hat Last Weekend is one of those mysteries with a very limited list of suspects, none of whom you want to be guilty. Laura DiSilverio does a masterful job of balancing that tension between almost preferring not to know who is guilty and the need to know for the sake of the innocent. A circle of college friends used to vacation in a castle that had been moved brick by brick from France to America until ten years ago, one of them was pushed off a fifth-floor balcony. The local sheriff was certain it was one of them – and they suspected each other as well – and that mutual suspicion infected their friendship. Now, suddenly, they are invited back for a weekend and none of them can resist attending, their motives mixed, hoping to rekindle lost friendships or to find answers. Murder and mayhem ensue and the sheriff is back, determined that this time someone will pay.

This book slightly reminds me of Then there Were None. All these people in one place but no one did it. A fast-paced mystery that somehow manages to create as much suspense as those with a small group of suspects as many can with dozens.

This was an interesting take on the locked room/creepy mansion mystery with a bit of women's fiction thrown in, what with the complicated female friendships. It was a bit in the vein of In a Dark, Dark Wood mixed with How to Start a Fire. The twists were pretty good, the writing atmospheric. All in all, a nice bit of suspense that I would recommend.

That Last Weekend is a suspense novel by Laura DiSilverio. Laurel Muir, Dawn Infanti, Geneva Frost and Ellie Ordahl are surprised when they received a tangerine colored envelope with an invitation to a weekend at Chateau du Cygne Noire near Asheville, North Carolina. They have not been back since the “event” ten years prior. Laurel is hoping to finally get answers as to what happened that night. The second morning, Laurel goes to check on Evangeline and discovers her dead. The four friends agree to remain at the B&B until the truth is revealed. Laurel works with Sheriff Judah Boone to get the answers they need. Did one of her friends commit the crime or was it someone working at the chateau?

That Last Weekend is a slower paced novel that had extreme difficulty getting into. There are five main characters and the POV switches between four of them (Laurel, Geneva, Dawn, and Ellie). The transitions between POV were abrupt (rough). It would take a moment to realize that the POV had switched to a different character and figure out which one was talking now. That Last Weekend did not have real suspense until the last ten percent of the book. I wish the rest of the novel had the same pace and life as this section (my attention was finally captured and it was held until the end). Many readers will be surprised with the outcome of the main mystery. I was happy that the author included a good twist (only the best armchair sleuths will figure this one out). My rating for The Last Weekend is 3 out of 5 stars. I wish the author had told the story from Laurel’s point-of-view and had ramped up the pace in the first half of the book with more action.

Laurel Muir returns to Chateau du Cigne Noir, an atmospheric old B&B to reunite with some old friends she hasn't seen in a decade. The friends hope to reconnect after their last visit ended in tragedy when one of them fell from a balcony and is now wheel-chair bound. When one of them is murdered they all again fall under suspicion by the local police and must figure out who the killer is before they strike again.

This book is almost written like a cozy mystery, except that it's much heavier and darker. The characters are complex and well developed, and I really enjoyed a rather accurate portrayal of the various intricacies in a group of female friends. There was a hint of Agatha Christie in the small cast of characters and the remote "country house" of sorts. What I thought was going to develop into a full-blown romantic story line kept itself cool until the end, which I appreciate. I settled on a killer several times and was proved wrong in the end. This is the first book I've read by this author and I'm definitely going to find another one to read next year.

This feels a bit like I know what you did last summer, mixed with Gone Girl. On some level that works, I just wish I could have enjoyed it more. Not sure what element was missing for me.

This is suspense writing at its best. Already a fan of the authors work i was pleased to receive and utterly enjoy this thriller in its entirety. The author has a masterful writing style and a unique way of building suspense throughout this finely tuned novel. It is one of my favorite reads of 2017.
Five college friends stayed at the same castle every year, until tragedy struck. Pushed away by suspicion and drifting apart, they now barely speak . Until, ten years after that fateful night, each receives an invitation to return to the Chateau du Cygne Noir for one last weekend. The demons of the past return and death stalks the chateau and the five friends. The friends must confront their past and open old wounds to finally uncover the truth.
This is a excellent 5 star read that i highly recommend. Thank you with gratitude for the ARC which did not influence my review.

