I loved this book and highly recommend it, especially if you enjoy books like Catherine Steadman’s The Family Game. The Weekend Retreat by Tara Laskowski centers around Lauren, a journalist dating the super-wealthy heir to the Van Ness fortune, Zach. She goes with him for a birthday celebration weekend at the family’s estate where she meets the rest of the family who are not exactly welcoming. It seems like everyone has a secret, but what are they each hiding and why? The setting of this grand Gothic estate was perfect. You can almost feel the draft coming from the dark corridors and secret hallways.



Synopsis:

Every year, the illustrious Van Ness siblings, heirs to a copper fortune, gather at their secluded winery estate for a joint birthday celebration. It’s a tradition they’ve followed nearly all their lives, and now they are back with their significant others for a much-needed weekend of rest, away from the public spotlight.

With lavish comforts, gorgeous scenery, and indulgent drinking, the trip should be the perfect escape. But it soon becomes clear that even a remote idyllic getaway can’t keep out the problems simmering in each of their lives. As old tensions are reignited, the three couples are pushed to the edge. Will their secrets destroy them, or will they destroy each other first? And who’s been watching them from beyond the vineyard gates?

When a torrential rainstorm hits, plunging them into darkness, the answers prove all too deadly…

I loved every page of this fantastic thriller. Coming out on December 26.

Richard and Harper are throwing a big party celebrating their 35th birthday as they always do surrounded with their other brothers and sisters in their mother’s mansion and vineyard. Everything has changed since their mother passed away and there are lots of secrets everyone has. This is a twisty thriller that has you guessing until the very end. And the nice twist at the end came out of nowhere! This is my first book by this author and I’m looking forward to many more. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this early release just in time for Christmas next week. All opinions are my own.

This might be just me but even if a daughter-in-law and mother-in-law were very close, if you are writing a family drama, maybe don't have that character to refer to her as "Mom". It was a little confusing at first to keep track of who was actually related to "Mom" since the book was taking place after her death.

I thought the book was okay. I always enjoy a hidden passageway and a giant estate for a big, breezy mystery setting. I thought there was a little too much going on and some of the reveals were quite weak. There were so few characters and you knew the dangerous one was uninvited and that left literally one named person in the book. The end was kind of abrupt and not everyone's motivations were super clear--why did the housekeeper care so much? It just felt like some connective tissue was missing.

There was just something about the blurb of The Weekend Retreat that made me curious, and I couldn't resist adding it to my shelves. I do tend to love a good bout of bad weather in my thrillers, as it usually takes the tension and suspense to the next level... And the remote winery estate setting sounded like an added bonus. I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by what I found, and I ended up having an excellent time reading this book!

If you enjoy stories with characters that you will love to hate, The Weekend Retreat is a perfect match. There is no doubt that this group of characters both has major flaws and lots to hide, and they aren't exactly likeable. Harper is probably the worst of the bunch, but none of them are easy to warm up to. Usually this means that I struggle to stay invested in the story, but somehow in this particular case the complete opposite happened. I slowly watched everything go up in flames with a gleeful chuckle, and it was surprisingly fun to watch them get a dose of what they had coming.

One of the things I loved most about The Weekend Retreat was its remote winery estate setting, which made for the perfect backdrop for this story. The remote setting added that ominious vibe, and especially combined with that upcoming storm... The weather made for an excellent extra character and added a lot of atmosphere. The same goes for the 'the party guest' POV; it confirmed that someone was out there, but without knowing who it was or what exactly they had planned it added a healthy dose of suspense.

The plot uses a multiple POV structure, where we switch between different characters present at the estate as well as the mysterious party guest. It wasn't too hard to keep the different characters apart, and the switches were great to add more background and give little hints at what some of them were hiding. I could have done without the cheating, but since it's not important to exactly like the characters I wasn't too bothered by it. 'Love to hate' is definitely the key sentiment here! And somehow it really works in the plot's favor.

If you are looking for a well written and engaging psychological thriller focusing on a lot of messed up and unlikeable characters, The Weekend Retreat is a great choice. The entertainment factor is definitely present!

The plot line of this story was good but the characters were hard to follow or like honestly. I would still recommend this book for the whodunnit/creepy aspect of it.

"The Weekend Retreat" by Tara Laskowski is a gripping psychological thriller that skillfully navigates the complexities of friendship and the unraveling of secrets. The story unfolds as a group of friends gathers for a weekend retreat, only for tensions to escalate and long-buried truths to surface. Laskowski expertly builds suspense, keeping readers on the edge with unexpected twists and turns. The characters are intricately developed, each harboring hidden motives and insecurities. As the tension mounts, the author explores the fragility of relationships and the consequences of betrayal. "The Weekend Retreat" is a riveting and thought-provoking exploration of the dark corners within friendships.

Thanks to NetGalley for the arc!
This book was really good!! The story hooked me from the beginning, the dynamic between the siblings and the background of a vineyard estate along with the secrets of almost every family member there, all kept my attention! This had many twists and turns, unexpected surprises along the way. It kept a face pace and gave just enough details at times to have you thinking you knew how it would go but then would have another surprise! I loved it! Only downside was even though the ending was good, I felt like the end of the book kinda came out of nowhere, many more details I still had thoughts and questions over.

The Van Ness siblings and their spouses/ partners meet on the remote but lavish family estate for their annual birthday gathering that turns deadly. A storm, a mystery character lurking in the shadows, secret passages, and oodles of unlikeable characters ready to stab each other in the back add to the suspense in this entertaining mystery. At times the family drama seemed to overshadow any suspense, but it was still an engaging read from start to finish.

