4⭐
Genre ~ psychological mystery
Setting ~ Tuscany
Publication date ~ July 26, 2024
Est Page Count ~ 334 (p+ 70 chapters)
Audio length ~ 8 hours 37 minutes
Narrator ~ Clare Corbett
POV ~ single 1st & multiple 3rd, present tense
Featuring ~ multiple timelines, alcohol dependency, functioning alcoholic, attempted assault on page, past on page domestic abuse, references to rape

Cerys is the owner of Villa Lucia. She is very dependent on alcohol and as the story is told in multiple timelines we'll slowly learn why this is.

Lowery (sounds like Larry sometimes, so I'm just guessing of spelling) is Cerys' young adult daughter that's helping her out at the Villa.

Zoe, husband, Harry, and son, Charlie (19) are the guests.

Lucia and Lorenzo live nearby and help out at the Villa and have secrets from the past that they are not eager to get out.

Nick, Cerys' controlling, abusive, ex-husband, pops in for an unwelcome visit.

And then one morning there's a body in the pool. Who is it and how did they get there?

There are only a few possible suspects, but we're given some good crumbs to think each has a reason for committing murder. More of a mystery and not a thriller, but that didn't bother me at all. Gotta say that was a NICE twist for the why that I didn't see coming. Overall, enjoyed it and I'm happy with who the floater was.

Narration notes:
Overall she did a fine job, but I think this would have benefited from multiple narrators.

Thank you to the author, narrator, publisher and Net Galley for providing a free e-audio version of this title in exchange for my review.

I don't think I'm the right audience for this book. I do like thrillers and suspense, but I cannot connect with the characters at all, and I just wanted the book to be done so I could write this review and move on to something else.

The narrator was pleasant to listen to, and she did seem to appear to try the accents, etc. But the constant changing POV's, flash backs to other places and times, and so, so many characters, it was just confusing. I felt like I needed a score card. And the characters names were all odd to me. Listening to the book rather than reading, I was so confused about the daughter, Lowery - which sounded like Larry.

The overall plot was just not enjoyable. Such a Lifetime movie - jerk of a abusive husband is a jerk and gets killed. Women are all victims, and using troubles as an excuse to drink, drink, drink. As an adult child of an alcoholic, I found this especially annoying.

I really can't see myself looking for another by this author, and I can't think of anyone I would recommend it to at all. It's really a 1 star 'I hated it' listen.

Thank you to NetGalley, Dreamscape Select | Storm Publishing and Simon McCleave, for this ARC of Last Night at Villa Lucia out Jul 26 2024!

Anytime a book has a prologue that starts off with some action, I know I'm going to enjoy it. The ending and twist made me round up my review too. I loved that this was set in Tuscany, Italy and the descriptions of the Villa and scenery were perfect for a good summer read.

One last note, the artwork on the cover is beautiful and it was what initially drew me to this book. I love a good book cover :).

Overall Rating: 3.5 stars / rounding up to 4!

This novel was provided by the publisher, via Net Galley, in exchange for my honest review.

A quick and crazy suspenseful summer read with a satisfying ending!

Cerys has been running Villa Lucia—a luxurious villa located in the hills of Tuscany—for about a year when her next guests arrive: recording producer Harry, his wife Zoey and their son Charlie. After a disastrous dinner, one of the guests is found dead, facedown in the villa’s pool. As the police investigation unfolds the events of Last Night at Villa Lucia—love that title!—the last years of the main characters unfold as well,

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for a chance to listen to this story ahead of publication!

Wow, Last Night at the Villa Lucia had me guessing until the very end!
This is the first book I've read by this author! I really enjoyed it and look forward to reading more of his books in the future.
I was given advanced access in exchange for my honey review. I would definitely recommend this book to people who enjoy mystery thrillers
Publication date is July 26th..

I was in a bit of an audiobook slump, and this one brought it back for me!

It had quite a few twists and turns. Everyone seemed to have motive to kill Harry you quickly realized as secrets were revealed. I really enjoyed the comradery between the women at the villa, it was refreshing to see.

I listened to this audiobook in a day. I had it at 2x the speed and it was perfect! The narrator was great and had a lot of emotion in her reading.

I would recommend this as an audiobook and as a regular read.

British family goes to stay at this villa in Tuscany. A guy ends up dead in the pool. Then it’s trying to figure out who did it cause it seems like just about everyone despises him. In between there’s povs from the past to give some context to certain relationships. Couple of twists here and there that are fairly easy to guess. Overall I wasn’t bored and found this to be an easy listen. Narration was good. The only thing is I didn’t care for is. some of the names, cause they were hard to imagine the spelling of.

