Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.

A thriller in which a hen party on Marbella goes horribly wrong, and members return to try and piece together what really happened.

A really interesting thriller told from multiple POV’s set both in the past and the present. These elements work well and the author successfully allows the plot to unravel so there are twists right to the very end.

Could have been four stars just round them premise of them returning to the villa quite unlikely! However was otherwise a good read!

Think this will be a popular summer read upon relase!

Hen parties are supposed to be a bit of a riot, whether you celebrate close to home or catch a flight to your destination, and Aoife and her friends are determined to enjoy their long weekend in Marbella to the full. The hens, Tiff, Beth, Celeste, and Dani's fun, alongside their bride-to-be, starts in the departure lounge and is in full swing by the time they reach their villa in the hills.

On the three year anniversary only four of them return to the same villa. All have reasons for wanting or not wanting to be there but already they are lying to each other and are anxious to keep their memories to themselves. As the weekend progresses the tension and distrust increases until everyone just wants to return home but will the secrets they're keeping prevent that?

This standalone novel is a fun read which was entertaining throughout as well as making me delighted I've never experienced any of what 'Marbs' has to offer the soon to be married! There are twists and turns galore and what actually happened was gradually revealed at a very satisfying rate with everyone's pov included.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, Random House UK, but the opinions expressed are my own. This is a good book to read on holiday, maybe by the pool with a cocktail close at hand.

Oh my I absolutely loved this.. it was fast paced and told in multiple POV'S and best of all it was so mysterious.

I enjoyed the multiple points of view because it gave an insight into each individual personality and their thoughts about each other. Also I enjoyed comparing each ones version of events. The tension between them all is unmistakable. None of the characters are particularly likeable so it definitely adds an edge to the storyline... and its that, that makes the plot thicken.

The story glitters between past and present which ultimately heightens the sense of intrigue and intensity as we nearer the end of the book and the major plot twist at the end.

Despite being based in sunny Marbella, The Villa is far from the sunny relaxation spot it's meant to be. This book was a truly compelling read and I recommend it to all fans of psychological Thrillers.

Thank you to Netgalley and the author for the opportunity to read this book.

Oh wow, what a brilliant book, loved it.
The plot was fast paced, realistic and well written, suspense filled and sad.
The characters were described perfectly, I really felt for Dani and grew to love her even though at first I wasn’t keen.
The way the story unfolded was surprising and the Marbella setting was beautiful and eerie all at the same time.
I will read more by this author!

Three years ago Aoife was murdered on her hen party in Marbella. The hens have returned to the villa to get closure.

I get the idea of this but it didn't work. The hens were all unlikeable. None of them even liked each other which had me feeling why do I even care about what happens. There was no connection with any character from the get go. Part of the end was glaringly obvious from the start which didn't help. It's ok for the holidays but not great.

3.5☆ rounded up to 4☆

Enjoyable read, liked the then and now timelines and multiple povs. The dynamic between all of the hens was interesting, I'd have loves to get Aoifes thoughts too.

Dani was a great unreliable narrator, and I liked how the story wasn't quite so clear cut as I initially thought.

Good summer read that's sure to be a hit.

This was the perfect book to take on holiday! Really well written and I couldn't put it down! The author draws you in - the character are interesting and some likeable. I'll be recomending this book to friends.

This is a fast paced thriller with an interesting ending. I had multiple versions in my head but not that one. It was a good reading to take space in my head between other heavy stuff.

Enjoyed this book. It was a bit of a slow burn but soon got very pacy.
I thought the ending was very well written.

I thoroughly enjoyed this - a fun thriller beach read with good pacing and interesting plot twists. I particularly enjoyed the ending.

Bride-to-be Aoife is murdered on her hen weekend in an isolated villa in Marbella. A few years later, to mark the anniversary of her death, her best friend, Dani, persuades the other 'hens' to go back to the villa. She'd blacked out when the murder took place and she is determined to get to the bottom of the mystery and find closure.
The multiple viewpoints and timelines make for an interesting, multi-layered read but, for me, gave the novel a disjointed feel, lacking in flow. I didn't like any of the characters - they all seemed self-absorbed and shallow - but I did want to know who had killed Aoife and why.
The first half was slower than the second half, when all sorts of motives were thrown up, confusing the reader into identifying the killer. I didn't see the ending coming but when it came, the big reveal felt a bit of an anti-climax, with lots of information dumping.
The Villa is an easy, read, ideal for the beach or a plane/train journey.
As an aside, I have nieces with Irish names but I had to look up the pronunciation of Aoife and keep repeating it aloud when her name came up in the text. That's my problem, not the author's, but a difficult-to-pronounce name for a major character doesn't make for the easiest of reading, sorry!
Thanks to NetGalley for an advance review copy of this book.

This book started off quite slowly but it soon picked up about halfway through.

It was a good read, but some of it felt slightly disjointed for me and didn't flow as well as I would have liked.

