Compulsive read - this is a book you won't be able to put down. Loved the weaving of two stories of past and present.

Rachel Hawkins fans will be excited to read her latest novel. Set in an Italian villa, the story unwinds from a present day perspective with some every similarities to a rock n roll murder that occurred in the same villa back in the 1970s.

I enjoyed the switch between time and narrative perspectives but struggled with Emily the main character who was utterly unlikable for me.
I received this NetGalley advanced book copy for free in exchange for an honest review. Thank you NetGalley & St Martins Press for allowing me to provide this review.

DNF@42%. I don't think this is necessarily a bad book, I am just not interested in continuing. Not much has happened to this point. It has all been stage setting, I guess. I find I have no interest in picking it up when I put it down.

A fantastic slow burn gothic style thriller with a unique story line. In many ways it reminded me of the thriller version of Daisy Jones & the Six. The Mary Shelley influence gave the book its own unique voice though. I read this book in an entire day while on the beach and regret nothing. (Spooky books and the beach needs to be a new trend. Just saying.) The ending came full circle and made me wonder what the MC will do to escape the web she trapped herself in.

This book is great if you like duel timelines, slow building intensity, books based on rock n' roll history, the life of Mary Shelley.

The Villa is a novel that has two main POVs each in their own respective timelines. An experience in an Italian villa in the summer of 1974 changes the lives of Mari and the group of musicians she's staying with. This summer excursion left one dead and the lives of the others forever changed.
In the present, Emily, a struggling author finds herself in the same villa with her toxic best friend many years later with a book written by Mari. What happens next will leave you speechless as the past and present collide and Emily finds that her life won't ever be the same.

I honestly couldn't put this book down!
Normally I struggle with multiple timelines but not with this story! I was drawn into the plot of both timelines and found myself dying to figure out how the two were connected. The convergence of the two timelines was one of the most unique that I've ever read.

The decisions that Mari and Emily made were enough to annoy me at times but not enough to negatively impact my opinion of the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for sending me an e-copy to review! The opinions of the Villa are all my own works.

The Villa is perfect for crime and thriller fans who like a story that is meta—a book about a book about a diary about a crime, this story is complex and layered. Set in the picturesque Italian village of Orvieto, The Villa is all about a summer that mysteriously ended in tragedy over 40 years ago. As Emily joins her friend Chess at this villa in modern days, she finds herself swept up in the intrigue from all those years ago. Paralleling that intrigue is one of a modern context—what are Chess’ true motives? Why has Emily been feeling sick? What can she learn from the women in that Villa all those years ago about how to face her current divorce?

TW/CW: Murder, infidelity, drug abuse, alcohol abuse, statutory rape, death of a child

REVIEW: I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

The Villa is the story of Emily and Chess, best friends from childhood whose lives have taken very different paths. They decide to spend a summer together at an Italian villa that was the scene of a bloody murder in the 70’s. The book goes back and forth between Emily and Chess’s vacation and the circumstances leading to the murder almost fifty years before.

I enjoyed this book! It was a fast read and it kept my attention. I also really liked the way it started bright and happy and then little by little darkened until the ending which I really didn’t see coming until just a few pages before! I don’t think that this book was quite as engaging and exciting as Reckless Girls, but it was still a really good book and a lot of fun. I recommend this book to fans of Rachel Hawkins and to fans of atmospheric thrillers!

How can you ever be sure you know someone?

Emily Sheridan doesn’t know where to start after her picture perfect life turns upside down. Her best friend, Chess Chandler, seems to come back into her life when she needs her most.

When Chess whisks her away to a summer in Italy, Emily feels as this is just what she needs. While Emily uncovers the story of Mari and Lara, two sisters who previously stayed in the house in 1974, she also uncovers her own truth and learns what she’s capable of.

In the end, you never know who you can trust or what the actual truth is, but you can bet someone’s willing to kill for it.


This was truly a 2-for-1 book! Reading Emily’s story and how it parallels Mari’s gives you two sides of the coin. While some parts were a little predictable, the story itself still kept me turning pages until the end!

