My first CL Taylor book! This book had me hooked from the outset and deserves every good review given to it! I thoroughly enjoyed reading his and was really disappointed that it had to end!

Fran’s sister Jenna has gone missing (and presumed dead) after she attended a retreat in Gozo run by Tom Wade and his wife Kate. Never having been that close to Jenna due to the age gap and family circumstances and pressure from her overbearing mother, Fran decides to sign up for the next retreat to investigate what happened as she feels something untoward went on. The story is told from Kate, Jenna and Fran’s perspective and hovers between past and present.

Great writing and character building from the author. Also, there is a big twist at the end of this so be prepared!
Thanks to NetGalley & Avon Books UK for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I spent most of this booking thinking I had the whole thing figured out and that it was so predictable and obvious, but I was completely wrong and now I am laughing at myself. The last 20% to 30% of the book is chock-full of explosive surprises that I didn't see coming! I would describe this thriller as a slow burn. There was definitely mystery and suspense throughout the book but the end had me glued to the page.

This was my first C.L. Taylor book but it definitely won’t be my last. If you have never read any of her books my only advice would be to read the whole thing through, don’t give up on it because you think you have it all figured out. It took me a little while to get into this one but the end is so good it completely makes up for it. With my next C.L. Taylor book, I will dive into it with a fresh mind knowing that she has all kinds of tricks up her sleeve.

3.5 stars

Tom Wade, the public face of SoulShrink is about to be released from prison after serving two years following tragedies at his last retreat in Gozo. His wife Kate is waiting for him, anxious to reboot SoulShrink and get their lives back on track. Fran, an ICT teacher watches proceedings carefully as her younger sister Jenna disappeared from the Gozo retreat. When Tom and Kate offer another retreat in Wales, Fran attends to try to find out what happened to Jenna. The story is told from two years ago and now and from Kate/Fran and Jenna’s points of view.

This is a ‘game of two halves’. I like the first half of the book which looks at the dynamics of several relationships especially Tom and Kate. You can see how brittle and strained things are between them which is heightened after Tom's prison release. Fran and Jenna’s relationship is interesting as is their dynamics with their absolute harridan of a mother and you appreciate their struggles to cope. The characterisation is one of the best elements of the book as you try to work out each of them. Is Tom a fraud, a player or genuine? Is Kate controlling, manipulative, domineering and jealous or is she used? Fran struggles so much but as you grow to understand her you realise why she is so socially awkward and a boiling cauldron of anger and regrets inside and of them all, she is the one I grew to like. I appreciate her sense of humour too. It takes a while to get to understand Jenna, her confusion and reasons for her issues. The pace in the first half is good and a number of unsettling events occur, there’s a lot of suspicion in the Welsh retreat and a good puzzle to unlock.

Unfortunately, I don’t think the second half is as good. The retreat events become rather longwinded and overlong and so it gets a bit dull. There are a lot of characters to get your head around too and some of them change their names which gets confusing. It’s the end though that I have the biggest problem with as it just doesn’t work for me. As the ‘string puller’ is revealed the motivation seems spurious and it feels implausible.

Overall, it’s a pity the book tails off as I was enjoying the first half and I usually really like this authors books but I don’t think this one is up there with her best.

With thanks to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for the arc for an honest review.

I love CL Taylor - her novels never fail to grip me, and Her Last Holiday was another great read!

I must note though that it took me a good 30% of the book to learn who was who though, as several characters have two names (one in the past and one in the present), and the main character shares her false ‘current’ name with her mother, making things quite confusing at times!

However once I got into the book and learned the characters, the book drew me in properly. It’s worth persevering with the first quarter or so, as it’s an enjoyable escapist read**

Set both in modern day wet wintery Wales and 3 years earlier in Gozo in healing retreats, it was the perfect antidote to ‘retreat’ into away from the news etc (from wet wintery Wales however!) which dominates our lives so much at the moment. It has a great mix of goodies, baddies, and downright odd people - and some who will take you by surprise. I couldn’t put it down in the second half of the book!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

**Read the first quarter in one go if you can for the continuity!

Jenna went missing, presumed dead after a spiritual retreat three years ago. The organiser has been in prison during this time and is released to find his wife is ready to start their retreats again, while Tom is not particularly excited to return after the horror of his last retreat they start again.

Fran is Jenna’s sister, bullied by her mother to find out the truth she is enrolled on the next retreat. Completely out of her comfort zone she is determined to find the truth.

Quite slow paced, but very good writing.

