A wealthy yet chaotic family, multiple murders, and a bunch of characters you can’t quite trust. This gripping thriller had me hooked and entertained from start to finish. Bravo, Katy Hays, on this fantastic second act! Big thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for the sneak peek of this page-turner, hitting shelves on March 25, 2025.

This was a great summer read, taking place on a dual timeline on the isle of Capri, where a death several years ago starts to look a lot like a recent disappearance within the same group of family members. Helen's friend Lorna goes missing in a similar set of circumstances to Helen's mother Sarah several years prior. The closed off Lingate family spends time on Capri every year, even though matriarch Sarah was found dead on the island's cliffs. Notoriously private, only daughter Helen strives to understand the mother she never knew, and why her father keeps her so insulated from society. She enlists Lorna in a scheme to get some of the money she's owed by her family, and suddenly Lorna is ALSO missing.

Rife with tension, this book took some unexpected turns heavy on violence and stolen identity. As much as the characters were unlikeable, this was compelling and I was genuinely surprised at the twists! Thanks to Ballentine and NetGalley for the ARC.

In 1992, Sarah is found dead below the cliffs of Capri, leaving behind her three-year old daughter, Helen. Despite suspicions that the old money Lingates are involved, Sarah's death is ruled an accident, and every year the family returns to prove its true. But on the thirtieth anniversary of Sarah's death, the Lingates arrive at the villa to find a surprise waiting for them - the necklace Sarah was wearing the night she died......

I felt like this started out as a slowburn but ended so well! It was definitely part thriller/part family drama. I defintely think this will be a big read for 2025! Would be an awesome book club pick.

3.5 stars.

Thank you to Ballantine Books and Netgalley for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Did not finish. Quite hard to get into this one. Sometimes there are too many books and not enough time for ones you don't enjoy.

Thank you to @randomhouse and @netgalley for this early release copy. This is set on the island 🏝 of Capri in Italy 🇮🇹 and it took me back. We loved visiting, so this was a treat!

This is told in two timelines. Helen was 3 years old when her mother sarah was found dead off the cliffs of Capri. They ruled it an accident, but the rumors have always swirled that something nefarious happened. Every year, when the family returns to the island, they are reminded. This year, on the 30th anniversary of her death, the necklace Sarah was wearing when she died shows up at their villa. Helen has decided to hatch a plot of her own, with her friend that works for uncle Marcus. The plot goes off boat when Lorna her friend goes missing. Is the same thing that happened to her mother, happening to Lorna.
Twisty, turns that you don't see. The ending is a doozy!
This comes out in March 2025..be on the lookout.
#crazybooknerd
#netgalley
#saltwater
#twistsandturns

This books is juicy. Loved the family drama in it. took me a little while to get into but all in all I throughly enjoyed it.

3.5 stars. Loved the premise of this book. Old money. Italy. A mysterious death. What more could you want?? I found the beginning of the book a little slow but the second half really drew me into the mystery. The ending was a complete surprise, but also seemed implausible. Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books Random House for the opportunity to check out this ARC!

A family with money and secrets travels, argues and has members turn up dead. Who is responsible, what secrets are everyone hiding. How much do non family members know? Questions abound and answers are surprising.

This work of suspense is full of twists and turns. Thirty years of mystery and secrets unravel as the story moves back and forth between present, recent past and thirty years ago. The beautiful island of Capri and the extravagant lifestyles of those who vacation there are the backdrop to much of book. There are an incredible number if secrets and perspectives in this book, making the reading experience much like turning a kaleidoscope.

This was a bit of a slow burn but ended up being a very good story. The story is told in 2 timelines: Sarah, who we know dies, in the early 1990s, and Sarah’s daughter Helen in the current timeline. Both primarily take place at the same villa in Capri that their wealthy family visits every year. I liked the Sarah timeline better because it was more straightforward- it took me a while to get everyone straight in Helen’s story.

There are a few mysteries here, from what happened to Sarah 30 years ago to what Helen and her uncle’s assistant Lorna are plotting, to who sent them jewelry that Sarah has been eating when she died. There are also a couple different real/perceived love triangles. Despite the action, the first half of the book moves at a slower pace, though the pacing picks up in the 2nd half. None of these characters is likable and they pretty much all do awful things, but I didn’t really mind that and I felt that the author provided viable explanations for why they did the things they did, even if I couldn’t personally empathize. I liked the ending of the book and was satisfied how it turned out.

