This was a great book.

It was an unpredictable thriller in a health retreat setting. I enjoyed the multiple POV's from different characters, some likeable and some not so much.

I got through this book quite quickly, I couldn't put it down.

I definitely recommend this one to those who are fans of psychological thrillers.

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this ebook via Netgalley

‘Her Last Holiday’ -C.L Taylor
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️- 4.5 stars
“You come to Soul Shrink to heal. You don’t expect to die.”

Shrouded in mystery, a young girl’s apparent suicide in picturesque Gozo causes irreparable wounds to her family: older sister Fran (under considerable duress from her emotionally devoid mother) agrees to visit Tom and Kate’s wellness retreat ‘Soul Shrink’- where her sister had met her demise three years prior.

This time the location is different (set in Wales) but the deceit, corruption and manipulation is ever prevalent... seeping it’s way into the visitors, grasping hold of their sense of logic and rationality, refusing to let go.

Will Fran get the answers she so longingly desires? Someone must know the truth behind what happened to Jenna?

Superb, tantalisingly tense writing by C.L Taylor- told predominantly through three female characters within two contrasting time frames- ‘then’ and ‘now’. You’ll never see it coming...

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon books UK for the opportunity to receive this psychological-thriller ARC.

I am a real fan of the works of CL Taylor. Her last Holiday was good, but it wasn’t my favourite. Fran is closed, Fran has few friends, Fran finds her own company preferable. She’s spent her whole life trying to get out of her cloying house to do her own thing. Even if that means she doesn’t have the closest relationship with her baby sister Jenna, 12 years younger than her.

Now Jenna is dead. The ruling is that Jenna committed suicide while attending the all popular SoulShrink retreats led by the charismatic Tom who is well known in his cult like following, to change everyone’s unhappy lives. While Tom may be the face, it is Kate who is the woman behind all of the retreats successes.

Flipping between past and present we find out the events of that retreat from Jenna’s point of view, flipping to the present we have Fran who is guilted by her Mother to go to the newest retreat to try and learn more about how Jenna died and we have Kate in both the past on that last fateful retreat and the new one three years later.

With a cast of characters to build suspense and motive, how far is someone willing to go to find out what happened that last day anyone saw Jenna alive.

Interesting premise I just had a hard time staying with it. But I did see it through. It will appeal to a lot of readers. Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for my ARC.

This is the first book I have read by this author and it held my attention immensely. I thought I had everything figured out, but then I was proven wrong...twice! I was definitely anxious to get to the end to see who did what to whom and why. Right to the last page, it did not diappoint!

I am a huge fan of C L Taylor’s novels and was thrilled to have a chance to read her latest before it was published. The story starts of slow,, but by the end, you will be dying to know who did what. I thought I knew how the story was going, but like all her novels there was a twist you won’t see coming. I look forward to reading her next novel.

Fran goes to Gozo to attempt to find out the circumstances of her sister’s death but who to trust?
Interesting characters and intriguing storyline that I have come to expect from this author. A compelling read

I really like this author so when I saw she had a new book out I had to read it. If you like a good thriller with lots of mystery then you'll love this book.

Frank's sister Henna went missing on a retreat, she's presumed dead but no body has been found. When the man responsible for other deaths at the retreat is released from prison and sets up a brand new retreat, Fran decides to go and find out what happened.

Another brilliant thriller from a great author. I'd highly recommend this.

"You come to Soul Shrink to be healed. You don’t expect to die“
One to play with your head and spin you around- perfect! Fran is on a retreat at her mothers behest. The man running itTom Wade was let out of prison 9 months ago having been convicted of two deaths on one of his retreats in Gozo. At the same time Fran’s sister Jenna went missing, presumed dead. Fran has gone under an assumed name and her mother has insisted that the only way to get to truth is to confront Tom and see his reaction when Jenna is mentioned. On the first night there Fran receives a note addressed to her real name informing her that Jenna didnt commit suicide as the police thought but was murdered. Someone knows her real identity and more about Jenna.
This draws you in and keeps you there. A mystery as well as a thriller. That air of suspense and whodunnit, brilliantly written as ever. My view of whodunnit changed as I went through (and was totally wrong) something I enjoy to keep the grey matter active. A suspenseful read right until the very end. We get alternate chapters from Jenna and Kate (Tom's wife) in the past at Gozo and various other characters in the present. Each chapter is entitled with a name and time frame making this easy to follow. Guru or charlatan, wife or employee, friend or foe? A captivating gripping read to make you challenge everyone in the story.

(rest of links on publication)

What a twisted web C.L. Taylor has spun for us to unweave.

This book is told by 3 narrators focusing on the now and the past (2 years ago) with some overlap.

The book begins nice and slow, introducing us to Kate (the power behind SoulShrink and the wellness retreats) and sisters Jenna and Fran.

Jenna attended a retreat 2 years ago, never to return. Police deemed it a suicide. Her sister Fran is unconvinced and is persuaded by her mom to attend one of the retreats herself to dig and find out the truth about what happened to Jenna.

I really appreciated all the character development and loved how the conflict unfolded in this book.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Collins for the ARC I’m exchange for my honest review.

Her Last Holiday is the latest psychological thriller from brilliant mind of CL Taylor.
An excellently written, character driven story that weaves events from the past and the present together to form the narrative of how Jenna disappeared nearly three years ago and the mysterious events surrounding her disappearance. The police in Gozo were convinced that Jenna committed suicide but her family believes otherwise and now, her elder sister Fran is attending a similar retreat to Jenna and is determined to find the truth. Several of the people from the original retreat are attending with Fran but as the story is narrated by three different women, with opposing points of view, that are plenty of twists to come and some truly exciting revelations. With manipulation and self-preservation at the centre of most actions, this story is a rollercoaster ride from start to finish and Taylor has done a excellent job by creating a twisty narrative to build up the tension and keep the reader on their toes.
In summary: a must read for fans and if you enjoy a well crafted thriller, with tension and twists, this is one for you.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Avon for providing me with an advance copy in return for an honest review.

