It has been too many years since I was last on a beach, and I have been trying to convince my husband to remedy that situation for at least two years. After reading Reckless Girls by Rachel Hawkins, however, I might have to rethink that desire. With its dark tone that belies the tropical setting, in Ms. Hawkins' hands, the beach no longer feels like the safe and relaxing place it usually is.

When trying to describe Reckless Girls, all I can think of are adjectives. Dark. Intense. Seedy. Hedonistic. Unpredictable. Luscious. It is all of these things and more. For the entire novel, you are as clueless as Lux, valiantly trying to understand why all of the other characters seem to know more than you do. It is frustrating and suspenseful.

Then you finally collect all the puzzle pieces, and your jaw drops at the discovery of all the layers of which you were unaware. The calculation, the coldness, the utter confidence in the rightness of their actions makes what follows a true thriller, whether you agree with their actions or not. While not as strong, in my opinion, as The Wife Upstairs, I still enjoyed Reckless Girls to the bitter end. And bitter it is indeed.

I enjoyed reading Reckless Girls by Rachel Hawkins. This book is a perfect beach type of read and I was quite engaged with the storyline and wanting to see how everything turns out. This is a fairly quick read - had it not been for the holidays - I would have finished it much quicker.. The cover of this book is stunning and perfectly fits this book.. I think this would make a good movie to watch - probably not big screen but maybe Lifetime or Netflix or prime video. Thank you very much to St. Martins Press and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

Lux has followed a guy to Hawaii. What she thought would be sun, sand, and sailing has turned out to be more tedious, taxing, and travail. Then her beau lands a gig that not only will repair his boat but give them the opportunity to get away from it all. Two young ladies want to sail to a deserted island and offer up a lot of cash. What could go wrong?

Once they arrive, another boat is already there. The island is not so deserted, after all. But the couple seem nice and they get along quite well. Six strangers, all with their own secrets, decide to camp out for two weeks. Again, what could go wrong?

When tales of the island's cursed past are discussed, Lux cannot help but wonder if they are indeed true, and if they are in any danger. All seems well until another stranger on another boat arrives. Then things start to go awry.

Each character's past is revealed in clever retellings of the past, interspersed throughout the book. Things begin turn a little dark in paradise. Are any of the characters likeable? That's for you to decide. But the tale is entertaining and keeps you guessing until the big reveal.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Rachel Hawkins for the ARC. The opinions expressed are my own.

Reckless Girls, by Rachel Hawkins

Short Take: Yeah, I’m just gonna stay on the beach, thanks.

(*I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*)

Good morning Duckies, and welcome to the Between - when we’re still dealing with the Christmas Hangover. No, I don’t just mean from all the delicious booze we enjoyed, but there’s still so much food in the fridge that I’m rapidly growing tired of, decorations that have to be put away, new gadgets and gizmos that need a home in my already overstuffed kitchen. Plus, we’re all staring down the barrel of ANOTHER holiday in just a couple of days, and really, who decided to put these so close together? Couldn’t we space them out a little more?

Anyway.

I was fortunate enough to score an early copy of Reckless Girls, and my beloved nerdlings, it was exactly what I needed to get through the mid-holiday malaise. The plot is simple-ish - Lux McAllister has followed her boyfriend Nico to Hawaii, with the goal of saving up to repair his boat and sail around the world together. So when a couple of wealthy young women offer him a large chunk of cash to sail them to a deserted island with a tragic history for a mini-vacation, Lux and Nico jump on the chance. Arriving to find another couple already on Meroe Island, the six strangers soon become friendly, eating, drinking, and making merry in Paradise.

But of course, all of them have Dark Secrets, and the combination of beautiful-but-maybe-deadly people and a beautiful-but-maybe-deadly island inevitably combusts.

Y’all, there is so much to love about this book. The setting is fantastic, the plot with its various twists and turns and betrayals moves along briskly. The little interludes with the history of the island and its current inhabitants are a great touch, giving us just enough info to ALMOST put it together before the end, but not quite. The only sand in the sunscreen was the characters. There was a sameness to them, all of the women like this, and all of the men like that.

I’m also not entirely sure what the author’s intended tone was with [spoiler]. On one hand, yes, the struggle is often real, and the outcome grossly unfair. But was Ms. Hawkins trying to make a real statement, or was the final chapter meant to be a sort of dark comedy, or satire? Both, maybe? After all the fantastic buildup, the ending felt like one I’ve seen a hundred times before.

Despite that, the setting is fabulous, and Reckless Girls is a quick, fun read.

The Nerd’s Rating: FOUR HAPPY NEURONS (and anything that isn’t leftover ham. FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY PLEASE NO MORE HAM.)

