. The author depicts in a raw way the harder parts of marriage and the changes that come with parenting and financial decisions.

The driving force of the novel is Perdita’s obsession with the roofer next door. Perdita’s discontent with her own life, the true conflict, leads her to using the roofer, Nando, as a distraction. Lust, infatuation, desire–whatever you want to call it–makes people selfish, and Perdita neglects her children, husband, and friends while chasing her distraction.

For most of the novel, I was invested, but Perdita’s erratic behavior and spiraling went too far for my reading comfort when she put her child in danger. At times the story turned almost stream of consciousness, I’m assuming to reflect the deterioration of Perdita’s mental state, but the reader could perceive it as a lack of editing. It was a can’t-look-away reading experience by the end, but it was unique and earned some wide eyes, jaw drops, and chuckles along the way.

The publisher’s note accurately categorizes this type of fiction as “women on the verge” and that tracks. I can’t imagine this character being a social worker offering anyone else advice.

Thank you to @SimonBooks and @Netgalley for access to the egalley of A Little Bit Bad in exchange for an honest review.

[Leanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cassandra Neyenesch’s A Little Bit Bad is one of those novels that slips a hand around your wrist and pulls you into a life already in motion—messy, magnetic, and impossible to look away from. At its centre is Perdita Jungfrau, a woman who has spent years trying to be good, sensible, and predictable… until she isn’t anymore. What begins as a reckless, intoxicating affair with Nando—her neighbour’s anarcho‑Marxist roofer, fifteen years her junior—spirals into a tangle of desire, guilt, and self‑reckoning that feels startlingly human.

The book moves between the heat of their affair and the cold aftermath: Nando has been murdered, Perdita’s husband is bewildered by the stranger his wife has become, and Perdita herself is juggling motherhood, grief, and the slow‑motion collapse of her younger brother to addiction. Neyenesch writes these tensions with a confiding, conspiratorial tone—almost as if Perdita is whispering her worst impulses to you over a glass of wine.

What makes the novel so compelling is its emotional duality: it’s sharp and funny in places, then suddenly tender, then quietly devastating. Perdita’s voice is charismatic, flawed, and painfully self‑aware. She’s not always likeable, but she’s always alive on the page. And the mystery—who’s watching her from the parked car outside, what really happened to Nando—threads through the narrative with a slow, simmering unease.

This is a story about desire and consequence, about the versions of ourselves we try to bury, and the ones that claw their way to the surface anyway. It’s messy, bold, and surprisingly moving—a novel that lingers like the echo of a confession.

My thanks to Cassandra Neyenesch, the publisher and netgalley for the ARC

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley and Simon&Schuster for early access to this book in exchange for my review.

I absolutely loved the premise of A Little Bit Bad. A suburban housewife, an obsessive affair with her neighbor’s much younger roofer, and a murder hanging over everything? I was in immediately. The setup is sharp and darkly funny, and the tension starts early and never really lets up.

The mystery surrounding Nando’s death is genuinely compelling. The pacing is quick without feeling rushed, and I kept wanting to read just one more chapter to see how it would all unravel. The writing feels confident and controlled, especially in how it layers the affair, the family drama, and the looming question of who killed Nando.

The character development is also a major strength. Everyone feels real and complicated. Perdita’s husband, her brother, even the side characters all feel fully formed. Their flaws and motivations make sense, even when they hurt to watch.

Where I struggled was with Perdita herself. I appreciate an unlikeable or morally messy main character, but I had such a hard time connecting with her. Her choices felt chaotic in a way that frustrated me rather than intrigued me. I didn’t need her to be perfect, but I needed something to hold onto emotionally, and I just never quite found it. It made it difficult to root for her, even when I understood the pain driving her decisions.

Overall, this was fast paced, bold, and undeniably readable. I was hooked by the mystery and impressed by the depth of the characters, even if I couldn’t fully get behind the protagonist. A solid 3.5 stars for a story that kept me turning pages, even when it made me want to shake the main character.

[Books By Your Bedside · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thanks to Fig Tree for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.

I will start this review by saying I have no idea what I'm going to write. It's one of those books that made me feel (negatively, in this case) but I can't quite explain why, so bear with me.

I am so confused by this book. I'd nothing but praise for it and was really excited for it.

