Pop!

by Angel Luis Colón

POP! delivers a deliciously dark and funny organized crime thriller for every assistant who’s wished they could take out their incompetent boss, perfect for fans of the wry comedy of Elle Cosimano’s Finlay Donovan is Killing It and the facetious darkness of Oyinkan Braithwaite’s My Sister, the Serial Killer.

“…at that moment, all I could see was a crown perched precariously on her head. All I had to do was reach out and grab it.”

Poppy Leathers has two work lives.

The job everyone knows she has: manager to art influencer extraordinaire Jason Tasker. The other job: assistant to Brooklyn’s premier artisanal hitman, Atticus Garcia.

Two different worlds, all the same crap.

Undervalued and constantly taken for granted, Poppy reaches her breaking point when her art boss decides he’s desperate to adopt a baby―by any means necessary―and her hitman boss has fallen into an ennui that has left him ready to retire―a major health hazard for anyone with her institutional knowledge.

What’s a burned-out, bright-eyed sociopath to do but lock in and grind her way further up the ladder?

Taking advantage of her bosses’ lack of common sense and judgement, Poppy begins to politick her way into a solution that will push her into the stratosphere of the hipster crime world―but ambition can only get her so far. When a charismatic Coney Island cheesemonger named Amity careens into the middle of her schemes, Poppy Leathers will need to decide what is truly important… before she finds herself on the wrong side of the gun.

A chaotic journey into a hyper-stylized Brooklyn crime world, POP! is a fable for the overworked and overambitious.

Genres: Lesbian, Fiction

465 pages, Paperback

Expected publication August 18, 2026

About the author

Angel Luis Colón is the award-winning author of INFESTED and MINECRAFT: HOUSE OF HORRORS. His fiction has appeared in multiple web and print publications including Thuglit, Literary Orphans, and Shotgun Honey. His latest novel, POP! (Ruadán Books) is coming soon.

When he isn’t writing, he’s usually busy baking bread.

You can keep up with him on social media or find links to his books here https://linktr.ee/angelluiscolon

Reviews

[Sarah (heartfeltthrills) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pop by Angel Luis Colón, narrated by Annie Henk, definitely solid and has a lot of heart, but it didn't quite blow me away like I was hoping. The story tackles identity, community, and personal growth in ways that feel authentic and grounded—Colón writes with a real voice that draws you in. The characters are relatable, and I genuinely wanted to know more about their journeys.

It's a thoughtful, contemporary story of fake it till you make it with an underworld twist - fight till you make it. If you're looking for something grounded and meaningful, this is worth your time. But it's not the kind of book that surprised me as much as I wanted—lacked that extra "twisty" spark. The pacing feels a bit uneven at times, leaving me wanting more to really be invested in Poppy's character.

Still, I appreciate what Colón was trying to do, and there's enough here to make it a worthwhile read. Definitely a 3-star experience for me!

Would I read more by this author? Maybe! Let's see what he’s up to next.

Thank you to NetGalley, Ruadán Books and the author for gifting me both the ALC and ARC for an immersive read. As always, this review is my own true and honest opinion.

[Ellie Watters · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pop! opens with one of the most arresting first chapters I’ve read in a long time. The narrator’s blunt confession that she sold her baby immediately establishes a dark, morally uncomfortable tone that demands your attention. Rather than easing the reader into the story, it throws you into the mind of a woman who has reinvented herself entirely, taking on a new identity and beginning an ambitious climb through the criminal underworld.

What I found most compelling wasn’t the crime itself, but Poppy’s relationships. Her interactions with her bosses are layered and fascinating; she uses care, attention to detail and quiet competence to subtly control those around her. Although she initially admires the hitman she works for, their relationship gradually shifts as her ambition outgrows him. In contrast, her potential love interest offers rare glimpses of honesty and vulnerability, hinting at the person she might have become had she chosen a different path.

I also appreciated that Poppy became more believable as the novel progressed. I never particularly liked her, and I don’t think I was meant to, but her motivations became increasingly complex and difficult to predict. By the end, I found myself wondering what someone with her relentless ambition would do next now that she had reached the top.

