3.5 ⭐️

The Villa is a slow-burn suspense about two timelines: one in late 70s and present day. Emily and her close friend Chess are going on a writing retreat to an Italian villa notorious for its dark past and the location of where a gruesome murder took place years back. The dueling timeline in the 70s sheds light on the villa’s dark history.

Overall, I really enjoyed the ties between both timelines. I was captivated the entire time reading, and enjoyed my time with this one! I found Mari to be a more likeable character than Emily, and loved reading from her perspective in the 70s. My one annoyance was the “twist” at the end- as this was a slow burn- I didn’t feel completely satisfied with the result.

While I’ve enjoyed The Wife Upstairs and Reckless Girls, and now after finishing The Villa, Rachel Hawkins books are consistently 3.5 stars for me. She knows how to make readers feel very engaged while reading in the moment. So far, all books have been very binge-worthy but not memorable.

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

Pub date: January 3, 2023

Rachel Hawkins has firmly established herself as one of my go-to authors when I need an adult thriller that will undoubtedly give me a mild case of whiplash from the couple of twists that she'll throw into the storyline. When I read the synopsis for The Villa, I knew I had to read it. The words Italy, rock stars and murder lured me in and got my attention. But it was the phrase: "The Villa welcomes you into its deadly legacy...." that nailed it and I was a goner.

The book is told in multiple time lines, Present day follows long time best friends Emily and Chess who go to Italy to reconnect. The other timeline introduces the reader to step-sisters, Mari and Lara who have a tumultuous relationship. The visit the Villa in 1974 along with Mari's musician boyfriend, Pearce. They are invited there by Noel who is a well-known rockstar that is currently struggling to put out new music. In addition, you also get a peek into Mari's book which makes for a third storyline of sorts.

Sometimes it's confusing to bounce between timelines, but it worked quite well in this book. It was actually a critical facet of the plot and it never felt forced or intrusive to leave one timeline to go to the other. I was intrigued by both the storylines and am continually impressed by this author's creativity.

Even though there were some unexpected twists which I loved, there were also a few things within the plot that I felt were too predictable. That's the only reason that I"m not giving this beauty five stars. Everything else was stellar. I just felt that there were some places where she played it safe and others where she blew it out of the water with her twists. But obviously, that's my personal opinion. Regardless, this book is a wonderful work and I highly recommend it.

In addition to receiving an early copy of the kindle copy for review, I also received an early audio copy. This allowed me to go back and forth between both. The audiobook for this is stellar. The narration was spot on. All three narrators do a wonderful job of portraying their characters and it all blends together in a way that makes this one of my most enjoyable listening experiences in a while. 5 stars for the audio.

Thank you to NetGalley for both the e-ARC and early listening copy. I voluntarily chose to read/listen and review them and the opinions contained within are my own.

This is a creepy gothic based on the story of Mary Shelley, Percy Shelley, and Lord Byron’s summer that resulted in Mary writing Frankenstein. It’s set in a dual timeline format in an infamous murder house in Italy. It is enterand I fully enjoyed it.

If you’re in need of a quick mystery, THE VILLA is the perfect book to pick up in 2023! Rachel Hawkins has an amazing way of writing stories that draw you in quickly and that you keep you engaged with unlikable characters and a few twists sprinkled throughout.

I thought THE VILLA had an interesting setup with the story shifting between the past and present. At first I did have trouble adjusting to the shifts in the story, especially at the beginning, but by the end I felt like it flowed more smoothly. Throughout the book I felt more invested in the story told in the past and tended to like the story more from the view of Mari. I thought that Hawkins created an interesting dynamic between best friends Emily and Chess in the present, but there were certain moments where I felt exasperated with both of these characters.

This ended up being a fairly quick read, that kept me entertained. There were a lot of things that I questioned or guessed ahead of time, but I would say this it is still worth the read. Overall I really liked how the whole book ended and thought that was the most clever part. And of course - I absolutely loved the cover for THE VILLA; this was one reason I was completely drawn to reading this one early on!

The Villa by Rachel Hawkins
Rating: 3 stars
Pub Date: 1/3/23

Emily is a cozy mystery writer who’s been having a rough time. Her health has been deteriorating, and her husband left her after cheating while she was at her worst. She needs a restart to get her career back on track, and her childhood best friend and successful self-help author, Chess, suggests spending the summer in Italy. They choose a picturesque villa in Orvieto, which also happens to be the location of a high-profile murder in the 70s.

During their time at the villa, Emily stumbles upon clues from the past that answer some questions about the brutal murder that took place there, and some unpleasant revelations about her relationship with Chess come to light.

