My Review ✨

#qotd: do you ever buy a book just because of its beautiful cover? I did with this one!!!

Thank you to NETgalley and St. Martins Press for the arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book centers around a book. I loved the dual POV‘s. I found myself kind of bored throughout the book because nothing was really happening. I didn’t really connect with either Mari or Emily.
The parts I did enjoy was Hawkins writing, she does know how to write. The subject matter just never gripped me I never felt connected.
There was no big reveal, this should not be marketed as a thriller

My Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ 💫

**Spoilers**
The Villa by Rachel Hawkins details what is essentially a love triangle between a man and two writers who decide to embark on an epic journey to stay at a Villa where a murder took place long ago in order to spark their creative juices and get to writing again. There's back-stabbing, there's intrigue (is best friend really a friend??), there's flashbacks to the Villa's original murder, and twists and turns. The more I marinated on this novel and the complexity, the more I loved it and have questions. It's actually something I'd go back and read again in order to see if I can discover details that I missed the first time around. Did I love the ending? Not necessarily - but overall I really enjoyed the entire novel itself, and think the concept was quite unique, which is hard to do in this day and age.

Absolutely LOVED this book. The different timelines were perfectly woven together throughout the story. I found myself feeling as though I was in the villa with both Mari and Em.
This one took me into bright Italian afternoon, but kept me with a dark and foreboding feeling throughout. Excellent!

With every book I read from Rachel Hawkins, I grow more in love with her writing. It's fast paced, exciting and pulls you in from beginning to end to the point where I almost always finish them within a day. With this book we get a mixture of timelines, points of view and unreliable narrators. Even after finishing this book hours ago I am still sitting here thinking about it. Beyond excited to see what she will put out next.

Review - The Villa
By - Rachel Hawkins
4.5 stars

Books about authors are the best & this one was indeed! A captivating suspense novel with dual timelines & perspectives. The current timeline… best friends Em & Chess, authors on an Italian getaway in villa that has a historical past. While at the villa to focus on their writing… they both become obsessed with the murder that took place at this very location. The dual storyline is step sisters Mari & Lara at the same villa in the 70s telling their side of the tragic story. Add to that a messy divorce, sex, drugs & rock & roll & you have a great read!
Well written with a diverse cast of characters that all have their own secrets. A steady build up as the author reveals just a bit more with each chapter slowly revealing the whole twisted picture. How does past affect the future? Can Em & Chess maintain their friendship as secrets come to light?
If you enjoy suspense novels this book is a must read! Rachel Hawkins is quickly becoming one of my must read authors!
Thank you so much to #NetGalley & St. Martins Press for the ARC. This is my honest review.

The book takes place in two time periods, 1974 and the present day. A group of five people spend time at a villa in Orvieto, where one person dies. Fast forward to the present day where another group of people are spending time at the same villa. The plot goes back and forth between both time periods, making it even more interesting to read. The characters were great as well. Overall I really enjoyed this book. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced reader copy.

This author has quickly become a must read for me. I loved the Wife Upstairs and Reckless Girls and The Villa is another fantastic book. I liked the dual timelines with Mari in the 1970s and then current day Emily and Chess. This is an interesting book about friendship and deceit and underlying mystery. I liked the Italy setting too. 4.5 stars

**** Publishing January 3, 2023****

A highly entertaining dark twisty thriller/mystery that will keep you guessing until the end!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Emily and Chess have been best friends since elementary school. They have both been through a lot in life, who are successful writers. Emily writes cozy mysteries, while Chess writes self-help books. Even through ups and downs of life, they remained best friends. Chess decided that even though they made it a point to get together once a year, she felt it was time to spend more time together. Chess planned a getaway to Italy for the entire summer, so they could write. Emily points out to Chess that a murder had occurred in the villa in the 1970’s. Chess isn’t bothered by the info as she justifies it by saying it’s a gorgeous villa. What will they discover? Is this house cursed? Will they be haunted by the past during their stay? Will history repeat itself?

