Plenty of twists and turns in this read, loved it.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

3 years ago Dani, Aoife, Tiff, Beth and Celine came to Villa Floriana in Marbella for Aoife's hen party. Aoife was killed in a suspected burglary gone wrong. Dani was never convinced by this story so she's brought the other hens back to the villa to try and figure out the truth.

Told in dual timeline of then and now and from the perspectives of the 4 surviving hens. Tiff and Beth are Aoife's childhood best friends, Dani is her adulthood best friend who was leading her astray - according to Tiff - and Celine is someone she worked with who technically wasn't supposed to be there due to some "mix-up" of a 6 person villa being booked as opposed to a group-friendly hotel.

I liked the mystery surrounding what happened and the gradual reveal of the events but apart from Dani the characters are mostly unlikable in their secret bitchy-ness. Are you people her friends or not? Also the reveal was a letdown and in my feeling not really believable. There were also some other plot points that were introduced so late that they may as well not have been there, it's like the author was just trying to add extra tension instead of working with what she already had.

Three years ago Aoife died at her own her party. Three years later and the rest of the girls have come back to try and piece together the events of that fateful weekend. But the moment they're all back together tensions rise. With each girl having a different version of what happened that night will they ever find out the truth?

I really enjoyed this. I liked that we had the povs of all the girls and that we went from past and present. I liked that we were finding out what happened along with Dani as she regained her memories. None of the characters are very likeable and didn't seem like very good friends but it all added to the tension and atmosphere of the story. This was full of secrets and betrayals and I couldn't trust anyone's pov. I highly recommend

"i can't go on like this. i need to start moving forward. and i've realised that the only way i can do it is by going back. to the villa. i have to find out what happened that night."

I picked this up through Netgalley, with thanks to Jess Ryder and Penguin Books for gifting me this e-ARC

three years ago, something tragic happened to dani's best friend on her hen weekend, and now it's time for her to go back. but is this for something more than closure or will someone do anything to keep their secrets hidden?

rating: ⭐⭐

my thoughts: having read this now a long time ago (currently its august 2025 and i read this in september 2024), looking back on this book it wasn't one that i could see myself enjoying reading again, knowing the premise and how the book to me, jumps back and forth between scenes, locations and time periods too.

each of the girls within the hen party, as well as the external characters, were all unlikeable, bickering with each other, forming separate groups. it could be a good beach read, which is what it was for me, but it did drag on, with a lot of information dumping towards the end when we find out what really happened in the villa and everyones motivations.

this one was totally fine, i had to try to read it a few times and when I was finally able to get into it, there was definitely enough there to pull my attention in but not enough to have my feel emotionally invested which is a shame but also not a bad thing. I did not hate the book at all- i think it was a great one for when you kind of just needs something different between heavier/darker reads.

Jess Ryder’s The Villa is a compelling dual-timeline thriller set in a Spanish villa, where a bride’s murder at her hen do unfolds across past and present. The returning hens bring secrets, tension, and fractured friendships back into the spotlight, making for an atmospheric and page-turning story.
Ryder excels at crafting prickly character dynamics—jealousy, mistrust, and camaraderie clash in beautifully messy ways, keeping readers hooked through to a satisfying twist ending .
Perfect for summer reading, this fast-paced, psychological thriller grips from the start and doesn’t let go .

This was an interesting book - I suspected every character at least once and I loved the journey of uncovering the story, how it progressed to the final reveal and the depth of each of the characters.

Because of the use of characters it did feel it started to go in circles for a while however once events started to unlock it all came together and made sense.

Overall, pleasantly surprised and enjoyed the outcome as ir was not one I expected.

I absolutely devoured this over a couple of days, it's a really good thriller with a hefty dollop of suspense thrown in!

Aoife's hen party in Marbella was three years ago and it didn't end well as she ended up dead - but how? What happened?

The other hens have kept in touch over the years and the world has kept turning, well it seems to have for everyone else but not Dani. She is tortured by her memory blanks and what happened that last night, unable to go back and also unable to move forward.

