Tessa is the lone survivor of a murder spree five years ago that left her friends dead. Now she goes back to the scene of the crime to face her demons.

This is the perfect summer thriller read! Especially if you’re vacationing in an isolated beach house. I loved the plot of this one and knew the original crime was not over. The creep factor builds slowly and you don’t know who to trust in the town. The end gets super exciting and you won’t be able to put it down until the last page.

“The beach house wasn’t haunted. She knew that. But the ghosts of the past were there anyways.”

The Last Girl Left comes out 4/23.

The Last Girl Left follows Tessa Montgomery as she returns to the place where she and her three best friends were murdered five years prior, leaving her as the sole survivor. The story is set in a remote area deep in the woods leaving her almost entirely alone.

I love the final girl trope and I thought the concept of after the murders was such an interesting idea! The short chapters make it easy to keep your interest and make it a fun read! Roughly the first 75% or so of this book is a slow build with Tessa only hearing spooky noises and footsteps and the book does a good job of casting suspicion on everyone she meets. Once the twists start happening and the action begins, I couldn’t put it down! I appreciated how everything was tied up nicely and there were no loose ends. Overall it was an interesting story and I enjoyed it!

I wish we had learned more about the friends, they were brought up in multiple flashbacks but we only got a surface level description for each of them, so I found it hard to connect to them. I would still re-read this book though, it was a great gripping story.

WOW!!! This book just blew my mind and I’m still speechless! It was a total page turner and I could not put it down. I thought I had it all figured out, but NEVER even suspected that!!!

Thank you so much for the advanced copy!!!

I really just don’t know about this one. The premise was so exciting. I was very very interested in what the book was going to be about. As I started reading it, it just didn’t live up to what I expected. While the story was interesting and it was a page Turner, there was a lot about the book that just felt awkward and clunky. A lot of the ways that are main character described “the night “ Felt in authentic and uncomfortable. It was like she was talking as a storyteller, instead of as a real person. I have never heard anybody say “that fateful night“ so many times.

The book really kind of fell apart for me at the end. All the characters turned into almost a caricature of what real people would be like. Our big “main villain” Was almost comically weird. I don’t know very much about serial, killers and murderers, but I just can’t see them acting like that. He almost felt like a hyena who just loved murder? Like one second he was so excited to be murdering, another talking about how fun it was, but not in a way that felt chilling or scary, in a way that felt like a kid talking about how much they loved ice cream. the whole thing just felt a little weird and a little uncomfortable.

We’re still positives about this book. The mystery The whole thing just felt a little weird and a little uncomfortable.

Still positives about this book. The mystery definitely kept me intrigued, and I did care about finding out what happened to Tessa. I would call it a page Turner, even if I don’t know if I loved the story. Once I got about 25% of the way in it kept flowing I really enjoyed the pacing of the story, and I felt like our main character was very well developed. The way she spoke about her friends always felt very strange, as if she was reminiscing on strangers, whether than People that she was supposed to care about, and people that I was supposed to care about. I don’t feel like the story of her friends was that well developed, and I think it may have been better if the story had been written and split timeline as opposed to , small, small flashbacks. I don’t know anything about her friends other than what their plans were after college, because it was mentioned endlessly.

I don’t know if I necessarily love this book, I do feel like it was a little bit more creepy than a lot of the thrillers I have read, and I really enjoy thrillers. The way the story written was just a little unsettling for me. I don’t know if I would recommend it to friends.

My friends at Thriller Lover: The Pulse and I have been talking nonstop about this book - it is just SO good!!

Five years ago, Tessa Chamberlain was vacationing with four of her closest friends at a beach in Maine. She had no idea that a man they would meet there would come back to their house and brutally murder her friends. Tessa was the only one left alive, after being viciously attacked and scarred. She has been a shell of her former self, barely surviving so when her sister gives her an ultimatum, she decides to finally face the past. Tessa returns to the beach house where her friends lost their lives, retracing her steps to write a book about being the sole survivor. Soon after arriving, she begins hearing strange sounds on the porch and coming from the attic. Tessa begins to wonder if she made the wrong decision to come back to this place.

