I am a huge fan of Clare Mackintosh, so I was very excited to read an ARC of The Last Party! Sadly, this wasn’t my favourite book of hers, but I still enjoyed it and look forward to her next!
Filled with many potential suspects to a murder, this novel had twists right until the end! Although well written, I found it to drag on it several parts a bit longer than I thought necessary. I also found there to be a few plot holes- however this may have changed by the final draft. That being said, Mackintosh is known for her build-ups and last page reveals - and this novel definitely follows suit.
Big thank you to NetGalley, and SOURCEBOOKS Landmark for my early copy!
3.5/5

The first book in any new series must take the time to introduce not only the main characters but all of the supporting characters along with the different back ground communities involved. Clare Mackintosh has done double duty here by setting her latest thriller in a lake area that border both Wales and England. But more than the lake divides the two communities. Lifestyles and ethics differ between the have and have nots. When one of the celebrity personalities is found murdered after a party attended by both sides of the lake, readers again have two completely different sets of suspects and motives.
Enter our law enforcement personnel. Welsh DC Morgan is partnered with English DC Brady. Their investigation will find the list of suspects grows daily with few clues as to who actually committed the crime. While their methods may differ, these two will learn to be a team that readers will definitely want to see again. Oh, and they catch the killer, too! This was a very good read for me.

When washed-up singer Rhys Lloyd is found dead in the lake on New Year’s Day, local DC Ffion Morgan has her work cut out for her because pretty much everyone in her small Welsh has a reason (or two) to kill Rhys.

I loved the setting, the relationship between Ffion and Leo, and the complicated cast of characters. They all had such good reasons to wish Rhys dead, and I was guessing who did it until the end. I did get people confused here and there, but I sorted myself out.

I’ve only read two of Mackintosh’s earlier books and didn’t particularly love either of them, but with The Last Party she’s got me hooked! I’m so thrilled that this is the start of a new series. Ffion is a great character, and I can’t wait to see what happens next (mystery-wise AND with Leo).

When the body of singer Rhys Lloyd Is found in the lake Detectives try to piece together what happened but only discover there were more people on The Shore that wanted Rhys dead then not.

At first I found the story to be a bit dragging and difficult for me to get into, making me consider giving up on it. I’m so glad that that I pushed through and finished to the end. Looking back I saw how the different story lines helped to build up to the very end and helped to lead to all the wonderful twists and turns this story took. The characters were wonderfully complex and the ending was very well done.
I look forward to the next book in this series and I thank Netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to read this advanced copy.

If you love a great detective book, you are going to love this one. Leo and Ffion aren’t your typical police officers but they are sharp, cunning and fun to root for. They are trying to solve the mystery of local celebrity Rhys Lloyd and it seems like everyone in town has a motive and wants Rhys dead. A surprising ending and a fun ride…put this one on your list!

This was a solid murder mystery that kept me interested from the start. It was my first book by this author, but I will definitely be reading more of her work in the future.

Perfect end of the year read. I love when a thriller/mystery has substance like a literary fiction - really stood out in this one! Loved.

Count me a fan! Where is the next book in the series? I need it now. Please write quickly Ms. Mackintosh.

This one was more of a slow burn type of thriller than the fast-paced kind that are everywhere right now. This gave it a bit more of a whodunit vibe, which was a nice change. The slower pacing allowed time to get to know a cast of characters, who of course all have a reason to commit murder, and also to learn more of the Welsh-UK history and dynamics. The Welsh lake and mountains were a very atmospheric background. In the last 1/3 the pacing was a lot faster and full of more reveals. I anticipated some of them, but not all of them. I read a lot of mysteries and thrillers, so I'm always pleased when this happens. I'm looking forward to more books starring Ffion and Leo, our detective pair in this novel.

Rating: 4/5 stars
Pub Date: November 8, 2022 (Available now!)

A New Year’s Eve party is all fun and games until a body is discovered in Mirror Lake. Detective Ffion Morgan is assigned to the case in her tiny hometown. Everyone in the village has something to hide and they all secretly wanted the man dead. It’s Ffion’s job to solve who finally killed him, but she too has secrets of her own. In the mysterious village, murder is just the beginning to discovering the truth.

This book really surprised me! I wasn’t sure about it in the beginning. I didn’t instantly feel a connection with any of the characters and the strong Welsh dialect was hard to get used to. It took me quite a while to get a grasp on the names and setting (everything was very unfamiliar to me) but once I did, I was hooked!

