REVIEW DOES NOT CONTAIN SPOILERS!

First of all, thank you so much NetGalley for sending me an ARC of this book, I’m forever honoured to be among the people who have the joy of reading a new release sooner than the specific release date!

This was an overall great read.
Light, creepy at times, a bit gothic…
Set in Italy? Yes pleaseeee!!
The story around a house holding memories? I know I’m so basic, but I love these type of stories.
I didn’t really like the atmosphere of the book thought, it’s supposed to be about a group of musicians, but I didn’t really feel the vibe yk?
Wasn’t *the* best book, but still a great read.

I will say that this book had so much promise but fell short in the end. Maybe I am just comparing her latest works to “The Wife Upstairs” but this did not do it for me. I did not appreciate the women doting over men who did not care about them and then how Mari took credit for a murder simply because she felt it would make for a better story than the truth. In the end you do not really know what is true and what was a lie. All we know is Pierce is a pedophile, young girls are impressionable and women suffer at the hands of men. This was more comfy mystery than thriller in my eyes.

Thank you to NetGalley for the arc. This review is wholly my own.

Rachel Hawkins is one of those authors that I am still on the fence about, but am still drawn to her books. Didn't care for The Wife Upstairs, loved Reckless Girls and what do I think of The Villa?

As always, the cover art is BEAUTIFUL. In fact, this is my favorite cover by far and that alone would stop me in my tracks to pick it up off of a shelf.

A little bit of a slower paced thriller/drama that combines the past and the present. Sometimes I like this method, sometimes I don't. I liked it in The Villa!

And the slower pace didn't bother me. I feel like it needed to move slow and be thorough so that it would all tie together in the end in a way that made sense and didn't like you going "huh?" like so many books often do.

If you like Rachel Hawkins, give this book a go. I don't think you'll be disappointed. And, oh my, the twisty turn it takes will leave you reeling!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and most importantly, Rachel Hawkins for my ARC of The Villa. Emily had it all- the career, the husband, the house, until one day, she doesn't. Dwindling career? Check. Impending divorce with her husband planning on taking all of her earnings from her books? Check. Unexpected and undiagnosable illness? Check. Emily has pretty much hit rock bottom. The solution? Emily's best friend, Chess, the whirlwind of a person whose writing career has skyrocketed landing her in Oprah's house for interviews, to take her on a paid trip to Italy for the whole summer. Villa Aestas, where in the 1970s, famous rockstar, Pierce Sheldon, met his brutal, untimely death while on vacation with his own friends many years ago. Pierce's girlfriend, Mari Godwick was one of the people on that vacation years ago, who also wrote a bestseller many years ago in the same house. Like the trip was planned to do, Emily has found inspiration, but not for writing the next book in her series. A new book. A book retelling the tragic events that happened in Villa Aestas all those years ago, as well as her own personal memoir. During this time, Emily discovers the secrets hidden in the house that lead to more light shed on the misfortunes that unfolded. As the vacation goes on, Pierce Shelton's tragedy may not be the last one before the end of the summer.

Can I just say, wow? I don't even know how to express how much I enjoyed this book. I know I feel like the past couple of books I've given five star ratings, but they always deserve it. The Villa is NO exception. Seriously, I almost felt like the murder of Pierce Shelton was a true story that happened. As Hawkins wrote about it, I would say, "Oh yeah, that actually happened". I know it didn't. However, Hawkins has a way of writing that totally envelopes you into the story and makes you feel like you're truly living in it. I could barely put the book down. To say I loved it would be an understatement.

The Villa has two different perspectives- one from present time with Emily and Chess in The Villa, and one from the past in Mari's perspective, the events leading up to her boyfriend's death, and her inspiration for her own book written in the Villa, Lilith Rising. Sometimes, witching between two different perspectives, especially two different timelines, can make the book too confusing or even too tedious. Hawkins does it effortlessly and seamlessly. It was never confusing and I actually really enjoyed it. The different POVs was definitely a necessity to the story and enhanced the greatness of the book.

Like the books in The Villa, I already know that this book will become a bestseller as well. Seriously, it is that good. I'm honored to have gotten to read an ARC of The Villa and I cannot wait for everyone else to be as in love with this book as I am.

Rachel Hawkins does it again! I have become a fast fan of her suspense/mystery novels and The Villa is no exception. The way she crafts a connection between past and present visitors to this mysterious "murder house" is wonderful and made me appreciate the dual perspectives so much. I began to feel like the parallels between past and present were going to make it all too predictable, but I was pleasantly surprised by a few twists along the way. It was so much fun to be immersed in two stories at once.

