Secrets Will Out..
Or will they? A former hen party makes a possibly ill fated return to the villa where a hen party turned deadly. Amidst the sun and the luxury of the villa, it soon becomes clear that every one of them has a very different recollection of that ill fated weekend away. With a deftly drawn cast of mostly unlikeable characters, a rising tide of tension and swiftly moving narrative this is a one sit, engaging and immersive read in a well imagined setting.

Bride to be Aoife celebrated her hen do in a remote villa in Marbella with four friends, Dani, Tiff, Beth. But, very soon one of the hens are dead. Dani cannot remember the circumstances leading up to the murder and desperately wants to get her memory back. She persuades the others to return to Marbella in the hope that her memory will return but things start to go badly wrong. Through a series of flashbacks told from the points of view of different characters' we learn about the rifts that developed over jealous rivalry and mutual antagonism causing tensions to rise leading up to the time of the murder. As Dani's memory starts to return, she finds herself in danger from an unknown source but, is the murderer a local or one of the hens themselves? I enjoyed the tension created in this story and found the conclusion satisfying as all the clues were there along with a number of red-herrings. Hardly any of the main characters are likeable and none of them are perfect but this adds to the sinister undertones. I would certainly like to read more by this author.

Very pleased to say that this turned out a little differently than I was expecting. Once you've read so many thrillers and mysteries, you sort of start to predict where a lot stories are going, but The Villa was hard to pin down.

I was a little unsettled trying to follow the timelines between three years ago and present day, but it was quite well done and easy to distinguish each character. The twists and turns got a little too intense and hard to keep everything straight in my head, but that's probably on me.

Although I think the psychological thriller genre is a bit oversaturated at the moment, I think The Villa has enough strength to stand tall in the crowd.

Great summer read. I can see this book on the top shelf in the airport waiting to be snapped up, as it’s the perfect escapism beach read. Cleverly written with various points of view, which I found easy to follow as all the girls were so different, and two timelines featuring the same characters. The book is well paced and finishes with everything being revealed, which I didn’t guess! Thank you to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for the advance review copy.

Dani orchestrates a trip back to Marbella in order to regain memories she lost, desperate to find out what actually happened on an ill fated hen weekend.

I liked the accurate portrayal of a dysfunctional group on a hen weekend- the differences in how the hen is known, the varied characters with different shared histories. However I struggled with the storytelling from each friend’s point of view. The characters were all ultimately unlikeable and terrible friends to poor departed Aoife - who quite frankly was lucky to have anyone come on her hen do as she was not the greatest friend herself!

DNF I wanted to like this but I felt like the writing style was all over the place—we have chapters that go back and forth between past and present, as well as multiple POVs that move between third and first person. Despite the multiple POVs, the character voices/inner monologue all sounded the same.

This book was absolutely perfect! Mysterious, engaging and so so sad.

The characters felt real. Possibly because they were all flawed, just like real people. They interacted just like some groups of women I know where they only have 1 friend in common, almost as if they are competing for the attention of that one friend. (Thankfully this isn't true of the lovely group I went on a hen weekend with)

Right from the off I didn't like Tiff, she was a control freak. Aoife and Dani just egged each other on, but also had a deep and honest friendship. Beth seemed like a bit of a sheep, just following the others. And Celine was a bit "boring" really. She reminded me of me. I also hated Nathan, even though we never really 'met' him. But by the end of the book, most of these opinions had changed! And I am NOT like Celine!

The story showed just how clever our memories can be at hiding away traumatic experiences to protect us. Admittedly that's not very helpful when in the middle of a police investigation!

Unlike so many of these "whodunnit" books I genuinely didn't have a clue. What a shock!

This is a classic whodunit that keeps you guessing until the very end. A group of friends go to Marbella for a hen weekend as Aiofe is due to get married and wants to celebrate in style. She certainly dies that but as secrets emerge amongst the friends, all is not as it seems. When one of them is found dead just who is to blame and ate the remaining friends as innocent as they appear. Read on.......

I enjoyed this story of a mismatched group of hens returning to Marbella, 3 years later, to the villa where a disaster struck resulting in the death of the bride to be. One hen, in particular, has complete amnesia and is looking for answers. The storyline has a few twists and turns and the characters are well constructed. It kept me guessing and reading on well into the night.

I wasn't sure about this because the premise, 'disaster at a villa/on a hen do' is being done a lot in this genre. However, I like the author so I thought I'd try. I'm glad I did. This is a tense tail with strong characters, and good mystery. It's well plotted and paced well. I like that the murdered character is sympathetic, but also complex and far from perfect. Enjoyable read.