Reckless Girls is a wicked suspense set on an isolated Pacific Island with a dark history. Meroe Island is a beautiful island in a desolate spot in the middle of the Ocean. It has a mysterious history of shipwrecks and cannibalism, It is a perfect spot for a free-spirited getaway for the six twenty somethings. As they explore the island and find skeletons and other items, this island becomes more than a carefree vacation. When one person disappears, and another is found dead the environment changes and they all wonder who they can trust. This novel has some surprising twists. I recommend it to those who enjoy suspense novels

As someone who really enjoyed The Wife Upstairs, I was really anticipating another knock out of the park with this author. The writing is wonderful, I cannot complain there; however, I just couldn’t continue on with these characters. I wasn’t hook enough to care of their story to finish. I’m giving it three stars for the writing. The sailing aspects did seem real and well researched. I can see the intrigue she was trying to build, it was just a miss for me. I won’t be leaving a review on Goodreads, but I do look forward to reading the next book from Rachel Hawkins.

The synopsis of this book held lots of promise - a young couple agree to sailing a boat charter for two other women to a deserted island which holds a dark and deathly past. When these four arrive on the island, they encounter another couple and eventually one person is murdered.

This plot started strong and I was invested. However by the middle of the book, I felt the story slowed and simply involved six attractive people living on an island while exploring and drinking a lot. Little back stories were shared but nothing drastic for me. Nothing really happened for a while and the murder took forever to take place.

I figured out the little twist before it was revealed and I felt the ending seemed rushed after such a slow middle. I was left sort of left scratching my head to how the main character behaved at the end.

I typically love "locked room mysteries" and this one was a miss for me. Might be a hit for others though who love island vibes with some shady characters!

*Many thanks to St. Martins Press for the complimentary copy for my honest review!

If you liked her first thriller novel The Wife Upstairs you’re going to really enjoy this one.

After losing her mother to cancer Lux decides to pack up her life and move to Maui with a guy she just met Nico who promises her they’re going to sail the world together, just the two of them. When an opportunity pops up to sail to a secluded island with two strangers, Brittany and Amma, both Lux and Nico believe this will be the beginning of their adventures.
When they arrive at the island they discover another boat is already there but they quickly become friends and they all think it’s turning into the vacation of their dreams. But when a stranger appears on the island and they start hearing more stories about what had occurred in the past, they start to wonder if this is the vacation of their dreams or their nightmares. Then the bodies start piling up and they must do whatever it takes to survive.

This book was so twisty and insane, I can barely put it into words. I binged this book in about 24 hours, partly due to the author’s writing style and partly due to I could not stop reading this. There are some spooky elements to the book that really draw you into the story and almost leave you gasping with the shocking moments.

This was one of the most thrilling thrillers I’ve read in awhile. The atmosphere was amazing, you could almost feel and smell the ocean and could picture it all perfectly in your head. The characters were well developed and I loved getting to read the backstory on every one of them that really painted the picture as a whole as to why they were the way they were.

One of the best thrillers of the year, hands down.

Huge amount of thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
I really liked this one! When you first read the synopsis, you think ‘oh, a deserted island, six people, and secrets. Sounds pretty standard to me.’ You’d be wrong! It does have that, but it’s also so much more.
Lux and her boyfriend Nico are hired to take 2 friends out to a remote and deserted island in the South Pacific. Sounds like an ideal getaway, but of course things are never what they seem.
They arrive to find another group there and at first it’s great. Until it isn’t. Until it becomes clear that everyone is hiding something, and not everyone will make it off the island.
I really enjoyed Rachel Hawkins’ first book The Wife Upstairs, but I liked this one even more.
Do yourself a solid and pick up a copy!

Six travelers find themselves exploring a rumored haunted remote island and what starts as a beachy vacation turns sinister when a body is found. I’ve never watched Survivor or Lost but I imagine if you liked either of those shows you’ll enjoy this book.

As the young travelers get to know one another and spend more time on the island, tension and anxiety levels begin to rise. The story alternates between past and present points of view from the various characters and you slowly piece together that everyone is hiding something.

This is a quick thrill with an ominous setting that will keep you flipping pages trying to figure out what will go wrong. I enjoyed it and it would make a great beach read if you have any warm winter vacations you’re planning!

Thank you St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for my advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Story: Lux McAllister and her boyfriend, Nico are hired to sail two women - Amma and Brittany to a remote island off the coast of Maui called Meroe Island which has a macabre history of cannibalism, murders and shipwrecks. Upon arrival, they are surprised to see another couple - Jake and Eliza - are already there. Soon, another stranger arrives and things begin to fall apart. One goes missing, another one turns up dead. Who among them is responsible? Is the island cursed?

