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Dead Lift
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Expected 5 Jan 27Lights Out meets Butcher & Blackbird in Dead Lift, a serial killer romcom from indie author Clio Evans
Murdering a man isn't hard. Getting rid of the body, though? That’s another story.
Forensic scientist Shelby has a simple plan. Get justice for her sister, kill the men who murdered her, and (hopefully) get away with it. But when a hot himbo with a man-bun catches Shelby in the act—her simple plan becomes a lot more complicated.
With her pink hazmat suit and butcher knife, Shelby is the most alluring woman Brad has ever met. He’s in danger, but he’s never felt more alive. He needs to be in her life, even if it means risking his.
Brad offers to be her henchman. Shelby grudgingly decides to spare his life. What could possibly go wrong?
It turns out everything.
Will Shelby finally get the justice she’s sacrificed her future for? Or will falling for her hot himbo henchman ruin it all?
Murdering a man isn't hard. Getting rid of the body, though? That’s another story.
Forensic scientist Shelby has a simple plan. Get justice for her sister, kill the men who murdered her, and (hopefully) get away with it. But when a hot himbo with a man-bun catches Shelby in the act—her simple plan becomes a lot more complicated.
With her pink hazmat suit and butcher knife, Shelby is the most alluring woman Brad has ever met. He’s in danger, but he’s never felt more alive. He needs to be in her life, even if it means risking his.
Brad offers to be her henchman. Shelby grudgingly decides to spare his life. What could possibly go wrong?
It turns out everything.
Will Shelby finally get the justice she’s sacrificed her future for? Or will falling for her hot himbo henchman ruin it all?
368 pages, Paperback
Expected publication January 5, 2027
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June 20, 20263.5-4✨ This was simply just so fun. I loved Brad and Shelby so much. Their chemistry was absolutely believable, and I loved that the different POVs felt very different from one another and matched the personality of the character. I ate up the whole “She’s a serial killer, and he’s just Brad” thing. This book had me literally laughing out loud.
Super excited for the pub day next January!!
ARC provided by Edelweiss! Thank you so much!
Super excited for the pub day next January!!
ARC provided by Edelweiss! Thank you so much!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
⭐⭐⭐☆☆
If you've followed my reviews for any length of time, you already know one thing about me... I cannot stand a weak female main character. Thankfully, Shelby is anything but weak. She's smart, ruthless, unapologetically unhinged, and absolutely carries this story.
Now let's talk about Brad... because this man may take the crown as the biggest lovable idiot I've ever read. He's the definition of a golden retriever himbo, and while I know that's exactly what the author was going for, his constant optimism and obliviousness were a little over the top for me. At times I found myself laughing, and at other times I just wanted to shake him.
The premise is completely bonkers in the best way... a serial killer rom-com with plenty of dark humor, murder, and chaos. It definitely doesn't take itself too seriously, which made for a fun, quick read.
For me, though, the humor occasionally overshadowed the story, and I wanted a little more depth to the characters and emotional stakes. Overall, it was entertaining and unique, but not one I'll be thinking about long after I finish.
If you love dark romantic comedies, morally gray heroines, and golden retriever himbos who somehow survive by pure luck, this one is worth checking out. Just know you're signing up for absolute chaos.
If you've followed my reviews for any length of time, you already know one thing about me... I cannot stand a weak female main character. Thankfully, Shelby is anything but weak. She's smart, ruthless, unapologetically unhinged, and absolutely carries this story.
Now let's talk about Brad... because this man may take the crown as the biggest lovable idiot I've ever read. He's the definition of a golden retriever himbo, and while I know that's exactly what the author was going for, his constant optimism and obliviousness were a little over the top for me. At times I found myself laughing, and at other times I just wanted to shake him.
The premise is completely bonkers in the best way... a serial killer rom-com with plenty of dark humor, murder, and chaos. It definitely doesn't take itself too seriously, which made for a fun, quick read.
For me, though, the humor occasionally overshadowed the story, and I wanted a little more depth to the characters and emotional stakes. Overall, it was entertaining and unique, but not one I'll be thinking about long after I finish.
