Thank you, Hachette Audio | Grand Central Publishing for granting me access to the audio book in exchange for an honest review. This story had some mystery and paranormal activity that Lisa Scottoline's other books have not had. Julia's husband is killed, but then almost a year later she inherits an Italian villa, land, and money. However, when she travels to Italy she experiences nightmares that soon she comes to believe are not nightmares, but ghostly encounters. She is in danger. The resolutions are a little unbelievable, but that's why I read! Who wants a realistic story? Not me. I think this would be a good movie.

The Unraveling of Julia is not your average psychological thriller. It took me out of the genres I normally read with quite a bit of paranormal and astrology. While reading, it crossed my mind that maybe I should've waited for scary season to read it. I enjoyed the narrator. 3.5 stars

What happens when the worst event of your life brings you to the best event of your life?
Julia witnesses her husband murdered in front of her. Then, she is informed of an inheritance from “an estranged family member’. She has never met this family member, as she is adopted. Traveling to Tuscany to visit the estate she has inherited, Julia unearths all of the secrets from her past.

Oh my... where to even start???

So, clearly I didn't enjoy the book, hence my 2 star rating, but boy oh boy was this a trip! I listened to the audio book, and had to grab a paper to start taking notes because I was getting lost. Basically, Julia's husband is murdered and she is dealing with the grief, and then gets a call that she is inheriting a property in Italy along with 3 million Euro. Which is an insane set up to a story, but not necessarily in a bad way. She then goes to Italy to handle the property and to try to find out about her family (she is adopted so has no idea who her family is, but this is a lead!).

What I made my notes on:

She is trying to find out if Rossi is actually her grandmother and goes into town to find someone who might know, she goes into a shop and accosts the shop keeper. She keeps pushing that the shop keeper just has to know who Rossi is, and pushes to show her a picture, when the woman says no she doesn't know the lady! She then asks Julia to leave if she isn't going to buy anything and Julia is all huffy because the interaction "wasn't friendly."

Then you have the romance between her and Jean-Luca (I could be wrong on spelling, again listening not reading the book). Her husband was JUST murdered! She basically became agoraphobic because of it, yet she is being pushed into a relationship with a man she doesn't even know, all because he was cute and nice and helped her.

In that same vein, they meet because she is being followed and he offers to help her get away. He then takes her to a couple of different spots, including one of Katerina's castles. Julia "knows her way around" "instinctively" which furthers her belief that she is related to the lady, even though "feelings" are not proof!

The "ghost" of Katerina. Apparently Rossi was sure that she was related to Katerina, a lady from a noble family, yet had no proof of this. Julia learns of Rossi's assumptions, and immediately believes it HAS to be true despite there still being no proof! Anyways, the "ghost" of Katerina starts appearing to her (and that is somehow proof that they are related), and this "ghost" leads Julia to a hidden room that Julia dubs a "prison cell." The room is seemingly a little girls room, covered in mold. Julia finds paintings done by a young girl, and a comb with hair in it. She then comes to the conclusion that Rossi was a child abuser/trafficker. Which, mind you, has no evidence aside from this room, but also everyone says that Rossi had no children! So why would that be the first assumption and not that she may have been the little girl locked in that room?????? After finding this room, she calls the police because it's suspicious I guess, even though there is no indication that child abuse happened, or any sort of murder. The police say they can't really do anything, but they will test the hair for DNA. Julia is then upset that they aren't going to press charges, and like??? Who would they press them against??? The dead lady?? Which is actually exactly what the police say! Julia then asks to keep the paintings, and is told no because they are evidence in the case she wants to bring forward. She then steals hair from the comb, and after the police admonish her because that is EVIDENCE, she goes "oh don't worry, I'll leave you some." Ma'am! That is not how this works!!

On one of her and Jean-Luca's outings they think they are being followed by a man so Jean-Luca starts driving erratically and the car speeds off to get away from them. They then go to police to report the "stalking" being done by the man in the car. The police tell her that, first of all, he wasn't stalking her, and second of all, they would need actual proof (other than he sped to get away from the crazy people following him). She then asks the police to give her the man's information (which they got from the license plate) and the police say no, because obviously! She is then all sad that they won't dox a citizen for her weird little hunch.