The opening chapter remained my favourite part of the novel. Poppy’s confrontational voice is incredibly effective, although I didn’t always feel that same sharpness carried consistently throughout the story. There were also moments where I struggled to stay fully invested, and I found I had to be in the right mood for such an uncompromising protagonist.

The audiobook narration deserves a mention too. The narrator’s harsh New York accent perfectly matched Poppy’s personality and helped bring her character to life.

Overall, Pop! is a dark, original exploration of reinvention, ambition and power. It won’t be for everyone, but if you enjoy morally complex characters and crime fiction that focuses more on psychology than action, it’s well worth picking up.

[Joe Whitfield · Rating 3 out of 5]

Poppy Leathers is a woman in New York working two jobs: one as a gallery assistant for an idiot artist who paints with his *ahem* brush, and the other as an unpaid intern for a gun-for-hire. After a few years as a dogsbody for hitman Atticus Garcia, and with no real career prospects in the underworld, Poppy (don't call her Pop) has decided to take matters into her own hands and set up shop on her own. The trouble is, branching out as a criminal aficionado without stepping on anyone's toes, or getting yourself a new pair of concrete shoes, is tough work. Let alone when your boss takes a personal interest in the one human you're attracted to.

POP!, by Angel Luis Colón (Hell Chose Me and No Happy Endings) begins with Poppy giving birth to an unwanted child, setting her as a cold, uncaring protagonist. In the first few chapters, she easily gives her child away to the highest bidder, gaining a job within a very sketchy adoption agency. Then, after a quick succession of time jumps, we join Poppy as an established assistant to hitman Atticus Garcia. After years of serving everybody else, she feels ready to take the jump and kick-start her own criminal career. Colón has not only created a main character who is driven, but her pure selfishness and lack of development early on threatened to put me off finishing the piece.

It wasn't until halfway through, when the twists and turns started coming into their own, that I started to enjoy Poppy's drive. Her selfish, bratty attitude gave way to her remarkably headstrong business head and when she focused in on the reasons for wanting a better life, the character did become more likeable. That said, the latter half of POP! feels a little like a scattergun approach to see what sticks. The underworld of New York City seems less about crime and more about making sure one "product" is purchased through one supplier. The ridiculousness of the competition becomes ever clearer once Poppy starts to mix her two worlds. The climax of the book really ramped up in unexpected ways, although it left me divided. On the one side, subverting Brooklyn's mob bosses was a bold and hilarious angle, and the other left me questioning the point of the story. Ultimately, I think the plot works in the context of the prose, even if it's silly and not at all what you would expect from a crime novel.

POP! is narrated brilliantly by Annie Henk, who sets about bringing the absurd novel to life. Henk's vocal changes effortlessly differentiate between each character, ensuring that the 10 hours of the story are easy to follow. Even Poppy, through her unlikable phase, encouraged me to push on. Henk's delivery, including her numerous uses of MF-bombs, made Poppy easier to swallow. Other characters had distinct voices too, with a favourite being the crime boss Silo, a ugh-sounding, De Niro-type of New Yorker that is much too tired to be dealing with Poppy Leathers.

Clocking in at around ten hours, POP! starts off with one hell of an unlikable protagonist, but when the chess pieces start moving, she becomes someone else entirely, someone I began to root for. Once Poppy is established, the plot begins to effortlessly move pieces into place, like an intricate game of chess that you expect to see when dealing with New York's criminal underbelly. As the coil begins to unravel at the end and the book's surprising revelations, I was left laughing at the absurdity of the hurdles in Poppy's way. Although it should be said, I certainly won't be looking at Capybaras in the same way ever again.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance preview of this book.

[Stephanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thanks to Ruadan Books & NetGalley for providing an ALC in exchange for an honest review.

I'm not really sure what was going on in this book: the main characters is extremely unlikeable (which seems to be the point), and has big aspirations of being a criminal of ... some sort. Or at least of being a criminal in *charge* of ... something. To achieve this end, she (somehow) finds a known hit man and offers to work for him for free, to gain knowledge & experience. 5 years later, she is barely known to the crime boss the hitman works for, and she is no closer to her goal, plus it seems to her that her hitman boss is getting sloppy. After finding herself romantically involved with a target, only to then discover that the hitman is ALSO involved with said target, things ramp up.

