Thank you for the advanced copy, NetGalley!
I have always enjoyed Torre’s book and was excited to receive an advanced copy.
I liked this book, but did not love it. It was a bit creepy and weird for me.
Upgrade to 3.25 stars.

A.R. Torre has done again, you guys! This dark, extremely fast paced thriller had me going into the night! I read this in 2 days. It's so wonder that everyone over at @thrillerbookloversthepulse has been RAVING about this book! The goodreads rating alone should be enough for you to preorder!!

It's no secret that A.R. Torre is an autobuy author for me, and the tension and twists in this book were one after another and I was here for it. There's extra commentary between chapters from other people which added to the mystery. The chapters are short, which make for easy bingability and you have multiple plots that come together for a chefs kiss of a finish!

Do not miss out on this book!!

Thank you to netgalley and Thomas and Mercer for an ARC!

The Last Party is an absolute masterpiece. A.R Torre is a literal mastermind in the thriller genre.

The story begins with Perla Wultz who is a despicable, vile, and manipulative human being obsessed with the Folcrum Murder. Well, we learn a few secrets about Perla towards the end but in short, she will do whatever to get her way.

The Last Party was “unputadownable”. I was invested from the very beginning. It was literally a page turner from the very beginning.

In efforts to not spoil the book for others, I will not go any deeper into this review. But, all I have to say is run and add to your tbr. It was my first A.R Torre read, and while I do own others, I have not yet read them. I love the writing style, the execution of the plot, everything.


Thank you NetGalley, Publisher and Author, A.R Torre for an opportunity at an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The Last Party is a wild ride and I must say what a party it is.

The Wultz family has it all or so it seems.

They live in a desirable neighbourhood, a beautiful home and a mother (Perla) who is the most craziest , nastiest person you will meet and does she have a huge secret.

Perla is sinsiter and souless.

You want to shout to the her husband Grant and her daughter Sophie wake up and run for your life.

At the same time how trustworthy are these two.

Then there is the infamous murder 20 years ago of three 12 year old girls at a birthday party.

Mum is planning Sophie's 12th birthday one to end all parites.

A.R. Torre always does an amazing job of leaving red herrings, twists and turns ( that are twisted) and keeps you reading to the final page.

The Last Party is no exception.

Clear your calendar and your mind , get ready for a roller coaster of a read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the privilege of reading and reviewing The Last Party.

The Last Party is another fun, captivating read from A.R. Torre. While the plot was pretty predictable, the book was hard to put down. I recommend The Last Party to readers who liked The Last Mrs. Parrish, The Drowning Woman, and A Flicker in the Dark.

📚 Readability 5/5
The super short chapters and jumps between character POVs created a compulsive reading experience.

📚 Character Development 5/5
The FMC is incredibly well developed. She is a vile, narcissistic psychopath. The author did a top-notch job crafting Perla's persona.

📚 Plot 3/5
While the story is unique, the major plot events are predictable. I found myself unraveling the 'twist' quite early, around 40% of the book.

📚 Writing Style 4/5
I enjoy A.R. Torre's writing. She captivates readers and perfectly balances description, dialogue, and suspense.

📚 Gut Rating 3.5/5
The predictability of the plot put me off a bit. I wish the author had withheld some details to make the final scenes more surprising. But overall, it was a fast, easy read that I enjoyed.

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher, for providing an advanced copy of The Last Party!

This book is full of suspense and intrigue, with well-developed characters and a plot that twists and turns unpredictably. This novel is a thrilling ride from start to finish! I couldnt put this one down and read it in two night! Perfect for lovers of psychological theillers

Thank you to AR Torre for the ARC!

Perla is the ever-perfect wife and mother, at least on the outside. Not everyone knows of the crime that happened twenty-three years ago that shaped Perla’s life. After Leewood Folcrum confessed to murdering two young girls during a birthday party, Perla never forgot about him. And now a doctoral student is interviewing Folcrum for his dissertation. He has questions about the killer’s motive, which so far hasn’t been revealed. As the student digs up the past, the present gets a little more interesting as Perla begins to plan her daughter’s birthday celebration.

HOLY POOP!! What did I just read?! Every one of my friends at The Pulse told me this book was wild but I truly had no idea what I was in for! Perla was a very compelling character - from the opening pages, she grabbed my attention and didn't let up as I was trying to figure out what made her tick. Told over dual timelines, the student digging into the past explained the Folcrum Murders as Perla lived her picture-perfect life in the present. With dark secrets and jaw-dropping twists, AR Torre absolutely knocked this book out of the park! I had no idea how this story was going to end and I enjoyed every bit of the wild ride it took to get there. If you want to read a book you can’t put down, given this one a shot!