Dani and three friends return to the Marbella at the same villa that they spent a hen weekend three years previously where the bride Aoife died. She hasn’t told them that it is the same Villa to Tiff, Celine, and Beth to celebrate the anniversary or they wouldn’t have come. Dani has a vague recollection of that time, as she had passed out after too many drinks. She hasn’t moved on and she wants to find out what happened, so she can put it all behind her and start her life again.
But the 4 remaining friends are not close and when they find out where they are staying, they want to book the first flight home. But without Wi-Fi they can’t do that, and they try and make the best of it. But it is not all plain sailing.
This story which is a slow burn of a story is set in two timelines and different to what I was expecting. The incidents that happened that fateful day and present are slowly revealed and kept me turning the pages. But for me I didn’t find the characters very likeable in anyway. They were both bad as each other in a self-absorbed way. It is an intriguing story and my first book from the author I have read. After reading this it won’t be my last. 4 stars from me.

I devoured this book and found it completely unputdownable!

This cleverly written story is about five friends; Aoife, Dani, Beth, Tiff and Celine, who, three years ago, went on a hen weekend to Marbella where tragically Aoife lost her life.

Haunted by her disturbing memories of that fateful trip, Dani persuades the other hens to return to the villa where
it all happened. But is someone willing to do anything to keep the truth hidden?

The book is divided into 'then' and 'now' chapters, narrated by the different girls, which really helped re-create the past and slowly, ominously, lead up to the moment we discover what really happened. Each of the girl's personalities are expertly captured and the tension bubbles along, all the while revealing snippets of the past, underlying wounds and unresolved issues.

The atmosphere of the Spanish villa and the character of the area was brilliantly drawn, as was the interactions between the girls. I've been on several hen dos and the arguments, petty squabbles and alcohol fuled celebrations were only too familiar!

Highly recommended and the perfect chilling beach read this summer.

Thanks to author Jess Ryder, publishers Random House UK, Cornerstone and Net Galley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Whilst initially quite formulaic, this is actually quite a compelling addition to the two time periods / domestic thriller oeuvre. A good beach read. Recommended

'Three years ago, bride-to-be Aoife died at her own hen party. Now the hens have returned to the villa where that terrible weekend unfolded'.

I enjoyed the multiple POVs within this novel and the premise, however I think that the mystery was not deep enough and the ending was slightly rushed. However, if you're looking for a fast-paced thriller set in sunny Marbella, this is the book for you.

I have never read anything by Jess Ryder before but this book was fantastic and I was hooked from the first page.
It’s all about a group of girls who are on Aiofe’s hen do in Marbella in a luxury villa and the awful things that happen to them.
The book is fast paced and the Spanish setting was excellent and really added to the story.
I thought the characters were brilliant and all had great motives. I didn’t know who to trust and did not guess the ending at all.
Thanks to Netgalley, Jess Ryder and Random House UK, Cornerstone in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

While there was a lot I liked about this, such as the Villa setting and descriptions., I found it hard to believe a group of friends would return to a place where such tragedy had occurred. The story flowed well enough and it was a fairly easy read overall.

A psychological thriller. The plot is set in two different time periods in Marbella in Spain. One is Aofie's hen weekend, the other 3 years later when her friends return to Marbella to commemorate her death . The book is written from different viewpoints, but mostly the narrator in Dani, she shared a room with Aofie and desparately wants to remember what actually happened in the weekend away.
I liked the writing in this one, it was realistic and the tension built up in both time periods gradually. Lots of leads about what happened and a couple of twists in the plot along the way. The author captures the atmosphere of a girls' weekend away well and you get to know the women well, experiencing the different friendships and spats along the way. There are doubts about the location and the group dynamics from early on in the book and the location is well described . One slight niggle is perhaps an overkill of "Hen activities" but I suppose there are groups who do these and end up spending a lot of money . One of the group does suggest that she could have had a week in Greece for less !
The length of the book is about right, a build up of suspense without dragging on too much . Enough information to allow you to try and solve what had happened.
A good read, thanks to Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

I received an ebook ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book is so fast-paced and easy to read, I flew through it in about two days. I loved the villa setting and I really enjoyed the context of the hen do and seeing all of the different dynamics and backstories between the women. Maybe it's just the stage I'm at in my life now where my friends are getting engaged and planning hen dos but I really related to the complex dynamics between hens. The lifelong best friend, the fun uni friend, the husband's co-worker's wife who no one really knows, I could relate to all of them. I really liked seeing all of these relationships and hearing the women's feelings on each other from their povs. It was reminding me a bit of 'Everything I Know About Love' by Dolly Alderton in the way it touched on how female friendships grow, change and may ultimately end as we grow older.

I will say though the mystery overall is a bit forgettable and that's why I've given it a 3*. The character development really isn't great, even for a thriller; I really didn't understand characters' motivations for certain things other than to move the plot forward and to create drama and outside of the main five women the other characters felt completely one-dimensional and devoid of any individuality. Also, while I thought the reveal of who killed Aoife was well-done, the execution felt a bit rushed and there was a lot of information dumping at the end with little space to really explore what it all meant.

Overall a good, fun, easy reading thiller in the vein of Lucy Foley or Lucy Clarke. This would be the perfect book to pick up at the airport, binge by the pool on holiday, and then probably leave behind in the hotel and never think about again.