Overall, despite taking a while to get into, I ended up liking this one. I’d give it 3.5 stars, rounded up. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

With shades of the suspense novel like Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, Hays crafts a novel with unreliable narrators and vicious villains. Capri is the star of this novel, Hays writes about the beauty and wonder of the place and makes me want to visit. However, the vituperative characters add menacing elements to this story of greed and revenge. The Lingates return to Capri every year and the tragic death of Sarah Lingate haunts them. Helen is Sarah’s daughter and she wants to know what happened to her mother. Did she fall off the cliff? Was she pushed? Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Sarah died many years ago. Her death was ruled an accident. Her family believes she was murdered. This book kept me guessing until the end.

Decades ago, a woman marries into a wealthy family, and commits suicide on the charming island of Capri, where they vacation. But was in suicide? This family is full of dysfunction and smothering to the now adult- daughter, Helen. When the family returns again to vacation on Capri, Helen enlists the help of the family's assistant to find out the truth about her mother, and escape her claustrophobic family's lifestyle.
When the assistant turns up dead, the plot takes off with twists galore.

I didn't love the author's writing style, especially evident for me in Part 1, it was a bit choppy and confusing, and difficult to connect with the characters or the great plot line. The characters were not likable. The setting was fabulous. The ending was great. Love the cover of this one.
3 1/2 stars
~Thank you to NetGalley and Publisher

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC of this book. This is about the Lingate family, Marcus and Naomi, who have been married for years, Helen, who loves an Italian named Ciro, Richard, Helen’s father who’s wife died 30 years ago by suicide. Helen is in a bubble because of the Lingate name and fortune. No scandal, no scenes in public, no friends. The Lingates travel to Capri for a week every summer and stay in the same villa where Sarah plunged to her death on the rocks. Sarah was a playwright and her last play, Saltwater, may be the reason she is dead. It exposed all the family secrets. But Helen has a plan. All she needs is the help of her uncle’s assistant Lorna. This book is well written. It would make for a great beach read. Put it in your beach bag and thank me later.

This was the first book I have read by Katy Hays and it did not disappoint. I love a good murder mystery and this had all the twists. It’s about a playwright Sarah Lingate who is vacationing with her husband and their “old-money” family on the island of Capri when she goes missing. Shortly after, her body is found at the bottom of the cliffs and her death is ruled an accident, but everyone suspicious about the family being involved. Every year, the family travels back to Capri on the anniversary of Sarah’s death. Thirty years after her death, the family returns along with her daughter Helen and one of their assistants, Lorna. Helen is determined to escape her controlling family and enlists the help of Lorna. But when Lorna goes missing, Sarah’s case is reopened and the Lingate’s will do anything to try to keep their secrets.
This is one of the first books where I enjoyed the multiple timeline. It was extremely easy to understand and followed the POVs of Helen, Lorna and Sarah. It was a slow-burn but about halfway in, my jaw was dropping. There were predictable moments but were so many twists that I did not see coming. There is an insane amount of family drama, secrets, infidelity and lies and I ate it all up. Almost every single character was suspicious and unlikeable and for some reason, I loved it. I was engaged the whole book trying to separate the truth from the lies and figuring out everyone’s secrets.

Also, Katy has an aussie named Queso?! I LOVE IT. Aussie mom life is the best.

Thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Ballantine Books, and Katy Hays for the eARC

This one was just ok for me. Interesting premise, lovely setting - but there were so many characters and the plot was rather slow moving. I'm a big fan of suspense but for me, when an author is holding back information to hold suspense, if they hold back too much it just makes it hard to get into the story

I didn’t enjoy this one. I found that this book did not keep my attention. I was pretty bored and just didn’t care about what happened.

A sprawling and pacey thriller with delicious twists and a cast of appalling (and unforgettable) characters. Katy Hays does it again!

This book has more twists and turns than the roads on the island of Capri. So many elements—mystery but is it murder, suicide, or accident? Old money versus new money, rich versus poor, family versus everyone else, and let’s not forget money. Did I mention money? So much money. To live with or without it, that’s the question. And who do you trust? So many questions.

I really enjoyed this book and the imperfect characters whose choices are always questionable. Was it the right decision? Yes. No. Maybe.

I don’t want to give anything away, but it’s a great summer read and will be available late March of 2025.

Thanks so much for the review copy. I think this is mostly family drama, with some mystery/thriller aspects. It is well written but I struggled with it some.