Another fantastic book from C.L. Taylor. Tom Wade, a motivational speaker and joint owner with his wife Kate of SoulShrink, are hosting a retreat in Snowdonia. Tom has recently been released from prison after two people died in a tragic accident at a retreat in Gozo two years earlier. Kate has been working hard on recovering the business and moving forward in a positive way despite Tom’s incarceration. It doesn’t go quite as smoothly as Kate hopes but she is not for giving up.

Fran’s sister, Jenna, disappeared at the Gozo retreat. Fran has been told it was likely her sister took her own life but no body has been found. Geri, the mother of Fran and Jenna, booked a place on the Snowdonia retreat in the hope of finding out the truth about what happened to Jenna. Geri can't face going so cajoles Fran into going and using her name so Fran can remain anonymous.

The book is told over two timescales – now and two years earlier – and from the viewpoints of Fran, Jenna and Kate. As with all C L Taylor there are many twists and turns along the way with a good pace that keeps you wanting to just read a bit more before putting it down. It was really well paced and I liked the ending.

With thanks to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Her Last Holiday by CL Taylor is a suspenseful, mystery-thriller with a fantastic ending! It is the third book I’ve read by Ms. Taylor and each one is better than the last. I’m loving her writing more and more.

The characters are varied, interesting and well developed. I liked some, detested others, and that is one of the characteristics of a great novel. I enjoyed that there were many characters adding to the storyline, each with their own motives and secrets. And through her fluid, easy manner of writing, it was not difficult to follow each character through the different timelines.

The ending was superb! True to form, it was unexpected. It was brilliant. And in hindsight it was completely right.

#herlastholiday #cltaylor #netgalley #avonbooks

It has been a while since I read a Cally Taylor book. I got introduced to her and her books on the Facebook group The Book club. She writes brilliant books and I don't know why it has taken me so long to return to her books.
I liked the different points of view in the book as it allowed us to get to know the characters a little better. We are introduced to a whole cast of characters some likeable and some not so likeable. Fran is trying to figure out what really happened to her sister two years ago and this book takes us on a journey of unexpected twists in finding out the truth.
I would recommend this book if you are looking for a nice thriller to enjoy.

You can always guarantee a good thriller with Cally Taylor and this one is no exception. I'm not going to go on any retreats of holidays with her mind. She has a twisty mind! Haha it works really well here as this novel has you gasping for breath and ringing your hands. If you read this at an actual retreat I think it would make you leave or at least look around at your fellow guests.

Blimey. 2020's last read went off with a bang!

C L Taylor's latest psychological thriller is set in two time frames- present day Fran is desperate to find out what happened to her sister Jenna who went missing on a wellness retreat in Gozo and we also get the point of view of Jenna as she arrives at the retreat 2 years previously. I thought this novel started out really well and like the author's previous books this is a gripping read. I did find that it lost focus about halfway through and I had little sympathy for any of the characters. I have loved some of C. L Taylor's previous novels and feel that Strangers, her last, was definitely her strongest. I do feel that I have read too many psychological thrillers set on islands or holiday retreats this year so I feel that the setting did not pull me in. However if you are intrigued by this genre of thriller I would recommend.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital ARC.

"Her last holiday" is a slow burn thriller with lots of unexpected twists in it. The books starts off really strong but in the middle it kind of loses steam. It picks up the pace and bombards us by the end of it. The language used in the book is articulate. The narration is from multiple POV's written in the first person.

The story revolves around two sisters, Fran and Jenna who are separated by an age gap of 12 years. The book starts off three years after the death of one sister Jenna by suicide. Jenna had gone to a retreat called Soulshrink lead by the enigmatic Tom Wade. In that particular retreat 3 people had died, 2 due to a negligence in one of the excercises and Jenna by suicide. But Jenna's body was never found.

Her family is still not at peace after all these years and to make things worse, Tom Wade is released from jail. After he comes out, he picks up right where he left off and arranges another retreat. Fran's mom forces her to go on this retreat and find out the truth behind Jenna's death. Fran decides to go undercover and unravel the mystery. What will happen during the retreat? Will she reveal more than she bargained for? How many more people will get hurt in this quest for justice? Read to find out.

The ending was really something great. I loved the ending. Though, some parts of it was unrealistic. It was still quite thrilling. Recommending this one to all thriller lovers. The book will be out in April, 2021. Make this your first of 2021!

Another fast-paced read from C.L. Taylor that I finished in a day.

