This is my first Carla Kovach book, "Her Last Mistake" is the sixth in the series, but I didn't have any troubles reading it.
The story focuses on a wedding night, when a young girl was found dead in her room. The character of Detective Gina Harte is introduced at the very beginning to deal with the case. The investigation is well conducted especially when other murders are committed and you feel, as a reader, like you're part of the enquiry; I often found myself trying to solve the case and spot the suspect, that is so exciting! The story is full of suspense and suspicion, the pace is great too, Kovach's writing is engaging and it's also quite interesting to go from one point of view to another through the different chapters.
Gina is a central character, she is portrayed as a strong-tempered woman with her own troubles and secrets as a woman but also as a mother, as she has to face some problems with her daughter too.
This book is a good thriller you should enjoy if you like investigations and suspense stories, unless maybe you're planning to get married in the next few months... :)

Meh. So this book didn't really do much for me. This is book 6 of the series and I didn't read the first 5, but the author did a decent job at not making the reader feel like they missed out on pertinent information.

The book bounced around a lot and it was confusing at times to figure out what was going on.

I liked the plot and what was happening, but it was a little too repetitive and bland in several parts.

With this being said, I give this book 3.5 starts, but will round down to a 3.

Thanks Netgalley and the publisher for my eARC in exchange for my honest review!

Book 6 in the series and it is as good as the previous ones.

Gina is a great character who pushes herself to the limit for her job.

I was hooked from the start and I could not put it down til it was finished. I did not guess that ending!

A great read that will keep you hooked.

Publication Date: 11 May 2020
Publisher: Bookouture

5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is the first Carla Kovach book I have read so although this was book number six in the Gina Hartwell series, it read very well as a standalone. While it was evident there was history in the storyline I didn’t feel like I was missing any relevant information. In saying that, after reading this book I will certainly be going back to read the first five in the series because I loved it so much!

As the cover states this is “an absolutely unputdownable, addictive crime thriller”. I found it hard to put it down and honestly if I hadn’t started it so late last night, I would have read it in one sitting! I was drawn in instantly and just felt the need to keep turning pages. It was wonderfully fast paced with an easy read writing style.

Holly Long, Francesca Carter, Lily Hill and Kerry Powell, The Awesome Foursome, friends since school days are celebrating at Kerry's wedding reception. What should be a night of happiness and joy soon turns to tragedy and shock when Holly is found by one of her friends, dead in her hotel room.

What happens from here is you are taken into a thickening plot of figuring out who killed Holly. There are so many possibilities and motives that just when you think you have figured it out or suspects are eliminated, you are hit with a sucker-punch of new victims, leads and suspects!

That ending completely caught me unawares! I did not see that coming at all and honestly a book that can keep me blindsided right until the gobsmacking end deserves 5 stars!

Thank you Netgalley, Bookouture and Carla Kovach for the ARC in return for my honest review.

Holly is murdered at her friends wedding. Holly is popular, smart, very attractive and a good friend. Why would anyone want to kill her? Is it a secret she's been hiding? No one knows for sure. But other bridesmaids are also being murdered. What could be going on with this group of friends?

I’d like to thank Bookouture and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘Her Last Mistake’, the sixth in the Detective Gina Harte series written by Carla Kovach, in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Following the wedding of Kerry and Ed Powell at Cleevesford Manor, one of their bridesmaids and Kerry’s best friend Holly Long is found strangled in her hotel room. DI Gina Harte is called in to investigate despite being on leave with her daughter and grand-daughter. Gina soon realises that the victim has a secret and a lifestyle that far exceeds her salary, but she can’t find a reason for Holly to have been targeted. With the list of suspects growing, can the killer be identified before he strikes again?

‘Her Last Mistake’ is an exciting thriller that’s kept me enthralled from page one and a welcome addition to the series. The storyline is well-written, there’s plenty of drama, action and suspense to keep me enthralled, and I’ve enjoyed meeting up with Gina and her team once again, not to mention learning more about her on/off relationship with DCI Briggs. There’s a number of dubious characters, twists and turns to keep me guessing, and the ending is so unexpected it’s something I didn’t envisage happening. I never tire of reading a Carla Kovach thriller and look forward to the next one.

