The Namaste Club by Asha Ellas

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✦ BLURB ✦

Just inland from Florida’s sun-splashed Treasure Coast is the Namaste Club yoga center. An exclusive oasis of palms, lakes, and adorable guest villas, it’s perfect for getaways where Shakti, a serenely blond Instagram influencer, holds yoga retreats for well-heeled Miami ladies. The Namaste Club is a place of reflection, a place of release and redemption…or at least, that’s the sales pitch.

This weekend, however, is Transcendence Week, and a new bunch of South Florida burnouts have arrived. There’s Indira, fabulously wealthy after her divorce from the fast-frozen fruit king of Florida. There’s Indira’s bestie Jessica, also divorced and trying to get her groove back. There’s Barbara, heir to a massive family fortune, who’s taken a vow of silence for the retreat that will be sorely tested. And then there’s Carol Anne from Vero Beach, a happy tradwife and proud gun owner who recently did something...inadvisable; she’s just here while things cool off in her hometown.

And then, of course, there’s Daniel, the toned, man-bunned apprentice yoga instructor. He’s cute if you like that sort of thing. And many of the rich ladies do.

Last but not least, there’s Bubba, the retreat center’s resident twelve-foot American alligator. Before Transcendence Week is over, Bubba will have his moment of glory as well—when one of the visitors winds up in his jaws.

Who will be living their best life? Who will get their comeuppance? Pour yourself a spicy margarita and settle in for your new favorite read!

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✶ PRE-READING ✶

I love a satirical novel that knows exactly what it's poking at, especially when it’s wrapped in palm trees, passive aggression, and questionable life coaching. Between the blurb and the alligator, I was expecting something sharp, sun-drenched, and utterly bonkers - in the best possible way.

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✶ POST-READING ✶

As I thought... This is Florida Gothic™ meets Real Housewives meets true crime podcast, and I devoured every absurd, sparkling, slightly sinister page. Asha Ellas writes with a razor-sharp sense of humor and clearly loves her setting enough to roast it over a tiki torch. The cast is a perfect mess of privilege, delusion, and desperation, each one ridiculous and deeply human at the same time.

It surprised me by... The emotional weight that sneaks in between the satire. Underneath the snark and social commentary are real themes of reinvention, regret, and the quiet, awkward terror of realizing you might not like who you've become. And yet, it never takes itself too seriously. Every moment of sincerity is undercut by just enough camp or chaos to keep you on your toes. Also: Bubba gets the most unexpected (and most deserved) redemption arc of the year.

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✦ RECOMMENDATIONS ✦

Book Recommendation: Palm Beach by Mary Adkins

TV or Movie Recommendation: Big Little Lies (TV adaptation)

✦ MUSIC PAIRING ✦

Because sometimes, the heart of a story plays out like a song.

🎵 Featured Song: “Tennis Court” – Lorde
Cool, detached, with a tinge of rot behind the luxury.
🎶 Vibe Album: Dirty Computer – Janelle Monáe
Bright, polished, critical of the systems it plays within.
🎧 Artist Recommendation: Chappell Roan
Because if anyone could write the soundtrack to a murder at a yoga retreat, it’s her.

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✧ VIBE CHECK ✧

🎨 Colour Palette: Teal yoga pants, sun-bleached coral, fake tan orange

🎬 Soundtrack: Clinking cocktail ice, distant gator grunts, awkward laughter during guided breathing
☀️ Season: Sticky, late-spring Florida heat
🌴 Mood: Decadent, deranged, dangerously zen

🍸 Scent: Sunscreen, sage smoke, and something... suspiciously metallic

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★ TAROT CARD PULLED ★

The Tower – Harmonious Tarot
A perfectly coiffed gentleman tumbles as the elegant ground gives way beneath him—disaster dressed in rococo trim. It’s the perfect match for a book where curated peace collapses into glorious chaos. Enlightenment doesn’t always come gently. Sometimes it arrives in a floral yoga wrap, screaming.

The Namaste Club publishes on the 1st July, 2025. I received a free copy and am giving an honest review.