Thanks to #NetGalley and #StormPublishing for the book #LastNightAtVillaLucia by #SimonMcCleave. Cerys is an alcoholic. All because of something that happened years ago. Now she is divorced and lives with her daughter in their beautiful villa. But someone has been murdered. Who wanted him dead and why? This is an unputdownable thriller!

This is the first book that I’ve read by this author and I’m already looking forward to reading more! I was completely invested right from the very beginning and I constantly found myself needing to read on.

The book is incredibly well written and in my opinion, reads in a way that flows perfectly from beginning to end. The way that the chapters switch between each character’s perspective on a timeline basis makes it feel like some kind of murder mystery, making you look for clues for who might be responsible. At the same time as the drama and excitement of a murder mystery, there is also some more relatable real life challenges and issues intertwined in the plot which I think provided even more depth to the book and made for a more balanced read.

I was really looking forward to reading this book based on the descriptions and good reviews, and it certainly lived up to expectations. I would highly recommend!

Last Night at Villa Lucia
by: Simon McCleave
Release Date: July 26, 2024
Rating: ⭐️⭐️
I rarely rate books below three stars but this book was a waste of time. While the story line was intriguing there was so much left unanswered. This book took me forever to finish because I kept getting bored and frustrated. First issue I had was things were repeated in an almost obsessive manner. Second, I understand adding some of the Italian saying into the text because of the location, however the way it was done was very strange. Third, there was so much pointless information that the author never actually rounded back an answered. Lastly, if you are going to write anything about a woman being sexually assaulted and then becoming an alcoholic... you need to gain some inside perspective from someone who has been through such traumatic events. Simon McCleave just breezed over this information and made it very cold and meaningless. He essentially breezed over the fact that both main characters were mentally and physically abuse. Overall it came across as extremely callous.
The premise of the story had great promise and I feel it could have been great. But there was too much attention in random directions that it took away from the main story that was happening. I love a good murder with multiple characters as suspects but this book was a huge struggle to read.
Thank you so much to both NetGalley and StormPublishing for this advanced digital copy.

A Villa in Tuscany. ☀️A beautiful view. 🍷And the murder of a horrible man. Yes please! 😍 I loved the multiple points of view of this one, and the slowly filled in back story. I also didn’t know who the murderer was until the end. The short chapters and great writing kept this book moving! 4 ⭐️

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy of this book.


Cerys owns a villa in Tuscany. She lives in the annexe and rents the villa as a b and b. Cerys is an alcoholic and struggling to hide it from her daughter Lowri, visiting from England. Her guests are Harry, Zoe and their son Harry. After a drunken night, someone is found dead in the infinity pool and nobody is admitting to murder.

This pulled me in from the start. Well written characters- I hated arrogant Harry, but was sympathetic towards both Zoe and Cerys. It started as a fun holiday read and quickly became darker. The ending was completely unexpected. Not the direction I thought at all.

I wasn’t expecting to love this as much as I did. Highly recommend.

"Last Night at Villa Lucia" by Simon McCleave is the story, I was hooked once I became immersed in the world of Cerys, Lowri, Zoe, Harry, and Charlie. The novel is set in a beautiful Tuscan villa, where these two families come together for a vacation that turns deadly.
The story begins with Cerys discovering a body floating face-down in the pool, and as she tries to piece together what happened, it becomes clear that everyone involved has secrets and motives. The novel is expertly crafted, with multiple points of view that add depth and complexity to the narrative. The characters are flawed and relatable, and their struggles with their personal lives are woven throughout the mystery.
One of the standout aspects of this book is its portrayal of its characters. Cerys's struggles with alcoholism are particularly well-handled, and the dynamics between the characters feel realistic and nuanced. The male characters are all complex and multi-dimensional, with no easy villains or heroes.
The mystery itself is engaging and twisty, with plenty of red herrings to keep me guessing until the very end. While I did find the ending to be a bit too tidy, I appreciated that it left me feeling satisfied rather than wondering what would happen next.
Overall "Last Night at Villa Lucia" is for anyone looking for an engaging and suspenseful summer read. With its well-crafted characters, twisty plot, and atmospheric setting, it's a great choice for anyone who enjoys a good mystery.

I really enjoyed this whodunit murder mystery! There were multiple POVs that really made the story work well.
A lot of the story was predictable. But this didn't spoil anything for me, it was still a great read! There were dual timelines also, which provided some background on the characters that worked well together to add to the clues, the plot development and character motives.
This story was also surprising deep, covering topics such as alcoholism, sexual assault and domestic violence.
Overall very enjoyable! Can't wait to read another Simon McCleave book!

Addictive thriller with a great ending and I couldn’t wait to see how it ended. I will definitely read more by this author

This book opens up with a zen montage of Cerys' loving atmosphere of her beautiful Tuscan villa fronted by its tranquil infinity pool. She mentions the sirens in the background and then makes a calm yet shocking revelation - there is a body in the infinity pool.
Many thanks to NetGalley for the ARC/audiobook of this charming thriller.

The perfect summer/beach side thriller read.

Last Night at Villa Lucia is based in Tuscany at a small villa. Cerys is a divorced mum who runs Villa Lucia. Lowri is her beautiful daughter. Zoe, her husband Harry and their son Charlie are the new guests of Villa Lucia for the season. Both families hold many secrets, and each person is forced to face their demons when a guest ends up murdered in the pool.