WOW!! This book absolutely blew me away! It started off with a bang and did not let up even for a minute. The pacing was quick and the story flowed so perfectly, with bits and pieces of Tessa’s past coming to light as she struggled to remember the specifics from the night that changed her life forever. I was immediately immersed in Tessa’s world and thought I had an idea where the story was headed but I wasn't even close! As I was reading, I had to remind myself that this wasn’t based on real events because it was just SO lifelike and chilling. Thank goodness I had the audio for this book, because I could not stop listening to it!

If you love fast-paced thrillers that will keep you fully engaged til the end, don’t miss this one! Thank you to Thomas & Mercer for the ARC! “The Last Girl Left” releases April 23, 2024! This review will be shared to my instagram blog (@books_by_the_bottle) shortly :)

Thanks, Thomas & Mercer, for the advanced review copy via NetGalley. (Available 23 Apr 24)

After a rocky night of sleep (or lack thereof), I realized Saturday morning that my rule for scary thriller consumption should match the one I have for caffeine: None after Noon. I couldn’t fall asleep or stay asleep, waking multiple times anxious and sweaty.

The worst part? I didn’t care for the story. The writing was in the “tell, don’t show” style, the perpetrator was obvious from the first time they walked on the scene, and the premise was implausible. A young woman, after five years of crippling anxiety, returns ALONE to the remote house on a remote island off the coast of Maine, where she had been brutalized and left for dead after listening to her three friends be tortured and murdered. To write a book. Not that she’s ever written anything before. Though she got a big advance from a bigwig editor, so what do I know about plausibility? 😉

AND another thing: a key part of the story was someone creeping around the rental house, whispering in the MC’s ear while she slept, only to disappear silently when she woke up screaming. I grew up in an old house. You can’t blink silently, let alone scurry up a set of stairs.

I seem to be on a 'Last Girl' trend at the moment. Let me tell you, this one did not disappoint either! This book was so good! I had book the eBook and audiobook so I would alternate between the 2 depending on my situation at the time. I want to start by saying the narrator was awesome! She gave just the right amount of infliction so that you would actually feel the emotions that the characters are having. The book was very gripping. I didn’t want to put it down. And honestly, the only reason it took as long as it did to read it was because of tax season! I loved that this book was told in short chapters so it was easy to get in 'just one more chapter" and not overdo it, even though I wanted to read it all in one sitting.
Tessa is the sole survivor of a beach house murder 5 years ago. Since then, she has yet to overcome her demons and move on. But who could blame her!? With everything that went on! Everything she listened to as she hid and tried to survive! This is told from Tessa's point of view only. There are instances where she gets flashbacks to the night of the murders. She doesn't remember any of it so little by little, she is learning what really happened.
The ending was NOT what I expected at all! Part of it was, but the other part?!?! OMG, threw me for a loop! Did not see that coming at all. The epilogue was a nice little tidy up chapter.
While the ending of this book is good, I was hoping for a little more. Not sure what exactly but something more. Maybe a little more detail of the night of the murders or a little more insight to the culprit, little more info on previous crimes that the were commented on in the end. Even with that being said, this book is a strong 4 stars! Kind of waffling between 4 and 4.5. Great, compelling, bingeable read! Idk I would recommend this to. Everyone probably!

The Last Girl Left by A.M Strong, Sonya Sargent
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Pub April 23, 2024

Tessa was the sole surviving woman in a massacre where she listened to her three closest friends get butchered and Tessa herself was left for dead.
5 years later she decides her therapy isn't going well and she needs to return to the scene of the crime to overcome her phobias.

This book was so Haunting and I loved the writing. The entire thing was so easy to read. I switched back and forth between listening and reading when it was most convenient for me. And both options were pleasantly easy and just as eerie as the other choice.

If you're looking for an unsettling and twisted story that includes a few triggers such as r@pe, m*rder, and stalking. Then look no further than the last girl left.

Thank you to @thrillerbookloversthepulse and @sonyasargentstrong for hooking me up with audio and the wonderful book box (see previous reel)

Guyssssss….this book!!!!
We are living it over here at @thrillerbookloversthepulse.
I was so into this book, I devoured it. It was suspenseful, haunting, kept me on my toes the entire time and I did not see that ending coming.
Tessa survives a horrific crime that killed her friends. Five years later, she returns to the scene of the crime to see if she can finally heal. Plus, she needs to stay a month for her contract with a book deal. But strange things start to happen and Tessa is terrified. Is what she seeing and hearing in her head or is something really going on?
A great book for fans of true crime!

