Release Day! The Storm by Rachel Hawkins ~ My Thoughts #TheStorm

Happy Release Day!

Congratulations Rachel

on the release today of

The Storm!

The Storm by Rachel Hawkins

Mystery, Thriller, 288 pages

Published January 6, 2026 by St. Martin's Press

St. Medard's Bay, Alabama is famous for three things: the deadly hurricanes that regularly sweep into town, the Rosalie Inn, a century-old hotel that's survived every one of those storms, and Lo Bailey, the local girl infamously accused of the murder of her lover, political scion Landon Fitzroy, during Hurricane Marie in 1984.

When Geneva Corliss, the current owner of the Rosalie Inn, hears a writer is coming to town to research the crime that put St. Medard's Bay on the map, she's less interested in solving a whodunnit than in how a successful true crime book might help the struggling inn's bottom line. But to her surprise, August Fletcher doesn't come to St. Medard's Bay alone. With him is none other than Lo Bailey herself. Lo says she's returned to her hometown to clear her name once and for all, but the closer Geneva gets to both Lo and August, the more she wonders if Lo is actually back to settle old scores.

As the summer heats up and another monster storm begins twisting its way towards St. Medard's Bay, Geneva learns that some people can be just as destructive--and as deadly--as any hurricane, and that the truth of what happened to Landon Fitzroy may not be the only secret Lo is keeping...

My thoughts about The Storm ~~

(I love to note the first lines of the books I'm reading. First lines can really grab a reader's attention and I love seeing where the author takes the reader after their first lines.)

First lines—"'It's worse when they come at night'"

Hurricanes are really scary to live through. And then throw in a woman accused of murder coming back to town to try to clear her name. Is she really innocent or is she really up to no good? 

As with all of the other stories by Rachel Hawkins, the reader is taken on a journey with questions piling up before answers are given. Twists and turns, secrets and lies abound. Getting to the truth is what kept me turning the pages. And what a satisfying ending it was, after all that.

I have read all of Rachel's thrillers and I am never disappointed. The Storm is another great one and I can highly recommend.

I received an ARC of The Storm and this is my honest opinion.

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About the author

Rachel Hawkins is the New York Times bestselling author of The Wife Upstairs, Reckless Girls, The Villa, and The Heiress, as well as multiple books for young readers. Her work has been translated into over two dozen languages. She studied gender and sexuality in Victorian literature at Auburn University and currently lives in Alabama.

Connect with Rachel

Website | Goodreads | Twitter | Instagram

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Release Day! The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins ~ My Thoughts #TheHeiress @LadyHawkins @StMartinsPress

Congrats Rachel

on the release today of

The Heiress!

The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins

Mystery Thriller, 304 pages

Published January 9, 2024 by St. Martin's Press

When Ruby McTavish Callahan Woodward Miller Kenmore dies, she’s not only North Carolina’s richest woman, she’s also its most notorious. The victim of a famous kidnapping as a child and a widow four times over, Ruby ruled the tiny town of Tavistock from Ashby House, her family’s estate high in the Blue Ridge mountains. In the aftermath of her death, that estate—along with a nine-figure fortune and the complicated legacy of being a McTavish—pass to her adopted son, Camden.

But to everyone’s surprise, Cam wants little to do with the house or the money—and even less to do with the surviving McTavishes. Instead, he rejects his inheritance, settling into a normal life as an English teacher in Colorado and marrying Jules, a woman just as eager to escape her own messy past.

Ten years later, Camden is a McTavish in name only, but a summons in the wake of his uncle’s death brings him and Jules back into the family fold at Ashby House. Its views are just as stunning as ever, its rooms just as elegant, but coming home reminds Cam why he was so quick to leave in the first place.

Jules, however, has other ideas, and the more she learns about Cam’s estranged family—and the twisted secrets they keep—the more determined she is for her husband to claim everything Ruby once intended for him to have.

But Ruby’s plans were always more complicated than they appeared. As Ashby House tightens its grip on Jules and Camden, questions about the infamous heiress come to light. Was there any truth to the persistent rumors following her disappearance as a girl? What really happened to those four husbands, who all died under mysterious circumstances? And why did she adopt Cam in the first place? Soon, Jules and Cam realize that an inheritance can entail far more than what’s written in a will––and that the bonds of family stretch far beyond the grave.

    

My thoughts about The Heiress ~~

(I love to note the first lines of the books I'm reading. First lines can really grab a reader's attention and I love seeing where the author takes the reader after their first line.)

