*Trigger Warning - domestic abuse*

This this is such a great read, assuming tropical vacations, murder, trauma and twists are your thing, too!

Darcy, Kate, and Camilla share perspectives in this twisty novel and readers spend the bulk of the text in the Maldives with them. After all, where better for these pals to celebrate Darcy's divorce? This may sound like the basis for How Darcy Got Her Groove Back, but this could not be further from the reality of this book.

Carver leads readers through time, trauma, twists, and perspectives to reveal what unifies these characters. Kate's story is easiest to jump into at first because Carver reveals her immediate experience as a survivor of a mass killing over 20 years earlier. As the sole survivor, Kate is, of course, indelibly marked and riddled with guilt. She's terrorized by more than just memories. Fortunately, she has these two excellent pals to help her continue processing her past, though, admittedly, they do this in pretty unconventional ways.

In addition to these three, there are a number of other compelling and questionable characters, including but not limited to a very troubled newlywed couple, Darcy's ex and their children, an investigator, a love interest, and several very attentive hotel staffers. Oh, and some hardcore criminals.

This is the kind of thriller that I tore through and when I wasn't reading it, I was thinking about it. Though the end was a little disappointing for me, it's not a bust, and the journey was well worth it.

This was a quick read; a story about three women brought together through tragedy, who vacation in the Maldives. Each one is running from something.

I thought this was a fast paced thriller with a couple decent twists. I enjoyed the characters and the little tidbits dropped to help the reader solve the mystery at the heart of the story.

Thank you Simon and Schuster for the arc. The cover drew me in to BAD TOURISTS and I thought it could be a fun beach read, but it fell flat for me.

The characters were annoying imo and didn’t have many redeeming qualities. I was bored for most of the story. It did pick up towards the end with a lot of action and gore but unfortunately that wasn’t enough for me. I wanted more twists, but found it to be too predictable and not unique.

This was a very engaging read that I finished in one day. The setting was amazing and made me want to go on a luxury vacation in the Maldives, or some other beautiful, remote locale. The plot had plenty of twists and turns, and while the ultimate twist was something I did pick up on ahead of time, it was subtle enough that I didn't feel like the mystery was ruined.

The characters in the book truly live up to the title. I did not envy the resort manager her job of managing all the drama, accusations, special requests, violent outbursts, and of course, dead bodies.

The only thing that I found distracting was the author's choice of writing most of the book in 3rd person, except for the chapters from Jade's perspective, which were written in 1st person. What was the intent behind that? I couldn't find an obvious rationale for it.

Three friends go to the Maldives to celebrate the divorce of one of them. Their friendship is built on grief from a horrible massacre though, and they are convinced the true culprit was never caught. As events unfolds, they start to question who they can trust.

Overall, I thought this was a good read! I will say it is not super suspenseful in my opinion. The synopsis makes it seem like the body shows up early-ish in the book, but it is really much later. So it is less of a we are trapped on an island with a killer vibes and more of a “let’s try to solve this mystery and maybe get revenge in the process.” Still enjoyable but it definitely wasn’t what I was expecting based on the synopsis.

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Darcy, Camiilla and Kate head to the Maldives to help Darcy reset her life after divorce, The three are connected by a massacre that occurred 22 years ago - Darcy and Camilla lost someone they loved while Kate was the only survivor. Kate is having a particularly difficult time dealing with PTSD as strange things start to happen.
Page turner with a shocking twist.
#BadTourists #Avon #Simon&Schustewr #NetGalley

3 friends on a divorce trip..:what could go wrong? Anything and everything! Then add in meeting a
stranger who may not be a stranger to one of the women. This book had so many twists and turns!
I loved how the story was told from multiple perspectives and kept me guessing until the end.
One of the best thrillers I have read !

Get ready for The White Lotus vibes. For some reason I couldn’t stop thinking about that TV show while reading this, even though the storylines are way different. This book started out strong and ended even stronger, but there was a lull in the middle that was a little hard to push through. Overall, a twisty, thrilling read!

