Gia and Abby have been best friends since childhood, separated by class and brought together by teenage tragedy. Years later, heiress Gia has made a snap decision to marry near-stranger Garrett in the wake of her father's death. Abby has been keeping her distance from this ill-advised match, foregoing the wedding and agreeing to meet up again only because Benny—Gia's brother and Abby's longtime crush—will also be along.

But things are becoming uncomfortable. Gia has failed to show up for the reunion, sending apology texts that sound nothing like her. Alongside these are threatening emails, calling Abby out for a long-buried lie. When Abby and Benny make it to Gia's home in Greece, all they find is her latest autobiographical manuscript: a terrifying story of betrayal, scandal, and infidelity. All signs point to Garrett, as well as the couple's two new friends, targeting Gia. But how much of Gia's manuscript is true? As the truth of Abby and Gia's shared trauma resurfaces, Abby and Benny scour the city for both the truth and absolution.

On the surface, Ladykiller is a slow-burn mystery. But dig deeper, and readers will discover that it is in fact a long-form character study. Gia's manuscript plays out alongside Abby's own narrative chapters. As we discover more about both ladies, we are cast as judge and jury: who is telling the truth? Is anyone telling the truth? Katherine Wood subverts expectations right in front of our noses, with the true convoluted mystery emerging in the final pages and sitting with us long after the book has been closed.

Ladykiller is filled with suspense. I enjoy a book told from different points of views. I loved the beautiful Greece setting.

Hugo Torres had married three times before he died. His leaves behind his widow, Melodie, and a 6-year-old son. His second wife, Caroline, struggled with her mental health and now resides in a sanatorium in Switzerland. They had a daughter, Gia, and a son, Benny. His first wife and 3 grown children live in London.

Gia and Abby have been very good friends and Hugo even paid for Abby to attend private schools with Gia. One time, Abby was attacked by Gia’s stalker and Gia ended up killing him to save Abby. Gia then wrote a successful novel about the incident. Abby is now an associate at a law firm where she is working long hours hoping to be made a partner. When Gia met and married a man named Garrett barely a month after meeting him, Abby was concerned. However, Gia insists that they are very happy. Gia is staying in the family’s large villa in Greece that she owns. She and Garrett recently met a couple in town who are waiting to get their boat fixed and she invites them to stay until it’s done. At the same time, Gia issues an invitation to Abby and Benny to join her on a vacation and they both agree. But when Gia and Benny, arrive, Gia does not show up. Back in Greece, Abby and Benny find no sign of Gia but she had left a typed story of how her marriage to Garrett had truly been.

I stuck with this book even though I was disgusted with the loose morals of the characters. Gia is a total mess. Typical spoiled little rich girl. The characters she encounters are disgusting. I kept hoping that this story was going somewhere but it ended without a real ending. Since the descriptions of the areas are so well done, I am going to give this book 3 stars. In the future, don’t leave readers hanging.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Wow. I kept finding myself saying either "Oh my god!" or "Really?" Gia's manuscript, found by her brother, Benny, and best friend, Abby, when Gia goes missing, contains both lies and truth, fictions and nonfictions. So what do you believe? What really happened? There's hedonism and con men, a mysterious well, allusions to "The Talented Mr. Ripley," and the beautiful background of Greece. By the end of the book, you find yourself siding with either Gia or Abby but they can't both be right. Or can they? Like a good Agatha Christie or even an episode of House, people who have something to hide rarely tell the truth or, at least, they try to disguise it. So, what really happened? Well, that's yours to decide.

👏🏽👏🏽This book was so entertaining and fun to read! Abby and Gia have been friends for a long time. They grew apart when Gia married a man Abby isn’t fond of. However, when Abby agrees to come to Greece for Gia’s birthday, she realizes things aren’t what they seem. The book is told from a dual POV and past and present timeline. I loved the atmospheric vibes, the mystery and it was fun trying to guess who was actually telling the truth. I enjoyed all the drama, the spicy scenes, twists, and surprises throughout the book. Definitely add to one to your summer TBR!

Damn this book is diabolical and so amazing you won't be able to put it down until the last page!!!!! Truly a masterpiece from an amazing author.