Then she starts to believe that her husband was killed by someone targeting HER. She thinks that someone tried to kill her to stop her from inheriting the villa and the money. She believes it, by the way, because she saw a man wearing a blue hoodie and the man that killed husband wore a blue hoodie *cue shocked gasps." Like come on girly pop, be for real! She then calls the detectives on her husbands case to tell them they should investigate if any Italians were in the area at the time- which is not possible! Yes, the entry into the country is tracked, so the federal government is aware which Italians are in the country, but where they go and what they do is not tracked, because that is INSANE!

Then Jean-Luca is involved in a car accident and is in a coma. He was driving to her place when he got in the accident, so she feels partially responsible. She then goes to hospital and his family think she is his girlfriend because he told them that! Even though she is RECENTLY WIDOWED and has also only known this man for a week at max!

She then goes to a medium, and the lady tries to contact someone but is denied access because Julia is apparently a medium! Which just heightens her insane notions about being connected to Katerina because of the "feeling" along with the fact she saw a self portrait DRAWING in the hospital that "feels" like her mother so it just has to be her!

Towards the end of the book she learns that she was being drugged by the people living on the grounds of villa (who she only knows for a few days BY HER OWN ADMISSION so keep that in mind for the timeline!). The drugs make her hallucinate, and she finally agrees that maybe she isn't actually a psychic!

Then at the end, she tells police the whole story (including her being a medium) and the police are like, cool story, can you please sign a statement that doesn't say that because that makes you look crazy. She says "I don't understand why what I said doesn't make logical sense" *cue me screaming and crying* because huh???????

Biggest spoilers!!:

It was all true! I was so upset, I'll be honest. It was so incredibly convoluted, and insane, and she needed to get some professional mental help, but she was right?????? I was fully expecting it to be some kind of weird hallucination or she would wake up from her own coma after being attacked, maybe her husband would still be alive. Yeah, that would have been cliché, but still a better ending that her being entirely right in all of her wild and baseless assumptions, falling in love after knowing a guy for a few days, and then marrying said man and having his baby.

Overall, did not enjoy in the slightest and it made me want to rip my hair out! The only saving grace was the narrator, her voice is *chefs kiss* and I will be looking more into her other books. Lisa Scottoline is a hit or miss author for me. I read another book by her, and it was mind numbingly repetitive, but I enjoyed it beyond that, so was excited for this, but oh my was this terrible!

I really liked the book What Happened to the Bennetts, by Scottoline, so I thought I'd like this new release by Scottoline. It is good, but I had to stop at 40% because some of the descriptions of things that happened to the character grossed me out. I will say I am a baby when it comes to horror movie type stuff, so other people may not have an issue. I requested the audiobook, and I really like the narrator's voice. Maria Marquis does a wonderful job. I think the pacing of the book is also a positive. I plan on reading other books by Scottoline... this one just wasn't for me. Thank you to NetGalley and Hachette Audio | Grand Central Publishing for the audiobook arc. #netgalley #hachetteaudio #grandcentralpublishing #theunravelingofjulia #lisascottoline

This was an interesting mystery with lots of plot twists. I found the main character difficult to like and I think this taunted the whole book for me as I couldn't get behind her and her motivations.

I usually really love Lisa Scottoline, but while I didn’t DISLIKE The Unravelling of Julia, I wouldn’t say it’s her best.
First of all, this one’s pretty different from her other books with a lot of paranormal/psychological aspects, which I’m not against in books general, but Scottoline certainly doesn’t have this uniqueness perfected yet.
Secondly, I didn’t love the audio. My husband & I started it while on a roadtrip and we both felt like the first quarter of the book DRAGGED. The audio narration somehow fed into how unrealistically unintelligent Julia felt. This is set in a modern time period and she acted like doing any research on genealogy &/or inheritance on the Internet was the most novel concept, which just felt so strange.
Lastly, after the slow start, this book went right off the rails with a love story on speed, super quick, easy resolutions to gigantic unbelievable storylines, and a lot of loose ends/red herrings ignored. I finished the audio on a flight and briefed my husband on the ending and it sounded even sillier when I tried to explain it.
It is a quick read, though. And I liked the astrological and haunting parts. I also loved all the Italian culture. It’s just a meh psychological “thriller” for me that’s slow to start then really wild.