Thank you Netgalley and Thomas and Mercer for the ARC!

Synopsis: Tessa is consumed with half forgotten memories from her traumatic past. In an effort to move forward with her life, she decides to pack up and go back to the place that took everything from her. Footsteps on the porch, creaks from the second floor, and an unsettling feeling of being watched has Tessa wondering if she has made a terrible mistake.

My thoughts: Put together the final girl trope + everyone’s a suspect and you have the makings of a great thriller. The Last Girl Left is set in Maine on an island cottage with a horrific history. This is a darker story revolving around a beach house massacre so prepare yourself to be spooked! I found this to be bingeable and fast-paced, perfect for those of us who have read one too many slow-burn stories and want something different.

Do yourself a favor and add this to your TBR immediately! This is definitely in my top 5 reads this year so far! I absolutely LOVED the writing style, the backstory, the main character and the twist was one I did not see coming! Absolutely obsessed!

Thank you to the author, Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for this ARC!

This one was good! I was reading it home alone, which might not have been my best choice, but I couldn’t put it down. The premise was simple enough, a girl returning to the place she escaped from to fight her demons, but easier said than done. I liked the atmosphere and the small town where you don’t know who you can trust,

Five years ago, Tessa Chamberlain and three of her friends rented a house on Cassadaga Island off of the coast of Maine. In that house, her three friends were murdered and Tessa was left barely alive. Now, Tessa's returning to stay in that home to face her fears and hopefully get some closure and healing on what happened all those years ago. It's November, the island is empty of vacationers and shut down for the winter months, with only very few residents left. Tessa is beginning to wonder if it's such a good idea to stay ago alone in the house that she almost died in. At night, she feels ill at ease, hears footsteps, hears floorboards creaking, and doors closing. Has her past come back to haunt her? Will she make it out alive this time?

Buckle up for one heck of a ride because The Last Girl Left is a heart-pounding, panic inducing, nail-biting read. This book is filled with a whole list of questionable of characters that will have you constantly questioning if someone is really out to get Tessa or if Tessa's mind is playing tricks on her from being back in the house that caused her so much trauma. This book gets you hook, line, and sinker from page one, and the intensity just builds and builds nonstop until you've read the final page. Not to mention, it may also have you repeatedly checking if you've locked your doors, looking under your bed, and randomly flinging open your shower curtain because it messes with your head like that. 🤣

✨Review ✨

The FOMO was real as my thriller besties @thrillerbookloversthepulse were all raving about #thelastgirlleft in the group chat so I knew I had to move it to the top of my reading list. And I’m so glad I did!!

The Last Girl Left is a bingable book full of suspicious characters, red herrings, a captivating crime and a clever take on the final girl trope. Once I got started, I couldn’t put it down!

I was suspicious of everyone on the island, except one character who thank goodness wasn’t a bad guy. The isolated island in winter was atmospheric and eerie, but I also still kind of want to go there? #thrillergirlproblems

I thought the choice to do short flashbacks of Tessa’s memories vs. a full dual timeline was clever and helped build momentum throughout the story and give depth to her character.

Thriller friends- you want this book on your summer TBR! Just maybe avoid reading it at a cottage on an island in Maine… ;)

Thank you @amazonpublishing and @netgalley for the gifted copy to read and review.

Tessa was the sole survivor of a massacre where her three best friends were killed. After five years of failed therapy, living afraid of everything, she decides to take her life back and heads back to the place where it all happened.

This was such a fun thriller that had me hooked from page one. It was dark and twisty, filled with an incredibly tense atmosphere that had me checking behind the shower curtain before heading to bed. If you're a fan of the final girl trope, definitely check this one out on release date.

