***4.5 ⭐️***

This gothic suspense is just what the doctor ordered this spooky season.... ok, that was a little dramatic but still a good read.

Emily and Chess are childhood friends (and sometimes enemies), both authors, and both successful in their careers; however, Emily is going through a nasty divorce, and Chess feels like it's her duty to cheer up her friend. Chess invites Emily to Villa Aestas to get some sun, relax from their lives, and maybe be inspired to write another book. This is exactly what Emily does - write a book about the murder that occurred in the same villa she and Chess are currently staying in and unearths a key piece of information as to what really happened that fateful night in 1974.

This book is told in dual timeline sequence, and the characters of Emily and Chess do bear a striking resemblance to Mari and Lara (the women from the past timeline) in terms of how they perceive each other's relationship together as well as other people in their orbit; Emily is steadfast, caring, and future oriented, while Chess is flighty, emotional, and spontaneous. By the end, it is quite obvious what parallels these four women share. I was a little uncertain as to how the "twist" occurred near the end, as there was no explanation and only Chess was quoted as being upset about it, and had there been a bit more detail there, I would have rated this book 5 stars.

This book has been touted as being inspired by "Fleetwood Mac, the Manson murders, and the infamous summer Percy and Mary Shelley spent with Lord Byron at a Lake Geneva castle." While I am not too familiar with the last inspiration, I can definitely see the influences of a well-known band of the time period and cult-ish shenanigans.

This ARC was provided by the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

This one kept me on my toes!! I really enjoyed the gothic thread of this one and the intertwined mystery involved. Did not guess the ending!

Thank you NetGalley for granting me access to this title. This book was okay. I found myself getting confused with the different plots and timelines. The main character was a little annoying and I feel that the ending was unrealistic. Not to spoil anything but if my best friend did something horrible to me like that, I would not be forgiving her…..

Thanks to NetGalley for my gifted copy of this book.
DNFd at 20%. Just couldn’t get into it. It was definitely not my jam.

This is a very slow burn suspense. While I enjoyed the story, I wish we had a bit more of local Italian culture built into it. The story really could have happened anywhere, it was so insular.

Two old friends Emily and Chess head to Italy for an unforgettable summer together. In the meantime, the story flashes back to 1974 and the folks who stayed in the same Villa and tragic outcomes of their visit.

There's a bit of "how good of friends are Emily and Chess" and some parallels between their relationship and what happened in the Villa years ago.

Was a bit slow going for me.

This ended up just being okay for me. I love the cover and the overall premise of this story. However, I found myself bored during the flashback chapters and wish we got more fleshed out scenes of the friendship of the main characters. If we got more of that, I feel like the twist at the end would have hit harder. I will continue to pick up this author, but this one just isn't my favorite of hers. Though she is so good at writing compulsively readable stories.

What can I say about Rachel Hawkins. There's a reason why we all know her name and quite frankly this book is just continued evidence of her skills. I enjoyed this novel and DEVOURED it. I'm super happy I read it and any Rachel Hawkins completist will enjoy it as well.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! No spoilers. Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to. Truly Amazing and appreciated the whole story. This is going to be a must read for many many readers. Maybe even a book club pick. Our library purchased and our patrons have been checking out and and enjoying the book. I see it is a popular book club choice as well we hope to have more oppurtinies to support authors like them

🛁 𝚁𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠 🛁
The Villa by Rachel Hawkins
“She had forgotten, as we all do, that beautiful things can contain their own darkness.”
“Houses remember.”

Synopsis: A story within a story within a story, the Villa tells the stories of Villa Rosato. First, of Chess and Emily, two friends who visit a villa in Italy historic for a famous murder committed there years before. Second, the stories of Mari, Lara, Pierce, Noel, and Johnnie, the players in that fateful night years before. And third, Lilith Rising - the novel Mari wrote while staying there the summer everything went dark.

I don’t know what I expected going into this book, but I certainly wasn’t expecting the absolute FEAT it was. Wow, I am blown away.

