I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

A tale of friendships and a couple of murders.

I enjoyed this a lot - I skipped eating dinner (that I cooked!) with my family to finish reading. I was waiting for the big reveal, with all the answers, though, and I think I'm still waiting. You're seriously telling me X and Y weren't doing something to Z? Or is it that maybe they were and we just have to move on not knowing?

This is a dual-timeline story and while the ending of one felt unfinished, I think the other is going to drive some people crazy. I'm more "but why?" about it, but I can't wait to hear rants.

Overall, this is one of my favorite Rachel Hawkins. I liked it much better than last year's The Reckless Girls. I wish everyone had already read it, so I could discuss!

Current day author Em and best friend and self help guru, Chess, are heading to Italy for the summer to stay at Villa Aestas and work on their books. Em is recovering from a health crisis and a separation from her husband while Chess is living her best life. They are excited about staying in the villa where so much tragedy has happened.

In 1974, Mari and her sister, Lara ,spend the summer at Villa Aestas, known then as Villa Rosato with the rock and roll friend, Noel, the drug dealer, Johnnie, and the tip of Mari and Lara’s love triangle, Pierce. It’s a summer full of drugs, sex, and Rick and roll that ends in the the brutal murder of Pierce.

This book had so much potential in the beginning and there were some small twist in it, but it wasn’t my favorite. Chess is a very unlikable character and her friendship with Emily can only be described as toxic. Their story line wrapped up to neatly in the end for me. The relationship between Mari and Pierce wasn’t the best and most of the twist and turns come in this storyline. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for my early copy.

I guess it’s official. I’m a big Rachel Hawkins fan. This is the third book of hers that I’ve given five stars. She’s an amazing writer. The story appears to tell itself. I loved how everything evolved. I had some tension in the middle wondering is Chess good or bad. I can totally understand complicated relationships and these are very complicated! There was one typo I saw, that I’m sure will be corrected. It was when Noel referred to “sill waters”. I think he meant “still waters,” but I could be wrong! Thanks Netgalley and St Martin’s Press for the ARC.

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

This rating is hard for me because as a suspense/psychological thriller, which is the genre that it is listed as, it does not work. Just because a book has a murder aspect to it does not make it a thriller. We find out very early who was murdered and who the convicted murder is, and other then that there is not much suspense building until about 80 percent of the way into the book. The suspense though is not even about the murder that had took place, its actually about the unfolding drama between Emily, her husband and Chess.

However with that said, if this book was listed as general fiction then I would be giving it a much higher star rating. A 4 out of 5 stars. I highly enjoyed the story, both the past and the present timelines. I loved the friendship and the tension between Emily and Chess. I wanted to keep reading just to see how their friendship and all of the drama in Emily's life would unfold. I also highly enjoyed the Mari timeline and all of the characters in the past timeline. There were several moments where I wanted to shake almost all of the characters for their horrible decision making, especially Emily. I thought all of the characters were well written, and each had a distinct personality that made it easy to either love them or hate their character.

With all of that said, the book was extremely predictable. There was not really a major twist that had me on the edge of my seat. The ending felt rushed and also a bit like the author was conflicted on how she really wanted the story to end. Almost like she wanted it to really have a happy ending instead of ending it on a more suspenseful twist.

I think if you are a fan of Rachel Hawkins other works, and are looking more for a drama then a suspense novel then you wont leave disappointed after reading this book. But if you are looking for a twisty suspense novel then this one is not for you.

This. Book. I was initially drawn to it because of how beautiful the cover is, but the story blew me away (the intrigue, the resilience, everything that is revealed at the end… you have to read this one for yourself). I’m calling it now, The Villa is going to be picked by so many book clubs when it’s published. This was incredible!!

The Villa by Rachel Hawkins is a murder mystery/ love triangle based on then and now, but separate people… Mari Lara and Pierce (then), Emily and Chess (now). Emily and Chess were childhood friends growing up but as the years went on and Chess became this big star author their friendship slowly dwindled until Chess asks Emily to go to a villa in Orvieto Italy for some girl time…. While researching about the Villa Emily realizes that a rock star was murdered there, but doesn’t stop her from wanting to go but also helps her writers block.

I’m giving The Villa a 3.5 stars as I found it slow in the beginning didn’t really pick up for me until closer to the end. It was intriguing at points which is why I kept going with it because I really wanted to know who did what.. if you like murder mystery I do believe you’ll like this book… I did like the dual povs of the then and now to compare the differences/similarities!

