Reviews with content warning for Infidelity - The Villa

Reviews tagging 'Infidelity'

nrogers_1030's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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thebakerbookworm's review

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mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

A decent thriller made excellent on audio!

This one is split into two timelines—the past timeline (minus the murder) is inspired by Mary Shelley's life when she wrote Frankenstein and I love that for this story. I once again found the past more interesting than the present, with all the complicated relationships between the characters and a dramatic summer that we know ends in death. The present storyline was just okay, though it did get a lot more interesting once Emily actually arrived at the villa—and her and Chess's relationship became the focus. I liked that part, even though I'm not sure that I ended up liking either character lol.

I will say though, with this book being called The Villa, I expected the villa to actually play a more important role. A lot of times the location feels like its own character, but that did not happen here, which was a bit disappointing. The villa just happened to be the place where these things happened, rather than the *only* place where these things could happen.

The ending did not surprise me; I didn't guess it but once I read it, it just felt like the only ending. I do think it added to the story though, definitely mixed things up!

Thanks to Libro.fm, Macmillan Audio, and the author for my ALC.

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avidreaderandgeekgirl's review

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emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I have mixed feelings about the book. I did like some of the twists and turns, but I wish there had been a chronic illness rep that wasn't

psychosomatic. I also preferred the ending that Mary wrote to

what the conclusion actually was. Overall it kept me interested but it was disappointing in the end. And a bit predictable.

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danajoy's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Probably would've been 5 star if I didnt have to put it down in the middle of the climax.

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kindleandilluminate's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Another enthralling thriller from Rachel Hawkins! Toxic friendships, ambitious artists, the dark tension of infidelity and murder in the air... all of it told in two timelines, both set at a beautiful Italian villa, over the course of two different summers.

Both storylines are relatively slow burn, with a heavy emphasis on atmosphere and the tensions between characters. The resemblance to the Shelleys and Lord Byron are pretty explicit, along with traces of Fleetwood Mac, and they work beautifully to weave this pair of entwined stories. I read it in a day, and definitely recommend to anyone who's ever wondered what Daisy Jones and the Six would be like as a thriller.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for the advance review copy.

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foldingthepage_kayleigh's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

The Villa read like a modern gothic, with the atmosphere oppressive, foreboding, with a stunningly described setting that makes you feel like you’re right there with the characters. Rachel Hawkins deftly explores complex friendships, toxic relationships, and creative tension in a way that was so engaging I just didn’t want to put it down. The twists had me absolutely gasping and the dual pov with shifting timelines just added to the dread and drama of each storyline.

Honestly, this book made me want to go back to Italy so badly! The setting is so well-depicted, it filled me with so much nostalgia for the Italian countryside. I actually studied abroad in a neighbouring province (Arezzo) to Orvieto and I can attest to the landscape and architecture is as described in this novel. And the photo I used is actually one I took a decade ago while on that trip, but on the island of Capri.

Thank you so much @stmartinspress and @netgalley for a gifted copy of this gem. I loved Reckless Girls by the same author, so I was delighted when my arc application was accepted for this one—and it did not disappoint!

*A note on the reading format: I did read this book half as an ebook and half on audio, and while both formats were good, I think I preferred it in ebook form, as I wasn’t a huge fan of Mari’s narrator. That being said, Julia Whelan is one of the narrators in this cast, so for those of you who are a fan of hers, you might want to pick up the audio version based on that alone.

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lizaxwin's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This was truly a nice, fast-paced thriller with lots of gothic flair to it. I liked how — just like Hawkins‘ „The Wife Upstairs“ — the story loosely refers to a classic. The men in this story were truly horrible and

got what they deserved. Although, I absolutely enjoy the moral ambiguity the author gave those twists nevertheless

. Still a little unsure how I feel about Chess and Emily, but that’s what makes me love them in a way. Hawkins just really knows how to write morally grey and complex characters where you can’t just say „yeah, this is the good guy and this is the bad guy“, it goes beyond that with her characters and I really love it. Also, I enjoyed the dual timeline and maybe I‘m just dumb and didn’t get it, but I‘d love to find out

where the last bit of Mari’s diary was eventually hidden. Hopefully Google will be of my assistance in this matter.

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