Mari is a writer and Pierce, Lori, and Noel are musicians. All wanting to escape to the villa in Italy to gain inspiration, so they can make their “big break”. Will they make the most of it or will life get in the way?

This dual time period storyline alternates between present day with Emily and Chess and the 1970’s with Lara, Noel, Mari, and Pierce highlighting their vacations at the same villa in Italy. Both groups came to the villa looking for a break from their lives and inspiration for their work. Will they get the inspiration they need or will complicated relationships hinder their success?

A dark twisty domestic thriller/ mystery that involves authors, musicians, murder, fame, and secrets! Are people who they seem to be? This book will keep you guessing until the end! A fast paced read that will keep you entertained as the truth is revealed!

Thanks to St. Martin's Press, I was provided an ARC of The Villa by Rachel Hawkins via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

*Thanks so much to NetGalley for the ARC copy*

I enjoyed this! It's a dual-timeline narrative, and while I will say that I didn't care that much for the past timeline that much at the beginning, it really started to pick up at probably around the 60% mark. I was always interested in the present-day timeline though. The present-day characters, while not necessarily fully likeable (especially Chess) were nonetheless really interesting characters.
I liked the way it dealt with themes such as Stockholm Syndrome (I would argue that a lesser form of this is essentially what's going on, especially in the past timeline), the creation of women's art and what it means when the muses become the creators, complicated family dynamics, and female rage (though I think that could have been pushed further).
On the topic of female rage (without giving anything away), the "twists" were interesting. It kept you on your toes down until the last chapter.
Also, I just got to say, WOW are none of the male characters in this book likeable. Like dang.

This book was such a slow read for me. the last book I read by Rachel Hawkins, I finished in the same day because I was so drawn in. I did not feel that way with The Villa even though I so very much wanted to. The concept of this book with the mystery of the past really pulled me in, but it was a very slow burn. Once I got about 65%, I did finish the rest pretty quickly and was invested in knowing the ending.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy!

Emily and Chess are childhood friends who have since grown apart. Both writers – Emily, a mystery writer and Chess, a wildly popular self-help guru, they embark on a trip to Italy together to reconnect. Recently divorced, Emily’s ex-husband wants her to finish her novel because he wants the royalties from her book series, including future books, and Chess is trying to work on a new book of her own. In Orvieto, they find themselves staying at the lavish Villa Aestas that also happens to be the site of a well-known murder that occurred in 1974, when a group of creatives stayed there, including a young writer named Mari, who ended up writing a seminal horror novel in the home. The two narratives, both taking place at the same villa and both filled with escalating tension, villa alternate, but also grow more enmeshed as the novel progresses. This wasn’t my favorite Rachel Hawkins novel – there’s only so much one can read about multiple writers writing, but it was a fast-paced thriller. Thank you to St. Martin's Press and to NetGalley for the advanced review copy.

THE VILLA
Rachel Hawkins

I enjoy my time reading Rachel Hawkins thrillers. Her writing is thoughtful and quick, and she keeps a great pace to her stories. I just finished her latest book, THE VILLA (which comes out in January), and I liked it a lot.

Let’s talk about it!

THE VILLA stars Emily and Chess. They are childhood best friends. Both writers now, although in different genres, and at different levels of success in their careers and personal relationships.

It’s been harder for Emily. Fresh from separation from her husband and during divorce she is struggling to write her next book and hold onto what is hers. Chess, during success, and with what seems like endless material to pull from, is single and seems to be happy that way.

They meet one day for lunch which spurs an idea in Chess to spend a month in a private Villa in Italy. They can both relax, write, drink wine, and spend some much-needed time together. Emily agrees, and once they arrive the novel unfolds.

There were a few things that I liked about the book and a couple of things I didn’t. Overall, I enjoyed this one and finished it in one sitting. I imagined myself writing at a Villa in Italy and investigating a long-ago mystery.