Although it slowed me down in the beginning, I came to appreciate the language and culture throughout the book. The descriptions of the setting were so vivid I could picture it perfectly and I felt like I was there.

There were so many secrets slowly uncovered from each character. Everyone was a possible suspect and the tension was incredible. I love a good mystery that has you thinking one thing then second guessing everything and keeps you guessing until the very end.

The only negative for me was there were SO many characters. I didn’t know who was who at least halfway through.

Everything really came together at the end and I wasn’t left with questions. The ending was amazing, one of the best endings I have read in a while. The twists and surprises didn’t end until the very last page.

This is the first book of the series and I am excited to read more from this author. This book was so good!

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the eARC!

Bestselling author Clare Mackintosh's newest book, The Last Party, has just released.

Rhys Lloyd, a partner in a contentious luxury home development close to a small village in Wales, is found dead on On New Year's Eve, in his condo in that development.

The village is on the dividing line between England and Wales and jurisdiction is murky. Two investigators are tasked with the case - local copper DC Ffion Morgan and English based DC Morgan.

The Last Party has a 'locked' room feel to it. The village is small, with everyone in each other's pocket. There is only a small group of condo dwellers as well. We come to know all of the possible suspects through gossip, flashbacks and an ever changing point of view. Honestly, each and every one of them has a reason to not like Rhys...but to kill him? My answer for the whodunit changed with every revelation. There are some really good twists throughout the book as well. I like being kept guessing in a book, especially in a murder mystery. The timeline does flip from present to past and back, so watch the chapter titles.

The setting is well described and I could easily imagine the water, the forest, the village and The Shores.

The two leads are very different from each other in their methodology, creating more than a little friction. At the same time, both are struggling within their personal lives. I enjoy knowing more about the protagonists as it gives the characters more depth. It looks like we might be seeing more of DC Morgan. The Last Party is listed as DC Morgan number one. But I really hope Ffion is also part of future books.

Another great tale from Mackintosh. (Gentle readers - there are some trigger situations.)

The Last Party is a captivating murder mystery set in the lovely Welsh countryside. A body is discovered floating in the lake after a New Year's Eve party in the wealthy vacation area, The Shore. Welsh detective Ffion, and English detective Leo are on the case. As the story progresses, the number of suspects continually rises, keeping the reader guessing. Everyone has secrets here.
The lush descriptions of Wales and the intricately plotted relationships between the characters really brought the story to life. I greatly enjoyed the way the story jumped between perspectives and time; it helped to flesh out the mystery and was easy to follow. I'm quite excited to see where Ffion's story goes next.

This book had my head spinning with all the twists! It was an intense jaw dropping whodunnit! It started out slow as all the characters were introduced and developed but this made it interesting and kept me turning the pages. The author strategically gave everyone a motive for murder as their secrets were revealed, making it impossible to figure out who actually murdered Rhys. Trust me you will never guess and you will be shocked to find out who did it! This book had some lol moments and pull at your heart strings moments which I absolutely loved. Best thriller I have read in a while. Thank you Netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thank you Netgalley for the advance reader copy of The Last Party by Clare Mackintosh in exchange for an honest review. I loved this book! I devoured it in two days, staying up way too late, but I just had to find out all the secrets in the little Welsh town. The main storyline is a murder mystery of a guy whom nobody liked, but everyone kissed up to. There was a lot more going on though and even until the last page. I very much enjoyed this book and can't wait to read more.

I consider Clare Mackintosh Tana French light, which is perfect for me in terms of a quick never fail procedural mystery. This one did not disappoint, and I look forward to seeing it turn into a series!

2.5/5 stars - This mystery was incredibly boring to me for 43% of the ebook version, then actual things began to happen. Apparently, I felt the same way about the one other book by Clare Mackintosh that I read, so I should have looked at that more closely! The mystery was ultimately decent, if not a bit predictable given the chaos and hidden hatefulness below rich people's fake lives. I also never really like Ffion, so to see she's the detective for the series is not thrilling to me. I really liked Leo, though, so hopefully he sticks around. All in all, I wish there was less time spent at the first half giving every bit of detail about everyone's lives. I prefer the mystery and interesting bits to be a bit more front and center.

Clare Mackintosh kicks off a new murder-thriller series featuring DC Ffion Morgan. She's called in to investigate a murder at a lake resort in her hometown. The resort straddles the Welsh/English border so DC Leo Brady gets called in from England as well. Ffion and Leo have met briefly, yet memorably before. The family dynamics of the murder victim and the first investors into the Shore, the new lakeside development shimmer with tension and intrigue that goes back almost 20 years.

