The Writing Retreat
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2023-01-20 11:21:52
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Julia Bartz
- ISBN：1797151789
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Emma Bamford
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It’s not the *worst* thing I’ve ever read but my goodness is it a close second。My feelings are pretty much identical to most of the other one star reviews here。 I don’t know if the author is trying to come off as “woke” or “edgy” but it has the feel of a teenage creative writing project。 Sex and demons？ In a thriller？ And not just regular sex。 Straight sex， lesbian sex， demon sex （！） … I thought the book was marketed as a thriller， not as a weird YA porno （I *really* hope that is not a thing tha It’s not the *worst* thing I’ve ever read but my goodness is it a close second。My feelings are pretty much identical to most of the other one star reviews here。 I don’t know if the author is trying to come off as “woke” or “edgy” but it has the feel of a teenage creative writing project。 Sex and demons？ In a thriller？ And not just regular sex。 Straight sex， lesbian sex， demon sex （！） … I thought the book was marketed as a thriller， not as a weird YA porno （I *really* hope that is not a thing that actually exists in the world）。The writers at the retreat are all in their twenties （except for Alex， Wren and Poppy， because *reasons） but all talk and act like teenagers who desperately need to see a therapist。 Alex in particular is a whiny， insecure brat。 Roza is … Insane， but not in a creepy， “shit， that could really happen” way。 Off-the-charts bonkers。 Has a ridiculous amount of technology and resources （both sexual and financial）。 Unbelievable … in a bad way。And so many plot holes / suspensions of disbelief。 The Jewish / N*zi romance？ The Taylor / Yana / Chitra love-obsession triangle？ The book within a book？ How old was Roza when she wrote ‘Devil’s Tongue’ - 16？ Then 19 … then 16 again。 And also， what happened to Pete / Ian （I genuinely cannot remember his name， and I finished the book five minutes ago）？！ He was there at the start of the retreat， got sexually aggressive for all of five minutes， and then was never heard from again … You know what？ I’ve changed my mind。 This *is* the worst book I’ve ever read。 。。。more
Tammy
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Pardon the bad language at the start but once I got past it I found a cleverly written， unique。。 dark ATMOSPHERIC tale from an author I plan to read more from。 Julia Bartz’s debut is about a nightmarish month-long writer’s retreat gone wrong。 The retreat is situated on the secluded estate of feminist horror writer Roza Vallo。 Thirty-year-old writer Alex is given the opportunity to attend， accepts the invite， then finds out her ex-best friend， now arch-enemy， will be there。 Once there， nothing is Pardon the bad language at the start but once I got past it I found a cleverly written， unique。。 dark ATMOSPHERIC tale from an author I plan to read more from。 Julia Bartz’s debut is about a nightmarish month-long writer’s retreat gone wrong。 The retreat is situated on the secluded estate of feminist horror writer Roza Vallo。 Thirty-year-old writer Alex is given the opportunity to attend， accepts the invite， then finds out her ex-best friend， now arch-enemy， will be there。 Once there， nothing is as Alex thought it would be。 It turns out to be a VERY INTENSIVE workshop where the stakes are unexpectedly set high to win this award they’re all vying for。 And if that isn’t bad enough， the Blackbriar estate has quite a lot of questionable history behind it。。 from unsolved murders， being haunted。。 to giving off bewitching vibes。。 you just feel that there’s some type of （possibly evil） mystery surrounding it。 This story is intense with an immense dark gothic feel。 It’s a nail-biting mystery thriller that will draw you in， with unfortunately， NOT ONE SOUL YOU CAN TRUST。 It’s one crazy， wild psychological thriller that completely caught me off guard， not what I was expecting at all。 🖤🙈🙊🙉 4 stars — Pub。 2/21/23Thanks to the publisher via NetGalley。 All opinions are my own。 。。。more
Ashley （ashley's little library）
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An absolutely bananas-wonderful time！ I am obsessed with dark， edgy， over-the-top thrillers and this is definitely a new favorite of mine。Read in this reading vlog: https://youtu。be/nsMUs_e9s8A An absolutely bananas-wonderful time！ I am obsessed with dark， edgy， over-the-top thrillers and this is definitely a new favorite of mine。Read in this reading vlog: https://youtu。be/nsMUs_e9s8A 。。。more
Catherine Estrada
