This was a wild ride. Nothing I love more than when a book jumps right into it and captures your attention from the first chapter.

This story is about Hannah whose husband disappears and she is left confused, scared and with his daughter, left to figure out what is going on and if the man she married really who she thinks he is.

I loved the dynamic of Hannah and her stepdaughter Bailey, coming together to try to find out what is going on and to piece together the puzzle of the past. Unputdownable and a great mystery / suspense.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for a digital ARC. The opinions in this review are my own.

Hannah Hall's husband of just over one year has disappeared leaving behind a plea for her to protect his teenage daughter with whom Hannah has had trouble establishing a relationship. So begins a quest to find him and try to determine why he has left them. Along the way Hannah and her step-daughter uncover many things about the man they both love, things that shatter their notions of who he is. Although this is a very well-written and interesting story, I found the pace to be bit on the slow side. I was invested in the story though and wanted to learn the answers to all the questions raised in the first third of the book. Hannah was a resourceful and determined character and I was quite fascinated by her occupation as a woodturner. As always, I'm very impressed when an author titles each chapter. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this book to a friend and look forward to reading another book by Laura Dave in the future.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for the opportunity to read The Last Thing He Told Me prior to publication.

This book was a total page turner. Hannah's husband Owen has gone missing, leaving only a note. Law enforcement think Hannah and her step-daughter Bailey must know something so it's up to Hannah to investigate Owen's past while staying safe. I will highly this to my customers once it is released.

A riveting mystery / family drama that I could not put down! The book begins with Hannah Hall receiving a note from her husband Owen that only says “Protect her". Her 16 year old stepdaughter Bailey receives another mystifying note and as the FBI starts investigating Owen's co-workers, they try to figure out what happened to him and why. Hannah's loyalty and desire to protect her family and Bailey's teenage angst were very relatable and really made me wonder what I would do in their situation as everything around them kept changing. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and stayed up way too late because I couldn't wait to find out what would happen! This is the first book I've read by Laura Dave, but it really made me want to read more.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for allowing me to read an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC of this book in return for my unbiased review.

Hannah is married to Owen and stepmother to Bailey. One afternoon she is had a knock at the door from a kid with a note from her husband saying Protect Her. Thus begins the story of the search for Owen who has gone missing just as his work as been raided by the SEC. When Bailey and Hannah go looking for answers, they find out more then they bargained for. Can you ever REALLY know someone?

Just want to say thank you Simon & Schuster for the advanced copy.

This was a really good read, couldn’t pit it down. Very strong female character that you just can’t help but feel pulled towards. Can’t wait to read more from this author

This is the first book from Laura Dave I read. It’s a good domestic thriller. It’s a little slow in the first part though.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster Canada for the advance e-copy.

A very powerful book on what you would do for love when everything you believed to be true was rocked to the core.. Loved this book . It kept me guessing and hoping very happily ever after when all roads lead in the opposite direction. Laura Dave hit this one out of the ball park.

So good!!

This was my first Laura Dave book and I it was so good! Right from the start I was interested in reading more. I could have read this in a day if life's responsibilities did not always get in the way!
I started off thinking this would be a story about the relationship between Hannah and Owen but I soon realized that is was more about the relationship between Hannah and Bailey. All characters, even though we never really "meet" Owen, were well written. I became interested in, and concerned with, their choices and actions. I found myself questioning their decisions, especially Owen's, throughout the book.
The plot seemed to move at a good pace. I never found myself thinking that it was dragging on for too long. The flashback chapters were short and concise, which I liked so that I could be brought back to the present where I wanted to be. I would have liked there to be a bit more to the epilogue. It seemed to make a good story line end with a resolution too easy. Such a complicated few days became an easy few years? I also felt that the four year-old Bailey, easily remembered a lot of details. I think that is too hard to believe but I didn't dwell on that.

I have added Laura Dave to my list of authors to read more of. She definitely has the ability to write a story that can pull you in and keep you for the duration!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Simon&Schuster for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

This book held my interest from the very first page and I found myself wanting to read more. Made me think about the personal and social implications of trying to build a new future while holding on to your past. Loved it and highly recommend.

