A big thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s press for providing an advanced copy to read and review.

This was my favorite from Rachel Hawkins yet! I think it’s the epitome of what a modern gothic fiction should be.

I loved the mirroring of the historical story with the present. Both stories were captivating and included interesting and quirky characters. It also really made me want to read the other “books” and listen to the “album.”

I enjoyed the dual time lines of the lives at the Villa. This was one of her better books but I do still find her a bit wordy and can easily put the book down and pick it back up later, sometimes even a week or two later before i finish it. i do recommend this book as it was enjoyable.

What a fun thriller! I had a wonderful time with The Villa, and have enjoyed several of this authors previous titles as well. The story is presented in dual timelines, both taking place in an atmospheric villa near Orvieto, Italy with reflections of past events showing up in the present day timeline. I really connect with Rachel Hawkins writing style. It feels easy-going and breezy and the humor very much connects with me.

If you like stories about famous people or toxic friendships/relationships, this is definitely a good one to try! Even though all of the characters in the book were part of the rich and famous, something still felt relatable about them.

As far as plot development goes, nothing much in this story came as a surprise. It was pretty easy to surmise what was going to happen in the end. However, the strength of this book lies within the ominous, suspenseful atmosphere and toxic tensions between the characters and I felt that I didn't really need a good plot twist in this book.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. May favorite aspects were the lush Italian setting and the sheer amount of toxic behavior within the friendships. Oh, and I forgot to mention before,. there is a murder mystery! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. 4.5/5 stars

The Villa by Rachel Hawkins

⭐️⭐️⭐️

* Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for providing a digital copy of The Villa in exchange of a honest review.

A great suspense, without a big twist but so enjoyable to read! I love reading books about books. It was a very good summer soft thriller.

#bookstagram #bookstagrammer #booklover #booknerd #bookcommunity #canadianbookstagrammer

This was a great story within a story. I love the similarities and also the ambiguity to what really happened. I have enjoyed Hawkins other novels and this did not disappoint.
Thank you to NetGalley and thr publisher for thr advance reader copy.

“Houses remember.” What a great opening line that will keep you on the edge of your seat in this whodunit. It is reminiscent of the phrase, “if only the walls could talk.” Besties, Emily, a cozy fiction writer and (Jessica) Chess, a writer of self-help books are spending the summer at an Italian Villa that is notorious for being the place of a horrific murder in the early 70’s. Having grown distant, both are looking for time away to reconnect with each other what with Chess’ fame and Emily’s dissolution of her marriage amidst her dry patch in writing. They need a break and inspiration to write their own next book. In the library, Emily finds a book, written by Mari who was present during the famous murder of her musician boyfriend in 1974 and becomes obsessed with the connection to the Villa. Emily feels there may be more to the story than drugs and sex triangles involved, and believes that the house has clues. Chess is looking for new direction and wants to cowrite a book with Emily, which Emily resents. The more Emily becomes immersed in the mystery, the greater the tension blooms between Emily and Chess. Both Emily and Chess have secrets, but will that help them reclaim their close friendship or end it all?
I felt it was interesting to have a story within a story and one where they intertwined. This is a story that grabs you almost immediately and makes you second guess what you think you knew. What the author tells you is not always the actual story, introducing parallel narratives. Hawkins feeds you a bit of the story from one, only to switch narratives and have you find the connections and then later return to add more. The characters are well developed and lead to surprises you don’t see coming. I read this book fairly quickly as I couldn’t put it down. I was not disappointed. Grab this one today, it will be a great one to cozy up with and enjoy.

Many thanks to #netgalley #thevilla #rahcelhawkins #st.marinspres for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Loved reading this zippy engaging story set in Italy while I’m n Italy. Hawkins again delivers a well told story about two friends. In a villa an hour from Rome that has a murder in its past. Switch to a group of rockers in the 1970s and someone is sure to be in deathly trouble

This is not my favorite Hawkins book. I really liked Reckless Girls and The Wife Upstairs. I didn’t like any of the characters in this one. And, Em made my head explode. I could not stand that she stayed friends with Chess and shared the book. I didn’t believe a word that came out of Chess’s mouth.

The back story of Mari and co. was slow and a bit boring. And, ultimately very confusing. Why write a false narrative? I don’t get it.

I was also frustrated that we never found out what was making Em sick.

And, Matt? What, are the police in Italy dumb or something? No tox screen/autopsy? No way they get away with that.

Overall, just ok.

Thank you to Net Galley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Villa is a can't put down read that easily fuses two plot lines in a single thrilling tale. Hawkins easily transitions the reader between the events at "the murder house" in 1974 and those taking place in the present day summer as two best friends visit and investigate the history of the Italian Villa.

The writing is beautiful and the characters are each mesmerizing; the reader cannot help but empathize with each of them, no matter how flawed. The historic, cultural, and literary nods are perfectly woven with the narrative, so as not to seem forced. Although the plotline of the 1970s foreshadows some of the present day events, there are enough twists and turns to keep the reader wanting more.

This is my first Rachel Hawkins novel, but it surely will not be the last. I cannot wait to pick up her earlier works. The Villa is a winner!

Review of Uncorrected Digital Galley

In 1974, Mari Godwick, her step-sister Lara Larchmont, and her boyfriend Pierce Sheldon accept the invitation of famous rocker Noel Gordon. Ostensibly, Noel and Pierce will be collaborating to write some new music. While they work on their music, Mari plans to write.

In the present day, Chess Chandler and Emily Sheridan, best friends since fourth grade, are at different ends of the writing spectrum. Chess’s successful self-help books have brought her significant recognition; Emily is struggling to finish the latest book in her Petal Bloom cozy mysteries series. And, adding to her difficulties, she’s embroiled in a disputatious divorce with her soon-to-be ex-husband, Matt.

