LADYKILLER is the perfect title for this book. It's filled with some pretty unsavory characters! I liked the alternating timelines and Gia's manuscripts. I didn't expect some of those steamy parts, haha. The flow of the story was good and I liked the setting in Greece. The ending was left open, so I'm left guessing. Overall, I thought this was a great debut.

Many thanks to Random House Publishing-Ballantine for my gifted ARC.

This review will be shared to my Instagram account (@ coffee.break.book.reviews) closer to publication date.

An interesting read. The story is told from two perspectives, present day with Abby and then “Gia’s manuscript” told in the past leading up to present day. Is Gia’s manuscript the truth or her fiction? Gia is a pretty narcissistic person who surrounds herself with the same or worse. It was easy to figure out the con artists, but the book still took many twists and turns.

That said, the ending left a lot to be desired. The story keeps building and building until you can’t wait to find out the truth and how it all ends…but you don’t. Very disappointing that at the end there are still many unanswered questions, almost a choose your own ending.

Thanks to the publisher for a review copy via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This sort of thriller tends to not be my jam, and yet I pick up 2-3 of them a year. Multiple viewpoints! One (or maybe more?) of the narrators is unreliable for reasons that will be revealed 70% of the way into the novel! Another little Twist That Potentially Changes Things gets chucked out at around 95% as a little treat! This is absolutely by the numbers, and you set can practically set your watch to it, but it was a good turn-your-brain-off book for a few commutes.

There's a few elements of the book that are screaming "Hey, remember The Talented Mr. Ripley?" in such an unsubtle way that it's distracting, and there's maybe one too many con artists in the who's-conning-who equation happening throughout the book. This wants to be a Netflix miniseries so badly it hurts (derogatory).

I am in utter shock with this book, every read a book that you had to read the ending over and over again because you swear you missed something???? Did Gia do it??????????? The synopsis does this book NO JUSTICE!!!!!
Gia and her brother Benny come from money they be friend Abby because her mom worked for the family, so they all adored her. Years ago when they were teens something horrible happened to Abby and Gia was there to save the day, she even writes about it and her book becomes a best seller. Gia is a force to be reckoned with, she marries someone she barely knows, there is drama there, and while she’s away with her husband she’s working on a manuscript for a new book. THIS is where everything is WILD in Gia’s life, whats going on here??? Is this real life or no??
Then there is Abby, she’s going through it with a job she hates, annoyed by Gia at times and also getting threatening emails from her past that might ruin everything she had worked hard for. I won’t give away more, because there are so many twists and turns I couldn’t put this book down, it was worth the READ!!!! The secrets revealed was worth me staying up late for, lol.

Ladykiller
Katherine Wood
July 09, 2024

Oh to be rich, an heiress, living on a Greek Island whose husband is lovable, kind and delightfully gorgeous. When we begin this novel the only sadness that Gia is suffering is the death of her father, Papa Hugo Torres. After the funeral in Manhattan she and Garrett return to Miteras in the Cyclades Islands. Over the months she once again began writing. It’s been ten years since she published her first book but once again unbeknownst to Garrett out came the laptop and her daily log-ins once again told the stories of her past and present.
Plans have been made with Gia and her best pals, Abby and brother, Bennie to spend time in Sweden.They had been friends forever it seemed. It would be just the three of them doing whatever they wanted. That would be months away and perhaps a visit with Bennie at the end of the summer when his film is complete.
Ladykiller will be published by Bantam of Random House on July 09, 2024. I was able to read and review Wood’s latest suspense novel via NetGalley. Although it's beginning put me on a hunt to discover what the character’s were living, when Gia returned to her island the plot began to clear. I had thoughts about what kind of man her darling Garrett might be. As the novel progressed more of the story opened to the reader. Its conclusion was not as I had predicted - that in itself was good. I prefer a surprise ending. Ladykiller grew to be a good mystery read. Pick this one up and enjoy!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Katherine Wood for providing me with a complimentary digital ARC for Ladykiller coming out July 9, 2024. The honest opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I received this book directly from NetGalley, so I didn’t pick it out. I thought I would really love it based on the summary. I’m definitely into psychological thrillers. I just couldn’t really get into it. I wasn’t a fan of the characters or their actions. I really just can’t get behind the cheating trope. I would check out other books by this author, but this book wasn’t for me.

Gia and Abby were childhood friends from diverse backgrounds. Gia, the heiress, lived in a huge villa and Abby was the daughter of the baker for the villa. As they grew up they also grew apart, although Gia professed Abby was her best friend.
When Gia invited her brother Benny and Abby to visit her on a beautiful Greek island they thought they would be spending time together like when they were children. But when they arrived Gia was missing. Time was spent and clues were read in an unfinished manuscript as to where Gia might be, or if she was even alive.
The slow burn of the book (not picking up till two-thirds through) along with obsession, sexual encounters and an unsatisfying ending changed my view of the book to unsatisfying and more of a mystery than a real thriller.
Thank you Netgalley and Random House Publishing Ballantine Bantam for an early copy. This review is my personal opinion.

