I have liked every book by Rachel Hawkins and this one may be my favorite! The two timelines are both interesting and worthy of having a separate book. There’s some good twists and turns and I highly enjoyed reading this book.

Holy smokes - once I got going on The Villa I could not put it down to save my life. There is SO MUCH going on here, and the bulk of it is messed up. Chess seems like a raging condescending B from pretty early on (and really, I'm not wrong by the end), but even I didn't expect her to be quite so awful. And Em has just enough mettle to keep it interesting. This is probably my favorite Rachel Hawkins, and that's saying quite a bit.

The Villa starts off with the haunting quote “Houses remember” which intrigued me, being a fan of good horror/thriller novels. However, The Villa didn’t horrify nor thrill me but did offer a few interesting twists so overall wouldn’t say you shouldn’t give it a try.

Childhood friends, (Emily and Chess) who have drifted apart, plan a trip to Villa Aestas in hopes to get some writing done as both are published writers however have had different levels of success with their work. The Villa happens to be the site of an infamous murder. Emily discovers hidden clues to what really happened during the ill-fated stay in 1974 of a group including a few famous musicians and step sisters, Mari and Lara (who eventually become famous in their own rite after the murder) and is inspired to use as the subject matter for a book. Tensions rise among Emily and Chess but culminate in a new tragedy at The Villa.

Overall a solid 3.5 for me. The story goes back and forth from Emily’s (current) POV and Mari (1974) but didn’t flow well in my opinion. I felt it was a slow build and struggled to keep my interest but the twists in the end do make it a worthwhile read.

Thanks to NetGalley and McMillan

The lemons on the cover enticed me to read this book--but of course, lemons on a cover are not going to keep anyone reading a bad book. So what kept me reading? The setting--Italy, hence the lemons--was part of it. I love visiting Italy, thinking about Italy, reading about Italy, and thinking about visiting Italy, so the setting played a big part. Even so, I'm not sure even a great setting like an Italian villa could have kept me engaged. But this STORY, ya'll . . . this story. There aren't that many books that I get so involved in that I skip lunch and other life events, but I just dropped out of life while I finished The Villa.

The author has deftly woven two stories from different eras but in the same villa together. Not really together, I suppose, but the first story has a strong impact on the second. Close friends Chess and Emily go on a girls' trip to a villa in Orvieto, staying in a villa with an infamous and mysterious history. While there, Emily gets drawn into the events from 1974, putting the present at risk.

I really didn't like the ending, to be honest, but it wasn't my story to tell, so I won't take away any stars. Aside from the ending, this book was darn near perfect.

ARC Review: The Villa by Rachel Hawkins

publication date January 3, 2023

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️ 5 stars

“Houses remember.”

I absolutely loved this book. It was a fast paced read that I kept finding myself picking up because I just couldn’t get enough.

This novel takes two stories (past and present) and intertwined them together in a way— surrounded by The Villa. Best friends/writers go away to Italy for the summer to draw inspiration. While there, they not only come to realize there was a murder here many years ago, but there are some similarities in a particular novel and the details surrounding that murder.

It did not disappoint! Put this one on your reading list.

The Villa will be available on January 3, 2023.

Thank you NetGalley, St Martin’s Press, and Rachel Hawkins for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Emily’s life seems to have taken a nosedive— divorcing her cheating husband, disillusioned with her writing career, recovering from a mysterious undiagnosed illness — when her best friend Chess invites her to Italy for a summer girls’ trip. The two stay at a “murder” villa where a musician was killed in the 1970s, and as Emily finds inspiration for her writing by digging into the dark history of the place, she begins to uncover what really happened in the summer of 1974. Meanwhile, the tension developing between Emily and Chess hints that there may be more betrayal brewing within the walls of the villa.

“Houses remember.”

The book switched between past and present timelines, which I don’t always like, but I found the use of it here to be very effective. All of the main characters were compelling, and even though I wasn’t crazy about the ending, this was an enjoyable read. Definitely a thriller worthy of binge-reading in one sitting!

Read this if you’re interested in:
🕯 Gothic suspense
🫶🏻 Female friendship
🎸 1970s rock stars
🔍 Mystery
💔 Betrayal
🪦 Murder
🍋 Spooky Italian villa

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
3.5/5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for an advance review copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

First of all thank you Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Sadly, I didn’t really connect with this book unlike other Rachel Hawkins novels. I was not drawn in to the novel and I struggled to connect with the characters. I do like reading about characters who write, however I was not impressed until about half way through the book. I guess you can call this book a slow-burn thriller. It started way too slowly for me, but in the end I am satisfied. Rachel Hawkins has a way with her words that will leave readers guessing who did what incorrectly. She knows how to write a good thriller, I just wish I liked this one more.