”The Last Party” releases on August 20, 2024. This review will be shared to my instagram blog (@books_by_the_bottle) shortly :)

𝗠𝘆 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: 4 ⭐️
THE LAST PARTY
🤍𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗿𝗲: thriller
📖 349 pages
𝗘𝗺𝗼𝗷𝗶𝘀: 🎉📧😮🔪✉️🚔😱👃🏼
𝗣𝘂𝗯 𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲: 8/20/2024

𝗪𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗜 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱? 👍🏼

🧡𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲🧡

Thank you @artorre for the #gifted copy! @thrillerbookloversthepulse is loving this one!

THE LAST PARTY is a wild ride filled with twists & suspense that kept me guessing until the very end. Each chapter unfolds with a quote from a neighbor, friend, etc, about the family, juxtaposed with journal entries from Sophia, the daughter, & mysterious emails from an unknown sender. The story's structure adds to the intrigue, making it hard to put down.

The MC, Perla, is both hard to trust & sinister, adding another layer of mystery as I tried to figure out her motive. With the clever intertwining of 2 ✌🏼 crimes, this thriller is sure to keep readers on the edge of their seats. It's a suspenseful & engaging read that earns a solid 4 ⭐️!

𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲:
◽️ dual timeline
◽️ multiple POV
◽️ twists & suspense
◽️ lies & murder

𝗣𝗹𝗼𝘁: Perla Wultz lives with her husband, Grant, & their daughter, Sophie, in an affluent Pasadena community. Though she appears to be a perfect wife & mother, Perla is secretly obsessed with a decades-old crime. 23 years ago, Leewood Folcrum confessed to murdering 2 young girls at a birthday party & is now serving a life sentence. An inquisitive doctoral student interviews Folcrum, uncovering hidden truths about the crime. As past & present intertwine, new deceptions emerge, & an intricate plan threatens more lives

On the outside, Perla lives the perfect life. She has the perfect husband and daughter, she lives in an well to do community, and she is the image of a perfect wife. Except she has a secret dark obsession with a crime that happened two decades ago. Over twenty years ago, Leewood Folcrum confessed to murdering two girls at a birthday party, and he's been in prison ever since. Now, a doctoral candidate is interviewing Leewood about what really happened that night. As Leewood's past and pressent collide, will more information come out about this case?

The Last Party is absolutely an insane ride, but in a good way! This is one where you think you know, but you don't know. It's is told in multiple POVs in short chapters that make this a fast, addictive read. The interview snippets and letters in the chapters add additional suspense to this already twisty thriller. Hold on tight because you will not want to put this one down until you get to the very end!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my e-ARC of The Last Party!

𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐈𝐅 𝐘𝐎𝐔
🎧 are obsessed with true crime
🤥 enjoy lying
📖 love short chapters
🌪️ want a twisty thriller

• 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐈𝐓’𝐒 𝐀𝐁𝐎𝐔𝐓

Perla Wultz lives with her husband, Grant, and their precious daughter, Sophie, in a gated Pasadena community. Affluent, sociable, and accomplished, Perla plays the part of loving wife and mother to perfection. It seems an ideal life, if not for a decades-old crime that has become Perla’s dark and consuming secret obsession.

Twenty-three years ago, Leewood Folcrum confessed to murdering two young girls during a birthday party. Though he’s been condemned to a life sentence, his crime is not forgotten. Not by Perla, nor by an inquisitive doctoral student interviewing Folcrum for his dissertation. He’s getting the killer to open up―about his motives, his confession, and the truth of what really happened on that horrible night.

As the past and the present entwine, the deceptions behind the infamous murder begin to surface. But who’s deceiving who now? And why? And as an ingeniously twisted plan is set in motion, who will be the next to die?

• 𝐌𝐘 𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐒

This was such a good read! I was immediately hooked from the start when Perla, our MC, was already lying right off the bat. She’s a completely unreliable narrator and person. She was simply insane. I loved figuring out the twists as the story went on. It took me way too long to realize the biggest one though. I also loved the different POVs, as they helped bring everything together. My favorite parts were probably the quotes from all sorts of different people at the beginning of most of the chapters. I loved that added realism and the complexity of it!

The Last Party is breathtakingly suspenseful! The main female character is so bizarre and so evil. As the story races to the exciting conclusion, more shall be revealed and surprises continue. A super quick, thrilling read!

Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the opportunity to read this ARC.

This is a gripping thriller read told largely from the point of view of a psychopathic woman, Perla (we find this out very early on). We see the story largely unfold from her point of view, complemented with that of her daughter’s, a convicted felon’s, and newspaper clips and interviews with neighbors. The story is interesting, particularly once the many twists and turns start coming. Things really ratchet up in the second part of the book and there is a very satisfying ending.

At the outset the various plot elements seem unconnected but they really come together well. I enjoyed the multiple points of view, the short chapters, and the easy to read writing style. There are dark issues addressed in this book but it’s fascinating to see the thoughts and actions of a psychopath. Very engaging and entertaining thriller read!