There was a lot of repetition here. Poppy Leathers' (the name ... sigh) goals are nebulous despite her vision-boarding, and they seem to change as the book ploughs on. The plot points both for her unpaid job and her paid job (representing a self-styled art influence who paints with his dick) are very difficult to believe: the crime boss is some sort of artisanal restauranteur who doesn't want hand-crafted competition, or something? And the artist wants to adopt a baby but his art antics (pooping in the Camden Aquarium tanks was mentioned) preclude legal adoption.

I suppose this is some sort of satire I'm too dim to understand, but apart from the art world and cheesemaking, I can't tell what it's sending up, or why.

Annie Henks seems OK, a few mispronunciations here and there, but her delivery is very punchy in a distracting way, in the manner of scenery-chewing. Somewhere, Alphonse Pacino is saying, "Huahhh!!"

DNF at 67% as I didn't see it improving enough to finish.

[Michele The Stick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pop! is a story of a criminal on the rise. Poppy, our FMC is not likable, but she is interesting. She is ambitious, opinionated, violent, unpredictable, and stylish. Annie Henk's narration solidified and grounded the character. For that reason, I would recommend reading this one with your ears.

I knew early on that I wasn't going to like any of the characters in the novel, they are after all, sociopaths. I am not normally a fan of gangster stories either, but I think if you are, then you would enjoy this one. What I did like about it was its consistent, stylized nature. I was always behind the curtain with the characters and that can be hard to maintain without sacrificing the story. I also love a pun, particularly a cheesy one.

I did think about Stefan from SNL every time the sewer art installation location of Station Zero was brought up and it made me chuckle. I do think that it was the energy that Colon was going for. There were a few funny moments and quite a few tense ones as well.

The story did take a while to get started, and I would be lying if I didn't admit that Poppy made some moves that gave me a little anxiety. Toward the end though, just as the tension was increasing, I seemed to have lost all my concern for the characters entirely and was a little indifferent to their final conclusions. Not enough to walk away without finding out what happened, but somewhere along the way I stopped caring about Poppy.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and the publisher for allowing me to listen to the ARC for an honest review.

[liv · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you've ever worked a soul-crushing job where you're constantly undervalued, underpaid, and dreaming of overthrowing your incompetent manager, POP! is the dark comedy you need to pick up immediately.

I was mesmerized by Poppy in the sense she's unhinged and that was so incredibly entertaining since books with characters like this are not very common. Her bosses are completely devoid of common sense and the crime world around them is so chaotic that they are also incredibly fun to watch. Honestly it's a little bit like a trainwreck you can't stop looking at.

The writing was a bit too simple and somewhat repetitive but I still really enjoyed it a lot and part of it was due to Annie Henk's narration. She got Poppy's monologue perfectly and her performance elevated the satirical tone and the snappy dialogue quite a bit.

It was a absurd but fun, fast-moving tale about ambition and an easy and entertaining read for these days where you don't want anything that overcomplicated or dense and just want to watch someone maybe fulfilling some of the things you fantasied about after a long day of work.

Thank you to Netgalley and Ruadán Books for providing me with this ALC in exchange for an honest review.

[Eva Edge · Rating 2 out of 5]

POP! by Angel Luis Colón is a slow-paced, wildly absurd, and disjointed crime novel that struggles to balance its bizarre satiric elements with an unconvincing criminal underworld.

The story centres on Poppy Leathers, an exceedingly unlikable aspiring criminal who offers her services for free to a veteran hitman, only to spend five years stuck in the shadows while her boss grows sloppy. The narrative mechanics quickly become hard to swallow, spinning a tangle of confusing motives that include a crime boss masquerading as a competitive artisanal restaurateur and a bizarre romantic rivalry over a shared target. The execution suffers from vague character goals and forced emotional beats, creating a narrative that feels suspiciously like a male-led script hastily adapted for a female protagonist.

Despite brilliant narration by Annie Henk—whose versatile vocal changes effortlessly bring distinct energy to an otherwise flatline cast—the pacing lacks any real tension or momentum. The slow drag eventually forces a late-stage skip to the final pages, proving that even a talented performance cannot save a plot that fails to commit to its own satire. Acknowledging that niche readers might appreciate the surreal premise, it ultimately earns a generous 2 dull, chore-driven stars.

