You Killed Me First

A psychological thriller is a subgenre of mystery fiction that focuses more heavily upon the inner psychological landscapes of the characters than it does on the actual resolution of the mystery itself. Penned by John Marrs, the best-selling author of numerous psychological thrillers, You Killed Me First employs a number of classic tropes and conventions that are commonly seen in this category of literature.

Many psychological thrillers include at least one (and often more than one) “unreliable narrator” whose subjective account of the events in question cannot be fully trusted. Whereas a typical mystery novel often offers a wider, more objective overview of the circumstances and places crucial clues along the way, the suspense that characterizes psychological thrillers comes not from the circumstances surrounding the crime, but from uncertainty about over the accuracy of the information being presented. 

Because the narration is variously delivered by Margot, Anna, and Liv (all three of whom are inherently unreliable), the narrative itself is twisted and warped by the perspectives of these deeply flawed characters, who hold heavily biased views of the novel’s main events and the other characters. Eventually, all three women are also revealed to have engaged in deception at different times. For instance, Margot withholds the depth of her involvement in the fire that almost killed Anna and Drew, and Anna does not reveal that she knows the truth until the very end of the novel.

To further complicate the narrative, Marrs draws upon the classic tropes of “multiple suspects” and “dual timelines.” By offering up an array of likely suspects in the murder mystery, the author heightens the suspense and the uncertainty and crafts an ambiguous narrative that can be interpreted and reinterpreted from multiple angles. Similarly, by splitting the narration between two different storylines that unfold at different times and lack the necessary context, Marrs deliberately obscures any details that might indicate which of the three main characters is the one trapped beneath the bonfire in the prologue. 

Another commonly used trope in the subgenre of psychological thrillers is that of the “unassuming villain,” in which the least likely suspect emerges as the true culprit. By initially depicting Anna as meek and even submissive when confronted with a more domineering Margot, Marrs lays a red herring and suggests that she could never be capable of the murders described. However, she is eventually revealed to have committed multiple murders, and she also engineered the destruction of Margot’s entire career. Similarly, the superficial glamor suggested by Margot’s pop-star background creates the false impression that she would not be involved in something as unsavory as the murder of Anna and Drew’s parents.

Even the novel’s conclusion features a common trope, employing the typical “twist ending” that characterizes the mystery genre at large. The final chapter of the book reveals that Anna does finally kill Margot after all—and not even for revenge. However, with the sudden appearance of Margot’s disembodied voice in Anna’s head and “Margot’s” assertion that she should have killed Anna first, Anna still remains haunted by an inner vision of the same, callous killer that she had always believed Margot to be. With these details, Marrs simultaneously embraces and transcends many of the conventions of the mystery and psychological thriller genres, adding creative new twists to a well-established plot template.