This was a good thriller, twists that I didn’t see coming but it lacked a bit of excitement.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Fran's sister Jenna disappeared during a Soul Shrink wellness retreat two years ago. Two people were killed during an accident during that retreat and the man behind it, Tom Wade, was just released from prison. In order to discover what happened to her sister, Fran goes on Tom's Soul Shrink retreat. Now she is with Tom, his wife, and people that knew her sister. Will Fran find out what happened to Jenna?

I enjoyed this mystery and the characters in it! It's filled with unexpected twists and turns. Will definitely recommend it. Thank you, NetGalley.

I received an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review

This one was really enjoyable. A wide range of realistic, complicated characters with well-motivated actions and plot-turns. Twists are unexpected without being unbelievable. A solid thriller

When I first picked up C.L. Taylor’s Her Last Holiday, having read advance publicity material, I expected an Agatha-Christie-style ‘whodunnit’ where a group of people are cooped up together in enclosed surroundings until suspects are gradually eliminated one by one by the detective and the eagle-eyed reader. C.L. Taylor’s latest offering, however, expands this literary trope by providing a fresh, contemporary insight into the growing ‘self-help retreat’ industry and the lengths of sisterly loyalty.
School teacher Fran is desperate to find out what happened to her younger sister Jenna who disappeared during a self-help workshop on the Maltese island of Gozo run by the charismatic Tom Wade and his ruthlessly wife Kate. Although Tom has been forced to endure a prison sentence for the manslaughter of two other workshop participants, Kate is ruthlessly determined to re-launch his ‘soul shrink’ brand when he is released, and the couple organise a similar workshop in Cumbria that Fran books under an assumed name.
Initially I found the broken timeline and the many spotlights on ancillary characters difficult, as there are so many diversions from Fran’s search to take notice of. Eventually, though, Fran’s strategy crystallised, the deeply buried family secrets her parents have guarded emerged, and the motives of some of the family workshop participants became clearer, and as a result I enjoyed reading the novel more. I also liked seeing how the resourceful, determined Fran meets her match in an undercover journalist keen to discover her own narrative, and witnessing how the deeply flawed, unlikeable character of Kate was always several steps behind them with her suspicions. The ending of the novel is not only completely unexpected but also deeply satisfying, something that is rare in novels of this genre. I am sure that fans of C.L. Taylor’s previous novels will read this stand-alone tome anyway, but I hope Her Last Holiday will also garner her many new readers. Warmly recommended, and with my thanks to the publishers and to NetGalley for the ARC provided in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

This was my first C L Taylor and it. certainly wont be my last.

I enjoyed the set up and found the twists to a degree were really good, there were a few things I didn't see coming. However I did feel that there were maybe too many twists which maybe made this feel a little unbelievable? Also I didnt believe the ending one bit ... too many unanswered questions!

This was an easy read and kept me wanting to read till the end. It’s also keeps you guessing up until the end you find out what happens to Jenna. Would recommend this to anyone

I always look forward to reading a book C.L Taylor. So, when I received a copy Her Last holiday, I couldn’t wait to get stuck in.
Jenna goes on a Wellness retreat in Gozo, with inspirational speaker Tom Wade who own Soulshrink. When things go wrong, and Jenna disappears over a cliff, suspected suicide. They never found her body.
Two years later after Tom wade has left prison after being incarcerated for the crimes that day. His wife Kate has tried to reclaim some of Soulshrink’s business back and improves it and stages another retreat. Jenna’s mother has persuaded sister Fran to attend this retreat to find out answers about her sister death. But things don’t always go as planned and things start to go wrong there too, and she finds out more about her sister than she bargained for.
Her last holiday is professionally written story told in several points of view, past and present between Jenna and Fran and Kate. I liked the storyline but, I found none of the characters in this book were likeable and I found this book hard to get into with all the different characters, to be honest only the last third of the book really got my attention. Three stars from me.

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for this arc.

I absolutely adored The Lie by CL Taylor. She writes such pacy reads that have you hooked with chapters that end on cliffhangers and leave you gasping. Her Last Holiday is not different.
This follows three women across a Now and Then timeline. Now follows:
* Fran - 51-years old, an ICT teacher. Her younger sister disappeared on a retreat in Malta three years old. Her death was ruled as suicide, even though her body was never found. Fran has a strained relationship with her mother who bullies Fran into going to a retreat in Wales held by Tom Wade, who was released from prison 9 months after. It was on Tom’s retreat Jenna, her sister, was last seen before she disappeared...And it’s there that Fran will get answers.
* Kate - Tom’s wife. She organises everything - the architect behind Tom’s success - and she’s determined that the retreat will be success after her husband’s release. No-one will get in her way...
* Then - Jenna - 37-year old Jenna is going on a retreat to Malta. She has answers she’s seeking, and it’s not long before her quest for healing turns into something more unexpectedly passionate as she falls for Tom. But someone isn’t happy...And is falling Jenna. Leaving her life-threatening warnings...
The narratives combine nicely. I was on the edge of my seat constantly. The characters are fleshed out and your impressions of the characters change constantly throughout the story. I did think, however, that the last 20% had far too many far-fetched twists and the ending wasn’t as satisfying. But on the whole this is truly, a gripping read about family regrets and secrets, creepy retreats, and the bond between sisters. 4/5.

