This review will be posted on July 9, 2024 to: https://instagram.com/amandas.bookshelf

Rich people with rich people problems is no longer a plot I'm interested in. It's not my thing. If it's your thing, no shade, you'll enjoy this more than me. That said, I had some mechanical issues that got in the way of my reading experience. I don't mind alternating perspectives, but I found the Gia chapters better written and, frankly, more interesting than the Abby ones. They felt so markedly different that I double checked if this was a co-author situation. (Or, maybe I just didn't care for Abby and/or her character's voice.) I found the plot's resolution confusing and messy. I think I clocked two unresolved plot points and, frankly, I didn't think the given explanation covered *every* element of the mystery. The plot holes felt like oversights as opposed to an ambiguous ending, which is what I think was the intent. Overall, I was underwhelmed by this. I wish this had been a standard thriller as opposed to book that leaned heavily into GONE GIRL tropes. #LadyKiller Rating: ☹️ / didn't like it
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This book is scheduled for publication on July 9, 2024. Thank you Bantam @randomhouse for providing me this digital ARC via @NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Ladykiller
A Novel by Katherine Wood

My thanks to RandomHouse and Net Galley for the advanced reader copy of this book. The story has multiple narrators, good characters and a mystery you’ll want solved.

Wealthy Gia, brother Benny and lifelong friend Abby have a history. Most of the action takes place in Greece where Gia, after her father’s death, is ready to sell the family mansion there. Things go bad after Gia marries Garrett after a one month romance.

There is a thread carried throughout the story which complicates this three way friendship. More characters are introduced which add even more complexity, such as deception, suspicion and tension. I recommend this story for readers who like an early hook and a story which will keep them engaged. Four stars.

Happy publishing day! (Note, I do not reword the publisher's description as I believe they do a much better job of it and you can find their "blurb" at the end of my review.)

This was quite a ride. I loved the twists and turns the story took along the way to the, in my opinion, very satisfying end. (Full disclosure: I am particularly fond of ambiguous endings, provided the novel is done right and Ms Wood definitely gets it right with Ladykiller.) The author was very effective in setting the scenes and drawing the reader in so that it felt like one was right there with the characters, almost like watching a play rather than reading a novel.

I especially like when an author lets the characters speak for themselves and allows the story to unfold via dialogue rather than just narration. Not one character in the book is all "baddie" or all "goodie" and, in my opinion, that makes for a much more enjoyable read. This novel is a true psychological thriller which had me veering in different directions almost with every chapter, in a very good way. I found myself thinking about it well after I finished the last page and that, I think, speaks volumes.

Thank you to Katherine Wood, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in return for my honest review. My review can also be found on Goodreads.

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Publisher's "blurb":
Everyone has a story. But not everyone’s story is true.

When a young woman vanishes from her remote Greek island estate, her best friend races to find her, using clues found in the explosive manuscript she left behind.

“Full of sun, sex, money, and greed, not since Gone Girl have unreliable narrators been this fun.”—Katy Hays, New York Times bestselling author of The Cloisters

Gia and Abby have been friends since childhood, forever bonded by the tragedy that unfolded in Greece when they were eighteen. Now thirty, heiress Gia is back in Greece with her shiny new husband, entertaining glamorous guests with champagne under the hot Mediterranean sun, while bookish Abby is working fourteen-hour days as an attorney. When Gia invites Abby on an all-expenses-paid trip to Sweden to celebrate her birthday, Abby’s thrilled to reconnect.

But on the day of her flight, Abby receives an ominous email that threatens to unearth the skeletons of her past, and when she and Gia’s brother, Benny, arrive in Sweden, Gia isn’t there. Worried, Abby and Benny fly to Greece, where they find Gia’s beachfront estate eerily deserted, the sole clue to her whereabouts the manuscript she penned, detailing the events leading up to her disappearance. Gia’s narrative reveals the dark truth about her provocative new marriage and the dirty secrets of their seductive guests, a story almost too scandalous to be believed. But the pages end abruptly, leaving more questions than answers.

How much of Gia’s story is true? Where is she now? And will Abby find her before it’s too late?

This is a fast-paced story that keeps you guessing. I am still not sure if Gia is really a psychopathic killer or a genuinely nice person. Even her best friend and brother aren't sure about her. Interesting story.

