The Writing Retreat: A Novel
In this instant New York Times bestselling and “utterly addictive thriller” (Ana Reyes, New York Times bestselling author), a young author is invited to an exclusive writer’s retreat that soon descends into a pulse-pounding nightmare.
Alex has all but given up on her dreams of becoming a published author when she receives a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: attend an exclusive, month-long writing retreat at the estate of feminist horror writer Roza Vallo. Even the knowledge that Wren, her former best friend and current rival, is attending doesn’t dampen her excitement.
But when the attendees arrive, Roza drops a bombshell—they must all complete an entire novel from scratch during the next month, and the author of the best one will receive a life-changing seven-figure publishing deal. Determined to win this seemingly impossible contest, Alex buckles down and tries to ignore the strange happenings at the estate, including Roza’s erratic behavior, Wren’s cruel mind games, and the alleged haunting of the mansion itself. But when one of the writers vanishes during a snowstorm, Alex realizes that something very sinister is afoot. With the clock running out, she must discover the truth—or suffer the same fate.
A claustrophobic and “audacious psychological thriller debut” (Publishers Weekly), The Writing Retreat expertly explores the dark side of female relationships, fame, and the desire to have our stories told.
Alex has all but given up on her dreams of becoming a published author when she receives a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: attend an exclusive, month-long writing retreat at the estate of feminist horror writer Roza Vallo. Even the knowledge that Wren, her former best friend and current rival, is attending doesn’t dampen her excitement.
But when the attendees arrive, Roza drops a bombshell—they must all complete an entire novel from scratch during the next month, and the author of the best one will receive a life-changing seven-figure publishing deal. Determined to win this seemingly impossible contest, Alex buckles down and tries to ignore the strange happenings at the estate, including Roza’s erratic behavior, Wren’s cruel mind games, and the alleged haunting of the mansion itself. But when one of the writers vanishes during a snowstorm, Alex realizes that something very sinister is afoot. With the clock running out, she must discover the truth—or suffer the same fate.
A claustrophobic and “audacious psychological thriller debut” (Publishers Weekly), The Writing Retreat expertly explores the dark side of female relationships, fame, and the desire to have our stories told.
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Readers say *The Writing Retreat* is a dark, suspenseful psychological thriller with an atmospheric, isolated setting and compelling characters, espec...
A writing retreat as the basis for a mystery/thriller? Seems unlikely and that’s why it works. I don’t want to give anything away, but nothing is what it seems. And is it over the top to add in a ghost? Apparently not! It all meshes together for a really good story.
This is a perfect read when you are wanting something creepy, calculated, and clever.
The Writing Retread is a delicious and disturbing twisted story about a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Our protagonist Alex is attending a month-long writing retreat. Alex is an aspiring writer and associate editor in a publishing company. Alex has been suffering from writer's block for a year after a series of events ends her longtime friendship with Wren. The writing retreat is being held at the famous horror author, Roza Vallo’s home, Blackbriar Estate in the Adirondacks. Among the four other aspiring writers is Wren, Alex’s former best friend with whom her problems remain unresolved. However, this is not an opportunity to be missed and Alex is thrilled to be attending and unwilling to let Wren’s presence ruin this experience for her.
Roza has aspiring writers on a rigorous schedule. Expecting them to have written a full-length novel by the end of the month. Rosa is motivating them with a lucrative publishing deal for the “winner”. With her struggles with writer's block and escalated tensions with Wren, it has been hard for Alex to keep up. Roza’s unorthodox methods of running her retreat, the isolated location, and eerie occurrences in the house. Blackbriar Estates has an unnerving history surrounding its original owners. What follows is a thrilling ride with secrets, lies, manipulation, and hidden agendas that has the group wavering between sticking together and suspicion directed toward each other and mentor Roza. The question that is being asked is, how far would each of them go to fulfill their dreams, and at what cost?
With its atmospheric, isolated setting with Gothic vibes, complicated characters, consistent pacing, and complex plot. This dark and suspenseful psychological thriller will keep you on the edge of your seat from the first page.
