Absolutely fantastic!
great setting and characters
The plot was brilliantly paced with
Twists and turns aplenty.
I didn’t know who to trust as the
story unfolded. It was fantastic

What Could Go Wrong..?
A luxury cruise ship, an influential family and.. a killer on board. The Scarmado family have added a luxury cruise liner to their ever growing catalogue of material possessions and Emily has been invited along for a five day cruise, as a former best friend of new bride in their family, Belle. The family seem keen to meet her, Emily is riddled with doubts. What could possibly go wrong? With an underlying vein of menace from the off, let the games begin. A cast of eclectic and deftly drawn characters populate a tension fuelled and pacy plot with a glamorous and well imagined setting. Nicely crafted and plenty of twists and turns along the way.

I was a bit dubious to read this cruise thriller not long after Ruth Ware’s novel however this did not disappoint!

The main plot tells the story of Emily and reigniting her friendship with Belle after a ‘terrible incident’ from their younger days. Belle has recently married a very rich and powerful man Mattia who has children who do not agree with his new relationship.

When I say I was hooked, I couldn’t put this book down. I was desperate to know who was the one behind the ‘pranks’ and later more sinister things.

This book is published in February 2024 but thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this in advance.

For any mystery and thriller lovers out there, particular those impartial to a cruise ;) need to get their hands on this book!!

Great book for a bit of escapism, slightly unbelievable I just don't think any single mother would board a ship whilst getting threatening notes! But if you look past this it's a very good mystery, I read it in two sittings as I just had to know what happened next, I loved the back story of Belle and Emily and the rollercoaster of their friendship. I would have liked to see more of the developing relationship between Emily and a certain Scarmondo and felt the ending was just a little rushed, This would make a perfect beach read for the summer and will definitely look out for more from this author. Thanks for the chance to review this book

(3.5 stars)
“Five nights on a boat. With a load of civilians. Surely cruises are for the newly wed or over-fed?” If you are a Below Deck obsessive, you’re going to like Five Nights. It’s set on a luxury cruise, and centred upon two women—Emily and Belle—who formerly crewed for super yachts. The bit that makes Below Deck interesting is massive disparity between rich (the passengers) and poor (the hot, young crew), and that is unpicked a bit in this book.

Emily and Belle grew up poor, dreaming of leaving their “town with its decaying hope fallen beside the empty crisp packets that blew up against the concrete seawall.” They worked on super yachts to see the world, however after a violent incident their futures too on different trajectories: “Belle’s name is in the side of this ship, and mine is on the mortgage of our tiny house.” Through the course of the novel, you get to hear the backstory of what happened, as you work to uncover who us trying to kill members of mega-rich family Belle has married into. It’s a tense atmosphere on the boat with them all fighting over money and power: “The evening stretches like an obstacle course, spiked with booby traps.” A surprisingly entertaining holiday read about bad things happening to those who bandy wealth about, with “money running through fingers like water” and those who service their every whim, not without jealousy.

I love a good old mystery/thriller & Five Nights did not disappoint.

Firstly, the setting of a cruise was a great location & I loved the tie-in with yachting. Rachel filled this book with lots of twists and turns, I spent the whole time hooked.
I've read reviews on the book being 'unbelievable' but I don't think this effects anything. Although the occurrences of this cruise were highly unlikely to happen in real life - and if they did cheaper return tickets were a bit of a cop out if I was on the boat at the time - haha. I think the story doesn't need to be realistic because it holds its own!
I genuinely really enjoyed the premise and love the intertwining flashbacks that allowed you to find out the secrets of the past that coincided with those of the present. I loved the characters, although I feel like I wanted to know the Scarmado's better (but I get why we didn't, it'd kind of get rid of the mystery...)

Thank you to Rachel Wolf, Net Galley & the publishers for this ARC! I really enjoyed it!

This book was amazing. A brilliant story about childhood friends who share a secret that made them go their superset ways. When one of them is in trouble they still call on the other to help. Set during a luxury cruise on an amazing 5 star ship. This book was addictive Full of twists and turns on every page. Would recommend to all my family and friends.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this fine novel. A very good read and one filled with bags of intrigue. A book very much in the vein of Agatha Christie, one that keeps you guessing to the end. I was drawn in from the outset and warmed to the characters right away. A great escapist read that is perfect as a holiday read as we reach peak season. I highly recommend this book.

Five Nights is the story of five nights (though six days really) on board the maiden voyage of a cruise ship. Emily has been invited by her estranged best friend Belle and hopes that this will be the first step in making amends. However, this is no normal holiday. Belle’s husband owns the ship and all his children will also be on board and all the children are vying for Daddy’s money.
This is a story of remaking friendships, new and old relationships, of uncertainty and suspicion.
Overall I enjoyed this book and it was an easy read. Rachel Wolf has you continually second guessing who the real players actually are.

I loved this book. I must admit it’s a brilliant beach read. It’s easy to pick up and put down. Well worth a read.