Thank you @Netgalley for this arc

Thank you Net Galley for an ARC of The Villa by Rachel Hawkins. I have had this author on my radar since The Hex Hall series (and I ate that up). This mystery/ thriller follows dual timelines,, which I also love. This book didn't disappoint! I loved every word!

The Villa is a story about friendship, betrayal, and murder. Then and now.

Em’s struggling as her life seems to be falling apart and her oldest friend Chess, a famous self-help guru in the vein of “girl, step into your power,” whisks her off to Italy for the summer.

They stay at a gorgeous villa which is also the site of a famous murder in the 70s. Both intend to spend the weeks writing, but it’s clear from the beginning there’s something much more sinister going on.

This book started out a little slow for me but it soon had me hooked. The way it unfolded was captivating, though I figured out nearly all the twists early on and the ending felt rushed, more like a summary.

At its core this is a book about friendship and betrayal. About seeing someone for exactly who they are and having to live with your choices.

I’ve been thinking a lot about friendship betrayals lately and the inexplicable choices people make that hurt the ones they love. Hawkins did such a perfect job exploring that.

I really enjoyed this book.

I enjoyed this a lot but don’t think I’d classify it entirely as a thriller. I enjoyed the two timelines in the various ways in which the story was told, but I was left a little bit disappointed with the final twist ending. The setting was great and I enjoyed the 70s vibes mixed in with the modern timeline, but I was left a bit confused by some of the explanations for certain elements of the story. I don’t really want to see more because it would be a spoiler but I just didn’t completely understand the reasoning for something main character went through. That’s still really big. But overall I thought this was an atmosphere, spooky story and it was a good dark summer read!

The first two-thirds of the book gripped me – I didn’t want to put in down and looked forward to picking it up again when I had to take a break. The writing flowed, and I liked the podcasts and letters sprinkled in - I'm a bit of a sucker for the multi-media thing. I liked the setting, and I particularly liked Mari’s story. Emily was a bit of whiny pushover, but I was still interested in what was happening and how the story would play out.

POSSIBLE SPOILERS>>

But…I really ended up being disappointed by the ending. It was really rushed and disappointing. Seriously,
Chess slept with Emily’s husband and yet Emily still partnered with Chess? It was predictable that something had happened between Chess and the husband, but the fact that Emily then went and partnered with Chess (who also tried to steal her intellectual property and was just overall mean?). And it was predictable that someone would die at the end in modern time to parallel with the historical story, but it didn’t really make sense that Emily’s husband would come to Villa to meet up with the women. I understand where the author was trying to go in the end, but I was looking for something more twisty/less predictable.
This book is billed as gothic, and as such, I expected the villa itself to play a bigger part in the story. I’m actually glad it was just a setting and not a character.

I did like this book better than the last one I read by Hawkins (Reckless Girls).

4 stars for the beginning (slower burn), 3 stars for the end (rushed and somewhat unsatisfying). Overall 3.5 stars.

I am a big fan of Rachel Hawkins' work as Erin Sterling and her Ex Hex series - naturally I wanted to read this one as well. With it's spooky, Halloween vibes and its setting of a villa in Italy with a dark past made it sound like it was going to be the ultimate thriller/mystery. Sadly, I was majorly let down with this one. Ultimately, this ended up being a 2.5-star read rounded up for me.

We got introduced to Emily and Mari as the MCs and the narrators of their stories. Emily is the current MC and Mari is the MC from the villa's past dark history. I honestly liked Mari's story better and could have read an entire book from her POV. Emily was whiney to me and I felt as if she was a boring MC. I was intrigued by how her story was going to play out but in the end, I was highly disappointed.

This book didn't read like a thriller or a mystery to me. It was more of a women's fiction novel that had a historical fiction aspect to it. Nothing intriguing started happening until about the 70% point of the book. The ending itself seemed rushed and I had more questions than answers. I probably wouldn't recommend this to anyone as it falls to the bottom of all my Hawkins/Sterling books. If you like drama mixed with some suspense, give it a go I guess.


SPOILERS BELOW DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVE NOT READ YET!!!!!





The main problem I had with this book was its predictability. Clearly, the past came back and replayed into the current story. I guessed this was going to happen and that someone was going to die. Am I mad it was her cheating husband who was trying to steal her money? No. I liked that aspect. But it was sooooo predictable.