Chess convinces Emily to join her at a villa in Italy for the summer; Emily hopes a change of scenery will provide some desperately-needed inspiration. Soon she finds herself ensconced in Villa Aestas where, she soon discovers, a murder took place many years ago.

Will they discover that houses really do remember?

=========

Told in two timelines, the story of Villa Rosato and the musicians takes place in 1974; the story of Villa Aestas and the women writers takes place in the present day. The intertwining of the events in the two timelines makes for an intriguing dual narrative that keeps those pages turning.

Well-developed, interesting characters, a compelling plot that brings a few surprises as the story unfolds, and a strong sense of place all work together to pull the reader into the telling of the tale. The intertwined timelines play out, often in unexpected ways, but the parallels between the past and present make for a masterful narrative.

Highly recommended.

I received a free copy of this eBook from St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley
#TheVilla #NetGalley

Rachel Hawkins' "The Villa" follows best friends Emily and Chess--both authors--on a summer abroad. Emily is healing both from a mysterious physical illness and a devastating breakup, and Chess is at the top of her game but wants a break with her bestie. They settle on six weeks in a villa in Italy, and soon learn that The Villa has a sinister (read: murderous) past.

This book took me four hours to read. I literally couldn't put it down. It's the perfect mashup of the way that "Helter Skelter" and "Daisy Jones and the Six" made me feel: both that fingernail-gnawing anxiety that comes with a murder among musicians, and the homey, dizzy feeling of wanting to be in the room with those musicians as they made magic before the mayhem.

Rachel did an excellent job of killing you (ha--pun intended) with the torture of switching POVs (and, in turn, timelines). Just when you were at the edge of your seat with one character, she'd pull you back to another person and time, only to snap your focus and concern on them so much so that you forget you cared about the previous POV at all. Until it was time to go back, that is. It was a lovely, at times maddening (in the best way!) back and forth.

(Also, I have to point out that I coincidentally read this book on July 29. If you know, you know.)

I SWORE I saw what was coming... I was so confident I could and I could see it all laid out in front of me only to experience some back to back whiplash in the last tenth of this book.

I loved this book! It kept my attention with twists. Told 2 stories side by side, but wasn’t confusing at all.

I’m so excited that I got to read Rachel Hawkins new book - The Villa out January 3rd 2023!

Emily is reeling from a divorce when her lifelong best friend whisks her away to Villa Aestas in Italy. Emily is a writer and has been stuck in a slump so this trip seems just like what she needs. Turns out there was a murder at the Villa in the 70’s and as Emily starts to dig she finds more than she bargained for.

I absolutely love it when a book transports me to a far away place. I’m not really up for world traveling but I love reading about far away places. This book transported me to Italy and I could taste the limoncello! I gave this book 4/5 stars because there were some layout issues I didn’t really care for. Just sometimes it wasn’t smooth which timeline I was in - but still an amazing read! Make sure to place this book on your radar for New Years! Special thanks to netgalley and the publisher for my e-ARC.

I loved the one! I have read Rachel Hawkins’ other books so I was very excited to see that she has a new novel coming. I loved the Wife Upstairs, Reckless Girls fell a little flat for me. But she definitely redeemed herself with The Villa!

In “The Villa” by Rachel Hawkins two best friends, Chess and Emily, head to a villa in Italy to work on their respective next books. But their home for the summer just happens to be the location of a murder that dates back to the 70’s – it is locally called the murder house. As curiosity gets the bet of Emily, she begins to think that there is more to the story then has been told. As she uncovers clues hidden in the villa, she does really begin to think that the house remembers.

I received this book through Net Galley and this is my honest opinion.

I loved this book so much! It made my nerdy English-major heart sing, and I applaud Hawkins for her reinvention of the Romantic poets as 1970s rock musicians. The Villa was a page-turner for me, and I really enjoyed the multi-genre format and dual-narratives of both Emily and Mari. In the modern narrative, Emily and her childhood best-friend, Chess, rent an Italian villa for the summer to work on their respective books. Emily writes cozy mysteries and is going through a contentious divorce, and Chess is writing a new nonfiction title with "Girl, Wash Your Face" vibes. When they're not working on their manuscripts, the friends explore their historic rental house where Pierce Sheldon was murdered in the summer of 1974. Emily finds some of Mari Godwin's writings in the house that inspire her to work on a new project about these famous musicians and the drama of that summer. I don't want to spoil the magic by giving too much else away; the 1970s narrative is so clever, and I especially loved seeing Lord Byron recast as a Jim Morrison-esque rocker. I think that fans of Daisy Jones and the Six will enjoy The Villa, as well as readers of historical dual-narratives. Thanks so much to Netgalley and St, Martin's Press for the librarian preview copy. This book will be published January 3, 2023, and I can't wait to add it to our collection!

This was a solid 3.5 for me, but worth rounding up to 4. The writing was good, the book was well-paced, I liked the two different timelines and I didn’t see how the stories would intersect until it happened. Ultimately the big reveals were not as satisfying as they could’ve been, otherwise it would’ve warranted a 4+ star rating on its own.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 rounded up to 4/5

Okay I hate that I am having to write this but I didn't enjoy this one that much. It felt like the plot was almost TOO much and sometimes hard to follow. It may have been the format that I read it in but I just couldn't get into it and I didn't find the twist all that shocking.

The villa switches between 1975 and current day in the same Villa in Italy. 1975c stepsisters Mark and Lara travel to the villa as somewhat of groupies with 2 rockstars- one famous, one trying to be famous. A nursed takes place and it seems pieces of information are missing. Current day, best friends, Chess and Emily visit the same Villa on holiday and take in interest in the Villa’s past. Will they be able to put all the pieces together to figure out what happened that night in 1975? This book was good, not great, it never really came together for me.