I liked the writing and author aspects of the book and the idea of a getaway writing trip to Italy. I appreciated the layered interpersonal drama between Emily and Chess and the windy nature of how things progress between the two characters.

There were two POVs in the book and they were unequal to me. I wanted to live in one more than the other. There is a big difference in tone between the two. However, gratefully, you never stay in one POV for long enough to get bothered by it or to get bored. The book quickly moves between POV’s.

This would make an excellent book for someone new to the thriller genre as it was a little predictable. If knowing where a book is going spoils the fun for you, then know going in that the path is well-lit in this one. I appreciated it nonetheless, and it solidifies Hawkins as one of my favorites right now in this niche.

This one comes out on January 3, 2023!

Thanks so much to Netgalley, St. Martins Press, Macmillan Audio, and Libro. Fm for providing advanced copies in exchange for a review!

The Villa...⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Mystery writer Emma is in the middle of divorcing her husband Matt who is out to get a share of the profits from her books. She is also in a writing slump and is already at the deadline for her next book. When her best friend Chess, who is a rich and famous nonfiction writer invites her to Italy to vacation in a Villa Emma jumps at the chance.

The Villa is famous for a murder that occurred in 1974. Two of the survivors became famous, one writing a bestselling horror novel. Emma becomes interested and begins to suspect the author was inspired by the murder and begins research to discover the full story. The Villa is told in two timelines, the present and the events in 1974. There are also a few excerpts from publications.

This was a very quick read. The author does a great job of describing the characters' emotional state, leading me to empathize with their need to get away. The writing is also gentle and draws you easily along.

Unfortunately nothing much happens in the book. There is obviously a murder in 1974 but we know about that ahead of time and so much time is spent without a clear connection to the present. Nothing then happens in the present. We get a few odd things but there is never any major event.

The characters are all terrible people. Some readers will not mind that but it makes it hard for me to care about what happens to them. There is a twist at the end but I was confused by it rather than shocked. The whole thing was too unrealistic. People don't do the things the characters do. You have to suspend belief in fiction but suspending it for something that like doesn't make it shocking. It just leaves you feeling let down.

The Villa is a quick read with pleasant writing. At times there is a creepy factor. Readers who enjoy unlikable characters might like this more.

2.5 stars

A story told in two timelines, The Villa follows a group of musical artists in 1974 who rent an Italian villa as a getaway. The other timeline follows friends Emily and Chess who rent the same Italian villa to reconnect and get some writing in (both are authors). Once Emily and Chess arrive at the Villa, they discover a murder took place among the group of musicians back in the 70's. There is also some drama from Emily's past thrown in and conflict with her and Chess.

Overall, I just didn't connect with this book. I found that I didn't care about any of the characters or the plot lines. It took a while for anything juicy to happen so the first half dragged a bit. My favorite part was that the book was set in Italy. Not my favorite, but I think it will work for many others out there.

Many thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Rachel Hawkins for an ARC of this book.

When I read the blurb for The Villa and saw that it was being compared to Fleetwood Mac, the Manson murders, and Mary Shelly, I was interested. While I enjoyed the book, I was disappointed by it. Mari and Emily’s stories didn’t grab me the way I had hoped.

The Villa starts in present-day North Carolina. Emily is a successful author who has been battling a mysterious illness. She also is in the process of divorcing her husband, Matt, who is as greedy as they can get. So, when her best friend, Chess (who also happens to be a best-selling self help author), suggests a girl’s trip to Italy, Emily jumps at it. Emily discovers that the villa they are renting was the scene of a murder in 1974 and where a best-selling turned cult classic novel, Lilith Rising, was written. Jumping headfirst into investigating it, Emily soon uncovers clues that show a different story than what reporters told the world. She also discovers that things are different from what they seem with Chess. What did Emily find about the murders? And what is going on with Chess?