I absolutely devoured this story. This is the kind of book that you would want to finish in one sitting! Overall, The Writing Retreat is an impressive debut novel and I look forward to reading more from this talented new author in the future.
All my thanks to Atria/Emily Bestler Books, NetGalley, and the author, Julia Bartz, for the opportunity to read and review an advanced reader’s copy of this book.
The Writing Retreat is available February 21, 2023
The Writing Retread is a delicious and disturbing twisted story about a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Our protagonist Alex is attending a month-long writing retreat. Alex is an aspiring writer and associate editor in a publishing company. Alex has been suffering from writer's block for a year after a series of events ends her longtime friendship with Wren. The writing retreat is being held at the famous horror author, Roza Vallo’s home, Blackbriar Estate in the Adirondacks. Among the four other aspiring writers is Wren, Alex’s former best friend with whom her problems remain unresolved. However, this is not an opportunity to be missed and Alex is thrilled to be attending and unwilling to let Wren’s presence ruin this experience for her.
Roza has aspiring writers on a rigorous schedule. Expecting them to have written a full-length novel by the end of the month. Rosa is motivating them with a lucrative publishing deal for the “winner”. With her struggles with writer's block and escalated tensions with Wren, it has been hard for Alex to keep up. Roza’s unorthodox methods of running her retreat, the isolated location, and eerie occurrences in the house. Blackbriar Estates has an unnerving history surrounding its original owners. What follows is a thrilling ride with secrets, lies, manipulation, and hidden agendas that has the group wavering between sticking together and suspicion directed toward each other and mentor Roza. The question that is being asked is, how far would each of them go to fulfill their dreams, and at what cost?
With its atmospheric, isolated setting with Gothic vibes, complicated characters, consistent pacing, and complex plot. This dark and suspenseful psychological thriller will keep you on the edge of your seat from the first page.
I absolutely devoured this story. This is the kind of book that you would want to finish in one sitting! Overall, The Writing Retreat is an impressive debut novel and I look forward to reading more from this talented new author in the future.
All my thanks to Atria/Emily Bestler Books, NetGalley, and the author, Julia Bartz, for the opportunity to read and review an advanced reader’s copy of this book.
The Writing Retreat is available February 21, 2023
Phew - this book! From the first page, it gripped me and I teetered between wanting to devour it in one sitting and slowly savoring it by pacing it out. Ultimately, I decided on the later and each time I picked it up it felt like a dark and delicious treat.
This debut novel by Julia Bartz follows our protagonist, Alex, on a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Caught in a dead-end job she hates and recovering from a brutal breakup with her best friend, Wren, Alex is selected as one of five women to attend a writing retreat at the estate of famed feminist horror author, Rosa Vallo. Quickly, Alex learns that one of the other women selected for the retreat is no other than her former best friend. The women are tasked with completing a completely new novel within a month, the best one of the bunch, being selected for a seven figure publishing deal. But quickly, it becomes clear that something sinister is afoot as elements of the horror books Rosa has become famous for creep into the competition.
This book is unapologetically dark and twisted, while teetering on a line between horror and thriller and is a musts read for anyone wanting a book to get their heart rate up.
This debut novel by Julia Bartz follows our protagonist, Alex, on a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Caught in a dead-end job she hates and recovering from a brutal breakup with her best friend, Wren, Alex is selected as one of five women to attend a writing retreat at the estate of famed feminist horror author, Rosa Vallo. Quickly, Alex learns that one of the other women selected for the retreat is no other than her former best friend. The women are tasked with completing a completely new novel within a month, the best one of the bunch, being selected for a seven figure publishing deal. But quickly, it becomes clear that something sinister is afoot as elements of the horror books Rosa has become famous for creep into the competition.
This book is unapologetically dark and twisted, while teetering on a line between horror and thriller and is a musts read for anyone wanting a book to get their heart rate up.
This book is weird. It is about inspiring writers being invited to a writing retreat. The host lured these writers to the retreat. It is a thriller and mystery.
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