What a fun, suspenseful read. A crime novel that jumps back and forth between the present, where NYU student Matt Pine is trying to understand the deaths (murder?) of his family, and the past, where Danny Pine is accused of the brutal murder of his girlfriend. This is suspenseful and well-crafted story keeps you guessing, both about the deaths of the Pines in Mexico and who really killed Danny's girlfriend Charlotte.

Every Last Fear is a thriller. If you like true crime documentaries this is a perfect book for you. Alex Finlay writes this psychological story in fascinating details. I highly recommend this book.

Overall, I enjoyed the story and how it went along. The way the characters' emotions were written and shown really captured the story. It kept me on the edge of my seat. The perspectives were a bit much to keep up with but well written!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this book in exchange for an honest review!

I loved the unique way the book was formatted, two times lines and the author beautifully crafting this story through multiple points of view. After reading this one, I needed some time to digest the story. I always enjoy books that really make you think about what you just read. This one was no exception.

The story unearths various emotions, and I wasn't sure how to feel about certain characters based on the decisions they made. It also made me think about how little we know as visitors to foreign lands. We only see a snapshot of a place, but don't ever truly know what goes on beneath the surface and what happens on a daily basis.

The vivid descriptions of the characters' emotions were a treat to read and there are a lot of different feelings running through this book and all of the characters are well described and I just had to sit and read it until the last page. This book was like reading a psychological suspense novel, which I am certain it is. The end was not what I was expecting, then again that’s probably what the writer had intended.

This book was a real page turner, and I am so glad I read it. The suspense kept me on the edge of my seat, and I will put this author on my read again list. The writing captured my attention from the first page to the last.

Thrillers don’t get better than Every Last Fear. This intense, tightly plotted, multilayered mystery pulls the reader in from the opening pages and just doesn’t let go!

Matt Pine, a student at NYU, finds himself back in the spotlight he has avoided after the bodies of his father, mother, younger sister and brother are found in a vacation rental in Tulum, Mexico. Seven years earlier, Danny, Matt’s older brother and a high school football star, had been convicted of the murder of his girlfriend Charlotte. That conviction, after a flawed investigation and trial, led to a popular documentary questioning his guilt. Matt’s father Evan and sister Maggie have been relentless in their quest to prove Danny’s innocence. His mother Olivia has concentrated on raising Tommy, the youngest child. Matt had felt isolated from his family but is now pulled back into their lives as he tries to understand their deaths and whether there is a link to Danny’s case.

Every Last Fear is told in the voices of Matt, his parents, sister and the FBI agent in charge of the case. Alex Finlay skillfully and slowly alternates between the past and the present until they collide in a shocking and surprising conclusion. Part domestic thriller, part mystery and part love story, Every Last Fear is a cracking, compulsively readable sure to be best seller. 5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, St.Martin's Press and Alex Finlay for this ARC.

A brilliant, keep you on the edge of you seat the entire time, type of book. I am very judgmental of thrillers-I want to be kept guessing and intrigued throughout the story. Alex Finlay did exactly that. This book caught my attention on the first page and held it until the last. I love the Pine family and their loyalty to one another. What an amazing read!

Loved the premise and definitely had the potential to be a four or five star rating but all the derogatory and facial undertones really ruined it. I can't believe how overlooked this problematic language and understandings in this book are. I had to dnf. We need to pay more attention, be more considerate, accurate and be held more accountable.
Thank you netgalley for the arc

Four members of the Pine family are found dead in Mexico. The other two members of the family are Matt, an NYU student who is running from an infamous documentary on Netflix, and Danny, the subject of said documentary.

Danny is in prison, convicted of murdering his high school girlfriend. Evan (the father) and Maggie (the sister) are constantly working to prove Danny's innocence - which leads then to a last minute trip to Mexico. Matt is the one who has to pick up all the pieces, and find out what happened to his family.

I don't think that what I wrote above is even 1% of this story. This thriller is a THRILLER. It's so fast paced - all taking place in about a week's time - with flashbacks to the past. This is about conspiracies, grief, wrongful conviction, murder, politics, the FBI, international politics.....and 1 million other things.