The Last Girl Left is about a girl named Tessa who is the sole survivor of a triple murder, it was supposed to be a quadruple murder, but Tessa survived.
Tessa and her friends Courtney, Madison and Shelby all rent a house on Cassadaga Island, a remote beach area of Maine. The girls’ trip suddenly turns into a nightmare when one of the girls befriends a charming man on the beach.
Five years later is really where the story begins, when Tessa who has been struggling to move past the massacre, decides to face her demons head on and rent the house where the murders happened. Tessa is going during off season, so it’s just really the local island people who are there when she returns.
Most businesses are closed for the offseason, and the ferry only travels certain days, so you get a real feel for the isolation she faces. The authors do a great job of creating a spooky, unsettling atmosphere.
We think we know what happened that night at the beach house, but as the story unfolds, we realize there is much more to the story. Tessa once again feels threatened as something is not right on this island. The man responsible for the murders is dead, right?
I loved this book. It reminded me of the recent real life case of the Idaho 4. This book was written PRIOR to that case, and the similarities to that case, made this book “extra” scary. Reading this knowing, evil does exist and this could and does happen in real life. Scary stuff.
The book is written in short chapters, which kept me turning the pages well into the night. I definitely look forward to reading any work by these authors.
Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas and Mercer for the opportunity to read this novel.
Publication date - April 23, 2024

5 years ago, Tessa and her friends went on vacation to a beach house. Their trip turned into a nightmare when someone broke in and killed 3 of the girls and Tessa was left for dead but survived. Now, Tessa is haunted by her past and decides to go spend a month at this beach house to face her demons and heal. She is also going to write a book while there. While there, she starts to hear weird noises and things quickly unfold.

This book sucked me right in! I loved the creepy abandoned beach town feeling. The house was really creepy and it was described well. The chapters were short and fast paced. It kept the story going fast and I kept reading to see what happened. The story kept me on my toes. I liked how everything wrapped up in the end as well.

I did find Tessa a bit annoying and hard to connect with.

I did really like this thriller and would definitely recommend! Thanks so much to netgalley and Thomas and Mercer for the arc of this book in exchange for an honest review!

*ARC received from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Intro

Five years have passed since one terrifying night left Tessa the only survivor of the massacre that killed three of her friends, and Tessa hasn't gone one day without thinking about it. Her life as she knew it stopped the night Patrick Moyer killed her friends and left her for dead, but Tessa knows she can't live her life like this forever. Paranoid, jumping at shadows, and carrying a bat around her sister's house for protection. She needs to confront the past to be able to put it behind her, so she books a one month stay at the exact vacation house she was staying at with her friends the night they died.

When things start going bump in the night, Tessa would love to blame it on her paranoia, but she can't shake the feeling that something is off on Cassadaga Island, and she can't shake the feeling that someone is with her. Watching her. And she doesn't think she'll be lucky enough to be left alive a second time.
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This book was just okay for me. It had an interesting premise and I loved the setting. I think the authors did a great job with the atmosphere. A secluded, mostly closed down island in November is a great place to start a thriller and I really enjoyed that aspect of it.

There were, however, a few areas that missed the mark for me. I didn't find Tessa to be a particularly interesting protagonist, and her inner monologue was a bit on the repetitive side. In some ways I understand, because Tessa is stuck in her fears, but the content starts to feel dry early on in the story. The story also takes a long time to really start rolling, and that felt repetitive as well. Nothing really starts happening until the last 75 pages or so, so certain parts of the novel felt like filler that the novel didn't need, and I personally didn't feel like the reveal at the end was shocking enough to warrant the drawn out portions.

Overall, this novel felt a little bit predictable and the pacing wasn't my favourite but if you're looking for a thriller to read through in a weekend, this book may be worth picking up.

Every time I thought I had it figured out, I was wrong. Great psychological suspense story. I have never read anything by this husband and wife duo, but The Last Girl Left won’t be my first!
Great atmosphere on an isolated island in Maine, with winter quickly rolling in. Tessa was a victim five years ago, she survived and her friends did not. Now she is back, for multiple reasons. Will she be a victim again?

I loved this book! The writing is fantastic and Hallie Ricardo is awesome on the audiobook!

Tessa Montgomery survives a mass murder and because of that she changed her name and decided she did not want any part of the world so she hides herself away at her sisters. Since her sister has been nagging her that she has made no progress to get on with her life Tessa decides to go back to where the murders happened. She thinks while she is there writing a book about her trauma may help her to move forward.

Since things are happening and she feels that she is getting nowhere she decides to leave the island and she thinks if she gets off the island things will get better.

This book is unputdownable!!! This book will have you hearing weird noises and checking your doors to make sure they are locked.
The writing is great and i will be reading anything this team writes!!!
Thanks NetGalley for letting me read and review. I will recommend this book!