The story moves back and forth between the past and present, leading us closer and closer to the truth behind the murder. I loved the juxtaposition of the two storylines and the similarities between Chess and Emily’s relationship in the present and Mari and Laura’s relationship in the past. I find stories that explore the complexities of female relationships interesting, and this book does that in a big way. I also loved how the present-day setting of the villa was sunny and gorgeous, but the past chapters show a darker and more haunted atmosphere.

Unfortunately, I liked one storyline a lot more than the other. I was invested in the characters and outcome of the past chapters and cared very little about the present-day characters. I couldn’t connect with either woman, and their problems felt petty. The past chapters were dark, mysterious, and suspenseful and spoke to the human condition and how far some people are willing to go for fame. I could have read a whole book about that time, and I was almost disappointed when the chapters switched to the present day.

Something else I struggled with was the use of excerpts from articles, podcasts, and chapters from the horror novel written at the villa. It was jarring and took me out of the story whenever they made an appearance. There was almost too much going on, and it was very distracting.

I think I went into this expecting a twisty thriller, but what I got was women’s fiction. I expected a big twist at the end, but there wasn’t one. A few mysteries were solved, and justice was served, but the smaller twists throughout the story were predictable, and I was somewhat disappointed. The ending also left me scratching my head with its Verity-like circumstance.

I love Hawkin’s writing style, and she did an excellent job describing the villa and the picturesque Italian countryside. The characters were well-developed, and the storyline was complex enough to keep me intrigued until the end. I wish it was a little less predictable, and we saw more of the characters from the past.

Overall, this one was just okay for me. I’ve seen a lot of five-star reviews for The Villa, so it could just be me! Pick this one up if you’ve enjoyed other books by this author and like a back-and-forth, whodunnit mystery.

Rating: 3 ⭐️

If you have a hard time following multiple POV books, this may not be the one for you. If you can stick with it though, it does become more clear.

Two stories, one house. “Houses remember.” We have Mari in 1974 visiting The Villa with famous rock and roll crew and her wannabe musician stepsister. Then in present day it’s authors Emily and her best friend since childhood, Chess visiting the same villa. We find that the 1974 visit ended in murder, but only as the story unravels do you find out who and what exactly transpired. Through Mari’s story and excerpts from the book she wrote during her stay at the Villa we put the puzzle together.

Emily is intrigued by the story and finds herself wanting to write her own based on the events that took place all those years ago in the same rooms she’s staying. She is currently going through a tough divorce and this trip with her friend, self help guru Chess, is just what she needs to kickstart her writer’s block.

Overall I found the book to be interesting, but I spent a lot of time trying to figure out where different excerpts came from and trying to remember what was happening. It was a good story and held my interest once I got about a quarter of the way in, but I feel like it didn’t quite hit for me. I do enjoy this authors other books and think this will likely be very popular. I give 3 stars for the fact that I couldn’t wait to finish and find out what happened and what the twist would be.

Thank you @netgalley and @stmartinspress for the opportunity to read this early digital copy in exchange for my thoughts.

This started out really good and then the twist was so obvious that I found myself rushing to finish it, if only for the book to be over. It could have gone in some many better direction and, yet, it didn't. I still enjoyed the beginning and the intersecting stories. Julia Whelan is phenomenal, as always, too, in her narration. If you don't care about figuring out a twist, you may enjoy this one even more!

The Villa comes out next week on January 3, 2023 and you can purchase HERE.

Somewhere around the time she started calling herself "Chess," I realized I might actually hate my best friend.

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

• two storylines/timelines
• wonderful narration (👏👏 Julia Whelan)
• toxic relationships

This doesn't give super 'thriller genre' vibes, but it was a fun ride! Great setting, intriguing characters, and steady pace. I also really enjoyed the podcast transcripts, emails, writing excerpts, etc sprinkled throughout. It added to the excitement of the plot for me!

🗣️ Thank you to @netgalley, @stmartinspress and @macmillan.audio for the opportunity to read and review this book via gifted eARC and audio! All opinions are honest and my own.

4.5 stars
Rachel Hawkins’ latest is a gothic suspense set in an Italian villa with a dark history and was inspired by Fleetwood Mac, the Manson murders and Frankenstein! What the heck could go wrong?

It’s an extraordinarily captivating page turner with dual timelines, complex female relational dynamics and Daisy Jones vibes.

I was lucky enough to alternate between the audio and print versions, and I will say the audio is very well done.

My thanks to Netgalley and St. Martins Press for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced digital copy of this book.

Emily and Jessica (now morphed into Chess) were inseparable as kids, but have drifted apart in recent years. So when Chess suggests a trip to Italy for the summer, it seems to Emily this will be the perfect escape from her crumbling marriage and hopefully a chance to get over her writer's block. But Chess may have ulterior motives.