This was a pretty basic scenario; a not so nice guy is found murdered and everyone has a motive to want to kill him. It was a good story, but I'm not overly excited about it.

The audiobook went by pretty quickly and I enjoyed the narrator, but overall it was just okay.

Last Night at Villa Lucia by Simon McCleave
Narrated by Clare Corbett

Cerys, is now the owner of Villa Lucia after her ex husband, Nick, lost his half of the villa in the divorce. Nick is a horrid man and Cerys stayed with him much too long. She's an alcoholic, has been in recovery before but now is drinking like a fish again. Nick and Cerys's daughter, Lowri, is living at the villa with Cerys right now. New paying guests are arriving and Cerys seems to be at her best when she's working, making her paying guests stay at the Villa Lucia a luxurious and memorial experience. Believe me, this visit will be memorial for everyone who lives through the experience.

Zoe, Harry, and Charlie arrive at the villa for a much needed vacation. Harry usually won't spend much time with Zoe, as busy with his work and extracurricular activities as he is nowadays. Charlie and Lowri hit it off immediately, with the love of spiffs, hatred of fathers, and youth and physical attraction drawing them together. Charlie's dad, Harry, is as horrid as Lowri's dad and they both try to avoid their dads as much as possible. It's hard to respect their moms when they refuse to leave such terrible men (or took too long, in Cerys case) but what can a child do when their parents won't act like grownups when it comes to bad marriages.

The start of the story is slow but then everything blows up. Really, things were a powder keg about to explode anyway, since no one was at ease and everyone is treading carefully around the cretin, Harry. Bad things happen and then there is a body in the pool. Everyone has a reason to wish the dead person dead and it's not clear just who might have caused a body to be floating face down in the pool.

The narration is excellent although I was surprised to see the real spelling of the names I was hearing. I heard Lowri as Larry, Cerys as Cerris, mostly because I wasn't familiar with those names. There are very serious subject matters tackled here, alcoholism, domestic and other abuse, and some scenes are very distressing. I was glued to the audiobook because I wanted to know how things were going to play out. Lots of surprises, lots of misdirection, and misleading, with a handsome detective trying to sort out all the nonsense and real happenings to get to the bottom of the case. Things get worse before they get better but in the end, maybe things work out for the best.

Thanks to Dreamscape Select | Storm Publishing and NetGalley for this ARC.

4 stars
Cerys is a newly divorced mom to a teenaged girl and also the owner of a villa she rents out during high season. The most recent guests are a wealthy family of 3, which include an ass of a husband, a sweet wife, and a teenaged boy. One of the guests gets murdered and the story turns into a whodunnit mystery. There are many red herrings and possible suspects. This isn’t a cozy mystery exactly, but more of a domestic suspense.

The narrator was excellent as well.

Thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Dreamscape Select for providing me this ARC in exchange for a written review.

Last Night at Villa Lucia was an amazing listen. I listen to the audio version and immensely enjoyed the story. It was an engaging thriller with great narration that made for one of the best listens of the year.

This book was intense! Who did it? Everyone’s a suspect. Everyone’s sketchy. I didn’t want to stop listening and it was quite suspenseful. The ending was surprising but good! If you like mystery/suspense stories, this is a good one! The narrator was good too!

This story blew me away! My first time reading something from Simon McCleave. And now my TBR is one author richer!!!
To sum up the story in short: strong women taking back control of their lives!!!
I was so into this story that I couldn't stop listening to the audiobook all day long. It was a true pleasure to listen to Clare Corbett!!

Thank you #NetGalley #Dreamscape Select | Storm Publishing for this highly recommended audiobook

Last Night At Villa Lucia will have you completely sucked in.

The story opens with Cerys, the alcoholic owner of the Villa Lucia located in Tuscany, where she runs it as a vacation property. Cerys drinks in attempts to forget a traumatic event from 4 years ago and as an escape from her memories of her abusive and controlling ex-husband.
Their daughter Lowry is currently staying with her mom while she figures out what’s next with her life.
Lucia and Lorenzo live nearby and help with the caretaking of the Villa. The Villa used to belong to Lucia’s family and is named after her and she is resentful that it’s no longer hers. Lorenzo is hiding from his past.
Current guests at the Villa are Harry, Zoe and their son Charlie.