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Could not get myself to stay interested in this at all。
Caleigh
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This book is really dark and twisty （my kind of thriller） it’s very binge worthy and hard to put down。 It is a little over the top， and the extra “book” in the book wasn’t my favourite。 I was never bored and it was the perfect pace， it really is an awesome debut novel。 It also takes place in a winter setting and I wouldn’t recommend reading it at night when you’re alone in the dark （I personally got really creeped out 😂） you can’t really trust any of the characters and there was some great chara This book is really dark and twisty （my kind of thriller） it’s very binge worthy and hard to put down。 It is a little over the top， and the extra “book” in the book wasn’t my favourite。 I was never bored and it was the perfect pace， it really is an awesome debut novel。 It also takes place in a winter setting and I wouldn’t recommend reading it at night when you’re alone in the dark （I personally got really creeped out 😂） you can’t really trust any of the characters and there was some great character development as well。 Thank you Net Galley/Simon & Schuster Canada/Atria/Emily Bestler Books for this Advanced Readers Copy （ARC） in exchange for my honest review。 。。。more
Shannon
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DNF Not for me-the dialogue is giving me a headache。 Maybe I'm just too old for all the "hey girl" crap。 DNF Not for me-the dialogue is giving me a headache。 Maybe I'm just too old for all the "hey girl" crap。 。。。more
Jay Dwight
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An entertaining read。 Alex is an aspiring writer and is invited to a month long writing retreat hosted by one of her favourite authors。 Roza Vallo’s estate， the location of the retreat， is remote and weather cuts it off from the outside world。 Roza sets rules and plays games with the minds of the 5 aspiring authors。 Interesting psychological angles， and the last third of the novel picks up pace as we move into thriller territory。 Marked down slightly as I didn’t feel any real “like” for any of t An entertaining read。 Alex is an aspiring writer and is invited to a month long writing retreat hosted by one of her favourite authors。 Roza Vallo’s estate， the location of the retreat， is remote and weather cuts it off from the outside world。 Roza sets rules and plays games with the minds of the 5 aspiring authors。 Interesting psychological angles， and the last third of the novel picks up pace as we move into thriller territory。 Marked down slightly as I didn’t feel any real “like” for any of the characters。 。。。more
Cat oftheseas
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Alex has always wanted to be a published author， so has Wren， her ex-bestie。They both received an invitation to attend a month-long writer’s retreat at the home of Alex’s Idol， best selling feminist horror writer， Roza Vallo。As the attendees arrive， they are told that they will be required to write an entire novel from scratch during the month。 The prize is 1 million dollars and Roza will have their book published and they will go on tour together。The Blackbriar Estate， pouring with secrets from Alex has always wanted to be a published author， so has Wren， her ex-bestie。They both received an invitation to attend a month-long writer’s retreat at the home of Alex’s Idol， best selling feminist horror writer， Roza Vallo。As the attendees arrive， they are told that they will be required to write an entire novel from scratch during the month。 The prize is 1 million dollars and Roza will have their book published and they will go on tour together。The Blackbriar Estate， pouring with secrets from its past。 It’s an amazing old gothic mansion that becomes claustrophobic from being secluded during a snowstorm。For a moment I thought of Narnia， but WOW I was wrong！。 It was filled with who done it’s， murder， suspense and a true psychological thriller。I’m not quite sure how I feel about the final few chapters， because it felt a bit rushed and somewhat unrealistic。Thank you so much to the publisher， author and Netgalley for this free ARC in exchange for a review。 I really did enjoy reading this。3。5 Stars 。。。more
❀⊱Shelley's Book Nook❀⊱