First lines—"Lumber Baron's Baby Girl Vanishes, Search on Foot, by Air Under Way. By the Associated Press Tavistock, North Carolina"

I haven't read a book by Rachel Hawkins that I haven't just absolutely loved. They have all been edge-of-my-seat thrillers that I have devoured. The Heiress is now up there as one of my favorite books by this author.

The Heiress is filled with secrets, deceit, backstabbing, and redemption for past behaviors. And then more secrets. Just when you think you know what's going on and who is doing what to whom, the story flips and things are not what and who they appeared to be. 

Some of the things that some of these characters did were unbelievable. Not unbelievable like no one can do that but more like, how can someone be so twisted that they could do that, and think it's okay. Wow! But you know what, that is exactly what kept me so invested in this story. I couldn't wait to see how it, and they, all turned out.

Rachel Hawkins is already on my list of must-read authors. The Heiress makes me even more excited to see what she has planned next. I highly recommend it!

I received a copy of The Heiress via NetGalley from the publisher and this is my honest opinion.

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About the author

Born in Virginia and raised in Alabama, Rachel Hawkins has been writing since Kindergarten when her first book, a tense thriller involving a unicorn, a witch, and a princess, was called, “very imaginative!” by her teacher and “a searing work of genius” by her mother.

Since then, Rachel has written over a dozen books for children and adults (sadly all unicorn-free thus far), and been published in more than twenty countries. As Rachel Hawkins, she wrote the New York Times bestselling The Wife Upstairs, a Southern Gothic twist on Jane Eyre that the Southern Review of Books called, “a thrill ride,” and Entertainment Weekly dubbed, “a gothic thriller laced with arsenic.” Her latest thriller, Reckless Girls, also debuted on the New York Times list with Kirkus calling it, “a soapy, claustrophobic page-turner.”

When not writing modern Gothic thrillers as Rachel Hawkins, she also pens paranormal romantic comedies under the name Erin Sterling. Her debut romance, The Ex Hex, was a Book of the Month pick as well as a New York Times and USA Today Bestseller.

Rachel currently lives in Auburn, Alabama with her husband, son, and five cats. (Yes, five. She knows.). In her free time, she enjoys reading, cooking, and picking up an assortment of creative hobbies she will give up on after a week or two. You can find her on Twitter and Instagram. ~ Author website

Connect with Rachel

Website | Goodreads | Twitter | Instagram

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Be sure to check the sidebar for all of my current giveaways!

Release Day! The Villa by Rachel Hawkins ~ My Thoughts #TheVilla @LadyHawkins

Happy Release Day!

Congrats Rachel

on the release today of

The Villa!

The Villa by Rachel Hawkins 

Mystery, Thriller & Suspense, 288 pages

Published January 3rd 2023 by St. Martin’s Press

From New York Times bestselling author Rachel Hawkins comes a deliciously wicked gothic suspense, set at an Italian villa with a dark history, for fans of Lucy Foley and Ruth Ware.

As kids, Emily and Chess were inseparable. But by their 30s, their bond has been strained by the demands of their adult lives. So when Chess suggests a girls trip to Italy, Emily jumps at the chance to reconnect with her best friend.

Villa Aestas in Orvieto is a high-end holiday home now, but in 1974, it was known as Villa Rosato, and rented for the summer by a notorious rock star, Noel Gordon. In an attempt to reignite his creative spark, Noel invites up-and-coming musician, Pierce Sheldon to join him, as well as Pierce’s girlfriend, Mari, and her stepsister, Lara. But he also sets in motion a chain of events that leads to Mari writing one of the greatest horror novels of all time, Lara composing a platinum album––and ends in Pierce’s brutal murder.

As Emily digs into the villa’s complicated history, she begins to think there might be more to the story of that fateful summer in 1974. That perhaps Pierce’s murder wasn’t just a tale of sex, drugs, and rock & roll gone wrong, but that something more sinister might have occurred––and that there might be clues hidden in the now-iconic works that Mari and Lara left behind.

Yet the closer that Emily gets to the truth, the more tension she feels developing between her and Chess. As secrets from the past come to light, equally dangerous betrayals from the present also emerge––and it begins to look like the villa will claim another victim before the summer ends.

Inspired by Fleetwood Mac, the Manson murders, and the infamous summer Percy and Mary Shelley spent with Lord Byron at a Lake Geneva castle––the birthplace of Frankenstein––The Villa welcomes you into its deadly legacy.