The other part of this book takes place in 1974 in London and Italy. Mari is in a questionable (to me, at least) relationship with a singer/songwriter. Pierce, desperate to hit it big, accepts an invitation to party/work at a villa in Italy. He would be working with one of the biggest rock stars in the world. Mari and her stepsister, Lara, come along and are swept into a world filled with sex and drugs. As tension rise, Mari starts writing a book, which will become an instant bestseller/cult classic, Lilith Rises. Then the unthinkable happens, and Pierce is killed. But, all isn’t what it seems. What happened the night Pierce died? Who killed him and why?

The Villa is a fast-paced book that mostly takes place in a villa in Italy. The author did a great job of keeping the book flow as it hopped from past to present.

The main characters were what made this book a meh book for me. I found them annoying to read. Even when everything was revealed (in both timelines), I still couldn’t care.

Emily—I did feel bad for her at the beginning of the book. She was going through a rough patch with writer’s block and her husband wanting half of her book’s earnings. Plus, she had been very sick for a year. But I started not to like her when she got to Italy and started becoming paranoid. Plus, she was boring. The only exciting thing she did was at the end of the book. Also, and I will discuss this later in the review, I couldn’t understand how she didn’t see what was going on with her soon-to-be ex. It was pretty obvious.
Chess—I didn’t like her. She rubbed me the wrong way for the entire book. I think she had good intentions, but how she did things was suspicious. She did another thing that is a massive spoiler if I said too much about it. It was an enormous breach of trust to do what she did, even if her heart was in the right place. I also felt she deliberately made it so Emily could never leave her.
Mari—My heart freaking broke for her. I couldn’t even imagine the pain she had gone through. The what-ifs were sprinkled throughout the book, more so towards the end, and she was getting sick of Pierce’s antics. I liked that she channeled all of her rage and pain into Lilith Rising. My only quibble was that she was almost too cool with things. Does Pierce want to sleep with Lara? Sure, but only once. Does Pierce want a threesome with Noel? Sure, Mari will do it.
Lara—-I didn’t care for her. I felt that everything she did up to a crucial scene was to hurt Mari. It is so hard to explain what happened between Mari and Lara that summer without giving away spoilers.
The secondary characters portrayed in The Villa did add some depth to the plotline. But I felt that Noel and Johnnie’s characters were fillers. Same with Emily’s agent and her ex-husband.

This book was a good fit for the mystery/thriller genre. The thriller angle was very slight and mostly overshadowed by the mystery angle. If the author had expanded the thriller angle to encompass the earlier parts of the book (or even the middle) instead of just the end, I would have enjoyed it more.

The storyline with Emily, Chess, and her ex-husband made me want to gouge out my eyes. I got very frustrated because I figured out both things (the sickness and the spoiler) reasonably early in the book. I couldn’t understand how Emily didn’t figure out the illness (or even her family!!). As for the other thing, Emily did figure it out shortly after I did, but she didn’t want to admit it to herself.

The storyline with Emily, Chess, the murders, the story Emily was writing, and the villa was also frustrating. But in a good way, well, most of the time. I understood why Chess wanted to change her brand and felt that co-writing with Emily would help her. I also understood why Emily didn’t want to do it. The mystery of the murders did help break Emily’s writer’s block, and she was possessive over it. But she also saw why having Chess’s name attached to her work would be good. The villa, in both storylines, did feel very calming to me. It did help both Mari and Emily to heal.

The storyline with Mari, Pierce, Noel, Johnnie, and Lara was my favorite storyline. Mainly because I knew what was coming; I wanted to see the events leading up to it. And you know what? It was good there. It was how I figured it would be. A disorganized mess of a storyline (and that is meant in a good way) that kept me guessing. And the twist at the end of that!!! I was not expecting it.

Mari, Pierce, and Lara’s storyline made me nauseous when reading it. I was surprised to find out Mari was as young as she was (barely 19). When I did the math, I couldn’t believe Mari was under 16 when she ran away with Pierce. Lara was, too (it just occurred to me). It made me sick to think about that.