Best friends Emily and Chess are spending the summer at an Italian villa to write their respective next novels - but this isn’t just any villa, it’s the site of an infamous tragedy in the 1970s. We are introduced to stepsisters Mari and Lara and learn what went down during the 1974 tragedy alongside the story of Emily and Chess in present day, who are navigating a dicey friendship and diving deeply into the villas history.

This book reminded me a lot of Verity by Colleen Hoover, given the back-and-forth between historical and present day context, and the confusion about what is real (although in this book, the ending is more definitive).

The book is a pretty quick read and I found it decently propulsive. I was a little disappointed by the ending - felt almost like a more exciting ending got snuffed out - but liked this well enough. Solid 3 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was fantastic! I loved the back and forth and seeing the story from both time periods. Chess and Emma were both wonderfully flawed characters and I really liked how they came together at the end to take care of a mutual “problem”. The whole Noel/Pierce/Johnnie/Lara/Mari storyline was actually kind of sad and I felt bad for both girls and Noel, especially after finding out what happens with them years later. Overall I would definitely recommend this book as it was very well written and a great story!

Thank you to net galley for the advanced copy. I am usually a big fan of Rachel Hawkins but this title fell short for me. This was not as much a thriller as previous novels. The story is is told from a past and present fashion, with the past the more intriguing of the two. A house remembers is the running theme throughout the telling of both stories. Both stories present strong female relationships in a beautiful setting with a creepy plot. Definitely a slow burning story. I would however recommend the title as a Hawkins fan.

I really enjoyed the villa and the two connecting stories. it’s set in orvieto, italy and follows two POV’s - one in 1974 and one in present day. a terrible murder happened at the house in 1974, which inspired a book and album, and emily and chess become fascinated by what happened and try to find out the truth, while also dealing with their own problems.

this book had such a strong start and i was immediately hooked by it. i really loved the dynamic between emily and chess and learning more about their past and friendship. i also thought mari’s POV in 1974 was interesting, but it was a bit slower in my opinion. parts of the story were predictable, but that didn’t lessen my enjoyment. the ending was a little strange and not exactly was i was expecting, but it fits the story and makes sense!

overall, this is a great mystery thriller and it combines a creepy and interesting plot with complex female friendships and a beautiful setting. i’m giving this one 4 stars and recommend it!

You can't go wrong with the setting of an Italian Villa when it comes to catching readers, but making it a "murder-house" as well is a surefire way to start a book with intrigue.

The Villa was an interesting read with characters that pull you in.
Both the story in the present and the story that took place in the past in the villa were fully developed and equally engaging.

I was surprised how quickly this book drew me in. I loved both story lines and couldn't wait to see what came next.

houses remember.

and so do best friends, apparently. 👀

I love books about books. and books within books.

the villa was both. flashing between past and present we get two stories full of suspense making this a quick and fun read.

to rekindle their friendship, authors chess and emily spend the summer at the beautiful villa aestas in the Italian countryside. while there, the girls uncover the gruesome history of the villa where a man was brutally murdered in the 1970’s. when emily decides to write about the murder, tensions run high the more she uncovers and it isn’t long before the villa claims another victim.

while I enjoy dual timelines in thrillers, I think the past overpowered the present in this case. the backstory was definitely necessary, and interesting to read, but I was left wanting more of chess and emily’s story.

I did love the outcome though. I had quite a few theories for this one but it turned out better than anything I expected. all I have to say is girl power. I love it.

a special thanks to St. Martin’s Press, Rachel Hawkins and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book! the villa is out on January 3rd, 2023.

October is perfect for thrillers! To be honest, the first thing that attracted me to this book was the cover. I love lemon trees and the blue color of the sky. This cover is amazing. Do you like it as I do?
This is the story of two friends who can support each other in a difficult situation. After a terrible period in the life of the main character, the friends go to Italy on vacation to improve their lives. I love it when in a book the past and present are intertwined into one story that we see and fall in love with. This book has all that I really love in thrillers, this gothic atmosphere, Italy, old house. To reveal questions of interest, the main characters begin to dig into the history of the house. In this book you will find an amazing setting, delightful characters with whom you will find contact.
It was my first book by this author and I did not regret that I decided to read The Villa! Maybe someone will not really like the ending, but I am completely satisfied with the whole book. But despite the bright beautiful cover, do not forget that this book has a dark atmosphere that will help you plunge into the gloomy mood of October.

