Katherine is a fantastic author of thrillers with rich people behaving badly in beautiful settings. Sunburned is an excellent summer thriller that you definitely will want to have in your beach bag this year!

When Tyson, a tech billionaire is being blackmailed, he enlists the help of Audrey, his ex-girlfriend to figure out who is behind everything. Audrey is reluctant to help since their breakup was messy, but when he threatens to expose the skeletons in her closet, she has no choice but to join him and his guest at his mansion in St. Barts. Once she arrives, she learns that everyone there has a reason to want Tyson dead and the idyllic vacation they were promised will turn deadly.

I loved the way everything unfolded in this one. It was mysterious, with a number of twists along the way, and also felt like a soap opera with the behind the scenes drama that was happening from some of the characters. I liked the flashback chapters that told the story of Audrey and Tyson's relationship when they were younger, what caused it to end, and the backstory of Tyson's brother Cody, their friend Ian, and his girlfriend Andi that helped to play into what was happening in the present day. I listened to the audiobook and I was fully engrossed in the story thanks to the excellent narration by Samantha Németh-Parker.

A perfect summer beach thriller! I loved the setting both in St. Barth's and aboard the luxury yacht. The twists and turns in this one kept me guessing throughout and I really enjoyed the main part III twist - even if I did predict it beforehand. The flashback chapters dragged a little for me even though they were necessary to tell the full story. Overall, I flew through this one and really enjoyed it!

4 stars. Good mystery, lots of twists and turns, a variety of characters that you can't tell whether they're good or bad. Lots of potential motive for the present-day murder as well as one that happened in the past. Most of the characters aren't very likeable but...that's the point.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

Katherine Wood keeps her crown as an absolute queen of summery, beachy thrillers with this one. I love her glimpses into elite worlds of the super wealthy and their bad behavior, but this one also has a level of "realness" to it with a main character who isn't living that life. Juicy, gossipy, dramatic, and a lot of fun to read.

4/5 stars
Sunburned is a sun-soaked, slow-burn thriller packed with scandal, secrets, and some truly unlikable characters—in the best way. Set against the glittering backdrop of St. Barth’s, this locked-room-style mystery follows Audrey Collet, a sharp fixer reluctantly pulled back into the life of her billionaire ex, Tyson, who’s being blackmailed. Audrey’s task? Fly to his private island, figure out which of his rich, shady inner circle is behind it, and try not to get burned in the process.

The luxurious setting—a yacht, a secluded estate, beach parties—makes for a lush, cinematic read, and the tension bubbles just under the surface. Everyone has secrets, no one is trustworthy, and as past betrayals resurface, things spiral quickly from a whodunit to a fight for survival.

Audrey is a compelling protagonist—flawed, driven, and far more capable than she gives herself credit for. The supporting cast is deliciously messy, with enough twists and red herrings to keep you guessing. While the dialogue can be a little much at times and there are a few too many emotional repetitions, the story’s pace and intrigue more than make up for it.

If you enjoy thrillers about wealth, deception, and complicated relationships—served with a side of sun and suspense—Sunburned is worth the trip.

A big thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Bantam for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Love Katherine Wood’s writing style. I instantly feel immersed in the setting and characters. This had everything you need for a great summer read: island setting, mystery, tension, secrets, the inability to trust anyone, and so much money I can’t wrap my head around this lifestyle.

Audrey is summoned to an island birthday party by her ex she hasn’t seen/spoken to in over 10 years. He needs her investigative skills to find out which person close to him is blackmailing him. As Audrey gets to know the other guests tragedy strikes while on a mega yacht diving trip, causing everyone to go from potential blackmailer to full on murder suspect. Even Audrey starts to look suspicious to the police.

This all takes place through Audrey’s POV in present and past (11years earlier) timelines. I enjoyed the pacing of “Sunburned” and the reference to the title used as a code word throughout the book.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this ARC. This review will be shared on NetGalley and Goodreads.

Pub Date Jul 01 2025

A killer vacation read to say the least. With secrets, lies, and betrayal around every corner, this one is sure to keep you guessing. Everyone has a motive and in a locked room type mystery, everyone had the opportunity. I really enjoyed the FMC and the whole crew of characters. The flashbacks give you just enough detail to keep you hanging on for more, as the present day story unravels. Overall very well written and a great thriller to keep you company on the beach this summer.

Katherine Wood's "Sunburned" is an absolute page turner. Told in a masterfully crafted dual timeline, the narrative effortlessly weaves together the past and present, keeping readers engrossed from start to finish.