I have read all of Rachel Hawkins thrillers - I loved The Wife Upstairs, was meh on Reckless Girls, but The Villa was a breed all its own. So smartly written, so beautifully composed and structured. The stories within stories lent themselves so well to the present-day plot line so beautifully that the story unfolded in a way that you couldn’t put it down.

The thing I loved the most about this book is that it didn’t really have a happy ending. Our protagonist, Emily, doesn’t necessarily end up with everything she wanted. But her story mirrors that of Mari’s in the past that makes you truly understand the phrase “history repeats itself.”

If you like historical thrillers, psychological thrillers, contemporary fiction, and unreliable narrators - you simply MUST close out your summer reading with this fantastic book. Bravo, Rachel Hawkins!📚✨🛁

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for this eARC of The Villa by Rachel Hawkins in exchange for my honest review.

Emily and Chess are BFFs who decide to spend a summer together in Orvieto, Italy at the Villa Aestas. Sounds like a dream, except the Villa has a dark past, and it may come back to haunt them...

This was a slow burn, and yet I found myself unable to stop reading. Emily and Chess's dynamic seemed obvious, but then it kept surprising me in its complexity. I also thought I KNEW where the ending was headed, but I was seriously surprised. I still don't know what to think and how to feel. I don't love mysteries with an ambiguous ending, but I did like this one. I think ultimately I enjoyed it a lot, but for all the build-up I wanted more of a splash ending. It felt a little anticlimactic for both storylines. However, I enjoyed this a lot and highly recommend, especially if you enjoy books *partially* set in the 70s and atmospheric settings that aren't super creepy. Nothing goes bump in the night here!

In my pregnancy I shifted my reading time to baby research and was not able to review what was on my shelf. I apologize as I know the number of copies you can give out is limited and would never have intentionally ignored this copy under normal circumstances. I am rating this as 5 stars as it is not the author or publishers fault I was not able to meet this timeline, and hope that you will give me another chance in the future to review as I am back into my regular reading schedule this year after adapting to the newborn life!

I'm always a fan of a duel timeline and this was not exception. This book was a bit slow to start but picked up quickly. An excellent psychological thriller, but nothing to crazy or intense. I loved how cleverly the timelines were woven together, which made it a very fun and quick read.

This book was an entertaining thriller and read like a gothic romance. I enjoyed the dual point of view format and felt it advanced the plot well. I loved the time period (70s) and found myself very invested in the characters. The ending seemed a bit rushed but did not disappoint. I will for sure be picking up more books from this author.

Love a dual timeline and slow burn! Rachel Hawkins is a master of her craft and every book of hers is a joy to read.

While I’ve loved her other works this one didn’t hit as hard for me. However with my relaxed personality and reading ratings it’s still an easy four star read. As long as I enjoy I’ll pass along the good mentions for any book

Great, quick thriller for the warmer months. Nothing ground breaking about this concept but highly enjoyable.

Sex, Drugs, Rock & Roll, and Murder - If these topics interest you, you'll enjoy this book!

This book by Rachel Hawkins was a miss for me. The dueling timelines did not hold my interest and I did not like the main characters Emily and Chess. There were a few points during the story that I thought things might pick up, but it just wasn't so. While it wasn't for me, there are plenty of higher rated reviews and people seem to love it - you might too!

Thank you to the author, publishers, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Holy smokes! I've had this one for a while and am totally kicking myself for waiting to read it. It's good. Like real good. It's dark and suspenseful and gives off those Gothic romance vibes that I adore. I loved every word. The dual stories, taking place in 1974 and today, fed off each other. And the twist at the end? GENIUS! I loved this!

While this wasn’t the worst book that I’ve ever read, I think I’d have to say it’s my least loved Rachel Hawkins Novel. However, I will keep reading her!!

I really enjoyed The Villa and finished it in less than a day. It was gripping and had the right amount of twists and turns along the way. This is my first mystery thriller of Rachel Hawkins but it will definitely not be the last. Highly recommend!

I had a chance to listen to some of this via audio and the audiobook adds another level, so I recommend checking that out as well!