#BlogTour: The Writing Retreat by Julia Bartz @juliabartz @OneworldNews @PointBlankCrime @RandomTTours #TheWritingRetreat #JuliaBartz #RandomThingsTours

Book Synopsis:

The dark, atmospheric, feminist offspring of Squid Game, The Hunting Party and Misery

A book deal to die for.

Five attendees are selected for a month-long writing retreat at the remote estate of Roza Vallo, the controversial high priestess of feminist horror. Alex, a struggling writer, is thrilled.

Upon arrival, they discover they must complete an entire novel from scratch, and the best one will receive a seven-figure publishing deal. Alex’s long-extinguished dream now seems within reach.

But then the women begin to die.

Trapped, terrified yet still desperately writing, it is clear there is more than a publishing deal at stake at Blackbriar Estate. Alex must confront her own demons – and finish her novel – to save herself.

This unhinged, propulsive, claustrophobic closed-door thriller will pull you in and spit you out…

My Review:

The Writing Retreat is an atmospheric, gripping read that I really enjoyed.

Firstly I absolutely loved the vivid descriptions of the house which I was envisioning as a cross between the house from Rebecca and The Rocky Horror show with the wonderfully quirky staff employed there. It’s a house I’d love to explore (when there’s not a murderer lurking obviously) as there seemed to be lots of interesting items on display there. It’s also a house with a history which I always love and I was very intrigued how this would be woven into the story.

Alex was an interesting main character and one that took me a while to warm to. She obviously been hurt in the past which makes her a sympathetic character but she seemed a bit overly sensitive at times and perhaps a bit paranoid that grated on me a little bit. Her fall out with her former best friend was very intriguing and I wanted to keep reading to find out what really happened there. I also wasn’t sure what to make of Rosa who scared me a little bit with her sudden mood swings and interesting stories.

I thought this story was fairly fast paced and there always seemed to be something happening to keep me turning the pages. I liked the gradual shift in atmosphere as the story continues and the slow reveal of clues as to what was actually happening. I did have an inkling about what was going on but I enjoyed following the story to see if I was right and must admit that a few of the twists had me doubting my theories which I always love. The ending was perhaps a bit mad but very entertaining and I will definitely look forward to reading more from this author in future.

Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and to the publisher for my copy of this book.

About The Author:

Julia Bartz is a Brooklyn-based writer and practicing therapist. She is the author of the popular Psychology Today blog ‘My Pleasure: The New Science of Sex, Dating, and Self-Care’ and previously ran the Brooklyn literary blog ‘BookStalker’. Her fiction has been published in the South Dakota Review, FictionDaily and InDigest Magazine and has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. The Writing Retreat is her first novel.