Leanne Olson

by Julia Bartz

Releasing February 21, 2023 from Atria Books

I binged Julia Bartz’s The Writing Retreat in one evening. It’s such an addictive thriller, and perfect for a night curled up under a throw on the couch with the winter wind outside.

I won’t say much about the plot, because I went into this one blind and was so happy I did.  The initial premise is that Alex, our protagonist, is a struggling author who receives a surprise invitation to join a writing retreat hosted by Roza Vallo, her favourite author.  Roza’s a feminist horror writer with a mysterious past.  The retreat is held in her maybe-haunted mansion in the middle of nowhere, in the dead of winter.

This one has shades of Stephen King’s Misery, but all twisted around.  There’s female friendship and betrayal, secrets, characters I loved to hate, a wonderfully creepy setting, and so many strange twists and turns.

The characters are wonderfully written and it was a blast hating them, then rooting for them, then shaking my head at their choices, then cheering them on…this book gave me whiplash, it was a blast.

There were a few things about the ending I didn’t love but overall I really enjoyed The Writing Retreat and recommend it to anyone who loves fast-paced female-led thrillers.

🌟🌟🌟🌟 

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for my review copy of this book.