The Unravelling of Julia by Lisa Scottoline
The
Unravelling of Julia
By Lisa
Scottoline
SUMMARY:
When Julia’s husband is brutally murdered in a random attack, her life
unravels in ways she never could have foreseen. Haunted by his death and spiralling
into despair, Julia seeks refuge in a secluded Italian villa she has
mysteriously inherited from a stranger. But her sanctuary becomes a prison as
she uncovers disturbing connections to her own past – and faces chilling
threats that may not be imaginary.
Caught between a heritage she doesn’t understand and a darkness she
can’t escape, Julia must confront secrets that could cost her what little she
has left. The Unravelling of Julia is a gripping, atmospheric tale of grief,
memory, and a descent into psychological terror that will keep readers turning
pages deep into the night.
MY REVIEW:
If you ever wondered what a page
turner was… this is it. Engrossing, exciting, suspenseful, compelling. Ghost
meets Home Before Dark
It is a powerful first chapter as
the reader is witness to the brutal murder of Mike, Julia’s husband. It sets a
chilling mood, introduces us to Julia, and kicks off the plot development with a
size 10 boot. There is a sense of foreboding because Julia had a vague
premonition that something bad would happen that evening, in the dark at
midnight.
‘Her knowing wasn’t conscious,
but something she sensed and couldn’t acknowledge, even to herself. It felt
like dread.’
Such a profoundly traumatic
experience triggers a complex, unpredictable cycle of grief. Shock, heartache
and feelings of anxiety overwhelm her.
And then something surprising
happens. She receives an email telling her that she has inherited 3 million
euros and a villa in Tuscany. It is so
unbelievable, even Julia finds it inconceivable, and here the author uses her
unique style of subtle humour to describe her reaction.
‘It sounded like a
scam from one of those Ethiopian princes!’
The way the narrative moves
forward, the twists, the turns and the drama, draw the reader into the story. Emilia
Rossi is her benefactor and possibly related to important historical figures
who lived during the Renaissance. Caterina Sforza was the daughter of the Duke
of Milan, the most powerful nobleman in northern Italy. But Rossi was childless
and died of breast cancer at the age of seventy-seven.
‘Julia was trying to
metabolise the possibility that her biological family could be Italian royalty.
Either that or insane.
However, Julia’s anxiety and
impending sense of danger take hold again. Her inner turmoil is beautifully
captured as she walks around Milan and visits the Sforza family castle. It
engages all the readers’ senses by describing Julia’s own sensory awareness.
‘She began to feel
more and more nervous in the crowd, which she’d underestimated. Tourists teemed
around the castle’s arched entrances and exits, filling its open space. Noise,
motion, sight and sound surrounded her. People of all ages and races talked and
shouted, drinking, smoking and jostling each other. Vendors hawked souvenirs,
waving Pinocchio marionettes and fake gold crowns. Julia broke into a sweat.
She had to get back to the car, but couldn’t see the Mercedes. It was beginning
to get dark. Her heart thundered, and panic tightened in her chest.’
She thinks she is being followed.
The inheritance is real, but the
villa is in a state of decay, which serves as a powerful, atmospheric setting in
the story, clearly representing themes of lost time, neglect, or hidden, dark
histories. The housekeeper, Anna Mattia and her husband, Piero show a deference
to Julia, but to me, there is something sinister about Anna Mattia. A guardian
of the past? One can almost imagine the toxic, unwavering loyalty of Mrs Danvers
in Rebecca as Julia is shown round the villa. Slightly unnerving is her exorcism
of the ‘malocchio’, the evil eye, which is a deep-rooted Italian curse fought
with syncretic rituals of water, oils and secret prayers.
Every part of the narrative adds
to the chilling story unwinding on every page – the fear factor, the plot
twists and the compelling danger that Julia finds herself in
Julia starts to experience frightening
nightmares while at the villa. From the first night, sleeping in Emila Rossi’s
bedroom and in the bed that she had died in.
‘If Rossi’s spirit
would be anywhere, it would be here. She closed her eyes, beginning to doze.
Two gargantuan, enraged eyes glared down at her from the ceiling fresco of the Sforza
family tree, their gigantic irises glinting electric blue. The family tree was
growing bigger, its branches reaching down to her. The dragons in the coat of
arms breathe fire, and the vipers opened their fanged maws to eat her alive.
“No!” Julia jumped out of bed in horror.’
The excellent creepy description
works in making the reader (and the character) feel unsettled. The reader virtually experiences these horrific apparitions
because of Julia’s vulnerability and sensitivity. In the midst of grief,
many people describe feeling something extraordinary: a presence, a sensation
or an inexplicable energy, so these gruesome manifestations are very plausible.
The run-down villa with its heavy, unsettling atmosphere creates the feeling that there's something about to
happen. I feel the author cleverly uses the atmosphere to create the suspense.
And horror doesn't really work without suspense.
There are many lighter moments in
the story, which assuage the sombre atmosphere surrounding Julia. Dialogues
with Courtney, her bestie, provide a grounding for Julia and offer a balanced,
stable point of view. She is in the ‘present’ and again, a humorous touch.
“’Jules. I thought
your astrology stuff was bad, but signs from beyond?”
“It’s more spiritual
here, more mystical.”
“Julia, this is
Tuscany, not Transylvania.”’
The quest to find out the truth
about herself takes Julia and the reader in all sorts of directions. The pieces
of the puzzle which Julia must fit together are really a metaphor for all the disparate,
fragmented elements she has experienced in her life, the people, and the ideas
need to come together to form a coherent, meaningful whole. She was adopted as
a baby, so somewhere in the world, there may be a birth mother. Her intrinsic belief in the ‘stars’ encompasses
a deep-seated human tendency to look to the cosmos for guidance, purpose, and
meaning, acting as a bridge between the heavens and humanity. It's no
surprise that she checks her horoscope every day. Even more unsettling are the
déjà vu moments, which are just inexplicable.