I appreciated that the characters (and their relationships with each other) were given such great substance and nuance, and were well-formed seamlessly throughout as opposed to taking time away from the story to give more background. And the setting of a sweeping villa in Italy makes me want to go find my own mysterious home to vacation at!

The ending is not what I was anticipating and I loved it. Will definitely be recommending this one to friends and to anyone who has enjoyed the likes of Taylor Jenkins Reid, Lucy Foley, Megan Miranda, or B.A. Paris...and can only hope this one finds its way to a mini-series.

Thank you to Net Galley, St. Martin’s Press and Rachel Hawkins for this ARC in exchange for my honest review

True crime, drama, mysterious characters, and a lot of twists - what could be better?! Rachel Hawkins did a fabulous job writing a book that spanned so many years and so many different emotions. I could not put this down! I loved Mari’s storyline and was dying to figure out what happened. She captured the complicated dynamics between female friends/sisters in two different scenarios between both Mari & Lara and Emily & Chess. I could not put this down!

Rachel Hawkins does such an excellent job at making a reader feel unsettled within her stories. This is the second title of hers that I've read (Reckless Girls being the other), and I was still impressed by her talent for writing flawed characters well and her ability to create scenes that leave you feeling just slightly off-center.

The writing is what you can expect from this author, but I wasn't quite as enthralled with this story as I was with her previous work. This was more an examination of relationships rather than thriller/mystery. There was a bit of a mystery element, but more just building drama/tension toward sort-of predictable climaxes. I thought the overall premise and dual timelines were creative, but I found myself wanting to fall asleep most of the times I sat down with it. Gorgeous cover, interesting story, just not quite as exciting as I anticipated.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for approving me for this ARC!

This slow burn suspense was truly hard to put down. The dark twists will leave you wanting more, well after the book is done.

The Villa follows two storylines. The first is of Mari in 1974, where she and her stepsister Lara spend the summer with her love interest Pierce, the famous musician Noel, and his drug dealer Johnnie. This story follows the events that lead to a murder, a widely acclaimed novel from Mari, and a best selling album by Lara. While this story is mostly seen through the eyes of Mari, Hawkins also embeds articles and interviews describing this summer to gain a fuller picture of the characters and their motives.

The other storyline is that of Emily in the present. After an acrimonious divorce and a serious case of writer’s block, she accepts Chess’s, her best friend, invitation to spend a summer writing in the Villa. While there, she uncovers the hidden secrets of what happened in the Villa during the summer of 1974. Along the way, she uncovers truths about her own life that cause her to question the truth as she knows it.

While both storylines individually tell an interesting story, weaving them together is what made this a deeper and more complex read. This powerful, layered story makes you question the veracity of truth and point of view. It leaves you second guessing and wanting more.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s press for the advance copy!

Rachel Hawkins is one of my ‘OH MY GOD GIMME GIMME GIMME!’ authors. Both The Woman Upstairs and Reckless Girls were 5 star reads for me. If I wasn’t rating The Villa on that scale, I don’t think I’d be able to find fault with it. It was a solid story, less of a thriller than a drama really. I enjoyed the dual timeline and found both stories equally as compelling. There were a couple of plot choices that didn’t feel well thought out (the thing with Emily getting sick in the past with her husband and then once at the villa felt like a last-minute change and didn’t really make a ton of sense. It would’ve made a lot more sense if she was being poisoned.)
I did like the book overall, it just wasn’t quite up to what I typically expect from Hawkins. 3.5 stars, rounded to 4.

Mixed feelings on this one. I was very interested in the premise but it fell a little flat overall. I was hoping for a little more mystery/suspense throughout. I did love the alternating timelines, and really delving into the relationships between Chess/Em and Mari/Lara.

Overall, an ok read!

This was amazing! I was hooked from the start and finished so fast. The book is full of suspense and playful characters. I can’t wait to read more works by this author!

Villa is fine. I loved The Wife Upstairs and Reckless Girls a lot more. It’s a fun destination novel - good for summer reading.

*Many thanks to St. Martin's Press, Rachel Hawkins, and netgalley for my gifted eARC for an honest review. Publication date 1/3/23*

Famous musician Noel Gordon was murdered in 1974 in a beautiful home in Italy. Present time best friends Emily and Chess escape to the same beautiful home in Italy to spend their days writing books. They find out clues about the murder that happened in the past.

