You get a sense of so many things not being said. I struggled to pinpoint what exactly happened and who was responsible. Of course, I made guesses based on what I knew but in all honesty? I had no idea what happened to Irene in that bleak landscape at the side of the road. With the focus on the case, there isn’t much space for anything else. I couldn’t connect with April at any point. The book totally belongs to the Borgata family and their secrets. There are a lot of secrets, too (some unnecessary and abruptly rounded off at the end). As time counts down to Milo Conti’s exposé, he whips up the locals by dropping hints of his evidence on TV. This has a huge impact as they take action. Such a tense and alienating time for the family! Will the mystery of Villa Alba ever be solved? Will the world ever find out what really happened to Irene Borgata? Or should some things have stayed dead and buried?

The Secret of Villa Alba by Louise Douglas is a well-crafted mystery that strikes the perfect balance between suspense and family drama. The narrative is shared across two timelines with the present day told in the third person with excerpts from what can assume are Irene’s journal/letters covering the timeline in the 1960s. The 1968 Belice earthquake is incorporated into the 1960s timeline and is well woven into the events of the story. The dual timelines are seamlessly woven into a consistently paced, well-structured and engaging narrative. Each of the characters (the main and supporting characters) is well defined though the resolution of a few sub-plots did feel a tad abrupt. I could predict part of the final reveal around the halfway mark (plenty of breadcrumbs, so it wasn’t difficult to do so) but there were several twisty surprises along the way. The elegant prose, immersive setting and suspenseful pacing render this an enjoyable read that I would not hesitate to recommend. From the letter his daughter Maddalena writes to former friend April in 2003, we discover that she was never found – and while her husband was initially under suspicion of being involved, the case was abandoned. But there’s now fresh interest – the case is to be featured on Milo Conti’s TV programme “Cold Case”, with possible fresh evidence that Enzo was responsible for Irene’s death. April is an ex-detective inspector, reluctant to become involved – she’s struggling with the recent loss of her husband, and her friendship with Maddalena fell apart rather dramatically some years before. But she has fond memories of Enzo, and decides to travels to Sicily, staying with the family at the Villa Alba, undertaking her own investigation – with a little help from the local police inspector – hoping to clear his name before the planned revelations. April Cobain is recovering from the loss of her love and soulmate when a letter comes from a friend who’d pushed her away decades ago. She’d left to go her own way after a dreadful, jealous scene.Whilst I can honestly say I really do enjoy this, it’s a four star rating after all, I do have some reservations about the ending which feels a bit convenient but it’s not by any means left field. Overall, though, it’s a really immersive novel. The setting comes alive without slowing down the narrative. The summer heat in Sicily, the architecture, food, people, and especially Villa Alba (a symbol of wealth and power but, in reality, a house barely holding together) are easy to visualize. I absolutely loved every bit of this story. Louise Douglas is a master storyteller. Excellent character portrayal and development. Mind-blowing and totally unexpected ending - I LOVED IT!

As the story develops, the mystery becomes deeper, leading to me feeling really on edge. I felt like I was waiting for something horrendous to come to light. Tension wasn't the word here. It was something bigger. I do appreciate this type of book. It gives my blood pressure medication a test!

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Present day, TV showman and true crime aficionado Milo Conti is Italy's darling, uncovering and solving historic crimes for his legion of fans. When he turns his attention to the story of the missing Irene Borgata, accusing her husband of murder, Enzo's daughter Maddi asks her childhood friend, retired Detective April Cobain, for help to prove her father's innocence. But the tale April discovers is murky: mafia meetings, infidelity, mistaken identity, grief and unshakable love.