The Perks Of Being A Book Addict discussion

2025 September BOTM Notes on an Execution by Danya Kukafka

In the tradition of Long Bright River and The Mars Room, a gripping and atmospheric work of literary suspense that deconstructs the story of a serial killer on death row, told primarily through the eyes of the women in his life—from the bestselling author of Girl in Snow.

Ansel Packer is scheduled to die in twelve hours. He knows what he’s done, and now awaits execution, the same chilling fate he forced on those girls, years ago. But Ansel doesn’t want to die; he wants to be celebrated, understood. He hoped it wouldn’t end like this, not for him.

Through a kaleidoscope of women—a mother, a sister, a homicide detective—we learn the story of Ansel’s life. We meet his mother, Lavender, a seventeen-year-old girl pushed to desperation; Hazel, twin sister to Ansel’s wife, inseparable since birth, forced to watch helplessly as her sister’s relationship threatens to devour them all; and finally, Saffy, the homicide detective hot on his trail, who has devoted herself to bringing bad men to justice but struggles to see her own life clearly. As the clock ticks down, these three women sift through the choices that culminate in tragedy, exploring the rippling fissures that such destruction inevitably leaves in its wake.

Blending breathtaking suspense with astonishing empathy, Notes on an Execution presents a chilling portrait of womanhood as it simultaneously unravels the familiar narrative of the American serial killer, interrogating our system of justice and our cultural obsession with crime stories, asking readers to consider the false promise of looking for meaning in the psyches of violent men.

I’m through chapter 2 and enjoying this!

4.5 stars rounded up to 5. Was a little drawn out at times, but I also couldn’t put it down so it gets 5 stars. Very unique approach - told primarily through the view of the women surrounding Ansel - his mother (with her own tragedy), ex-wife’s sister, and Saffy, a childhood friend from their foster home who goes on to hunt him. While I don’t have sympathy for Ansel, there is also something here about the failings of his parents and cycle of family dysfunction, the failings of the “system”, and how as a society we become more interested in the perpetrator than the victims. This book encourages us to remember the victims and what could have been. Most unique story I have read in some time.