The music switched off, and Pete’s next question rang too loud in my ear. “How long have you known her?” Through the eyes of aspiring author Alex, readers will follow her journey as she tries to win a life-changing seven-figure publishing deal by completing an entire novel from scratch in just one month. However, strange happenings at the estate, including Roza’s erratic behavior and the alleged haunting of the mansion, make the contest increasingly challenging. Welcome, everyone.” Ursula’s agent, Melody, had a commanding voice and everyone quieted down immediately. As she introduced Ursula, I kept an eye on the crew. Watching them gave me an unexpectedly powerful ache. The friend breakup with Wren hadn’t just been between the two of us; I’d lost all our mutual friends too. Pete was waiting for me in the hotel lobby, a mishmash of leather couches, gleaming wood surfaces, and golden chandeliers. The pace is off balance, the characters are all full of angst, and the author tries to blend other genres into the story. It is a salad with ingredients that don't belong. The excerpts of a book within a book that truly bored me. The descriptions of breasts, nipples and other graphic sex scenes/dreams were awkward and cringeworthy.

We hope these book club discussion prompts will enhance your exploration of The Writing Retreat by Julia Bartz! ✨ The Synopsis If your book is as buzzy as Julia Bartz’s debut thriller, “The Writing Retreat,” you know what’s in your future: Podiums. Microphones. Even worse, lavalier mics! And of course: people in folding chairs, quizzically wrinkling their foreheads. Book club questions for The Writing Retreat by Julia Bartz invite readers to explore the dark side of female relationships and fame in this unputdownable debut novel about a group of writers attending an exclusive, month-long writing retreat at the estate of feminist horror writer Roza Vallo. Once there she realizes her ex best friend was also invited (cue the angst). But Rosa has more in store for the attendees than a casual getaway of peace, harmony and writing. I'm not sure if this was meant to be a haunted house story, a tale of demonic possession, or someone's mental breakdown as they struggled through a dead end job and sexual identity confusion. What I do know is that The Writing Retreat was a letdown.Two months later Wren had asked me to join her writing group, since their third person had dropped out. There I’d met Ursula. She was nearly ten years older than us and had a calm self-confidence that I could only dream of. At this point I’d been blatantly copying Wren—which meant spending whole days at Goodwill, looking for clothes she might admire. But Ursula was her own person. She had her own neon-colored, clashing style and wrote intensely personal pieces about being Chinese American, queer, and a fat activist. She was so different from Wren and yet was the one person Wren ever seemed in awe of. A claustrophobic and propulsive thriller exploring the dark side of female relationships and fame, The Writing Retreat is the unputdownable debut novel from a compelling new talent. The pacing is fast and furious. Whether one is inside Alex’s head or experiencing the weird dynamics of the retreat, there is always entertainment for the reader.

I liked the description of the isolated setting for the writing retreat with the head guru, Roza as the beloved mentor. She reminded me a bit of Masha from Nine Perfect Strangers by Moriarty. They were both crazy loons! I was most intrigued by her, but she failed to save this one. She claimed to be a feminine heroine, but was more of a predator! We are supposed to believe that these talented writers would "fall for her setup". This book was a struggle for me right out of the chute. Literally. The very first line is “f**k her!”With the sense that this is her last opportunity to get published, Alex attempts to start writing right away. Only, between the creepy atmosphere in the house, Roza’s mercurial behaviour, and Wren’s intimidating presence, Alex finds herself struggling. And then weird and dangerous things start to occur. These two words are the first sentence of this book. I sh*t you not. If you are still intrigued, keep reading… Um why in the heavens would you invent a story of a Jewish woman falling in love with a n*zi during WWII. It really wasn’t integral to the story whatsoever.

Stomach-clenchingly thrilling from beginning to end . . . Highly recommended for fans of authors like Ruth Ware and Riley Sager.” ― Booklist Your favorite author, we're talking a person whose words you have read since childhood, who has had a lasting impact on your life... Who would you cast in a film adaptation of The Writing Retreat? What scenes or details would you especially want to make sure made it from book to screen?

I suppose it could be considered an adventure and a challenge with an off amount of gratuitous gay sex as a side. The writing is all over the place and the old "kitchen sink" moniker deserves its place with this story. Q: Are there any authors that you idolize? Do you think it’s dangerous to hold someone in such high regard as Alex did with Roza? This is the definition of "retreat" referenced in the title of this book, and looking at the cover, this definition makes sense (despite the ominous Overlook hotel-esque overtones provided). It reminded me of Nine Perfect Strangers ( Roza’s character and dangerous methods had similarities with Masha played by Nicole Kidman on Hulu adaptation) meets the Plot. I love books about books, and I love books about the writing process-even more. That is what I was expecting, but that isn’t what I got!

Slowly, I stood and flushed the toilet. At the sink a pretty girl washed her hands and avoided looking at me. She must have heard my retches. I wanted to burst into tears but I kept them firmly down. Compare and contrast Roza’s personality with Alex’s. How are they alike? How are they different? Does this change over the course of the novel?A young author is invited to an exclusive writer’s retreat that soon descends into a pulse-pounding nightmare—in the vein of The Plot and Please Join Us. I enjoyed following the women participating to the writing retreat with the famous author Roza Vallo in her mysterious mansion lost in the middle of the woods. I thought the characters were well drawn-out and it was really interesting to read about their relationships while they had to write an entire novel under pressure. Mrs Vallo certainly wasn't an easy mentor to work with! But the biggest disappointment is that The Writing Retreat fails to answer the following questions: 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? I was highly anticipating this book especially as the synopsis said the book would be claustrophobic! I love those kinds of books. Although, I did enjoy this, I didn't love it. Things get a little (a lot) over the top which I don't have an issue with as it was entertaining, but I did do some eye rolling. There is a book within a book in this which I also didn't mind. The pacing was also solid, and things never felt dull or slow for me, and yet, for some reason, I didn't enjoy it more.