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My Reviews Can Also Be Found On: My Blog - Twitter - Amazon - The Book Review CrewHorror writer Roza Vallo invites a group of women to her home for a writing retreat and a storm strands them without phone service and access to the police。 I am sorry to say but this book wasn't for me。 I was expecting a locked room mystery or a gothic suspense and the book is kind of both BUT it relied too much on over-the-top exploits that frankly I found unbelievable and boring。 I also couldn't get past My Reviews Can Also Be Found On: My Blog - Twitter - Amazon - The Book Review CrewHorror writer Roza Vallo invites a group of women to her home for a writing retreat and a storm strands them without phone service and access to the police。 I am sorry to say but this book wasn't for me。 I was expecting a locked room mystery or a gothic suspense and the book is kind of both BUT it relied too much on over-the-top exploits that frankly I found unbelievable and boring。 I also couldn't get past the sex scenes， now I am no prude and I can enjoy the sexy time in stories but I really didn't like the WAY they happened （it really irked me） and I didn't see the point of them at all。The reader is expected to overlook too many things that seemed impossible to me， and I hate books that expect me to suspend my belief too much。 I was really bored at points during the story and started to not care about what was happening to the ladies on this retreat。 I kept waiting for something exciting， scary or interesting to happen and when it finally did I shook my head and rolled my eyes。 The subplot of Daphine's story was useless and distracted from the main story。 It's really unfortunate that I didn't enjoy this more as the premise was intriguing but the execution fell flat。 This book has many good reviews and lots of four and five-star ratings so I guess I am just not the right type of person to read it。Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the Advance Readers Copy。 。。。more
Jennifer
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A dark， psychological thriller where up and coming female writers are invited to attend a writing retreat of a famous author。 None of them really knows what to expect until they get there， and it's definitely not what they expected。 It's fast-paced and keep you guessing with a few creepy twists。 It also has some horror/paranormal vibes since the original owners of the mansion were victims of a gruesome murder。 Oh， and there's also a huge snowstorm preventing anyone from leaving， or anyone from s A dark， psychological thriller where up and coming female writers are invited to attend a writing retreat of a famous author。 None of them really knows what to expect until they get there， and it's definitely not what they expected。 It's fast-paced and keep you guessing with a few creepy twists。 It also has some horror/paranormal vibes since the original owners of the mansion were victims of a gruesome murder。 Oh， and there's also a huge snowstorm preventing anyone from leaving， or anyone from saving them。 Alex is the main POV throughout the book and she has a lot of issues， so it's hard to tell if she's a reliable narrator or not。 It's one of those books where no one is safe， and the killings are a bit gruesome。 A very entertaining read！*Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book to read and review* 。。。more
Kathy
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Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the Kindle ARC in exchange for an honest review。 The Writing Retreat was compared to The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz so I was really happy when I was granted an ARC of this book。 Alex and Wren are young writers who win an opportunity to spend a month with a famous published author， Roza at her remote home。 A few other young women are selected to the retreat and are challenged by Roza to write a book within the 30 days that they are there。 Unfortunatel Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the Kindle ARC in exchange for an honest review。 The Writing Retreat was compared to The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz so I was really happy when I was granted an ARC of this book。 Alex and Wren are young writers who win an opportunity to spend a month with a famous published author， Roza at her remote home。 A few other young women are selected to the retreat and are challenged by Roza to write a book within the 30 days that they are there。 Unfortunately， Wren and Alex are at odds with each other due to a past incident， making the situation awkward for them and the others。 The contest isn't as straightforward as it seems。 The Writing Retreat starts out very strong and stays that way until the last few chapters of the book。 I actually had to turn back to previous chapter near the end of the book because the flow wasn't very smooth and I was sure I had missed something。 Like many other books in the suspense genre， The Writing Retreat slightly spirals out of control near the end which was unfortunate。 It is still an interesting read - it just depends on how much the reader enjoys the suspense/thriller genre。 。。。more