Thanks to the publisher for this complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.

Perla and Grant are an affluent couple living in their dream house in Pasadena, CA. Their eleven-year-old daughter is a bright and well-behaved young girl. Grant is a bird-watching, go-with-the-flow kind of man, and Perla orchestrates her life in order to be noticed. At the heart of this suspense thriller is a well-known, true-crime case from twenty-two years ago that will make your head spin and have you rereading passages to ensure you read them correctly!

The story folds through multiple viewpoints, with each chapter offering hints toward the conclusion. The characters are well developed, and I enjoyed the tie-in with inmate Leewood Folcrum. Without dropping any spoilers, there was one character that I just loved to hate! The storyline made me uncomfortable at times, but I couldn’t stop reading although I predicted quite a few of the twists. This dark and diabolical thriller is one to add to your reading list!

This book was insane!

One of the best thrillers I have read this year!

With multiple points of view, this book has it all- a family of three living in a gated community, a murderer serving multiple life sentences, a doctoral student interviewing the man behind bars.

This book was so intense and twisty and had me gasping multiple times out loud.

If you love thrillers, you have to read this! Be warned the content is heavy but if you can handle it, the writing really is excellent.

Get ready to plunge into one of the most talked-about upcoming thrillers in the Thriller Book Lovers The Pulse gang! This author's storytelling gripped me from the very first page.

After reading my first book by A.R. Torre, she secured a spot as one of my favorite writers!

Meet Perla, a master at concealing her narcissistic tendencies. To most, Perla, Grant, and their daughter Sophie seem like the perfect family, but beneath the surface, Perla's unsettling thoughts lurk. If Grant and Sophie knew, they would run and never look back!

This story told through multiple points of view, journal entries, and intriguing commentary, will keep you on the edge of your seat. Short chapters make it a real page-turner that you won't be able to put down. "The Last Party" is filled with manipulation and calculating intrigue. Perla is a character you won't forget anytime soon. She is complex and fascinating, and she has a charisma that is hard to resist if you overlook her deviant personality.

I loved every manipulative and deviously mesmerizing page of "The Last Party."

Sincere thanks to A.R. Torre, Thomas Mercer and Thriller Book Lovers The Pulse for providing this ARC through Netgalley. All opinions are my own and left voluntarily.


#TheLastParty #ARTorre #ThomasMercer #AmazonPub #NetGalley

Seriously sayin'.........

There are just some people who reside on the dark side of the street. Even if they beckon you to come in, make tracks in the opposite direction. Intention is everything. Crafty, creative, and with cold-blooded intentions darker than pitch and more dangerous than venom on a stick.

Know this going in: The Last Party will absolutely not be for everyone. The subject matter is heavy and just the thought of it makes one tremble. A.R.Torre sees to it. But the delivery and all the jagged dangling threads weaving through this one will showcase the talent of A.R. Torre that jabs and makes you squirm.

Perla Wurtz can sit across from you on any day of the week and appear normal and pulled together. Her wardrobe is impeccable and she lives in a 9,000 square foot designer home with her adoring husband, Grant, and their elven year old daughter, Sophie. They seem to have it all. But behind those baby blues is a calculating and vindictive mind. Perla believes that the world owes her. In fact, she can manipulate any and every situation in life to benefit herself. And, oh, Perla has a plan for just that.

And it all circles around Sophie's twelfth birthday party. Perla has something special in mind. She's lined up the players in this little devious skit. She's arranged everything to the nth degree. And as we turn pages, we shudder to think how all of this will pan out. Torre turns us into speed readers in order to get to the final pages. One eye shut and the other eye open.

The Last Party is filled with the most bizarre characters. The storyline is like a bangin' gong on the Creep-O-Meter. I convinced myself to slide this one across the table with 3 Stars. But I couldn't just dismiss the ins and the outs of the mind blowing roll out of the plot with every detail checked and colored in. A.R. Torre must know some of those people personally who reside on the dark side of the street. She's slipped them in here and we're living in apprehension ever since.

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to Thomas & Mercer and to the talented A.R. Torre for the opportunity.

This. Book. Made. Me. Scream.
And it happened more than once.
And yes, this was a good thing. In fact, it was the best thing. It was the best kind of screaming that has ever been there.
I can totally see this book getting either rave 5-star reviews or hate-filled 1-star reviews. I can’t see it getting a single 3-star review. Ever. It’s either your cup of tea, or more like your huge truckload of tea leaves, or it’s too wild, too intense, too gory, too crazy for you.
For me? It was my truckload of oolong tea leaves, not just a measly cup of tea. I’m not sure how I keep going back to simple cups of tea now that I have seen what a truckload of the most fragrant and the best quality high mountain oolong feels like.

