Estranged best friends spend the summer together in Italy each working on their writing. Em and Chess use this time to relax, rebuild their friendship and see how much the “house remembers “. Hawkins has a great writing style that draws the reader in and keeps the pages turning.

Duel time lines always get me. I’m a huge history buff and love to see what happened in the past. The characters were all lovable except for Chess. She in my opinion was the unreliable narrator. She proved that multiple times before the end of the book.

The setting was so easy to picture in both time frames. The house at times when I visualized it was a mixture of modern day and ancient architecture.

Lara and Chess I feel were the same person just in different timelines. Same with Mari and Em. Pierce and Em ex husband were the same and gave little hints to what the big twists were

4.5/5

Rachel Hawkins wow. What a read. This is totally different than what I thought I Was getting into. This story jumps back and forth in time. Between Mari lara pierce and Noel then to chess and Emma. Who are in current time and enjoying a nice vacation. Emma is fixated by the book Mari wrote and digs for clues as to what really happened the night Pierce died.
Houses remember. Can Emma find out what has really gone on?

This book will have you hooked. It's an easy read and it's not very long. I loved the ladies in this book. Except maybe chess but you'll see why.

I really loved the ending of this book and the fact we find out what really happened that night. I must admit I will think about this ending for awhile yet.

Thank you to netgalley and St martins press for this ARC. I really enjoyed it!

My new Rachel Hawkins favorite.

I listened to the audiobook version. This did not affect my opinion of the book, it made the reading experience even better.

Love the Then-Now POV in books. The Villa was not the exception. It was a fast-paced, interesting, dark, and suspenseful story. The descriptions of The Villa were fascinating as well.

Thank you to the Publisher St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for the Advanced Free Copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is my fourth book by Hawkins, and while I didn’t love it as much as Reckless Girls, I think it was still a really great thriller. She is so good at setting the scene, and truly making you feel like you are in the pages with the characters. I can’t wait to see what she writes next!!!

It turned out that this book was not a good fit for me - but that's on me. I have difficulty keeping a story straight when there are multiple points of view. Add to that the fact that the Villa, scene of a past murder from the 1970's, didn't have the focus I think would have made it better (again, that's my take on it). The pace was a little slow until about the halfway point and then it picked up. As for the main characters of Mari and Emily (the two points of view) they weren't women I wanted to hang out with as they are not all that likable. Overall I'm glad I stuck with it. This is only the second book I have read by Rachel Hawkins and I will be inclined to pick up the next book.
My thanks to the publisher St. Martin's and to NetGalley for giving me an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to @netgalley for the advanced reader copy of The Villa. I loved The Wife Upstairs and enjoyed Reckless Girls so I was very excited to be able to read and review this one!

I’ve seen mixed reviews but I am here for Hawkins’ ability to twist a mystery. The whole story inside of a story and dual timelines was a fun way to discovery the mystery. It was an east read and a great book to read while traveling. If you’re looking for a fun popcorn thriller, pick this one up!

Emily and Chess have been friends for years. Both are authors but Emily is dry in her writing. Chess invites her to stay in this beautiful villa.
This is a story inside a story inside a story. I loved this book. It was intriquing and I could not put it down.
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC and to St. Martin"s Press.

I really enjoyed this from beginning to end. It felt like a creepy mix of Daisy Jones, Verity, and the Manson murders. I like the dynamic of Em and Chess’ friendship and never being able to quite tell if they were friends or enemies. It kept me guessing and honestly I’m still not really sure. I didn’t find any of the characters to be very likable, but I don’t mind that in a thriller. They all seemed a little twisted and slightly unhinged and I loved it. My heart was definitely racing toward the end and I couldn’t wait to find out how it would all unfold. I did love the ending but my only critique is that it felt a little rushed.

This is told in dual timelines and also some other “articles” mixed in, which at first I wasn’t sure I would like or I thought would be confusing. But by the end of the first chapter I was completely hooked and flying through the pages. Also the chapters are pretty long which I normally loathe but these read so fast!

What was this book? I’m a huge fan of Rachel Hawkins previous books, as well as her Erin Sterling books, but this one felt more like a comedy than a thriller. Every twist was wildly and blatantly obvious right from the beginning. The characters were quite insufferable. The two POV and timelines were a little bit confusing and hard to follow, adding in the reading of the novel as well, it just felt super jumbled and couldn’t really keep track of everything.

The overall ending was confusing and left too many loose ends, but at the same time really underwhelming. This was really easy to binge, maybe that’s why I was so confused at times.. but I don’t think so. The audio I will say was great because of Julia Whelan and her accents, which did make it better and probably why I’m giving this 2 stars. Hopefully the next one will be a hit like the rest of Hawkin’s work. Can’t win them all!

I think it is safe to say, I have enjoyed each Rachel Hawkins book more than the one before. The Villa is my favorite for sure.

The Villa follows two timelines... First, Mari in 1974 staying at the Villa Rosato with her partner, musician Pierce, famous rockstar, Noel, her stepsister, Lara and Johnnie, Noel's friend/dealer. The villa becomes known as the murder house after someone dies there during that fateful summer trip. But from the villa comes forth two popular works of art, including Mari's novel, Lilith Rising, written during her trip that summer.

The second timeline follows Em and her friend Chess, during their summer trip to the villa, now known as Villa Aestas. Em is a writer of cozy mysteries, and is in a rut writing the next one, partially because she is divorcing her husband and he think he deserves half of her profits since he was in her life the entire time she was writing. Chess has branded herself as a self-help guru and the two decide to spend their summer writing in Italy. Em is fascinated by the story of that summer of 1974 and reads a copy of Lilith Rising during her time there. She starts writing a new book, one inspired by Mari, Lilith Rising and the house.