The story to me was all over the place. Present time, past time, multiple books being wriiten that us readers have to read, pod casts, newspapers articles, emails. Just so much stuff thrown into such a small book with enormous chapters. The only part that I slightly enjoyed reading was the present time. This is my first book I read of Hawkins and I will definitely give her another chance but this one was just awful! I feel bad writing this review but we are supposed to be honest and some books are just not for everyone.

Rachel Hawkins' third book publishing on January 3, 2023, is a twisty murder mystery set in different time periods telling the murders of two different people.

In present day, Chess and Emily are childhood best friends who embark on a summer trip to the Italian Villa Aestas in hopes of rejuvenating their friendship. Emily has been going through not only illness but a nasty divorce from her less-than-ideal husband. Stuck in writers block while trying to tackle life and her 10th novel, she hopes the escape is the spark she needs to finish and submit her already late novel. But as she uncovers the history of the Villa both her and Chess hope this will be the book to relaunch or continue their writing careers. In a competition for not only the book, the childhood friends uncover more than just the history of the Villa but also the history of secrets in their friendship.

In 1974 this same Villa is known as Villa Rosato and is rented for the summer by rock star Noel Gordon, as he attempts to respark his music career by pairing with up-and-coming singer, guitar player, and songwriter, Pierce Sheldon. Pierce's girlfriend Mari, and her sister, Lara, also join him on this summer vacation. In the end, the only ones to produce famous works are the girls who were just along for the ride. Mari writing a bestselling novel Lillith Rising, and Lara producing a platinum album, Aestas. But sex, drugs, and rock-in-roll take Pierce's dreams and crush them when he ends up dead. The convicted killer being Noel's drug dealer. But not everything is as the Italian courts make it seem. Or is it?

I thoroughly enjoyed how twisty and turny the story of the 1974 murders were. They, in my opinion, stole the majority of the story. I was more engaged with what Emily was uncovering about Mari than I was with Emily's story. I spent much of the book wanting to get back to Mari and not caring as much about Emily and Chess. The setting also made this story what it was, though there are not a lot of setting descriptions the idea of the Italian Villa leaves enough for readers to imagine the beautiful space where this murder took place. As the book plays out, the last quarter or so, I found myself really rooting for Emily (avoiding spoilers here) and became more engaged in her story. I wish the suspense of both Emily and Mari would have been simultaneous instead of in two different spots. That leads me to the only major concern or dislike of the novel, the pacing. When suspense was high in one plot line, it was dragging in another. I also felt that much of the rising and falling action was slow losing the suspense the novel so desperately tried to create. This is where it lost stars for me. Overall, I really enjoyed this quick read much more than Reckless Girls!

“Houses Remember.”

The Villa is described as a wickedly delicious gothic suspense novel and I think that is the perfect way to go into this one. Do not go in and expect the fast paced thrills and shocking reveal. Treat this book as more general fiction than a mystery/thriller and I think you’ll find the enjoyment I did with this one.

In this book we follow once inseparable best friends, Emily and Chess. Through circumstances and growing up their bond is strained. Then Chess suggests a girl trip to an Italian Villa, so desperate to reconnect Emily agrees. However this is not just any villa this is the famous, Villa Rosato, who in the summer of 1974 was the site of much controversy. Rock stars and writers alike gathered at the villa in hopes of a creative spark. A spark that ended in a brutal murder. Now in the present, Emily, is investigating the history of the villa and learns that maybe that fateful summer was more than sex, drugs, and Rock n Roll gone array. The closer she gets to the truth the more tensions begin to arise between Chess and her. Is history bound to repeat itself… will the villa claim yet another victim.

I will start of by saying Rachel Hawkins just has a way, her books are always ones I’m going to be stabbing at the but to read. Her synopses pull me in and don’t let go. That being said, this book had a bit of a pacing issue. There were parts where I was a little bored. That did not hinder my overall rating which sits at a four star. I loved the setting of this book, the mixed media format, and the jumping between time lines. Definitely a must read!

"Houses remember."

That is the opening line in this book... as well as the book within this book. The Villa is half about two childhood friends/ writers, Emily and Chess, who spend the summer in (you guessed it) a villa in Italy in the present day and half about some artistic and famous people who lived in that same villa for a summer in the 1970's, where tragedy befell them. The stories interlock as Emily, in the present day, becomes absorbed in the murder which took place there within the group in the 1970's. Mari and Lara from the 1970's timeline emerge from a horrific situation to write what becomes an infamous horror novel (Mari) and one of the biggest selling records of their time (Lara). Emily becomes embroiled with uncovering whether these two timeless works of art have hidden meanings to what really happened that summer day in 1974. And she also starts to wonder if she can trust her friend, Chess, who is currently at the villa with her...

