First half was great and really engaging. The second half fell flat for me. Still a quick, page-turning read

I've always loved Laura Dave's writing and this felt like such an interesting departure for her! Great suspense but not what I would classify a "thriller".

Well written and wonderful on audio.

This book was terrific. It kept me on the edge of my seat and guessing the whole time. I love thrillers like this that go a little bit more into characters.

Pretty sure this book is nothing like I’ve read before. Very interesting and keeps you wanting more.

This novel just was not for me. It was entertaining, I will give you that, but it honestly had way too many things that went unanswered. There were too many coincidences, and honestly it just was not exciting. I kept waiting for a big reveal or a big drop, but it never happened. What a missed opportunity.

This is the very first book that I have read by this author, but she pens a great mystery. The main character has her beloved husband to disappear, not answering his phone and not showing up at work or at her art gallery. He leaves behind his snarky teenage daughter, who appears to hate the stepmother.
This is mainly a mystery with a woman looking for clues of her husband's past life, but is also a love story. A REAL love story, not a puppy love, bachelorette, swoony type story but one of enduring love of a couple and a growing love and respect between the protagonist and her teenage stepdaughter.
I highly recommend this book and I hope to read more from this author.

Many thanks to Netgalley.com for the advanced digital copy of The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave in return for my honest review.

I had been in a bit of a reading slump until I found The Last Thing He Told Me. It was the perfect book at the perfect time! I love when that happens. This mystery kept me engaged from page one. I was fully invested in the characters and the story. There are many deceptions and secrets uncovered in this novel, but there is also sincere, genuine, authentic love of family. The story takes a somewhat unrealistic turn in the second half, but I went along willingly because it is simply that good and the pacing kept the pages turning. This was a great escapist read, one I highly recommend. 4.5 stars.

Fast paced and thoroughly entertaining. What I particularly liked was that at its core, this is a love story between a father and his daughter

QUICK TAKE: Found this to be a very solid, SOLID thriller. Nothing too outside-the-box or revolutionary, but it made for an enjoyable Saturday afternoon and I thought LD did a nice job building the relationship and character arcs of the MC and her step-daughter.

I'm a huge fan of Dave's, however, this story was a bit of a departure from her standard genre. There was a lot that I didn't really like about this though.
-The whole backstory was a little unexpected but not entirely plausible.
-The relationship between Hannah and Bailey, while great that they finally bonded, was quite unlikely with how picture perfect it ended up.
-The ending was just the unlikely cherry on top of the whole story.

Thank you to NetGalley, Laura Dave and Simon and Schuster for an early copy of this book, for my honest review.

I truly expected to really like this read, but I struggled getting through the book and enjoying it I did feel that the author put a different spin on stepdaughters and step mothers; but something just kind of felt repetitive even while they were both looking for the same person.

I never did come across any big twist, and was truly hoping for one.

First off, great title and cover. I really enjoyed both settings, Sausalito CA and Austin TX as well as the main character Hannah. Sometimes time flashbacks are not productive or useful, but here we learn not only about Hannah's upbringing and her wonderful relationship with her grandfather but also how her and Owen's courtship began and how it affected Owen's teenage daughter Bailey.

For folks wanting lots of twists, turns and shocks, this may not be the book for you. Instead Dave spends more time on character development and the relationships between them. Without this growth, her plot wouldn't work and we wouldn't get this good whodunit or maybe a 'whydunit". In addition, if you like audiobooks, the narrator Rebecca Lowman does a great job and portrays the right amount of emotion and inflection.

As a fellow Rice alum, I really appreciated the shout-out:

"Yeah, crazy story behind it,” he says. “If you look at it from certain angles it looks like an owl. Exactly like an owl. Might be hard to see from here but it’s wild if you can make it out . . .” I open my window and take in the Frost Building—the tiers on top, like ears, the two windows that look like eyes. There is definitel an owl similarity.

"This is a UT town, but the architects all went to Rice University and the owl is Rice University’s mascot. So that’s like a f-you to our mascot and to the Longhorns in general,” he says. “And I mean, some people say it’s just a conspiracy theory, but look at it. The building looks like an owl! How can that be an accident?”

3.5/5

4.5 Stars for me. A great suspense story – we follow Hannah as she tries to piece together why her husband suddenly disappeared, leaving a cryptic note (“Protect her”) and a large amount of cash in his daughter’s school locker.

I went into this book not knowing much about it, and there were many surprises along the way. I liked how the narrative unfolds - as Hannah investigates and tries to find Owen, she has memories of their life together, but she beings to see them in a different light. The story is well-paced and plotted, and the chapters fly by. I also enjoyed how as Hannah is trying to find her husband, she is also navigating her relationship with his sixteen-year old daughter. The investigation into the disappearance and the navigation of her relationship blend well in the story.

Perhaps more of a 4/4.5 stars. I’m really rounding up for the story’s ability to hook me in. I started this book midday, ignored any responsibilities for the day, and spent the day reading as quickly as I could. The story pulled me in early on, I felt compelled to figure out the mystery with the protagonist, and I loved the unlikely duo of daughter and new stepmother. This is an elevated vacation read, and I think fans of Megan Miranda would enjoy. The narration style unfolds the story for the characters at the same time as the reader, and I thought the moment-to-moment storytelling worked really well here. Totally enjoyed. It’s a quick read: block off your day and have fun! Thanks to NetGalley!

I was weary of reading this one because the plot doesn't sound like something I'd normally be interested in - and I was right.

I'm a big mystery lover but murder mystery is much more my fortay. Whenever it comes to espionage/crime/money/ect my brain kind of can't keep up. I get confused. I get a little bored. And I think that was my problem with this one. While it read like a usual thriller it was a little too heavy on crimey bits that kind of flew over my head and I had a hard time feeling very invested.

It was a good story! Just not for me.

Captivating! This is the best word I can come up with to describe this novel. I could not put down this read. The storyline held my attention the entire time, and I felt myself trying to decode every little detail. I kept having to remind myself to breathe while I awaited to find out what happened next. I loved the story line between Hannah and Bailey and the fierce bond they ended up sharing. It’s a must read and I can’t wait to read another by Laura Dave!

This would be translated into an AWESOME movie! I was sucked in from the very beginning. Towards the middle, it started to get a little unbelievable, which I think seeing it on screen would help with that suspension of disbelief. The ending was so fitting for the book. This is the type of summer thriller that I just devour!!

I expected more thrills in this book, but unfortunately I was just a bit bored with the story. I jumped into reading, thinking it would be a fast-paced story that would keep me guessing and eagerly moving through to uncover the hidden truths. However, as the story progressed, I felt like I was trudging through. I caught myself thinking, "Well, I have already gotten through this much, I might as well keep reading to find out what happens."
The characters did not intrigue me, and the story of the missing husband & his wife and daughter that were left behind felt slow. Turns out he had complications involving his job and a tricky past, but for some reason that was not compelling me to want to read quickly to learn more.

A wife is wondering where the hell her husband is, and it seems as if he's turned up missing. I feel like this book is very lifelike and something like this could have been ripped from the headlines. I enjoyed it. It's fast-paced, but not like a thriller. More of a mystery and you want to know what in the world is going on.

4/5 Stars

Although this book had a slow start, I thought once it got going it really flew and I didn’t want to put it down. I really enjoyed the characters in this novel and the plot took me in directions that I didn’t expect. I’ve already recommended it on my personal social media!