In Bad Tourists three British women who share a tragic past go on a vacation to the Maldives to celebrate a divorce. Darcy, Kate and Camilla have a friendship forged by a shared trauma related to a mass slaying 22 years earlier. As the anniversary approaches doubt about justice remain. This is a mystery / thriller with multiple points of view and a beautiful setting.
Thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Bad Tourists was a great psychological thriller that I couldn't put down, and went in a direction I wasn't expecting - but loved. Four women end up in a luxury resort in the Maldives, three of whom are connected through a tragedy that happened twenty-two years ago. Darcy, Kate and Camilla take a vacation together after Darcy finalizes her divorce from her husband. The women have become good friends, tied together by a mass murder that left people Darcy and Camilla cared about dead, and Kate as the only survivor. While on their vacation they meet Jade, a young newlywed being abused by her much older husband. A husband that the three women think might have a connection to them. But how well do each of these women know each other anyway? They only met several years ago. And is Jade a friend or foe? It's easy to pinpoint Jade's husband Rob as bad news, but is there someone else at the resort that has bad intentions? Another guest ends up dead, several of the women have close calls. The story is told from all four women's points of view, as well as Darcy's husband and oldest son. If you pay attention you might catch hints that everything is not as it seems, but maybe it's just circumstances too. I really enjoyed this one! A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Sapphire Island

Darcy just found out her husband is having an affair, so they are getting divorced and she wants to celebrate with a girls trip to the Maldives. She is the mother of three boys, and the custody battle is raging. Getting away to an island paradise with her soon-to-be-ex’s money sounds like just the right thing. She invites along Camilla, a Pilates instructor/Instagram influencer, and Kate, a shy, overweight writer prone to anxiety.

These three seem like an odd group, because they’re together not from being longtime friends, but because they were all affected by a brutal massacre that happened 22 years prior. Kate was heading to an archeology event and was checked into a guesthouse very late at night by a very creepy man. The next morning, she awoke to find everyone else in the building murdered, and the creepy man gone.

Kate was the lone survivor, but the other two women were also affected. Camilla’s twin brother was killed in the attack, as was Darcy’s boyfriend. The man who checked Kate in turned out to be a pedophile who confessed to the crime and soon died of cancer while incarcerated. These women now have a morbid bond, and while they probably wouldn’t be friends outside of this situation, they are now bound by the gruesome horror of that night.

The women have hired a private investigator to find out if there was another killer in the house that night, and the evidence is pointing in that direction. A journalist wants to try to get the case re-opened, but they need more evidence. How can they disprove that the creepy pedophile who was dying of cancer violently killed six people by himself, some of them strong young men?

I really thought I had the ending pegged, and towards the end of the book, it looked like my suspicions were confirmed. Then, everything completely flipped and I realized that I was wrong, wrong, wrong about what happened that night! The truth about that massacre and this trip eventually comes out, and it’s a shocker. This a fantastic murder mystery with good characters and a lot of twists, and it’s the perfect beach read…if you can stomach the sea after this particular island vacation. 4.5 stars, and my definite recommendation.

(Thank you to Avid Reader Press, Simon & Schuster, Caro Carver and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review. This book is slated to be released on July 9, 2024.)

Three friends connected by a traumatic event from the past come together for a dream vacation in the Maldives to celebrate one's divorce. While there strange things begin happening to them reminding them of past events and one of the guests at the resort turns up dead. This was a quick read with a lot of good twists most of which I did not see coming. I enjoyed the multiple points of view from the main characters but at times it was almost too much when other secondary characters had their own chapter and could be a little confusing. All in all a good story and would recommend rating this 3/3.5 stars. I want to thank NetGalley and Avid Reader Press for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Three women connected by an event twenty years ago set off on holiday to a remote part of the Maldives to celebrate one them being newly divorced. But all is not well in paradise. Is there a killer also staying at their dream holiday resort?
Bad Tourists is an intense and dark thriller full of suspense and plot twists. After a very strong punchy start, the story is told from several POVs and with timeline jumps back into the past. Add in multiple deaths, unreliable narrators and questionable characters and you have a thriller which tests our trio’s friendship and keeps the reader guessing. Warning: the book contains the theme of domestic abuse.
Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster/Avid Reader Press for the ARC.