LADYKILLER by Katherine Wood was a twisty, captivating marvel of a story -- past and present colliding when old friends Gia, Abby, and Gia's brother Benny are set to celebrate Gia's birthday in Sweden, without Gia's new husband. When Gia fails to show up as planned, Abby and Benny go to her Greek estate where the only clue to the deserted mansion is Gia's manuscript detailing her current life. Years ago, when the trio was eighteen, a brutal crime changed everything for them, but as different as their lives are now, they are still bound by memories and deep affection. .Those memories and trust in one another are sorely challenged as Abby and Benny race to find Gia, being forced to confront the unthinkable and come to terms with what they did and who they are today. For me, the inclusion of Gia's manuscript to speak for the missing woman was a welcome and fascinating perspective in a wonderfully crafted, well-characterized story. Wood's depiction of Abby was particularly realistic and enjoyable -- I deeply empathized with her yearning, her ambitions, and her anxieties, questions, and confusion. I received a copy of this book and these opinions are my own, unbiased thoughts.

What an engaging, intriguing, thrilling story. Fast paced, complex, keeps you wondering and wondering and wondering. Even though as opposite as can be, Gia and Abby have been friends since childhood, and Gia’s brother Benny has always been in the picture, too. They’ve kept in touch since a tragedy occurred when they were eighteen, have still remained close but made very different lives for themselves. Gia is an heiress and acts the part, except now that her father has died and left all his money to charity her lifestyle might need to be crimped a bit. Abby studied, studied, studied and now works, works, works. Gia’s impulsive marriage put a little crack in their relationship but it doesn’t seem to be anything they can’t get past. After initial hesitation, Abby is looking forward to their reunion.

Gia invites Abby to go to Sweden to celebrate her, Gia’s, birthday. No husband. Just Gia, Abby and Benny, like the old days. This little holiday doesn’t go quite as planned, though. Right before she is to leave, Abby receives an anonymous email that sounds like blackmail. When Abby and Benny arrive in Sweden: no Gia. When they fly to her estate in Greece: still no Gia, no husband, no one there.

As the story progresses the narrative flips between the present as Abby and Benny frantically try to figure out what is going on and find Gia, and to chapters from the memoir Gia wrote a decade ago. Lies are uncovered and secrets revealed. No idea who they can trust and can’t find Gia.

Thanks to Penguin Random House Publishing Group for providing an advance copy of Ladykiller via NetGalley. It is full of mystery and suspense, opening up like peeling an onion. The more Abby and Benny learn they more they don’t understand. It’s a book that will captivate you and I recommend it without hesitation. I voluntarily leave this review; all opinions are my own.

Ladykiller by Katherine Wood was a edgy, compelling drama!
The characters were interesting and very entertaining, wonderful setting and the twisty storyline is really intriguing.
I got so engrossed in this story. I loved the writing style and the twists just kept coming. I honestly found it hard to put down.

Thank You NetGalley and Random House, Ballantine & Bantam for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Sadly I got bored with this one. I just couldn't get invested in the story and wasn't enraptured by the audiobook narrators. Not the book for me but it sounded great so maybe it will work as a thrilling summer mystery for others. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!

2.5 stars

I was very excited to read this as I have read some of this author's books (written as Katherine St. John). But this book was just not for me. It started out interesting enough with Abby being sent an invite by her best friend, Gia, to come to Sweden to celebrate her birthday. The two of them haven't really talked since Gia's quick marriage to a man she just met.

When Abby and Benny, Gia's brother, arrive in Sweden...Gia doesn't. They do find a manuscript written by Gia giving details about the details of her marriage. Now, Benny and Abby must find her.

This is told in dual POV--Abby and Gia's manuscript. It has slow pace for the most part and I didn't really care for Gia or Abby. This book needed to be more twisty as I seriously had a difficult time continuing. The ending...ugh, open-ended. Not a fan. Too many unanswered questions for me.

Thank you to Random House/Ballantine and NetGalley for an advanced readers copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

4.5

*Dual timelines
*Dual POV and a manuscript
*Sexy themes
*Sexual scelacknes that are mostly fade to b
*Romance
*2 of 5 on the spice level
*Slow Burn
*Suspense

Synopsis- Two friends Gia and Abby grow up together and maintain what seems to be slightly toxic and unequal relationship into their adulthood. Gia is a rich heiress and Abby is your average woman looking for love even though she has always kept a deep love for Gia's brother Benny. They all take different turns in life away from each other until something sinister brings them back together.

