This was such an interesting and unique read. I really wasn't sure where this was going at first, but I found the dual timelines compelling and couldn't wait to unravel the mystery of The Villa. This was my first book by this author and I would definitely read more from them in the future.

Honestly really underwhelmed by this one. I disliked everyone, there were too many threads that felt rushed to conclusion. I have a lot of constructive criticism about the writing choices/voice. I will probably never think about this book again if I'm being honest. This was my first book by the author and I don't feel inspired to pick up another. There was truly nothing BAD about it, but I would give it a resounding meh.

A rockstar, an influencer, and a writer walk into an Italian villa …
This was one of the most unique stories I have ever read. Told in two timelines: London in the 70s and America presently. In one timeline, two childhood bestfriends - Chess and Emily an influencer and a “cozy thriller” writer go to Italy for a summer vacation. Emily is struggling since her husband has left her and decided that he is entitled to her income from her writing, and Chess is a “Girl scrub your hair” type blogger/influencer/self love preacher. In the other timeline, a complicated threesome - a bohemian singer/songwriter, his girlfriend Mari, and Mari’s stepsister Lara are invited to the same Italian villa to hangout with a rockstar wishing to escape his own family and time in the spotlight. Simultaneously a story of friendship, love, loss, and a murder mystery.

I would definitely call this an atmospheric thriller of sorts. We begin to learn about the Villa’s dark history through Emily’s research and reading about the murder in the 70s while Emily finally begins to come back into her independent power. I loved the theme of Lilith Rising in this book, and the strong women characters really stepping into their own and taking charge of their lives. I really think everyone could find a reason to love this book. I enjoyed the childhood friendship relationship of feeling such a strong kinship and obligation to connection with someone who may no longer have your best interests at heart.
I also believe this book is such a good representation of rockstar lifestyle and the depiction of staying in a house with a narcissist who believes the world revolves around him.

I could not put this one down.

The “twist” in the present timeline could be seen coming a mile away, but I believe it was perfect for the character development. I do wish Emily’s internal struggle had a more dramatic reason, but otherwise. A great book.

Emily needs an escape. Her best "frenemy" Chess offers her the perfect one to a beautiful Italian villa, that also just happens to have been the scene of a grisly murder in 1974. Bouncing between what happened in the 70s and present day, the Villa is a slow burn thriller/drama that touches on female friendship and relationships while always bracing yourself for the next twist.

****

Typically, I'm not one for bouncing around decades, but I loved both stories Hawkins told and felt they intertwined in a more believable way than other deus ex machina type of parallel plot lines.

I also love how complicated all of the relationships are. Each timeline has only a couple of people involved, so Hawkins can really dig into each one thoroughly for such a short book.

Your heart isn't racing throughout the whole book, as it takes some time to build up the setting and characters in each timeline. but that does not mean you aren't turning the pages rapidly. I raced through this is two days!

The big question: Did I like the final chapter?
As with other reviewers, I think there could have been another way to cast doubt on Emily and Chess' final decision. It is definitely not a cop out, and I like the implications that a story retold can have a lasting impact on the world in ways you may not see coming. And as Hawkins demonstrates throughout the novel, in a story, who can we ever really believe?

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for sharing this ARC with me in exchange my honest opinions.

This novel is buttressed by two timelines whose trajectories start to intertwine as the novel burns towards its climax. It's a deep character study investigating toxic relationships and what we owe ourselves.

*Thank you to the publisher and #NetGalley for the chance to review this ARC in exchange for an unbiased review*

The Villa was my first novel written By Rachel Hawkins. This book begins with friends Chess and Em reconnecting after some time apart. Both are now successful authors who are in a rut with their writing. Chess (who has seen more success and fame from her writing) has decided to treat Em and her to a vacation at a renowned villa in the Italian country side. This villa is know by many for the brutal murder that happened there several decades ago. Em becomes inspired by this gothic and charming villa and deep dives into the murder that happened there some time ago. She finds haunting and chilling truths not only about the murder from the past but also about her “best friend” Chess. Houses never forget.