In this novel we meet, Abby who grew up with and is in gratitude of her friend Gia's family who her mom worked for as a chef. Due to this upbringing, Abby, Gia, and Gia's younger brother Benny grew up together including vacationing in Greece. Years ago when Abby and Gia were young adults, they suffered a tragedy that resulted in the death of a young man. Years later, the three are getting back together. What unfolds is a story from two viewpoints. Abby's as she prepares to see Gia again and has guilt over what transpired years ago and Gia's as she currently experiences issues with her husband told through her new book's manuscript.

What sucked me in the most about this novel was the setting-- the majority of this novel is told in flashbacks as we read Gia’s manuscript describing her marriage at her house in Greece and the new couple they are hanging out with. Gia leads a salacious life that is intriguing to read. But is she telling the truth or a version of it? There are many gasp-worthy moments and there are so many shady characters that it made this read a fun mystery because I was suspicious of everyone. This book has a lot: an unreliable narrator, murder, kidnapping, best friend’s brother romance, and surprising commentary on privilege.

Ladykiller started off strong and it was great until the ending. The ending was a total letdown. It didn’t leave me with any closure at all and bring the book together. It left me with so many questions. It was really a bummer. I really loved the setting and the author did a wonderful job making you feel like you were there. The pacing and the storyline really were great and I was fully invested until the ending. This wouldn’t have been 4 stars if the ending would have been full circle.

Thank you, Net Galley and Random House- Ballantine, for a copy in return for my honest review.

Ladykiller by Katherine Wood didn’t quite hit me in the way I wanted it to.

Gia and Abby have been friends since they were girls. They’re bonded by an event that caused both of them trauma just as they came of age in Greece. While Abby threw herself into her studies, heiress Gia chronicled her account of the events in a salacious memoir. Twelve years later, Gia is back in Greece with a new husband and on the precipice of selling her family’s estate. She invites Abby to Sweden for her birthday, along with her brother Benny, but when they get there, Gia doesn’t show up. What follows is a dual POV story as Abby and Benny try to find out where Gia is, and Gia’s story via the manuscript she’s writing.

There were some things about this book that just didn’t work for me. I hated the aspect of Gia’s manuscript. It mostly feels like just Gia’s story a few weeks in the past and any revelations that came from it were nominal when it comes to telling this story. I did prefer Abby’s story and thought it felt a bit more realistic.

I also wasn’t a fan of the open ending. It doesn’t feel like anything got resolved and you’re supposed to interpret it…but it feels like seeds of doubt are implanted in the epilogue that I didn’t jive with.

I don’t think this story is reinventing the thriller storytelling wheel. Didn’t feel fresh or new to me.

Thank you to Bantam Books and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is full of suspense and mystery. The story is told with dual points of view. One of a friend who is working on fixing a broken friendship and the second in the form of a manuscript that outlines a series of event leading up to a disappearance. The story is woven through recent and past occurrences. It keeps you on your toes through the whole book.

OOH that cover…the location, a remote Greek island locate in the Cyclades .. a rich heiress and two best friends with secrets. Intrigued?

Gia and Abby have been friend since childhood. One is rich, the other is not, best of friends until a misfortune you might say sends them in separate directions. But now that Gia recently married, she wants to reconnect with her best friend and plans to reunite in Sweden for her birthday along with the new husband and her brother Benny. When Abby and Benny show up in Sweden and no Gia, it is off the Greece to find and rescue Gia. What they find is an empty eerie spotless house, a missing antique gun, expensive books and the most unexpected find .. an unfinished manuscript the Gia has been writing documenting everything leading up to her disappearance.

Where is Gia, has she been kidnapped? Is she alive? And where is her new husband, Garret? What about the two guests seem to have moved in? Poor Abby keeps getting threatening emails. Does someone else know Abby’s secret? Is the story Gia tells in the unfinished manuscript the truth or is Gia spinning tales?

Overall, I enjoyed this mystery-thriller. The story sauntered back and for between Gia manuscript and current day happenings as seen through Abby’s eyes. My biggest issue was the ending. For me it was vague and unclear, so many unanswered questions – I guess I expected more of a definitive ending. 3 1/2 stars.

Thank you, Katherine Wood, Bantam Dell and NetGalley for providing me with a digital ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Ladykiller is a mystery thriller. The book told in two point of views..Abby’s in the present and Gia’s in the past through a manuscript she left behind. Abby and Gia’s brother Ben search for Gia. The story was good but the ending was very disappointing…no closure. The descriptions of Greece were beautiful. Definitely want to take a trip there.
Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review

Thank you to Random House and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

The writing style did not work for me. I really liked the first chapter and I was excited to dive into the story. But when it switched to Abby’s POV and she launched into all that exposition, it lost me. I ended up DNFing for now, though I may give it a second shot in the future.

