I really enjoy this author’s writing. The mystery part of the book is always well paced and it keeps me turning pages. Her characters are what make the books shine, however. I really liked Emily with all her secrets and Her slightly wacky family. The only books I haven’t read by this author are the McLane-Callahan series so I didn’t know Zander or Ava going in, but liked them both. I always like how low key the romance is kept in this author’s books but that there is always a touch of it. Really enjoyed this read.

Really good mystery thriller I had a hard time putting down. The story begins 20 years ago with Emily finding her father hanging the killer is caught the murder solved. Suddenly 20 years later Emily finds another body hanging. Lots of secrets are revealed which kept me gripped loved the odd twist that was thrown in too. Perfect read for a dark winters evening. I would recommend this book to family and friends.
Thankyou to both the author and net galley for allowing me to read this great book.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. No matter what book of Kendra Elliot's you pick up you will not be disappointed. She will calmly take you on the ride of your life as you traverse through the prose. Every one of her books is well written with interesting characters.

This story has many secrets to wade through as you progress through the book. By the end you will agree that Kendra Elliot is one of today's most fantastic authors. Enjoy! 📚

The Last Sister by Kendra Elliot succeeds on several levels. First off if gives us an updated look at Ava and Mason even though they still aren’t married. Will summer never come? Then there is the delight in knowing this is the beginning of a new Elliot series, so don’t worry if you haven’t read previous books of the FBI agents. Finally, this is a first rate mystery involving brutal murders, hate crimes, some zany characters and a missing sister.
I am saving--at least for prior readers of the Ava Callahan and Mason McLane series--the best for last. This is Zander Well’s story; and what a story it is. Since this is the beginning of a new series, it does not matter is you have read the Callahan and McLane series.
It starts with the hanging of a black man and the stabbing murder of his white wife. The woman who discovers the bodies, Emily Mills, also discovered the body of her father hanging from a tree twenty years earlier. Even though there seems to be no connection, Zander finds himself intrigued with both the earlier crime and the resulting tragedies.
Emily lives in genteel poverty in a shabby mansion with her sister, Madison, and three zany aunts who are town forces to be reckoned with. Emily and Madison live with giant holes with their parents both dead and their older sister, Tara, missing since their parent’s deaths.
Emily can not understand why and how these new tragedies connect with her own even though she is keeping secrets, both old and new that might provide insight if exposed to the light of day. However, Emily works with Zander and Ava to discover why history seems to be repeating itself.
The Last Sister contains no red herrings, jaw-dropping events or twists just for the heck of it. This is a straight ahead police procedural and mystery with some surprises, none of which come from left field. They totally make sense and are part of a natural flow. Can you tell I’m not a fan of the big -reveal- just- for –the- heck- of -it books?
As usual, Elliot does a terrific job in describing the setting; this time near where the Columbia River empties into the Pacific. I always have the same reaction to her varied Oregon series: I-want-to-go-there.
Elliot’s characters always seem so natural to me. People I could be living next door to. People who could be populating any small fading town; except of course for the vicious murders.
This is a terrific start to a new series.
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Good chat and an interesting story full of twists.Some of the characters we have met before and some are new but they are all brought together to solve a murder and mystery that started years before.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Montlake and Kendra Elliot for the opportunity to read and review her latest thriller - don't miss this one! As with all of Elliot's books, they are tough to put down and you will feel the suspense in your bones! 4.5 stars rounded up.

When Emily was a child, she found her father murdered, hanging from a tree in their backyard. Her younger sister, Madison, was inside sleeping and her older sister Tara, was at a friend's. Their mother couldn't cope and committed suicide, leaving Emily and Madison to be raised by their 3 aunts. Tara ran away after the incident and has never been back. Fast forward 20 years, and Emily finds another person in town dead from hanging. Two FBI agents, Zander and Ava, come to town to investigate and to see if the two crimes are linked. The investigation opens all kinds of buried secrets.

Great mystery and characters - curl up in the cold weather and get lost in this book!

