Rachel Hawkins’ novel The Villa is the story of friends since childhood Emily and Chess who decide to take a trip to Italy. What they find out about the Italian Villa’s history will shock and surprise the reader. I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary copy of this well-written, thrilling, full of secrets and betrayal, keep-you-on-the-edge-of-your-seat book!

I love the secrets and history that is uncovered when Emily and Chess stay at the Villa. Another book where the House is its own character. There is just something about it that gives the story extra intrigue. I love anything Rachel Hawkins writes.

Thank you st Martin’s press and netgalley for an arc.

A Rachel Hawkins thriller with a gorgeous sun drenched villa as the setting, plus a twisty mystery? Yes please! I have read every other novel published by Rachel Hawkins and was so excited to read The Villa. While at times it was a little slow, particularly in the beginning, once it took off it was a fun ride. I enjoyed this book, and look forward to her next one.

This book was interesting in that it was told in dual timelines - there was Mari in 1974 and Emily in present day. In Mari's story, she and her step sister and lover go to spend the summer with her step sister's lover and his dealer. This is a story of drugs and sex, although nothing is explicit. There is also rock 'n' roll and murder. As in, Mari's lover is murdered (this is not a spoiler, this is told early on). So this is a murder house. However, the summer of 1974 Mari is trying to write. She eventually is inspired and writes what will be a great horror novel.

In the present day, Emily in in the process of a divorce, her health has been failing, and she has writer's block. Her "best friend" Chess invites her to spend the summer with her at a Villa in Italy. But this is the murder house! Emily agrees and ends up engrossed in the story of Mari and the summer of 1974. She makes discoveries that no one has found in ~50 years (really?).

Throughout the book, we alternate timelines and I did enjoy both timelines. However, there was a lot that seemed unanswered in this book. One of the reviews mentioned a third storyline which I agree with. I'm not sure if this was intentional on the author's part or not, but I wish there had been a little more clarity and not as open-ended.

I ordinarily like Rachel Hawkins’s novels, but I found this challenging to get through. The plot just felt plodding and annoying.

Another Rachel Hawkins' thriller that did not disappoint.

I loved the fast paced plot and of course the setting! Rachel knows how to paint a picture with her books.

I also loved the dual timeline in this story. A very fun read!

This is my favourite by Rachel Hawkins. I liked the contrast in the setting, a villa set in the beautiful Italian countryside with a dark history and secrets known as the “murder house.” The story is told in dual timelines, the 1970’s with its rock and roll culture and present day as two friends Chess & Emily rent the villa hoping to spark their creativity. It’s like reading two stories at once but the endings are different. The relationships were complicated, sibling rivalry, love and jealousy between friends. I found Mari to be a really interesting character and was invested in her story. Of course it wouldn’t be a thriller without some plot twists at the end and a little bit of karma. Overall a good read that you won’t want to put down! Thank you to netgalley for the arc!

Another Rachel Hawkins page turner! Loved this story and couldn’t put it down! The story was interesting and engaging and had some depth to the story that was a little different than other RH books. Highly recommend this book!

I love a thriller that takes place on vacation or an island or anything tropical and fun and this was no exception! I've read a few other Rachel Hawkins' novels and will be on the look out for any new ones by her, too!

Wow.. This is a very compelling, very complex mystery that had me very intrigued. There are various timelines and characters that are interwoven well throughout the novel though it took me a little while to get things straight in my head at first. The writing is very good.

I loved the description of the villa set near Ovieto in Italy and wanted to go there. The relationships in both the 70s and the present day were complex and interesting. I certainly didn't guess what happened with one of the murders though I did suspect with the other. I couldn't put this book down and, if you like a good mystery with interesting characters, you'll likely enjoy it as much as I did.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for an eARC of this book, though I did end up reading it much later in hardcover from my library.

I always enjoy anything by Rachel Hawkins. The beginning was a little slow for me I had to push myself through it , and there wasn't as much suspense, or tension happening. About half way through it definitely picked up more and the rest of the book had me hooked! I enjoyed the plot, but not so much the characters. I would 100% still recommend this book, I think its more of a low class thriller or mystery than a suspenseful on edge thriller. Overall I would rate this book a 4/5.

This was my least favorite Rachel Hawkins book. I loved her first two but this one fell flat for me. Getting into the book was really hard and I just found it to be confusing and not very exciting.

This is a dual timeline suspense told from two perspectives, this slows down the pacing but does help with a plot that keeps you guessing. There a lot of intrigue, a cast on unreliable and unlikeable characters and a great setting in 1970s Italy.

The Villa explores a dual timeline narrative revolving around a gorgeous Italian villa and the secrets that are both revealed and created within it's walls.

Present: Hawkins takes us on the present day journey of Emily, a woman in her 30's who has created a successful cozy mystery series, fought off an unknown illness and is dealing with the divorce from her husband Matt. When her best friend Chess, who she hasn't talked to in ages, invites her on a holiday to Italy Emily jumps at the chance to throw her problems behind her for 6 weeks at Villa Aestas.

Past: It's 1974 and famous musician Noel invites up-and-coming musician Pierce to the then names Villa Rosato along with his girlfriend Mari and her step-sister Lara. What starts out as a stay full of peach, love and rock-n-roll slowly devolves into chaos and murder, but who is really responsible?

Rachel Hawkins novel was solidly written, however; the dual timelines felt disjointed with neither feeling fully fleshed out. The past POV was more underdeveloped, but both left many loose ends untied and question unanswered.

I love this one. It kept me guessing and I thought the characters were relatable. The setting and the atmosphere of the story completely drew me in. This book was a fast paced and could easily be read in a few sittings.

I usually love Rachel Hawkins books. This story is supposed to be a slow burn but it is too slow. I started to not really care about what happened to anyone. Unfortunately, I this book just wasn't for me.

I really enjoyed reading this book with dual storylines about the Villa. There were a couple twists I didn't expect at the end! Was not cookie cutter! Good job Rachel Hawkins!

We love a semi-haunted gothic villa in Italy. This book was a little too “mean girl” for my liking, but I would indefinitely still recommend. Loved the pacing

I really loved Reckless Girls so I was excited to read more from Rachel Hawkins and The Villa did not disappoint!

Emily is a writer and Chess is a famous influencer. When Chess invites Emily to a famous villa in Umbria, she jumps at the chance with the hope that this will revive her writer's block. Full of secrets, twists, and danger, I could not put this book down and didn't want it to end. I would recommend this to everyone who's a fan of thriller/mystery novels.

What can I say about Rachel Hawkins? She consistently delivers books that are completely addictive to me. THE VILLA is no different. It perfectly combines the gothic darkness and the twists of a perfectly developed thriller.