There is so much subject matter and inspirations for this book that immediately appealed to me... 1970's time period, musicians and inspiration from the likes of Fleetwood Mac, murder, mystery, and Rachel Hawkins also cites influences from the Manson murders as well as the legendary summer Percy and Mary Shelley spent with Lord Byron at a Lake Geneva castle. Noting all of that, I was ready to dive headfirst into this book.

I'm used to books nowadays bouncing back and forth between different times and/or characters: it's not my favorite thing and feels tedious sometimes for me, but it's pretty standard anymore, particularly in this genre. This book is no exception. For instance, it not only bounced between Mari in the 70's and Emily in the present day (which were more clearly stated), but there were also excerpts from interviews and articles, excerpts from Mari's book, and even a transcript from part of a podcast at one point. It wasn't my favorite aspect of the book (though this is more because of personal preference), and it led to me not falling as quickly into the book until about halfway through when I got into the rhythm of it better and also when the story really started to pick up the pace in both timelines.

On another personal level, I felt myself filling more and more with rage at Chess in the present day timeline. I had a toxic friendship growing up, and her name was the same as in this book so it was a lot of unwelcome memories flaring up as the book progressed. I felt so much empathy for Emily because I *was* Emily in the past. Emily says at one point, "It's true that I haven't thought nearly as much about Lara as I have about Mari- choosing, I suppose, to be loyal to the woman I feel the most kinship with." And that exactly sums up how I felt between Emily and Chess. I was rooting for Emily stronger than anyone else in the book. Between her divorce, her insecurities, and Chess, I really wanted her to win by the end.

So what really happened that fated summer in 1974? Was something more sinister than drugs in play for Pierce's murder? Are there secrets and truths hidden in a best-selling book and classic record? Will the villa claim another life between Emily and Chess in the present day? You'll have to come stay at the villa yourself on January 3rd and find out!

(A very special thank you to Net Galley, St Martin's Press, and Rachel Hawkins for this eARC in exchange for my honest review!)

*The Villa will be available on January 3, 2023.*

“Sometimes we don’t really know we’ve won until we see the reflection of that win in the loser’s eyes.”

Two friends that used to be inseparable growing up decide to take a girls trip to Italy to the famous Villa Rosato. The Villa is known for its famous history from Noel Gordon and the tragedy that happened while he was there. Told from two different point of views in time, The Villa has secrets to share, that are just waiting to be uncovered.

This book seems right up my alley. With suspense and murder throughout the books. I feel as though I struggled with it because it was dragged on and the plot was very slow. I loved the character development and was actually very surprised by the ending. However, the beginning and most of the middle of the book seemed repetitive and nothing like a thriller.

If you’re looking for a thriller that is not scary, but still has some action packed in as well as great character development, and two different view points this books is for you!

When I received this book from the publisher on NetGalley I had really high hopes. I have been a Rachel Hawkins fan since reading The Wife Upstairs. I remember when reading Reckless Girls I felt like it was lacking in some areas for me. I was really hopeful for this story, I wanted to love it as much as I did The Wife Upstairs. Unfortunately, this book fell a little short for me! It was still a solid 3.5 stars for me, but I wanted more. I would still recommend this book to anyone who has enjoyed Hawkins in the past.

Thank you to St. Martins Press and NetGalley for this ARC.

I really enjoyed the writing on this one, but it reads more of a contemporary fiction with thriller-esque storylines. The ending was so rush I almost thought I was missing pages in my e-copy. I really enjoy her other works, but I really did not care about the characters, even the main one. I did love the setting, and it is a quick read, but beyond that, this seems more like a rough draft than a book that is ready. I will continue to pick up her books though!

THE VILLA

Emily, a “cozy romance” writer, joins her successful best friend,Chess, at an infamous villa in Italy. A miserable divorce has Emily seeking a new perspective on her life, as well as her writing. In 1976, the murder of a rock singer makes the Villa infamous. As Emily finds clues to the earlier murder, she changes the focus of her writing. The dual timeline story, anchored by the murder, successfully weaves the two stories together. It’s an intriguing read,with interesting characters.