This moves back and forth in time and between Stephanie and her mother to tell the story of secrets, lies, and murder in a gritty small town in Quebec. Stephanie has come home after losing her job-and she's not happy. The discovery of the remains of a child, however sparks her interest in part because she can use this unfortunate death to make a pod cast. This is not a thriller and it's as much about the difficult mother daughter relationship which some readers might find frustrating. Regardless it's atmospheric and intriguing. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read.

This pains me to write because I have loved every other book by this author but I could not get into this book. I felt like the story jumped around too much from the beginning and didn’t enjoy the main character at all. I’m not even sure it was much of a thriller but I was bored.

A small-town murder mystery with family drama and plenty of twists to keep you guessing. This story is told from two POVs: FMC Stephanie in present time and her mother Laura in 1979 when the events took place.

After floodwaters in her hometown wash up the bones of a small body, Stephanie returns in hopes of a story for her podcast. She may soon discover; some secrets are better left undisturbed.

This was a quick page-turner, and the dual POV helped build the mystery well. Almost a perfect score if it wasn't for the ending, which seemed a bit scattered. Overall, I enjoyed it and plan to read more from this author.

This thrilling and intense psychological novel from the bestselling author of Girl Last Seen follows the residents of a rural town in Quebec as they grapple with long buried secrets coming to light after the discovery of a child's remains! Good book! Interesting storyline! This book had suspense, intriguing, murder, mystery, a good who done it and some crazy twists and turns! The story was a bit out there at times but a good read! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

"The Last Thing She Saw" by Nina Laurin is a gripping and atmospheric thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. Set in a small Quebec town, this haunting tale expertly weaves together past and present, unraveling decades-old secrets that have simmered beneath the surface of a tight-knit community.

When a flood unearths a child's remains, it reopens old wounds and sets off a chain of events that will challenge everything the townspeople thought they knew. Laurin masterfully explores the ripple effects of a long-ago tragedy, delving into the complex relationships and hidden tensions that define small-town life.

At the heart of the story is Stephanie O'Malley, a compelling protagonist drawn back to her hometown and forced to confront the mysteries that have shaped her life. As she navigates family dynamics, rekindled relationships, and her own quest for truth, readers will find themselves fully invested in her journey.

With its rich, evocative prose and expertly crafted suspense, "The Last Thing She Saw" is a page-turner that also offers profound insights into memory, identity, and the weight of the past. Laurin deftly balances the eerie atmosphere of a cold case with the very human stories of those left behind, creating a narrative that is both chilling and deeply moving.

Excellent read.

Ok, honest review time 🫣

I didn’t hate this book, but I didn’t love it either. I enjoyed the timeline with Laura as she was growing up - I however, did not like Stephanie our main MC, she just wasn’t likeable to me. The story had great potential, and it did keep me interested, but I felt like the end just got chaotic and felt a bit rushed. There was not really an explanation on some things, so I finished this book with some unanswered questions.

This was also advertised as a thriller but it definitely was more small town murder mystery. All in all this wasn’t a bad read, it was just okay. This is my opinion so if this has been on your radar please still give it a try, just because it wasn’t for me doesn’t mean it’s not for you.

Title: The Last Thing She Saw by Nina Laurin
Genre: Crime Thriller
Pub Date: July 23, 2024
📖 336 pgs

Small Town in Quebec
Decades Old Cold Case
Dual Timelines
Alcoholic Mother

My Review:

After being canned from her position as journalist and a flood in her hometown that reveals the bones of a young girl who disappeared decades ago, our FMC sees an opportunity for a story on her podcast and returns home in hopes of getting more viewers.

This one jumps between present day 2017 (FMC POV) and 1979 (Mom's POV). I felt that Laura had a rough childhood and was just misunderstood. I'm sad it lead her to following in her parent's footsteps and into alcohol abuse. Stephanie (Laura's daughter) made her way out of the small town, but after being fired she basically HAD to come back home, and I understand why that was so upsetting for her. The multiple POV kept me engaged and helped build suspense, and I enjoyed the build up. The end wasn't quite what I'd hoped but I still enjoyed the book overall.

3.5/5

Thank you so much NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the digital review copy.

