Book Review: The Vacation House
Stars: 4 X 5
Author: Jane Shemilt @jane.shemilt
Publisher: @williammorrowbooks
Thank you @netgalley for this ARC

What a great fast paced thriller. The story moves between two time lines.
Starts with 13 year old Sophie 20 years ago at a vacation house in Paxos, Gree…
Her family are the caretakers of the house. The owners of the house are Wph.
Their British daughter is named Julia. Sophia tries to befriend Julia, but little do they know that theirs lives will be changed forever.

Jump to present day London. Julia is older and married. Her and her husband have a 15 year old daughter. Her marriage is surviving on thread as her husband is abusive and very controlling. Julia ends up seeking help from a Psychiatrist. Her life is not quite how she expected it would be. As she undergoes therapy, she starts to remembering that night the house. My curiosity is what happen all those years ago? Why did they keep these secrets and how will bring them out affect these families?

I will warn the reader that some parts of this book are very hard to read and very depressing at times. The book deals with rape, sexual abuse and assault, physical and mental abuse and neglect to name just a few. You will feel the pain of these characters. There are many twist and turns to the stories in this book and the ending between Sophia and Julia is well worth the read.

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The pacing is rather slow for a mystery thriller with a lot of set-up and background before the main 'thriller' elements come into play. The suspense was more in the 2003 timeline, being able to see how this young girl was being preyed on before she fully understood and knowing it was continuing to escalate. The depiction of the sexual assault of a child and the aftermath was nauseating and difficult to get through.
In the present-day timeline, the connections between characters from the past and present that are meant to be important reveals aren't too hard to guess. Their motivations and their intentions for Julia are more in question and provide some tension.
In the end, the resolution to both main character's stories was satisfying. ( )

In Greece, Sofie, the 13 year old daughter of the caretaker of the estate, takes care of her 4 year old brother, Nico, secretly taking him to the beach. There, she encounters 2 older boys, Jay and Ginger, guests of the house. One night, the boys corner her and force themselves on her. She is ashamed, but knows she can't say anything.
Julia, the daughter of the owner, tells Sofie how her own father uses her, and pushes her on his friends. Years later, Julia is married to James in London. Their family seems perfect to outsiders, but it isn't. She confides in her therapist, Laurel. But, later, she wonders if Laurel betrayed her.
This is an interesting mystery based on a tragedy with consequences years later. I wasn't surprised at all by the reveal. ( )

Okay so while this was a good story I have to say it was predictable and did not come across as a thriller at all. By the first chapter I had already called a major plot point, which was disappointing to say the least. When I stopped thinking about this one like a thriller and more like just a contemporary fiction kind of novel it worked way better for me. I enjoyed the two POV’s and the two timelines. Sofie is thirteen in her POV and for Judith’s POV Judith is 39.

Sofie’s POV in my opinion was so much better than Judith’s. Sofie is this girl who just wants to be noticed and treated like a person by the family that resides in the summer house. She works hard and the night that changed everything was heartbreaking to read. I think in comparison to Sofie’s story before, during and after Judith’s narrative seems almost trivial. Judith is so concerned with appearances that it truly is sad. Her life and problems while real and important just don’t register on the same level for me.

I kind of was let down at how much of the big reveals were easily guessed way before time. Laurel was an interesting addition to the story and I liked the dynamic between her and Judith. I will say this book covers some difficult stuff: we have trauma, sexual assault, eating disorders, abuse and so many other issues. It was a tough read at points because of it. I think it’s a good story and it’s emotional and gut wrenching and hard to put down but not because it’s a thriller. It was just well written. Overall it’s a decent story. ( )

Anyone looking for a quick and satisfying thriller, need look no further than The Vacation House. Set along a beautiful coastline, sits the vacation villa where Sophie and her family live.
Her family takes care of the villa throughout the year and they live on the property.

The owner’s daughter Julia befriends Sophie, but Julia is older and is dealing with adult issues that would be difficult for Sophie to understand, so she later keeps her distance from Sophie. One year when Julia is at the Villa, some teenage boys arrive with a family friend. Julia ignores them, so they turn their attention to Sophie.

Sophie is barely 13 and not yet wearing a bra. She’s the definition of innocence. Here is where I will tell readers that a horrible act is about to occur and for readers who need trigger warnings—this is it. Honestly, I was afraid to read the next chapter at a certain point in the story.

Thankfully the writer goes back and forth from Sophie to Julia, so readers get a bit of a breather in between the two storylines. What happens is horrifying and caused harm to an entire family.

The story was a bit predictable, but I found the ending to be redeeming—a good dose of karma that was well-deserved.

Many thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for allowing me to read an advance copy. I am happy to offer my honest review and recommend this to readers who love a thriller and aren’t too sensitive in their reading. ( )