A man is dead, yet four women are all claiming to have been the one to kill him, with no help from any of the others. Who did it and why?

This book takes place at a Spa and Resort, the host for a luxurious wedding week where four college friends are coming together after years of being apart and they have no clue that by the end someone will be dead.

This book is divided into a few sections as we hear conversations between the police and characters as they question them on what happened that night and then are brought back to the beginning of the week as we work towards the climax.

This book was interesting because I found that I enjoyed it but I couldn't really connect to any of the characters so I wasn't as invested as I maybe wish I could have been. There were a few twists that took me by surprise and while it was a good book, it isn't one I am going to be constantly thinking about after putting it down.

Out of all the books I've read this year, this is the one I made the most notes on as I went along.
The story opens with an intensely creepy prologue then dives straight into excerpts from a police interview where we discover a man has been killed at a wedding. Over the next few chapters, four women all confess to the murder of this mystery man. Sounds gripping so far but I won't lie; for the first quarter or so of this story, I found myself thinking 'will this narrative ever pick up the pace?' but once all of the guests arrive at the wedding destination, boy does it gather speed!
It becomes an amazingly heady mix of a classic whodunnit, reminiscent of Cluedo as you try to put together what you know and guess at what you don't, and a modern 'Desperate Housewives'-esque thriller. I loved the police interviews even though they gave nothing away - I was 40% in when I realised I wasn't going to find out the victim's identity until the end, nor the killer's come to that, and normally this would've bugged me but it was just so moreish. Then the cliffhangers started to round off every chapter and I was done for; I couldn't read fast enough! I had a couple of what I thought were lightbulb moments that left me wide-eyed and opened mouthed but I was wrong about them - Gina LaManna is a queen of misdirection!
I loved that each chapter was told mostly from the point of view of one character over the others whilst the story still moved along chronologically, and the intricasies of their separate lives added so much to the overall narrative, but when some of the last few chapters all ended with the same event (a piercing scream from persons unknown) I was on the edge of my seat.
The only criticisms I have are so minor they're hardly worth mentioning but it's part and parcel of an honest review in my opinion. One of the characters is frequently referenced as not being married but then there is mention of her wedding being in the social section a few sentences before it is again confirmed that she isn't married. I also found the little anecdote surrounding the condoms found in a teenage daughter's bag to be a bit flimsy but since it was only a device to secure a more important storyline, I just about overlooked it.
As I said previously, LaManna is a queen of misdirection and all along I thought this book was 'merely' building up to the murder of a mystery man but it is so much more than that. I was also a huge fan of the 'women sticking up for women' motif and settling old scores with new vengeance.
I've never read anything by this author before but I'll definitely be looking out for her past (and future) works!

A murder committed ... and four women owning up to the murder. Who is the real murderer? What happened?

This is not just a standard murder mystery where you are introduced to characters, there is a murder and someone goes sleuthing. In this case you don't get all the information until the end of the book. You are introduced to the characters involved when they are interviewed by the police detective and get some background information. Actually quite cleverly done.

I am a fan a Gina LaManna's books but this is a foray into a different genre for her. I like it. She has an entertaining writing style. The murder mystery as a whole did not really catch my interest. The relationships between the women in the book did. There also seems to be a message that the grass is not always greener somewhere else. Someone else's life could seem perfect and idyllic, but that is just not always true.

This book reminded me of "Big Little Lies"(just from the blurb) which is why I requested it. It's definitely beach read material. There are a lot of characters (so a lot of backstories) that you need to keep straight and pay attention. I went into this thinking I was going to love it and unfortunately I just "liked it." I felt like the book wasn't really about the murder, it was about the women's relationships. Though it was an easy read, I found myself skipping/skimming some parts just to get to some "action."

I didn't hate the book, I just wish it was a little different.