Kathy
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Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the Kindle ARC in exchange for an honest review。 The Writing Retreat was compared to The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz so I was really happy when I was granted an ARC of this book。 Alex and Wren are young writers who win an opportunity to spend a month with a famous published author， Roza at her remote home。 A few other young women are selected to the retreat and are challenged by Roza to write a book within the 30 days that they are there。 Unfortunatel Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the Kindle ARC in exchange for an honest review。 The Writing Retreat was compared to The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz so I was really happy when I was granted an ARC of this book。 Alex and Wren are young writers who win an opportunity to spend a month with a famous published author， Roza at her remote home。 A few other young women are selected to the retreat and are challenged by Roza to write a book within the 30 days that they are there。 Unfortunately， Wren and Alex are at odds with each other due to a past incident， making the situation awkward for them and the others。 The contest isn't as straightforward as it seems。 The Writing Retreat starts out very strong and stays that way until the last few chapters of the book。 I actually had to turn back to previous chapter near the end of the book because the flow wasn't very smooth and I was sure I had missed something。 Like many other books in the suspense genre， The Writing Retreat slightly spirals out of control near the end which was unfortunate。 It is still an interesting read - it just depends on how much the reader enjoys the suspense/thriller genre。 。。。more
Robyn Heil
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Alex gazes around at all the people who came to this book signing to meet her friend， Ursula。 Lucky Ursula has achieved what all the people in their writing group desire， to publish a book。 It’s just not that easy！ Alex is happy for Ursula and mad at herself。 She knows she has a good story somewhere inside of her but it’s been almost a year since she last wrote a word。 Writer’s block， they call it。 She calls it pathetic。Ursula walks over to thank Alex for coming and asks her if she had heard the Alex gazes around at all the people who came to this book signing to meet her friend， Ursula。 Lucky Ursula has achieved what all the people in their writing group desire， to publish a book。 It’s just not that easy！ Alex is happy for Ursula and mad at herself。 She knows she has a good story somewhere inside of her but it’s been almost a year since she last wrote a word。 Writer’s block， they call it。 She calls it pathetic。Ursula walks over to thank Alex for coming and asks her if she had heard the scoop that Alex’s favorite author， Roza Vallo， has set up a writer’s retreat in January， a couple of months away。 Four lucky writers will stay at Roza’s house and learn from her the tricks of how to get your book published。 For a whole month， these young writers would live their dream。 Alex feels envious but doesn’t feel worthy to submit something of her own。 Fortunate for her， Ursula enters a story Alex had written for their writers’ group as an assignment。 One day in her mail， Alex sees an acceptance letter for a spot to the Writer’s Retreat。 She is ecstatic。 The introductions go well， but Roza has some surprises for them。 She explains that she expects them to write every day。 She will critique their work and there will be group discussions。 Alex is terrified， she’s had writer’s block for a year！ By the end of the first week， Alex realizes it’s not one for all and all for one。 Its dog eat dog and who will be the leader of the pack！ What would you do to achieve your dream？For a first book， this was a stunner。 Wow！ It is so well done。 It flows beautifully， the characters are complex and believable。 As a once want-to-be-writer， I can feel Alex’s hunger。 This book was so mesmerizing， I hated to put it down。 I gave it to my sister to devour。 She said it reminded of her of a B。A。 Paris book。 Once you get started， who cares about food， sleep， or work！ 。。。more
Nicole
