A murder house? I just cannot get with this storyline, it just doesn’t work for me as I find it so unbelievable. The execution of this was subpar and I wasn’t invested in the dual timelines as I felt the 1974 one dragged.

The Villa by Rachel Hawkins
4 Stars
The Villa is another mystery/thriller by the always imaginative Rachel Hawkins. This time, she takes us to Italy where a villa with a tragic past is available to rent. It seems like the perfect place for Emily to reconnect with her best friend, Chess, as Emily is struggling with a mysterious illness, problems at work, and a nasty divorce. As Emily begins digging into the history of the house, she also learns things about her present that threaten to derail her life even more.
Told across two timelines, The Villa is filled enough twists and turns to keep the reader guessing. I wish the setting had been fleshed out some more (the book is named in its honor, after all) and I wish we had answers to some questions, such as Emily’s illness and where were those mysterious pages hidden? However, I very much enjoyed the feminist aspects of this book. I recommend this book to anyone who has enjoyed the author’s books before and others who like mysteries and thrillers. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my review.

I usually love Rachel Hawkins books, in fact the last two were 5 star reads for me. Unfortunately, this one was extremely slow and I just couldn’t get into the stories or the characters, perhaps it was the rock n roll I’ve that turned me off, but it I had to DNF this one about half-way through.

👍 What I liked: This was a brilliantly-written novel, and an excellent piece of work by Hawkins! I enjoyed the dual timelines, the story-within-a-story, and how in the end, everything just starts to come together and make sense, making the reader go "Oooh!". The ending was completely shocking and unexpected, as should any good murder-mystery novel!

👎 What I didn't like: The story did start a bit slowly in my opinion. I wasn't immediately hooked nor convinced about this book. Some chapters were rather long, and some transitions between timelines were choppy and a bit confusing, and should have had chapters of their own. However, I'm glad I stuck it through, and the ending is what made me rate this book with 4 stars instead of three!

TWs: maternal death, loss of a child, homicide (may not be an exhaustive list)

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's press for my free eARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book was everything I wanted it to be. It had me turned pages without even realizing. It was so good!

This was good - though to call it a thriller is a bit of a misnomer. It was more of a drama surrounding a mystery murder. I thought the ending was pretty obvious the whole time, but she works hard to make even the obvious a bit surprising and it works.

The Villa, Rachel Hawkin's latest twisty-turney thriller, is the type of book that gets under your skin and hides out in your soul for hours after reading the last page. I found myself spellbound by every single character and racing through the book to see what would happen next. While reading, I was fully engaged and hooked from the beginning, The time-hop added so much depth to the storyline and each character (present and past) was vital to the flow and growth of the mystery. I was entertained, intrigued and unbelievably gripped throughout. Now to check out other Rachel Hawkins books and wait patiently for this one to hit bookstores.

Rachel Hawkins is a thriller queen. I loved the tie in between the past and present. I didn't love it quite as much as I loved Reckless Girls, but a great read nonetheless.

Wow! Another great book. At first, The book dragged a little bit. I didn’t love the pastime parts but it got better and wow! The end had multiple CRAZY twists. The last chapter I had to go back and reread. It changed the entire book. Rachel Hawkins has done it again!

Excellent storytelling once again by Rachel Hawkins! This book had me turning pages so quick just to see what would happen next. The twists were perfect, I never saw them coming. Awesome book, really enjoyed.

This one was just okay for me. I enjoyed it, but found it to be predictable and very slow at times. I also found a couple characters very unlikable.

This story didn't quite hit the mark for me. The characters were mostly very unlikable. Emma was a boring. Chess was too predictable. The characters from the 1970's were all sort of hopeless rockstars. I did like Mari. She had some redeemable qualities.

I originally enjoyed the story. However, the middle dragged on longer than I would have liked. The line "Houses remember" really stuck with me and could have been used to make the book creepier. It was difficult to determine the pieces of the story from the 1970’s that were written and what actually happened.

Overall, I would still read another book by this author and I did enjoy the story. There were just a few things lacking in the story and I would have liked some stronger characters. The rockstar characters and the villa setting were both fun and a neat aspect of the story.

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced readers copy of The Villa by Rachel Hawkins.

if you’re looking for a book that you can read in a day - this is it! it’s a fast-paced thriller that had jaw-dropping moments throughout, and it’s the type of book that had me thinking about it for days afterwards.

told across dual timelines, the villa brings in aspects from the sex, drugs, and rock + roll of the 70s along with the present day. the character development was incredible and captured the aspects of friendship, betrayal, and trust SO well. I found myself both rooting for and against certain characters, and I was enthralled as the story unfolded in both the past and present timelines.

with multiple storylines [including the book excerpts + podcast transcripts] I did find that it was a bit confusing at first, but it ends up weaving everything together in a way that I didn’t see coming. overall, it was a page-turning thriller that I couldn’t put down!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced copy. I typically really enjoy Rachel Hawkins books but this one was a little slow and hard to get into at the beginning. It was an enjoyable read but not my favorite of her books.

