I think this is one of those ©Marmite books ... you'll either like it or not. For me, I liked it ... I didn't love it, but I was certainly entertained and fair blasted through it.

This starts off at a steady pace while the characters are introduced and gradually increases as the story develops culminating in break-neck speed. There a quite a few characters and past and present timelines so you have to keep your wits about you but this added to the suspense and tension.

The story is told from three points of view - Fran, Kate and Jenna. It took me a while to warm to Fran but the more I read, the more she grew on me. Kate - nope, not a likeable character at all but worked well for the book. Jenna - still not sure how I feel about her.

The plot is interesting - not particularly plausible but if you can't suspend reality in a fiction book, then when can you? There are plenty of suspects to keep you guessing and although I pretty much worked out what was going on pretty early on, it was fun seeing how it all played out.

Overall, a fun read and my thanks must go to Avon Books UK and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.

Fran is determined to know the truth behind her sister’s disappearance. A series of events lead her to the retreat where her sister was last seen. The story unfolds told from three different distinct perspectives. Hidden agendas, deception and lies are obstacles to the truth. All is not as it seems as the truth is revealed. Thank you NetGalley and Avon Books for my copy.

I enjoyed Sleep by C.L Taylor and was not disappointed by Her Last Holiday. It’s a tense psychological thriller, and the setting of the retreat in Gozo adds a wonderfully claustrophobic feel to the story, as the main character (Fran to the other guests) tries to find out what happened to her sister. A highly enjoyable read.

Unfortunately I didn't feel particularly invested in the characters in Her Last Holiday & therefore it lacked a little tension for me. The story was entertaining but I felt it was lacking drama & was a little slow. The ending was very quick & I did enjoy the cliffhanger approach to what came next for Kate.

A great thriller that kept me guessing right through to the end. I really liked the main character of Fran, and I liked the three way narrative that helped to build the story of events in the past and present. The narrative voices between the three females felt believable, and I didn’t find myself getting confused between them. This would be a great beach read; tense and atmospheric.

This book is told in dual timelines . This book had me wanting to turn the pages non stop. I thought I knew who it was but I was wrong. I have lots more books by this author and I cant wait to read them.

We have a trio of characters giving us this story: Fran and Kate (in the present day) and Jenna (2 years ago). Fran is desperately trying to find out what happened to her sister Jenna when she went missing from a retreat.

This was a quick summer read - the mix of psychological thriller and murder mystery made it just the escapism I was looking for. Yes, it was a slow burner in places and the characters were not all hugely likeable - but that was the point. It drew me in and the gripping, unexpected ending rounded it off very nicely!

An enjoyable pacy thriller that kept me guessing and had a lot of tense moments. I have enjoyed this authors books before and this was a great next instalment. The writing flows well and I got into it straight away and the story was original and held my attention all the way.

Really enjoyed the book! Tense in parts and had strong characters. Would recommend! Have read afew books by C J Taylor and enjoy her writing style. Look forward to reading more in the future

Lies, deceit, death . . . Ingredients for pure escapism!

‘Her Last Holiday’ has all the right ingredients for pure escapism in this twisty, psychological thriller. It hooked me in right from the beginning, proving to be a real page-turner.

The ‘holiday’ refers to is a wellbeing retreat in Gozo, run by Tom . . . Inspirational Speaker, aided by Kate. The ‘brand’ is known as Soul Shrink. The plot unravels over a two-year period, which travels back and forth in time, told by Fran and sister Jenna, also from Kate’s perspective.

Two years ago, when Jenna was at the retreat, two of the guests died in unusual circumstances. At the same time, Jenna disappeared, and the local police decided on a verdict of suicide.

Even though the sisters were not particularly close their mother persuaded Fran to enlist on Tom’s latest retreat to delve into the past and finally discover exactly what happened to Jenna.

Fran goes all over in her quest. She finds herself wondering who she can trust, especially as she meets a few people who were on the previous retreat. Could appearances be deceptive? Why had Tom spent two years in prison? Questions . . . Questions galore!!

I hope that fans of psychological thrillers will enjoy C L Taylor’s latest offering as much as I have.

Galadriel.

Elite Reviewing Group received a copy of this book to review.

This was an easy read, I oved the main character, very relatable which is hard to come by in this type of book, I find. Satisfying ending. Recommended.

What a gripping thriller.

This was a very disturbing but good read.

Thoroughly enjoyed from start to finish and could not get enough of.

This is a must read for anyone who enjoys a good thriller!!
Absolutely loved the characters, the plot, the tension -  impossible to put it down.
Certainly recommended!

Loved the concept and synopsis of Her Last Holiday but it wasn’t a book for me. I found the characters hard to follow and also the jump in the writing tense.

Am sure others will love it.

Thanks to the publishers & NetGalley for giving me a copy of this book.

Unfortunately it was not the one for me.

I found most of the characters very hard to like. The story is about Jennas "Last Holiday" however the main focus of the story is on her sister Fran who is quite a harsh character and although this is explained throughout, she doesnt become more likeable until the very end.

Towards the end I found myself thinking hurry up and wrap it up but when it finally did it was a rather ridiculous strung out conclusion.

Only two stars for me Im afraid.

I thought this was an interesting story. I felt like there were too many side-things happening that pulled me out of the main plot. I would have liked to focus more on the main situation.

Her Last Holiday by CL Taylor

Synopsis
Two years ago, Fran’s sister Jenna disappeared on a wellness retreat in Gozo that went terribly wrong.

Tom Wade, the now infamous man behind Soul Shrink Retreats, has just been released from prison after serving his sentence for the deaths of two people. But he has never let on what happened to the third victim: Jenna.

Determined to find out the truth, Fran books herself onto his upcoming retreat – the first since his release – and finds herself face to face with the man who might hold the key to her sister’s disappearance. The only question is, will she escape the retreat alive? Or does someone out there want Jenna’s secrets to stay hidden?

Review
This book was disapointing, it was dull and boring in the middle.
I didnt really like any of the characters and it was confusing.
The twist didnt wow me either. I just wouldnt bother.

Rated 2/5

Loved this book - lots of twists and turns. I kept thinking I had it figured out but then things changed again keeping me guessing.

I enjoyed this book but sadly not as much as I would have liked to. I was hooked at the beginning but as the story went on I found it was flipping from one person to another and from one time to another with not enough substance. Just not credible enough for me either. Saying that, it is worth a read just not as good as her other books.

Thank you Netgalley.

The book started off OK but sadly the last few chapters let it down. A character whom previously was very astute and intelligent suddenly loses all common sense. Whilst I see how this added to the storyline, it just lost the characters credibility for me. There were some twists which I didn't think were needed and there is far too much wrapping up at the end (although nothing mentioned about the fate of a couple of key characters.) I like the flip between the previous retreat and the current retreat which built tension nicely and allowed for some back story.

On the whole it was enjoyable enough and I would check out other titles from the author

I was felt slightly underwhelmed after finishing this book. It was easy enough to read but I wasn’t impressed overall with the story line or the ‘twist’.

The story is told by three POV’s and between last and present, which was easy enough to follow. I didn’t however feel invested or connected of any of the characters, in fact Kate’s character just annoyed me…

It wasn’t a bad book, just didn’t enjoy it as much as I’d hoped I would.