My thoughts about The Villa ~~

(I love to note the first lines of the books I'm reading. First lines can really grab a reader's attention and I love seeing where the author takes the reader after their first lines.)

First lines—"Somewhere around the time she started calling herself 'Chess'. I realized I might actually hate my best friend."

I wasn't sure what I was getting into when I picked up The Villa by Rachel Hawkins. I just know that every story of hers that I have read has blown me away. The storyline and the intensity of her characters and events always propel me thorough her stories. 

The Villa did not disappoint. A story within a story is revealed as Emily and Chess go away for a vacation in a villa in Italy. It will be nice to get away and reconnect, maybe work on their respective creative careers. Little did they know that their lives would mirror those of events of the past. That's where the intensity comes in. 

The two storylines, the present and the fateful summer of 1974, weave an intriguing tale of love, jealousy, distrust, and death. Will history repeat itself? 

I highly recommend The Villa. But be prepared to lose yourself in the story to the detriment of life all around you. You will not be able to put it down! 

I received a copy of The Villa via NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.

About the author

Born in Virginia and raised in Alabama, Rachel Hawkins has been writing since Kindergarten when her first book, a tense thriller involving a unicorn, a witch, and a princess, was called, “very imaginative!” by her teacher and “a searing work of genius” by her mother.

Since then, Rachel has written over a dozen books for children and adults (sadly all unicorn-free thus far), and been published in more than twenty countries. As Rachel Hawkins, she wrote the New York Times bestselling The Wife Upstairs, a Southern Gothic twist on Jane Eyre that the Southern Review of Books called, “a thrill ride,” and Entertainment Weekly dubbed, “a gothic thriller laced with arsenic.” Her latest thriller, Reckless Girls, also debuted on the New York Times list with Kirkus calling it, “a soapy, claustrophobic page-turner.”

When not writing modern Gothic thrillers as Rachel Hawkins, she also pens paranormal romantic comedies under the name Erin Sterling. Her debut romance, The Ex Hex, was a Book of the Month pick as well as a New York Times and USA Today Bestseller.

Rachel currently lives in Auburn, Alabama with her husband, son, and five cats. (Yes, five. She knows.). In her free time, she enjoys reading, cooking, and picking up an assortment of creative hobbies she will give up on after a week or two. You can find her on Twitter and Instagram. ~ Author website

Connect with Rachel

Website | Goodreads | Twitter | Instagram

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Be sure to check the sidebar for my current giveaways!

New Release! Reckless Girls by Rachel Hawkins ~ My Thoughts #RecklessGirls #GetRecklessGirls

Congrats Rachel

on the release of

Reckless Girls!

Reckless Girls by Rachel Hawkins

Mystery, Thriller, 320 pages

Published January 4, 2022 by St. Martin's Press

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Wife Upstairs comes a deliciously wicked gothic suspense, set on an isolated Pacific island with a dark history, for fans of Lucy Foley and Ruth Ware.

When Lux McAllister and her boyfriend, Nico, are hired to sail two women to a remote island in the South Pacific, it seems like the opportunity of a lifetime. Stuck in a dead-end job in Hawaii, and longing to travel the world after a family tragedy, Lux is eager to climb on board The Susannah and set out on an adventure. She’s also quick to bond with their passengers, college best friends Brittany and Amma. The two women say they want to travel off the beaten path. But like Lux, they may have other reasons to be seeking an escape.

Shimmering on the horizon after days at sea, Meroe Island is every bit the paradise the foursome expects, despite a mysterious history of shipwrecks, cannibalism, and even rumors of murder. But what they don’t expect is to discover another boat already anchored off Meroe’s sandy beaches. The owners of the Azure Sky, Jake and Eliza, are a true golden couple: gorgeous, laidback, and if their sleek catamaran and well-stocked bar are any indication, rich. Now a party of six, the new friends settle in to experience life on an exotic island, and the serenity of being completely off the grid. Lux hasn’t felt like she truly belonged anywhere in years, yet here on Meroe, with these fellow free spirits, she finally has a sense of peace.

But with the arrival of a skeevy stranger sailing alone in pursuit of a darker kind of good time, the balance of the group is disrupted. Soon, cracks begin to emerge: it seems that Brittany and Amma haven’t been completely honest with Lux about their pasts––and perhaps not even with each other. And though Jake and Eliza seem like the perfect pair, the rocky history of their relationship begins to resurface, and their reasons for sailing to Meroe might not be as innocent as they first appeared.

