Book review 📖

📜A Killer Getaway
✍️Sienna Sharpe
📠Sourcebooks Landmark
📚Mystery/Thriller/Romance Fiction
🗓️Pub date: August 12, 2025

⭐️⭐️⭐️

✨Thank you @NetGalley and @bookmarked for providing me with an Advanced Reader Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

✨Lily Lennox leaves her very successful job every summer for four weeks to work as a lifeguard at the Riovan Wellness Resort on a sun-drenched Caribbean island. Noone at home understands why. However, they also don’t realize while she’s there, people end up dead.

✨Lily makes toxic people pay for what they’ve done, and even better, she’s great at getting away with it.

✨This summer, however, there’s a small kink in her plans. That kink happens to be a very handsome hotel guest, Daniel Black, who’s asking one too many questions. What’s the phrase they say, “keep your friends close, your enemies closer”? Lily plans on keeping Daniel too close, which spells trouble.

✨This book was so much fun!! I loved the backdrop of the Caribbean along with a side of vengeance-y murder. A great read to pack in your beach bag!

#netgalley #akillergetaway #siennasharpe #sourcebookslandmark #advancedreadercopy #arc #bookreview #bookstagrammer #bookstagram #summerreleases #thrillerfiction

From the time I began to read this book I had the hardest time putting it down. Sure, it was a bit slow at the start but there was something about this character that made me desperate to know how things resolved. I’m also into any book that incorporates investigators snooping around so I was eager for this one. I liked the characters and the way we see her choose targets. I also liked how her past was woven in the story. Definitely liked the ending the most because it felt realistic and left me curious as to where things go from there.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc

3.5 stars rounded to 4.

This was a fast paced thriller that had an interesting cast of characters and was a really fun read. I was not expecting the twist in the book and found the ending satisfying. Having a female serial killer as the MC was a first for me but I found everything about her so fascinating. Overall, a great book.

In A Killer Getaway, we meet Lily, who is going to an island in the Caribbean to lifeguard for the month. This is her 5th year coming back for the job. It turns out, Lily murders someone each year she is there and has the same plans this year but someone is in her way. A journalist named Daniel is sniffing around and has Lily as a suspect. They have been hanging around each other a lot at the resort and start to catch feelings for each other. But Lily is a killer, and Daniel is getting closer to finding out the truth.

Thank you Netgalley and SOURCEBOOKS Landmark for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A fast paced book that draws you in immediately. A unique plot with characters that you become invested in - it’s a great beach read for people that love spice and thrills!

I came for the tropical escape, stayed for the body count, and now I’m suspicious of everyone with a fruity drink and perfect teeth. This book is pure cozy crime fun—clever, fast-paced, and filled with characters who all seem just guilty enough to keep you guessing. The amateur sleuth vibes were strong, the banter was on point, and honestly? I’d book another deadly vacation with this series in a heartbeat.

If you love a mystery with just the right balance of danger, drama, and daiquiris—A Killer Getaway is your next beach read (just maybe... sleep with one eye open). 😉

A Killer Getaway by Sienna Sharpe

4/5 stars ⭐️
2.5/5 spice 🔥

*minimal spoilers*

Firstly I want to thank NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC. This is my first time doing this, and I hope to get more opportunities in the future!

Lilly struggles with the inner turmoil of her childhood trauma and losing the love of her life.
To remedy the pain she likes to getaway to a wellness resort in the Caribbean and seek her own form of justice. Lily strives to make the world a better place, and she can only see one way to do that. Only one way to save lives. To prevent what happened to her true love from ever happening to anyone else.

To see through the eyes of Lily Lennox. To feel her emotions, read her thoughts. You may find yourself in moral and ethical dilemmas because you can relate. You can see so clearly where she’s coming from, what drives her. You want the justice she was denied.

This was an incredibly well thought out and researched story. A quick read with beachy/summer themes, but I wouldn’t necessarily call it an “easy beach read”. As an incredibly empathic person, this book gave me some anxiety. Not just typical romance genre “will they/won’t they” anxiety, but the fear of getting caught doing something much worse than kissing behind the bleachers. And when I wasn’t empathizing with Lily in her quest for justice, I was a little bit mortified by her ease of committing the acts.
She showed psychopathic tendencies rooted in depression and trauma. But only a small percentage of the time, just those 4 weeks in the summer. For the other 48 weeks of the year, Lily leads a normal if not dull life. Two sides of the same coin. A conundrum of moral ambiguity.

