Title: An Ethical Guide to Murder
Author: Jenny Morris
ISBN: 9781398534421
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Pages: 400
Source: Private Copy
If you had the power between life and death, what would you do?
Thea has a secret.
She can tell how long someone has left to live just by touching them.
Not only that, but she can transfer life from one person to another – something she finds out the hard way when her best friend Ruth suffers a fatal head injury on a night out.
Desperate to save her, Thea touches the arm of the man responsible when he comes to check if Ruth is all right. As Ruth comes to, the man quietly slumps to the ground, dead.
Thea realises that she has a godlike power, but despite deciding to use her ability for good, she can’t help but sometimes use it for her own benefit.
Boss annoying her at work? She can take some life from them and give it as a tip to her masseuse for a great job.
Official Summary
19 August 2025
I came across this book on NetGalley originally and couldn’t wait to get my hands on a copy. The cover and the description immediately had me curious. An Ethical Guide to Murder is a darkly compelling, morally tangled thriller that asks a chilling question: If you could decide who lives and who dies, how far would you go?
Thea is an ordinary woman with an extraordinary – and dangerous – gift. With just a touch, she can see exactly how much time a person has left. More shockingly, she can transfer life from one person to another. Her powers are discovered under traumatic circumstances when her best friend, Ruth, is critically injured, and in a desperate attempt to save her, Thea steals life from the man responsible. Ruth recovers. The man dies instantly. And Thea realises she now holds a godlike ability in her hands.
Jenny Morris crafts a story that is part supernatural morality tale, part psychological suspense. Thea’s journey is fascinating and unsettling; she begins with the intention to “do good,” but temptation soon creeps in. An irritating boss? A deserving stranger? She convinces herself that her choices are justified, yet every act blurs the line between justice and selfishness. Watching her navigate these grey areas is where the novel truly shines – it’s not just about what she can do, but what she should do.
The writing is addictive, with moments of dry humour that keep the darkness from becoming overwhelming. Morris doesn’t shy away from showing the consequences of Thea’s decisions, both for those around her and for her own conscience. By the end, the reader is left questioning not only Thea’s ethics, but also what they might do in her place.
If you enjoy morally complex characters, a touch of the supernatural, and a plot that makes you wrestle with your own sense of right and wrong, An Ethical Guide to Murder delivers a thought-provoking and engaging read.
About the Author
Author bio from the author’s site
Jenny Morris lives in Crowborough, the home of Winnie the Pooh and an outrageous number of charity shops. She loves a moral dilemma, and writes high-concept crime novels that explore deep philosophical questions like ‘How much would I have to pay you to eat a human toe?’ She has a PhD in Cognitive Psychology and works as a behavioural scientist. When not reading or writing, she enjoys galloping around the Ashdown Forest on a horse, foraging for mushrooms and getting way too intense about board games at the pub.
Thank you for visiting the blog and reading my review. I enjoyed this book and highly recommend it. Have you read it? I would love to hear your thoughts. Please leave a comment below. Until next time…. Happy Reading!