Mari’s writing of Lilith Rising was very intense. As I said above, she channeled all that rage and pain into this book. I wish it were an actual book because I would have loved to read it.

There are trigger warnings in The Villa. There is semi-graphic sex, drugs, cheating, alcohol, attempted murder, graphic murder, talk of abortion, and talk of a miscarriage. If any of these trigger you, I highly suggest not reading this book.

I wasn’t sure if I liked the end of The Villa. Emily didn’t make the right choice. But I did love the twist on the 1974 plotline. Talk about leaving the best for last!!

Three Things I Liked About The Villa:

Mari. She was the most likable out of all the characters.
Chess and Emily’s friendship.
The 1974 storyline before Pierce was murdered.
Three Things I Disliked About The Villa:

Emily’s soon to be ex-husband. He was a dirtbag.
Chess. She came across as super fake.
Pierce. Ugh, so many things, but see my paragraph about the Pierce, Mari, and Lara storyline.
I would recommend The Villa to anyone over 21. There is language, sex, and sometimes graphic violence. Also see my trigger warnings.

Rachel Hawkins’ newest title had me hooked by the creepy gothic setting alone. An old Italian villa is the perfect girls trip destination for Emily and Chess. Friends since childhood and now in their thirties, adult life has created some distance in their relationship. Both are authors but of very different genres with different levels of financial success, Emily writes cozy mysteries and Chess specializes in self-help books. The brutal murder history of Villa Aestas has sparked their creative juices into new directions and fueled the underlying competition between the two.

The 1970s murder at the villa is a story within this story. Written with alternating timelines, Hawkins reveals the past events in the villa and the secrets held within the home. Events that occur during that 70s summer will influence the lives of the two sisters who have traveled there. Invited as the muses to aspiring musicians, their own creativity will be inspired and their futures affected by the dramatic events of the summer.

Hawkins weaves her newest thriller with gothic vibes and multilayered characters. An excellent storyteller, the twists in this book have you guessing until the end. You won’t want to put this book down but you also don’t want it to end!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this title in return for an honest review.

This was a good story about creative people, conflicts and murder. Lots of twists and turns and good character development!!

I really enjoy when an author creates something just a little different. And, that's what Rachel Hawkins has done with The Villa. I've recently had a small binge of reads centered on musicians, particularly '70s musicians; so this read fit right in! This gothic mystery has all the dark moody vibes for an autumn or winter read.

"Houses remember" and Villa Aestas / Villa Rosato has plenty of stories to tell. Two timelines and two sets of women pull this story into a tale that will consume the reader to the end. Everyone has a secret in this book and you never know when those secrets will wreck someone. The characters are compelling (even when they aren't likable) and the scenery and setting are well written. The jumps between timelines fit together nicely and the reader is always eager to enter into either one.

Don't let the cover deceive you... notice that crack in the wall? Grab a cozy blanket and a mug of something hot. This is a perfectly moody winter read!

My thanks to Netgalley, St. Martin’s Press and Rachel Hawkins for this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This is my first read by the author and I must say I’m impressed.

I enjoy when authors seamlessly intertwine two stories in one book and Rachel achieved this. Theres a complicated friendship, a mystery and a bit of suspense.

Overall I enjoyed this read.

Thank you NetGalley and St Martins Press for the advanced readers copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is my third Rachel Hawkins book and it has to be my favorite. I’m not sure what I had envisioned for it but what was written was a gothic mystery set in Italy. There weren’t so much as alarming twists as lots of secrets and deceit among people and characters.

I enjoyed the parallelism of the stories and enjoyed the last chapter the best. This book is written in dual timelines and I enjoyed the past story about Mari and Lara just slightly more. That timeline was rockstar vibes and reminded me of a dysfunctional Daisy Jones and the Six. Emily and Chess’s timeline was enjoyable but there were times where I was annoyed with both Emily and Chess. Overall I enjoyed reading this book and look forward to more books by Rachel Hawkins