Childhood best friends Emily and Chess take a much-needed trip to reconnect in a Villa in Italy. What they hadn’t expected was the murder that occurred in the same villa decades before.

Flashback to the 1970’s when a rockstar, his girlfriend and their friends take ‘sex, drugs and rock n’ roll’ to a sinister level leaving one of them murdered.

Unfortunately, this was a very slow burn and I was left underwhelmed. This reads more like a mystery than a thriller, which would have been fine if the pacing and plot were more entertaining.

What I Liked:
-Atmospheric setting in Italy
-Story within a story
-Dual timelines and perspectives
-True crime Podcast element + articles
-Audiobook cast of narrators (including the Queen, Julia Whelan)

Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this book!

Those fascinated by classic, gothic literature and the women who wrote it will love this twisted tale inspired by Mary Shelley, Fleetwood Mac, and gothic literature and art whose messages carry more than meets the eye.

The setting is a lovely and idyllic foil for the secrets abounding in this lighter-but-still-intriguing suspense story from a wonderful writer!

“She’s inevitable.”

Rachel Hawkins did it again 👏 I’ve been a huge fan since The Wife Upstairs and I think, thriller wise, The Villa became my new fave. It, just like Hawkins, if pure BRILLIANCE.

It really won’t be a surprise why I loved this so much - with it’s focus on Mari, a woman who took the horror world by storm with Lilith Rising, à la Mary Shelley, all the tie ins to Shelley’s own story, and the focus on women and the art they create.

The book was incredibly atmospheric and made me wish I was in Italy, enjoying limoncello and soaking in the inspiration Villa Aestas. I loved both timelines so much and watching how one influenced the other - from Mari going through her normal motions of what would become an infamous summer, to Emily becoming obsessed with Lilith Rising and uncovering what really happened that summer. There’s also another layer of similarity as each woman navigates a complicated relationship with the closest woman in their life.


I loved how everything tied up. It was equal parts satisfying and nefarious. The moment I finished, I wished I could read it again. For me, this book is the epitome of “no thoughts, just vibes”. If you love feminist thrillers, horror, complicated characters and relationships, you NEED this in your life.

If you need me, I’ll be figuring out how I can fit in a read of Frankenstein in soon 🤞

First off, thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to read this before it hits shelves early next year (01/03/2023). I'll admit that The Wife Upstairs has been on my TBR for ages and I have yet to read it. When this one popped up though, I immediately requested the ARC. Look at the gorgeous cover!

My rating: 3.5/5 ⭐

Two women, both authors, have been best friends forever but aren't quite as close as they once were. One is a complete success and the other is having a rough time (divorce, health problems, etc.). In an attempt to rekindle their relationship and work on their respective projects, they take a summer trip to Italy. Where do they stay? Only a villa where, in the 1970s, a murder involving a group of famous artist-types took place.

This book explores the relationship of Emily and Chess in the present and dives into the mystery of the past. Renowned author Mari and her stepsister, famous singer-songwriter Lara, leave behind clues in their published works as to what went on in that fateful summer of 1974. In researching the history of the Villa, connections are made and secrets are uncovered.

The story was comprised of two different timelines, interspersed with some fictional news articles, literature, song lyrics, podcasts, etc. The configuration was a little "choppy" and all-over-the-place, making it hard to follow and instead of getting "lost in the story" I found myself just...getting a bit lost.

Emily has been through the ringer. She has been chronically ill, her husband cheated on her and wants a divorce and is trying to claim her book royalties. When she reconnects with her old friend Chess and she suggests a girls trip to Italy for six weeks at a Villa, she jumps at the chance.
.
The Villa is most famous for the murder that occurred there in 1974. Told in dual timelines all of the pieces start falling into place and she seriously nailed this ending.
.
Thank you @stmartinspress and @netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review
.
Get this on your radar for January 3rd!

3.5 stars. I received an ARC of this from NetGalley in exchange for a review. The cover is gorgeous & I loved the idea of 2 childhood besties spending a summer in an Italian villa. I was expecting more thriller from this, and I felt like the timeline from the 70s was particularly confusing. Overall, the character dynamics were interesting enough to keep me entertained. It just wasn’t the book I expected.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for the electronic advanced copy.

The Villa is a suspense/mystery set in a killer (ha) location. It's not a high stakes heart pounding thriller. I sometimes fill with these genres you need to know what you're getting into because expecting a page-turning murder-fest will leave you disappointed. However, the Italian villa setting is great. There are a couple of side mysteries that keep you guessing and the book is definitely not what it seems. You get multiple time periods and points of view. An exploration of friendship, feminism and family.

Rachel Hawkins is an auto buy author for me and was so excited to be approved for The Villa. Unfortunately it was just ok. I really liked the plot, but the execution fell short. I did really enjoy the dual timelines and the musical artist element. I just did not enjoy the ending. It's still a super fast paced read, and would recommend people to read it themselves.

Chess and Emily have been friends forever. Chess is a successful self-help writer and Emily is a cozy mystery writer who is coming off a bad marriage. Chess proposes that they spent six weeks in Italy and Emily accepts. They travel to a villa where a musician was murdered in the 1970s. The story is told from dual timelines—Emily and Chess in present day and Mari, the murdered musician’s girlfriend, who writes about that fateful summer. I have read Rachel Hawkins before but this was my favorite. Though there are some brutal scenes and R rated language, all of it seems appropriate and necessary to the narrative. I thank NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC.