From the synopsis, it sounded like some thriller-cum-crime novel. But I didn't get that. Yes there's a murder but for me, that's where it stopped.

It's a mishmash, there's a touch of crime, and there's romance, and there's literary fiction and contemporary fiction, and just a lot of chatter and not a lot of happenings. I wasn't settled on what it was trying to be, it felt lost, like it was trying to be something it wasn't.

What didn't help was that the main couple, Perdita and Theo, are so unsufferable and I had no empathy for them and so didn't really care about them.

It does get a bonus star for originality. I read hundreds of books a year an so it can be hard to stan out, but this did at least feel quite fresh.

The pacing is odd. Nothing happens and it's so slow, but then you find you're half way through. Some chapters felt pointless and like they were there to meet a word count. It flits between the present and an unspecified time in the past, which I did like as I like dual timelines.

Don't get me wrong, I think it's a good premise and an interesting idea, and I think it is a stable debut, but I felt so flat whilst reading it. I didn't get any of the excitement I was expecting.

It's just very messy and unsure of what it is, what it wants to be, what it's trying to say, and I am just really quite disappointed.

[Pam · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not 100% sure how to feel about this one. Let’s start with the murder mystery aspect, which I thought was good and surprising once the killer was so matter-of-factly revealed. I enjoyed the buildup and evolution of the main characters relationship.

Interesting delve into all sorts of psychotic thoughts and behaviors. Especially of Perdita, the main character who is actually a social worker as her occupation. The mantra of do as I say, not as I do ran through my mind as the novel progressed.

The story was a quick, beach read that sucked me in. I had the biggest problem with the threads of antisemitism woven through which were cast upon the “bad guy” Nando’s girlfriend. When an author feels free to perpetrate antisemitic tropes (describing the girlfriends father as a rich, Jewish Hollywood type, the top 1% of money) and foster extreme leftist viewpoints (Nando and the mother in the kitchen talking about the problems with Israel) that’s where I have to call this author out. If these viewpoints had been edited out (the author talks about the extensive editing process - I can only imagine what other vile viewpoints were left on the cutting room floor), I would have thought it was a much better book.

So 2 stars for the mystery, maybe another round of editing before release date. Or at least just keep your antisemitism to yourself.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Thrillerswineandchill · Rating 3 out of 5]

🪜 T A N G L E D T U E S D A Y review 🪜 featuring “ A Little Bit Bad” by Cassandra Neyenesch.

Perdita Jungfrau has always tried to be a good, sensible and responsible wife and mother. But her marriage has become lacklustre and she begins to long for so much more.

She becomes obsessed with a man named Nando who is hired by her next door neighbour to fix their roof. Nando is 15 years younger than Perdita and stirs up something deep inside of her. An intoxicating affair between the two of them seems to wake up Perdita and lets her desires run wild. That is until Nando winds up murdered and Perdita is left in a whirlwind of heartbreak, grief, shock and internal conflict.

💭 This is quite the SLOW burn story that is messy, beyond emotional and explores the woman on the verge trope. There is a lot of mental health awareness peppered throughout the story that is powerful. Perdita tried to be the version of herself that everyone expected and she needed this awakening to surface in its truest form once she met Nando. Now that he is gone, she must navigate this new sense of self moving forward. Oh, and help solve a murder mystery of course!

Thank you kindly to @cassandraneyenesch @summitbooks @simonschusterca @netgalley for my advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review. This book releases on May 5, 2026!

[Carrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

When Perdita meets her neighbour’s new roofer, Nando, she’s in a funk with her life and never expects to fall wildly in love with him. This isn’t ideal because Perdita is married with a young son and pregnant. But her husband Theo is absolutely no help and never opens up to her and she’s afraid of being a terrible mother.

Now, 3 years later, Nando has been murdered, and Perdita is being stalked by his ex-girlfriend…

Usually it takes at least a few chapters for me to get into a book. With this one, I just instantly loved it! It’s written so brilliantly, like we’re in the stream of consciousness of this very relatable late-30s mum, Perdita.

I immediately really liked her. The way the story was told through her memories and thoughts was so incredible it seemed impossible that she wasn’t a real person!

Story-wise, not LOADS happens, and I feel like this might be quite a Marmite book. It was very centred around getting to know Perdita, her life, family, and her relationship with Nando. The feelings and emotions were so realistically described, it was addictive!