Five college friends have a reunion of sorts at a B&B that they frequented years earlier--and which was the location of an accident that left one friend paralyzed. Past conflicts combine with current stresses and before long one woman is dead. The remaining friends decide to investigate the apparent murder and heal the wounds of the past.

The characters were engaging but there were a lot of elements that made it difficult to completely suspend my disbelief. Why would any of these women return to a place with such bad memories to spend time with a "friend" who had slept with one of their boyfriends, set another woman up for a drug arrest, shattered another's confidence and tried to ruin another's academic career.

Still I enjoyed the book overall but found that Most of the characters' stories tied up a little too tidily. It was a distracting read, however and I would recommend to those who enjoy domestic thrillers.

Before tragedy struck one of their own, five college friends gathered annually at a castle for a girls weekend.  Ten years later they all return to the castle which is being converted into a nursing home, only for a murder to occur. Everyone is a suspect but all must band together to figure out the mystery.

This novel is filled with atmosphere and suspense.  The writing is well crafted and done in such a way that you know one of the characters is the culprit but you like them and don’t want it to be any of them.  This is not a predictable whodunnit.  The twists and turns are unpredictable but take you to great places.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this mystery novel.

Four out of five stars.

That Last Weekend is an intense story of two tragic incidents occurring 10 years apart to a group of five college friends at the Chateau du Cygne Noir Bed & Breakfast -- the first, a devastating fall for Evangeline, one of the women; and the second, a murder ten years later at a final reunion at the Cygne. The police suspected that one of the classmates was responsible for the fall, but could never prove anything, and had to let the women go their own ways.

I really enjoyed this book. It is told from the point of view of four of the main characters and seamlessly moves from one narrative to another, from past to present. I was engaged by this story from the beginning, and found it to be full of unexpected twists and suspense. The four women, Laurel, Geneva, Ellie and Dawn are still friends despite the tragedy and several rocky moments in the 10 years since Evangeline's fall, and are realistic and relatable as each one of them thinks the same thing, "could one of us really be a killer?"

I highly recommend this book, and like me, know you will find it extremely hard to put down.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

That Last Weekend by Laura DiSilverio has more twists and turns than a roller coaster. Okay, I know that roller coasters don't really have twists and turns as much as they have ups and downs, but I can't think of anything twisty. Anyway, the author is going to keep you guessing until the last chapter (no peaking).

The premise of The Last Weekend is five college friends who meet yearly until one weekend one of the women (Evangeline) is pushed off a fifth floor balcony and the police can't figure out who among the four is guilty. That was the last weekend all of them were together.

Ten years later, an invitation arrives for each of the women and all four decide to attend. Laurel, now a judge, wants to attend to try to solve the crime, Dawn is an artist who has just not found her audience and feels like a failure. Geneva, a therapist who took some time out after college to get her act together and get on the right track, is happily married and eight months pregnant. Ellie just sent her twins off to college and is feeling a bit like a failure and ready to try something new. All of them have a reason to have pushed Evangeline, but all of them declare their innocence.

I have enjoyed all of the series that this author has published. My favorite is The Mall Cop series and I wish there had been more. This is the first standalone book I have read by Laura DiSilverio I have read. It is excellent, with more layers than I thought possible. Just when you think you have it all figured out, she throws in another twist, an angle I hadn't considered.

I look forward to the next book by Laura DiSilverio. I was given a copy of this book by Netgalley, this review is my opinion.

I love this story. The cover and title of the book certainty attracted me to the story at first and I’m so glad I read it. This is a great mystery and I look forward to reading more by this author.

Well, well, well. I thought I had it ALL figured out and then I read the last few pages.