Well written characters, fast-moving plot, can't wait to read #2!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy. I usually enjoy Mackintosh’s novels, but this one was just okay. I think there were too many characters and storylines to keep track of, which was kind of distracting. I also didn’t buy the twist at the end where the three people who had a hand in the death were revealed. None of that really seemed realistic. Overall, I don’t know that I will pick up the next book in this series, but I look forward to Mackintosh’s next standalone novel.

The Last Party by Clare Mackintosh

Wild Ffion Morgan was no one’s idea of the kind of girl who’d grow up to be a police officer, but here she is at thirty, Cwm Coed’s own Detective Constable, with a fairly wide remit from the North Wales Police. Like nearly everyone else in her small Welsh town, she opposed the building of The Shore, the glamorous resort built on the English side of their Llyn Drych, a lake of cold waters and breathtaking views. While the owner of The Shore, Rhys Lloyd, is a local lad made good after rising to singing stardom several decades prior, the resort is widely and not incorrectly seen as a pleasure place for English people, built at the expense of the locals.

In an effort to assuage some of the tensions between The Shore residents and said locals, Rhys and his business partner decide to hold a New Year’s Eve party, inviting select town dignitaries. Things go sideways fast but the party, while chaotic, doesn’t quite spiral out of control. It’s only at the locals’ annual New Year’s swim the next morning that the true aftermath of the party is found: Rhys’ corpse floating in the lake, the clear victim of foul play.

Ffion wants nothing to do with this case, especially considering her awkward relationship with her English counterpart, Detective Constable Leo Brady of the Cheshire Constabulary. She tries to get her boss to give up jurisdiction to the English entirely, before realizing that she has a greater connection to the case than she’d initially thought, a connection that will see her stretching the limits of professionality and more in order to protect the ones she loves. When her boss finally gives her the okay to hand over the case to Leo, she has to think fast in order to stay assigned:

QUOTE
If she isn’t working on the case, she’ll have no way of knowing what’s been uncovered. How close they are to the truth. She walks away from Leo.

“The thing is, boss, I think I should stick with it.”

“Ffion, you begged me to take you off!”

“There are a lot of local inquiries to do on our side of the border. A number of witnesses who prefer to be dealt with in Welsh.” She knows just how to play this one. “And I think it’s good experience for me. You know, working in a team. It’s an area for, um, personal development.”
END QUOTE

Personal development in a professional setting is an area with loads of space for Ffion to improve on, as Ffion and her boss both know. And if Ffion is being honest, she’s warming up to working with Leo, who is not at all the person she thought he’d be. While he’s a talented detective, he’s a bit of a doormat otherwise, causing Ffion’s protective instincts to kick in on his behalf as well.

First and foremost of his problems, that she’s privy to anyway, is the appalling way his boss treats him. She doesn’t have to be a detective constable to figure out why:

QUOTE
“Is he like that to everyone?” Ffion says.

“Yes.” Leo’s response is automatic, then he thinks for a moment. “Actually, no. Just me.”

“Racist, then.”

“No, he’s never said anything racist. He wouldn’t dare.”

Ffion yawns. “Exactly. He targets you for no apparent reason, and the only difference between you and the rest of the office is…” She looks around the room, where every officer has one thing in common. They’re white.
END QUOTE

Ffion and Leo’s friendship deepens as they wade further into the tangled mass of motives, means and opportunities for killing Rhys Lloyd. Turns out that virtually no one liked the man, and for very good reason. But who among the revelers on the lake that night had hated him enough to kill?

I cannot resist any book featuring drily humorous British police detectives, and this was absolutely in the top tier of those for me, ranking up there with Stuart MacBride’s Logan McRae and Roberta Steel novels. Clare Mackintosh does not underestimate the intelligence of her readers, constructing a novel filled with clever, elegant twist after twist before a devastating ending that I’m still not sure I enjoyed. Don’t get me wrong: it was <i>great</i>, but did make me feel quite uncomfortable. I’m glad there’ll be a sequel to this terrific novel, though very much hope it will focus on Leo, who was my favorite character here, as much as on Ffion.

Oh goodness…a murder mystery filled with characters and nearly everyone had a great reason to be the killer. Set in a small Welsh town, its inhabitants hold lots of secrets, grudges, and possessiveness of their way of life. The author does a great job establishing character relationships and suspenseful scenes. This one kept me guessing until the very end.

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks/Landmark for the ARC to read and review.