The twists in this book constantly kept me guessing and at the edge of my seat at all times! It was so enthralling to get to know Tru throughout the book as she also to know herself better and I loved her and Rio’s relationship and how their souls are intertwined throughout every universe. Such a beautiful book with a fantastic plot, highly recommend.

I did enjoy reading this book. I thought it was creepy and interesting. I really liked the mystery of it. I did want some more of the supernatural elements though. What kept it from being a 4 star read was the fact that I guessed who did it very early on. It seemed very obvious to me.

Synopsis:
Tru grew up in Mount Orange, Florida under the shadow of the unsolved murder of Bailey and Celeste that took place twenty years ago. Tru is supposed to go away to college in the fall with her boyfriend. But, this summer could change everything with the arrival of Rio. Rio is new, she also has the pull to dive below the surface and the pull towards solving the murders of Bailey and Celeste. Soon, things take on an almost other-worldly quality to them and nobody is quite who they claim to be. Will Tru find out the truth or will she get loose everything in her quest for the truth?

Read this if you like:
• Unsolved mysteries
•atmospheric settings
• small town mysteries
•sapphic romance
• supernatural elements

This mystery will keep you guessing until the very last page! I was pulled in and could feel the Florida heat as I read this! I love a good mystery that keeps my turning the page long into the night! This is a fun, scary, bingable read! This is a must read for all thriller/mystery lovers
Thank you to @penguinteen for this book!

Just when I thought I knew who the killer was.. phew! I really need to brush up on some murder mysteries because I’m losing my touch 😂. I won’t lie, I’m not a huge fan of paranormal books or mysteries unless they’re vampires and such 👀 but I did end up really enjoying the little paranormal ✨flair✨ aspect of this story, it definitely added a interesting layer to the story.

Honestly, One Last Breath kept me guessing until the bitter end lol. The twists just kept on coming lol. I really enjoyed the swampy, alligator infested Florida setting.. is it me or do serial killers love Florida or warmer states?? So I felt like this setting was truly perfect for the story. I could feel like claustrophobic heat and the need to be in the springs every second of every day. It was really a well written story.

Overall, I enjoyed this one. It’s the perfect kind of thriller for a hot summer day! There’s serial killers, mystery, romance wish a dash of paranormal. It truly has a little bit of everything it seems!

This was exciting and terrifying all at once. I loved the way we kept getting more pieces of the connection between Tru and Rio, and Bailey and Celeste. This was a good one.

This was very different than I expected. There were a couple elements I wasn’t expecting that have clouded my overall enjoyment. But there were a lot of great aspects too! I think the author did a fantastic job depicting high school struggles and lifestyle, as well as the tension that comes from upcoming change and uncertainty. The setting was also very vivid and captivating. There were several moments where this book felt like the gang from Outer Banks and I think a lot of young adults readers will enjoy this story.

Rating: 4.25⭐️

Thank you to the publisher for gifting me an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Ginny Meyers Sain is so great at immersing the reader fully into the story, making you feel like you’re standing alongside the characters. This murder mystery keeps you guessing the entire time and has insane twists throughout the entire book. Following Tru as she works to uncover the truth about two teenage girls who murdered 20 years prior. She doesn’t know why but she feels as it is her duty to learn the truth.
I really liked the characters in this one and that all of them played big roles throughout the story. I liked the supernatural twist, too. I think it fit well with the story.

Overall this was a fun YA thriller that’s perfect for fans of Holly Jackson and Karen M. McManus.

Rating: 4.25⭐️

Thank you to the publisher for gifting me an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Ginny Meyers Sain is so great at immersing the reader fully into the story, making you feel like you’re standing alongside the characters. This murder mystery keeps you guessing the entire time and has insane twists throughout the entire book. Following Tru as she works to uncover the truth about two teenage girls who murdered 20 years prior. She doesn’t know why but she feels as it is her duty to learn the truth.
I really liked the characters in this one and that all of them played big roles throughout the story. I liked the supernatural twist, too. I think it fit well with the story.

Overall this was a fun YA thriller that’s perfect for fans of Holly Jackson and Karen M. McManus.

This book surprised me. Looking at the GR rating and a couple of reviews I read, I was expecting to have a hard time getting through it. I definitely did not.

The author has a way of writing that lulls the reader into a false sense of security. Everything feels beautiful and romantic despite the fact that there have been murders. Somehow, it is comfortable and lyrical with mystery and suspense woven in.