1974- a grisly murder is committed at Villa Rosato. In the modern day, Emily and her best friend Chess decamp to the same villa for a break from their lives. But when they discover the secrets of the villa and the secrets they are holding from each other, will the sinister past of the villa be replicated?


I liked this book (a 3 is a like in my book). This book had interesting twists and turns. While some you could see coming a mile away, other ones were a surprise which was appreciated. Ultimately this story is about the bond between women and what they can create. Appreciated the dual timeline as well and the dual vantage points between Emily in the present and Mari in the past.

Bottom line: a fast read with twists that’s perfect for mystery fans

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC of The Villa! I was very excited to get to preview this one, after having enjoyed Rachel Hawkins previous two thrillers.
The Villa alternates between two time periods: current day, where childhood friends and writers Emily and Chess are summering together at a villa in Italy, and 1974 where step-sisters Mari and Lara are spending the summer at the same villa with their musician love interests. I really enjoyed this book until the end, when I was not thrilled about the path/resolution Chess and Emily’s friendship took (without giving away any spoilers!). But overall, I did very much enjoy the mystery of The Villa, and would recommend to a friend!

“Inspired by Fleetwood Mac, the Manson murders, and the infamous summer Percy and Mary Shelley spent with Lord Byron at a Lake Geneva castle––the birthplace of Frankenstein––The Villa welcomes you into its deadly legacy.…” (Publisher’s blurb)

Two timelines:

Emily is a cozy mystery writer, having penned nine “Petal Bloom” mysteries but she has been in a slump, since her husband Matt, filed for divorce and asked for half of the royalties from the series.

Her best friend, Chess, is also a successful writer, and an internet sensation, with a wildly successful self-help book titled “Things My Mama Never Taught Me”.

So when Chess invites Emily to join her for an all expenses paid Summer in Umbria, Italy, at the Villa Aestas, offering not only a chance to rejuvenate by the pool with Ice Cold Limoncello and Chilled Orvieto white wine- but also a place, to again become inspired to write, she sets aside her concerns that it is a MURDER HOUSE, and books the first flight out.

Does one murder a murder house make?

After all, it was just a night of sex, drugs and rock and roll gone wrong, for a an aspiring rock star-after a heated argument got out of hand.

But, more importantly, it was also a house which inspired both “Lilith Rising” a famous feminist horror novel, written by Mari Godwick, a British girl barely older than the legal drinking age and the album, “Aestas” an album often called a sadder “Tapestry”-from Lara Larchmont, a singer songwriter who just happened to be Mari’s step sister.

Both girls were muses in the house, known as Villa Rosato, back in 1974, and present during the MURDER.
1974 and their story is the second timeline.

“HOUSES REMEMBER” -the opening words of “Lilith Rising”.

“Is it a romantic sentiment or a sinister one?
Do houses hold on to the bad, as well as the good, just as people do? “

Both writers, Mari and Emily will ponder that, but Emily hopes the house’s memories will all be good.

When Emily finds a dusty, old copy of “Lilith Rising” among the bookshelves, she will be compelled to seek out what actually happened on that fateful night.

Is “Lilith Rising” hiding the secrets only two sisters know?

Or is the truth hidden in the lyrics of Lara’s songs?

“Stories change depending on who’s telling them…..”

How will digging in the PAST affect what happens in the PRESENT?

I loved the premise of this one, and stylistically it is much more like “The Wife Upstairs” than it is “Reckless Girls”.

I enjoy stories about writers, as much as I enjoy stories about books, so I much preferred the chapters set in the current timeline to those of 1974. Reading about Sex, Drugs, and Rock and Roll is not as interesting to me, but of course it was crucial to the plot in this case.

Did I like the ending?!

I DID!! And, I am not sure what that says about me!

AVAILABLE January 3, 2023!

Thank You to St. Martin’s Press for the gifted copy provided through NetGalley! It was my pleasure to offer a candid review!

I had a difficult time sticking with the book for the first half. It was slow and read more like a womens fiction than a thriller. I am glad I stuck with it because the second half of the book takes off. There are a few interesting twists. I really liked the ending.

I loved the setting of the book. I wish it played more of a role in the story. I expected a lot of dark creepiness.  Instead it was just a place where the story takes place. I felt the characters were all self absorbed and very unlikable. I had a difficult time sympathizing with any of them.

I decided to give this 3 stars. Overall it was an interesting and fast paced read. But I was expecting something more surprising and sinister.

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for gifting me this ARC.

Unfortunately this is a DNF for me at 35%. I tried to keep going but it’s extremely dull for a thriller. It goes back and fourth between two time-lines about a murder house and I just didn’t care.


Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of the ebook in exchange for an honest review.

This treat of a novel will captivate the reader with its perfect blend of mystery, murder, and doomed love story. Immediately immersive and captivating from the first page to the last word.