I DNF this book, I just couldn’t get into the story. I found it be slow! I will let other reviewers who enjoy this book promote it, so I will not be posting on social media or reviews on retail sites. That way, this book gets much deserved attention from those reviewers who loved it!

the cover is beautiful. the story made me feel like the later seasons of pll where you got too deep and had to finish it just to figure out everything that happened but also not really caring you are just completely emotionally invested. this book seemed to drag and move super slow which is not my speed when it comes to thrillers but was also enjoyable at times.

The story felt super slow, but interesting enough that I kept going to learn everything that happens at the end… but nothing is actually definitively solved/confirmed at the end, so 🙃🙃

Pretty much all the characters are unlikeable, and we’re left with a big ole maybe at the end. I’d like to have know for sure, and also could have used more foreshadowing instead of just the big “twist” at the end.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a DRC in exchange for my honest review!

Thanks to Bantam for gifted access via NetGalley. All opinions below are my own.

This is definitely one of those thrillers where you will dislike everyone in it. It’s soapy and tawdry and not one moral in the bunch. There were lots of twists but they were all predictable. I’d hoped for more from this one but other than distracting you on the beach this summer, it won’t leave any lasting impressions.

Rating: 3.5 stars.

Childhood friends Gia and Abby have a precarious relationship following a traumatic event that happened when they were teenagers. Almost a decade later, Gia invites Abby to join her in Sweden for her birthday, along with Gia’s brother Benny. When Abby and Benny arrive in Sweden, they cannot get in contact with Gia and her messages are unreturned. Fearing the worst, the two travel to the family’s home in Greece to look for her. The hillside mansion is abandoned and Gia is nowhere to be found.

Read if you like:
- dual POV
- unreliable narrators
- open endings

Gia is a writer, but is better known as a socialite, surviving off her late father’s investments. Her part of the story is told via her work-in-progress manuscript. The manuscript is intermingled with Abby’s POV which happens in real time. Gia’s writing up until her disappearance is interesting - it causes a lot of doubt about what has really happened and makes you question how reliable of a narrator she is, compared to Abby as their stories differ.

Overall, this book is a fun, easy to read, summertime mystery. It will keep you guessing until the very end.

Katherine Wood's first book published under her real name. She previously wrote as Katherine St. John - The Siren and The Lion's Den.

Gia is a wealthy heiress who disappears from her mansion in the Greek isles. Only her brother and her best friend realize that she is likely missing. They go to her home and find a manuscript of a novel that details what they believe may have happened to Gia.

Overall this was an okay read. I was interested in the story from the PR blurbs and it sounded right up my alley. I enjoyed the beautiful Greek isles setting. I found the overall storyline to be a bit predictable; although, some of the details at the end were different than I expected. I found the book to be interesting, but not super memorable. I am a fan of Katherine St John/Katherine Wood; although if I were to recommend only one of her books, it would be The Lion's Den.

The story starts with the death of Gia's father, and then it follows the aftermath of that event. Gia lives in Miteras, Greece, and eventually needs to sell the home for additional income. But while that is one problem, Gia has her 30th birthday coming up and she decides to invite her best friend, Abby, and her brother, Benny, to Sweden to celebrate.

This story is interesting. It's told in dual POVs: one is Abby in the present day, and the other POV is from Gia's manuscript. She had written one book previously and is writing a new one, partially as a promise to her father to write again, but also because she needs the money.

The writing itself is done well. The book brings the reader to Greece, and all over as the characters travel. If you enjoy being transported to other places, you will enjoy the imagery that this book evokes.

What didn't work for me was the more suspenseful aspects of this book. Some aspects are very straightforward and you almost expect that it's a red herring to throw you off, and then it's not. An example is when Gia and her new husband, Garret, meet Elaine and Timeo. It's so obvious that something is up, but it's like the characters go about their merry business. I know part of this is because it's told from Gia's perspective and she's not focused on other things much beyond herself and her own desires but it was hard to really believe that no one found things suspicious or odd. I think if they had, it may have added some tension and mystery to the island.

The ending of this book was anticlimactic for me. I don't want to include any spoilers, but it felt matter-of-fact, and the reader didn't get true closure. I don't know if this is partially due to a set-up of another future book. If so, that might make the ending make more sense to me. But it almost felt cookie-cutter in how things wrapped up and then the story was done. It felt too easy and it almost felt like all the events that happened didn't seem to matter.

I think you would enjoy this book if you enjoy stories of travel, suspense, and lust. There are some romantic aspects to the story, but it's certainly not the overwhelming theme. If you wanted a softer thriller, you'd also enjoy this book because the mystery does not overwhelm the entire story and every scene.

