Do you love books where you basically hate all the characters? This is that. It is delightful and twisty.
It is about super rich people and sometimes I hate that but it works in this case!

This book was a bit of a slow start for me, but picked up the pace as it went and had a cool surprise ending. It centers on the Van Ness siblings, who gather at their family’s vineyard with their significant others for a birthday celebration. You know from the prologue they something bad happens and then the story takes you up to that point. This is a style I enjoy.

The characters weren’t hugely likable but I did feel like the author did a good job getting the readers into their heads to the point where you understood why they made the decisions they made even if you didn’t agree with them. I was actually rooting for one character that I’m not sure I was supposed to like. The creepy mansion setting was really well done and I enjoyed the talk of tunnels and secret passages. I do wish there had been more bread crumbs to lead me to the unveiling of the villain but the twist that comes along with this made up for it.

Overall, fun read that maybe takes a bit to get going but held my interest the whole time. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
“In the end, you are who you make yourself to be.”

I recently discovered Tara Laskowski, an incredible author, and highly recommend her novel "The Weekend Retreat". It's a thrilling read that is a must-read for thriller lovers!

The story is centered around the Van Ness family, a privileged family that goes on a traditional weekend getaway to celebrate a family birthday. The novel has all the elements of a captivating tale, including reckless drinking and juicy secrets waiting to be exposed. The author skillfully keeps the suspense elevated throughout the multi-layered story by utilizing multiple narrators and timelines. To add to the already tense situation, a treacherous storm isolates the characters. Believe me, you won't be able to put down this scandalous page-turner!

Thanks to the HTP Publishing and Tara Laskowski for providing this complimentary ARC through NetGalley. As always, all opinions are my own and are left voluntarily.

#TheWeekendRetreat #netgalley #TaraLaskowski #HTPPublishing #graydonhouse #htpinfluencer #htpbooks #justfinished #ARC #thriller #honestreview #newrelease #thrillerbookloverspromotions #thrillerfriendsunite #thrillerobsessedbookishclub #suspense #mystery #lovetoread #bookworms #lovebooks #lovetoreadbooks #fortheloveofbooks #booknerd #bookreviewer #instabook #readaholic #igbookreels
#thrillerbooklovers

The rich are definitely not like the rest of us! This was twisty-turny and I loved that. I didn't see that last little twist coming at the end though. I can't wait to read another book by Tara Laskowski. I am adding her books to my TBR!

#TheWeekendRetreat
#NetGalley

This book take place at a family’s winery and has lots of thrilling moments. The book is action packed with the Van Ness siblings all fighting to be the chosen one. They each have secrets and past that they are trying to keep hidden but someone is watching from the outside. A really good page turner

A solid 3 stars. A really good time, but there was potential for much more.

This thriller has a great set-up and features a cast of characters with great potential. And while I had a really fun time reading this, overall, the book ended up feeling a bit flat and slightly too long. It just didn’t go as far as it could have or maybe should have gone! And the ending was a tad disappointing and fairly obvious.

It is also worth noting that the storm described in the blurb hits very late into the story and isn’t actually that important!

Pour yourself a glass of wine and settle in to witness the Van Ness family drama, centered on their winery estate. It's a group of unlikable characters (who don't like each other either) and when a storm starts brewing the tensions do too. This is a pageturner that kept me engaged, even though I wasn't rooting for anyone to come out ahead.

This slow building, suspenseful, and twist filled read kept my interest all the way through. The action inside the house was mirrored by the storm outside. I really liked that the house had such a storied history. Very well done.

🤍Thank you so much to @htpbooks for the gifted book!

Title: The Weekend Retreat
Author: Tara Laskowski
Pub date: TODAY (12/26)

🤍What could be more fun than a book about 3 siblings and their significant others going to their fancy pants resort after their mother's death only to encounter secrets, mysterious gifts, a storm that traps them all there (obviously) and some deaths sprinkled in? Maybe a celebrity gossip blog you say, well we've got that, too!

🤍The story is told from the perspectives of the 3 women : Lauren, Harper and Elle and then my FAVORITE THING is that there's a perspective from an unknown person just described as "the party guest"! I was over-analyzing who the mystery guest was the whole time and I still didn't guess correctly!

🤍This book has SO much going on and I wasn't bored for a second! The ending was crazy and creative and overall the book gave me the same feelings as the last book by Tara that I read, The Mother Next Door (highly recommend)!

🤍Tara's books, to me, are the perfect mix of drama and thriller! The Mother Next Door is neighborhood drama and The Weekend Retreat is sibling/family drama, two of my favorite kinds of books!

Zach Van Ness’s girlfriend, Lauren, is looking forward to meeting his siblings at a family get-together. It’s a birthday party for Zach’s twin siblings, Harper and Richard, who are turning 35. It’s to be held at the family’s Van Ness Winery and estate. Their mother passed away not too long ago. The estate is huge and the family is wealthy.