A mystery/ thriller set in a small town where everyone knows each other's business and gossip is the name of their most favorite games. But the history of the town includes many crimes where the clues were not as clear cut as they seemed. Kendra Elliot is well known for giving the story a twist every now and then just to see if you are paying attention. I have yet to solve one of her mysteries before the reveal at the end. But I'm going to keep trying.

The Last Sister is the first book I have read by Kendra Elliot and I really enjoyed it .Set in Oregon ,this is a book about Family Secrets ,murder and has connections to KKK.It is one of those books which is hard to put down ,it is gripping fast paced ,compelling with a little bit of romance thrown in .The characters were all great especially the Aunties and of course Zander. Many thanks to the Publisher the Author and NetGalley for my review copy in return for an honest review .

Good plot with a great ending. I liked the story but felt that I should have been able to feel more for the characters.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

This is an excellent thriller with good writing and interesting characters. The storyline is twisted and complex with plenty of twists and turns to keep the reader intrigued. I really liked the characters of Zander and Ava and look forward to seeing them in future books. Emily will no doubt be alongside Zander! It was fun to see their potential romance and I'm sure there will be more to that in the future.

I recieved a free copy from Netgalley and I'm leaving a voluntary review.

This is a small coastal town mystery that is action-packed from the start. 

The writing flows smoothly. It has a lot of twists and turns as the story progresses.

I recommend this book wholeheartedly

Kendra Elliot knows how to make you turn the page. Brilliantly written. A suspensful, can't put it down novel with great characterisation. Loved Zander. Will now read Kendra's backlist. 5 super stars

Another gripping read from Kendra Elliot.

When Emily Mills finds the bodies of her employee Lyndsay and her husband Sean gruesomely murdered it takes her back twenty years to the night her father was murdered - hanged in the same way Sean is. The past has continued to haunt Emily and her eccentric sister Madison who have lived with their three aunts since their mother committed suicide a week after her father's death. The third sister, Tara, disappeared twenty years ago and has not been heard of since.

Both Emily and Madison know something that may help solve the mystery of who killed their father and both wonder if there is a link between his death and that of Sean given the similarities. However, they have held their secrets close for the past years.

Zander Wells, FBI agent with his own demons is called in to determine whether the murders have been racially motivated. He too wonders if there is a connection. To complicate matters he and Emily are very much attracted but she is a no go area being involved in the case. As other incidents occur and secrets are uncovered the book races to its thrilling conclusion.

A definite page turner full of suspense, twists and turn that keeps you guessing to the end. Highly recommended.

First time I have read anything from this author and I am impressed with the story telling. Very well executed. Good characters. Plenty of suspense to keep me guessing with a little romance thrown in. Would definitely read her next offering. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review it.

A family’s tragic past resurfaces with an eerily similar murder…

This is the first book in the Columbia River series that can be read as a stand-alone.

Finding her father hanged when she was a child of ten years is not something Emily Mills could ever have forgotten; twenty years has dulled the trauma somewhat but unanswered questions remain from that day that she’s never looked at too closely for reasons she’s never shared with anyone. The killer of her father is in prison, the details of that tragic day now just a buried memory that occasionally haunts her. Little did she know that the past is about to brutally collide with the present when she checks on the welfare of a reliable employee, one that she considers a friend. What are the chances that Emily would find a dead body in the same fashion twice in a lifetime? This reader’s attention was captured.

As an adult, Emily recognizes that the perceptions formed in her psyche twenty years ago were through the eyes of a child. With the current murder opening up that old wound she has to wonder if she could have been wrong in the assumptions she’d made and she’s not the only one who is intrigued by the coincidence of modus operandi.

With the agency called in to investigate the possibility of a hate crime, FBI Special Agent Zander Wells and his partner arrive to find that another death had occurred with a connection to the first. Things are further complicated when he meets and then afterward learns the history of the woman who found the first victim. Is the past somehow repeating itself? What in the present has triggered the past? And what is he to do with the unexpected attraction he finds himself feeling toward Emily? Abide by the rules.