I was intrigued by THE UNRAVELING OF JULIA because of its Tuscan setting - who *wouldn't* want to inherit a villa, even if it's rundown?

Unfortunately even a trip to Italy wasn't enough to make me want to spend another 300 pages following Julia around. I wish her the best but her journey was not up my alley.

I'd recommend this one to people who like their mystery novels infused with a good amount of family secrets, paranormal elements, and slow-burn pacing.

Narrator Maria Marquis was easy to follow. I think her casting was appropriate for this story. (I'd rate the narration 4 stars, the book 2, so averaging that out to 3.)

DNF at 12%.
(Because it is not glowing, review will be cross-posted to Goodreads at least a week following publication day.)

I loved the concept of this book and how Julia inherited a villa in a different country. As the book went on I hoped and hoped she would find her birth mother while going the events taking place, so when the possibility of her birth mother being there came up, I was super excited. The twists throughout the story kept things interesting and the characters were well developed.

This book was a disappointment. I was intrigued by the initial description and excited to listen to this book, but it did not live up to my expectations. It starts out well as you wonder about the murder, but it slows down quickly and then becomes quite unbelievable. I was initially willing to accept the astrological elements and Julia's connections to past lives, but the plot was overly drawn out and slow, and I found it particularly frustrating when the characters made assumptions about everything.

The main character was okay, but it was pretty unbelievable that a person who suffered from such anxiety and agoraphobia would just up and head to Italy when she inherited money from an unknown source. And then it kept being unrealistic when they would make consistent assumptions about who her mother might be and how she might be related to the previous owner of the villa. When she meets the librarian and the love story begins, that was also unrealistic - how could they develop such passion so quickly, and all of a sudden, he too was in fear of his life, and she was over her past? This did not

The two caretakers of the villa were never developed enough for the reader to suspect them of what they end up doing, and I could not stand the best friend, Courtney. She also was not believable; she was so worried about Julia and thought she was losing her mind, and then she come to stay with her and immediately decides that she has no reason to be worried anymore.

All in all, the plot dragged, and the characters were not believable. I thank NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the audio version of this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I really liked What Happened to the Bennetts, so I was really excited to read The Unraveling of Julia.
I wish wish wish this book didn’t lean so hard into astrology and mediums and ghosts. It just didn’t feel like her writing style, and I really didn’t care for Julia.
Wish I could have loved this, but it just wasn’t for me.
Thank you netgalley for this arc! 2.5⭐️

I really enjoyed this book! I decided to go into it blind and I was drawn in pretty much immediately. The narrator was great she really kept me interested. Sometimes I struggle with audiobooks when the narrator does multiple voices for characters but these were not over the top and really kept me engaged in the story and able to differentiate the characters. I’ll admit I wasn’t sure how everything was going to come together and I can honestly say that I did not see the ending coming at all! Very entertaining and would recommend. Thank you to NetGally and the publisher for this arc.

Whoa! This was a wild ride of a story! I wanted to keep reading to see what was going to happen next! There were a lot of ‘wow’ moments for me in this book. I really loved the story line and the characters and how the narrator voiced each and every one. I was able to tell who was who and I liked the accents as well. The Unraveling of Julia kinda made me want to visit Italy someday even though some not so good things happened in this story. I felt myself cheering Julia and the other characters on as they kept finding out more of what was really happening with everything going on surrounding Julia and the Tuscan villa she inherited. Definitely a lot of surprises along the way. I’m happy that it ended with lots of my questions being answered throughout this mystery. What a great read!

Thank you to Hachette Audio, Grand Central Publishing, and NetGalley for this Advanced Reader Copy. #NetGalley #TheUnravelingofJulia #arcreview

'The Unravelling of Julia' accomplished exactly that, and then she is rebuilt stronger than before. Shortly after Julia's husband is murdered, she inherits a small fortune and villa in Tuscany. When she arrives, strange things occur, making her doubt her sanity. Scottoline creates an atmospheric thriller with many twists and turns. In the end, justice prevails over all. The narrator did a great job with all the voices.
4 stars.

3.5/5 Thank you NetGalley and Hachette audio for this advanced readers copy.