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Thank you to Netgalley， Atria Books， and the author for an ARC of this book。This book seemed right up my alley。 Julia Bartz's debut novel presents an engaging plot and wonderfully atmospheric and claustrophobic setting。 Our protagonist "wins" a chance for a month-long writing retreat at the personal （mansion） home of her favorite horror/fantasy author。 She's one of five winners， one of them being her best frenemy， with whom she's had no real contact with for the past year。 And once they all arri Thank you to Netgalley， Atria Books， and the author for an ARC of this book。This book seemed right up my alley。 Julia Bartz's debut novel presents an engaging plot and wonderfully atmospheric and claustrophobic setting。 Our protagonist "wins" a chance for a month-long writing retreat at the personal （mansion） home of her favorite horror/fantasy author。 She's one of five winners， one of them being her best frenemy， with whom she's had no real contact with for the past year。 And once they all arrive， the games begin， as the famous author pushes them in increasingly questionable and scandalous ways to write their novels。 From the beginning， I was often taken out of the narrative by plot devices that reminded me I was reading a work of fiction。 Then， as the story got going， I was alternatively intrigued with where it was heading and dismayed with the increasingly over the top plot complications。 Ultimately， I wanted to keep reading to see how this whole thing wrapped up; however， I wanted to like this more and have total buy-in to the characters and the resolution。 I think this author shows a lot of promise。 This is a debut novel so I'd be happy to read her again。 And a final note: regardless of my issues with the book， I think this one will stay with me for a while， which is often a difficult feat for any writer to achieve。 。。。more
Jill
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Alex and Wren were best friends for almost eight years。 Both had dreams of hitting it big in the publishing world and shared all their secrets with one another。 Until Wren iced Alex out， moved out of their apartment without an explanation。 One night Alex confronts Wren at a bar， wanting to know what happened and Wren tells her to leave。 Wren winds up losing her balance and falling， and there are musings that perhaps it was Alex who pushed her。Now， almost a year later， Alex has writers block。 Hav Alex and Wren were best friends for almost eight years。 Both had dreams of hitting it big in the publishing world and shared all their secrets with one another。 Until Wren iced Alex out， moved out of their apartment without an explanation。 One night Alex confronts Wren at a bar， wanting to know what happened and Wren tells her to leave。 Wren winds up losing her balance and falling， and there are musings that perhaps it was Alex who pushed her。Now， almost a year later， Alex has writers block。 Have her dreams of being a published author gone down the drain along with her friendship with Wren？ As fate has it， she gets an exclusive invitation to a writing retreat hosted by famous horror writer Roza Vallo。 The retreat is exclusively for women under 30 and held in a remote house with a winter storm on the way。 Alex is hesitant to go， especially since Wren will be there。 But maybe this is the opportunity she needs to get out of her writing slump and create the next great American novel。This was a solid 3。5 star read from debut author Julia Bartz。 I see The Writing Retreat as The Shining meets The Devil Wears Prada with a sprinkling of the HBO series Girls。 It's about the complexity of friendship， creating art， and also wondering if you are trapped in a house of horrors。 I would have liked to have seen a bit more depth from the characters， Wren in particular。 But the last 20% of the book is a pretty wild ride。Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the ARC for my honest review。 。。。more
Danielle
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I am always delighted to read debut authors。 The Writing Retreat by Julia Bartz is excellent！ The premise is so interesting。 Down-on-her-luck author， Alex， receives an invitation to a writing retreat hosted by notable author， Roza。 It seems a dream come true。 Once arriving at the retreat， Roza lets everyone know they are to write a novel in the month-long retreat。 The best-written one will be published。 However， Alex immediately begins to notice that things are not what they seem， and danger lur I am always delighted to read debut authors。 The Writing Retreat by Julia Bartz is excellent！ The premise is so interesting。 Down-on-her-luck author， Alex， receives an invitation to a writing retreat hosted by notable author， Roza。 It seems a dream come true。 Once arriving at the retreat， Roza lets everyone know they are to write a novel in the month-long retreat。 The best-written one will be published。 However， Alex immediately begins to notice that things are not what they seem， and danger lurks。 Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced e-reader copy。 。。。more
Marisha （MarishaReadsALot）