The story has more twists and turns than a small country road.. I liked the pace of the writing as it left little time to rest. Nobody knows who to trust, including the reader. However I think it over stretched itself in places. It's a well paced read even though I wasn't in love with the ending.

I am a huge C. L. Taylor so receiving an ARC of Her Last Holiday was a so exciting.

In typical fashion Taylor writes a gripping tale with so many twists. This plot driven storyline along with fantastic characters made for an exhilarating read.

This was a race to the finish line I'm always gripped by C.L. Taylor's books and this one was no different, you get so invested in the story that you say just one more chapter and before you know it you've finished and it's 3am! 🤣

An intriguing story of troubled souls seeking relief in retreats with tragic consequences.

Full of suspense, suspicion, lies, tragedy, I raced though and enjoyed the twists and turns along the way!

I have absolutely loved reading this book and found myself racing through the pages to find out what would happen next!

Two years ago, Fran’s sister Jenna disappeared on a Soul Shrink wellness retreat in Gozo. The now infamous man behind the retreats, Tom Wade, has just been released from prison after serving his sentence for the deaths of two people. However, he has never spoken about what happened to the third suspected victim Jenna.

In a bid to uncover the truth, Fran books herself onto his upcoming retreat in Wales; the first since his release. She is determined to uncover the truth and speak to the man who might hold the key to her sister’s disappearance. But will she escape the retreat alive? Or is there someone who is desperate for Jenna’s secrets to stay hidden?

I really liked the ‘now’ and ‘then’ dual storyline in this book. The ‘then’ chapters were from the perspective of Jenna giving insight into the retreat in Gozo and her thoughts and feelings during this time. The ‘now’ chapters were from the perspective of Fran (Jenna’s sister) and Kate (Tom’s wife). These alternating narratives made this a really gripping read and I loved how there were so many hidden secrets which were slowly revealed across the course of the story.

The descriptions were so beautifully detailed throughout meaning I could really picture both the Gozo and Wales retreats. I also really liked the depth and mystery surrounding the characters and found the two things combined made for a really immersive reading experience.

I particularly loved the layers of suspense and the fantastic twists and turns along the way. When certain truths were revealed I was left speechless! I also really liked the final three chapters. They were the perfect ending to an incredible book and I didn’t see them coming at all! I honestly cannot recommend this book enough!

My thanks to NetGalley and Avon books for a copy of “ Her Last Holiday “ for an honest review .

Another enjoyable read from C L Taylor that kept you guessing right up to the end..If I’m honest i didn’t like this as much as her previous books , but that’s only because they were so good. This book took me longer to get into, and I struggled a little with the name changes but I will definitely be recommending this as a perfect summer read..

DID NOT FINISH

I got to the 60% point of this book and can no longer waste my time on this book. The people are ridiculous, the entire book is ridiculous. Why would a mother send her other daughter, actually why would said daughter agree, to go to a retreat where her sister Jenna was possibly murdered?????

The dangerous rafting experience was something no upstanding retreat would ever engage in with inexperienced people. They don't even know if these people can swim.

The sessions led by Tom are ridiculous, he plays at being a psychologist while being an untrained lay person who just got out of prison.

The detailed description of the mutilated bird on the patio and the ensuing throwing of stones at a passing cat was awful.

The writing is terrible, it flip flops all over the place and there is so much detailed chatter it's driving me bonkers.

I really have to get back to reading only thriller writers that I know I like. There are just too many out there that are just poorly written and it drives me crazy.

THANK YOU

I’ve always loved CL Taylor’s books and this was no exception on the whole but I did feel elements of it were a little far fetched at times and I didn’t feel as gripped as I normally do by her novels. That being said it was well written as always and I enjoyed the different POVs and the timeline jump throughout the book. I was going to give it a 3.5 but the more I think about it the more I realise I did enjoy it a lot so feel a 4 is fairest. Thanks to Netgalley, the author and Avon for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I”ve read other books by C.L. Taylor and “Her last holiday” didn’t disappointed me. In my opinion this is one of her best books, with deep and believable characters that make the reader care about them. The story is engaging and updated as we have so many real life “gurus” claiming they can fix all kinds of problems, I liked try way the story unfolds and especially how Fran overcomes her fears and reunites with her sister. I highly recommend this book.