The ending, however, ripped away that comfort and security. The twists were plentiful, and the emotions and suspense ran high. I was left with some reading whiplash and a small amount of confusion. But, I'm ok with it.

I listened to the audiobook while reading the advanced ebook copy that Netgalley and the publisher kindly granted me in exchange for an honest review. The audiobook made it even more enjoyable,
and the narrator was fantastic!
4.5 stars rounded up to 5⭐️

THIS BOOK WAS SOOOO GOOD!

Sorry for the caps, but that’s how good this book was for me.

I knew I would love it from the beginning because the writing was amazing. I could see so many images playing out in my head as I continued reading along, and I loved it!

That shows me that it’s so easy to follow along with this book and that it’s not a hard book to read.

I’m not spoiling ANYTHING for this book, because this is one of those books where you have to experience everything.

My mind was constantly jumping around, trying to figure out the plot lol.

I loved this book, everyone should read this!

Two murders twenty years ago in Mount Orange, Florida still cast a shadow over some of its residents and visitors. When a girl named Rio shows up in town to try and solve the murders, Tru gets tangled up in the mystery and exploring what relationship she has with Rio. Danger surrounds them as they try to solve, who murdered Celeste and Bailey?

It took me a few chapters to get fully wrapped up in this read. The author does such an amazing job with her descriptions and makes you feel like you're actually there (Think Delia Owens "Where the Crawdads Sing" details). The buildup of the suspense and story progression kept me enticed and captivated the whole time. It didn't disappoint!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC copy.

Multiple mysteries within!

18yo Tru doesn’t know what she wants for her future, not even whether or not she wants to leave her hometown of Mount Orange, Florida. She feels stuck until 18yo Rio shows up in town. Rio is a female diver like Tru and they instantly become friends. They both want to solve the twenty year old cold case murders of Bailey and Celeste , who were teenagers when they were killed. Tru and Rio feel a deep connection to Bailey and Celeste and when they dig into the evidence and ask questions, their lives become endangered.

Likes/dislikes: I love that there’s more than one mystery inside this story. The suspense was great and kept me riveted. Tragic and scary and such a good read.
Mature Content: R for sexual related nudity.
Language: R for 164 swears and 52 f-words.
Violence: R for bloody deaths
Ethnicity: white

this was crazy and i loved the ending! the more I read, the more I wanted to keep reading so I could figure it out with Tru and Rio! it put me in a thriller mood which I loved!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the arc of this book. All opinions are my own.

Incredible! I absolutely loved this one. Such a great book to curl up with. It was hard to pull myself away to do things, but I always looked forward to diving back in. Highly recommend!

While the story had its moments of intrigue and suspense, I found it to be just an okay read overall. The paranormal elements added an interesting twist, but the pacing felt off at times, and some aspects of the plot seemed unnecessary. Nevertheless, I appreciated the author's unique take on the murder mystery genre. Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.

One Last Breath is a mystery with a slight “supernatural” element surrounding two teens trying to solve a 20 year old local murder. The story is predictable even when it goes a little off the rails but is overall an ok read.

This new release is the perfect summer thriller! One Last Breath takes place in a small town of central Florida near the sparkling crystal clear springs that attract swimmers and free divers. Mount Orange is also infamous for the unsolved murders of two teen girls nearly two decades ago while camping near the springs. As the 20th anniversary approaches, Mount Orange native, Tru and a newcomer to town, Rio, attempt to dig into the unsolved case due their strange connection to the murders of Celeste and Bailey. But as Tru and Rio stumble onto previously undiscovered evidence while free diving at the springs, they start to receive a series of threats on their own lives. As the summer heat rises so does the attraction between Tru and Rio as well as Tru’s local friends’ attempts to get her to stop investigating the cold case.

Sain does a phenomenal job with the setting; I felt like I could feel the heat, humidity, and Tru’s itch to be near the water. I loved the free diving hobby of Tru, Rio, and other locals, as this is a dangerous hobby and the wilderness of the springs added such an eerie setting for the location. Tru and Rio were a great team of amateur sleuths, and their inexplainable connection to the murder victims walked that fine line between the mystical, including shared memories for events they weren’t alive to experience. Sain created SO MANY possible suspects, and the last 40% had plenty of twists, turns, violence, and reveals that held my attention until the conclusion of the story!

I listened to the complimentary PRH audiobook narrated by Sophie Amoss, and her performance captured the youth, vulnerability, and determination of Tru. Her southern accents were well-performed, and her slow and sultry accent for Rio was so convincing! Her narration captured the anxiety, fear, and terror of the girls as they attempted to reveal the identity of the murderer.