As for the romance aspect of the book, I give it a rating of 2.5/5 on the spice scale. More for quality of the spice and less for the quantity. The romance between the FMC and the MMC was definitely a subplot. One open door sex scene chapter 13. Focuses more on feeling and emotions than the graphic body parts. Mild flashback description of sex scene in chapter 22.

The resolution of the romance and story overall was very satisfying. I feel like the author did a great job of creating intrigue throughout the story and gradually dropping little tid bits of information to keep the reader hooked. The pacing felt good, in spite of one overly descriptive electrical lesson lol. Some aspects of Sienna’s storytelling even reminded me Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot. So extra points for that. (Can you tell I’m writing this section on a different day? 😅)

I’m honestly not sure if I would read it again. Maybe now that I know the story and how everything works out, it wouldn’t be as nerve wracking for me. Would the excellent writing and story telling be worth going thru some of that discomfort again?

TLDR:
This book almost felt like a psychological thriller with a touch of romance sprinkled in.
There was some clever wit and unspoken words.
There was lots of tension as you read from the Lily’s POV.
HEA.

5/5 ⭐️
1.5/5 🌶️
3.5/5 😭
?/5 🔪

As soon as I saw female serial killer, I was in. Female serial killer should 1000% be a trope, because I want to devour every book with one. Add a touch of banter, flirtation, etc and I’m sold. This book had those, but it was so much deeper. It was a fluffy romcom where the FMC just happens to be a serial killer. This book was also a mystery. A thriller. A commentary on the fitness and diet industry. It was a journey for the FMC to forgive and love herself again.

Yeah, there’s an attractive mystery dude that is lovingly described as a nerdy Wolverine (🫠). He is definitely more than he seems. Why is he even there? He doesn’t fit the crowd. Of course we’re cheering for them to get together, by any means possible. But, sometimes it may not be possible, right?

Thanks to the author, their publisher, and NetGalley for the electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars 🌟 A female serial killer? Yes please! This was a great mystery/thriller and I loved that it had some spice to it. I could not put it down!

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I support women’s rights, but more importantly, I support women’s WRONGS—and this book DELIVERS. A female serial killer? SIGN. ME. UP. I love seeing women absolutely dominate male-dominated fields (even if that field is, well...murder).

A Killer Getaway is the kind of thriller that slaps you in the face with vibes. It’s fresh, unhinged in the best way, and gloriously addictive. Lily? My queen of chaos. Watching her spiral as the story slowly unravels the "why" behind her choices was chef's kiss. You might not agree with her, but damn it, you’ll understand. And maybe even root for her a little (no judgment).

The writing was sharp, the pacing snappy, and I genuinely couldn’t put it down. That said, Daniel was a little insufferable which knocked off a star. But overall? This was wickedly fun, beautifully twisted, and the perfect read for when you want to watch a woman burn it all down in style.

Disclaimer: Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book was an absolute delight to read! It had everything I look for — engaging writing, memorable characters, and a story that stayed with me long after I turned the last page. The author’s voice is distinct and compelling, making it easy to get lost in the world they created, no matter the genre.

I'm incredibly grateful to the publisher for the early copy. It was such a joy to read this in advance, and I can’t wait for more readers to experience it. Highly recommend!

I want to start out by saying this is a rare occasion in which I love the new updated title far more than the original (though I also loved “A Killer Getaway” as a title, “Beach Bodies” is just so…chic idk!)

