3.5 STARS - The Last Party is set around the murder of a local celebrity at a New Year's Eve party in a small, posh vacation community in rural Wales. The Welsh locale is atmospheric, and the suspect list is long which will keep readers second guessing the identity of the murderer.

Admittedly, the Welsh names were a mouthful for this Canadian, and even though I initially mispronounced many of the names in my head (Cwm Coed and even Ffion's name), I enjoyed taking the time to look up a few pronunciations to better understand this language which is part of my (albeit far back) Welsh heritage.

The Last Party felt more like a domestic drama/murder mystery than psychological thriller with a cast that had more than its fair share of dark secrets. Mackintosh provides many twists and red herrings that kept me guessing the identity of the culprit and the underlying conflicts/pasts of the townspeople and the residents of the posh Shore community added to the tension and mystery.

But it took me a long time to get into the story. The pacing is very slow and while the first half of the book gave me enough to keep me interested, it wasn't until just after the halfway mark that I felt things click and I was really pulled in. I enjoyed getting perspectives from multiple characters but there was a repetitive, drawn out feel as we witness the same scenes from different POVs. Add in a very large cast which was hard to keep straight, and the nonlinear timeline and things got a bit muddled at times.

This was an entertaining, multilayered mystery in a beautiful setting, that was a quieter, slower burn read than I was expecting. I enjoyed the police team of Ffion, a detective from Wales and Leo, a detective from England (and their unique meet up and chemistry) and look forward to reading more books featuring them and the beauty of Wales in the future.

Disclaimer: My sincere thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark for my complimentary digital copy of this book which was provided in exchange for my honest review.

While I own a few of Clare Mackintosh's books, I haven't read any yet - but I definitely will be now! I am very, very picky with thrillers, but there wasn't a single eye roll while reading The Last Party! Huge win here. I also thoroughly enjoyed the Welsh setting and names/words used throughout the book.

Usually thrillers with a whole bunch of different POV's are a turn off for me and hard to keep track, but this one was so well done, it made the story even better. There were so many things revealed I didn't see coming and I genuinely thought every single person was guilty at one point. I had NO idea what was coming and it felt like blow after blow towards the end and I couldn't get enough! I very, very much recommend this book for thriller lovers.

Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark and Clare Mackintosh for my copy of The Last Party.

This police procedural features an annual winter swim to bring in the new year, a long fraught rivalry between the locals and weekenders, and a floating body of a man brutally murdered.

What a way to start the new year. I really enjoyed the tension that was built right from the beginning. From the snapshots of the actual crime happening. And between Ffion and Leo.

As for the mystery it's self, the twists and turns were solid and while some things were easy to pick up as a mystery buff, the ending was a total surprise.

The only thing that was bit of turn off for me was how many characters there were to keep track of. It was cool being able to see the events from different POVs but I don't really like flipping back and forth constantly.

For my first Mackintosh, I was not disappointed.
Thank you to Sourcebooks and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the digital ARC copy in exchange for an honest review. This is a procedural mystery/thriller in which DC Ffion Morgon works to find the murderer of a not so nice man, Rhys Lloyd, at his New Year's Eve Party. There are many suspects with many secrets. I really enjoyed the main character, Ffion, but there were so many characters sometimes it was hard to keep track of what exactly was happening and with who. However, there are some good twists, and the book was exciting to read.

Mirror Lake divides land belonging to the Welsh and the English. Rhys grew up in the area and even as a youngster was considered a “bad seed”. He inherited land on the English side of the lake and was building The Shores with summer homes for wealthy families. His body was discovered face down in the lake during the annual New Year’s Day swim. Even though Rhys was a smooth talker, he was hated by most of the people in the area and any one of them had good reason to murder him.
This novel is told by alternating people over the period of the winter holidays. It is easy to follow and the ending was a surprise.

I really didn't enjoy this.. it was way too long and had so many characters and things happening yet still felt so boring. Just wasn't for me at all although I'm sure others will really like it!

