ARC Review: Mother, Wife, Killer

Somebody Worth Killing by Jessica Payne

Publication Date: June 16, 2026

Summary from NetGalley:

Meet Nadia Davis, a doting mom and loving wife who has a big secret: she’s actually an assassin. And she really needs a babysitter who shows up on time.

Nadia Davis is living the dream as a successful working mom with a career she loves, two adorable little girls, and a devoted husband who has no idea that she’s secretly a hired assassin and psychopath who kills certified bad guys. So when Nadia finds out she’s been “mommy tracked” by her assassin’s agency and is no longer getting the bigger, more exciting jobs, she demands an important mark…somebody worth killing.

But it turns out that big kill is the last person she expects—her husband. How is the sweet, kind, teller-of-dad jokes she’s promised her life to an evil villain who needs exterminating? Has their whole life together been a lie? Now Nadia must choose between the two things she loves most in life, the career that keeps her sane or the family she thought she knew.

ARC provided by Berkley Publishing via Netgalley for an honest review.

Confession:

I just love an assassin thriller, and this one certainly fit the bill. It was fast paced, characters I could get behind and a bit of humor that takes the edge off. It was a really fun story, that was totally predictable, but I still really enjoyed it. I thought it was a stand alone, but if that ending is any indication there will be at least one more, and I am so looking forward to that!

Nadia is a loving wife and mother, who also happens to be a psychopath. But she handles that part of her life well, by being an assassin for hire. Nadia is the sole narrator for her story, and we get a very good glimpse into her head through her inner monologues. The author does a great job here with depicting the struggles of a working mom, shopping and taking care of the kids, while planning her next hit. It was very amusing at times. I also really appreciated getting to see how she sees herself and how she struggles to contain her urges to kill. Nadia is a great character and I really enjoyed watching her grow throughout this book.

There are some great secondary characters as well, that I hope we get to know better in the next book. Nadia had a very supportive family, especially her sister, who support her even though they don’t know what she really does for a living. Her grandmother was also a great character, and I really want to know her backstory. She helped Nadia when she was growing up and struggling with her inner needs to kill. I also really liked her husband, and never really believed he was a bad guy. She even has an assassin friend who I sort of liked.

The story itself was fast paced and a lot of fun. It was pretty predictable, but I was enjoying the characters so much that I didn’t mind that at all. I especially liked the final confrontation between Nadia and her husband. Lots of action toward the end, wrapped up much of the story, but we are still left with a cliffhanger. I hope we won’t have to wait too long for a sequel.

This is a solidly fun read, that I would certainly take to the beach or vacation. The short chapters are great as well, so when those pesky kids or husband interrupt you it is easy to put the book down. If you enjoy thrillers that are fast paced and have great characters this is a book to add to your TBR.