I will not be retelling the book blurb. Do your own homework and read it yourself. Let me just tell you that if you live for unhinged book crazies, if you are like me who is bored by tame and normal, this book is for you. The detailed thought process of an FMC who also happens to be an absolutely unhinged psychopath, this book will take you places.
Although I was not really expecting any plot twists – because the story is not one of the twists, really, it’s more like watching the inevitable happen in a very straightforward manner – there still were a few. They were hinted at now then, throughout the book, but when those were revealed… they did feel great. Despite it not being surprising in any way, despite the ending being fairly clear from the very first chapters of the book already, it was still one of THE most awesome unhinged books I have EVER read.
I had heard about the author several times before. I think it was @amandamckinneyauthor who mentioned the author to me for the first time. And now I know that I have another name to add to my growing list of authors I love and want to read more of.
We, the team over at @thrillerbookloversthepulse have been talking about this book non-stop. I know many have read it already and have posted their reviews. And, trust me when I say this is a fairly unique situation: EVERYONE on the team loves the book.

p.s. also, the book probably needs a trigger warning galore – I’m not a trigger warning person, but I know others are, so, please do check for those if you know that you need trigger warnings; hopefully, those will be added to the final version.

It is an easy five star thriller for me! The chapters are short, the suspense is high, and the main character is NUTS!

I love thrillers with multiple points of view because you get more inner dialogue with each character. What’s their underlying motive? Who is telling the truth and who is lying? Not only does this book have that but we also get two different story-lines. Not completely but there is an incident that occurred years ago that determines the present chain of events. It is completely unhinged and there are multiple twists that dropped my jaw.

Add this one to your list if you’re looking for:

- A possible sociopath
- Rich people behaving badly
- Confession time
- Family trauma
- A birthday party gone wrong
- Secret obsessions

ᴛʜᴇ ʟᴀꜱᴛ ᴘᴀʀᴛʏ
5 ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰

ᴛʜʀɪʟʟᴇʀ ᴛᴜᴇꜱᴅᴀʏꜱ ꜰᴇᴀᴛᴜʀᴇ + ʀᴇᴠɪᴇᴡ

A special ᴛʜᴀɴᴋ ʏᴏᴜ ♥️ to @alessandratorre4 & @thrillerbookloversthepulse or the early #Gifted e-copy of this amazing book!

Written by: A.R. Torre
Publication date: August 20, 2024
Format: Ebook (349 pgs.)

ˀqotd: Would you visit a family member if they were incarcerated for murder?

Two 2️⃣ word review: Freaking Great!

Emoji review: 🔪 🗓️ 🐰👨‍🍼🥳🩸🤫😳🤯

The Last Party is easily my favourite read of 2024 thus far!

A.R. Torre is a new-to-me author and is now an insta-purchase for me. I’ve added some of her backlist to my tbr and I can’t wait to read more from her.

When I say I devoured this book, I mean I couldn’t stop reading, and finished it in one night.

The writing was chef’s kiss 💋! This is one of those books that pulls you in right from the first sentence.

It is told in multiple PoVs, and done really well:
- Perla (FMC)
- Grant (Perla’s husband)
- Sophie (Perla & Grant’s 11 yr old daughter).
- Leeland (man incarcerated for murder)

In addition, there are snippets of character interviews from the community throughout.

Perla was unlikeable. I found myself regularly shaking my head at this character. 🙂‍↔️ She has a loveable husband and daughter, but she treats them more like possessions than people.

It would be hard for me to give a worthwhile review without spoilers, or just regurgitating what I’ve read. What I can say, however, is this was a twisty tale set in an affluent neighbourhood. It is full of secrets, murder, and even digs up a “decades old crime”.

This book has multiple layers to it, and they all come together perfectly in the end.

The story is plot heavy, with only some character development, but if it had been done any other way, I think it would have detracted from the story.

I can’t really say a whole lot without giving away any spoilers.

Read this if you enjoy:

-Suspense/Thrillers
-Multiple PoVs done well & seamless
-Great writing ✍🏼 that keeps you guessing
-Character Arc (You go Grant!)
-Complex family dynamics
-Books with sociopaths
-Just take it from me and add this to your tbr!

This story was a slow burn thriller. It was told from multiple POVs (which sometimes got confusing). Years ago, three young girls were attacked at a sleepover. Two of those girls died. In the present day, Perla is obsessed with this case.

Perla was wild! She was unhinged in ways you couldn't even imagine. She has a very docile husband named Grant and a precocious daughter named Sophie. There are signs throughout the story that things are off, but it takes a while for the author to unveil them.

The first 80% of the book moved slowly, but the final 20% was so good! The plot twists and drama were just what I needed. This wasn't my favorite book by the author, but she's still on my auto-buy list!