How to Kill a Guy in Ten Dates by Shailee Thompson: Final Girl Meets Leading Lady
- genredpodcast
- Apr 9
- 4 min read
We have things to say.
This week’s episode took us somewhere we did not expect to go. A horror rom-com.
Two genres one of us actively avoids. And yet somehow… this might be one of our favorite books of the year.
Yes, we were scared. Yes, we laughed. Yes, we questioned every man at a speed dating event.
And yes, we need more books like this immediately.
⚠️ Spoiler Warning
First part of the episode is spoiler free.
After that, all bets are off.
We are talking killers, twists, theories, and the moment we realized we absolutely would not survive a slasher.
Proceed accordingly.
📚 What We Cover
Genre & Vibes
Horror rom-com. Slasher meets dating chaos. Final girl energy with a side of meet cute.
This book fully commits to the bit. It is spooky, funny, self-aware, and somehow still romantic. If Scream and a 2000s rom-com had a very unhinged baby, it would be this.
Also worth noting: this is a debut(!).
Characters to Watch
Jamie
Film student. Writing her thesis on how horror and rom-coms are basically the same thing. Which becomes… extremely relevant when her life turns into both.
Smart, self-aware, and somehow still making jokes while people are actively dying around her.
Laurie
Best friend. Documentary girl. The kind of friend you want in a crisis… until she gets sent into a vent and you have to emotionally process that.
Ride or die energy.
Wes
Hot. Suspicious. Slightly grumpy. Gives “I might save you or I might be the killer” for most of the book.
We had trust issues.
Heart Eyes
Our killer. Pink mask. Unlimited weapons. Disturbingly romantic.
We’ll leave it there for spoiler free purposes.
What It’s Giving
Dating in New York but make it lethal
Rom-com references with a body count
Taylor Swift as a plot device
Group chat energy in a life or death situation
Would Our Mother Read This?
No.
Too scary.
We barely read this.
🚨Spoilers Ahead🚨
Let’s Talk About It
The Setup
Speed dating in a club you vaguely remember from your early 2000s blackout era.
Phones taken. No contact with the outside world.
Lights go out.
Lights come back on.
Someone is dead.
And that is when the book says “let’s begin.”
It wastes zero time and we respect that.
The Twist
Two killers.
Which we should have known. Because Scream taught us that lesson early.
One is playing out a twisted rom-com fantasy.
The other is fully committed to the bit.
And suddenly everything clicks into place in a way that feels chaotic but also weirdly earned.
The Bathroom Scene
We need to talk about it.
Because this is where the book fully locked in for us.
Jamie and Laurie. The vent. The realization that one of them has to leave.
It is funny, emotional, stressful, and genuinely scary all at once.
And then the mirror moment.
Absolutely not.
The Taylor Swift Scene
This is where the genres collide in the best possible way.
Our killer sets the stage with Love Story.
And Jamie’s internal reaction is basically:
“bold of him to assume I’m a Fearless girl when I’m clearly a 1989 stan.”
That right there is the book.
Romance logic. Horror stakes. Unhinged commentary.
The Final Girl Question
Would we survive?
Debatable.
Katy thinks she might. Elyse would absolutely get peer pressured into leaving a perfectly good hiding spot.
The book makes one thing very clear. Knowing the rules might help. But it does not guarantee survival.
⭐ Final Thoughts
Katy:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Nearly six. One of my favorite books of the year. It was different, funny, and somehow relatable in the most chaotic way possible.
Elyse:
⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2 Would be five if I wasn’t genuinely scared. Which feels like the point, but still.
📖 Fast Facts
Title: How to Kill a Guy in Ten Dates
Author: Shailee Thompson
Genre: Horror Rom-Com
Tropes: Final Girl, The One, Locked Room, Survival Game, Friends to Ride or Die
Vibes: Scream meets a rom-com with a slightly unhinged sense of humor
💬 Join the Conversation
Would you survive a slasher?
Be honest.
And more importantly… are you the final girl or the leading lady?
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Mini FAQ
Is How to Kill a Guy in 10 Dates actually scary?
Yes. But in a fun way. You will still double check your apartment locks.
Is it more romance or horror?
It is both. That is the whole point. The book actively plays with how similar the two genres are.
Is this a good slump buster?
Absolutely. Fast, engaging, and impossible to put down.
Do you need to like horror to enjoy it?
No. We don’t. And we loved it.
Reading Essentials
Everything we actually use while reading. If we talked about it, it’s probably here.
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