Overall, this book was ok. I found it quite predictable and I wasn’t really invested in either timeline. I liked how it flipped between past and present and they had very similar themes that almost ran parallel. I found I knew exactly what was going to happen and I was disappointed when it all proved true. I liked Hawkin’s ability to story tell and I am interested in giving Hawkins another try but this one missed the mark for me. Overall this one gets 3 stars from me- it was readable but I wasn’t as invested in the story as I like to be.

Thank you to Rachel Hawkins, St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for this advanced copy. This one comes out in January and if you enjoy a light gothic novel, a historical murder or a drama- you’ll probably enjoy this one!

The Villa is a suspenseful mystery that’ll keep you on the edge of your seat. I can always count on Rachel Hawkins for an enjoyable thriller when I need one, that will keep me guessing.

The Villa was definitely a book I could not put down. It was very engaging to read the story of Emily and Chess. The past and present story line was a page turner. I couldn't stop reading because I wanted to know what was going to happen next.

Not my favorite by Ms, Hawkins, but still a suspenseful mystery. The dual timelines were easy to follow and the characters easy to invest in. Enjoyed their friendship and relationships. Slow for me but with twisty turns and a good ending.

Past and present intertwine in this slow burning thriller by Rachel Hawkins.

According to the Publisher, some of this story is inspired by Fleetwood Mac, the Manson Murders, and the infamous summer of Percy and Mary Shelley who spent one summer with Lord Byron at a lake Geneva castle, the birthplace of Frankenstein.

So I was anticipating a gothic tragedy, an atmospheric story and an exciting and gruesome murder case. Nope, I didn’t get any of that. The story did not convey anything gothic or scary or gruesome. The characters were one dimensional and boring.


Emily who writes boring cozy mysteries. Then, we have Chess, a self help wonder writer and social media sensation. So, Chess, invites Emily to spend time with her in Italy, at Villa Aestas. Emily is hoping the trip will inspire her, all the while still being concerned with the dark and turbulent past of the house. Keep in mind that Emily and Chess used to be BF’s, but as usual, life got in the way and they fell out. This trip, is supposed to rekindle that friendship as well. As the two research the goings on from the past and the events that took place in the 70’s, consequences come about. As the friends write their respective books, deep seated competition and rivalry comes to light.

The story is told from two POV’s.

Emily, who does not have any redeeming qualities. I found her obtuse.

Mari, who was slightly better, because of what happened to her, one is inclined to have a bit of sympathy for her. However, for me, it was short lived.

I did not find the Villa to be a real part of the story. I would of excepted the Villa to lend itself to creepiness and a sense of foreboding. I feel as though it should of had a larger part of the story if the publisher is comparing it and plugging it to the likes of Shelley at Byron’s castle. The Villa was where it all happened, and came together, not in any sense contributing to the events in and of themselves,

Rachel Hawkins writes stellar thrillers; “The Wife Upstairs”, “Reckless Girls” (one of my all time favorite books) So I was looking forward so much to reading this, and to receive an eARC was such a gift for me, I’m almost hesitant to say, this book just didn’t it for me. I loss interest soon, or I should say, my total engrossment was never there for this one. It lacked suspense and her usual edge of your seat, can’t stop reading tensions. I will say, I stayed with it, because it’s Rachel Hawkins, and though the twists were nothing earth shattering, the ending was pretty good, not as edgy as her others, but it closed it up nicely.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC. All opinions are my own, I give them freely and honestly.













or rejuvenate or become better

Houses Remember

Current day: Modern self-help guru Chess Chandler and Cozy Mystery writer Emily have are best friends before Chess's fame. Into adulthood their relationship becomes strained but after their lunch meeting up Chess asks Em to go with her to Italy for the summer to stay in the infamous Villa Aestas. She seizes the chance to hopefully get back at her ex and out of her writing block.

