Either I'm getting slower and dimmer in my old(er) age, or writers are getting better at throwing you off the scent of the true killers in their books. I devoured this book- one I initially thought might be a little bit boring, yet was written by Kate White, so I HAD to read- in a little less than two days. I was 100% sure I knew EXACTLY who killed Jamie, and I was pretty positive EXACTLY how his murder tied into the murder of Jess Nolan, 4 years earlier. Alas, I was incorrect on both counts. This was a fun read, although obviously the subject matter was dark. It takes a special author to make a book about suicide/possibly homicide interesting and not depressing. (Even if you do feel sad for the departed). Definitely worth a read, and I'll absolutely continue to have Kate White on my must-read list.

The main idea of the book is a simple one: was it a suicide or was it something more sinister? Unfortunately, this book fell a bit flat for me. I really struggled to connect or even like the main character, Kiki. I felt like I didn't really understand who she is and why she was so invested in her ex-fiance's death being a murder. She was the one that broke it off with him, so it seems like removing guilt was her main reason. There were too. many characters in the story that I found it hard to keep up with who was who and how they were connected to each other. Some of these characters and plotlines seemed to be unnecessary. I didn't love the romance that was thrown in either and I really didn't like the ending. Overall, it wasn't enough of a thriller and it was far too slow paced.

Thank you to Netgally, Harper Perennial and Kate White for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

As a fan of this author, I’ve come to love her style of writing. Unfortunately, this book was a slow burn this time. It felt drawn out in some parts but then sped up at the end. It was an okay book, but not quite what I’ve grown to love about Kate White’s writing.

The Last Time She Saw Him
by Kate White
Pub Date: May 14, 2024
Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
A woman is left reeling when her former fiancé appears to take his own life, and she becomes desperate to prove it was actually murder—in the latest psychological thriller from New York Times bestselling author Kate White.
I have read other Kate White books and really liked them. Unfortunately, this one was not for me.
This was an average thriller, some parts were predictable, and what the author tried to throw in as big twists didn't do it for me. I was not a big fan of the main character, Kiki, and was frustrated with the premise that a woman would go this far to investigate her ex-fiance's death after she was the one who ended it. I also struggled with the romance in this book since it seemed unnecessary and took away from the thriller aspect in my opinion. Overall, it was a quick read and had some good parts, but not my favorite thriller.

Kiki attends a book release party for her friend’s husband.. friends she shares with recent ex fiancé Jamie.. This party will be the first time Kiki and Jamie see each other since the break up.. thankfully they seem to depart on decent terms as the party winds down but all that is about to come crashing down. A gunshot is heard as the last remaining guests are leaving…All will make it home from the party except for one.. Jamie is found dead in his car is it murder or suicide? Kiki is left heartbroken and reeling.. but she is determined to find out what is really the cause of death! She cannot imagine it truly being from suicide!

I enjoyed this book thoroughly. I liked the characters, the plot, the setting. It gave murder mystery vibes. I thought I had it figured out but was completely wrong. This is my very first book from this particular author and I’m excited to read more from her.

This was a fast paced and easy to read book by Kate White. I’ve read previous books by the author and enjoyed them. This book, “The Last Time She Saw Him” was good. You really see the frustration and turmoil of the main character. A few twists throughout that you don’t suspect. There is a lot of detail written to describe scenes which is nice I suppose, but I did find myself skimming through some of that. Overall a good suspense book and I didn’t guess the end. I liked it.

This was not my favorite Kate White book I didn’t feel invested in, nor did I love the main character.. it was very slow paced and lacked any “a ha” moment. It was ok, not great. I’d probably skip it.

I so looked forward to this ARC as I love most of Kate White's work. However, I was disappointed.

It had potential and started strong. By 30% in I had predicted the ending and the rest of the book dragged till the very anticlimactic finish. I still gave it generous 3 stars because I did enjoy the beginning and the characters - and not everyone may see the end coming like I did.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC - but this is a thumbs down for me.

I was given this book by NetGalley for an honest review-
Kiki is going to a party where her ex fiancé will be. She is nervous but when everything goes good visiting with him she feels relieved until at the end of the party there is a gunshot and Jamie is dead. They say suicide but no way does she believe this. She begins asking questions which leads to a car following her, strange things happening in her apartment. It seems someone doesn’t want her to find the answers- and maybe this is the person who murdered Jamie??

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Expected publication date: May 14. 2024
Since former Cosmo editor-in-chief, Kate White, turned to suspense writing, she has dazzled me with her books, especially “The Second Husband”, “The Fiancée” and “Between Two Strangers”, so it didn’t take much convincing for me to agree to read and review her newest adventure, “The Last Time I Saw Him”.
After breaking off her engagement to her fiancé, Jamie, Kiki Reed just wants to focus on her job as an online job coach. But when friends in Connecticut invite Kiki to a house party to celebrate a book launch, Kiki doesn’t want to turn it down- even if it means that she will run into Jamie. Kiki’s run-in with Jamie is more civil than expected and they part ways amicably after a few short conversations. A few hours later, gunshots go off and Jamie is found dead in his car, leaving Kiki devastated. But when the police begin to speculate that Jamie committed suicide, Kiki can’t accept it. She decides to stay on in Connecticut and investigate for herself what really happened to Jamie, even though his family is dead-set against it, and most of them blame her for his suicide.
“The Last Time I Saw Him” is narrated by Kiki (although there are a few small portions told by a character identified only as “Him”, which takes place four years before Jamie’s death), as she pursues her own murder investigation into Jamie’s death. I loved Kiki’s perseverance and resolve, especially when the reader gets a bit more background of what happened in Kiki’s past and how she rose above it. The “Him” who narrates could of course, be any of the male characters in the novel but White manages to shade his identity almost completely, adding another mystery to the plot.
Of course, White sets the stage to make a few characters plausible suspects but she keeps you guessing until the very end. I was not able to connect all of the dots in this mystery, but White not only made the ending surprising and unexpected, she also managed to make it satisfying and completely plausible.
White has been a writer most of her adult life, in some capacity or another and, although I have only recently experienced White’s more recent novels, I am thrilled that she has taken the leap into psychological fiction. She is a perfect fit for the genre, and I anxiously await more from her.