Thank you netgalley for this earc in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of The Last Party.

I love police procedurals; detectives working together, pounding the pavement and investigating witnesses and sifting through clues and interviewing potential suspects.

I was excited my request was approved, but my excitement was soon tamped by the multitude of characters, POVs, and a despicable victim.

The narrative is bloated with multiple POVs; everyone has something to hide, including Ffion Morgan, one of the detectives in charge of the murder investigation.

There are secrets piled upon secrets; adultery, drugs, rape, sexual violence, financial mismanagement.

Despite all these 'twists,' I actually figured out most of them on my own because I read so many books in this genre.

As other reviewers pointed out, the Welsh names were hard to recall, and remember who was who.

Leo was the only person I remembered, not only because his name was easy to remember.

I also liked him, and how his relationship with Ffion deepens as they work together; how they empower one another and find strength in themselves to fight for what they want; Leo to reunite with his son and Ffion to reconcile what happened to her nearly two decades ago when she was only 14.

But, it took too long to get to the point.

The author gives everyone's back story and why they despise the deceased and who was doing what on the day of the murder and on and on and on.

The narrative was unnecessarily long; the victim was a scumbag so you didn't care he was dead, and most of the characters were unlikable or one dimensionally described.

The Last Party wasn't for me but I'm grateful for the opportunity to read it early.

The Last Party by Clare Mackintosh

Is there anyone in the Welsh village of Rhys Lloyd that would not like to see him dead? Well that means there are numerous suspects when his body floats up on shore in the midst of their annual New Years Day Swim.
Rhys has left a wake of used and abused women starting as a teenager, continuing into his successful adult life as a classical singer. The singing career is drying up and now he back in town as a developer of an expensive lakeside community…the lake being part of his village and the Locals are not fond of this new influx of city people into their little community.
His murder is investigated by a detective with her own history with the victim that makes for uncomfortable and unethical situations…….but she remains unfazed and pursues his killer. Her partner, with his own personal issues, is a good match and they become a compatible working pair: her sarcasm and his calmness make for interesting dialogue throughout the book
There are so many secrets, so many illusions, all presented slowly and methodically by the author that you find you’re caught up in all the incestuous drama between all the characters that builds up to an exciting finish and the discovery of who did it and how.

Really solid mystery. Clare Mackintosh is one of my favorite psychological thriller writers, but I felt this one leaned more toward a procedural mystery. It was well plotted and I was fascinated by all the commentary about Welsh/English relations. Mackintosh remains an auto-read author for me!

A twisty ride that leaves you wanting more. A fun and dark story that you won’t be able to put down!

The tiny community of Mirror Lake in Northern Wales, is close knit and frigidly unwelcoming to outsiders. When local-boy-turns-celebrity Rhys Lloyd is found dead after an epic New Year’s Eve party, the villagers’ festering animosity toward him and his luxury housing development come to light. Detectives Leo and Morgan team up across districts and prove to be an unexpectedly well-suited team; his diplomacy filters her impulsiveness. The two uncover secrets that go back decades further than midnight, and while the list of suspects is long, the pacing is taut and is well served by alternating perspectives and timelines.

VERY slow burn. Too many characters. Couldn’t get into the story. Unfortunately it was a big NO for me

The Last Party is the latest thriller by Claire MacKintosh. The Shore is an ultra exclusive enclave of holiday homes set upon the beautiful waterfront of Mirror Lake in the small Northern Welsh village of Cwm Coed . The property is the brainchild of local celebrity Rhys Lloyd and his investor partner Jonty Charlton. To help bridge relationships between the rich Shore outsiders and the locals, Rhys invites the community to come and enjoy a New Year's Eve celebration, mingling and enjoying champagne and appetizers. However, by midnight Rhys is dead floating in the lake and the guests quickly become suspects in his death.