I did enjoy the story, however I didn’t find any of the characters particularly likeable. The twists were also underwhelming and a little unbelievable.

I give this 3 stars, as enjoyed other books by the author more, such as Strangers.

First of all I’m a huge fan of C.L Taylor’s books. I’m always in a dilemma,part of me wants to take my time saviour the experience, but as soon as I get started I end up hooked and reading it in one sitting!! There are worse dilemmas I guess!!!

Fran’s sister Jenna went missing two years ago while she was on a wellness retreat at Gozo, the police told them she may have committed suicide but her mother wants answers and pushes Fran to go to Wales on a wellness retreat.

She meets the couple Kate and Tom who ran the retreat in Gaza along with three others who were also there. Surely someone will know what happened to Jenna?

The story is told in 2 timelines, the present and back when Jenna was at the retreat.

This story kept me captive from the first page until the end. I love how the suspense slowly builds and I would never have guessed the ending.

A brilliant book that I would highly recommend.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy in exchange for a review.

Another great book by C.L. Taylor. Like her previous books I was hooked from the first page and couldn’t read it quick enough. It’s sort of a cross between a mystery book and a psychological thriller. A few twists thrown into the suspenseful storyline make for a great read. I highly recommend this book and author.

I read this book in one sitting. SO GOOD! I could not put it down. So suspenseful and some unexpected twists that made the story that much better. I even went back and re-read a few pages to see if I could catch the twist coming. Taylor's writing is just captivating and I'm so excited to read more!

I will start by saying that I am a big fan of C.L. Taylor's. Sleep was one of my favourite books of 2020 and I also really enjoyed Strangers. So I was really excited to see what she had done next with Her Last Holiday.
I particularly enjoyed the use of three narrators, as this gave you insight into the story from three pivotal perspectives.
It also had a really interesting plot and didn't feel particularly farfetched at all, as some other books can in this genre.
Tom as a character was especially intriguing and I found myself in Fran's shoes, trying to figure out what happened to Jenna and on the day that two other people had died.
Something that did irritate me was the amount of pseudonyms or alias names that were used throughout.
I understand that this was part of the plot, with many of the characters inhabiting a new name following the sweat retreat. But when you then add Fran and Caroline also using assumed names but also changing back and forth between their real names and fake names and it all got a bit much.
I also felt like Jenna felt/acted a lot younger than she actually was when she disappeared. I would easily have said that she was in her early to mid twenties, because of the way that she acted, instead of being in her late thirties.
The ending also wasn't as strong as it could have been for me. And it was a bit of an anticlimactic twist in the end.
Her Last Holiday is still one of the better books that I've read in this genre and I can't wait to read what C.L. Taylor does next.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Fran's sister, Jenna, and two others are dead after participating in a self-help retreat led by Tom and Kate two years ago. This book switches between Jenna's point of view in the past and Fran and Kate's point of view in the present as Fran searches for answers of what exactly happened to her sister.

While I thought the plot was intriguing and enjoyed how little tidbits came out along the way leading up to the various twists I thought this book was a tad too long and found myself just reading to get through it towards the end. Overall it was well written [but there was a few times the wrong characters name was used or the character's real name was used while they were using an alias. Hopefully this gets fixed before the book is officially released.

This is my first time reading a book by C.L Taylor and it was great! It's a interesting, slow paced mystery novel. I was living for all the drama... it was fun and light- a perfect beach read. I personally guessed the twist and I was correct. Regardless, it was still gripping. I will definitely check out Taylor's other works after this.

Thank you to Netgalley for an eARC copy of Her Last Holiday!

I enjoyed this book and found it to be very engaging. It centers primarily on Fran, who joins a wellness retreat to try to figure out what happened to her sister Jenna, who disappeared on a similar trip over 2 years prior. You also get chapters from Jenna's perspective before her disappearance, and from Kate, the wife and business partner of Tom, who runs the retreats. I am a fan of alternating perspectives throughout a book and thought that it was interesting to see how various situations were seen from the different POVs.

I liked Fran and found her to be a realistic character- she was trying to investigate what happened to Jenna but is not a detective, thus she makes a lot of mistakes. There is also personal growth throughout the book, as she explores her relationship with Jenna and the rest of her family, as well as reflects on her current lifestyle. Some reviewers said there were plot lines left unresolved, but I actually think that was done purposely, allowing the reader to make their own decisions about the true motivations of some of the characters. The ending was tied up maybe a bit too cleanly, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

Overall, I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to those who like mysteries and domestic suspense. I liked the other book I read by Taylor as well, and am planning on picking up a couple other books by this author. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a good read, but I couldn’t give a full 5 stars, because it took a bit to grab me! I do think it was well written and when it finally grabbed me, it gripped me to the end. Found it to be quite realistic, thrilling, chilling, and shocking! Unique, realistic, to the point I could see all of it happening, and written in a riveting way. A bit of a slow start; but worth sticking with, as when it picks up it does so with a bang! Will definitely be reading more by this author, as she always tells some riveting stories in a very unique way!