I really enjoyed this book from the start, the premise already had me at “female serial killer”, but even moreso, Lily’s characterization was incredible in my opinion and it was a very refreshing to unravel the parts of her backstory and herself that informed her decisions throughout the book


Brief tangent but personally I did headcanon Lily as a Black Woman because I initially thought the cover featured two Black people (…I know better now) but you can’t stop me from understanding the implications of Lily’s physicality and how it played into her perception by others and still applying that to Black womanhood because its such a poignant portrayal of that relationship to perception in the eyes of society through beauty! (Consider that a huge compliment to the authors and their depiction of Lily)

My one qualm, which made me remove a hypothetical star was that though I also loved Daniel’s characterization and development, it did fall a little flatter for me in comparison and I felt like we might’ve needed more interactions between Lily and Daniel to really build upon their obvious chemistry & really set up the later half of the book’s events but regardless, I thought they had a fine love story. Although, his presence as the symbol for justice didnt really work for me given his occupation, it just kinda felt like Professional Snitch™️ to me at times

Overall though, the writing was pretty solidly gripping and reminded me a lot of one of my favorite 5 star reads this year by Kate Posey, I will absolutely be looking forward to another book by Sienna Sharpe (and Jenna Satterthwaithe)

thank you so much to netgalley and sourcebooks landmark for this arc to review!

This was a good read; will be great for the summer. The story was different for what the usual thriller story is. The fmc is interesting and complicated. The twist was one I did not see coming or the ending. Fun read.

Once a year, Lily Lennox takes a month off from running her catering business to visit Saint Lisieux, a tropical island, to lifeguard at the Riovan. The Riovan, one of the hottest wellness resorts in the world known for its intense weight loss retreats.

It just so happens that every summer, in the same month Lily Lennox works at the Riovan, someone at the resort dies.

This summer, Daniel Black, a journalist from a men’s health magazine, happens to be a guest at the Riovan while Lily is lifeguarding. However, Lily quickly realizes there is more to Daniel than meets the eye.

Daniel is determined to figure out why people keep dying over the summer at the Riovan, and his number one suspect? Lily Lennox.

This book was SO good, I would actually say it was un-put-downable. It really puts the question “is unaliving someone ever justified?” into the spotlight. After learning the full extent of Lily’s experience at the Riovan, which actually began five summers ago as a guest, it is almost understandable what she does. The story was fast paced and truly kept me turning page after page until it was 2 a.m.

Extra big thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for this ARC!

⭐️ 5/5 | 🌶️ 3/5

Wow. Just wow.
Incredibly well done.

Thank you Sourcebooks Landmark for providing this ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Lily Lennox keeps returning to Riovan Wellness Resort every summer for the past five years to work as a lifeguard. She is there to rid the world of one toxic person and has been getting away with it for years. She is a planner and makes sure to have all the details worked out. This year Daniel a hot resort guest keeps asking questions about past deaths at the resort. She lets her guard down and ends up in his bed and realizes he suspects her.

You can't help but root for Lily and hope she gets away with it.

Murder and romance mixed together in a tropical location makes for entertaining reading. Lily is a woman with a plan.

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for a e-ARC copy!

Someone recently turned me on to the phrase "feel good murder" and that explains this book perfectly.

It's not a complicated plot—some might call it "cozy" even: almost-30 year old Lily is back at the Riovan wellness resort for the fifth year, and she's there to kill. Each year since she suffered a traumatic event at the Riovan with her then-girlfriend, Jess, Lily returns to the scene to seek a backwards sort of justice for her lover.

Backed by a beautiful tropical climate and a fancy beach resort, we get to see Lily live life as a yearly returning lifeguard, where she secretly picks a victim, making her decision based on who is the most toxic and harmful person at the resort.

One problem: a journalist is sniffing around this year, and it's possible he's onto Lily.

I wasn't expecting a lot of surprising twists and turns in this book. The concept is fun enough that, even if we have a good idea of what is going to happen, it's still a heck of a lot of fun to read. But even with that in mind, there were some really exciting twists closer to the end that were really satisfying to read. Somehow I found myself cheering for pretty much everyone in the end—even the people that caused me some stress in the middle (fun stress!). This book even got me to laugh out loud AND to the point of near-tears at one point.

5/5 stars (would give more if I could!).

A Killer Getaway fuses romance, revenge, grief, suspense, and a little bit of moral ambiguity to give a truly unique and captivating read.

Lily Lennox isn't your usual protagonist. You know upfront that she's a murderer, and she's planning more murders. She heads to the same exclusive health and wellness resort each year to work as a lifeguard and scope out her next kill. It's always someone who, on the surface, seems to deserve it, and with no personal ties to her. She thinks she can get away with this forever.