The Past: Mari is also a writer, and her musician boyfriend Pierce and her sister Lara are staying at the villa with a famous rockstar and friend for the summer. As time goes on things become tense between them all and end in a tragedy blamed on "sex, drugs and rock & roll" but things aren't always as they seem, and will Emily be the one to reveal what happened that night?

The parallels between the past, the modern-day, and the book Mari writes are beautifully written and have you guessing up until the end. What will you believe? Is the villain of this story truly punished?

Rachel Hawkins has done it again! There are only a few books that have me continuously reliving the ending and this one I got invested in. Mari's storyline was my favorite and strongest of the two that kept me turning pages. What kept me from giving five stars is the present-day timeline that has me despising Chess from the first description and her "Powered Path" toxic explanation that I don't fully believe was making Emily sick. This ending did feel a bit rushed and a lot crammed in that I think Em deserved a better resolution.

Rating: 4.5 ⭐'s

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for this ARC gifted through NetGalley! Get your hands on this book on January 3, 2023!

This was my first Rachel Hawkins read and when I tell you she SERVED. She SERVED. I was totally pulled in by Emily's story. Reading through the book I thought I knew what really happened during that summer at the Villa Aestas but with all the twists at the end I was completely wrong.

I really enjoyed this one and can't wait to pick up another book by Rachel. Definitely a little suspenseful and the story line just keeps pulling at you to find out what really happened. I got through this book in one day and would recommend it to any thrill seeking readers !

A creepy mystery set in to different times at the same gorgeous Italian villa in Orvieto. In the 1970s famous rocker Noel Gordon invites some other musicians and their girlfriends to spend time with him in hopes of regenerating his failing career. When one of them ends of dead, the villa gains notoriety. Fast forward to present day when two friends meet at the villa and strange tension between them arises, when they try to unravel the murder from the 1970s.

1974 Villa Rosato, A summer of love, sex, rock n' roll. Mari and her sister Lara vacation in Orvieto Italy where Mari hopes to finfish writing her novel and her boyfriend Pierce write his music. A sun filled summer for this group of friends that ends with a horrific murder. Present day Writers Emily and Chess find themselves back at the Villa now known as Villa Aestas in search of more info on the murder of '74. Emily finds written manuscripts hidden by Mari and uncovers the truth about the night of the Murder. This was such a great read! entertaining, light, twisty and creepy undertone. some heartfelt moments shared through Mari and her life as well as Emily whom also shares her experience with loss of love and a broken heart. I didn't feel this was much of a gothic horror as read in the description but it was creepy enough to keep me hooked. 4stars!

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

This book about best friends Emily and Chess. Emily always wanted to be a writer and writes cozy mysteries for living. Matt, her husband, leaves her when she is sick (cancer was implied) and now wants portion of her earnings. Chess stumbles into writing after college and becomes big self help writer. Just as they drift apart, Chess suggests going away to an Italian villa for the summer. At the villa their complicated past intertwines with complicated past of the villa.

I just can not get into this book. Maybe it's not for me but there is just too much going on and not enough to grab my attention to continue reading. I wanted to give up at 20% but made it to 50% and did not finish. I was excited about this book because I loved The Wife Upstairs by Hawkins. The description of this book grabbed my attention because I love travel and a good mystery. I am also divorced like the protagonist who was recently separated from her husband. I found that I just did not care about the rock stars who had stayed in the villa. Did not finish. Not for me.

Houses remember.

Estranged childhood best friends Emily and Chess decide to spend the summer in Italy on a girl's trip working on their new books. The Villa Aestes, now a beautiful vacation spot, was the site of a famous, and gruesome, murder in 1974 that eventually lead to the publication of one of the greatest horror novels of all time.

As their summer continues and tensions rise between Chess and Emily, Emily digs into the past of the Villa, and begins to suspect there is more to the story of what happened in 1974.