The Last Thing She Saw
by Nina Laurin
Pub Date: Jul 23 2024
Stephanie O'Malley left her alcoholic mother, cheating ex-boyfriend, hateful "best" friend, and all the small town gossip for the big city of Montreal. Journalism school and life in the big city were her calling. Her first big gig was a podcast based, ironically enough, on her small home town and the unsolved mystery of a 9 year old girl of a wealthy family who went missing and hardly anyone, including her own parents, bothered to look for her. What happened to young Michelle Fortier?
To get more details, Stephanie begrudgingly heads "home" to talk to the locals. But the locals won't talk. They remembered how Stephanie left them without even saying goodbye and now regarded her as a stranger exploiting their town's tragedy for her own gain (which, ok, yeah, she was).
With no new details, her podcast is a failure and she gets the boot from her station. Without a job, she can't afford her apartment, or food for that matter. Stephanie knows she has to go home where everyone hates her (and she's not too fond of them either).
She comes back to her small town being devasted by a recent flood. Many buildings are being torn down and talk of never rebuilding dominates the thoughts of the community. As one building is being destroyed, the remains of a young child are found in the walls. Is this Michelle? Has she been found after almost 40 years? Stephanie is determined to figure out the mystery, if not for her podcast, for justice. There are so many suspects and Stephanie finds the closer she gets to the truth, the closer she gets to becoming the next victim.
Pretty good read. Took about two chapters to really get into it. The story flips back and forth from Stephanie's point-of-view in the present to her mom's point-of-view when she was a teen.
#TheLastThingSheSaw
#NinaLaurin
#NetGalley

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for this Advance Readers Copy ebook in exchange for my honest review. Rated 4.5/5 stars on StoryGraph. Rating also shared on book review IG account.

The story is told from two different POVs from two different periods in time. When I realized that it was told that way, I was initially disappointed because that can sometime be confusing. But thankfully it was not confusing for this story at all. I really enjoyed reading both sides of the mystery (it unfolding in present day, and the events leading up to all of the drama in the past).

The depiction generational trauma was heartbreaking. </spoiler>I’m glad that Laura and Stephanie were able to reach a common ground before it was too late </spoiler>
<spoiler>I really wish Cath had gotten a little more justice. She deserved to be smacked in the face (again) and thrown in jail next to Frank </spoiler>

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I was invested in the plot and characters. And loved the multiple plot twists.

I was really hopeful for this one, but I’m sorry to say that I didn’t love it. I enjoyed it, but I had a difficult time getting through it as it felt slow with little suspense.

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Beware of books that have recommendations within the book by famous authors!!!I found this to be a hot mess-no other words can describe it. Initially confusing about who was whom (it took me a while to realize one character was the mother of the author because of the time period transitions) and really totally unbelievable on many levels. I understand that suspense novels aren’t usually believable but this really did push the boundary. Since I finished it I’ll give it a 2

This felt like a lesser version of a Megan Miranda novel - and I’m not a fan of Miranda. The deadbeat town and the coming to do a podcast plot lines both felt so overdone it took a lot to even get into this. Listen to the Lie, for example, did this much better just a few months ago. The end was underwhelming and the satanic subplot was unnecessary. Meh.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved the setting and the characters in The Last Thing She Saw, but I struggled with the pacing. I wish there was more suspense and action to move the plot forward. In general, I don't love dual timelines, and this is an example of where flashbacks slowed down the story for me. There just wasn't enough tension to compel me to keep reading, but I'm giving it four stars because I do think there was a lot of strong elements in this book.

I am a fan of this author and have liked a lot of her previous books. This one was pretty good but didn't work as well for me. It was told in two timelines, past while the mother was a teenager and the present with it being primarily the daughter's story. Somehow this made it harder to follow. It was a mystery, who was the body that was discovered in the wall. More so, it was the troubled relationship between the mother and daughter, the troubled relationship with the town for them both and the daughter's relationship with her ex boyfriend. Alcoholism, small town dynamics, mental illness and many secrets.

The blurb of this made it sound amazing, but I was extremely bored. I would not even consider this a thriller at all.

I think this author needs to learn how to build suspense, because 50% of the way in and it still felt like I was just reading background info with nothing exciting. I am being generous by giving 2 stars, because this was actually a DNF for me, but I am also in a slump so I’ll give it 2 as the benefit of the doubt that maybe some parts got good towards the end. However, I cannot recommend this one.

Thank you to netgalley for this free advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

A really great spooky story. I very much enjoyed the cast of characters as well as the dual timeline. The author also snuck in some supernatural elements in, which I really liked.

Very good! I finished this one rather fast. The writing was also a plus. First read by this author. NetGalley tends to show me a lot of authors I never heard of prior love it!

Stephanie has returned to her rural town in Quebec to live with her erratic mother in the trailer she was raised in. She dreads seeing friends and neighbors in town but hopes to resurrect her podcast career based on the discovery of a child's body. She is sure that the body is a young girl that disappeared during her childhood and is determined to be a part of the investigation.

Fighting off conspiracy theories rampant in town, she is faced with the fact that the body may not be the young Michelle! A good twisty story for all who love the genre! #grandcentralpublishing

A child's body is discovered after a devastating flood in the center of a small Quebec town called Marly. It is discovered to be that of nine-year-old Michelle Fortier, who went missing in 1979. Stephanie O'Malley is back in Marly after having vowed never to return to her hometown and is determined to find out the truth about what happened to Michelle. This book was suspenseful, propulsive and not to be missed!