If you love dark romantic comedies, morally gray heroines, and golden retriever himbos who somehow survive by pure luck, this one is worth checking out. Just know you're signing up for absolute chaos.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
To say I was excited for this book is a GROSS understatement.
Long time Clio fan, and SO happy and excited for their first traditionally published book.
Off the bat? HILARIOUS read. This book is a raging hilarious good time. I was giggling and snort laughing the entire time.
Our characters are the epitome of black cat/golden retriever. Shelby is a woman on a revenge mission. She is pissed off and determined. Brad is, just along for the ride. Ready to serve his woman however he can. Their dynamic was SO FUNNY. The banter was hilarious. And I can't tell you how many times I was rolling laughing.
Now the revenge/murder plot. Is the logic and logistics sound? Ehhhh, not really. There is a lot of creative liberties being taken. Some feels on point, other times, with my vast knowledge of all things Law and Order SVU, CSI, and Criminal Minds, I was going, ok, this it NOT accurate. But this is a romcom. So I was able to kinda just let a few things slide.
The pacing for the book was good. And the smut was delicious and PLENTIFUL. God, I about DIED. Brad get GET IT.
All in all, if you are looking for a dark romcom that leans more romcom and campy, I think you'll love this book!
Long time Clio fan, and SO happy and excited for their first traditionally published book.
Off the bat? HILARIOUS read. This book is a raging hilarious good time. I was giggling and snort laughing the entire time.
Our characters are the epitome of black cat/golden retriever. Shelby is a woman on a revenge mission. She is pissed off and determined. Brad is, just along for the ride. Ready to serve his woman however he can. Their dynamic was SO FUNNY. The banter was hilarious. And I can't tell you how many times I was rolling laughing.
Now the revenge/murder plot. Is the logic and logistics sound? Ehhhh, not really. There is a lot of creative liberties being taken. Some feels on point, other times, with my vast knowledge of all things Law and Order SVU, CSI, and Criminal Minds, I was going, ok, this it NOT accurate. But this is a romcom. So I was able to kinda just let a few things slide.
The pacing for the book was good. And the smut was delicious and PLENTIFUL. God, I about DIED. Brad get GET IT.
All in all, if you are looking for a dark romcom that leans more romcom and campy, I think you'll love this book!
July 25, 2026
This one was a bit of a mixed bag for me. I absolutely love Clio Evans' writing, so I went in excited, but this wasn't my favorite of hers.
The premise felt a little too over-the-top at first, and I had to let go of trying to make it make sense. Once I did, I found myself enjoying the ride much more. The dark humor and the golden retriever/himbo MMC paired with the competent, independent FMC made for some fun moments.
Brad was just a little too clueless for my personal taste. I loved how completely obsessed he was with Shelby and how devoted he was from the start, but his lack of common sense was a bit much at times. Shelby, on the other hand, was smart, capable, and easy to root for, and I actually thought Brad balanced her well.
Overall, this one just wasn't quite for me, but it definitely won't stop me from picking up Clio Evans' next book. She's still one of my favorite authors, and even when one book doesn't fully hit, I know another one probably will.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eArc!
The premise felt a little too over-the-top at first, and I had to let go of trying to make it make sense. Once I did, I found myself enjoying the ride much more. The dark humor and the golden retriever/himbo MMC paired with the competent, independent FMC made for some fun moments.
Brad was just a little too clueless for my personal taste. I loved how completely obsessed he was with Shelby and how devoted he was from the start, but his lack of common sense was a bit much at times. Shelby, on the other hand, was smart, capable, and easy to root for, and I actually thought Brad balanced her well.
Overall, this one just wasn't quite for me, but it definitely won't stop me from picking up Clio Evans' next book. She's still one of my favorite authors, and even when one book doesn't fully hit, I know another one probably will.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eArc!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Dead Lift ARC Review
I LOVED EVERY SECOND OF THIS!! It was hysterical! Probably one of my favorite Clio books to date.
