What a fantastic read that keeps you guessing! Is Gia a killer or just misunderstood? Is Abby her best friend or using Gia and her family for her own gain? Is Garrett Gia’s true love or with her for her money? Is Emelia really an unloved wife or someone else? Secrets started 12 years before and each of these characters learn secrets don’t stay buried. Ladykillers is a fast paced read that sucks you in right away! I love all these author’s stories! 4.5 stars!

This is a must read! I could not put this down. It was so well written. You just wanted to keep reading. There were so many unexpected twists.

Ladykiller by Katherine Wood is due to be published July 9th 2024 by Bantam publishing.

Abby and Gia have been friends ever since they were kids. Gia is newly married much to Abby's dismay. Gia invites Abby and her brother to a mountain retreat and doesn't show. Abby and Gias brother leave to look for Gia and find her house abandoned and they suspect foul play. Ladykiller is a compelling, slow burn psychological mystery thriller that will keep you engaged and guessing until the very end. I loved the breathtaking descriptions of the setting and the plot was unique and so different from other thrillers. It's about friendships, lies, betrayals and the secrets of the glamorous people who seem to live perfect lives. I will be looking forward to more books by this author!!

A decadent and deadly summer in Greece leaves the reader guessing and double guessing the characters throughout. Gia is privileged, obnoxious and spoilt. I admired her and disliked her in equal measure. It leaves you wondering with so many loose ends. Like life really.
This would be a great beach read or private villa!
Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.

I received a free copy from NetGalley. Pacing is all over the place. You are not sure you can trust the narrator. And the ending left a bunch of strings hanging. A bit of a mixed one but okay.

Set primarily on a Greek island, Ladykiller is the ultimate high-drama thriller that offers its readers a form of escapism. It would make a great beach read as it officially publishes this summer. The cast of characters are horribly privileged, but I found myself quickly consumed in their drama. Overall, most readers will not be able to relate to the characters and their issues, but will find this title to be an entertaining read.

Just like the stunning cover, Ladykiller is set in gorgeous Greece 🇬🇷, rich beautiful people, eating a lot of tzatziki! And just like the cover there is some sexy paragraphs sprinkled in there!
Overall, it's a bit of a slow paced at times. Story jumps between 2 points of view, Abby, in real time, and Gia's unfinished manuscript. It took a minute to adjust to the timing of the narratives.
Oh so close to a 4 star ... but that ending felt just ... meh to me. I'm no writer, but I had better speculations than what actually happened. Still entertaining tho!
Thank you, Netgalley, publisher, and author for the ARC.

Lasting childhood friendships take all kinds of twists and turns throughout life. For Gia and Abby, they've remained close despite because oceans apart with very different lives. Abby is an attorney working constantly and Gia is still her carefree self, living life to the fullest from her inheritance.
Gia is finally able to talk Abby into a trip for her birthday along with Gia's brother, but when Abby arrives, Gia is nowhere to be found. She and Benny both realize the messages they are getting are not from Gia so together, they try to put the pieces together to find out where Gia has gone. Once they arrive at her home and find it empty, they find Gia's latest manuscript detailing everything that has happened over the past few weeks. How much of this is true and where has she gone?

I went into this book relatively blind, which I sometimes like to do. My experience was mixed but I will say it was one twisted read. Thank you Netgalley and Ballentine books for DRC in exchange for my honest opinion.

The characters in this book, at least for me, were not very likable but their choices and actions made for an interesting storyline. And that I can appreciate. What I didn’t care for was what felt like unnecessary sex scenes There were multiple and the in a way stopped the flow of the story for me. Cutting a few of them I think would have made a smoother reading experience for me.

What I did like was the unexpected twists and how very devious one of the main characters was. It added an extra layer to the story. As did the beautiful setting of Greece. Overall my feelings on this tale were mixed but I’m glad I picked it up. It might make a good book to add to your beach bag.

Okay, so I have such mixed feelings about this book! On one hand, I didn't love it but it wasn't horrible either. When I saw this beautiful cover and read the synopsis about it taking place in the Greek Islands I knew I had to read it!! Ladykiller is a compelling, slow burn psychological mystery thriller that will keep you engaged and guessing until the very end. I loved the breathtaking descriptions of the setting and the plot was unique and so different from other thrillers. It's about friendships, lies, betrayals and the secrets of the glamorous people who seem to live perfect lives. The story started out really strong even though it was a bit slow but around the 50% mark things finally started to happen and I was hooked! Unfortunately, that didn't last long before it quickly lost steam and went a miss. We never find out what happened in the end and are left with more questions than answers! | normally don't mind an open ending in a book and can draw my own conclusions. However, I found this one frustrating because it was extremely vague and as a reader I was unable to figure out the truth. Overall, this book didn't quite meet my expectations and had an unsatisfying ending. I can only recommend this novel if you are okay with not being able to guess or know the ending. Personally, this book was just meh for me!

This one was a bit slow for me. It picked up a little in the middle but then slowed down again. The settings were beautifully detailed and I liked that aspect of the story. I really didn't like the ending. I like stories that lay it all out for me. Give it a chance- this writing style likely works for some- just not me. Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Gia and Abby have been best friends since childhood, Gia the daughter of a rich family and Abby the daughter of the family's personal chef. The book starts after the death of Gia's father as she prepares to sell her inherited estate on a small Greek island in the Mediterranean. Abby, a down to earth bookish lawyer, and Gia the flashy, entitled heiress have recently had a falling out. Gia invites Abby to spend a weekend with her and her brother Benny at a posh Swedish resort under the Northern Lights. Abby, hoping for reconciliation, arrives at the resort to find Benny, but no Gia. After after a series of cryptic messages from Gia and a few threatening emails hinting at a past secret tragedy, Abby and Benny race to the family estate suspecting foul play.