This thriller was not your typical creepy nail biter. This, as described by other reviewers, is a domestic thriller. This was a refreshing take on the genre for me as it focused a lot on the characters and their familial relationships.

I found the beginning slow to get me interested but stuck with it, and around the halfway mark I was invested. I finished the second half of the book in a day! While the twists were not groundbreaking, the story telling was enjoyable.

I kind of disliked the ending and was left desiring more for the two main characters. Conversly, I was also happy that the ending is not neat and tidy after the drama. This will make a great series or movie!

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster Canada for the advance e-copy. A copy of this review will be posted on my Instagram @tays_booknook on March 21

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers, Simon and Schuster, and the author, Laura Dave, for the ARC of The Last Thing He Told Me. This book is a gripping mystery about a woman married to a man who has been living a lie.

Hannah meets Owen and they fall deeply in love, but this book isn’t about that (although I did love the flashbacks throughout the book depicting their relationship early on, before things turned sideways) Owen is widowed and has a 16 year old daughter, Bailey, who isn’t a big fan of Hannah.

The day begins like any other day, Hannah says goodbye to Owen with a peck on the cheek and a promise of pasta dinner later that night- she’s unaware that that interaction is the last she’ll have with her husband.

Later that day there’s a knock on the door and someone hands Hannah a note from her husband. All it says is Protect Her.

Shortly after that, news breaks that the CEO of the company Owen works for has been arrested on a slew of charges including fraud and embezzlement. Owen doesn’t come home that night and he isn’t answering his phone. It soon becomes clear that he’s gone on the run and left Hannah and Bailey alone together.

Hannah and Bailey know that Owen would never just leave them so they set out to find what it is that Owen is running from. What they find changes the trajectory of each of their lives as they realize Owen’s deception is much more nefarious than they anticipated.

This is the first book I have read by Laura Dave and I really liked her writing style. I loved that the focus was less on the relationship between Hannah and Owen and more on the strained relationship between Hannah and Bailey. It really helped to drive the plot forward.

Overall I’m rating this book 4/5. I thoroughly enjoyed it and I look forward to reading more by Laura Dave. Make sure to get this book when it’s published on May 4, 2021📚

Um wow. After Hannah’s husband disappears leaving behind a note saying “Protect her”, Hannah knows the note refers to her step-daughter Bailey. When FBI and US Marshals start showing up, Hannah realizes that her husband Owen isn’t who she thinks so Hannah and Bailey work at solving the mystery together. The suspense was killing me in this book and the whole time I had no idea what was going to happen. Hannah and Bailey have a pretty rocky relationship so I really enjoyed seeing how their relationship grew throughout the book as well! Highly recommend!
Thanks @netgalley and @simonandschuster for the ARC.

Posted on both my Goodreads and my Bookstagram!

I was super excited to receive an early copy of The Last Thing He Told Me! I had heard the novel was going to be adapted into a limited series with Julia Roberts, and like many people When possible, I always aim to read a book before the show/movie comes out.
I wasn’t sure what to expect and really didn’t know too much about the storyline other than it was being described as a thriller and suspenseful novel. I would say this book was quickly paced, well written and had some intrigue and “twists” in the storyline, but it is definitely not a traditional or expected thriller by any means.
Laura Dave does an excellent job describing such specific parts of the US and creates likeable but also mysterious characters that I really look forward to reading another one of her novels.

That being said, I really enjoyed The Last Thing He Told me, and am really looking forward to seeing it adapted for TV.

Big thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for the chance to read this ARC.

The Last Thing He Told Me
Written by: Laura Dave

The Last Thing He Told Me was recommended to me and after reading the blurb I thought I would give it a go and I am so glad that I did. To me this book is more a mystery/suspense read.

When Hannah Hall answered her door to find a 12 year old standing there holding a note, she had no idea life as she had known it with her husband Owen and stepdaughter Bailey was going to change forever.

The note from Owen had two words written on it “Protect Her”. Hannah had no doubt about who she was to protect but as events played out it became clearer to Hannah that she was not protecting Bailey and herself from the fallout occurring around the company where Owen had worked, it was something from his and Bailey’s past.