The setting is nothing short of spectacular—vivid, atmospheric, and immersive, it practically becomes a character of its own. Wood's rich descriptions transport you right into the heart of the story, making it easy to lose yourself in the world she has created.

The characters are wonderfully developed, with distinct voices and compelling arcs that evoke genuine emotion. Their depth and complexity add layers to the narrative, making their journeys incredibly engaging.

What truly sets "Sunburned" apart is its ability to keep you guessing. The intertwining timelines are filled with twists and turns that maintain a perfect balance of suspense and intrigue. Just when you think you have it all figured out, Wood throws in another curveball, ensuring that the mystery stays fresh and captivating until the very last page.

"Sunburned" is a brilliant blend of mystery, character-driven storytelling, and an unforgettable setting. Katherine Wood has crafted a novel that is both thrilling and emotionally resonant. Highly recommended for anyone who loves a gripping, well-written crime novel!

Sunburned by Katherine Wood

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review! All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.
Audrey Collet, who is a discovery agent, has been invited by her ex-boyfriend Tyson to St. Bart’s. Tyson and his team are getting ready to open another desalination center; but someone is trying to sabotage him thru blackmail. So Tyson has called Audrey to try and figure out who is trying to blackmail him. Around the same time, a severed foot washes ashore in the Everglades that is connected to Tyson and Audrey's past. Audrey is invited to stay at Tyson’s expansive home in St. Barts where others are staying there. Tyson’s wife and her best friend are there; Cody and his girlfriend; Allison, who is a partner with Tyson in the company; and Laurent, Tyson’s mysterious right hand man. When Audrey sets everyone and does her research, she realizes they all have a motive to blackmail him. Then for Tyson’s birthday, they’re all invited on his luxurious yacht for food, drinks, and scuba diving. However, whoever was planning on blackmailing him, decided blackmail wasn’t enough and he is found murdered in the water. Now the killer is even closer and they’re all stuck on a yacht with a killer. Audrey must figure out the truth, before time runs out! AVAILABLE July 1, 2025

Sunburned by author Katherine Wood is a fast-paced suspenseful thriller that keeps you hopping from events that took place eleven years ago to how those events are having an impact in the present, with a large cast of characters that have some surprising past connections and future plans.

Audrey and Tyson were on-again-off-again in high school but parted for good about eleven years ago. He’s now a rather eccentric billionaire tycoon, used to getting what he wants through whatever means necessary – bullying, threatening, blackmailing – whatever it takes. Audrey is now a single-mom, co-owner of the Sunshine Discovery Agency, collecting pre-litigation information for attorneys before cases go to trial, or gathering private intelligence for corporations or individuals. Audrey’s computer systems expert skills are put to good use. Now, suddenly, Tyson wants to hire her and in his usual manner coerces her to agree. So she reluctantly travels to his mansion on the Caribbean island of St. Barth’s under the guise of attending his birthday party. She doesn’t know what the job is, but she expects to only be there a few days at most. However, Tyson strictly controls access to and from the island so every one of his guests is subject to his capricious whims.

Of course nothing goes as planned or expected. Suddenly there is tragedy, danger, suspicion all around. Underwater, in old building, on his estate. Audrey is trying to figure this all while simultaneously trying to avoid both physical and personal harm to herself and her family resulting from the events in the past and the current upheaval.

Sunburned will keep you engaged from beginning to end. There are multiple twists and turns and characters go from good to bad to boring to unreadable in a flash and then back again. I received an advance copy of Sunburned from Ballantine Bantam Dell Penguin Random House via NetGalley. I enjoyed it and recommend it, although I did drop my rating from 5 stars to 4 because at times it appears the author is trying to do just a little too much and while extremely suspenseful it falls a bit short of mysterious with the “jaw-dropping ending” advertised. It’s a good mystery but if you pay attention you’ll have figured it out by the final exciting chapters. I voluntarily leave this review; all opinions are my own.

I love Katherine Wood’s stories and her newest, Sunburned, did not disappoint! There were many twists throughout the story which kept my interest. Audrey, and investigator and mother of two, is invited to St. Barth’s for a birthday celebration of an “old friend” from high school. Tyson’s motive for inviting her is for her investigative skills since he is being blackmailed. The potential list of blackmailers is long which keeps you guessing. The story flits between high school and present. The title of the story is used cleverly throughout as well! And there’s Laurent-hubba hubba! 4.5 stars!