Another great read in this series.
Gina is spending some time with her daughter and granddaughter when she gets a call to say a body had been found.
Hannah is annoyed with her mum as in her mind, work comes before family, so Gina has some making up to do.
The murder becomes the centre of attention as a young woman was murdered at the wedding reception of a close friend.
Soon another woman is killed and Gina and the team have their hands full trying to work out who the killer is.
There are some chapters from the killer’s perspective but I didn’t have a clue who it was!
This is a fast paced crime thriller that had me hooked from the beginning to the end.
Thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

I have really loved this series . Love the suspense , Gina, Biggs all the great characters in this series BUT unfortunately this book was a bit on the boring side. I didn't know who killed Holly (which is great) but there were to many characters in the story and lots of time the book just seemed like it fell short of the other great books in this series. I will still read the next in the series hoping it will pick up again . This just wasn't a thrilling mystery to read. I would still recommend reading so you keep up with the series and I do look forward to reading the next book because the main character Gina Harte is definitely a great character to want to keep reading about for as long as Carla Kovach wants to keep on writing her story.

Detective Gina Harte must work hard to find out why a bridesmaid was killed shortly after a wedding reception. Upon further investigation, Gina discovers that there is a pattern that is starting to develop and it will end up costing more than one life. Meanwhile, not only is Gina trying to draw closer to her daughter Hannah, she is trying to examine her relationship with DCI Briggs, all while having painful memories of her past. To say that Gina has her hands full is an understatement.

During the post-mortem examination, there is something about Holly that was kept secret from everyone, even her three best friends - one of whom is the bride. There was another secret Holly was hiding along the way, and that just might end up with more than her life being taken. The question remains, why was Holly killed?

With Gina being thrust into a complicated case, quite a bit of friction arises between her and Hannah. Gina is forced to put her job first, and that includes interviewing more than one possible suspect. This book was excellent, because there is one character who stood out to me and waiting to see what would happen further garnered my attention. This book had plenty of surprises along the way. Her Last Mistake is the 6th book in the Detective Gina Harte series. It was a perfect addition to a compelling series. I look forward to reading the next installment.

Many thanks to Bookouture and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

The Gina Harte series from Carla Kovach reaches book number 6 with Her Last Mistake which is another very entertaining and enjoyable police procedural thriller that kept me hooked from the beginning to the end.

The story is well paced throughout and definitely one that I would recommend

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. I really like this author and this book did not disappoint, fast paced, page turning thriller that will have you hooked all the way through.

Her Last Mistake by Carla Kovach is the 6th in the Detective Gina Harte series.

First, let me thank NetGalley, the publisher Bookouture, and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.


Series Background: (Warning – May contain spoilers from previous books)
DI Gina Harte works homicides. Her team consists of: DS Jacob Driscoll, DC Harry O’Connor and DC Paula Wyre, with a lot of assistance from PC Smith, and now PC Kapoor. Gina is a stubborn lady, and a determined detective. She has had a rough life, which has led to an uneasy relationship with her daughter and grand-daughter.  It has also led to a lack of real friends, and an on-again/off-again relationship with her boss, DCI Chris Briggs. It is not common knowledge that her husband was abusive, and no one knows that she helped him fall to his death many years ago.


My Synopsis: (No major reveals, but if concerned, skip to My Opinions)

When a bridesmaid is murdered at her best friends wedding reception, Gina is called back from her brief holiday.  She quickly finds that there there are many suspects, a few that she would like to lock behind bars for any reason.  But there is no evidence.

Holly was part of the "Awesome Foursome", as they liked to be called.  They had met in grade school, and their friendship lasted.  Francisca, Lilly and Kerry don't understand who would want Holly dead.  But Holly had a secret, and that secret got her killed.

Gina's relationship with her daughter Hannah is tested, as she was meant to be spending time with her family.  It seems Hannah may never understand her mother's job.  It also seems that Hannah's choice of friends does not ease her mothers concerns either.


My Opinions:

This is a really good police procedural.  Gina has a past that she struggles with, and her relationship with her daughter suffers because of it.  Well, that and the fact that every time they try to spend some quality time together, Gina's phone rings and she is called out on a case.

Gina is a very determined detective, and everything else gets set aside when she is on a case (see above).  But she really cares about people.

The plot was a little dark, and talk about the games people play!

Kovach always adds a variety of characters, each which could be a suspect, and many of which I do not like.  It makes it interesting, and this is the second book in a row that I didn't have a clue as to who killed Holly...or anyone else.  My guess was sooooo wrong.  I love that in a book.

Definitely recommend this series, but you have to read them in order.

This is book #6 in the Detective Gina Harte series. It can be read as a standalone book, although I would recommend reading the books in series order for better understanding of the characters previous stories. Having read all the other books in the series, I was familiar with Detective Inspector Gina Harte and her previous storylines. All the way through the previous books, I’ve liked Gina and have followed the trials and tribulations of not just the cases she has worked on, but of her personal life too. In this book, Gina is investigating the death of Holly Smart who is found dead whilst being a bridesmaid at her friend’s wedding. Holly was a woman who everyone talked about. Being smart and beautiful, everyone wanted to be like her and all the men wanted to be with her, but who would want to kill her?