Five college friends. A castle that was brought over from France, brick by brick. Every year the friends would travel to the castle to enjoy a weekend away, and then...tragedy struck.

Ten years later, the friends are summoned back to the castle and while all have their hesitations, they can't resist coming back, one more time. What that find, however, is that everything is different. The castle has been sold, they are the only guests for the weekend and their ring leader, ...well, she's a back to her old tricks.

This is an easy read, but it's a very engrossing story. All of the women are well formed characters and I read this with a fury because 1) I saw myself in Laurel and 2) because I had to know what happened.

Thanks to Midnight Ink, NetGalley and Laura DiSilverio for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Laurel never drank at professional functions, today she wished she could but instead she got another club soda and lime. Then her ex husband George came up to Laurel to congratulate her on being named a judge. But Laurel wasn’t sure she wanted to be a judge which was ironic or moronic because all her life she had worked this exact achievement. No Laurel wanted to be a judge but Laurel wasn’t sure she wanted to be a judge more than she wanted a baby. Dawn had to get to an important meeting and asked Kyra/Ky to zip her up. Kyra hoped Dawn wasn’t going to be late again and told Dawn. Kyra also told Dawn her mom Teresa had called but left no message. Teresa had liked Kyra until she found out Kyra and Dawn were a couple living together and not just roommates for the past two years. Once Teresa did know she refused to say a word to Kyra. Dawn was having no luck selling her abstract paintings and wondered if she should just give up on being a successful artist. Dawn had a job as a scientific illustrator but that wasn’t her passion. Dawn resented Kyra’s success as a yoga and mediation center owner. But then Kyra looked up and smiled and the resentment disappeared. Ellie was in the car with her twin sons Shane and Aidan and she was taking the seventeen year old boys to get things for their dorms as they were going to two separate colleges soon. Ellie was glad Shane was getting away from Hailey his girlfriend as Hailey was needy. Although Hailey was perfectly nice. Ellie had been Hailey at one time and needy led to poor life choices and she didn’t want Shane’s future compromised like hers had been. In two weeks her boys would be gone what was Ellie going to do? She had ten hours a day to rattle around while her husband Scott was at work. Ellie had her Lia Sophia business but making a little money selling jewelry part time didn’t add up to a career. Like Laurel Ellie had an orange envelope and had been invited to a girl’s weekend with her college friends. Like old times. But the last time the five friends had got together at Chateau De Cygne Noir - a decade ago- their had been a tragic accident as someone had pushed Evalange/Vangie off her fifth floor balcony and Vangie was paralyzed from the waist down for the rest of her life. Every year the women thought about that. Ellie opened up the envelope and it was as she thought an invitation and it was a month from now in September The boys would already be off to college and Ellie decided she wanted to go. Even though it meant revisiting what had happened. Geneva had fifteen year old Mata in her chair who had a problem with eating but Geneva let Marta know they could talk about whatever they wanted to. Her mind drifted to her brother Jimmie who had been killed in a driveby when he wasn’t much older than Marta. Then she thought about her older brother Leland in prison for another year for his assault and battery conviction. Then Geneva asked Ellie if she had a bike. Ten years later and Laurel and the other women return to the haunted - with a ghost- castle for the first time since Vangie was not paralyzed for life and was now walking and was engaged to marry. Vangie wasn’t always nice to the other women when they were younger. Then Vangie’s body was found and the women had to admit there was a murderer among them. The rest of the friends make a pack to find the truth but with suspicion, doubt, and old secrets threaten to tear the friends apart and this time the sheriff is determined to solve the crime.
I liked this book a lot. I liked the plot a lot and the pace most of the time but it did drag some at times for me. I loved that they stayed in a haunting/haunted castle,a beautiful castle. I loved the twists and turns in this story. I loved the setting with the castle also. This definitely kept my attention and kept me guessing also.. I also liked how the friends had reasons to not entirely trust each other. Sometimes it was a little confusing with what was past and present. I loved the characters and the twists and turns of this story and I recommend.