Ugh, it's just SO GOOD.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I received this book free of charge from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

It’s been awhile since I came across a book I couldn’t put down, but this was one of them. I read the bulk of this in one sitting. Gripping storyline, a strong cast of characters, and a twist at the end that I didn’t see coming.

Fantastic read. Definitely will recommend this to others.

I received an ARC of Every Last Fear in exchange for an honest review. This was a psychological thriller that kept my attention from the beginning to the end. If you are looking for a thriller that is easy to read this book is a good choice. All but two members of the Pine family are found dead in a hotel in Mexico. Two of the sons were not on the trip, Matt who was in college and Danny, who is in prison, for a murder he didn't commit. The Pine family is trying to prove Danny's innocence and travel to Mexico to follow up on a lead. The story is told from several family member's POV as Matt must try to find out what is really going on.

See my full review on netgalley.com. Loved this book.

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book for my honest opinion.

It’s the beginning of a new year and I was in a terrible reading slump. Nothing could really keep my attention, until I picked up this book! I’d heard lots about this book and was so excited to get an early copy to review!
Matt Pine’s family has been through a lot. His older brother is in jail for a gruesome murder. While away at college, Matt learns that the rest of his family has died while on a trip to Mexico. Convinced this wasn’t a freak accident, Matt sets out to find the truth about what happened and along the way he begins to wonder if his brother is in jail for a crime he didn’t commit.
This book had lots of twists and turns I didn’t see coming, and I needed to keep reading to find out what was going to happen! I love mysteries and thrillers and I’m excited to see what Alex Finlay writes next!
Thank you #netgalley and #stmartinspress for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books & Alex Finlay for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Here's the thing - it's 2021. You would think that all parties involved here would be better at catching the racist & derogatory undertones presented throughout this book. "Every Last Fear" has portions that take place in Mexico - having said that, there are a hundred different ways to refer to the country & its citizens other than simply "the Mexicans" (which is repeated over and over and over throughout). This is only one small example - nothing about these portions of the book sat right with me & I find it sincerely unfortunate that other white reviewers aren't calling this out.

There are nearly 4 & 5 star reviews across the board, but having done a little digging myself it seems that this is a problem with many BIPOC reviewers, particularly those of Mexican descent. One of the most unfortunate things about this is that I was thoroughly enjoying the book until this point - had these racial & derogatory undertones not been present, this would've easily been a 4 or 5 star book for me, as well.

I've got to be completely honest, I don't know if I'll be checking out any more of this author's work unless he makes a statement regarding his choices to go this particular direction for his debut. Again, I'm thankful for the opportunity to read & review this book early, but I just can't in good conscience give this a positive rating and/or promote this on my Instagram given its problematic choices.

I was so surprised at how much I loved this book. I am increasingly picky about thrillers, and have been disappointed by so many in this genre. But books like this make me keep reading the genre, because every once in a while one really shines. I loved the fact that I felt like I really knew and understood all of the characters, and the setting was utilized effectively. This was such a great read and one I will be recommending for sure to fans of the genre.

This book received a lot of hype and is the author’s debut novel under his own name. My review of the book is not as glowing as several other reviewers. I found the book predictable (didn’t take all that long to determine who done it) and borderline boring at times. Some of the characters bordered on the limits of believability and the constant jumping around with chapters devoted to different characters and out of sequence at times was distracting. Not a bad attempt for a debut author, but future works will need to improve in order for me to consider reading them.

I received a free Kindle copy of this book courtesy of Net Galley and the publisher with the understanding that I would post a review on Net Galley, Goodreads, Amazon and my nonfiction book review blog. I also posted it to my Facebook page.

We may only be in February of the new year, but I can already tell you that this will probably be my favorite mystery/thriller of the year. Those are bold words to make when this year has so many promising reads, but this book was incredibly addictive and mostly well-executed.