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Thank you NetGalley， Atria Books， and Julia Bartz for the advanced copy of The Writing Retreat in exchange for my honest review。I well and truly cannot believe this book is a debut novel。 It's incredibly paced， well-written， and simply stated I could not put it down。 It was undoubtedly a much more wild ride than I was expecting， but that's absolutely a good thing。 I don't want to even talk too much about it for fear of spoiling it， but if you're a fan of thrillers you absolutely need to pre-orde Thank you NetGalley， Atria Books， and Julia Bartz for the advanced copy of The Writing Retreat in exchange for my honest review。I well and truly cannot believe this book is a debut novel。 It's incredibly paced， well-written， and simply stated I could not put it down。 It was undoubtedly a much more wild ride than I was expecting， but that's absolutely a good thing。 I don't want to even talk too much about it for fear of spoiling it， but if you're a fan of thrillers you absolutely need to pre-order now！ I cannot wait to see what Julia Bartz comes up with next。The Writing Retreat will be on US bookshelves February 21。 。。。more
Barbara
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By day， I'm a professional writer。 Therefore， when I saw the description for The Writing Retreat， I could not resist， even though this kind of book isn't my normal read。 Nanowrimo in a spooky mansion with an eccentric recluse and a potential demon？ Hell yeah。This is Julia Bartz's first novel， and it's seriously impressive。 The first two-thirds of the book had an Eight Perfect Strangers meets Stephen King feel。 I absolutely loved the gothic feel。 As a reader， you knew something was off， but you c By day， I'm a professional writer。 Therefore， when I saw the description for The Writing Retreat， I could not resist， even though this kind of book isn't my normal read。 Nanowrimo in a spooky mansion with an eccentric recluse and a potential demon？ Hell yeah。This is Julia Bartz's first novel， and it's seriously impressive。 The first two-thirds of the book had an Eight Perfect Strangers meets Stephen King feel。 I absolutely loved the gothic feel。 As a reader， you knew something was off， but you can't quite put your finger on it。 Some of the editorial decisions Bartz made in the back third were different from what I might have done， but that doesn't mean they weren't well-written or compelling。 Alex， the insecure， wannabe writer makes for the perfect narrator。 You know from the very start that she is floundering personally， and her personal crisis colors everything she sees and hears。 Slowly， she gathers her confidence and begins embracing hidden parts of herself， but is she really the one in control？ Or is Roza， the retreat's host？ There are a whole lot of mind games being played at the retreat which makes everything suspect。 In the end， almost no one is who the seem to be。As far a plot， Bartz tosses in everything but the kitchen sink which occasionally felt like overkill。 At the same time， however， I admire Bartz's bravery as a writer。 She doesn't hold back。 There are also some great lessons in here for anyone who wants to （or has） written a book。Thank you Netgalley for the advanced read in exchange for my honest review。 。。。more
Alex Z （azeebooks）
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Thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for an advance review copy of this book in exchange for my honest review。Out February 21， 2023。4 starsWow， I was not expecting this to go as hard as it did！ Alex gets the chance of a lifetime to participate in a writing retreat hosted by her favourite author， Roza Vallo。 Roza is a famous horror writer who is a bit of a recluse。 Of course she’s hosting this writing retreat in her famously gothic home， Blackbriar which has a sordid， bloody history。 The W Thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for an advance review copy of this book in exchange for my honest review。Out February 21， 2023。4 starsWow， I was not expecting this to go as hard as it did！ Alex gets the chance of a lifetime to participate in a writing retreat hosted by her favourite author， Roza Vallo。 Roza is a famous horror writer who is a bit of a recluse。 Of course she’s hosting this writing retreat in her famously gothic home， Blackbriar which has a sordid， bloody history。 The Writing Retreat is such a wild ride， I found myself ripping through pages because there were SO many fun details and I had to know what was going on。 Totally bingeable！ I would try going into this as blind as possible， all the twists and turns will be so much more enjoyable that way Read this if you like:- Gothic horror - Competitions- A slowly impending doomazeebooks on instagram 。。。more
