When a small group of new friends plan to sail to an island with a mysterious past, they are expecting the trip of a lifetime. But what happens instead will change the course of their futures forever . . . for those that get them.

There’s just something about Rachel Hawkins’s thrillers that have me absolutely ADDICTED. Between this one and The Wife Upstairs, I am 2 for 2 on favorite thrillers. Reckless Girls had everything I love seeing in thrillers - multiple POVs, awful characters, an isolated setting, and so many plot twists I didn’t see coming. I loved the main character, Lux, and her strong personality. She definitely wasn’t likable at times, but I personally love unlikable characters in thrillers. I ate this book up and cannot believe I waited so long to read it!

CW for murder, violence, blood, dead bodies, cheating, loss of loved one, cancer.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC of Reckless Girls by Rachel Hawkins!

WHOA. What a fast paced thriller.
Seriously, Rachel Hawkins kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. I tore through the pages so quickly they almost tore out of the book itself. The setting of the creepy haunted tropical island, uninhabited by man, with a WWII history, definitely drew me in. I loved it.
The characters were so well done in the sense that I hated them. Honestly. I hated all of them. At first, of course, like any reader, I was definitely team Lux. How could you not be? Adventurous with the haunted past, the daddy issues, the wild spirit. I hated Nico right off the bat, because who doesn't know someone like Nico? You hate him on principle. I didn't want him dead, necessarily, but I knew ultimately that was what was coming.
Amma and Brittany. What a weird friendship. I liked that the book had multiple POV's and alternating timelines without making it too complicated to keep up with. I liked seeing both Amma and Brittany's side of their European adventure, before the island. But here's where Reckless Girls kind of lost me- why didn't Amma recognize Chloe when she saw her again? If she did, why didn't she make a bigger deal of it? I was so confused by that. Because surely, that's a red flag if I ever saw one.

Moving on to Eliza/Chloe and Jake. I mean, I see the motive there. It's understandable. It's cringe-y and weird, but I see it. Their whole relationship was odd to me, and out of all the characters, I think it was Jake's that I felt the most sorry for. He didn't know better. He was raised in wealth, and no repercussions.
Nico, what a bum. An absolute bum. His character absolutely infuriated me. Way to flirt with Amma right in front of your girlfriend, and then SLEEP WITH HER. But on that same note, I was deeply disappointed with Lux for taking the bait and sleeping with Jake, too. I thought you were better than that, Lux. I WAS ROOTING FOR YOU.

Another, maybe minor, plot hole to the book was the interview at the end. She had said that the island decayed the bodies, but wouldn't that be determined by forensics that there were gunshot wounds? Machete wounds? Just seemed weird to me, unless of course the bodies were decayed considerably. But even then, bones always tell the truth.

Overall- I deeply enjoy Rachel Hawkins and I can't wait for her next book!

Make sure you don’t have any other plans when you pick up this book to read because reading it is all you will want to do. Full of tension when fun becomes murder.

I really enjoyed the wife upstairs so I was excited for this read! I really enjoyed how it was so fast paced and it kept me on my toes!

I absolutely loved this book! I found it hard to put down. I highly recommend reading it! You won’t be disappointed.

Literally need to set a reminder to never traveled to a deserted island with this group of people, huh?! This was a quick, fast-paced thriller that is full of suspicious characters and suspense. I loved the setting. I loved the unexpected, surprise ending. I couldn’t get enough of this book and I think that Rachel Hawkins is a new “auto buy” author for me!

Reckless Girls was a hundred shades of WILD, y’all. This book was so good, but super fucked up at the same time.

The story is told from the first person POV of Lux in the present, and third person flashbacks from other characters central to the story. As always, I loved the multiple POVs and the non-linear timeline.

When Lux and her boyfriend, Nico, are approached by a couple of girls to charter a boat to an abandoned island, Meroe Island, and three day sail away, Lux sees it as her chance to finally get out of Hawaii and convince Nico it’s time to embark on their grand sailing adventure.

But not everything is as it seems with the two girls, Brittany and Amma, and when they arrive at the island to find a couple already anchored there, things only get weirder. And after one final arrival, what Lux thought was going to be a relaxing vacation on a deserted island turns deadly in a hurry.

This book was twisty. I absolutely loved getting to guess how each of these characters fit into the grand scheme of things, and how it would all end. Hawkins wove an incredibly clear story, where I could easily picture myself on the beaches, hacking my way through the jungle, or anchored in the cove of Meroe Island.

“…this island doesn’t twist people up. It just turns them into the purest version of themselves, hones them like a knife’s blade.”


While the story was full of secrets and lies, deceit and betrayal, with complicated relationships between each of the characters, I have to admit I was a little disappointed at how predictable it tended to be. I wasn’t surprised by any of the big reveals, and wish some things had been a bit better explained in the end.

That said, I really did enjoy this one. It was a quick read, keeping me hooked throughout. Reckless Girls gets a stamp of approval from me.

This was a fun beach read. Even though I couldn't stand a couple of the characters (you'll know which ones), I was still entertained. I didn't really consider this a thriller, but the author did a good job with creating the atmosphere. Thank you Netgalley!

The perfect beach read!

I loved this concept of a deserted island and the people you meet on vacation. It took me on a wild ride and was full of drama. While some parts seemed a little far-fetched, I couldn't put it down and it was great escape to the tropics this winter. Thank you NetGalley, the author and the publisher for my e-arc of this entertaining read.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read this book! I enjoyed this one and thought it was really nicely written and enjoyed just about as much as the last one. Cannot wait to read her next one!