Thank you Tara Laskowski, Harlequin Trade Publishing, and NetGalley for providing this ARC for review consideration. All opinions expressed are my own.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #HarlequinTradePublishing for the ARC #TheWeekendRetreat by #TaraLaskowski. This book was very interesting with the house secrets and the hidden secrets regarding a family reunion following their mother’s death. Highly recommend.

This book has a lot of my favorite tropes in it especially the one with Dysfunctional families and remote location where anything can happen but no body will hear your screaming .plus the Atmosphere, helped set the story as did the plot of the book.

Dysfunctional families and remote location thrillers are some of my favorite themes so this book was perfect for me! The characters were well-rounded and pretty unlikable, which supported the plot well. I liked how the chapters alternated between the more secondary characters (significant others, the mysterious guest). It made it feel like the reader was looking in at the drama in a way. This book is filled with greed, bad behavior, and rich people only concerned with themselves. All those elements lead to a great twist and a surprising ending. I really enjoyed this one!

Thanks to Tara Laskowski, Harlequin Trade Publishing, Graydon House, and NetGalley for an ARC of this title in exchange for my honest review.

The Van Ness family is one of major dysfunction stemming from their emotionally distant mother who raised the 3 siblings with mind games and manipulation. Each year they return to the family home and winery for the elder twins, Richard and Harper's, birthday. With the mother's passing the previous year, this weekend was overscheduled by Richard's wife. Included in the party are the spouses and the younger brother, Zach, and his girlfriend. What they do not realize, there is a secret guest who has an agenda of their own.

Once together, simmering hostilities and animosities surface. The couples despise each other, and as the weekend unfolds, secrets come out and suspicions run high with the uninvited guests creating chaos for the already tenuous bonds.

The author creates twists and turns especially toward the end. Just buckle up and enjoy the ride.

The Weekend Retreat is a thriller that follows the drama behind the wealthy Van Ness family and the secrets that may tear the family apart.

The three Van Ness siblings (twins Harper and Richard, and little brother Zach) and their partners meet for the twins' birthday celebration at their family's winery and estate. Family tension joins them, but so does a threat of an awful storm, as well as a mysterious party guest who can't be there for good reasons. There are secrets and drama in any family, but my goodness, every member of the Van Ness family has enough individually for an entire family.

It started off pretty slow for me and took a little while to get the characters, but it was necessary to get the backstory we needed to continue on with the story. It took me about a week to get through the first half of the story, but only two days to finish the second half. I was a little disappointed at first when it came to the reveal of the party guest's identity, mainly because I initially forgot who the person was when mentioned earlier in the book. But the rest of the reveals were pretty intense and actually surprised me.

I enjoyed that the chapters flowed between Harper, Lauren (Zach's girlfriend of 6 months), Elle (Richard's wife), the Party Guest, and snippets of newspaper clippings following the events of the party. It brought the exposition needed, but in a way that didn't grow old or stale.

All in all, it was a fun and interesting read. Thank you to Tara Laskowski, NetGalley, and Harlequin Trade Publishing/Graydon House for providing me with an advanced copy of the ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Personally, I am not a fan of multiple points of view books, so it took a little longer for me to get the book rolling.
Overall I found it to be an fun read. The drama between the family made them feel relatable- and the plot twist was unexpected. Its what I would call a soft thriller, it didn't have a huge gripping factor for me, but it was an enjoyable read.

😳😳😳😳😳😳
That twist though !!!!
Not where I saw that going ....

#TheWeekendRetreat was really anything but the nice relaxing retreat it was supposed to be. This book had so many elements of a drama I love plus short chapters that allow you to breeze through this book super quick but also because you NEED to find out what is happening. The things people do for money ... This book is wild .


#NetGalley #Arc ❤️🤘

A slow burn with very purposeful unlikable characters, multiple point of views, an unnamed character, air thick with tension and the perfect TWIST that pulled it all together!! LOVED, LOVED, LOVED!

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC!

Intriguing and fun, this thriller is just what I was looking for in a great weekend read. Tightly plotted and surprising!

Well written novel exploring a variety of family weekend celebration. Once everyone arrives, their personalities show from the siblings that know how to push each other's buttons to the in-laws that have a bigger stake in the family weekend. Each character is developed in a way that contributes to the mystery of the story. What they all know about the family and the family's past develop the well-developed plot.

What a thrilling ride! Full of twists and turns and just when you think you had it figured out. Tara shocks you with a surprise twist! Four stars !!

Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing & NetGalley for an ARC of this book, in exchange for my honest opinion.

Simply put, I could not put this book down. It was a thriller that had me staying up reading page after page trying to solve the mystery. The twists that came at the end were very surprising, and perfectly executed. Not to mention any unanswered questions you might have are answered completely by the end of the story.

The Van Ness family (Richard, Harper, and Zach) is filthy rich thanks to their family winery and estate, but after Mother passes away the children are finding it hard to move on. They all gather together at the estate for one last birthday celebration for the twins Richard and Harper. Richard brings his wife Elle who became very close to Mother before she passed. Harper brings her husband Liam. And Zach brings his new fiancé Lauren, who is meeting the group for the first time.

When a dangerous storm begins to move in they must cancel the party, and hunker down in the estate. While they’re all stuck inside tensions are mounting, and secrets are being shared. But the most volatile secret to come is the one that will be shared by the party guest who is already hiding at the Estate just waiting to attack.

A tense locked door mystery to solve, full of all the glitz and glamour of old family money. (Picture an old episode of Dynasty for comparison). I could imagine the family estate so vividly in my mind from the authors imagery and setting. If you’re looking for a new and addicting thriller to read, this is the one!