I am pretty sure we all need a Brad in our life at some point in time!
𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗔𝗟𝗟: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
𝗦𝗣𝗜𝗖𝗘: 🌶️🌶️
𝗧𝗬𝗣𝗘: Standalone
𝗦𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗘𝗦: n/a
𝗔𝗨𝗗𝗜𝗢𝗕𝗢𝗢𝗞: TBD — I plan on rereading once audio is available!
𝗣𝗔𝗜𝗥𝗜𝗡𝗚: M/F
𝗛𝗘𝗔/𝗛𝗙𝗡: 💖
𝗟𝗚𝗕𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗣: 🏳️🌈
𝗪𝗛𝗬-𝗖𝗛𝗢𝗢𝗦𝗘: 🚫
𝗠𝗔𝗜𝗡 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦: Brad + Shelby
𝗛𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗟𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗧𝗦:
♥︎ dark romcom
♥︎ grumpy x sunshine
♥︎ forensic scientist fmc who’s avenging her sister’s death 🔪
♥︎ the king of all himbos mmc
♥︎ viking sex god mmc
♥︎ fmc who doubles as scary dog privilege for mmc
♥︎ bisexual MCs
♥︎ paisley 🐕 + witness 🐈 being cuddle buddies
𝗞𝗜𝗡𝗞𝗦:
♥︎ soft pleasure dom
♥︎ light sexual D/s dynamic
♥︎ breeding
♥︎ spanking
P.S. I am just glad we didn’t find out Brad’s full name until the end because I know someone by that name and it would have completely taken me out of it 😂
𝗔𝗥𝗖 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄: 𝙸 𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚎𝚒𝚟𝚎𝚍 𝚊 𝚌𝚘𝚙𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝙽𝚎𝚝𝙶𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚎𝚢 𝚒𝚗 𝚎𝚡𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚊𝚗 𝚑𝚘𝚗𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚛𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠.
I LOVED EVERY SECOND OF THIS!! It was hysterical! Probably one of my favorite Clio books to date.
I am pretty sure we all need a Brad in our life at some point in time!
𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗔𝗟𝗟: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
𝗦𝗣𝗜𝗖𝗘: 🌶️🌶️
𝗧𝗬𝗣𝗘: Standalone
𝗦𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗘𝗦: n/a
𝗔𝗨𝗗𝗜𝗢𝗕𝗢𝗢𝗞: TBD — I plan on rereading once audio is available!
𝗣𝗔𝗜𝗥𝗜𝗡𝗚: M/F
𝗛𝗘𝗔/𝗛𝗙𝗡: 💖
𝗟𝗚𝗕𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗣: 🏳️🌈
𝗪𝗛𝗬-𝗖𝗛𝗢𝗢𝗦𝗘: 🚫
𝗠𝗔𝗜𝗡 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦: Brad + Shelby
𝗛𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗟𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗧𝗦:
♥︎ dark romcom
♥︎ grumpy x sunshine
♥︎ forensic scientist fmc who’s avenging her sister’s death 🔪
♥︎ the king of all himbos mmc
♥︎ viking sex god mmc
♥︎ fmc who doubles as scary dog privilege for mmc
♥︎ bisexual MCs
♥︎ paisley 🐕 + witness 🐈 being cuddle buddies
𝗞𝗜𝗡𝗞𝗦:
♥︎ soft pleasure dom
♥︎ light sexual D/s dynamic
♥︎ breeding
♥︎ spanking
P.S. I am just glad we didn’t find out Brad’s full name until the end because I know someone by that name and it would have completely taken me out of it 😂
𝗔𝗥𝗖 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄: 𝙸 𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚎𝚒𝚟𝚎𝚍 𝚊 𝚌𝚘𝚙𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝙽𝚎𝚝𝙶𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚎𝚢 𝚒𝚗 𝚎𝚡𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚊𝚗 𝚑𝚘𝚗𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚛𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠.
July 25, 2026
The premise of this book caught me. A female serial killer and her himbo henchmen. That’s literally the dream.