It takes a lot for a thriller to impress me, and while this is more of a slow-burn suspense novel, this one really worked for me.
I love dual timeline stories, and the way that Hawkins wove the two stories together was impressive and really added to the suspense. As soon as you thought you knew what was happening in one story, it would switch to the other.
At first, I found Chess and Emily's dynamic to be annoying, but as the book went on, I found myself just as invested in their story as I was in Mari's story. The book had just enough twists to keep me on the edge of my seat, without being so much that I couldn't figure out any of what was happening.

Overall, and excellent slow-burn suspense novel with an interesting dual-timeline story.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of The Villa.

SPOILERS AHEAD

I will start off with how I appreciate Hawkins making females the focus of her novels, whether that be as the hero or villain. In The Villa we get to know a handful of female character and honestly, I didn’t care for Emily and Chess. That storyline bored me and was predictable and I wanted less. The only good part of that storyline was when they murdered Matt. Chess was annoying the entire time and as Emily even says at the end, she’s not free. She’s stuck there with Chess forever. Also the nickname Chess just really bothers me for some reason. Was her character based off Rachel Hollis? I’m pretty sure she was and since Rachel Hollis is awful, probably led me to hate Chess even more. Now Mari and Lara?! I needed more. I loved how Hawkins wrote how they succeeded and became artists while the men were just in the background. I loved that their art lent to the little scavenger hunt for Emily to find the papers. I enjoyed the part where Noel tells Mari to sever ties so she can thrive as he sees so much potential in her and knows that others are holding her back from it. The only part I semi didn’t like is when she tells the ‘truth’ at the end. I liked the version where she actually killed Pierce herself and not Jhonnie. But Hawkins writes ‘It feels right, then, to break this story up into fragments. Read the first, and it’s sad, but there are moments of light, of joy, even if the reader senses the clouds rolling in. Read the second, and now, the story twists. Heroine is villain, villain is victim, and that colors everything that comes before in a new light. And yet that first bit still stands on its own, another kind of story, another universe of might-have-beens. That’s good, Mari thinks. That’s how stories should work.’ So I get why you write the two versions but I prefer the one where Mari is the villain, yet the hero of her own story. I also enjoyed the way Hawkins wrote the sisterhood aspect of the relationships between Mari and Lara and Emily and Chess. Although I HATE the whole sleeping with your bff’s/sibling’s man. We don’t need it. It doesn’t add to anything when writing these female characters. Overall a fast paced read, I read it all in an afternoon. Thank you again to NetGalley for the ARC of The Villa!!

Houses remember.

This is the kind of concept that deserves a whole novel, and Rachel Hawkins certainly did it justice. I don’t typically read (or watch) anything in the suspense genre, and honestly, I was kinda nervous about this one. But the slow-burn was perfect. The characters were deliciously flawed. The setting was gorgeous. The plot twists were so satisfying. As a whole, I didn’t love it, but I really liked it.

It was a novel within a novel within a novel, brilliantly put together. But it was the frame story that I struggled with. The Emily-Chess dynamic was interesting at best, but mostly just a lot of drama. Without the other parts of the story, I wouldn’t have stayed hooked. But altogether, it works undeniably well.

It’s the final entry from Mari that endears me to this story the most. Otherwise, it would have left me unsatisfied. The study of the human condition trapped within this novel had to have that final piece—had to drive us to consider ourselves. And that…I love.

It drives me to question, as I have many times, why we tell stories. And how we attach pieces of our souls to them as we release them, whether that be to others or to obscurity.

I’m not sure that I’ll be reading more books like this in terms of genre, but I’ll long remember the way this story has made me think. What a gift.

The Villa is a slow burn thriller for sure. It took me awhile to get into it. I was half way through before I really connected and drawn to the story. I really enjoyed the Chess and Em story as a stand alone story of BFFs trying to reconnect. That part of the story reminder me of a Lifetime movie. The second story of Mari, Lara and the guys intertwined was good but sometimes confusing to follow. It took way to long to get to the twisty thriller bits of their story. I needed the Villa to be creepier and more twisted.



I received an early copy from @NetGalley to read for an honest review.