Solid and intriguing and mysterious Thriller. My only gripe about this is the ambiguous ending. I know some people don't mind that, but I like at least some answers at the end of a book. Overall still some great writing and very bingeable plot here.

Thank you so much for the E-ARC!

The cover looks fantastic but this book came with a slower start than I was expecting. Abby and Gia have been best friends since childhood. But their worlds are vastly different. Gia is an heiress and Abby is the daughter of the family chef. (Gia’s father does pay for Abby’s schooling and accepts their friendship.) Years later Gia’s brother Benny and Abby are going to meet Gia for her birthday but she doesn’t show up. Wanting to know what has happened to her they go to the family’s Greek summer estate looking for answers. Part of the story is told from Abby’s POV in the present and the other is Gia’s POV from a manuscript containing details of the past. There is atmosphere and moodiness in the writing and secrets and twists. But Also I like things more wrapped up by the end. I don’t want to give away spoilers, but I didn’t feel I got enough payoff for me to rate the book higher. Three stars is still a positive review and a readable book, but may not be something I will rave and strongly suggest for others.

Ladykiller primarily follows two women, one in the present time and the other through her manuscript. Abby and Gia are childhood friends who have drifted apart in recent years. Gia, wealthy and free spirited, invites Abby on a luxury vacation in an attempt to reform that bond. Abby accepts and plans to meet Gia and her brother Benny for a weekend under the northern lights but when she arrives, only Benny is there to meet her. We then follow along as Abby and Benny try to figure out why Gia isn't there and what may have happened to her.

Let's start with some positives. First of all, the setting is amazing. The majority of the story takes place on a beautiful Greek island and the author does well to really make you feel like you've been transported. I really enjoyed the dual timeline and thought the idea of a manuscript worked well. The characters were also a highlight; fleshed out and well written.

Now for the negatives. About 30% of the book did not need to be there. I was very bored until about 40-45% in and it felt very repetitive. My biggest critique is for the ending. I am all for an open ended conclusion but I don't feel like this was a book that benefited from that. I got excited when I realized there was an epilogue, and while I still enjoyed it I was definitely hoping for more clear answers.

I would recommend this for anything going on a beach vacation. It is a perfect summer read. The atmosphere creates an ambiance of luxury and ease. I loved reading this in the sunshine with a glass of crisp white wine.

A twisted tale of friendship, betrayal, love, lust, and mystery artfully told by Katherine Wood. When Abby decides to accept her childhood friend Gia’s invitation to celebrate her 30th birthday in Sweden, all expenses paid, it is with trepidation balanced with excitement. Will she see Gia’s brother again after all these years? Gia also has a new husband, that Abby didn't approve of. The whirlwind marriage after only knowing him for such a short time even kept Abby from attending the wedding. She agrees to go and make up with Gia. However, nothing goes as planned and you will be in for a spellbound mystery. I think it was well written and enjoyed this book. Thank you NetGalley and Publishers Random House, for allowing me to read and review this book.

Ladykiller is a summer drama with all sorts of WTF moments. Following estranged best friends Gia, Abby, and Gia (an author)'s book manuscript, gives you multiple points of view that pull you in different directions - you're never sure who to trust.

Throw in Northern European and Greek isle scenery, celebrity drama, strange family history, and a cast of characters - this kept me guessing and I enjoyed the ride.

Thank you to Random House Publishing / Bantam and Netgalley for an ARC.

Katherine Wood sure knows how to write a bitchy woman, and she does it well… One just might say it’s her specialty 🤔💙😜 Did you love THE LION’S DEN? THE SIREN? Or THE VICIOUS CIRCLE…? Well if you did, you’re in luck because Katherine St. John and Katherine Wood are one in the same; she has re-branded herself for the release of LADYKILLER on July 9th; and I hope all of her hardcore fans like me follow her to the new name.

It’s such a fun, wild ride: just like fans have come to expect in KSJ novels; they’re full of beautiful scenery, escapism plot-lines, and a little bit of sex and murder thrown in… LADYKILLER tells the story, in a dual timeline, of best friends Abby and Gia, who have a special bond from a traumatic incident in there past; in the present day timeline, Abby is invited to Greece to celebrate Gia’s birthday with her and her brother Benny; but when the two of them arrive, Gia does not… and the author truly takes the first 1/3rd of the novel as a slow burn to set that plotline up and lead a lot of clues and background material— but when it roars, it ROARS.

I was compulsively racing to the end once I reached that first big twist {that the jacket summary kind of spoils for you…} I felt like I wanted more from the ending, as a deep passionate thriller reader; I like my thrillers wrapped up more with a tidy bow than the several questions and theories you close LADYKILLER with… but it is truly one heck of a beach read; and for those that are comfortable with an open ended thriller this will be the supreme summer pick for you! 👏🏻 👏🏻

I can’t wait to see where Katherine Wood goes next; I will follow her anywhere! Thank you to Bantam for providing an ARC in exchange for a review.