This book is perfect for those who love thrillers. dark atmosphere, Italy, old houses and secrets. The plot of the book is unexpected and makes you read the book to the end. I highly recommend it because I love it very much. I hope you will love it too!

I received this Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) from NetGalley in exchange for my honest feedback. This is my first Rachel Hawkins book and I can't wait to read more of them!

The book follows two women trying to establish themselves in their lives and careers. Emily is an author recovering from an unexpected divorce. Mari is a young women living her aspiring musician partner. Similarly, Mari's hopes and dreams are overshadowed by her partners. Her partner has the opportunity to work with a well-known singer at an Italian villa. This could be the big break they've been hoping for. Mari follows in the footsteps of her late mother who was a writer when she starts writing a book of her own. That time in the villa is synonymous with the sex, drugs, and rock and roll of the 1970s. Their time in the villa results in a murder. Two unlikely stars emerge from that time in the villa. The survivors of the events that transpired that summer rarely spoke about it before their deaths.

50 years later, Emily and her longtime friend Chess reconnect after the divorce. Chess is a social media, lifestyle guru who has published several bestselling books. Her career has most definitely eclipsed that of Emily. In an effort to get her mind off things, Chess suggests that they go to Italy to write and relax. The villa that Chess found online is none other than the villa where Mari's story unfolded. When Emily stays there, she becomes obsessed with the sole novel that Mari wrote that was published shortly after her stay there. Emily begins to think there is more to the story than is publicly known.

I would highly recommend this book to friends! I love to the imagery of the Italian villa and the dual POVs. I would describe this as a cozy murder mystery. It reminds me of a Taylor Jenkins Reid book (such as The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo) or Verity. The ending makes you question what really went down. It is a book I still think about weeks after reading it.

To start this review with full honesty, I didn’t feel super drawn in by the blurb of this book. I requested the ARC simply because it was Rachel Hawkins, and I enjoy her books.

I ended up really enjoying this story. I found the dual POVs to be easily understood, and I enjoyed the characters as well. I’m not sure if I would call this a thriller, or at least not in the typical sense, but it was definitely twisty. I like that the ending sort of left some things open for interpretation by the reader instead of spelling everything out.. Even though I was able to guess some of the twists, I didn’t see the ending coming at all. I would highly recommend this book!

Rachel Hawkins's The Wife Upstairs was recommended to me by a colleague, and I have to say that I loved it! I was not as big of a fan of Reckless Girls, so I knew that this third book could make or break reading future books by Rachel Hawkins.

I was immediately hooked in the first several pages by the storyline between Emily, an author struggling to write her tenth cozy mystery in a series, and Chess, a famous and wealthy author who happens to be Emily's best friend. I found myself understanding Emily's point-of-view because sometimes our childhood best friend does become someone whom you do not like as much as you get older. Emily seemed to be a fantastic protagonist, and I could not wait to read more about her.

However, then the other timeline popped up: the background of the murder that was alluded to in Emily's timeline. It was the same Italian villa where Emily and Chess were staying in the present, but the murder had happened in the 1970s. I will say that this timeline seemed to drag at times to me, and I found myself wanting to DNF at times. I did want to give the book a fair chance, and I am glad that I did.

Hawkins threw in some interesting twists in the last few chapters, one coming at the very end that wrapped the story up nicely. While I enjoyed the twists, I honestly am not sure if they are worth reading this book IF you do not have a lot of time for reading. If you are someone who reads over a hundred books a year, this one is worth a read.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for letting me read this book in advance. It will be published on January 3rd, 2023!

The Villa is the definition of a slow burn. I had a hard time getting in to the book originally because there were a lot of characters to keep track of and it goes between present day Em and Chess and 1974 Mari and her friends. Once I was about half way through, I didn’t want to put it down. The ending had a great twist and I an honestly not sure if I am happy with it or not.