In a parallel story, set in 1974 in the same villa in which the two women are staying, a gruesome murder took place, one with far-reaching consequences. But was it really all "drugs, sex and rock 'n roll" or was there more to the story? Emily is intrigued in the history of the villa and when she unearths a copy of the bestselling book written by Mari and listens to the famous album by Lara, Mari's step-sister and also one of the five, she is even more intrigued.

It took me a minute to get into the shifting stories, written by Emily and Mari as well as excerpts from books and podcasts about the murder. But it was worth it. The story is intriguing and haunting and leaves you wanting more.

You could call this story one of duality. We get dual timelines, frenemies/stepsisters, two men behaving badly, and two stories hiding much more than it appears. It also brought in a lot of what feels in vogue right now: the whole communal musical/art scene like we have from Daisy Jones and the Six combined with a self-help guru and an author. We readers love our stories about authors! The age of the women (girls really) in the older timeline made me cringe. I'm not sure that needed to be added to the plot and I would have felt the same way about the characters without the specter of pedophilia. I was guessing and second guessing all the way up until the end of the book, or at least through the end of Chapter 14. There is one more chapter and it did the explain away everything, etc, that I don't generally like. It went a bit farther than that and while I can understand how most readers will appreciate what it offers, I was happy and fine a little earlier. I can't say more because that would spoil it and this is definitely a book you should read!

Author Emily and her famous, friend Chess reunite for a trip to a villa in Italy. The villa was the setting for a famous murder in the past. Told in alternate time periods from the original murder to present day, Emily and Chess try to find out what really happened.

The Villa is a dazzling Russian nesting doll of a novel, weaving together three separate, original stories. Emily has been battered by a difficult divorce and writers’ block while her childhood friend Chess produces one best selling self help book after another. They plan to write and reconnect at Villa Aestas in scenic Orvieto. In 1974, the villa was the scene of a gruesome murder when an almost famous rock star was bludgeoned to death. The two sisters who were there, Lara and Mari, become famous after the tragedy, Lara as a singer/songwriter and Mari with a novel based on her boyfriend’s death. While Chess works on her latest advice book, Emily researches the summer of 1974. What she learns will test her friendship and change her life.

Look for The Villa on every best seller list! Told in alternating voices by Emily and Mari, this mystery/thriller pulls you in from the first page. A fast paced, compelling plot, atmospheric location, especially The Pozzo di San Patrizio, and themes of competition and jealousy make this a tour de force. 5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and Rachel Hawkins for this ARC.

This is a slow burn thriller, told from the perspectives of Mari, mostly set in 1974, and Emily, in modern-day. Both stories explore the power and (sometimes) toxicity of sisterhood and female friendship.

The alternating perspectives were hard for me to connect at first, but the parallels became more clear as the novel went on. At first, I was much more invested in Emily's story than Mari's story, but by the end, I was firmly ensconced in Mari's story.

The parallels between Mari and Lara's relationship and Emily and Chess's relationship never quite fit for me. Mari and Lara seemed to genuinely love each other, but Emily and Chess had too much animosity to make their friendship believable. None of the characters were particularly likeable, but I empathized with all of them except Chess. She just had very few redeeming qualities and I never felt like we could trust her.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Net Galley for an advanced reader's copy of this book.

This dual timeline weaves together two stories involving different people set in a in Italian villa. Childhood friends, Chess and Emily had different upbringings but as adults are both writers. One is successful and one is struggling but both have something to gain. They plan to spend an entire summer together abroad to work on their books but while there, they uncover a mysterious past involving a murder that happened many years ago in the villa they are renting. This mystery sparks an interest in writing a new book but which author will claim it?
I loved the way the author integrated the past and present t into this suspenseful plot! This is the 3rd book I’ve read by this author and my favorite!

I loved Hawkins’s last two novels, so no surprise that I loved this one. In fact, I think it’s the best of the bunch!

This was a complex story within a story. Actually, there are at least a half dozen stories in this novel, all seamlessly woven together, some more essential than others. The central story revolves around the friendship of Emily and Chess, best friends since childhood. Em is an author reeling from past illness and her divorce while Chess is thriving as an influencer. They vacation in Italy at a villa, the site of a murder among bohemians 50 years earlier. Of course, not all is as it seems.

Hawkins’s greatest charm is character development and dialogue. Sometimes the dialogue is so spot on, it made me laugh. Her characters seem to animate beyond the page.

Without revealing all the secrets, Hawkins ties most loose ends, purposely leaving the reader to imagine the rest.

If you enjoy a thriller where relationships are key, move this one to the top of your list.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Marin’s Publishing for the ARC. All opinions are entirely my own.

Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ebook of The Villa! All opinions in this review are my own.