[SAMANTHA. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was quite the chaotic, unhinged, "I hate my job", hostile takeover of a book. 🤣 We follow Poppy -- not 'Pop', our sort of unlikeable main character. Basically, she hates her job, leans quite a bit entitled, and is ready to make her way to the top, by any means necessary.

It's pitched as a statement on ambition, drive, meets dark humor. And I like that premise but it missed, just a bit. It felt a little too unconnected and the pacing was too fast and not developed, at times. It felt less humorous and more confusing and the choices made me consistently waiting for her downfall. 🤷🏽‍♀️🤣 I think a little more development on writing style and a tailoring of ideas would've been positive to bring the narrative to life.

I did really enjoy the vibes and scene setting by Annie Henk, our narrator. She was the right amount of certainty and mania. 🙃

Thank you to NetGalley and Ruadán Books for this ALC.

[Bossmanaries Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book synopsis promised that this book promised to be both twisty and adventurous and that was my exact expectation. Angel Luis Colón writes one of the most unlikable characters of the year as she comes off two-minded. She seemed to be extremely sure of herself, almost cocky, then the next moment she is doubtful of everything. The double mindedness may have worked with this story but it never delivered on pulling me into caring about anything else in the story.

The narrator’s performance was solid. Thank you to #netgalley for the ALC in exchange for an honest review. I recommend this for all readers who like slow burns and unrelated dialog with tangents that lead to a good payoff.

#POPNovel

[Angie Carlton · Rating 3 out of 5]

My thanks to Ruadan Books and NetGalley for the ALC copy of POP! for my honest review.

This is a story about a disgruntled, over-ambitious assistant to a mob boss's hitman. If you love female rage, this one might be for you. Aside from that aspect of it, the story fell pretty flat for me. Very little happens until the end, so the whole story is basically the internal dialogue of the main character and she is exceedingly unlikeable.

There are long discourses on exotically prepared, expensive foods (vegans beware) and too many references to farts for my taste.

The audiobook was well done. I liked the narrator who was easy to listen to and is probably the reason I didn't DNF this.

[Emilie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an ALC of Pop! via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

None of the characters in this book are likable… but that wasn’t a problem for me. I thought the characterization of the main character, Poppy, was done well. I felt like there were some Killing Eve vibes to this book though I couldn’t tell you what the “intention” behind the book is. I still enjoyed the narration by Annie Henk, and the story kept me interested while I worked. I’m not a huge fan of first-person narratives, but I understand why that was chosen for this book.

Overall, it didn’t feel like a waste of time but also isn’t a book I would come back to. I gave it 4 stars due to the uniqueness of the narrative and that it held my attention.

[KELLY · Rating 3 out of 5]

Who hasn't wished they could get rid of their incompetent boss? This entertaining crime thriller delivers plenty of dark humor, twists, and suspense. The story is easy to follow on audio, making it a fun and engaging listen from start to finish.
Poppy is a sassy, memorable protagonist whose sharp wit adds an extra layer of enjoyment to the story. With its clever blend of crime, dark comedy, and unexpected turns, this Whitman thriller kept me thoroughly entertained. If you enjoy twisted plots, quirky characters, and a touch of humor mixed with your mystery, this one is well worth picking up.


Thank you to Netgalley, and Ruadàn Books for the Audiobook.

[iam · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this story following an ambitious assassin's assistant who wants to become a power player in the criminal underworld on her own right. The way Poppy was scheming and planning was fascinating and mundane at the same time, and I think it was that combination that made the book interesting.
I did not expect the plot to escalate the way it did towards the end, but the unexpected twists were also refreshing.
While I enjoyed Poppy as a clinical character, I also found the book to not be the most engaging, possibly due to how it's written through her lens.

I received an ARC and reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

[Lindsey Barger · Rating 3 out of 5]

Angel Luis Colón delivers a strange, sharp, and darkly funny thriller in Pop! I give the book 3 out of 5 stars. Poppy’s professional double life—split between an incompetent viral artist and a side job with increasingly unsettling assignments—creates an intriguing setup, and I appreciated the way the story mirrors that tension with the parts of herself she keeps guarded in her personal life.