I found this story was fast paced and chapters flew by. I also found this a very emotional read, as the story progresses it becomes evident this family of three is being remade into a family of two. The timeline took place in the days following Owen’s disappearance and as you read further into the story you realize that Owen had been drawn to Hannah not just because he fell in love with her, he knew that she would do whatever needed doing for Bailey’s protection if or when he had to leave. As the story unfolded and at some point my worry wasn’t about Hannah and Bailey, my concern about Owen and his place in their lives in the future became important to me.

Readers are able to see the qualities Owen found in Hannah shine through as they work their way towards ending going back home to continue their lives.
What Owen had found with Hannah from the first time he met her until the day he left her and Bailey behind, was not just love, he found trust. He trusted her with the most important person in his life, his daughter. He was always clear about that Bailey would always come first. In return you realize that Hannah trusted Owen and in return for that trust in her husband she was able to win trust and love from her stepdaughter. Trust is earned and in this case it was Owen and Bailey who had to place their trust in Hannah.

My thanks to NetGalley and to Simon and Schuster for allowing me to read and review The Last Thing He Told me. I recommend this book.

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley.

I'm giving it 4* to reflect an excellent first half and then a disappointing second half, which felt like it belonged in a completely different book. In the first half Hannah's newish husband Owen disappears in the wake of a financial scandal at the company he works at. He leaves Hannah a note, asking her to protect his daughter Bailey, who barely tolerates Hannah. He leaves Bailey a bag containing $60,000. Despite this, Hannah is convinced Owen's reasons for disappearing are more about keeping Bailey safe than they are about avoiding criminal proceedings.

Hannah begins to reflect on what she really knows about Owen and what clues to his and Bailey's past there might be. The ensuing investigation by Hannah and Bailey takes up a good chunk of the book and was excellent. There are chapters interspersed showing Hannah and Owen's past, which not only provide clues, but cause us to believe that Owen is a good man. However, the further back in time these went the less interesting and relevant they were.

Then suddenly there is an information dump about a family we have not previously heard of and the plot takes a huge shift to the side. It is difficult to discuss this without spoiling the plot, but Hannah makes some bold and (I thought) arrogant decisions which were not necessarily the ones I would have made, all the mystery was cleared up instantly, and I think we were supposed to believe she and Bailey lived happily ever after. (I do not believe this!)

I felt really let down - there were so many more interesting ways the plot could have gone.

This book definitely had me on edge, wanting to figure it all out. Fast paced and kept me wanting more. At first I was a bit disappointed at how it was ending but now that I think about it, I think it was clever. Could leave room for a sequel I'm my opinion.

Wow! I could not put this down. Devoured it in a day. I had to keep reading. I had to know what Hannah and Bailey were going to find out. It kept me hooked from start to finish.

This was such a suspenseful read that I couldn’t put down. The novel is about Hannah whose husband Owen goes missing, leaving her with his 16-year-old daughter Bailey. Owen offers no explanation for his disappearance except for a note that says “Protect her.” Hannah learns how little she actually knew about her husband, and with his daughter, sets out to find him and the truth about his past.

This isn’t a thriller, but more so a domestic suspense novel that really fleshes out its main characters. The writing was captivating and the plot/pacing really kept me hooked. There were some parts of the novel, specifically regarding how Hannah solves the mystery, that I found unbelievable, but overall I was satisfied with how the story ended.

This is a page-turning, well-written domestic suspense thriller with zero violence and lots of layered emotions. I gave it 4 Stars for all of those elements, although I would've liked to have had some element of danger to the mother and her step-daughter just because those are the kind of books I enjoy the most. However, Laura Dave does a fine job of keeping the emotions high as she unveils the relationship between Owen and our narrator through flashbacks to their recent past and the ongoing "on the run" to find out why Owen's disappeared and left them literally holding a bag full of money.

The ending was lovely and well-rounded, bringing the story of a woman who never expected to be a mother, becoming one in full. It's a story of complete sacrifice for someone else's child (spoiler alert) and packs a punch in the final chapter. It's my first Laura Dave book but I'll be on the look out for her others.