4.5 stars overall!

Read if you like:
- Paradise vacations gone wrong
- A mystery within a friend group
- Past traumas affecting present day

Darcy, Camilla, and Kate are off for a girls trip in the luxurious Maldives - except this is no ordinary vacation, and they are no ordinary friends, as they are linked by a tragedy from 22 years previously.

This was such a fun thriller read! The first chapter had me instantly hooked, and I loved the Maldives setting! The mystery was well done throughout, and even though I ended up finding the ending a tad ridiculous, I still very much enjoyed it overall! Recommend for lovers of vacation-gone-wrong vibes and tragedy pasts!

Thank you to Simon and Shuster Canada for the ARC ebook

WOW! This book had me hooked from the start. There are twists and turns that keep you on the edge of your seat wanting more. Each chapter leaves you on a cliffhanger where you have to negotiate with yourself to read just one more chapter before bed. I encourage you to read this book if you’re looking for a twisty-turning suspense!

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for my advanced copy!

The novel centers around three friends, Darcy, Camilla, and Kate, who take a beach vacation together. They enjoy the sun and relax in a luxurious villa on a lush island. However, their idyllic vacation takes a turn for the worse when they meet Jade, a young woman in an abusive relationship with her husband, Rob. The trio plans to help Jade escape from her toxic relationship, but things get complicated when they discover that an unknown entity is targeting them. As they try to uncover the truth behind the attacks, they realize that their pasts might be catching up to them. Kate, in particular, has been haunted by a traumatic experience from her past, where she narrowly escaped a murderous rampage. With a gripping storyline filled with suspense and twists, 'Bad Tourist' is a must-read for anyone who loves a good thriller. This is a book that you won't be able to put down until you finish it. I loved the characters, plot, and ending, which I didn't see coming at all.

This story centers on 3 friends on a once in a lifetime divorce trip in the Maldives. Their friendship is a little different than most, they found each other through grief, each of them were deeply affected by a massacre that occurred 22 years prior. This story had several players, but they all tied in beautifully. There were multiple dark twists that kept me engaged throughout the book. There were a couple big twists that I absolutely did not see coming!
I cannot wait to read more from this author, fabulous work! .

This was an interesting holiday read in an exotic dream location in the Maldives. Fast paced, told through multiple voices with a plot twist that sends your head spinning.
Great for fans of psychological thrillers.
Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy

I didn't know what to expect when I chose this ARC. To be honest, I started the book without high hopes, fearing the premise might be too cliché. However, it turned out to be quite captivating. The storyline was straightforward.

Three 'victims' come together due to their shared trauma, forming a close bond. They plan a getaway to one of the most popular and beautiful places in the world, but we all knew it wouldn't go as planned.

The background of the characters and the storytelling were well-done and smooth. I particularly enjoyed the reveal and the action-packed ending, which kept me engaged. I flew through the book around the 50% mark.

However, there were a few things I did not enjoy. Some information was repeated often, and I'm not sure I understand why all the chapters of the three main female characters were told in the third person while the rest were in first person perspective. I didn't see the point of it, and the constant switching was a bit annoying.

I also wished the storyline/book was a little longer and had more depth to it, especially regarding the villain's backstory and motivations.

Nevertheless, it's an enjoyable read, and I would recommend it to my friends.

The writing was solid, and I definitely didn't see the twists coming, but there was too much going on. I was intrigued on every page, but I wouldn't read another book by this author. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.