A mystery thriller with a paranormal twist? Count me in! I love this authors work and I am always continuing to be sucked into each world they write! This book took me back to their debut novel vibes. I LOVED their debut novel, and this one was also a love!

Tru lives in Mount Orange, FL where it's famous for a twenty year old murder of two teenage girls, Bailey and Celeste. Tru is trying to keep her head above water but always feels like she is searching for something. She always feels more her self when she is able to free dive in local springs. This summer she is feeling more lost, and not ready to head to FSU with her boyfriend in the fall. The mystery of of the murders keeps holding her back from leaving her small town. She feels like she knows more about what happened that night one of the girls died. Things get even more confusing when a new girl named, Rio, rolls into town. Both girls want to find out what really happened to Celeste and Bailey. Sparks fly, things get dangerous and the summer is hotter than ever. Will Tru and Rio be able to figure out the truth in time?

What I enjoyed:
- loved the paranormal aspects! I always love a good thriller with a paranormal twist. This one was done so well too.
- LGBTQI+ representation 💜
- Loved literally all of our teenage characters. Tru's boyfrjend had my heart from the beginning.
- Wow, this was a twisty one! I could not figure it out. Even at the end, I was shocked by the twists.
- fast paced, and well written!

Loved this book! I knocked off a star because of a couple things I was being nitpicky on. But overall, 4 stars out of 5! Thank you Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

DNF @ 30%
I’m so sad cause this sounded up my alley: searching for a killer but set in spooky nature. And honestly I don’t know if it’s me, because I haven’t enjoyed my last few reads. But a part me stands by my initial impression of this story. So here are the reasons why I ended up DNFing this story:
The premise of this story, the description of it, lists that this is about two girls investigating into their town’s famous unsolved murder and shit happens. That aspect of the story felt like the B Plot. At least during the first 30%. Which is still way too far into a story for the main selling point of the story to be only sprinkled in. Instead, the story focused more time on deep water diving. And that was cool. But I would’ve liked it more if that was sprinkled in and the murders were given their real estate. Or it was about this new girl and how the FMC obviously likes her. But honestly, I was wondering what was the point of the fmc’s boyfriend she opens with? That being the situation didn’t add tension to the story. It felt like a gnat that won’t go away. Also the romance felt insta-lovey. Not for me. Or it was talking about her not applying to college. That detail never added anything or any tension, it just was thrown it so often that it felt like I was being hit over the head.
My other main issue with this story was the lack of personal stakes? I’m not sure if that’s the right way to describe it? But the FMC’s obsession with the case felt creepy? Despite the many many times she told us she’s not those creepy true crime groupies. I wish maybe she was obsessed because she’s convinced her sister was killed in a similar enough manner and if she can uncover the other more popular crime, she’ll find her sister’s killer too. Or go the Good Girl’s Guide to Murder route and have her investigation start off innocent but then suck’s her into the heart of it. I would prefer either of those than the dreams that was bordering on You territory or the “I got a feeling.” They seriously used the feeling card to “justify” anything and everything.
Overall, maybe I would have enjoyed this if I was in a different frame of mind. I kind of doubt it, but maybe these things wouldn’t have bothered me as much to at least read its entirety. But I think this book will different be enjoyed by others because there were some enjoyable moments. Those moments almost convinced me to keep going. But sadly they weren’t enough for me.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Young Readers Group for providing an advance reader copy of this book for my honest review.

"....when you think about it, each one of us is our own little ocean..."

One Last Breath by Ginny Myers Sain has landed y'all! I love her thriller meets supernatural writing style with twists and turns you don't see coming. She keeps me on my toes and quite literally swimming in the depths of relatable life situations. After adoring the hell out of Dark and Shallow Lies, I literally shimmied when I was approved for a copy of this release.

It delivers everything I've come to expect from Sain; red herring twists, unique paranormal additions and characters from all walks of life. I really enjoyed the mixture of likeable and unlikable characters. Let's not forget that it mentions my neck of the woods!!!!! Tally, Wakulla Springs and GOOOO NOLESSSSSS!!!!!! Ok, so it's just mentioned... But still!

Sain twists sapphic love, serial killer cold cases, past lives and themes that surround finding your personal happiness even if it doesn't fit the plan others may have for you. Of course this novel has even more than those sprinkled bread crumbs but I can't give it all away.

I cannot wait to see what Sain crafts next. Special thank you to Penguin Teen for the gifted copy! If you're a lover of YA paranormal thrillers, you gotta check out this author!