At first appearances Bartonville, Oregon is a small depressed logging town where everyone knows each other though how well they know each other will definitely be in question. Zander senses that this town harbors a deep dark secret that the current investigation has dislodged. Someone is extremely nervous and will do anything to keep the past buried and the clues seemingly lie in the memories of the Mill’s sisters. And what happened to the sister who left town?

The suspenseful mystery and its twists, the intriguing characters and the engaging storyline in this book made this an excellent read. There was family drama to wade through and unspoken family secrets that finally see the light of day, the brewing romance was an added distraction to one investigator. The depth to characters who have their weight of human flaws and emotional baggage made them relatable, the quirkiness of some was quite endearing. Zander Wells is a character previously seen in this author’s Callahan & McLane series. This was a good start to a new series.

An advanced reading copy was obtained from the publisher via NetGalley.

The Last Sister by author Kendra Elliot is filled with secrets, mystery, and family drama. This is the first in a new series by this author. I have enjoyed each series Kendra Elliot has written and look forward to the Columbia River series.
Emily Mills goes to check on an employee who has not shown up for work and is shocked by what she sees in the backyard. A body is hanging from a large tree and Emily is shaken to her core. Twenty years earlier she had seen her father hanging in the same way. The murder of her father was the beginning of her family being torn apart. Soon her mother would be dead and her oldest sister left home and has never returned or called. What secrets lurk in the past for these three sisters, Tara, Emily, and Madison?
I won't post spoilers, but this story will grip the readers' emotions as the motives for murder are revealed. Since there is a possibility the murders are a result of a hate crime, the FBI is involved in the investigation. Special Agents Ava McLane and Zander Wells take an interest in finding the answers to the troubling coincidences and links of the current murder with the murder of Emily's father years ago.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and give my review of this book.

Just wow. This story starts immediately with Emily, the main character, being plunged into a murder scene of a friend and it bringing up bad memories of her father being killed in a similar fashion in the past. She goes against police orders and brings the fbi in. And more information starts to point to all these cases being connected. It has action excitement and even a little romance. The writing was captivating and characters all were believable and well written. Cannot wait for the sequel. And I totally did not predict who the killer was. At all!! Did not see it coming.

I enjoyed this book,so thank you to the publisher and netgalley. A book which goes back twenty years that destroyed a family. Secrets kept until things are starting to unravel. More murders and attempted murder whilst an innocent man was put behind bars for a crime he didn't commit. I really enjoyed it and look forward to reading more from this author.

This book packs a punch!

Threats, death attempts, hate crimes, racism, KKK ties, violence, mystery, suspense, and a flutter of light romance are all embedded in this new page-turning series by Elliot. It is gritty, has an emotional pull, and has a constant edge-of-your-seat feel from beginning to end. The storyline is engrossing and the characters are well-developed and likable (The aunts are great!). Elliot has a gift for weaving tragedy, malevolence, drama, family ties, and emotional conflict into a great mystery thriller that will leave you reeling and yet ready for the next book in the series.

Emily and her sisters, Tara and Madison, suffered tragedy and loss in their childhood and the repercussions have carried over into their adult lives. One sister ran and has not been heard from since, one sister closed herself off and just tried to move on, and one sister is resentful and holds bitterness towards the others and the awful circumstances that separated them. Lies and secrets cloud their memories of the pivotal moments of their parents’ deaths and hold them all part. And when a new murder in their hometown mirrors their father’s and old evidence resurfaces their worlds come crashing down around them as terrible truths are revealed. Complications arise when the FBI joins the local police to solve the case, asking questions and revisiting the worst time of the sisters’ lives. When the present echoes the past, was the killer really found? Or are they still lurking in the shadows waiting to strike…to finally eliminate all those who possibly know the truth?

*I received an arc through NetGalley, via the publisher, and I am voluntarily providing my honest review.

Kendra Elliot does it again! I was sucked into this intricately woven tapestry of history, family and murder. This story kept me flipping pages and thinking of the tale long past the last page. I loved how the locations history was as much a character in the tale as the inhabitants. I truly enjoyed this and can’t wait for the next installment.