They remaining hens agree to meetup and go back to Marbella for the third anniversary, but there are alternative motives and things still hidden in dark corners that someone doesn't want brought out into the light.

The story alternates between the present day and the original hen party trip, and also different POVs. Nobody is completely innocent, everyone has their secrets and reasons for being there and as the cracks start to show lots of truths start to unravel.

This was a brilliant fast-paced cleverly written read with lots of twists I did not see coming. Would be a great holiday read on the beach or by the pool - maybe not one for a hen do abroad though

Devoured this (late review though!) - I read this in just over a day. It had me hooked on the edge of my seat. The characters are unlikeably likeable (the fact that they're unlikeable hooks you in - I don't know how Jess Ryder has done that but wow!). They all make some terrible choices. The fact that every character could be suspected throughout was great, even if I did predict it around the 75% mark.

A great read and it turns out that I'm in love with holiday/hen-do thrillers now!

I really enjoyed this thriller set in a villa in Marbella. Three years ago Aoife died at her own hen party, Dani gets the girls back together to mark her anniversary and to see if she can piece together what happened. The novel flicks from Now and Then and is told from various perspectives. I found it very intriguing and did not guess how it all pieced together. So many secrets and so many dangers . The atmosphere is tense but also captures the beauty of the Spanish villa and its surroundings. I will definitely read more of this author .

The Villa by Jess Ryder is a suspenseful psychological thriller that takes readers on a dark and twist-filled journey through a beautiful yet ominous villa in the Italian countryside. The novel weaves a captivating tale of secrets, betrayal, and buried truths, set against the backdrop of an idyllic yet mysterious location.

Ryder expertly creates a sense of unease and foreboding, with just the right amount of tension at every turn. The slow-building suspense keeps the readers engaged, and the plot twists are skillfully executed, keeping the book unpredictable until the very end.

The Villa delves into themes of friendship, loss, and the impact of secrets. It explores the complexity of human relationships, trust, and how people deal with grief and trauma. The story also touches on the psychological toll of guilt and the way the past can haunt the present.

Brilliant, it don’t read before going on a hen-do.
I loved this and was hooked.
Definitely recommend.

Fast paced thriller told from multiple POVs and timelines. The jump between timelines grows tension, creating a complicated and unsettling atmosphere. Very easy read.

If you're about to go on a hen do, maybe read this afterwards 😂.
During her own hen do in a remote, but beautiful villa in Spain, Aoife is brutally killed. Her best friend Dani is in the room while it happened but she has absolutely no memory of the incident. With nothing to go off, the case goes cold.
On the third anniversary of Aoife's death Dani convinces the other 3 hens to return to Spain. She wants to re-trace their steps in the hope of getting her memory back. The only issue is, she has neglected to tell the other 3 girls that they will be returning to the exact same villa.

This was a great whodunnit! Different POVs from all the hens and jumping backwards and forwards between then and now, all done seemlessly. No 'filler' characters, every single one had a part to play in the plot. So many twists and turns, I loved it.

Fans of Freida McFadden, Lisa Jewell and Steve Cavanagh, you will love this one.

This was a good holiday read. Plenty of twists and thoughtful moments. Good characters. I enjoyed the setting. Would recommend to anyone who enjoys Thrillers and suspense.

Thanks to NetGalley for giving me the chance to read and review this.

A great summer beach read, where the opening isnt quite what they seem.
Aoifes hen do is a fabulous weekend in Marbella with a small group of friend. From the outset it is clear that something is very wrong as tension picks up and Aoife is killed.

The timeline fluctuates between past and present so as details come to the fore we come to understand the characters a little better.

We are definitely turned into a particular way of seeing events, which makes the ending a real twist for the readers.

A great easy read but left me wanting more.

This was an incredible and suspenseful thriller with endless twists and turns. I really loved the characters as well, all brought something exciting to the plot.

This was a lovely read and one I’ll be recommending to thriller reader friends! Great fun. Enjoyable characters.

A really good suspense thriller! I was hooked from the very beginning. Perfect for fans of Lucy Foley!

Loved this one! Such a great idea and kept me guessing throughout, kept being shocked by all the interesting twists and turns the plotline took, very well written.