4.5 stars! I loved this juicy, drama filled spicy suspense book! I was hooked in from the start and had such a hard time putting it down. I flew through it in 2 days and found myself glued to the pages and needing to know what happened next! It was full of twists, unreliable narrators, secrets and untrustworthy characters. It was full of tension and such a wild ride for sure! The only negative part for me was the somewhat open ending with loose ends as I usually like stories to end cleanly and with all loose ends tied up but other than that I absolutely loved this one! I can’t wait to see what’s next from this author.

Huge thank you to NetGalley and Bantam publishing for the early digital copy for my honest thoughts and review!

This was insanely good! Addictive and thrilling. A total must read. Katherine Wood is a master of the twists and turns.

A perfect quick, engaging summer thriller! I love any type of rich people drama and her books never disappoint on that front. I could really visualize all the scenes and felt like I was overlooking the beautiful water in Greece myself. I was not used to the spicy / romantic scenes that were intertwined so that was a different twist for me. I thought the plot was realistic enough to figure out but also keep you engaged. I liked the somewhat open ended reveal and ending and the twists of Emilia’s reveal. I would recommend!

Gia and Abby were best friends growing up, despite the fact that Gia is a rich heiress and Abby is the daughter of the cook. But when they were eighteen, tragedy in Greece both bonded and changed their friendship forever. Now, twelve years later, Gia wants Abby to join her on vacation, only she never shows up. Abby and Gia's brother Benny set off to find out what's going on, and their journey takes them right back to Greece.

This was a decent read, with plenty of twists and lies to keep everyone suspect and borderline unlikeable. I felt the relationship between Abby and Benny was unnecessary and just took up space in the story that could have been used to delve more into Gia and her crowd.

3-1/2 stars rounded up to 4 because it was entertaining.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for providing me with an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Available July 9, 2024.

I found the story to be interesting enough that I wanted to know the end. But I didn't feel attached to the characters. I got confused by the story being told by Gia and the paragraphs of her manuscript. Since the characters in the manuscript had the same names, I couldn't distinguish between them. The revelations made were slow coming and then felt rushed into the end of the book. I do better when I relate to one of the characters and in this one I didn't. The writing was done well. I received an advance copy from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.

I was super intrigued by this story and wanted to know what happened. I was pulled in by the description of the story and the cover. I enjoyed the dual pov's of Abby from the present and Gia as a manuscript she had written out.

The twists were a little messy however and they felt a bit out of context so I didn't fully connect with them. Thus the three stars.

2.5 stars

Ugh this kills me to say because I have LOVED every other book that this author has written but... this one didn't do it for me. Nooo.

The premise sounded so promising. A greek setting? Yes please. A mysterious violent event plaguing a friendship? Yes please. Forbidden love between best friend and best friend's brother. Yes please.

So how did this let me down so hard????

Okay, first of all, this book is definitely sexy. Like super sexy. Way more sexy than I had ever anticipated in a thriller. This gave me the vibes of one of those erotic thriller films from the 80s and 90s like Fatal Attraction and Basic Instinct. This also fell into the "con" tropes and I may be learning that those aren't my favorite stories to read unless they have something super unique to them and this did not. The ending was incredibly drawn out and started to lose my interest pretty swiftly.

I think my biggest issue with the book though was a plot choice that the author made that I absolutely abhor. I cannot stand when an author writes in a plot line of sexual assault and then as the book progresses we find out that the assault was a lie/never happened. In this case, which I don't think is a spoiler because this should never be used as a twist/reveal in a book, we find out that a character we believe was sexually assaulted from the very start of the book was actually just caught having consensual sex and went along with the lie of it being sexual assault to avoid getting in trouble. That's fucking nasty. It is 2024. Stop writing false sexual assault claims like they happen all the time. False reporting rarely ever happens and when authors keep writing it as plot points and twist reveals it just continues to contribute to the idea that false reporting is the rampant problem and we should question victims when they report their attacks. Stop it.

Ultimately, I think that this book just tried to do too much but ended up doing too little instead. I will still pick up the next thing this author writes and hope that it does much better for me than this did.