Julia saw signs for Caterina
Sforza’s castle, Rocca di Ravaldino, a massive medieval fortress with a red
brick façade which soared into the sky by some ten stories, anchored by round
wide turrets with red tile roofs. Battlements extended around a huge wall
covered by overgrown ivy, greenery and flowers. Suddenly, Julia experienced the
strangest sensation. That she was coming home.
Some things are real, tangible and
they include the sensation that she is being followed. She has to find order in
chaos, emphasising that individual, unique components are essential for
completing the "big picture.
The supporting characters add richness and
believability. Franco, the realtor, who seems more interested in finding a
buyer for the villa. Poppy Witcomb, the insightful
genealogist, who connects with Julia as she herself has been adopted. Helen,
the medium, can elucidate, explicate and interpret what Julia has been experiencing.
“Let me explain. We
think of life and death as binary. When you’re alive, you experience things,
and when you're dead, you don’t. As a medium, I experience a spectrum of
consciousness. When we sleep, we are in a different state of consciousness.
Death is merely another state of consciousness. It is the cessation of brain
activity, but not soul activity. I believe that I, and you, Julia, can access that
consciousness.”’
The love interest, vital in the story
for driving the plot, fostering character development, and increasing
emotional stakes, is provided by Gianluca, the supportive librarian with whom
Julia feels an emotional bond. She feels
heard and understood. The author creates such tenderness in their relationship,
highlighting the vulnerability of both of them.
‘Julia felt his words reach her.
She did feel broken-hearted and openhearted at the same time, and she loved
that he brought her to that insight.’
However, just as there is a physical,
emotional, and psychological threat to Julia, Gianluca’s life is also in
jeopardy. The author’s skilful creative writing drives the plot progression,
increases reader investment, and forces character growth by creating
uncertainty, high stakes, and tension.
I love the subtle humour - it offers a breath of air, allowing the reader to recalibrate before the tension is dialled back up.
Reader – you will have to pick up
the book yourselves because I will not provide a spoiler here, except to say
that the story resolution provides closure and establishes a new normal for the
characters!
Why I recommend this
book:
It is perfect for any lover of
immersive, character-driven literature. As you turn each page, you feel excited,
anxious and on the edge of your seat.
The author's writing immediately
pulled me in from the very first page, and I found myself completely engrossed
in the story until I reached the end. The plot was absorbing, with unexpected
revelations, yet easy to follow along, while the diverse and well-developed
characters brought the narrative to life. Each character had their own unique
personality and motivation, which added depth to the storyline. The book was
filled with twists and turns that kept me on my toes, often catching me off
guard and prompting me to guess what would happen next. I wholeheartedly
recommend this book to anyone looking for a captivating read.
Horror is created by describing
how things look, but also by how people feel.
‘Julia felt a stark,
cold terror. The man was ten feet away from her, then six. She tried to run
faster, but he grabbed her by the hair, yanked her back and hurled her to the
ground. She tried to get up, fighting for her life. He cuffed her in the face,
stunning her. Her brain rattled, and she almost lost consciousness. She flailed
and kicked, writhing, trying to get out from under.’
The reader feels the fear and can
visualise what the author is describing, yet the author carefully controls the ebb and flow of tension to ensure that
readers remain engrossed in the chilling narrative.
Julia is an interesting and
believable character and is defined by a blend of deep, relatable, and
contradictory traits, driving the plot through active, often flawed choices
rather than passive reaction. She can’t explain
the feelings she has about believing in something beyond life, and I think the
author deals with this subject of the afterlife in a really sensitive and thought-provoking
way.
The title is superb and conveys the process Julia must go through to understand and untangle her complex emotions, releasing them for greater emotional clarity and her own well-being.
AUTHOR BIO:
Lisa Scottoline is a No1 Bestselling Author, The New York Times bestselling
author and Edgar award-winning author of 36 novels, including her latest
work, This Changes Everything, which is available July 14,
2026.
Her kindle exclusive book, Pigeon Tony’s Last Stand: A Rosato and
DiNunzio Short Story, was nominated for a Macavity Awards Best Mystery Short
Story, 2024.
She also writes a weekly column titled “Chick Wit” which is a witty and
fun take on life from a woman’s perspective. After running in the Philadelphia
Inquirer for fifteen years, Chick Wit is now available
online. These stories, along with many other never-before-published stories,
have been collected in a New York Times bestselling series of
humorous memoirs including their most recent, I See Life Through Rosé-Coloured
Glasses, and earlier books, I Need A Lifeguard Everywhere But The
Pool; I’ve Got Sand in All the Wrong Places; Does This
Beach Make Me Look Fat?; Have a Nice Guilt Trip; Meet Me at
Emotional Baggage Claim; Best Friends, Occasional Enemies; My
Nest Isn’t Empty, It Just Has More Closet Space; and Why My Third
Husband Will Be a Dog, which has been optioned for TV.
Lisa reviews popular fiction and non-fiction, and her reviews have
appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post and The
Philadelphia Inquirer. Lisa has served as president of Mystery Writers of
America and has taught a course she developed, “Justice and Fiction” at the
University of Pennsylvania Law School, her alma mater. Lisa is a regular and
much-sought-after speaker at library and corporate events. Lisa has over 30
million copies of her books in print and is published in over 35 countries. She
lives in the Philadelphia area with an array of disobedient pets.
BOOK BLURB:
Published by No Exit Press ( 14 Aug.
2025)
OTHER BOOKS BY THIS AUTHOR:
Standalone Thrillers
Historical Fiction:
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