My thoughts: Doesn’t this sound amazing?! Remote island and murders is definitely my kind of story! I loved the setting, and how the story was like a locked room mystery with a lot of suspense! The story is told from different POVs and past and present timelines. I liked it and I think it worked well.

I loved that they are flawed characters with many secrets, and this makes everyone a suspect! They partied a lot, drink a lot, lots of drama, petty arguments and I guess that is how things usually worked out when you have group of people who barely knew each other on a remote island.

There were some repetitive parts and it ended in a direction I did not expect but I think it worked considering the situation they were in.

Overall, I liked the story and it did give me some of The Beach vibes (a movie I watched a lot of times!), but I wish I enjoyed it more like I did with the author's previous book - The Wife Upstairs!


Pub. Date: Jan 4th, 2022

***Thank you St. Martin's Press, author Rachel Hawkins and NetGalley for this gifted copy to read and review. All opinions expressed are my own.***

This book had me hooked from the first page, until it didn’t. A lot happened and I mean a LOT and I might still be processing it but the ending was just underwhelming. With everything that happened I expected a better detailed ending, instead it was a bit vague and unbelievable. Talking about believable, some of those twist were confusing. Like how did Amma not say anything in the first place? IYKYK. Maybe I’m overthinking it too much but they weren’t super impressive. I think I was more in shock with Lux’s character development than any of the twists. She went from 0 to 100 real fast!
The majority of the characters were alright, didn’t love or hate them. Other than Lux , she was my favorite character, I sympathized with her a lot. I wish her the best lol

Okay okay. Negativity aside lol 🥴
I still enjoyed the book! It had me wanting to know how the characters were going to escape this cursed island!



Thank you to NetGalley for giving me an early copy in exchange for my honest review!

Lux and Nico want to sail around the world but need money to get their boat fixed. Brittany and Amma approach Nico with a proposition - for 50k they can fix his boat if they take them to a deserted island known for having a WWII airstrip. This place is a cross between Gilligan’s Island and Lost and it’s super creepy. A great book by Hawkins!

One-sentence summary:
Lux is stuck in a dead-end job when her boyfriend Nico is hired to sail two women to a remote island in the South Pacific, so she goes along only to find that they aren’t alone when they get there, and they may never make it off the island alive.

—------

This was the PERFECT beachy, vacay read, and I stayed up late into the night, determined to find out what was going to happen.

The first half is a slower burn, but I found it incredibly engaging. It was easy to connect with Lux, who is likable but lost after the recent death of her mother. She teeters on the verge of an unreliable narrator. At the very least, she is a character who isn’t quite sure who she is yet.

The backstory of Amma and Brittany, the two women who hire Nico and Lux to sail them to the island, is weaved in via ‘Before’ vignettes. This is how their secrets are slowly revealed during the forward-motion of the present-day island shenanigans – some of which are fun, some of which are eerie and unsettling.

As soon as the four adventurers arrive on the island, they run into a young couple who are wealthy, well-stocked with wine and out for a good time. Yet it was the arrival of the skeevy lone stranger – named Robbie – that I found to be the most fun. Once he came on the scene, the story had a terrifying CAPE FEAR feel that had me hooked.

This book reminded me a bit of THE WHITE LOTUS. In the beginning, Lux is scraping by while working at a resort hotel, dealing with the eccentricities of the wealthy. Soon, she is swept up in their drama. And like that show, this story touches on the vast differences between those who have and those who have not – and how between those two camps, justice and fairness is meted out so differently.

I found the ending to be rather perfect for the times we’re in. I won’t say more than that.

I’m a huge fan of Rachel Hawkins, and I’ll continue to read whatever she writes!

I highly recommend this for people who are looking for a fun, engaging thriller or are intrigued by the idea of a ‘locked island mystery.’ It’s great fun!

This is out Jan. 4th!

Thank you St. Martin’s Press and Rachel Hawkins for the ARC!

Lux followed her boyfriend Nico from California to Hawaii, lured by his promises of adventure aboard his sailboat Susannah. But after the boat is damaged, instead of turning to his super rich family for help, they've been stuck working dead end jobs struggling to save money for repairs. Then they meet Brittney and Amma, two college friends willing hire them for $50,000 to sail to an isolated island totally off the grid. But when they arrive another boat is already there, a luxury yacht, and another couple curious about the island and it's curse. Meroe island is named for the shipwreck of that name, where only a few of the sailors were rescued after cannibalizing the rest. After spending time there themselves, none of them are exactly what they seem, and after one is found dead and another missing, Lux starts to
wonder if any of them will survive the island.
Keep this book in mind as the perfect beach read... or even the perfect escape during this long cold winter. As creepy as the island itself sounded, the beautiful views, sandy beaches and inviting warm tropical water sound like the perfect getaway right now. Just maybe without all the murder! Ok, so they spend a lot of time hanging out getting to know each other, wandering through the jungle exploring, lazing on the beach until you wonder where the story is going and then bam! Everything seems to happen at once until you're left reeling and then, after everything is explained you're like ah, OK, I get it... and then it all falls apart again! What a wild ride! I absolutely love this eye-catching cover too.
I received a complimentary advance reader copy of this book. The views and opinions expressed in this review are completely my own and given voluntarily.