Loved this book - The story is cleverly told through the eyes of the four girls is the past and the present. They link together brilliantly and with twists from every angle. Not the ending I was expecting, but it was the ending I didn't know I wanted. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves a page turning mystery and I will be seeking out more books from this author.

Unputdownable henparty horror
This was the first book by Jess Ryder for me and I was instantly hooked by the clever twisty plot and tense ambience.Three years ago, five Irish women set out on a trip to a fabulous remote villa in Marbella. Their hen party in honour of bride-to-be Aoife went terribly wrong and she died under suspicious circumstances. Hoping to find closure, the four survivors reunite on the third anniversary of Aoife‘s death to visit her grave in Marbella . There, they end up basically re-enacting the hen party, discovering lots of disturbing facts that were kept secret at the time of the police investigation…

I loved this book I couldn’t put it down.. wow! What a page turner it was. There are plenty of twists and turns throughout to keep you on the edge of your seat. The characters were great, the story itself was very enjoyable and suspenseful, the setting was fantastic and the style of writing was perfect.
I have read loads of books by this author and every one of them was brilliant.. this is one of my favourite authors. I can’t wait for the next book out.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone who likes reading psychological thrillers.
Thank you netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a honest review.

I loved this book about a group of friends who after a terrible tragedy at their friends hen party they are making their way back to where the event took place to remember their friend but the last thing they wanted was to return to the scene of the crime but they are stuck with it and Dani is determined to remember what happened that night and who was responsible for the death of her best friend. I loved this book and was very happy with the ending.

A great book which didn’t follow the tired old tropes. You tend to think that anything entitled The Villa is obviously going to contain a murder mystery and it did but as I say it wasn’t following tired old tropes. Granted it took a while for the action and story to develop but sometimes you need a slow burn to change into the big fireball of wtf but in a good way.

"The Villa" by Jess Ryder takes readers to a Spanish setting where a group of women returns to the villa where a bride-to-be, Aoife, tragically died during her own hen party three years ago. The hens hope to find closure, but upon returning, old wounds resurface, and tensions escalate as everyone holds different versions of the fateful night. The Spanish backdrop adds an eerie contrast to the dark events that unfold during the sunny setting. Protagonist Dani, flawed yet relatable, keeps readers invested, and the multiple points of view and dual timeline provide insights into the characters' thoughts. With unpredictable plot twists, "The Villa" is a clever and engaging murder mystery recommended for fans of the genre.

A really interesting read, lots of different perspectives to consider, all with a strong narrative that adds to the mystery.
Found the jumps drastic at time so onwards that needs more focus than other books but still relatively simple to follow. The action takes a while to happen and drifts off in places inbetween events for important filler scenes.
The dynamic of the group is well executed and the tension between each of the main characters builds the story line.
Generally a really good read and would recommend to others!
Note: all views and opinions are my own and thank you to the author and publisher for allowing me to read early!

A hen weekend that ended in the death of the bride. Now some years later the remaining hens return the scene of the devastation to pay their respects. However, for one hen the trip is more to fully find out what happened as she has little to no recollection of the events.

An enjoyable book. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced ready copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

I loved this book. I genuinely can't put my finger on exactly what it was that I loved so much but it was just great.

I really enjoyed the Spanish setting and the concept of the hen party. It made the fact that such dark things were happening in a sunny setting seem more eerie somehow.

Dani is an interesting protagonist. She is very real and full of flaws, however you can usually see where she is coming from with her decisions. I was definitely rooting for her throughout the book.

The book is written in multiple POV and dual timeline, which I thought may be a little difficult to follow. It really wasn't. It meant you got an insight into the thoughts of the different hens, both past and present, which was really interesting.

Most of the characters at one point or another seem to have a motive for the murder but I definitely didn't see the plot twists coming. So I thought this book was very clever and unpredictable.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this book to fans of murder mysteries and thrillers. Especially if you are looking for a book with an unusual setting. This book is due for release on 4th July. Definitely keep an eye out for it!

Thanks to NetGalley, Jess Ryder, Random House UK, Cornerstone and Penguin for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Until death do us part...

On the anniversary of the death of their friend Aoife on her hen weekend, her hen party revisit the villa where she met her death on that fateful weekend. Dani, Aoife's best friend and organiser of the hen weekend, has no memory of what happened so wants to retrace their steps to see if her memory comes back.

But perhaps some secrets are better left alone. Perhaps some secrets need to be taken to the grave...

I really enjoyed this book, with secrets being revealed as the narrative unfolded.

Perfect for some light fun reading with a twist.