Bill and his wife, Linnet, are caretakers for the estate. Richard is married to Elle who looks upon herself as the next matriarch of the family. Richard is busy running the business. Harper is married to Lucas. She is an influencer with self-care products. However, an argument showing her temper with some employees has gone viral and she is now being harassed on social media. There has always been tension in the family and they’re hoping for a weekend without arguments.

Elle has planned a huge outdoor dinner party with other guests complete with fireworks. However, a storm is heading their way and they are hoping it will hold off until after the party.

As the wine flows so does the animosity among some of the family members. Some are hiding secrets but little do they know a really big secret is about to be revealed.

This is a book filled with tension and backbiting characters. The wine flows and blood is about to follow. Whew. Can’t say I really cared for any of the characters because all of them are flawed in some way. However, this is a scary story and one you will want to read with the lights on. Enjoy!

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Five Reasons to Read The Weekend Retreat by Tara Laskowski:

https://www.novellives.com/2023/11/27/the-weekend-retreat-by-tara-laskowski-review/

The Van Ness siblings are coming together at their estate in the luscious wine country. It is a birthday celebration for the twins of the Van Ness clan. But it soon becomes clear, there is more going on than a big party. And it may include murder!

Let me just say, I did not like a single character in this book. And usually that means I will DNF it. But there was something about this book that kept me reading. The tensions, the secrets, the lies….all come together to make a pretty, dad-blame good read. And the ending…well you need to read this to find out!

Need a good family drama with a kick…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

Oh the Van Ness family has a lot going on! They’ve got drama, lies, secrets, betrayals, and so much more. Gathered at their family estate to celebrate the twins’ birthday, they are in for a weekend they’ll never forget! A great read with lots of twists.

This book was a slow starter for me, but the last third was hard to put down! I really loved the atmosphere of a secluded winery estate, where the Van Ness family gathered for the weekend to celebrate Harper and Richard's 35th birthday. Of course, there had to be a storm, but that just added to the whole vibe.

I will say that all of the characters were pretty unlikable, but I did enjoy having the four POV's to muddle out the truth behind what was happening. I also really liked the short chapters.

The plot wasn't anything super unique, but I didn't see the end coming, so I was pleasantly surprised. It was a slow build-up, and I prefer thrillers to be fast paced from the start. But the end was definitely worth it! I also like when books tell you what's going to happen at the beginning without revealing any key details. In this case, we know from page one that 2 people die, but we don't know who and we don't know how. It's fun getting to try to puzzle it out!

Overall, I did end up really enjoying this and I do think it's worth sticking it out through the slow build up! Thank you to Netgalley and Harlequin for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Family tension, secrets, drama, backstabbing, and a weekend not everyone will survive.

This was a nice easy read that really picked up in suspense after meeting all the characters. The story is told through 4 POVs: Harper (Van Ness heiress), Elle (a Van Ness by marriage), Lauren (girlfriend of a Van Ness) and a mystery character that is lurking in the shadows ready to pounce when the time is right.

At times, especially in the beginning, it felt similar to many other books (a weekend getaway, family drama, suspense of an eventual murder), but it kept my attention and I really enjoyed when everything started to be revealed.

Thank you NetGalley, Tara Laskowski, and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this ARC opportunity.

Pub Date 26 Dec 2023

Zack and Lauren are going to a birthday day party for his twin brother and sister, Harper and Richard. When they arrive at the gothic vineyard estate troubles arise and tensions in the air.
This was a great creepy read that kept me on the edge of my seat. Thanks NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this ARC that will be released December 26, 2023!

A big family retreat/celebration at the Van Ness family estate turned sinister - I was definitely interested in the premise from the beginning but it did have a slower build up. Be patient as the action picks up after the 50% mark. Lots of tension and drama between the characters, plenty of twists and turns, lots of mysterious characters and secrets. Easy to read, easy to binge. Definitely had me asking "who dunnit" through the whole book. Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Books for this eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC (Advance Reader Copy of The Weekend Retreat. This book was enjoyable but it did have a tendency to drag through parts when the siblings were bickering with one another constantly throughout the book. I rounded up my stars to 4 but really giving it a 3.5 rating. It was quite predictable but still a good read.

The Weekend Retreat had all of the back stabbing, twists, and turns required to make a raining day of reading and drinking tea. I wouldn’t call it a cozy mystery. I was just able to sit and be cozy and read it. It was much like a guilty pleasure. Like reading one of the soap opera-like thrillers I binge watched during the pandemic.

There are a lot of characters to dislike without losing interest in what they do. Everyone was doing something wrong, but I didn’t necessarily want them to pay any price for it. I wanted to see what they would do as mutual destruction seemed more and more likely,

Who doesn’t love watching the rich try to destroy themselves?

I'm a fan of locked door mysteries, so I had high hopes for this, but it missed the mark for me. The pace was too slow to keep me actively engaged until the final third of the book. I did enjoy the multiple POVs, though it wasn't always to keep straight who was who. I'd expected more of a thriller angle to it than I found. It was a bit predictable with unlikeable characters. If you enjoy slow burn family dramas, this may be one to check out.