When it becomes clear that the group is even more cut off from civilization than they initially thought, it starts to feel like the island itself is closing in on them. And when one person goes missing, and another turns up dead, Lux begins to wonder if any of them are going to make it off the island alive.

My thoughts about Reckless Girls ~~

(I love to note the first lines of the books I'm reading. First lines can really grab a reader's attention and I love seeing where the author takes the reader after their first lines.)

First lines—"Prologue: Salt water and blood taste the same. She'd never thought of that until now, until she was drowning in both, blood gushing from the wound in her temple, the sea rushing into her mouth."

Whoa! What an intense ride this one was. I knew from the get-go that something bad was going to happen—four people setting out on the big ocean in a small boat, the two couples knowing pretty much nothing about each other. You just know that's not going to turn out well. And there was nothing I could do to stop the bad from happening. 

So this intense story, full of twists and turns, that goes where I'm not expecting it to go had me racing to the end. But then, I almost got whiplash at the head-turning ending. Wait, what just happened? I had to read the ending again to try to understand it. Another whoa! 

Thank you Rachel Hawkins for another great thriller. Reckless Girls is a definite must read for an amazing experience! 

 

I received a copy of Reckless Girls from the publisher via NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.

About the author

Rachel Hawkins was a high school English teacher before becoming a full-time writer. She lives with her family in Alabama, and is currently at work on the third book in the Hex Hall series. To the best of her knowledge, Rachel is not a witch, though some of her former students may disagree.... ~ Amazon

Connect with Rachel

Website | Goodreads | Twitter | Amazon | Instagram

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Be sure to check the sidebar for all of my current giveaways!

Release Day! The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins ~ My Thoughts #TheWifeUpstairs #NetGalley

The Wife Upstairs

The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins 

304 pages

Published January 5, 2021 by St. Martin's Press

A delicious twist on a Gothic classic, The Wife Upstairs pairs Southern charm with atmospheric domestic suspense, perfect for fans of B.A. Paris and Megan Miranda.

Meet Jane. Newly arrived to Birmingham, Alabama, Jane is a broke dog-walker in Thornfield Estates––a gated community full of McMansions, shiny SUVs, and bored housewives. The kind of place where no one will notice if Jane lifts the discarded tchotchkes and jewelry off the side tables of her well-heeled clients. Where no one will think to ask if Jane is her real name.

But her luck changes when she meets Eddie­ Rochester. Recently widowed, Eddie is Thornfield Estates’ most mysterious resident. His wife, Bea, drowned in a boating accident with her best friend, their bodies lost to the deep. Jane can’t help but see an opportunity in Eddie––not only is he rich, brooding, and handsome, he could also offer her the kind of protection she’s always yearned for.

Yet as Jane and Eddie fall for each other, Jane is increasingly haunted by the legend of Bea, an ambitious beauty with a rags-to-riches origin story, who launched a wildly successful southern lifestyle brand. How can she, plain Jane, ever measure up? And can she win Eddie’s heart before her past––or his––catches up to her?

With delicious suspense, incisive wit, and a fresh, feminist sensibility, The Wife Upstairs flips the script on a timeless tale of forbidden romance, ill-advised attraction, and a wife who just won’t stay buried. In this vivid reimagining of one of literature’s most twisted love triangles, which Mrs. Rochester will get her happy ending?

My thoughts about The Wife Upstairs ~~ 

(I love to note the first lines of the books I'm reading. First lines can really grab a reader's attention and I love seeing where the author takes the reader after their first lines.)

First line—"It was the absolute shittiest day for a walk."

What a twisty, turning tale this book ended up being. The characters started out likeable enough and I thought I knew what was going on. And then people's true personalities started coming out and I had no clue who was who and what they were up to. Motives? Anyone's guess! And I loved it!! 

Everyone had their own agenda and I was kept in the dark until the shocking, satisfying ending. When I got to the last page, I have to stop and ponder what I just read. I love when authors can do that for me.

I highly recommend The Wife Upstairs! It will keep you on the edge of your seat and it will be a story you will not soon forget.  

About the author

Rachel Hawkins was a high school English teacher before becoming a full-time writer. She lives with her family in Alabama, and is currently at work on the third book in the Hex Hall series. To the best of her knowledge, Rachel is not a witch, though some of her former students may disagree.... ~ Amazon

Connect with Rachel

Website | Goodreads | Twitter | Amazon

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Be sure to check the sidebar for all of my current giveaways!