Gina is a great character, and it was great to be back with her. As usual, she is trying to juggle work and home life, and I have to admit after 6 books of watching her relationship with her daughter, Hannah, I’ve finally decided that I don’t like Hannah!! I can completely understand that Hannah wants her daughter to have a good relationship with her grandmother, but she really does come across as an ungrateful and stroppy teenager!! I really cannot understand how she doesn’t get Gina’s job, and begrudges her actions every time she gets called out onto a case. I really feel for Gina having to deal with Hannah’s behaviour, especially in the middle of the kind of cases that Gina has to investigate.

As usual, this story starts right into the action with the death of Holly Smart at her friend’s wedding. With her usual team, Gina is left spinning around in circles trying to work out who would have murdered Holly and if another murder may be on the cards. The storyline is fast paced and full of suspense, giving you plenty of characters to suspect. The plot takes you down so many dead ends with lots of false clues and red herrings leaving you just as puzzled as Gina is.

This latest book has definitely taken a darker turn than what we have in previous stories, and I loved the new chilling storyline. Gina still remains a firm favourite in my world of female detectives, and I still continue to wish for a happy ending for her. If you’re looking for a suspense filled murder story that will get you thinking about who is involved and why, then you’ve definitely come to the right place! Would definitely recommend!

I was given this book by NetGalley for an honest review -
Holly is a bridesmaid in her friends wedding - - - - and then she is murdered----- then another bridesmaid is murdered -- - who is murdering the bridesmaids and why?
A crime thriller with twists and turns to a shocking ending!!

A police procedural into the death of a bridesmaid in a post wedding party. There are quite a lot of characters some unnecessary and the investigation keeps going in circles and the conclusion is somewhat rushed. The final twist was good. Would be better with less number of pages. 3.5 stars

I found this book to be fast paced and engaging. There are a lot of characters and suspect and the story is told from several points of view. Holly Long is murdered at her best friends wedding but has a lot of secrets. DI Gina Harte has a complicated life too with her daughter and on / off relationship with her boss.

This was a good engaging read with an ending that I didn't see coming!

Gina Harte is back! I really do love this series, having read them all and they just keep getting better. This is book 6 and to really get the most out of it you should read these ones in order. Gina is character like no other and you really need to understand her past to understand her.

Her Last Mistake was another addictive read that I powered through. It is twisty and surprising, especially with the big reveal. I did not see that coming.

Gina is called back from leave, much to the disgust of her daughter Hannah, who she is meant to be spending time with. Given no choice, Gina and her team are set to work to find the killer of a bridesmaid at her best friends wedding. Holly is murdered in her hotel room at the reception. As they look into the woman’s life closer they realise that any number of people could have wanted her dead to keep their secrets.

Thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for my advanced copy of this book to read. All opinions are my own and are in no way biased

This was my first book by Carla Kovach, and therefore my first book in the detective Gina Harte series. I feel like this book was well done for not having read the previous, anything mentioned from the past was mostly explained and didn’t leave any big gaping holes in the story line.

This was a very police procedural book, which I wasn’t expecting. Although there were a lot of characters on the police force as well as suspects and people involved in the case, it was relatively easy to keep track of Gina and her team. From chapter 1 to then end of the book is only about a weeks time so it is fast paced and keeps you interested.

I really thought I had this one figured out from the start and thought the killer had to be who I thought unless they made it someone else for unknown reasons. I was wrong at who done it, and honestly who was guilty, in my mind, was stupid. It was completely random and came out of nowhere, and I didn’t like that. I don’t like a predictable plot, but this turn was almost too much and too random for me that it’s very hard to think possible.

Overall well written and it would be interesting to get Ginas whole story by reading the other books.

I have not read the previous books in this series but this was easy enough to follow. The parts that alluded to Gina's life were not of great interest since I had not read the previous books- having said that i did not care for Hannah much at all! She is annoying and I actually felt bad for Gina to have a daughter like her. I understand part of it may be due to how much Gina focused on her work and that made Hannah feel ignored but still, she is just too much of a teenager and less like a mom herself.
About the plot it is very engrossing and keeps you turning the pages. There are so many potential suspects that you feel like you are part of the mystery and you want to solve it. The writing is easy to read and engaging. the twist in the end was surprising but i was not a 100% convinced about it. This is a procedural thriller so if you like that category this is worth a read.

Really enjoyed every book by this order!! Brilliant story, this author brings characters alive. More please!!