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.

With a title like, Lady Killer, and a cover like this one, who wouldn’t want to read this book!

I loved the book is told in two unique ways. One is in present day, and the other through the writings of Gia, an heiress. I was so hooked by Gia’s storyline that I couldn’t put this book down. I also loved the wild twist at the end!

This one is out tomorrow, so order it now!

Omg this book was 10/10!!
I will read absolutely anything and everything by Kat and couldn’t get enough of this one. All of her books are so fun, sexy and such an adventure!

Can’t wait to read more!!
Couldn’t recommend this enough!

Ladykiller is the new book from Katherine Wood (who previously used the pen-name, Katherine St. John)

"Abby gets an invite to meet her best friend, Gia, in Sweden - to reconnect and spend time with her and her new husband. Before she leaves Abby gets threatening emails. At the hotel, she gets an abrupt visit from a stranger that scares her. Gia's brother, Benny, was also invited to Sweden and helps Abby feel safe. When neither of them can get in touch with Gia, they head to the old family house on a Greek island. There they find a manuscript written by Gia full of things that scared her. Is Gia still alive? Can they find her?"

This is an unreliable narrator-mystery-suspense-domestic thriller. There are secrets - everybody has secrets. And you're never sure who is responsible for certain events. There's one big event in the past. You can probably guess what really happened but KW doesn't give it away. Gia is an impulsive character, used to getting her way - and one you don't want to cross. Abby was the poor kid invited to play with the rich girl and struggles to push back.

KW leaves us with a little bit of an open ending - not everything gets resolved. Characters talk about it but that's all. It works for this story. I love the setting. Good story from Wood.

Hello obsession, secrets, lies, deception, steam, and drama! This book had lots of elements I loved but took me a hot minute to get invested. The setting was amazing…Greece. I loved the rich vibes…this book gives “The White Lotus”! So yes, very entertaining! I also loved how the characters were hard to trust. There were bits of information and it definitely made me think..who is lying and who is telling the truth! That was the biggest thing that kept me engaged! Now, from a thriller/suspense view point, it definitely fell flat. I didn’t feel the tension I was craving and the ending didn’t satisfy me completely. But overall a fun beach read!

2.5/5

I was very into this one right from the start, the setting in Greece, the possible toxic friendship between Gia and Abby, the secrets and lies, so much to enjoy. I also loved the structure here, you get Abby’s perspective in the present day and Gia’s via her manuscript as she details the events leading up to her disappearance. It was a very immersive read with a steady pacing that kept me engaged and I assumed it would be a four or maybe even a five star read for me most of the time. But then the ending was just sooo disappointing for me, I hate when things are ambiguous and that’s what happened here. I don’t want to have questions about what really happened, I want answers and I don’t want to come to my own conclusions. So overall this one wasn’t for me, no matter how good the rest of the book was a weak ending will ruin it for me.

This cover screams summer, and has all the necessary elements for a read in a day book. Rich people behaving badly, tropical local (island in Greece), a few con-artists, and a decade old secret. It's fun and not scary, which is always fun for me. I guessed the twist early on but still enjoyed it.

3.5 stars but rounding up to 4.

Thanks Netgalley & Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Bantam for the advanced reader copy.

Abby has not spoken to Gia much since Gia's marriage to Garret just a few months after meeting. But when Gia invites Abby to Sweden to celebrater her 30th birthday with just the two of them and her brother, Benny (who Abby has always had a thing for), Abby can not say no. But when Abby and Benny arrive, there is no one there. Wellness checks to her home in Greece are unsuccessful so they two fly over only to find her missing and Gia's unfinished manuscript waiting. Where has she gone? Has someone done something to her? Could this have anything to do with the tragedy that took place here 12 years ago leaving one man dead and teenagers Gia and Abby changed forever?

I enjoyed this book a lot! I thought the Noah storyline was super predictable but that did not take away from the story. Usually I hate open ended endings on books, but I felt like we had a enough information to come to conclusions on our own. I would definitely read more from this author!

Thank you NetGalley for an arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.