We begin with the tragic death of four members of the Pines family, who have been scrutinized by the general public due to a documentary based on their son brutally murdering his girlfriend. This book then alternates between dual timelines. The present focusing on characters recovering and researching the death of the Pines family and the past as we follow the Pines family attempting to prove their sons innocence.

Every Last Fear features a LARGE cast of characters, but mostly introduces them in a really accessible way. Each perspective feels largely distinct and interesting from other characters. Most characters chapters end in a build-up or cliffhanger, which caused me to be engaged in their next chapter. The pacing of this book was fast and it is very easy to lose time as each of the characters discovers something new.

My main problem with Every Last Fear was that, while many of the characters were interesting and engaging, there were so many perspectives that we were following. I believe in the course of the book, we viewed at least six characters perspectives, most involving their own plots and discoveries, and the occasional transitional excerpt from A Violent Nature, the documentary of their son's alleged crime. The multiple perspectives would have been fine for me, but it did leave some storylines feeling slightly underdeveloped and like we were waiting for characters to catch up with each other's knowledge.

This book couldn't have been easy to write! I think many authors would have struggled and fallen under the weight with how ambitious this book is. Every Last Fear is fast when it needs to be, but also allows its characters to breathe and process the world. I can't wait to see how Alex Finlay grows and evolves with his writing!

This was a tough novel to review because in it I saw the potential to be a mystery/thriller that is both unique and timely. Unfortunately it is neither of those things. The caveat to my critique is that I did find Alex Finlay's "Every Last Fear" to be a fun and entertaining read! The timeliness of the novel was tied to the story's plot that is centered on the fall-out from a Netflix crime documentary (think "Making a Murderer"). As an avid fan of this genre, I was genuinely excited when the novel set-up a plot that was based on a young man who was (possibly) wrongly convicted of murder and is the subject of a hugely popular crime documentary. The problem lies in the fact that as the plot unfolds, it becomes more and more and more unbelievable. I'm always one to give an author creative license and suspension of disbelief but this novel had me scratching my head and questioning whether the actions of certain characters were even remotely plausible.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#everylastfear
#alexfinlay
#suspense
#psychologicalthriller
#murdermystery
There is so much I want to tell you but I'm afraid to spoil too much. After most of Matt's, NYU student, family has been found dead in Mexico, it's a race to find out what killed them.
This book is told from so many POV's. And I LOVE it! Matt, mom, dad, sister and the FBI agent. All told in 3rd person but you still get everyone's thoughts and feelings. Many parts are told from before the family's deaths. Thankfully, none of it is confusing. There are titles on each chapter spelling out who and when.
The story is very well told. Lots of pop culture references. Some terms are used that I have never heard of but are fully explained within the context of the story. Great relationships. A bunch of twists and turns. And an ending all tied up in a perfect knot with an epilogue that allows us to see a possible continuation of the life of the FBI agent.

Thank you to #NetGalley, #StMartinsPress and #MinotaurBooks for the free book in return for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.

#bookstagram #booknerds #bookworm #booklover #bookdragon #readalot #ilovereading #inkdrinker #librarymouse #booknerdbookreviews #bookaddict #bookaholic #bookrecommendation #bookreview #booknerdigan #bookish

Matt Pine is playing chess with a homeless guy doing the 'walk of shame' at 7 AM back to his dorm at NYU. Well, already I like Matt. Unfortunately for Matt, however, a documentary was made when his older brother was convicted of murder. The rest of Matt's family, mom, dad, sister, and little brother's lives are also upended by this, but not for long. That's because something even more terrible happens. It's lucky for Matt he has some good friends at school, an FBI agent, and an aunt to help him live with his grief. This one just sucks you in because like I said, Matt seems like a quality person and you even really like the FBI agent assigned to his case. There's a point in the story you reach where you just can't put the book down. Not being from the midwest, I even learned what a Runza is! Go ahead, look it up!

Wowza! I could not get enough of this story. Finlay did such a great job of weaving this mystery together and making the reader doubt things about what we knew! Such a great read.