Rachel Hawkins has done it once again. Her books never disappoint me and I look forward to reading the newest one each year. Just like Reckless Girls, I tore through The Villa. I finished it in under 24 hours because I couldn't put it down!

Things I Loved About The Villa:
🍋 set in a gorgeous Italian Villa
🍋 dual timelines
🍋 you know the horrible event is coming but you don't know the details surrounding it
🍋 main character writes cozy mysteries
🍋 a truly wild ending
🍋 eye-catching cover

The Villa is out January 3rd and I can't wait to own a physical copy!

One of my reads over the break was The Villa. I was lucky enough to get an advanced copy on Netgalley as both an eARC and audiobook as well. I don’t always get approved for eARCs so when it’s a book I really want to read I request the audiobook which I sometimes have more success with.

I’m so glad I got the audio copy of this one! It’s co-narrated by my favourite narrator Julia Whelan - I could listen to her read anything! It really enhanced the story for me.

The Villa has a dual timeline with present day following two childhood friends Chess & Emily and the past following a rockstar, new musician + his girlfriend and stepsister.

Emily and Chess are both authors of very types of books. Emily was the first to publish but Chess’ career took off when she published her self help book. She rented the Villa Aestas for part of the summer and asks Emily to come along.

Once Emily realizes they’re staying in a former murder house, it’s all she can think about & wants to uncover what may have really happened.

You start to wonder if the house still carries the energy & if it’ll claim another person before the summer is up.

I will say, I started the ecopy and had a hard time at first getting into it even though I love dual timelines in thrillers. I would highly suggest this one on audio, I think the great narration makes it really engaging and hard for you to turn off.

This was a ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️ read for me & it comes out January 3rd!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, the author, Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the copies in exchange for my honest review.

was so excited to be sent a digital copy of this several months ago and then when The Literary Lovelies became eligible for the Gallery pick of the physical book we had to do it as a book club pick for sure. I really enjoyed this one but I thought it was very different from her last book Reckless Girls

Synopsis:

Emily and Chess were inseparable growing up. Now that they are older and both successful writers their friendship has been a little strained. Chess is now a successful self-help author while Emily settled in with cozy mysteries. Determined to rekindle their friendship Emily agrees to go away with Chess to Italy for the summer. Emily has had a rough go recently with her husband leaving her, becoming ill, and being late on her latest cozy mystery. Meanwhile Chess’s books have made her a household name. .The Villa they rent has a mysterious past.

Another writer Mari, stayed at the same Villa in 1974 with her step-sister Lara, her boyfriend Pierce who was an up-and coming musician and notorious rock star legend Noel Gordon. Mari an Lara produced great works of art after that summer when they were meant to be muses for their musician boyfriends. Instead Pierce ends up dead.

This book is inspired by Fleetwood Mac, The Manson murders and the infamous summer between Percy and Mary Shelley spent with Lord Byron at a Lake Geneva Castle. I want to do more research on both of these now.

My thoughts:

I really enjoyed that this book focused more on female friendships than romantic love. I liked the parallel between Emily and Chess and Mari and Lara. Both relationships were at times toxic and at other times inspiring. It was a little weird that both Chess and Emily were successful authors because that’s such a rarity. Overall though< I really enjoyed the book. The pacing was good, and it really kepy my interest. I did read this as an ALC from @libro.fm and was elated to hear my favorite narrator, Julia Whalen as the MC.

Rachel Hawkins writes unique thrillers that are page turners I don’t want to put down! The Villa is no exception. The book is told from Emily’s perspective in the present day, and Mari’s point of view in 1974.

Present day: Emily is a cozy mystery writer who after separating from her husband, decides to take a six week long vacation to a villa in Italy with her lifelong best friend, Chess. While there she discovers the villa is the scene of a brutal murder that took place 50 years before. Emily decides to focus on this story for her next book.

1974: Mari, her boyfriend Pierce, and her sister Lara, are invited to spend the summer at a villa in Italy so Pierce can work on his music career. We know that Pierce was murdered that summer, and one of the other guests at the villa committed the crime. We just don’t know why.

I really loved the dual timelines, especially Mari’s story. I couldn’t put the book down because I needed to know what really happened that summer. I liked how the two storylines were intertwined. I was able to figure out a few things, but there is a great twist at the end that I didn’t see coming. I loved the setting of this book and the atmospheric feelings the villa provided.

I had an eARC and ALC, and listened along as I read the story. Julia Whelan is my favorite narrator so I was very happy to hear her voicing Emily. The other narrators, Kimberly Wetherell and Shiromi Arserio, were great as well. The voices were different enough to know what timeline we were in, and who was speaking.

Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Macmillan Audio for advanced copies in exchange for my honest review.