A nicely convoluted summer thriller that sees Audrey and Tyson have to face their past because of the locked yacht problem they are facing now. These two were a couple until they weren't but Audrey agrees seven years after they split to help him when he's threatened. Who wants him dead? These are not all rich people behaving badly, despite the setting, but there is enough of it. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Liked Audrey, liked the setting, found this one a page turner.

Thank you to NetGalley for inviting me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I loved Katherine Wood’s first book, and at first I was a little nervous I wasn’t going to like this one as much when I first started reading it, but I ended up really enjoying it!

It had a very slow start. At first I didn’t care about Audrey so I wasn’t enjoying the story. I know it takes a little bit to build up the story and the characters, but it took me until about 30% of the book to care about what was happening. It didn’t take until part two of the book where I really got invested and wanted to know what was happening. By then I could not put the book down!

It was so fast paced and how a thriller should feel. I had no idea who to trust and I kept bouncing around trying to figure out what was going on. I figured out one thing, but after that I didn’t figure out much!

Audrey was so cool! I loved how smart she was and didn’t take crap from nobody. She maneuvered so many situations with such calmness. I’m sure it came with her job, but it was still nice to read. I thought her job was cool too, even if she did some not so great things with it. It was the perfect set up for her to do what she needed to do throughout the book.

I couldn’t help but love Laurent. I was wary of him because I wasn’t sure if he was a suspect. I won’t say if I ended up liking him or not by the end because of spoilers, but throughout the book I wanted so badly for it to work out between them!

There was more to Samira and Gisèle than met the eye, and I appreciated that. When we first met them I just thought they were going to be stuck up and rude, but I actually came to really love them while reading!

If the first part was quicker I probably would have given this 5 stars. It is still very much worth the read!

I think the book just needed to find its groove before it really got good. So if you are struggling with the beginning, just keep reading! It is worth it.

This quick thriller is perfect for a beach read or a day out at the pool☀️ Katherine had me hooked from the beginning. It’s packed with nostalgia, twists and nonstop suspense. I definitely loved the flashbacks. The gave us so much to her past and time with Tyson. Grab it for your next afternoon in the sun! Don’t get burned though 😜#BeachRead #Thriller #Sunburned #Netgalley

He's always been bad for her...

...has she changed enough to resist his manipulations?

When Audrey Collet was younger her life was full of challenges; raised alone by her mother after her parents' divorce, the two were getting by only to have her mother's cancer reemerge when Audrey was in college. The only treatment left to try was experimental, one not covered by insurance and each dose costing a ridiculous amount of money that they didn't have and had no way to obtain. Audrey was good with computers and though she didn't often do it was great at hacking. Tyson Dale, her boyfriend at the time and the first love of her life, came up with a way for Audrey to use those skills to get the money needed and out of desperation she went along with his scheme. Their relationship crashed and burned, breaking her heart, and they each moved on. Now Audrey is a single mother to twin boys, and she uses those same computer skills working with her longtime best friend Rosa in their business as discovery agents. They are hired by people, usually attorneys, to come up with information pre-litigation that those employers themselves can't or don't know how to obtain. She has purposefully avoided Tyson for years so is shocked when he contacts her business looking to hire her to do a job for him for a generous amount of money. Tyson had always dreamed of starting a multimillion dollar business and he succeeded; he was born to a family with money, but now he is stratosphere rich and living in St Barth's with wife #2 (a much younger former model). He uses Audrey's past misdeeds to force her to look into who is blackmailing him over what happened during their last summer together when someone they both knew disappeared. He's pretty sure that his blackmailer is in his inner circle, and all of them are under his roof in St Barth's. He's also fairly certain that all of them hate him (they, in fact, do) which will make narrowing the list down a challenge. Before the week is out, Tyler will be dead, Audrey will be a suspect in his murder, and she may be next on the killer's list.
There's something about a thriller set on an exotic Caribbean island frequented by the Beautiful People that screams, "summer beach read here!!", and that is certainly the case with Sunburned. It's a sort of locked room mystery, with a victim who pretty much deserves what's coming to him and a cast of suspects (his partner, his brother and his girlfriend, his wife and her close friend, etc) all of whom have reason to want Tyson dead. The project Tyson's company is working on in St Barths is getting major pushback, his partner wants him to either buy her out or take on an additional partner, his young wife is miserable in the marriage, and more...so, plenty of motives, plenty of suspects, but not too many clues. Audrey can't tell anyone why she's there and isn't sure whom, if anyone, she can trust. With plenty of twists and turns and a sexy butler whom Audrey is finding to be quite a distraction, Sunburned is a quick read, a page-turner perfect for a trip to the beach or an afternoon at the pool. Audrey is at times rather naive for a supposedly savvy businesswoman, and I figured out more than a few of the surprise twists pretty early on (seasoned reader of thrillers here), so overall I'd rate it a 3.5 ⭐️ read rounded up to 4. It's a fun, guilty pleasure kind of book which should appeal to readers of Liv Constantine, Lucy Foley, and Ruth Ware. My thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine/Bantam Books for allowing me access to this glamour drenched thriller in exchange for my honest review.