3 stars

Thank you to NetGalley, Rachel Hawkins, and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC of this book!

Like many others, the beginning of this book had me hooked and got me very excited but some aspects were a touch predictable. I really enjoyed the dual storylines. It's not my favorite book by Rachel Hawkins but was easy to read through in a day.

First of all THANK YOU SO MUCH to NetGalley for allowing me to ready this ARC!!! This is a definite 5 stars for me. I absolutely loved this storyline. Loved the characters and how the author kept me on the edge of my seat in both timelines just wanting to know how everything was going to turn out. I had all kinds of emotions on this one and I felt like I knew these characters. The twists and turns were so good and that is why I love this author. I have read all of Rachel Hawkins' books and she continues to get better and better with every release!!! WELL DONE RACHEL

Despite the incredibly long chapters, I tore through The Villa. It was a fast-paced story of a writer who is trying to rediscover her writing while on a vacation in Italy with her best friend. But the house they are staying at was the scene of a gruesome murder years before. With the present-day perspective of Em and Chess and the past perspective of Mari, Lara, and the gang of rock-n-rollers, there's a lot of good story here. The twists at the end happen at break neck speed and the ending was one I truly never saw coming. Push through the first few chapters, and you'll find a 4.5-star story you can't put down.

A thriller with a great cover and a vivid cast of characters. 👏🏻 (@stmartinspress #gifted)

This is like DAISY JONES & THE SIX but with murder. Rachel Hawkins WENT THERE with this one. Towards the end, I was saying, “Is she really going to do this?!” She did.

I wasn’t sure how I’d feel about it in the beginning, but I was pleasantly surprised. Around 40% in, it started to become a page-turner and some crazy theories began taking shape in my brain. It’s a very layered story, which worked in my favor and kept the wannabe detective in me at bay. I always predict things too early in thrillers and THE VILLA confused enough to keep that from happening. Hallelujah!

I ended up enjoying the past chapters most and could have read an entire book about those characters. I have nothing but raves about that side of the book. I had such fun!

Bonus points: there are fictional books in this story (a story collection and a true crime) that I desperately wish I could read.

This author is quickly becoming one of my favorites. I don't always love books told in more than one time line, but it really worked in this book. I found myself racing towards the ending, yet disappointed that it was over. I full on plan to reread this one again to see what I've missed. 10 out of 10.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Content warning: infant death and suicide

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s Publishing for sending this book for review consideration. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, so much so that I was finished with it in less than a day.

Emily is a writer down on her luck when her life-long friend Chess invites her on a vacation to the Villa Aestas in hills of Oriveto. A murder happened in the same villa in 1974 when stepsisters Mari and Lara stayed there with their rock n’ roll boyfriends. The novel becomes a story within the story as Emily realizes that Mari’s book, Lilith Rising, may have been based upon her experience during that infamous summer.

It was an easy, captivating read and one that I had trouble putting down. I truly felt like I was at the Villa with them. However, I found myself waiting for the sinister feel, which is where it fell short. The foreshadowing never came to fruition and the attempts at a spooky vibe were ambiguous. There were a few plot lines I felt that could have been developed more and the twists were also somewhat predictable. I wanted more of a shocking wow factor in the end after all the build up.

Overall, I enjoyed the book. I loved the characters and I think that is where the book thrived. Most of the characeters were relatable and I was fully invested in each of them. I also loved the mixed media format. There are various articles, song lyrics and more throughout the book which help make it a fun read.

Rachel Hawkins has a way of intertwining two stories that both have you invested and interested in what happens next. The Villa starts with two friends whom haven’t as of recent spent much time together because of differing lives yet, they take a trip to Italy where another story unfolded years ago. These stories or women writing and exploring stories and life was one of the best books I have read this year. I believe Rachel will continue to have success with her gift of storytelling.

The story is a great concept, but I think the execution missed the mark for me in a few ways. The Villa personifies "bookception"...it's a book within a book within another book, with two authors as the main characters. Tired yet? Hawkins tried to stuff too many stories within stories, which caused the main plot to become muddled and watered down. On the positive side though, the Italian setting is charming, and the idea running throughout the book that "houses remember" is an interesting theme.