When a body is found floating in the pool one morning, the police quickly suspect foul play. The victim is disliked by many and they all had motive and opportunity. And everyone is keeping secrets and telling lies.

I was completed hooked and fully enjoyed my listening journey. This story alternates between Cerys’s point of view (including flashbacks from her past), and the other characters.

This murder mystery/family drama is fast paced and will keep you guessing right up to the end.

This book deals with alcoholism and abusive relationships #triggerwarning

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Select for the opportunity to listen to this advanced copy of the audiobook.
This was my first book by this author, but I will definitely keep my eyes open for his future books

Last Night at Villa Lucia by Simon McCleave. I felt it was kind of disjointed at times but overall it was good. Someone is murdered at the start and the rest of the book is spent unraveling the mystery. I wish I could do half stars, I would probably do 3 1/2.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #DreamscapeSelect for the book #LastNightAtVillaLucia by #SimonMcCleave. Cerys is an alcoholic. All because of something that happened years ago. Now she is divorced and lives with her daughter in their beautiful villa. But someone has been murdered. Who wanted him dead and why? This is an unputdownable thriller!

"Last Night at Villa Lucia" by Simon McCleave, narrated by Clare Corbett is the story, I was hooked once I became immersed in the world of Cerys, Lowri, Zoe, Harry, and Charlie. The novel is set in a beautiful Tuscan villa, where these two families come together for a vacation that turns deadly.
The story begins with Cerys discovering a body floating face-down in the pool, and as she tries to piece together what happened, it becomes clear that everyone involved has secrets and motives. The novel is expertly crafted, with multiple points of view that add depth and complexity to the narrative. The characters are flawed and relatable, and their struggles with their personal lives are woven throughout the mystery.
One of the standout aspects of this book is its portrayal of its characters. Cerys's struggles with alcoholism are particularly well-handled, and the dynamics between the characters feel realistic and nuanced. The male characters are all complex and multi-dimensional, with no easy villains or heroes.
The mystery itself is engaging and twisty, with plenty of red herrings to keep me guessing until the very end. While I did find the ending to be a bit too tidy, I appreciated that it left me feeling satisfied rather than wondering what would happen next.
Overall "Last Night at Villa Lucia" is for anyone looking for an engaging and suspenseful summer read. With its well-crafted characters, twisty plot, and atmospheric setting, it's a great choice for anyone who enjoys a good mystery.

Quick Summary: “A totally addictive psychological thriller with a jaw-dropping twist”

My Review: Last Night at Villa Lucia by Simon McCleave and narrated by Clare Corbett is touted as general adult fiction. Specifically, it is billed as a mystery/thriller.

About the Book: Colorful characters with seemingly disturbing backgrounds are brought together at a Tuscan villa. While there, the body of a horrid figure is found floating in a pool. Secrets that happened in the dark are brought into the light of truth. Everyone is a suspect. Who will the guilty party be?

About the Narration: The narrator performed well. Initially, I had difficulty with her rate of speech and tones. After an adjustment was made with my system settings, it became a bit easier to appreciate her style of delivery.

My Final Say: This was a really intriguing story. Much of what was revealed was surprising, to say the least. I liked the dark tones that casted shadows over the main characters. All in all, this was a pretty good story. On the flip side, listening to the audio was somewhat challenging in that the POV threads were, at times, confusing. They often shifted without adequate transitioning aids. Eventually, I was able to better follow the movement, but this was only after I had listened to quite a bit of the story.

Other: This book had several triggers that readers should be aware of. Please refer to the author's notes for more details.


Rating: 4.25/5
Recommend: Yes
Audience: A
Status/Level: 🕸👍🚨
Triggers: Abuse/violence, Alcoholism, SA, MDK, Profanity
Audiobook: Yes
Narration: +

Thank you to the author, to the publisher (Dreamscape Media), and to NetGalley for making this book available for review. I am grateful to have had the chance to listen to an ALC in exchange for an honest critique. The words I have shared are my own thoughts and opinions.

This book opens up with a zen montage of Cerys' loving atmosphere of her beautiful Tuscan villa fronted by its tranquil infinity pool. She mentions the sirens in the background and then makes a calm yet shocking revelation - there is a body in the infinity pool.
Many thanks to NetGalley for the ARC/audiobook of this charming thriller.

I don’t really enjoy when narrators switch octaves between genders. It always feels forced and throws me out of the story. That’s my only gripe here. And although I don’t like it, I understand it’s necessary as to not make the story insanely confusing. I loved this one. So so so twisty. Never saw that big reveal coming! Love girls supporting girls.