Most of the story is told in split point of view between present day Abby and a the manuscript of Gia's memoir. There is a bit of a Gone Girl vibe as you read. What of this story can be believed vs. what is embellished and why? If you've ever read a psychological thriller, you know the motto of "trust no one" and this one is no exception. Even still, the author found ways to mislead and ultimately surprise me which is a gold star achievement for me in this genre. Combined with the breezy backdrop of the Greek mediterranean, this book was a winner for me! This might have been 5 starts if not for the ambiguous ending which I was rather ambivalent about. I thought the author could have pulled out more reveals here leading to confrontation of the wrongs and ultimately justice.

Thanks NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballentine for giving me the chance to review this. Katherine Wood is a new author for me and I look forward to reading more!

This was such a good book! I loved the characters, and their story. The dialogue was realistic and enjoyable. I was very surprised by the ending!

3.25
I like the shifting of POV’s but just like any other people, I kind of find the story a bit slow. It gradually picked up halfway, but became slow again... I really don’t mind slow burns, but I feel like there are some unnecessary plot lines that I don’t really care for. The story is promising and the author was very descriptive with the setting which makes the readers feel like they are really in Greece.
I feel like the author went on a vaycay recently and had a Greece-Hangover.
Overall, it was a promising book.

I requested to read and review this book for free from Bantam an Imprint of Random House. This book I will say truthfully it was hard to get into at first. But the more I read the more I wanted to find out what was going to happen next. This book will leave you guess until the end and then maybe more. This story line has drama, suspense, romance and mystery. Characters Abby has always lived in someone else is shadow but is grateful for that or resentful. Gia has had a carefree attitude on life and the people in her life. For her what is real and what is not. Benny how does he fit into the lives of the people he loves. Timeo, Emelia and Garrett all play a role in life. But is their role real or maybe fake or not what it seems.

A tangled web of lies and deceit. So many truths to uncover…

A sexy thriller that is so atmospheric you won’t want to put it down! I loved how the story was structured with the past and present timelines and dual point of views. As I was reading along I knew something wasn’t right, but I had no idea where the story was going next. Gia is such a mysterious character, and I was constantly surprised by her behavior. There is so much mystery throughout and so many pieces to the puzzle. I was so intrigued by the story and found it so entertaining!

Thank you so much NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the

Dark and twisted. A good mystery thriller that kept me guessing, all the way through that last chapter.

The story may be a bit confusing at first. There are two POV and 2 timelines - there are chapters numbered for Abby and her POV. And there are numbered chapters for Gia POV.

Abby is in the now. She's preparing to visit a childhood best friend she hasn't seen in awhile. Abby has been wrapped up with work and Gia has been recently in a whirlwind romance and a quick wedding.

Gia's chapters are from just a month or so before the now. And she's trying to get her writing going again by writing about her day to day with her new husband while they vacation in a home she recently inherited.

The story is compelling. The chapters may be told from different people and be very different stories, but they hold well being together in one book. Gia's chapters are a bit spicy. She has some pretty intense chemistry with her husband but they are both adventurous and they have a new couple that has befriended them on the island. As you try to work out if everyone is as they say they are, it's hard to stop reading their story, the web is so fun to try to untangle.

I loved the tension and the mystery. Gia's chapters always had a layer of danger to them, as they pushed boundaries and tempers heated. I loved that I never knew what she was going to do next and who to believe. The story had me hooked and the twists kept me guessing. This isn't your average mystery and I loved the feel of reading something that stands out. This one was good!

This was an interesting story. It begins with the funeral of Papa Hugo a well to do man with many children and ex-wives. The story is told through the best friend of his daughter from his second wife and through the manuscript of this daughter. Abby and Gia have been best friends since they were teens. They have even survived an awful tragedy together. Gia, Hugo's daughter. and Abby have become estranged following the funeral and Gia's hasty marriage. Gia in an attempt to reconnect invites Benny (her brother) and Abby to see the Aurora Borealis for her 30th birthday.


This book had a lot of twists and turns. I did figure some of the surprised. There is a lot going on in this book. Not always sure who to trust and who to believe.

It was a fun and easy read. A great summer beach read.


Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Ballentine Books for the ARC of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

If you are looking for a mystery with a lot going on, then Ladykiller by Katherine Wood is the book for you. I found myself quickly pulled into the story. Multiple points of view of storytelling is one of my favorites. This is told between the two main characters, Abby and Gia, more accurately Gia’s manuscript. This is where there is so much happening. As a reader there are times when you are left not knowing what is real, what is exaggerated or what is just a lie. The story left me with certain things left unanswered. Not sure which way to believe. Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Bantam for the ARC!

This was one wild ride! An heiress gone missing and her best friend goes searching. There are enough twists and turns to give you whiplash. I truly had no idea where things were headed and was totally wrong every time I thought I had it figured out. I think this is going to be a bestseller, a total beach read. Thanks so much for the arc and I’ll recommend closer to publication day!