Took me a while to get fully into this book as the main character wasn't wholly likeable, but I loved the setup, the twist and the idea that sometimes you don't actually know what is going on behind the scenes as a famous author brings a work to a publisher.

Meet Alex, a writer in the midst of writer’s block, hoping she can find inspiration to jumpstart her career. Enter the Writing Retreat, an invitation-only opportunity to be mentored by a famous writer with a million dollar publishing contract to the participant with the best novel at the end of the retreat
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Roza Vallo is an idol of Alex and when an invite falls in her hands, she can’t refuse. Mysterious people & events begin to materialize as the retreat begins. The women struggle with the strict writing timelines and with trusting each other. As women start to die, the remaining competitors race to find out why before they become victims. By the end, secrets are revealed, but their lives are forever changed.

Thanks to Atria Books & NetGalley for the ARC. This is my honest review.

Wow! It took me a while to get through this novel but I think this was a great debut and I was way more sucked in and curious to follow the story to through the ending than I initially thought.

I enjoyed the plot immensely, despite the end being a little bit lackluster compared to the build in the rest of the novel, but still, I didn’t mind because overall I was just really impressed with this debut. The one other critique I have is that I thought it was just a little too long, it could’ve been like 50-75 pages shorter and still told the same story, but I can overlook the length. SOMETHING still propelled me to finish it.

Elements I enjoyed the most:

✅ the plot about the writer’s life
✅ the story within this story (Alex’s character Daphne and her story)
✅ the intrigue surrounding Rosa’s house and what goes on there
✅ very casual but still there at the beginning of the book Jewish rep (I believe author is Jewish)
✅ writing style

I forgot to mention thank you to @netgalley for my e-galley of this, but I did not read it on my kindle, I did the audio version and even though it was 11 hours long, I think that I would have DNF’d it if I physically picked it up to read. The narrator did a good job of keeping me spellbound throughout the story.

I definitely should pick up more thrillers, I was very pleasantly surprised by this one! I can’t want to see what Julia Bartz writes next!!

Didn’t love this. I was just so batshit and odd. Didn’t care for the premise or the characters. It was just weird.

I was so intrigued by this story the entire time. The middle got a little slow with not much plot advancement, but overall this was a fantastic debut novel (honestly can’t believe it was a debut). I liked the characters and the atmosphere was really cozy while also being horrifying. I do wish more of a “haunted” aspect was played, but this book had everything I like and was a solid book.

Wow, wow, wow! This book honestly left me a little speechless. This was my first Julia Bartz book and I can't wait to read more by her. There were so many twists and turns my head was reeling from all that was happening. For a debut novel, she absolutely killed this one. It was full of mystery and intrigue, danger, and did I already mention the twists? There were a ton! Almost immediately after I picked this book up I knew it was going to be a 5 star and I knew it would be one of my favorite thrillers of all time. The first half of this book is extremely fast paced and keeps you on your toes wondering what's going to happen next. Then the second half propels you forward even faster until a shocking ending that I could never have seen coming. I'm so glad I had the opportunity to read this and I'm so excited for what she comes up with next.

Thanks so much to Atria/Emily Bestler Books for the early copy for my review!

This was good. Had me guessing until the very end. This was my first book by this author and it sill not be the last. Enjoyed the characters and the storyline development .

This novel took me a long time to finish. I wanted to like this since it's very "locked room" which is one of my favorite tropes.

The characters and story just didn't hold my attention though I do think I would try another of the author's works.

Oooo okay. I really didn’t like the MC. I found her to be annoying and it took her wayyyy too long to take responsibility for something terrible BUT once the book got going it was good.

I really enjoyed this debut and will definitely read more by her. It was very atmospheric and loved that excerpts from the book that Alex was writing broke up and sometimes mirrored the action that was happening during the writing retreat. I loved the tension between Alex and Wren and the mind games that were being played by all the characters to pit them against each other.

This book was pleasantly surprising in that it was more "horror" than I was expecting! I loved the elements of the haunted manor and the supposed paranormal activity and thought it added a fun component that kept me turning the pages and on the edge of my seat. My one criticism is that some of the queer elements felt forced. I recognize the importance of representation in popular literature, however I felt like this queer storyline was just thrown in because Bartz felt that she "needed" to throw it in.

Overall, I felt that this novel was engaging, hard to put down, and well developed. It was generally well-paced with the exception of the finale which I found to be a bit rushed. I'd give this one 3.5 stars and will recommend to my fellow readers who enjoy some horror lite!

I love the concept of a group of women taking their careers into their own hands. However, this book missed a little for me. Some of the things that happened bordered on outlandish and I struggled to get on board.

The Writing Retreat by Julia Bartz is a wonderful gothic tale of horror and suspense that I enjoyed immensely. A collection of would be writers assembled by a mystic Roza Valo in the Blackbriar Estate, to complete a book in a month. In this story where there is more than meets the eye, with twists, turns and revelations, this book was a wild ride and so much fun to read.

This was a fun book! I got a bit of Nine Perfect Strangers vibes in the best way (I loved that book).

I found the backstory between Wren and Alex to be a pretty good little story but I’m glad it was introduced first as a little bit of a story while the big story was being built. Ha!

Anyway, overall I found this book entertaining and quick to read.

Floundering in her writing aspirations and stuck in an unhappy job, Alex gets the opportunity of the lifetime when she is selected for an exclusive retreat hosted by her author idol, Roza Vallo, at her isolated estate. Things get complicated when she learns her ex-bestie, Wren, has also been selected. Their history is complicated to say the least. However, these interpersonal issues become secondary as Roza’s true intentions begin to come to light. Bartz wrestles with a lot of threads and themes: complicated friendships, musings on writing and inspiration, questions of identity and sexuality. At times it feels like the novel might have been better served zeroing in on just one of these themes. The pacing was a tad uneven and the reveals a little clunky, but it was still readable and compelling. There will definitely be psychological thriller readers who love this book, and it would be a welcome addition to any public library collection.

The Writing Retreat by Julia Bartz was a crazy, suspenseful, edge-of-your-seat ride, and I highly recommend it!

This was recommended as a must-read summer book and I highly agree. Love the plot twists and the darkness of the book.

I really liked this book, however the beginning was incredibly slow to me. I really wish it picked up a bit faster because I almost put it down at certain parts. That being said, I do think it paid off in the end and it is a worthwhile read.

This story started off a little on the slower side for me but then it built up to a lot of suspense and action. I thought that the plot to the story was overall a great plot but there was a lot of extras that for me were not necessary. There wasn't a character that I connected with, but I did enjoy the twists in the book. Overall, I would say this is a solid first book and I would like to see where the author goes for her next book.

*Arc provided by Netgalley and Atria books in exchange for an honest review.*

Five star read for me. I loved this book so much I ordered a physical copy immediately. This will be one of those books I add into the read every pile. The twists and turns were unexpected and kept me on my toes.