Gia looks for love that she wanted as a child but looks for love in the wrong places and finds herself starting over only for the love to dissolve while Abby finds love to cover up what shes been running from since she was a teen. Gia and Garrett live in the most beautiful, multi-millin dollar home that Gia and her family owned. They live an extravagant lifestyle of fashion, boats, cars, sex and secrecy.

Gia wants to reconnect with Abby after her newest marriage of three months to Garrett by purchasing her and her brother Benny a ticket to Switzerland for a holiday. Gia's POV is through her manuscript and it makes you question everything. In their world of extravagance, nothing and no one is what it seems. Who can you trust? When Gia fails to meet for holiday, Abby and Benny begin to delve deeper into her life and who is in it. The twists and turns keep you seated for "just one more chapter"!

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC of this book. I was immediately drawn to the cover by the captivating blue waters of the infinity pool, the sexy artful woman and the title. This book is set to release July 9th.

I loved how Ladykiller kept you guessing as to what has happened to Gia. The imagery of the Greek island, the food, and the opulent lifestyle was enticing, however, the book was overly explicit and salacious in my opinion. The ending I felt was vague in so much as that I felt that my questions weren't legitimately answered which further brought down my enjoyment of it.

This was an entertaining summer/destination thriller. It's not the twistiest tale I've read, but the characters are sketchy in a fun way.

I liked the setting in this one. That was the highlight for me. The characters and relationship were fine. Not the best, not the worst. I was more interested in Abby's side of the story than in Gia's. I thought her parts dragged a bit.

The ending wasn't a shock, but it did pack a punch, especially the last line. It made me wonder if things were left semi-open for a sequel. The sequel won't be an absolute must read for me if there is one, but I will be curious about it.

I read an ARC of this book from NetGalley. All comments are my own.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #RandomHousePublishingGroupBallantine for the book #Ladykiller by #KatherineWood. This book had me on the edge of my seat. Gia is missing and childhood friend, Abby is trying to find out what happened. When Abby arrives at Gias place in Greece they only find a manuscript written by Gia. What happened to her and can Abby find her?

This is a story about friendships and relationships, as well as rich, entitled and greedy adults behaving badly. In this debut adult contemporary fiction/mystery novel readers are given an expose filled with steamy sex, lust, and seduction.

The plot definitely gave me the feeling that no one was actually who they seemed to be, everyone was lying and hiding secrets, and no one could be trusted. The story expertly takes readers on a roller coaster ride of suspense and deceit.

My sincere thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine for giving me the opportunity to read a DRC of this novel in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Ladykiller seeks to inhabit the satisfying literary space of the unreliable narrator that books like Gone Girl executed to near perfection. While the promise of its premise is intriguing, Ladykiller’s execution is unfortunately lacking.

Told in dual perspective, one being the POV of Abby and the other being Gia’s manuscript, this novel took too long to get to the punchline. From the beginning readers know that something is amiss, but the use of Gia’s manuscript so early in the text affects the pacing, which makes all of the revelations and actions in the third act feel rushed.

While I’m sure some readers love an ambiguous ending, in this case the ending felt like a disservice to the story. There’s hints of The Talented Mr. Ripley and the aforementioned Gone Girl but these homages just end up highlighting the flaws in the story.

While this wasn’t my favorite read, I applaud the author for creating a lush landscape for her text. If anything, you’ll want to head off to a Greek island to bask in the sun all day.

Thank you, Bantam and NetGalley, for the advanced copy of Ladykiller.

I wanted to love this one. The blurb sounded very intriguing. It started off strong, but somewhere along the way it just dropped off. The ending left so much to be desired with no clear-cut conclusion. It truly just felt like maybe the author was even tired of the characters and just wanted to end it.

I love the cover of this book. Lots of drama. But it just didn’t hold my interest enough to enjoy it.

This book was okay. I think I went into it thinking one thing but it just wasn't what I thought it was. I initially wanted this book because of the title. Needless to say I was pretty disappointed.

This one had potential but kind of lost its steam toward the end, I missed the wrapped up aspect why this story so needed. It had potential but was really quite a slow read.

The twists in the story were undoubtedly intriguing and had the potential to elevate the narrative. I think there will be many readers who will enjoy them. However, the execution left much to be desired. The buildup to these twists was insufficient, resulting in a lack of context and emotional investment, at least from me. The twists seemed to come out of nowhere, which I felt disturbed the flow of the story.