A fun mystery that engaged the reader and really kept you guessing on who to trust/believe. I will be looking for more books by this author :)

I enjoyed reading this book. The mystery was interesting and kept me guessing until almost the end. I would enjoy reading more from this author

A fun mystery. I really didn’t know who to trust in this book. I loved and hated the characters at the same time. A good story. Worth reading x

Pretty Guilty Women is a fantastic mystery with well developed characters and a great storyline. A must read for the year. I enjoyed reading this book.

I loved this book! It was so original, intriguing, chilling, and fun to read. I had no clue what exactly had taken place and why it was going the way it was, but kept guessing! I truly thought it was a riveting read with lots of drama, chills, thrills, and shocks!
Will be highly recommending to the members of Chapter Chatter Pub!

A really good novel, with a zany premise! This was a fun fast paced read, with engaging characters and writing. Overall I liked it a lot!

I enjoyed the story in the four different women involved. It was different than other books out there. Well done

Four women who are friends and all confess to the same murder. Why? This was a fast paced book and a great beach read. The characters were enjoyable and they kept me engaged.
Many thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Oh I just loved this book!! Put this in your beach bag. I read this in one sitting. Quick read and very intriguing. It’s a whodunnit kinda book.
Loved the characters all four women.
Well done. Highly recommend!!!

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC copy of this book. It's niteresting story about 4 women confessinf to do the same crime. A lot of fun and some crazy twists. I wish it was a little deeper on characterization, but it wasn't bad. Good summer read.

Such a fun read! PRETTY GUILTY WOMEN is about five women attending a wedding at a sumptuous resort. when a man dies, four of them claim responsibility. But who really killed him and why? While the mystery is intriguing and the reveal unexpected, it was the well-rounded multidimensional characters of each of the women that kept me engaged. there were parts of each woman that I could identify with and I felt compassion for each of them. Wonderful book to read on vacation!

It is a wedding where four friends from school meet after a long time. A man however dies and found women confess to the murder. The start is interesting and the pace is good, keeping up the suspense well till the end.

Whitney is getting married. While she, Kate, Ginger and Emily were friends, they have not really been in the best of relations since some time. All of them have their problems – Kate is increasingly desperate to have a child; Ginger is a mother of three kids and struggles to manage them and Emily veers towards depression with nothing seeming to work since long for her in life. All of them decide to attend Whitney’s wedding after some hesitation hoping it will give them a chance to rekindle their relationships. The story converges the past with the present very well, picking up from the time they were close and later drifted apart. At the event, they also meet elderly Lulu who has some concerns of her own regarding her married life. They run into Sidney at the marriage, who is caring for a young child. And then this murder happens.

The overall storyline, buildup, convergence of the past & present, and the pace is good. The plot itself has some weak elements in it though.

Well worth a read especially for the layered buildup of the story.

My rating: 3.5 / 5.

Fans of Liane Moriarty would love this one! It's a twisty, fun thriller that kept me guessing. A lot of fun.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

One wedding, one murder, four women, four confessions. The math doesn’t add up in this charming thriller. The book centers around four different women with different lives and perspectives who all meet at the wedding of Whitney. Most of the main characters are college friends who have lost touch after many years as their lives have moved in separate directions. Once at the wedding, college friends Ginger, Kate and Emily make friends with Lulu, an order woman with “husbands to spare” who thinks she has finally found mister right in husband number 3. The mysterious Sydney and her child comes onto the scene and soon the woman are sharing drinks, and laughs, and once a man is found dead, a big secret? Pretty Guilty Women was an easy read and one I’d recommend for anyone looking for a story of rivalry, life’s trials, crime and friendship.

No matter how many times I thought I had it figured out, I was wrong. I loved this twisty book that kept me reading and kept me guessing. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to read this ARC!! 4 stars!

“Four Women. Four Confessions. One Murder.

Something has gone terribly wrong at the Banks wedding. A man is dead. Four different women rush to offer confessions, each insisting that they committed the crime ― alone.”

This book kept me interested but it definitely was not as fast paced or twisty as most thrillers I’ve read. I was excited to hear comparisons to Big Little Lies as that was a favorite of mine but I don’t think this quite met that mark. However, it was a quick, fun read that kept me entertained!