The Villa by Rachel Hawkins

The Villa is a slow burning thriller story dealing with two time periods that end up meshing together. In 1974 three rock singers two writers and a 5th wheel come to Villa Aestas which a homicide takes place. Two best friends Emily and Chess who have known each other since being kids. They meet up at the Villa for Emily just recovering from illness and a divorce they meet to get their writing juices flowing again. This story alternates between timelines, Mari in the past and Emily in the present day.

I thought the creepiness of the house would of played more of a role in the story otherwise to me it just a villa a missed opportunity here for the house being part of the story more. It would have added to the story and I believe would have made the story better. Why talk about the Villa when the Villa isn't the story what happens in the Villa is.

The story was told through the eyes of Mari and Emily, the narrative alternates between the past in the 1970s and the present. I was bored with the narratives which made me not like the characters. I know the book was written within a story in a story that just did not work for me.

I know some people will love this book and for them I recommend it to them. I would like to read more from this author even though this one did not work for me. I felt some of the dialogue between characters became annoying. Just because I didn't like the book doesn't mean others shouldn't read this. This was a 2 star read for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for a free copy of The Villa for an honest review. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I've enjoyed Rachel Hawkins' work in the past, and "The Villa" was another fantastic novel. Centered around complicated relationships and the happenings in an Italian Villa, Hawkins seamlessly merges the past with the present, uncovering the truth behind a long-ag0 murder and current relationship issues between friends.
This was a fast, engrossing read that I lost sleep to finish - and found it to be totally worth it!

100 pages in was my first and only “oh my god” moment.. the first half is VERY SLOW I really did not want to finish this book but I’m glad I did. OBSESSED with the cover and can’t wait to read more Rachel Hawkins, as this is my first. Present POV was much more intriguing to read than past POV. Was not a fan of the ending at all ☹️

This story revolves around current and former guests staying at a picturesque Italian villa where
things aren’t as pleasant as they seem.

I had a really hard time getting through this book. I felt like the first 2/3rd of the story dragged on and left me feeling uninterested in the rest. I also struggled to connect with the characters, each of whom have their own toxic traits. The “friendship” between two of the main characters didn’t seem to be a friendship at all and left me wondering why they were even friends in the first place. I also didn’t like the chapters involving the 70’s timeline which were a bit dull and I found myself wanting to rush through them so I could get back to the current timeline.

The ending leaves you with some unanswered questions which was also a little disappointing.

Overall this book just wasn’t for me, but I do thank NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book to review. The Villa follows writers and old friends Chess and Emmy on a whirlwind vacation to the picturesque Villa Aestas in the Italian countryside. But what had been planned as a writer's retreat between two friends takes a dark turn. This book had two of my absolute favorite book elements: multiple timelines and multiple different styles of writing. While the beginning was slow, the ending had me in a death grip for sure. Overall, a very strong thriller and definite hit for Rachel Hawkins.

Emily and Chess are both famous, successful writers, & they’re best friends since childhood. it’s become a toxic friendship. Chess is newly rich, Emily is newly divorced, & they decide to rent a house together for the summer in Italy to write. the house is the site of a past murder. structure of book alternates between past murder & current plot. started out strong in the beginning. middle dragged a bit. twist & ending made it all worth it. despite taking place in an Italian summer, not much sense of place unfortunately. somewhere between 3 or 4 stars. content warnings for murder, pregnancy, & toxic relationship(s).

Holy cow, I loved this! The parallel/dual timelines. The added media for depth and exposition. Chess is a fucking psycho, and I had a friend like her that I got rid of in my 20s. Such a quick read, gonna be a perfect beach read. I was totally angry at parts. Ugh so good

I loved this book and I couldn’t put it down!

I’m not sure exactly what made this so enjoyable for me, but I loved the storyline, the dual timelines, the mystery, the setting and the character development. There were so many characters that I couldn’t tell if I loved them or hated them, but either way, I still wanted to keep reading about them.

I will definitely be reading her next book!

Thanks NetGalley and publisher for the digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

Two best friends in their 30's - one now a celebrity - spend the summer in a rented villa in Italy where a murder took place in the 1970's. The Villa interweaves the story from the 1970's with the modern day story. I never connected with the 1970's story and although the modern day story was interesting, the friendship was also infuriating. This book didn't have the suspense that I'm looking for in a thriller but it did have an interesting twist.

Between the dual time storyline and the dark vibes, this was probably my favorite Rachel Hawkins. I loved the introduction with the bits of a famous horror novel written in the 70s.
Then we have two best friends, but they have grown apart. One girl famously rich and life is going well. The other recently blindsided by divorce and failing at her writing career.
They travel to Italy for the summer and find out that the horror novel was written in the same villa.
The story was pretty predictable, but I still enjoyed the read and all of the crazy characters.

The Villa is ‘thriller-meets-‘Daisy Jones and the Six’ and I’m here for it. I loved the back and forth between 1974 and present, and the way they intertwined. Well written, characters with enough believable flaws that you can’t tell who is the good guy.