Jennie
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3。5 stars rounded up。 I know I’m in the minority here compared to other reviews on NetGalley and friends on Goodreads。 The summary is accurate， and there were twists and turns。 However， the last 1/3 was tedious and hard to get through。 Not a terrible read， but certainly not an overly memorable one。 Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free arc in exchange for an honest review。
Christine Moore
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Alex is invited to a months long writing retreat of horror writer Roza Vallo。 This is a locked in a mansion killer book！！ Alex wants to win as she will get a publishing deal but can she survive？ I received an advanced readers copy and all opinions are my own。
Alisa
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This is the first book I’ve read by Julia。 I went in blind and absolutely loved The Writing Retreat！！！ Her writing keeps you enthralled and on the edge of your seat！ Al was a good， strong lead character。 This book definitely has some twists and turns！ Right when you think you have it figured out， you don’t！ I highly recommend reading this book！！
Lloyd
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3。5 ⭐️
Ali （exercise_read_repeat）
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The Writing Retreat is about five aspiring female authors who are invited on an exclusive writing retreat at the estate of a feminist horror writer。 It is an eerie， atmospheric suspenseful read with cult-like vibes。 The majority of the book is definitely my vibe--guest members with secrets， ever-shifting social dynamics and allegiances， and character tension。 The last 20% becomes a little over the top， but it is an engaging and addictive read。 Fans of cult stories will definitely enjoy this one。 The Writing Retreat is about five aspiring female authors who are invited on an exclusive writing retreat at the estate of a feminist horror writer。 It is an eerie， atmospheric suspenseful read with cult-like vibes。 The majority of the book is definitely my vibe--guest members with secrets， ever-shifting social dynamics and allegiances， and character tension。 The last 20% becomes a little over the top， but it is an engaging and addictive read。 Fans of cult stories will definitely enjoy this one。 Read if you like-Seven Perfect Strangers-Please Join Us-Sapphic stories -Dark and twisty Thank you to Atria for my advanced readers copy 。。。more
Diana | Book of Secrets
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2。5 Stars， rounded up to 3 — Thoughts soon。
Debbie
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3。5 stars raised to 4If you have trouble falling asleep at night， don’t plan on reading The Writing Retreat in the evening。 Author Julia Bartz might have you either reading all night or not being able to fall asleep even after the book is closed。In this debut novel， Alex is surprised when Roza Vallo， an author Alex has long admired， selects her to attend an elite writers’ retreat， The retreat is at the rural Adirondack estate of the well-known mystery novelist。 If that isn’t exciting enough， at 3。5 stars raised to 4If you have trouble falling asleep at night， don’t plan on reading The Writing Retreat in the evening。 Author Julia Bartz might have you either reading all night or not being able to fall asleep even after the book is closed。In this debut novel， Alex is surprised when Roza Vallo， an author Alex has long admired， selects her to attend an elite writers’ retreat， The retreat is at the rural Adirondack estate of the well-known mystery novelist。 If that isn’t exciting enough， at the end of the four-week retreat one of the five female attendees will win a $1 million book deal。But a few things don’t sit well with Alex。 The first noticeable problem is that her once best friend， now more of an adversary， is attending。 That becomes a minor concern， however， when she begins to discover that her favorite author isn’t conducting a comfortable， cozy workshop。 Unsettling events leave her wishing this estate wasn’t so isolated。 Many of the characters are unique and fit perfectly into the story。 Though for a few minutes， I became overloaded with meeting everyone at once。My ConcernsThe explicit sexual element （lesbian sex scenes） felt forced and unnecessary。The story within a story verged on a concern。Some of the mystery is easy to guess。 The plot kept me turning the pages， but at the same time， I felt like the story was going off track by including too much of this and that。Final ThoughtsMy feelings were pulled in many directions regarding this story。 While I had concerns， Bartz carried a beautiful element of dread and the unknown throughout。As a debut novelist， she will be a name I will be watching。I suggest you read this book but make sure you take a flashlight to bed with you。My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early review copy。 I was free to express my feelings about the book without any stipulations。 。。。more