That is until a nosy reporter, Daniel Black, starts dropping hints that he's interested in all the unexplained deaths at the resort. Oh, and did I mention he's sexy as hell and Lily can absolutely not get him out of her head?

What follows is a suspense-building unravelling of both Lily's past life which has led her to be the murderer she is, and her present, where she feels the need to continue her quest, despite falling hard for the very man who might find the proof to put her in jail.

I loved the exploration of grief and love in this story. I think it was necessary to feel any level of empathy for a main character who is a killer. While I appreciated the story that led Lily to become the person she is, I had a problem connecting fully with her reasons for taking the victims she did. Sure it seemed like they were not great humans on the surface, but it's not like any of them were doing anything worth a vigilante killing. And some of them might've changed their ways given the chance. But perhaps that is intentional, something the author wants us to consider as we read. Asking us how we judge others, and where the line between good and bad might be. My copy didn't have the book club questions so I can't be sure but hey, I'm going with it.

The romance is very well-paced, with just enough pining and sexual tension leading up to some very satisfying (and slightly spicy) scenes. I like how the interplay of their personal relationship really ups the stakes for both of them. It's not a romance for romance's sake. It matters to the plot.

I found there was a tiny bit of a disconnect between the voice at the very beginning, which skews very literary and beautiful with lines like "You say it like it moves you. Like there's something sacred about the mathematics that wove my proportions together when I was nothing but a blob of cells." But by the next chapter, the voice is much more conversational and less introspective/lush. I'm not saying I don't enjoy it, as I do. Lily's voice is a great voice, but I was just a bit taken aback by the shift.

The plot is an enjoyable ride. Like all books with an aspect of unfolding mystery/crime, I found a few areas where it seemed like Lily was being too reckless or would get caught (for example using the same lie twice), but that's my personal opinion and other readers will feel differently. It did nothing to hamper my enjoyment of the story, that's for sure!

I guessed a few of the twists, but I think that is actually down to good writing. Twists don't come from nowhere. They are more satisfying when there's been hints along the way, and you pick them up, and eventually are vindicated for hanging onto them as you read. I love the way the hints and bits and pieces of Lily's life and Daniel's background are dropped and culminate to give the full picture.

All in all, this was a very enjoyable, unique read. I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys female-based suspense.

While the book definitely had parts that I enjoyed I feel as the book as a whole was just overall meh. I did enjoy the description and I liked the FMC but in terms of romance I didnt see much of anything. It wasn’t my favorite and towards the end it dragged alot for me :/

I thought this book had an intriguing premise, but it didn’t live up to my expectations. I felt like the setting of the Riovan Wellness Resort was vividly described, and I enjoyed imagining the tropical atmosphere and exclusivity of the island. However, I expected the story to deliver more in terms of romance and mystery, and I felt disappointed by the lack of depth in both aspects. I found Lily’s character interesting, and I admired her determination to carry out her secret mission while maintaining a low profile. But I felt like her motivations and emotions weren’t explored deeply enough for me to fully connect with her. I appreciated the addition of Daniel Black and his role as an attractive journalist asking tough questions, but I felt their romance lacked the spark and tension I was hoping for. I wanted more suspense and twists in the murder-mystery plot. I felt like the pacing was slow at times, and the story didn’t build up the level of excitement or intrigue I was looking for. I enjoyed the idea of Lily’s dark mission, but I felt like the execution could have been more engaging and impactful.

Overall, I thought the book was fine—it had potential but fell short in delivering the romance and mystery I expected. I felt like it was a bit too predictable and didn’t keep me as invested as I had hoped. It wasn’t a bad read, but it didn’t leave a lasting impression on me.

Sienna Sharpe’s writing is a treat, I enjoyed the interesting plot of this story and the way the reader really was kept guessing (though I think a bit too long in some cases).

I do wish the main characters background and the details of her relationship with Jessica was detailed in a bit more concise way, it felt drawn out too long.
I appreciated that in the end Lily was held accountable for some of her actions, it made the story a bit more believable than if she got away with everything given all the evidence/clues brought up.

I will mention that this story may be triggering for anyone with body image issues and diet culture- I felt that the description did not give a fair warning that they’d be touching on the topic a lot. I think it would have been extremely beneficial for the summary to include some sort of snippet.