The book is fast, weird, and full of biting workplace frustration, but some of the later plot turns stretched my suspension of disbelief too far. Readers who like crime fiction with humor, offbeat characters, and an intentionally over-the-top edge may find plenty to enjoy here.

[Retrofatale · Rating 4 out of 5]

ADVANCED AUDIOBOOK FROM NETGALLEY
I am surprised that I am giving this book as high a rating as I am because I hate the characters. There is just not really anything redeeming or good about Poppy Leathers…which is why it’s such a fun read. She’s manipulative, conniving, disloyal, backstabbing, and completely out for number one with zero regards for anyone else, which is what makes her a fascinating character. She’s pure unadulterated ego and the rollercoaster of watching it run wild through organized crime as unchecked chaos is a fun ride. Also, never underestimate the value of a good pun.

[Krisi Hall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Angel Luis Colon, NetGalley, and the publisher for allowing me to listen to this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I really liked a unique voice. I was drawn into this book by the unusual aspect. The writing, the descriptions, the events all make it feel like you are an apart of the underbelly of New York. So sense of place is very well set-up. The writing is skilled, the story was entertaining. I definitely recognize the skill in writing this. Story wise, it ended up not being my thing on a subjective level. But that doesn’t take away from a good story.

[the_nerd_cafephile · Rating 2 out of 5]

Many thanks to the author, Ruadán Books and NetGalley for the ARC/ ALC.

I guess this style of narration and characters is just not for me? Poppy Leathers wants to be SOMEBODY, somebody who has power. Somebody who can replace one of her incompetent bosses and thereby stop working for the other.

Poppy has been working for free as the assistant to a 'known' hitman and the idea is to climb the ladder and eventually be 'THE MAN' and for that she needs to get to the big bad man in the background.

In the beginning of the book, I was very intrigued but the pace was so slow I kept getting pulled out of the story and I could not understand what it was that was that was making me loose interest. Now that its been a couple of days since I finished reading, I know exactly why this book did not hit the spot - this read like a book written with a man protagonist who got gender swapped in the end to be a woman - everything including the actual motive or 'the revenge', the romantic elements and how poppy behaved in the entire plot. I do not know if it was a conscious choice to do so, but it could have been so much better I guess - even the small moments of softness felt forced.

TW: Violence, gore, death, murder

[Ander Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

~Thank you, NetGalley and Ruadán Books for the ARC for this book~

This was a wild ride, engaging from the start and the narrative only sinks more hooks into you as it goes. Poppy is a manic protagonist high on supreme self-confidence and snark. Even though she is most definitely villainous, I was rooting for all her wrongs.

This book will work for you if you enjoy takedowns of the inept crime syndicate's cheese empire with a side of diary puns and lovable oversized rodents. Come for the fashion advice, stay for the anti-capitalist penis art in the sewers of Brooklyn.

[SarcasmaShay · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was definitely a different vibe than what I normally read, and I liked the aspect of following a villain a lot! There just wasn’t a whole lot to grasp onto that made the character like-able at all for me…. But also I can appreciate it felt accurate to me what it might be like in a psychopath brain… no empathy very methodical and manipulative.

Definitely a read worth your time if you’re open minded and not looking for a hero arc since this is not that, but definitely an entertaining quick read!
Thank you NetGalley for the free audio ARC for my honest review.

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

There was potential here but this one just missed the mark for me. The selling babies plotline was not great and I found the main character and honestly most of the characters to be insufferable. I could see where the author was trying to go but this one just wasn't for me.

Thanks to netgalley for the advanced copy.

[T.J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was really well written and the turn around how someone tries to get a head no matter what they do is quite the suspenseful novel!

[Jacqueline]

I listened to the first 12% and I just don't care enough to keep going. I didn't think it was bad. I'm just in a weird place with audiobooks.

[gracie · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you enjoyed 'Hench' by Natalie Zina Walschots, then this is right up your alley. Pop! was a decent enough read for me, the snarky style narration was interesting enough at first but it quickly got old and tired. None of the characters were remotely compelling to read about and halfway through, I found I was just waiting for it to end but I also am aware enough that it was just a me problem because the characters had some depth to them still. If I didn't have a whole lot of chores for the day I honestly wouldn't have finished it.

Thank you Netgalley and Ruadan Books for the alc in exchange for an honest review.