Kristina Civille
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Thank you Atria Books and Netgalley for my electronic copy！ I cannot believe this is a debut novel。 Bravo to Julia Bartz for coming out with such a twisty thriller！ The overall concept of this book had me sucked in from the beginning。 The characters were so intriguing and had me guessing until the end。 I also enjoyed reading a book about authors and their twisted， creative process prepared by Roza。
Tracie Arrington
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 The first half of the book was a struggle to get through。 5 girls win a contest to attend a writing retreat at Roza Valo， a famed author’s， mansion。 The girls are expected to write an entire novel during their month long stay。 Things start to get weird as Roza expects them to play games and such in an effort to turn everyone against each other。 I strongly considered DNFing this book。 One character has imagined LSD tripped sex with a demon （definitely out there and cringey）？ However， I persisted。 The first half of the book was a struggle to get through。 5 girls win a contest to attend a writing retreat at Roza Valo， a famed author’s， mansion。 The girls are expected to write an entire novel during their month long stay。 Things start to get weird as Roza expects them to play games and such in an effort to turn everyone against each other。 I strongly considered DNFing this book。 One character has imagined LSD tripped sex with a demon （definitely out there and cringey）？ However， I persisted。The second half of the book， people start getting murdered。 This is where it gets much better。 Still， not great， but better。 Roza is bat shit crazy and makes her little minion Taylor do manipulative things。 Ugh， idk what to even say。 I’d pass on this one if I were you。Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC！ 。。。more
JaymeO
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“F*ck her。”These two words are the first sentence of this book。 I sh*t you not。 If you are still intrigued， keep reading…This was a VERY strange debut novel。 Honestly， I almost DNF’d it several times。 I know， I know…I just couldn’t do it。 So， I persevered。 The premise of this thriller is both familiar and unique。 A famous author， Roza Vallo， holds a writing contest。 If selected， writers will win one of FOUR spots at a retreat located at her isolated old mansion。 When a snowstorm ensues， everyone “F*ck her。”These two words are the first sentence of this book。 I sh*t you not。 If you are still intrigued， keep reading…This was a VERY strange debut novel。 Honestly， I almost DNF’d it several times。 I know， I know…I just couldn’t do it。 So， I persevered。 The premise of this thriller is both familiar and unique。 A famous author， Roza Vallo， holds a writing contest。 If selected， writers will win one of FOUR spots at a retreat located at her isolated old mansion。 When a snowstorm ensues， everyone is trapped with no way out。 One of the writers soon goes missing， and everyone becomes suspicious。 What are Roza’s true intentions？ It is up to Alex， Wren， Taylor， Kiera， and Poppy to figure out the true game they are playing before it is too late。 Will they publish or will they perish？So…a locked-room mystery set in an old gothic mansion with a sordid history should be my ideal read。 However， here are the reasons why this DIDN’T WORK for me:- It reads like YA and the very colloquial speech is jarring- Multiple VERY sexually explicit scenes， including one where a character engages in sexual acts with a DEMON - The pacing is OFF， as in SUPER SLOW start and only picks up in the last 25%- EXTREMELY OTT - I had NO interest in the book within the book that Alex wrote- Too many plot points that should have been edited down- I wound up skimming at the endHowever， Bartz does a GREAT job exploring themes of self-discovery and empowerment in her many LGBTQ characters， and there are some decent twists。Unfortunately， I just couldn’t quite get behind this thriller。 It is a true 2。5 star read， but will round up since it is a debut。2。5/5 stars rounded up Expected publication date: 2/21/23Thank you to Edelweiss and Simon & Schuster-Atria publishing for the ARC of The Writing Retreat in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Agnes Muscoreil
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