I loved that it was hard to categorise this book with a particular genre - it’s a love story, a falling out of love story, a family saga and a murder mystery. It was twisty, funny, intelligent, original, and just pure ace!

[Jessica DiBartolo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, I was so into this book. The writing grabbed my attention from the start and didn't let go. The story definitely covers some super dark stuff, but it also offers lots of disturbed, sardonic humor. I was giggling to myself the whole way through, and my husband kept asking "What's so funny?"

Perdita is unhappily married with two young children. Her husband makes gagging noises when she asks him to change diapers and complains about "watching" their children when she tries to take time for herself. So, when she runs to her roofer's rescue after he falls off a ladder and subsequently falls in love with him, I struggled to find sympathy for her unwitting spouse.

The banter between Perdita and her new lover Nando is entertaining and endearing, even when she judges her anarcho-Marxist boyfriend for being a stereotype by quoting Nietzsche. That's why it's such a bummer when we learn that someone unalived Nando at the start of the story.

The chapters alternate between the present day, when Perdita works to uncover what happened to Nando, and the past, which depicts how their affair developed.

If you enjoy stories with unlikable protagonists who make questionable choices, then I suggest you grab a copy of this book.

[Kassondra Cloos · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perdita is married to a man who doesn't appreciate her or proactively care for her or her children in any way, and she's grown to loathe him. It's no wonder that she falls for the contractor, Nando, after he falls, literally, from the roof. As she rushes to help him and call an ambulance, he maintains his wit and charm through a bloody face; he sees her, when it is he who is most in need.

I received an advanced review copy of this book from the publisher and enjoyed the narrator's voice right from the beginning. I read the first third of the book extremely quickly. We flit back and forth between present-day Perdita, who is fretting over the unknown details of Nando's recent murder, and past Perdita, who is pursuing an affair with this man, and at first these transitions are deliciously frustrating — just as it starts getting somewhere, we flash forward or backward, and we have to return to the previous mystery before we can move forward again. It starts to slow down after the first few chapters, however, and it takes a while before the action picks back up again. If you're looking for a slow and poetic "true crime" fiction, this one's probably for you.

[Liv Delturco · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wooo-eeee, this was a wild one. At no point in time did I know where this book was headed. A Little Bit Bad stands apart because of its ability to combine genres in an authentic way. Neyenesch writes in a way that feels personal and real, almost like you’re inside the main character’s thoughts. The story doesn’t try to make anyone completely good or completely bad, which makes it feel more realistic and relatable.

What makes this book unique is how much it focuses on the character’s inner struggles, but also the way that she's an unreliable narrator. You're on your toes for the entirety of the story, and you won't able to exactly pinpoint why until the end. The female main character is just a little off-putting, and the power of the story comes from the small details.

My only complaint comes from some of the writing being a tiny bit stereotypically "edgy" to me. While most of the book is written in a way that's incredibly relatable and thought out, some random lines will sneak their way in that make me roll my eyes a little, mostly in relation to the romance aspect. But that very well may just be me experiencing post art school PTSD.

Overall, A Little Bit Bad is a novel with a strong literary voice and a plot line that makes it different from typical contemporary fiction.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the ARC in return for an honest review.

[Sacha · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Perdita is just a typical, 40-year-old woman with a husband, a couple of kids, and decent job in San Diego. Oh. She's also in love with the neighbor's roofer, Nando, who was just murdered.

This book is wild. The central concern seems to be who killed Nando, of course. But as readers get to know Perdita, that concern changes a bit to, like, what the heck is up with this woman? This is exacerbated by her relationship with her mother, a fascinating character in her own right, and her younger brother, whose struggles with addiction make him an easy target for both warranted and unwarranted blame at distinct points. Perdita's reflections on her childhood, her vast array of secrets, and her overtly challenged choices make her a fascinating character to follow, though not one to necessarily root for most of the time.

At times, I struggled with Perdita more than I enjoyed her. However, I DID have fun on this bizarre journey overall, and I'll look forward to reading more from Neyenesch.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Anna Skrabacz at Summit Books for this widget, which I received in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

[Stacy40pages · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Little Bit Bad by Cassandra Neyenesch. Thanks to @simonandschuster for the gifted Arc ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Perdita isn’t expecting to fall in love with her neighbor’s roofer, a much younger anarcho-Marxist. She’s pregnant, married, and carrying for her children but can’t stop the passion she feels. Three years later her lover is murdered, there’s a car parked outside her house all the time, her brother is suffering from addiction , and her husband is confused who she is.