Told in first and third person by multiple narrators, this story has a closed room, or island, style setting. I found the timeline a little confusing with its “Before” and “Now” labels, but I understand the necessity of it to provide ambiguity in order to obscure connections that the reader may infer too early that will spoil the mystery. I enjoyed the characters for the most part, some unlikeable and some rootable, even though I felt like it should have been titled “Feckless Douchebags” most of the time.

Throughout the majority of the novel, I kept getting this reminiscent feeling from the atmosphere that “I think I saw this movie” and while I kept racking my brains to try to remember the old movie that it reminded me of, I just couldn’t quite get my memory to go back far enough. I was elated when I read the author’s note at the end to see that it was inspired by the book “And The Sea Will Tell” and it dates me to say that I had a VHS copy of the mini-series that was based on many years ago and watched it many times. Recommended to closed room mystery/thriller lovers that can suspend their annoyance at a few bone-headed decisions, douchebags and Reckless Girls.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the free copy provided for an honest review.

I read this book in one sitting. I could not put it down. These are the kind of books I love, when you hate all the characters, none of them having a single redeeming quality.. When you want to reach into the book and say stop being so stupid. This book did that for me.

This book follows a a couple and 2 friends who want an adventure "Off the beaten path". Nico and Lux trade their guiding/sailing services for repairs on their boat. They take Brittnay and Amma out to a Atoll in the middle of the pacific ocean, 3 days from anyone else. But there just happens to be another boat at the Atoll. And then shockingly a 3rd boat shows up.

If you want messy drama this may be the book for you. You aren't sure who you can trust, or who is even telling the truth. I did have to suspend my disbelief for this book to work, but I still think it was worth the read.

9/10 would absolutely recommend

What this book had going for it:
-great setting
-easily readable in a few hours
-some very unlikeable characters (that's not for everyone but it is for me)

What wasn't great:
-one character that is so flip floppy in her moral code, she just totally goes dark at the end
-you find out later that 3 people knew each other but they didn't think to warn others?

I wouldn't call it a thriller. The thrilling parts were only at the end so I'd call it more just a contemporary

a far fetched mystery with too many coincidences (+ plot holes) and an island that is too good to be true.

Really enjoyed this thriller! The setting was so peaceful and beautifully described, and all the drama was even better! Would highly recommend

I hate to say this one didn't really do it for me. I though the setting was fun and different, and it was pretty engaging, but something about the plot just didn't work for me. I really enjoyed her previous book though, so I'll definitely read with Rachel Hawkins comes out with next!

2.5/5 stars, rounded up to 3
I was intrigued by the premise of a deserted island thriller, and this book certainly pulled me along at a fast pace -- until the last third of the book. As with most mysteries these days, in my opinion, the attempts to get wild with the end just fall flat into nonsense and leave me feeling "meh" about the whole thing. I also don't think I needed all of the attempts at going back in time and building a backstory for the characters that were secondary - that's 4 other people outside of Nico and Lux, and really Lux was the main character. My overall feel about it is "meh".

LOVED this! Reminds me of DANGEROUS GIRLS by Abigail Haas - very different premises and characters, but the vibe of secrets & sunshine is the same, and I'd definitely recommend that one if you enjoyed this.

I just can't get enough of girls with secrets & toxic friendships & murder - SO GOOD! This one starts off with a pretty quick pace and doesn't let up, with some chapters being set "Before" and some being set "Now". I loved this setup, and always enjoy stories that go back in time to reveal secrets for the reader as things progress - it was done so well here!

Lots of quotable tidbits as well about feminism & how difficult it is being a woman in a "man's world" -- especially a rich, white man's world. I will say the cast was a bit white - not a single POC in the book that I can remember?? But the story was still enjoyable, def one of my fav thrillers of the year.

Lux McAllister followed her boyfriend Nic to Hawaii with dreams of sailing around on his boat, the Susannah. Unfortunately an accident left the boat with damage that they were unable to afford to fix, halting any further travel plans. Lux is working a dead end job and itching for adventure. One day, her boyfriend Nic, is approached by 2 women named Amma and Brittany asking him to charter them to a private location called Meroe Island. There is a seedy history surrounding the island filled with death, murder and cannibalism. Lux jumps on the chance and throws in as part of the deal, that the women will cover the boat repairs for the Susannah and they will agree to charter them. They agree. Before they know it they all set off toward the island. When they arrive they are surprised to see another boat in the cove. They meet Jake and Eliza, a wealthy couple, and the 6 of them begin to get to know each other and explore the island. Then, another visitor named Robbie arrives and the good times are thrown off kilter and things begin to unravel.

The book started off strong! Captivating plot line, interesting characters and an amazing setting. It took hold of my interest and I was tearing through the pages to find out what was going to happen next. However at some point things turned and there was some serious implausibility in the plot line. The ending was twisty, but overall felt underwhelming. It was a quick and engaging read though, so I will give it 4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley + St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for my personal review.

This book just kept getting weirder - and it was VERY hard to predict what might happen. While we got know a lot about these characters throughout the dual time lines of present and past, I felt like I didn't really know anyone at all, nor their intentions and motivations, which was a very interesting concept. I had no idea who to trust at all. Fully enjoyed this one.