I admit that when I started this book, I didn't expect to enjoy it this much. In fact, I almost DNF'd after only one chapter. I wasn't in the mood. A group of friends received a mysterious letter and I found those first introductory scenes quite repetitive. However. I saw some great reviews, so I gave it another chance. By the end of the day, I had already finished it.

The premise was very "Agatha Christie" and the moment those women arrived at the castle, I was completely on board. I enjoyed their interactions and I was super intrigued. Who had pushed Evangeline? What had happened this time? Were the two events related? I'd love to discuss it!

The ending was satisfying and I finished the book feeling really happy and relieved that I had kept on reading. I would surely recommend this cozy mystery for those who're looking for a quick and smart whodunit.

Compulsively readable, to find out what's behind the mystery, but it's strange to get to the end and realize that a book about friendship has as its motivating character someone who was such a manipulating liar. That left a bit of sour taste in my mouth. I also thought events in the last third of the book were overly dramatic -- I didn't really buy that the characters who killed or abducted people would have been driven that far.

Perhaps that's because the only character who seemed fully fleshed out was Laurel, the lead, and that's only because I could identify with her struggles and fears at her point in life. The others were more a collection of traits and stereotypes. For that reason, I found it tricky, while zooming through the book to determine what happened, to sometimes keep up with the various time jumps while keeping the voices of the characters separate in my mind.

It's a shame this didn't come out in spring, since it would be great to recommend as a thrilling beach read.

Five college friends meet every year for a weekend retreat in a castle turned into a B&B when a tragic accident happens. Or was it an accident? Ten years later they all decide to get together again, each has their own reason for attending, when tragedy strikes and this time its deadly. Has the guilty party come back to finish the job, or is this just a unlucky coincidence? The story tells how each girl had a reason to hate, but is it reason enough to kill?
I enjoyed reading this book and getting to know the characters. Can't wait for her next book!

EXTRACT: 'Murder. The word lingered in her brain, flashing and crackling like a neon sign on the fritz. Such soft syllables, almost like 'murmur', for such an ugly act. '
'We all lie every day, in big ways and little, by omission and on purpose, by telling ourselves that white lies are kind, or by convincing ourselves that no one will be hurt. '

THE BLURB: Every year for a decade, five college friends spent a weekend together at the atmospheric Chateau du Cygne Noir. Then, tragedy struck.

Ten years later, Laurel Muir returns to the castle for the first time since the accident, hoping to reconnect with her friends and lay the past to rest. When a murderer strikes, it rips open old wounds and forces the women to admit there's a killer in their midst. The remaining friends make a pact to unearth the truth, but suspicion, doubt, and old secrets threaten to tear them apart. Unsure who to trust, Laurel puts herself in harm's way, risking it all for friendship and long-delayed justice.

MY COMMENTS: Was it a murder attempt? Was it an accident? Did it really matter? .....the outcome was the same. It has sewn the seeds of suspicion amongst the five friends and almost severed their ties.

Laura DeSilvero writes with a light touch. She has a dry acerbic wit that had me smiling throughout; that is when I wasn't trying to figure out who the villian of the piece was. And let me tell you, my opinion on that changed from page to page.

Don't go thinking that because I said that it is written with a light touch that this is a light and fluffy book, because you would be wrong. DeSilvero delivers suspense in spades. Her characters have depth; there is no type casting here. She has captured the dynamics of friendship within a group of women, who all have reason not to entirely trust one another, with great finesse.

That Last Weekend by Laura DeSilvero could almost be a 'cosy', but one with slightly darker overtones, and earns 4☆ from me.

Thank you to Midnight Ink via Netgalley for providing a digital copy of That Last Weekend by Laura DeSilvero for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own. Please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page for an explanation of my ratings.

This review is also published on my blog sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

WOW! And to think I almost missed this one!