Disclaimer: I received an advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review. Thank you Kate White, NetGalley, and Harper Perrenial and Paperbacks for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

Kiki attends an event knowing she will run into her recent ex-fiancé, Jamie. At the end of the party a gunshot is heard and Jamie is found dead in his car. While Jamie's death appears to be death by suicide, Kiki is convinced that foul play is involved. Kiki can't kick the feeling that there is more to the story even though the police seem convinced otherwise, so Kiki decides to stick around a do a little digging of her own to see if she can find any clues. I love a good mystery and thriller novel and this novel did not disappoint. I look forward to reading more from Kate White in the future.

This was a fun, quick read, but it wasn’t my favorite of Kate White’s. The story fell flat for me - I believed Kiki that Jamie didn’t really kill himself, but found some of the other characters naive and irritating. It also felt convenient to work in the other murder and the ending felt too neat.

I hate to say it but this just didn't do it for me! I was really excited about the premise, and the cover is gorgeous, but somewhere in the middle I found myself wanting to skim and just wasn't invested in the main mystery. I also really disliked Kiki, making it hard to really remain interested in her character development.

This may just be a me thing, but just was not my favorite thriller at all.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Kate White is one of my authors that I look forward to reading ASAP. This book, however, was not one that I got excited about.

The story begins with Kiki attending a party knowing her ex-fiance would also be present. Though it was she that left him she still has some remaining feelings for him and is devastated when he is found dead at the end of the night.
While there were a few "twists" there wasn't enough there for me to consider it a thriller. The ending felt unresolved to me and left me with more questions than answers .

While this book wasn't for me, I will continue to look forward to Kate's next release.

I am a fan of amateur sleuth mysteries but this one fell short for me. In a typical amateur sleuth, the police are involved in some way, at the very least circling back to the sleuth at the end of the story to fill in any information gaps about the murder or the motive. In this book, the police knew less about investigating than Kiki, apparently, and the ending consisted of Kiki and Sam surmising and filling in their own blanks on what must have happened, which was not the satisfying conclusion I wanted. I also felt that while a few of the red herrings provided misdirection, they weren’t all that relevant to the story. The ghost angle was unnecessary—someone had obviously been in the house but that likelihood seemed to be the last thought in Kiki’s mind—and Jamie’s date to the party was another angle that had an unsatisfactory resolution—'she must have psychological problems’ seemed like a convenient and easy treatment of the character and her role in the story. I also felt that there was scant backstory about the murderer—I would have expected this character’s personality/attitude/behavior to have been woven into the story in a more consistent and intentional way. He was mentioned, then he wasn’t, then he was chasing Kiki through a field. The big pay-off at the end didn’t feel earned.

I did not mind the romance with Kiki and Sam, but I felt that if the hint of romance was going to be introduced, then the author should have fully committed to it. This wishy-washy attraction, acting on it, not sure about it so I’ll walk away kind-of romance wasn’t worth introducing into the story and the chemistry between Sam and Kiki just wasn’t there. It was more filler than credible story element and I think the story would have been stronger if they remained antagonists to one another—it would have created more tension and conflict in figuring out if Jamie had been murdered and who may have done it – OR – it could have been an effective source of story angst if they became a true item and threw Jamie’s family and friends into turmoil over their relationship. The romance could have been a real tension builder but as told it missed its potential and did not add heft to the story.

I didn’t much like Kiki, but there were some secondary characters I liked and would have enjoyed more story with them—Ava and Sam come to mind. I thought the bucolic setting of Litchfield county made for a good backdrop for a murder mystery. I did find myself wanting to get back to reading the story when dealing with real life, so there is a want-to-read-what-happens quality to the book. Given my want to read the book, however, I was disappointed I didn’t enjoy it more.

Thank you to and Harper Collins and NetGalley for this advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book primarily is from the point of view of Kiki, who used to date Jamie and left him at the altar. There is a party, and Jamie ends up dead. Kiki is determined that it wasn’t a suicide as everyone thinks, and as they ruled. Kiki’s going to do whatever it takes to figure out what really happened.

This book was a fairly easy read, but I struggled a bit to keep track of all of the different characters and the roles they played since there were so many characters involved.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this book in exchange for my review! All opinions are my own.

This was an interesting read. I was thinking it might be similar to a Sally Hepworth or Megan Miranda novel, and it was, but also different. I would consider reading another book by Kate White in the future.


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Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!

The story intrigued me so much but the execution fell flat. Kiki was so irritating and did the most unbelievable things.

There were some twists and turns that caught me off guard (in a good way) but overall this could have definitely been better.

It is a fantastic story, exhilarating plot, well developed characters, and a well executed shocking ending. I read in one day, unputdownable and very addictive. Recommend to every thriller reader.

A woman is attempting to solve the mysterious death of her ex-fiance. I so love a who dun it mystery
The characters are very like able and a few I did not care fore. There was beautiful Connecticut scenery are the backbone but also includes a mini romance and great food. Oh and that adorable dog, I loved it. The was a great book. .there were some tense areas and lots of surprises and chaos.
Thank you NetGalley for my advance readers copy.
I will be rewriting a full review in a few weeks.