Strangers in the Villa ⭐⭐⭐💫
Strangers in the Villa by Robyn Harding
G👀dreads
Sydney Lowe’s life in New York is shattered when her husband, Curtis, admits to a meaningless affair with a client. Begging for forgiveness and vowing to prove his devotion, Curtis suggests the couple retreat to a remote hilltop house in Spain to repair their marriage.
High above the Mediterranean, Sydney and Curtis are working on the isolated property and their relationship when a pair of Australian travelers turns up at their door in dire need of help. Lonely for companionship and desperate for free labor, Sydney and Curtis invite the attractive young couple to stay. But as the days pass, dark secrets come to light, the Lowes’ bond is tested, and not everyone will leave the villa alive.
Genre: Fiction, Mystery, Psychological Thriller, Spain
The How/Why: This one was recommended by one of my bookish kindred spirits on GR. I had it on hold with Libby with an anticipated wait time of two more weeks. Just when I was deciding what to pick next, I received a Skip-The-Line notice from Libby. I've never received one for an audio book. They are sometimes available for eBooks. I wasn't going to jump into another psychological thriller yet after I just ditched one but here we are, skipping the line.
Day 1: It's interesting but at the 50% point I feel like it's very 𝕝ⓞή𝓰. Like how could there be so much left to go?
⭐⭐⭐💫 (*3.75)
🎉 Overall Enjoyment? 🎉🎉🎉🎉
🎣 Did it grab and keep my attention? 🎣🎣🎣🎣
🗣️Would I recommend it to anyone? Yes ➕
🕮 Would I want a sequel? No ➖
📚 Would I want to read more books by this author? Maybe 🤷
💣💥 📢 Content Warnings? InꞘidɇliṪy, T0xic Relati0nships, DɇaṪh
One more but it would be a spoiler so I put it at the end.
🌶 Spice? No
🌪 Plot Twist? Yes
👟 Pace? Uneven. Started out fast, slowed down, speed back up at the end
💻 Tidbits ~ After Curtis admits to a casual meaningless affair with a client, he and Sydney move to Spain to save their marriage.
First of all, disclaimer: I'm not a marriage counselor, nor do I play one on TV. I do however play one on the internet from time to time. You cannot save your marriage when you say you forgive your spouse for his înꞘidɇliṪy and then throw it in his face every chance you get. That's not how forgiveness works.
Moving on... Curtis is groveling his way through life in their remote hilltop villa when along comes strangers, Bianca and Damian. They say they are Australian travelers with vehicle trouble and dead cell phones. Did I mention it's a REMOTE location on a HILLTOP? Come in, charge your phones, have some vino, let me cook for you, stay here for a while, help with repairs. Oh and no don't sleep in the van, we have a guest room... What could possibly go wrong?
Emmm, no. I'd be all let me get you a bottle of water and you can charge you phone with an electrical outlet on the patio, now run along. Do you need me to call for a tow truck?
It doesn't take long to figure out that this random drive-by break-down was not random and their squatters have ulterior motives.
It does take a while before Sydney figures out that there is something bigger to hold over Curtis's head than a casual meaningless one-nighter. And it hits her with a BANG! I loved her investigative details coming into view. (((Sydney)))
Can this foursome address and resolve their issues or are they in it 'til death do us part?
Why I deducted 1.25 Stars.
Half Star because, although fiction, it was not very believable that they would invite these random strangers to stay with them, no matter how lonely they were living alone together.
Half Star because it was way too Ḽⓞή𝓰. At the 50% mark (after the plot and plan were revealed) I was ready for it to be over and when I checked the progress I was surprised there was that much left to go.
Quarter Star because of Bianca's underlying reason for wanting to destroy Curtis. The main reason YES. But (trying not to reveal a spoiler) having someone pointed out on a poster does not mean they are the root cause of the situation. IYKYK.
Yes, it was suspenseful and hooked me in anxious to see how it would end. The ending did not disappoint.
🎧 Narrator: Katherine Littrell 👍
🎧9.0 hours 🕮 336 pages
**** SPOILER ALERT****
Tune out now if you don’t want the spoiler(s)
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