This one really surprised me - and in a good way. I was not expecting the twist of how it ended. I liked the look at the main character and how she was torn between her life as a mother and wife, and something else. Her family life with her mother and brother were also interesting. I liked the dual timelines, and found it interesting how they were close to each other but very different in her perspective.

“There comes a moment when you are so destroyed by love you can’t remember what you ever wanted before, and you may as well do a flying cannonball into the well of your shame.”

Read if you like:
-Middle age female characters
-Infidelity tropes
-Murder mysteries

A Little Bit Bad comes out 5/5.

[C Rivera · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3/5) – A Little Bit Bad by Cassandra Neyenesch

A Little Bit Bad had an intriguing premise, but my overall experience landed somewhere in the middle.

The concept itself has potential, and I can see this working better for readers who enjoy character-driven stories and don’t mind a slower burn or a protagonist who’s hard to root for. This is also great for readers who love satire/humor in their thrillers. While it didn’t completely hit for me, it wasn’t a bad read ,just not a standout.

My biggest struggle was the main character. I found her frustrating in ways that made it hard to fully invest in her story. While I can appreciate flawed and morally gray characters, her choices didn’t always feel compelling enough to keep me engaged.

I also found parts of the plot to be predictable. I was able to anticipate several key developments fairly early on, which took away some of the tension and impact as the story unfolded.

Thank you to Cassandra Neyenesch, NetGalley, and Simon and Schuster for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[rachel.reads.a.lot · Rating 3 out of 5]

First, thanks NetGalley for a copy of this title in exchange for my honest review.

I am a little at a loss for words on how to accurately explain my thoughts on this book. From the beginning, I was intrigued by the chaos, and also by the voice of the man character. It really felt like I was stepping into her head. But at the same time, I was unsure about where the story was heading. What was going to be the conflict that needed resolving?

I found myself getting frustrated with the pace because I wanted to have more direction. I couldn’t tell what was filler, what was integral, or what was in between.

However, around the 80% mark, I felt the shift. And I realized that (I think) it was all intentional. While I loved the characters voice from the beginning, I felt myself stop trusting it. And, without spoilers, I fully understand why that shift occurred. And I began to appreciate that the author took me on the exact ride she wanted to take me on.

I am glad I pushed through some slowness to get to the end of the book.

[Kathleen Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well. Perdita falls, hard, for Nando, the roofer she meets when he falls off her neighbor's roof. This moves back and forth in time to tell the story of how their affair and then what happens after he is shot and killed. Perdita is married to Theo (who is not well fleshed out) for whom she has contempt and she's the mother of Atticus and, later, Honor (those names). She's also sister to Spencer, an addict who became my favorite character in this chaotic novel. Nando, man of mystery (sort of) is much younger than Perdita and he's got a girlfriend, who stalks Perdita after his death. This does have amusing spots (the mommy groups among them) but Perdita, initially likable, spirals so much and becomes so obsessive that you likely would not want to be near her. And her clients, if they knew her, likely would flee. The mystery of who killed Nando amps up in the last quarter of the novel and you might find yourself questioning what you're reading. No spoilers from me. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. It's a car crash.

[Emily Z · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a WILD ride!

We meet Perdita, a lonely housewife with an intense obsession with her neighbor's roofer, Nando, when she aids in calling for help after a bad fall. As a middle-aged mother myself, especially one who has gone through marriage ups and downs (definitely related to her random hatred of her husband even when he did nothing wrong), I felt this novel in a real way. Perdita is hilarious, unhinged, and ridiculous, but also SO relatable. I found myself laughing out loud several times due to the absurdity of her actions and her random quotes throughout the book. And it's also a mystery!

I struggle to compare this novel to anything I've read so far, but people who enjoy the pace and randomness of books like "Margo's Got Money Troubles" and "Lost Lambs" will enjoy this one. I'm still not sure how I feel about the ending and the ultimate message of the book, but I think it encompasses a lot of the roller coaster of motherhood and decisions made in the mid-life.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the opportunity to read and review this eARC!