Shelby and Brad were such a ride. Brad was absolutely hilarious, just true embodiment of a golden retriever boy. I loved that we got his point of view as well, it was such a treat to jump from our calculating fmc to our “eating hard boiled eggs out of a ziplock” mmc.
I don’t typically love the instalove trope, but Brad really made it work. Considering he first sees Shelby in a hazmat suit and ski mask and thinks “she’s the one for me”.
Dead Lift is pitched as Butcher & Blackbird meets Lights Out and I think that’s an apt description. I laughed a lot and overall just had a great time. Can’t wait to go through Clio Evan’s backlist now and see what I’ve been missing!
Shelby and Brad were such a ride. Brad was absolutely hilarious, just true embodiment of a golden retriever boy. I loved that we got his point of view as well, it was such a treat to jump from our calculating fmc to our “eating hard boiled eggs out of a ziplock” mmc.
I don’t typically love the instalove trope, but Brad really made it work. Considering he first sees Shelby in a hazmat suit and ski mask and thinks “she’s the one for me”.
Dead Lift is pitched as Butcher & Blackbird meets Lights Out and I think that’s an apt description. I laughed a lot and overall just had a great time. Can’t wait to go through Clio Evan’s backlist now and see what I’ve been missing!
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
was it good? no. was it fun? absolutely.
but you’re really telling me that our fmc spent nearly nearly 400 pages murdered the 5 men who raped and murdered her sister and taking down a serial killer who raped and murder another 18 women, just to her boss catch a “woman with a vendetta”? Be so for real right now.
but you’re really telling me that our fmc spent nearly nearly 400 pages murdered the 5 men who raped and murdered her sister and taking down a serial killer who raped and murder another 18 women, just to her boss catch a “woman with a vendetta”? Be so for real right now.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Omg this book was so damn funny. Shelby is off her rocker and Brad is the sweetest but dumbest boy in school. It was giving Izma and Krunk- villain and himbo henchman vibes but make it spicy. And less Disney. 🤣 this has the perfect amount of humor and mystery while mixing in some very excellent spice. I think if you liked Butcher & Blackbird, this would be right up your alley!
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
that was such a cute romance 🥺 i mean, yeah it's a dark romcom and they kill people but the golden retriever himbo guy x black cat killer woman is such a good dynamic ! i had such a good time reading it, i couldn't put down the book and read it in one-go it was so good !
July 29, 2026
Omg, I was laughing from the very beginning! This is such a fun book with the hot himbo of my dreams. This book was such a good mix of silly humor, serial killers, and some real good spice! I could not get enough of it.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
This is dark, this is sexy and this is also really funny and well written. What a ride, I loved it!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thank you for access to the book ahead of publication. Clio continues to show her diversity in characters and plot. I can't wait for the next book. The teaser at the end was so good.
July 23, 2026
I wanted to like this more then I did. Story was a little rushed but fun nonetheless
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
This was a truly entertaining and bad romance in the best way. I had fun reading it.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Recieved an e-arc from netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
This was so silly and fun. Who doesn't want to read about a himbo and a serial killer?
Keeping in mind that the plot is pretty straightforward, a serial killer and her henchman who fall in love while she seeks revenge, I think this was just an entertaining read. The romance was so lighthearted and enjoyable. I really liked Shelby and Brad. Brad is genuinely so dumb but also very emotionally intelligent, so he's basically one of the best MMC's ever.
Read with an open mind, and know that this is just meant to be fun!
This was so silly and fun. Who doesn't want to read about a himbo and a serial killer?
Keeping in mind that the plot is pretty straightforward, a serial killer and her henchman who fall in love while she seeks revenge, I think this was just an entertaining read. The romance was so lighthearted and enjoyable. I really liked Shelby and Brad. Brad is genuinely so dumb but also very emotionally intelligent, so he's basically one of the best MMC's ever.
Read with an open mind, and know that this is just meant to be fun!
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
This book was funny and unhinged and very spicy. It was a great, easy read. It kept me entertained and I love the dynamic of the two main characters cause they're so opposite of each other.
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