So many secrets, so many lies and so many twists! The story alternates between Cerys, Zoe, Lowri and the hired help Lucia. I found this great as you are able to see each situation in a different perspective. I feel like this was a fast paced thriller, which kept me wanting to binge read - I needed to find out what happened in the end. Whilst the end was a little predictable in the last half, the first half of the book kept me guessing.

A great first read for me by this author. I will definitely recommend.

Last Night at Villa Lucia is the perfect summer thriller. It is a page-turner, set at a beautiful villa in Tuscany, and follows two families who are fighting their own battles. When Cerys discovers a body floating in her villa pool, everyone becomes a suspect- her, her daughter Lowri, along with the family who is vacationing at the villa, Zoe and her son Charlie. Secrets start coming to light and new discoveries are made as the search for the murderer progresses.

I enjoyed this whodunit mystery and the multiple POVs really made me want to see it through to the end. I did guess a lot of it, including the killer from early on, however, the story itself kept me wanting to read on more. It is a fast-paced read, with flashbacks that worked well into the present day. Although I felt like some of the backstory was unnecessary, the parts that were relevant were great and mind-blowing by the end. I also enjoyed how the author made it more than just a simple whodunit mystery- each family were dealing with their own share of issues within their family, which added a lot of depth and gave each character more of a motive. This was a solid 4 star read for me, and I am looking forward to reading more books by Simon McCleave.

Thank you NetGalley, Storm Publishing, and Simon McCleave for such a captivating ARC!

Last Night at Villa Lucia is a thriller that will have you questioning, reassessing and re-questioning which of the characters is responsible for events that take place during a family’s stay at the villa. The story is told from the female characters in the book perspective and the plot slowly builds culminating in two plot twists. Thoroughly enjoyed the read

'Last Night at Villa Lucia' was an enjoyable & thrilling 'summer escape' read.

This book was well-written - the descriptions of the location whisked me away to Tuscany throughout! - & had a lot of depth. It was interesting having the story unfold through four different female characters, all of which had a range of personal issues or experiences, & it was easy to really connect with them.

The only disappointing part was that it was quite predictable at points; but that being said, it didn't stop it from being an exciting page-turner & with a truly satisfying ending.

Thank you to NetGalley, Simon McCleave & Storm Publishing for allowing me to read & review the ARC of 'Last Night at Villa Lucia'; all views are honest & my own.

Last Night at Villa Lucia centres around Cerys, sole owner of Villa Lucia since her divorce from her godawful husband Nick. Her daughter, the lovely and musically-talented Lowri is staying with her to take a break from the afore-mentioned stronzo (Nick).

Also on the property live the marvellous, and very Italian, Lucia (who the villa is named after) and her husband Lorenzo. The villa, which is actually Lucia's birthright but was sold due to the family running into misfortune, is now a B & B, where Cerys does yoga workshops. Lucia and Lorenzo cook and clean for the owners. Staying in the villa for a little holiday are Zoe, her son Charlie, and ANOTHER godawful husband, Nick. (Honestly, I'm not sure which of these spineless men was worse).

The story moved along quickly and was an easy read. Some of the characters were quite likeable, like Lowri and Charlie (apart from all the weed-smoking - I mean, who has a constant supply of weed and beer in their bedroom? Maybe I'm just really old-fashioned). Cerys irritated the daylights out of me, but then again, perhaps that really is what being in the grip of an addiction is like. She came right in the end and stood up to her demons (both of them).

Zoe was worse, a total washout. She really should have booted Harry out many many years earlier. Poor Charlie. Anyway, I digress. Now onto the characters I absolutely loved, three of them. Lucia, with grit and common sense in spades, Lorenzo, strong and silent and very handy in so many ways. And the Tuscan countryside, which really is a character in itself. There were a few grammatical errors but I'm sure those will be fixed up by publication.

The unexpected twist in the tale right at the end was just my cup of tea (it's a gift in a box, but that's all I'm saying), apart from sometimes, you do get what you deserve. Sadly, not often enough, but I think in Southern Italy, it happens more regularly than many other places. As they say, revenge is a dish best served cold, as cold and sweet as sublime Neapolitan gelato.

Quick and thrilling read. This book is told through multiple POV, giving you a different perspective with each chapter. The chapters flowed easily and the plot grabbed you and kept you guessing! Finished it in one weekend, highly recommend!

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC, all opinions are my own.

The story is told through the female characters. There is a lot of dysfunction which makes the murder a real who dunnit (or rather who didn’t want to do it?). I thoroughly enjoyed it, it was fast paced, with female characters that find their inner strength and I wasn’t sure who the murderer was until the end.

A surprisingly tangled thriller in a gorgeous setting, Last Night at Villa Lucia had me questioning everyone and everything.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this story early!

I enjoyed the plot of this book and the twists and turns it presented throughout! It was a whirlwind story. The characters were somewhat likable, but also kind of annoying. There were many different suspects and it was difficult to figure out who had done the crime.

Overall, I enjoyed it,

To start with, I did not see that ending coming! Everyone seemed to hate the victim so there were plenty of suspects. The way the character was written even I didn't like him! A couple of times it seemed a bit slow but mostly during flashbacks giving background information which was part of the plot. A good read

First time read thi9s author. Bases on 4 women's stories. Cerys who owns the villa, her daughter Lowri, Lucia who cleans and Zoe who's a guest along with her family. Cerys has a problem with drink and it focuses quite a lot on that. The following day a body is found lying in the hotel pool. You then get to find out about secrets they're all hiding.