What I liked about the book:
-the small Welsh village of Cwm Coed and the picturesque lake front property the Shore
-the seasonal setting of New Years Eve
-multiple timelines with multiple perspectives
-unreliable narrators
-‘us versus them’ of locals versus the rich outsiders of The Shore as well as the theme is explored between The English and The Welsh
-descriptive writing style and character development
-the multilayer unpeeling of the characters and their motivations as well as the twists and turns
-the relationship between Ffion and Leo

What I didn’t like about the book:
-my only minor complaint is the character of Ffion Morgan who I found frustrating at times but upon finishing the book, her actions make complete sense and help with the movement of the novel

My rating of the book 5 stars out of 5

Trigger warning: grooming of minors, rape/sexual assault

My final takeaway- I loved this book and I highly recommend this to readers who enjoy twisty, multiple timeline/perspectives. MacKintosh is a talented storyteller that draws you into the lives of her characters.

Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for this eARC.

The Last Party is a modern take on a classic, Agatha Christie-like who dunnit. Clare Mackintosh introduces us to a large cast of characters, most of whom have the motive to kill the victim. I enjoyed the way the author layered the story, revealing different bits of information that changes the reader’s perspective. I have read the author’s previous work and have always enjoyed it. And I will certainly continue to read her work - it never disappoints!

Thanks to NetGalley and Soucebooks for the digital ARC!

This was a great thriller! Loved the main character. Would definitely recommend. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I love Claire macintosh is riding. This particular book had a lot of characters. I had difficulty remembering some of them but I had to go back and read again. It was well worth it this is a wonderful book. Edge of your seat thriller You may think you can guess the ending good luck with that. Really surprise ending. Thank you net galley for providing the advanced copy of this book and many thanks to the publisher.

Loved the plot, characters, great sense of urgency -- master pacing, which is what I expect from this author! Every bit of this story exceeded my expectations and I will definitely use it in class!

in Clare Mackintosh's The Last Party, everyone is a suspect - including one of the officers investigating the murder of Rhys Lloyd. Everyone is gathered for a New Year's party, but many of the hosts and guests are under significant personal stress due to relationship problems, financial concerns, and long-kept secrets threatening to be revealed. The next morning, a body is found floating in the lake. Many had a motive, but you'll be kept guessing who committed the crime until the very end. Great characters and a great setting make this an enjoyable and fast read.

Thank you to the publisher for giving me the chance to read an early copy of this book. I saw that it was picked for a November BOTM and I know it is a highly anticipated release by many readers. I will probably be in the minority but unfortunately, this one was a DNF for me. Around the 45% mark, I decided to give up on it for now. I may pick it up at a later date, but one thing I really struggle with in any story is where there are a ton of characters. Even though this is a thriller, it felt more character driven than plot driven. I found myself struggling to keep up with all of the characters. Each of the characters seems to have an entire other set of characters attached to them, and many of the details seems a bit pointless to the entirety of the story. I felt like a lot could have been cut out. I decided to give up when I found myself skimming, I hate to say this,, but I literally fell asleep every single time I picked this book up, and it never seemed to matter what time of day that was.. I need to set this one aside for now.

The Last Party is the first novel in the DC Morgan Mystery series and I’m all here for it! DC Ffion Morgan is this book’s main female character. She is witty, independent and determined to solve the murder mystery of a local man, Rhys Lloyd. With a small town setting we learn early on that this man has enemies and everyone has a secret, including Ffion.

This story takes place in a small Welsh town on Mirror Lake and Mackintosh does an amazing job with the details. She even includes some Welsh language which I thought was a nice touch to the characters dialogue. This book does include a long list of characters and a past and present timelines. Some may find this challenging as I did in the beginning but each character is very unique to this murder mystery story. We do get different POVs throughout the story, but it’s mainly told from the two detectives working the case, Ffion Morgan and Leo Brady.

The Last Party is definitely worth the read, it has an ending I promise you won’t see coming. In addition, it may very well become a TV series and I’ll be watching because it’s the perfect crime drama story for the big screen!

Read if you like 💕
🫶🏼 short chapters
🫶🏼 Detective TV shows
🫶🏼 Detective duos

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. 🤍