The story also injects with pieces of newspaper articles, lyrics of songs, excerpts from Lilith Rising and other books on the summer of 1974.

The story was completely unexpected. I wasn't sure who I liked, who I didn't, who I trusted and who was lying. It wasn't super dark and twisty, but still kept me on the edge of my seat.

This book reads like Taylor Jenkins Read and Lucy Foley had a baby. Not as good as either of their individual stories but an interesting and compelling mash up. Fans of the author's previous works will definitely find it hard to put down!

Thank you, NetGalley and the Publisher for the eARC! I enjoyed reading The Villa- anything by Rachel Hawkins goes on my to read list!
Be sure to pay attention to the dual timelines as both timelines come together. The dual timelines worked in the Villa and complimented each other. There is one part that made me re-read, a little confused about why it was brought up in the part of the book but it didnt take away from the story. Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading thrillers/mysteries

Huge thanks to NetGalley and st martins press for an advance copy of the book.
I love a good thriller with dual timelines. I especially love one that has an epic house as its center. The way Rachel Hawkins weaves them together for a great story demonstrates why she’s an auto buy author for me.
1974- a group of musicians and an author spend a summer in a villa working on their craft. Sisters Mari and Lara compete against each other for attention and recognition with disastrous consequences.
Present day- friends Emily and Chess spend a summer in the same villa to reconnect and recharge their creative batteries. Both writers, they’re interested in the history of the infamous villa. What each one doesn’t know is the plans the other has for the house and their careers.
Secrets and betrayals keep this thriller moving along to a satisfying ending.

I truly think this book will appeal to a wide range of people. Like stories of 70s rock excess? Check. Like realistic female friendships? Check. Like page-turning thrillers? Check check check.

As a lifelong Mary Shelley stan I absolutely loved this unique take on 'The Year Without A Summer' and the infamous events in Geneva. If you are familiar with her life and/or the life of her mother, Mary Wollstonecraft there are so many fun easter eggs to look out for.

Everything from the timeline shifts, the snippets from biographies, Lilith Rising, and the song lyrics are all excellent and help create a rich, layered setting. I flew through this book and still didn't want it to end.

3.5 ⭐️
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and Net Galley for the opportunity to read an ARC of The Villa by Rachel Hawkins.

Read The Villa if you want a slow, psychological mystery/thriller, and you like all the messy relationships: family, friends, marriage.

I struggle with my rating because I did like the overall book; however, at times, there were a few quick, jarring timeline and storyline jumps, that made it hard to follow.

For the better part of book, I was more invested in the summer of 1974 storyline, because the dynamics between Mari, Lara, Noel, Pierce and Johnnie at Villa Aestas/Rosato were so murky; I do wish that who died hadn’t been revealed quite so early though.

Although their storyline was captivating, it seems to me as if Chess and Emily were almost there as a way to facilitate the 1974 story. They had always had an uneasy and unequal relationship and that was fully on display during their vacation.

Ultimately, I certainly didn’t see the twists coming in either timeline; although I wish that the present one had gone in a different direction/further.

Hawkins' writing style is fun and light, and the Italian setting is beautifully described. The characters are likable and well-developed, but I found the plot to be somewhat predictable and not as engaging as I had hoped. While the mystery aspect of the story was interesting, it didn't quite hold my attention as much as I would have liked.

Despite these issues, I still found "The Villa" to be a pleasant and entertaining read. The romance between the main characters was sweet and the friendships were well-written. Overall, I would give the book a 3.5 out of 5 stars. If you're in the mood for a light, summery read with a touch of mystery and romance, this book might be a good fit for you.

Thank you for the advanced copy! I read some mixed reviews on this book so I was a little hesitant when I started reading but I could not put the book down. I loved the dual story/time lines and very quickly became obsessed with what happened and the ending blew me away.

Before starting, I heard this book described as Verity meets Daisy Jones. I was intrigued. I knew I had to read it.

With this comparison I was hoping it would knock my socks off. It didn’t. BUT it was a page turner that I couldn’t put down and now I can’t stop thinking about it. So maybe it did what it was supposed to do?

If you enjoy books about books and writing this is for you. This was easily my favorite part of the read.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is out NOW!

While I have seen many differing reviews on this one, I truly enjoyed it.

The audiobook is narrated in part by Julia Whelan, Kimberly Wetherell and Shiromi Arserio this version truly brings the story to life. When childhood friends Chess and Emily decide to re-kindle a troubled friendship by spending a summer at a Villa in Italy, Emily becomes intrigued by a murder taken place there in the 1970's. An author herself, Emily finds herself drawn in to the life of sex, drugs and rock-n-roll, that the 70's were known for and the death of Pierce Sheldon.

My suggestion is that you go in blind for this one. There is so much going on with a lot of characters. The plot bounces between present day Emily and Chess and 1974 when the death takes place. I also read part of the physical book while listening to the audio and the audio steals the show.

A cleverly written murder mystery with lies, deceit, murder all wrapped up nicely in what feels like a scavenger hunt for our MC Emily. I loved Reckless Girls by Hawking, which also seemed to be a story you either loved or hated. So far, I am a Hawkins fan.

This book would be for anyone who enjoys:
*Dual POV's
*Books about books
*Thriller suspense
*Twisty endings

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for my ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.