After working for months in Hawaii to save for ship repairs, Lux and her boyfriend, Nico, have finally been able to fix his boat and take two young women on a two-week trip to the deserted Meroe Island. With a sordid past, this island would ordinarily hold no appeal, as there is no fresh water and no edible food source. Further, its history dating to WWII isn’t for the faint of heart. But the money is good, and Lux is excited to start seeing the world as Nico had initially promised. But Lux sees things with rose-colored glasses, and it may just appear that her new friends, and Nico, aren’t what they first appeared to be.

I’m oddly addicted to reading books where people take off on a boat for freedom and exploration. So adding a mystery/thriller element adds an entirely new realm of possibilities. The bulk of reading this book felt like an ordinary storyline. We’re watching this group have fun, meet new friends, and explore the island. Then, when things start to feel comfortable, Hawkins throws a wrench into that comfort. I liked the alternating timelines, and I really enjoyed Lux’s voice. Overall, this is an enjoyable read that might surprise you.

Sadly, I didn’t love this one. I enjoyed the short chapters and the flashbacks definitely added to the plot. It started out strong but then I felt it became very predictable. The characters were annoying and didn’t have much depth. I saw the twist coming and the ending was very rushed. If you’re looking for a quick thriller, but nothing that’s going to knock your socks off, this one may be for you.

I am SO glad this book ended how it did. Good thriller with likable female characters that you can tell were written by a female author. Recently watched “promising young woman” and at some point kept thinking they had the same title. A similar but lighter vibe for me. So appreciate the read netgalley, stmartinspress and Rachel Hawkins!

Thanks to St Martins Press for the ARC of this book!! All opinions are my own.

Can I just say, you will not expect this ending!

I made so many notes of my predictions throughout and they were all wrong. But no spoilers here so let’s not talk about that.

This is actually the first Rachel Hawkins book I’ve read (Her Royal Highness has been sitting on my shelf though) and I really enjoyed her writing style. The flow of the timeline is perfect. She peppered in backstories where they would have the most effect. Hawkins also kept the pacing going perfectly. Just when you think things may start to drag, she says absolutely not!

The plot was gripping, I read the whole thing in a day. I’ve never really read a murder mystery thriller-esque book before. And while I may have been stressed out by it, I certainly enjoyed it.

I only took off a star because it just didn’t have the full five star effect for me but I know people are going to love this one. And you only have to wait a few more days for this one as it releases on January 4th!

Life's a beach and then...…

A remote island, friends, fun, sand, sunshine, and the blue, blue sea...what more could you ask for?

Lux and her boyfriend, Nico are hired by Brittany and Amma to take them to Meroe Island, a secluded island with a dark history. It's off the beaten path, and they want to do something different. Lux had just lost her job and although slightly uneasy about the trip, she agrees as Nico is onboard with it. So they set sail, in Nico's boat the Savannah. One they get to the picture-perfect island; they see that they are not alone. There is a yacht anchored there. Jake and Eliza are on board and soon the 6 are fast friends - exploring and hanging out by day, drinking, and partying at night. It seems like the perfect getaway until a stranger arrives and things begin to change.

Now their perfect getaway is less than perfect. Things begin to be strained, relationships are tested, and doubt sets in. They all begin to feel the weight of what it means to be truly cut off from civilization. Island Fever x 10!

This was pure escapism reading for me. I found it easy to be drawn into the story. I felt as if I was a silent observer on the beach with them, wondering how much booze can one boat hold? Plus, who owns the Savannah. Didn't Jake have the boat put in Savannah's name for tax purposes.... doesn’t that make it her boat? Then he says it is his boat and she doesn't blink an eye. That was strange for me. Maybe I missed something or maybe the editor did. Little things like that drive me crazy. But I digress....

Call me a reckless girl, well on second thought maybe you shouldn't, but I enjoyed this book. Does it go off the rails a little? Yes. Additionally, it had a reveal that I did not see coming. Honestly, I did not see a couple of the twists coming. There was one I saw coming from a mile away but otherwise, things took me by surprise. Probably because some things came out of left field. There needs to be a degree of suspension of disbelief in the book - especially toward the end.

This was a fast read that sucked me in and shocked me. Again, pure escapism reading. Throw all good reasoning out the window and suspend some disbelief and go into this for the island escape it offers.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.