Will make sure to buzz around and use low amazon reviewer number on release date!

Having experienced hits and misses with the author's previous books, I was intrigued about Her Last Holiday. The book's description drew me in initially and while it was by no means a bad book, I felt it let itself down with quite a few plot holes that left me with a raised eyebrow. Well written, we experience the POV of three different women - Jenna, Fran and Kate. While this provided varied angles, I wonder if perhaps it would have been more interesting reading from Tom's side. I really enjoyed the choice of settings for the book although how there could ever be another retreat after what happened seemed quite far-fetched to me. The short, sharp chapters make moving through the plot easy and we are rewarded with a few twists though none that left me reeling. Although this was an enjoyable read and I will continue to pick up books by the author, Her Last Holiday simply doesn't stand out from the crowd.

Thanks NetGalley for my ARC of this book.

Had a really hard time getting into this one and DNF. I tried to come back to it later and still struggled to hook me in. Thank you for this opportunity

Motivational speaker and mental health guru Tom Wade was nicknamed the Soul Shrink on social media for his ability to heal trauma. After two people died at one of his popular spiritual retreats in Gozo, his career was destroyed and he was jailed. Now, two years on, Tom has been released and plans to hold another retreat, this time in Snowdonia. Fran’s younger sister, Jenna, disappeared at the tragic Gozo retreat and now she wants to know the truth about what happened.

Although this story is told from multiple points of view, the main protagonist is Fran. Fran is an IT teacher in her fifties who is struggling after Jenna’s disappearance and presumed suicide. She has intense feelings of guilt after she brushed her sister off during their last conversation and she wishes she could make things right. Fran is a prickly character and her bluntness adds some humour to scenes throughout the book. The last thing she wants is to be near the man she blames for her sister’s death but after being emotionally blackmailed by her controlling mother, she agrees to attend Tom’s new retreat in an attempt to find out what happened to Jenna.

Kate, Tom’s wife, is ambitious and ruthless. She is determined to help make Soul Shrink a success and move on from the controversy caused by Tom’s prison sentence. She is constantly paranoid about her and Tom's lives being shattered again and is determined not to let anyone take away what she has rebuilt.

The past timeline of this story is told from Jenna's perspective. It gives some background to the tragic events that happened in Gozo and further explores Jenna's character. Both timelines are interesting and as some of the past characters also appear in the present timeline, it helps the reader to learn more about them.

The real strength of this novel is the attention to character development. Each character is drawn in such depth and even minor characters feel realistic and nuanced. Each person has complex motivations for their actions and although some of the characters are unlikeable, the reader can see how they became that way.

The plot is not disadvantaged by the character-driven nature of this book. The chapters are short, full of twists and turns, characters lying to one another and unsettling events that raise a number of questions. Several themes add depth to the narrative: toxic family relationships, mental health and emotional exploitation are all explored here. I have read some of C L Taylor’s previous novels and enjoyed them and this new release didn’t disappoint. Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for the ARC.

This is a story that flicks between past with Jenna when she arrives at the retreat in Gonzo and present day with her sister Fran joining a retreat run by the same people but this time in Wales. I liked the difference between the two settings as it goes to show you don’t need to travel abroad for stunning views.

The retreat is ran by Tom and Kate. Tom has not long got out of prison and is struggling with events from the past. You can tell that Kate is very much the driving force behind the retreat and she is hell determined in making sure that everything goes well, as well as getting some much needed money in the bank.

Over the course of the story we get to know some of the characters at the retreats better. They aren’t the most likable of characters. I was kind of suspicious about quite a few of them. It all adds to the suspense though of what really did happen to Jenna of which there were some good twists that I definitely didn’t see coming.

Her Last Holiday is a book that has it all. Scenic locations, a gripping storyline and unexpected twists and turns. All in all it makes it an unputdownable read as I raced through it to see just what did happen to Jenna. Another great read from the queen of psychological thrillers.

I really enjoyed this book - I was hooked from the outset. The plot moved quickly and the characters draw you in