The Plot: We begin with Emily, a struggling YA writer who's trying to find her way through a messy divorce and an unexplained bout of sickness. When her childhood best friend and now best-selling self-help author, Chess Chandler, invites her to come on an impromptu Italian summer vacation, Emily sees it as a chance to get some much-needed writing done. Besides, Villa Aestas (formerly Villa Rosato) where they'll be staying is home to the famous murder of Pierce Sheldon, a musician in the 1970's. While words do come to Emily and flow on the page like they haven't in some time, they're not necessarily the words she was meant to be writing. She's taken a different direction and has drawn inspiration from creative works that came out of the murder in 1974. Mari Godwick, Pierce's girlfriend, left behind a literary masterpiece in gothic horror, Lilith Rising, that feels ominously connected to the events surrounding the murder. Her stepsister, Lara Larchmont, spend her time Villa Rosato creating her platinum-selling album, Aestas, which also seems to hold clues to the truth of what happened that fateful summer.

As a reader, we experience this story through Emily's eyes in the present day, through Mari's narration in 1974, and through excerpts of her book and Lara's songs. One of the issues I had with this story is that it was very predictable. I wouldn't describe it as mysterious or thrilling, rather just dramatic. Emily's storyline drags at times and it's evident her friendship with Chess is very toxic, a problem that never gets resolved. The resolution to their friendship is something I can't get past and one of those plotlines that actually made me angry. Additionally, the way Mari's story wraps up is also completely unsatisfying and I believe the last chapter and final "twist" was a huge mistake that lessened the effect of the story's buildup entirely. I'd like to reiterate that The Villa had good bones and bright potential, but fell short in the execution of how events unfolded.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Rachel Hawkins for the ARC of The Villa!

In my opinion the Villa is Rachel Hawkins' best book to date. I enjoyed Reckless Girl and The Wife Upstairs, but for me this book is in a whole other category.

The novel is set in an idyllic villa in Italy and it bounces between two timelines, the present day and the summer of 1974. This is a story of art, love, betrayal, and the benefits and pitfalls of female friendship. While this book was inspired by Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, it is doesn't parallel it closely like The Wife Upstairs did with Jane Eyre, which made it much more enjoyable for me as a fan of classic lit.

I've seen some reviewers refer to this as a slow burn, but I was engaged from the start; not so much in the mystery or suspense as I was immersed in the characters, particularly Mari and the 1974 timeline (I found the present day narrative took awhile to heat up).

This is one of those books that has decent suspense, but also strong literary elements and fantastic writing. There is an air of supernatural and the themes are well paralleled between both Mari and Emily's timelines. As we often see with Hawkins, there is strong ties to feminism and an attempt to work outside the typical devices of the genre.

My first 5 star read in awhile and I look forward to seeing what Hawkins comes up with next.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for a free digital copy in exchange for a fair and honest review

This book was so much fun! I found myself reading it every chance I got, even while walking to work. I wanted to know what would happen next. The dual timelines kept it really interesting and they were never hard to follow. The characters had such distinct voices that I was never confused about which time period we were in. The story within the story within the story was a super interesting concept. The twists kept the story moving and the characters kept it interesting. I really enjoyed Rachel Hawkins's writing style; it was very easy to read. I will definitely be picking up another Rachel Hawkins in the near future!

The Villa is a nice read for a rainy afternoon. A little spooky, an easy read, Felt a bit long winded and predictable, but the ending did redeem it.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC for an honest review.

Told with dual story lines that crossed different time periods, this wove a really good mystery story. I loved the way everything was described, it was easy to picture it all in my head. The plot was full of twists and kept me guessing the whole time. This was an enjoyable read for me.

First, I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press in exchange for my honest review. Thank you!
I was very excited to read this book as I’ve been to Orvieto in Italy where this book takes place. I often have a hard time with detailed descriptions in books (I guess I have a horrible imagination??!!) but I could really visualize this story.
The book is told from two different points in time- 1974 and present day. It jumps back and forth with each.
I really liked the book and was surprised until the end. It kept me guessing and the more I read it, the more I was into the story.
It’s definitely got a female empowerment vibe and I was here for it!
I don’t think it was as much a “thriller” but more of a domestic suspense?
It’s a great read!