A gripping novel about friendship and the fallibility of youth set on a glamourous cruise ship. I was worried at one point that it would slip into the tired trope of rich people: bad, poorer people: good but it had enough complexity to escape this too much. Lots of twists and turns to keep you gripped and turning the pages, although it has put me off cruises for life!
.

Loved the Agatha Christie theme of this book where everyone is a suspect!! Al throughout the book you are changing your mind on who you trust!

Great book great set of characters I really
Enjoyed this tale.. Great summer read If like me you love a good psychological thriller!

I can only describe this as pure escapism. If you are looking for an easy to read, unbelievable book for the sunbed this summer, then this is the one. A book that can be read and enjoyed in one day. Thank you to NetGalley for the advance review copy.

Great book for a holiday read.
Belle and Emily have been best friends forever but three years ago their yacht got boarded by pirates and they went their separate ways.
Belle has married into a wealthy powerful family and she has sent Emily a letter asking her to board their luxury cruise ship for the 5 night maiden voyage.
Family drama or a murderer in the family?

This book immerses the reader in the lives of the Scarmados - a family that harbors more than one secret and an abundance of animosity towards one another. I didn't encounter one likeable character, most of them were quite bland and lacked development. Some twists were far fetched and the friendship between Belle and Emily felt very insincere.
This wasn't a bad read but it lacked tension for me. Readers who like their thrillers more on the light side might appreciate this novel more.

I received an ARC of this book thanks to Netgalley and Aria & Aries in exchange for an honest review.

A real dark gripping page turner - not what I expected at all from the cover and title but I absolutely loved it! Full of twists, turns and suspicion. A great holiday read.

Heart pounding thriller that left me on the edge of my seat. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this one. Definitely one of the best books this year.

Five Nights by Rachel Wolf is a captivating thriller that delves into the hidden secrets of a wealthy and influential family during a five-night luxury cruise. The narrative revolves around the Scarmados, a powerful family whose unity begins to crumble when the patriarch decides to embark on this consequential voyage alongside his four adult children.

Emily and Belle were once inseparable best friends, until an incident three years ago strained their relationship. Currently, Belle is married to Mattia, an older and wealthier man, while Emily, a struggling single mother, faces financial challenges. When Belle extends an invitation for Emily to join them on the inaugural cruise of her husband's cruise liner, they strive to reconcile their lost time. However, Mattia's adult children harbor animosity towards Belle, and as strange occurrences unfold, Emily becomes concerned. Trapped on the ship with no means of escape and with a distant destination ahead, tension rises.

Over the course of five nights, "Five Nights" takes readers on a thrilling journey filled with suspense and intrigue. The characters in the novel are wonderfully deceptive, heightening the air of mystery and suspense. The combination of the opulent setting and the Scarmados family's menacing secrets creates a captivating atmosphere, intensifying the suspense throughout the story. The setting plays a significant role, as it provides a confined and isolated environment where family members must confront their troubled past and the imminent threat posed by the onboard assailant.

While readers need to suspend disbelief, once they immerse themselves in the narrative, they will be thoroughly entertained, as I was. This gripping novel is an excellent choice for a holiday read, offering a compelling storyline. However, I found the connection between Emily and Belle somewhat lacking sincerity, rendering it difficult to relate to. Despite being somewhat implausible, the story had me completely engrossed and reluctant to put it down.

A powerful family. A luxury cruise. A dark secret.
The Scarmados are the most famous family in Britain, notorious for throwing lavish parties funded by their media and shipping empire. Now, head of the family Mattia is about to retire, and he's taken his four children and his new young wife Belle on the maiden voyage of one of his luxury cruise ships. The tabloids are buzzing: is he about to announce his successor?

Friday night, drinks with the girls or this book? I decided with respect to the publisher for allowing me to have an advanced copy I decided on a night in with this book and I am so glad I did. What a wild ride this was and I stayed up late to finish it. For five nights on a ship there is so much packed into this story. Some truly awful entitled people who it seems will do anything to hang on to the family inheritance and get their share. This is a story that leads to heartache for many but is also what makes it so good.

Emily and Belle have been friends since childhood but then at a later stage in their lives a major event occurs that changes things for them both and they lose touch. But then Belle gets in touch with Emily and invites her onto a five night cruise on the Scarmodos luxury liner. Emily comes face to face with this very wealthy family and soon things take a turn for the worse. Everyone has secrets including Emily herself, and as usual in these situations lives will be shattered and truths uncovered.

Yes, you need to suspend belief but once you do and just go with the flow you will be totally entertained, or at least I was. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book, all opinions are my own.

Unfortunately this one just didn’t work for me. The story itself was fine, it’s the writing that made it less enjoyable for me. There were several times where I stopped and had to reread a sentence multiple times because it was worded strangely. There were a lot of things that read as very cheesy and cliche like the fact that in the first chapter the character gets a note saying ‘STAY AWAY FROM THE SHIP. I KNOW WHAT YOU DID.’
I do think that if you like a thriller that’s not necessarily realistic but IS entertaining, you should give this one a go. I think a lot of people will really like this one.