Filled with juicy secrets and murder!

When Audrey Collet’s billionaire ex boyfriend, Tyson, invites her to his birthday bash in order to help him find his blackmailer, she is reluctant to go. They haven’t spoken in a decade and the secrets from their young years are better off left buried and undisturbed. In typical Tyson fashion, he threatens to resurrect her skeletons if she doesn’t help him. But when she arrives in beautiful St. Barth’s she discovers that any one of the birthday guests could have reason to betray Tyson and, furthermore, this person is also capable of murder. If Audrey doesn’t discover the mastermind behind the blackmailing she just might lose her own life.

I loved Ladykiller last year and equally loved this one. It’s safe to say that Katherine Wood is now on my “auto-buy” list and I can’t wait to read what she comes up with next!

Thank you Netgalley, Random House Publishing-Ballantine, and the author for this eARC in exchange for my honest review. This book will be available for purchase on July 1, 2025

Katherine Wood has now become a go-to author for me! Great thriller, very page turney and mysterious. I also love a good beach setting mystery. Note, there is a time difference POV, past and present. Fans of thrillers will definitely enjoy this one, it’ll keep you on the edge of your seat!

Thank you for providing me with an advanced readers copy of this title via NetGalley.

I didn’t know what to expect from this book, but the cover drew me in and I just had to read it. 😂

I enjoyed it! There is SO much drama here. It was like reading a soap opera, I swear!

It’s a murder mystery, but it’s also a thriller, a domestic suspense, and a romance mash-up.

I loved the setting - especially for a summer read. The sun, the pool, the yacht, the scuba diving. It all feels very tropical and EXPENSIVE. 😂 Who doesn’t want to read about the lives we can’t have?

But, of course, these people were all holding big secrets and their lives were not good because of it. The more secrets they had, the worse their lives were.

I did figure this one out pretty early on, but it wasn’t for the reason I thought it was.

This was a fun read!

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group Ballantine for the eARC.

Rich people behaving badly. Rich people being unethical. Rich people being unlikeable.

Katherine Wood is a master as these types of stories. What a book!

Sunburned by Katherine Wood
#sixtysecondbookof2025
#arc #sunburned #richpeoplebehavingbadly

CW: death, murder, blackmail, drug use

From NetGalley: When Audrey Collet’s ex Tyson calls, threatening to expose the skeletons in her closet unless she helps him figure out who is blackmailing him, she wants nothing more than to refuse. Though their relationship ended over a decade ago, the scars are deep. And since his tech company made him a billionaire, he’s become more than a little eccentric . . . and paranoid. But a foot has washed ashore in the Everglades…and Tyson is quick to remind Audrey that it’s one whose long-dead owner they both have a connection to. A connection that could prove problematic, if it got out. Audrey reluctantly agrees to meet Tyson at his home on the swanky Caribbean island of St. Barth’s to help him figure out who in his entourage is extorting him and what they know about the secrets he and Audrey share. Once there, she realizes that each person staying at Tyson’s lavish estate has a reason to wish him harm. Could the culprit be the gorgeous Belgian wife whose wings he’s clipped? The celebrity business partner he’s essentially holding hostage? The older brother who’s always been in his shadow? Or the sexy French butler he seems to trust more than he should? Audrey has only just scratched the surface of what’s going on behind closed doors when Tyson’s birthday dive turns deadly, and she realizes that one of the seven people trapped on his yacht with her is not just a blackmailer but a murderer. If Audrey can’t catch the killer in time, she might become the next victim.

My thoughts: This book is a wild ride. The author previously wrote Ladykiller, another novel about rich people behaving badly in gorgeous settings. Sunburned is pretty propulsive and I sped through it. None of the characters are likable, and I questioned the main character’s ethics, but this was a good read and although I guessed one of the twists, there were several others I didn’t, so it was still an enjoyable story. I will definitely look out for more from this author.

Thank you to @penguinrandomhouse - Bantam and @netgalley for the advance copy. (Pub date 7/1/25)