Let’s start with the good. The narrator is engaging, easy to listen to. She gave the book some life. I think she did a wonderful job with the Italian accents and terms for some of the characters. I have no problems with the narration. It was the plot/writing that I have criticisms. She was able to differentiate between characters by adjusting her voice accordingly.

This novel didn’t feel cohesive and it felt like the author didn’t know where to go with this story. There were times where it veered to mystery, supernatural, romance, or contemporary fiction. It would’ve worked better to be marketed as a contemporary fiction instead of mystery.

The book doesn’t live up to the title. Despite being called “the unraveling of Julia.” We don’t really understand why this happens as it moves from plot-to-plot quickly. Improving character development would’ve solved this. There were plot points that were unbelievable. This book had promise but the execution needs work.

another amazing book by Lisa!!! the audiobook was so well done. couldn't recommend this book more! 5/5 stars

Julia’s husband is murdered in front of her. Six months later, she is informed that she has inherited a Tuscan villa along with a significant amount of money. You wouldn’t think these events would be linked. But the rest of the book is like trying to figure out a puzzle by putting every piece into one spot to see what fits. It is a painful process and you are glad when it is over.
Overall, The Unraveling of Julia was entertaining. I didn’t mark it as DNF but was tempted a few times. The story was well thought out and I didn’t feel like it was totally preposterous. Although, while the puzzle was being put together, there were multiple sections where the main character is discussing the theories of what could really be going on. I felt like these sections were much longer than they needed to be. The theories kept getting more and more ridiculous, to the point where I was rolling my eyes and figuring out how long to fast forward. There are also little things that seem like they might be a big deal or a significant part of the story but gets pushed aside and forgotten about by the end. I can’t decide if that is good misdirection by the author so you don’t guess the ending, or if it is an inconsistency throughout the book.
Part of the issue was the narration (I received the audiobook version). I haven’t listened to anything else narrated by Maria Marquis so I have nothing to compare this reading too. While listening, I realized the tone and inflection of the main character’s “voice” rarely changed. The other characters in the book were read with a change in tone so you could tell how they felt (upset, hurried, concerned, happy, etc.). For Julia, I felt her “voice” was flat. There was not a lot of difference in how a section with emotion was read from a section with a car chase. This made it difficult to relate to Julia since there wasn’t a range of emotions.
To sum up, the story was good but not the best. It was worth the read but I wouldn’t recommend it over other books I’ve read lately.
I received a copy of the audiobook through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. #TheUnravelingofJulia #NetGalley

Julia’s life is falling apart (including the murder of her husband), when suddenly she receives a phone call: a woman named Emilia Rossi has left her a villa in Tuscany. Julia, who is adopted, decides to travel across the world to uncover the mystery behind this unexpected inheritance.

The good: I finished the book genuinely eager to discover the answers — who murdered Julia’s husband, and why? Who is Emilia Rossi, and why would she leave Julia a villa? Also, the audiobook narration was fantastic — especially the Italian accents for the relevant characters.

What didn’t work so well for me:
The paranormal aspects felt a bit random, as if they appeared just to serve the plot. And sorry Julia, you don’t just fly across the world because someone says they left you a house.

Not a top read for me, but if you’re into dark, moody mysteries with a supernatural twist, give it a shot.

This book was not my style. The jumble of mystery, paranormal activity, astrology, and relationship dynamics was too much. The book was almost too fast paced, not really giving enough development to any of the characters.

It could be a case of it’s not you, it’s me, so judge for yourself when this releases on July 15th.

This one threw me for a loop at first, I couldn't figure out if it was going the thriller, horror route, murder mystery, main character finds herself, locked room, conspiracy theory, fantasy, magical realism... it was a bit all over the place to start, but about halfway through I really settled into it and ended up loving it.

It is a bit chaotic at first, but once you commit it gets better and better. I was also waiting for some really out there wild ending, but the twists were actually reasonable and not just thrown in there for shock value. It's almost hard to describe without getting into spoiler land but dig into it with an open mind and I think the domestic thriller; mystery crowd will like it with some grace and patience.

Big kudos to the narrator, she took on many accents with ease and really brought it to life, the narration was a big reason why I stuck with it, it was that good at the beginning.