Another issue I had was with Emily just going along with Chess after she literally found out she slept with her husband? WTF? Like there is no way I would go along and write a book and share profits with the woman who literally slept with my husband behind his back. This also was predictable to me with how much they mentioned Chess being close to Emily's husband.

Then there were the letters that Emily found that Mari left around. Verity was already written, we don't need a reprise of it with the letters being confusing and not knowing what really happened. At least that's the impression I got - but I could have missed the exclamation of what really happened because by the time I got to the end I was skimming and just wanted it to be over.

Overall, this turned out to be a boring narrative of women's fiction that could have gone in a million different directions and I would have enjoyed it a lot more. Will I read more Hawkins/Sterling books? Absolutely. But this one just missed the mark.


Big thanks to NetGalley, Rachel Hawkins and St. Martin's Press for sending me a complimentary copy in exchange for my honest options!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. This book did not disappoint!! Such a good 'story within a story' - at first, I thought it was going to be hard to keep track of both but they each had their own mysteries that I was captivated to solve! The banter between best friends Chess and Emily was fun to read and the suspense surrounding the Villa in Orvieto, Italy kept the pages turning quickly.

When I first saw this book I had just finished another of Rachel Hawkins books. I read the blurb for “The Villa” and was intrigued. I had it in my mind that it would be more of a haunted story, but instead as I read I kept picturing the optical Illusions where there is a picture within a picture within a picture….
The story of Mari, Pierce, Lara, Noel, Johnnie, was just enough similar to Matt, Chess, and Emily at first anyway. It gives you a feeling that Chess and Matt are not to be trusted. Just as you feel about Noel, Pierce, Lara and Johnnie. There is that love triangle, that competition between all of these characters. This book was very well written, the switches between past and present was well done and not abrupt or confusing. I truly enjoyed this book, I was surprised by the plot twists, and I still don’t trust Chess.

Rachel Hawkins' books are always good to pick up. I was very excited that I got this ARC and it was a pretty good read. She's always great at incredibly eerie and creepy vibes.

3.5/5 ⭐

This is my favorite Rachel Hawkins book thus far. I loved the twists. I loved the meshing of the Mari-Lara-Pierce and Emily-Chess-Matt storylines. The last chapter was a brilliant wrap-up of both.

Thanks to #NetGalley and the publisher for early access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was definitely wasn't what I was expecting, it was a bit less suspenseful than I anticipated. That being said, I still was intrigued for most of the story and there were parts that shocked me. In the beginning, I had a bit of trouble understanding the premise of the story, but by the end that wasn't an issue. It was definitely interesting and a different read but I enjoyed Reckless Girls by Hawkins a lot more!

Need a new author to follow? I am definitely going to read more of Ms. Hawkins books after diving into this one! Long time childhood friends on a trip to Italy and staying in a villa where murders took place years ago - count me in! The creep factor, Chess and Em's relationship, the secrets, the twists, the mystery of what happened in the Villa, the ex-husband, the story of Mari long ago paired with the current story of Chess and Em and their current lives - loved it all!

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to receive this ARC!

How could I say no to a thriller involving two best friends who are now distant but go off to a villa in Italy for a vacation? Cut to the villa, it is actually infamous for a gruesome murder decades ago involving some celebrities in fact. Chess and Emily have a few secrets and they are keeping them under wraps making each other suspicious of each other. There is another plot about the events in another timeline about the murder which is equally interesting. It would not be incorrect to say Villa by itself is one of the key characters in this one. There is a constant cat and mouse game between the two friends and the twists kept me hooked. So get ready to find out what really happened that this villa witnessed!!

I loved Rachel Hawkins’s debut novel and will read anything and everything that she publishes! This book, about childhood friends embarking on a reunion trip of sorts to Italy, with a sinister twist had me hooked from the beginning. The story flipped back and forth between Chess and Em, and another group of friends, who stayed at the same villa, but their trip lead to… murder. Dun dun dun!

Truth be told, I was more invested in the Chess/Em relationship than the chapters focusing on the past. I don’t know if it was the Kindle version layout, but the current, past POV and then news articles and interviews were (some) within the same chapter, that it felt choppy and wasn’t separate enough, so it read a little confusing and unfinished. Again, maybe it was the way the story was laid out on Kindle.

The ending left me infuriated, but kinda in a good way.