I'm a big fan of this author and have read all her work to date, so I was grateful to receive an ARC of this book for an honest review. I'll be honest, it wasn't as fast paced as her other works, and it took me a bit of effort to stick with it. But there is mystery from the off and I found Tom and Kate particularly intriguing. A good read overall, and I will always look forward to future releases from this writer.

I really enjoyed this book. Based upon a retreat for people who need to find themselves and move away from their troubled pasts it is less than tranquil when 3 people are dead. One of them is the main characters sister who goes on the next retreat to uncover what really happened to her sister. Good plot, good development of characters and when you think the end is near more keeps on coming. A great read

When Fran’s younger sister, Jenna, disappeared on a retreat it broke an already fractured family even further apart. The retreat leader, Tom, and his wife Kate are trying to rebuild their life after his jail sentence for the death of two other people on the retreat and when they start a new business Fran is posing as a widow to find out what happened to her sister. Told by Fran, Jenna and Kate this is one gripping book!
I really enjoyed this and found myself really hooked by it, thank you to netgalley and the publishers for this arc in exchange for this honest review.

This was the first adult C.L. Taylor book I have read and I am going to read the back catalogue now. A great suspense thriller.

Her Last Holiday follows Fran as she books herself onto a self help retreat run by the man responsible for the dissapearance of her sister 18 months previously. It's filled with great characters and some fab twists. Took a little while to get in to but I'm glad I kept going as the story unravelled faster in the second half and before I knew it I was finished.

Thanks so much to Netgalley and Avon for the opportunity to read and review.

This was a book I was looking forward to reading, and leading up to the last quarter of Her Last Holiday, I was not disappointed. The characters are rounded and grow as the plot unfolds, the dialogue works well and the setting gives a good sense of place.. Unfortunately the ending is too rushed in the effort to tie up all the ends.and this, for me, was unsatisfactory - a shame; a story spoiled, I think.

CL Taylor's books are always deliciously readable. I seem to fly through them, and this one was no exception. The mystery kept me guessing, and even when I thought I *had* guessed something, well, I wasn't quite right! So that's always enjoyable. I also really grew to like the character of Fran too, and the slow untangling of the story kept me hooked.

I didn't love it quite as much as her last book, Strangers, but I think that may have been down to my own mental state whilst reading more than anything as it's still very cleverly plotted and written.

I was so excited to receive an early read copy of CL Taylor’s newest book. I have several of her books on my TBR shelf waiting for me. I am a huge fan and I was not disappointed. This was a twisty story about a past disappearance. I loved the time line switching back and forth between the past and present day. Without giving too much away, I highly recommend this book and this author. Can’t wait to read the next one. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the early release copy.

A slow burning thriller which centres on two sisters . Their upbringing has been strange and the relationship with their parents is strained. The younger sister disappears during a retreat abroad. The investigation concludes that she committed suicide, but the grieving family have doubts about this. The retreat is run by a couple, he is attractive and appealing , she does the running around and lots of social media. The group on the retreat when Jenna disappears is diverse .. Some of the activities are extreme and all in all you get the impression that it is a bit like a cult . The death of a couple during an activity adds to this feeling and the male half of the couple ends up in prison for what happened.
Fran, the older sister is summoned ny her parents and told to find out more about what happened to her sister. They have booked her on to a retreat in Wales, the first one for 3 years (after Tom is released from prison) , under another name. Not ideal, she is not a talker and although she becomes aware that some of the group members were at the same retreat as her sister , no one will discuss it . This retreat involves mountain activities, canoing etc. Something is off though and she (and another group member who is a journalist in disguise) get the impression that some one wants them dead. I liked Fran and Caroline's cynical attitude to what happened at the retreat.
A couple of twists in the story as it reaches it's conclusion . Suspense is built up and towards the end I could not put the book down. In the earlier parts of the book I found it slow going.
Thank you to Net galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

Frans sister Jenna disappeared two years ago from a wellness retreat in Malta. The police ruled it a suicide. Tom Wade the face of Soul Shrink retreat was convicted of gross negligence, two other people died that day under his care. After serving two years he is released from prison. Tom has never revealed what happened to Jenna his third victim.

Frans’ not convinced. Jenna didn’t kill herself. When she learns Tom is back to hosting wellness retreats. (I mean what? How is this guy not banned?)She knows she needs to go, confront Tom, get the truth of what happened to her sister.

Registering under a false name, Fran goes to the retreat the more secrets and lies she uncovers she unknowingly puts herself as risk of never returning home.

The book switches between the past and present – Jenna’s time at the retreat and the present with Fran. There are a lot of unlikable characters in this book, its laced with dysfunctional families, obsession, domineering personalities and creepy creepertons a plenty. The narrative is pretty twisted. This is a slow burn; the ending was a little underwhelming for me. I was so invested in the book and was looking for something more sinister.

Still very enjoyable read, Cally is an auto-buy author for me, I will pick up anything she writes.

Thanks to NetGalley publisher and author for this free copy in exchange for my review. I'm always so happy when I can read a new book from C. L. Taylor. Soon after I started the book though, I was not too happy. I could not get into this story at all. I did not like any of the characters. I did like the description of the beautiful scenery. I respect this author so much, I've loved what I've read from her so far. I did not like this one unfortunately. I still look forward to new work from this author.