Okay, I admit it. I am somewhat of a prude. Lately, it seems that I have been bombarded with books that feature LGBT characters and I had just had enough when I started this book. The main characters are introduced one at a time. Laurel a lawyer and a newly minted judge is first. The next character is Dawn who has a roommate named Kyra. There was an innuendo line, but I just let it pass by. Then I read "Teresa Infanti had like Kyra just fine until the day she stopped believing the fiction she had created for herself that Dawn and Kyra were only roommates. For the past two years, she had refused to say a word to her daughter's lover....." Not knowing where this would lead, I was ready to quit. There had been no hint of such a relationship in the blurb I'd read about the book. I went back and checked. As I read other reviews about how good this book was, I decided to give it another try. I am so glad I did! The homosexual relationship is so minor in the story, that it could probably be rewritten and left out.

The story line is that the four women introduced in the first chapters had been friends in college used to get together annually for a girls' weekend. That is, until 10 years ago when there was a tragic accident. A fifth friend fell from a balcony. That was the last time the women had gotten together as each suspected one another of pushing Evangeline off the balcony. I assumed that Evangeline was dead, but in fact, she is the one who issued the invitation for them all to get together again at the same location they had gone for about 10 years. Evangeline is paralyzed and in a wheel chair. Each of the other four is hesitant to go, the tensions are high as their friendships had suffered over the intervening years.

As the characters are developed, the reader gets information about their past relationships. There were a couple times in the book that I had a hard time distinguishing memories from current events, but a quick reread of the paragraph set me straight.

There are lots of suspects as to who could have pushed Evangeline all those years before as the same employees are at the bed and breakfast. But why would any of them have done that? And, of course, there is talk of a ghost. But seriously..... And then Evangline is murdered. Is this the original criminal making a second attempt?

Once again the four friends are suspects. Once again the same sheriff interrogates them. He is upset that he never found the perpetrator 10 years before and vows to not let this crime go unsolved.

This was a real page-turner for me. I hated it when I had to fulfill family obligations and couldn't read. I needed to know who it was. I had grown so close to each character that I dreaded who it might be. I could not imagine how the ending could be satisfying for me!

There is only one flaw that I found in the entire book. The bed and breakfast "was brought over stone by stone and timber by timber from France in the early 1800's, after the younger son of a French nobleman killed his opponent in a duel and fled to America. He made his fortune as a privateer during the Civil War and had the family home relocated after inheriting the title and castle when his older brother died of syphilis." The time line is all wrong. The Civil War didn't happen until the late 1800's. I imagine most people would never notice that or would just pass over it and the dates wouldn't register in their minds.

This book is well worth the read! One of the best I've read in a long time!

I received an advance copy from Netgalley for my honest review.

I just could NOT get into this one. I loved the concept (a reunion after a girls' weekend gone horribly awry, with a new huge whodunit element thrown in), but the characters completely destroyed this one for me. I did not like ANY of them, they all felt like caricatures of female stereotypes (the mom, the professional, the artist, the mean girl, and honestly the fifth was so bland I don't even remember her - and I just closed the book five minutes ago) with no real personalities, just a collection of overplayed tropes... When I can't connect with any of the characters, I have a very hard time getting into a story, no matter how good or well-written it may otherwise be. Add in the jumble of character-switching opening chapters/sections, a back-and-forth-in-time narrative, and what felt to me like heavy-handed attempts at generating suspense where no suspense was yet to be found, and the result is that I struggled almost from the get-go and put the book down when I was about 25% in... This one was just not for me.

Who pushed Vangie? That's the question Laurel hopes to resolve, as well as to reconnect with her old college friends. Sometimes I wonder why people agree to meet up again when they know one of them did something really bad but it does make for a good novel. DiSilverio has created five well designed characters in Geneva, Ellie, Dawn, Vangie, and Laurel. My quibble is that there is a lot going on with this group; perhaps one less character would have made this more intense. That said, it's definitely suspenseful and a good read. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Try this one if you like books where old frenemies need to resolve things once and for all.