First of all, this book is not horror, as it is categorized on Goodreads. It's a psychological thriller where one of the main characters is writing a screenplay for a horror movie. Kerry is an alcoholic, whose husband kicked her out because of her excessive drinking and other mistakes she made in their relationship. Siobhan is Kerry's best friend who Kerry blocked on social media and hasn't seen for 2 months. They had a falling out and Kerry cut Siobhan out of her life. Now Kerry has taken a job as a caretaker for a motel that is shut down for the winter. When she sees an arm sticking up out of the snow, she freaks out and calls the local police, and when they show up, there is no one there. Did she imagine it? She talks to her 'imaginary' husband after all...

I enjoyed this book, and the friendship drama hit all the right marks in a psychological thriller. There were definitely some over the top moments, and a couple of things that didn't really go anywhere. Overall, I enjoyed this one, even with the unlikeable characters and WTF moments.

3.5 stars, rounded up. This one had a great start -- creepy hotel in the middle of nowhere and a dead body. It lost steam for me about halfway through. Too many characters and side stories. I do have to say that the ending had a decent surprise which I did not see coming. Not my favorite but I enjoyed this read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy

“The Last Room on the Left” was a good horror story. The author openly and intentionally utilizes a number of horror movie cliques and tropes. And it works, not coming across as derivative but more like an homage. The story will keep you guessing, with questions as to the identity of the victim and the villain(s) and their motivations. The characters have plenty of secrets. The circumstances behind the victim’s death will likely come as a surprise.

Reviewed by : @literary.listener
Publishing: January 2025
Author: Leah Konen
Thanks to @netgalley for this ARC!

Well hot d@mn. I read this book in one day. Could not put it. Was invested fully in what was going on and it left me always guessing until the very end. And dang, was that plot twist within the last pages? Shocking but not, but yes it was. Wowie. I know that I say that whenever I read books I don't look for the twists. I don't look for the ending before I get there and with this book I was really trying to pin the crime on everybody. I had thoughts about who could have done it who couldn't have done it and I kept on second-guessing myself the entire time.

I will say that I liked both of the main characters. They were strong female characters which I enjoy. I did feel like the side story with Mac only was there for the twist at the end. It just didn't make sense not to be. And then when you look at the whole book I could give or take that part of it. But wow I loved it. I think that if you want a very quick read and one that is slight mystery/ whodunit this is the book for you. This is the first time that I've read this author and I really enjoyed diving into into this universe and these characters . Like I said less than a day and I was done reading this book.

And what I really enjoyed was that I believed how the two main characters left the ending. After everything that happened it didn't stop the feelings between the two nor did it fix. Anything. That to me was super believable and I really enjoyed that part.

I really enjoyed reading this twisty thriller. I liked the three person narratives told from Kerry, Siobhan and Allison. I really had no idea what was going on and who was the murderer until the end. While I was a bit disappointed in how it went down all the build up and the rest of the story was engaging. The setting really made the book all the more scary. I am glad Kerry got herself together in the end though because she was a mess and while that was okay at the start of the book it started to become a bit much. I finished this book in one day so that should tell you how much I enjoyed it.

Kerry Walsh is a successful author who opts for a temporary stint as Caretaker of Twilite Motel, a retro roadside motel in the Catskills for the month of February, while the motel is closed. She is hoping that her stay in the isolated motel will give her an opportunity to reboot her broken life and offer her uninterrupted time to finish her latest novel.

Kerry is recently estranged from her husband Frank and her best friend Siobhan, after Kerry's excessive drinking escalated. Her fractured personal life is also impacting her professional life, resulting in severe writers block. Her escape from Brooklyn to the isolated Catskills motel seems the perfect panacea to remove her from her slump.

Nothing can really prepare her for the stark reality of life in an isolated motel in the middle of nowhere in the bitter cold, with no WiFi and limited phone service. Soon after Kerry arrives, several incidents make it clear that this is not the peaceful retreat she had imagined. Her idyllic stay quickly turns terrifying, as Kerry fights to retain her sanity and her life.

This was an entertaining novel with enough twists and turns to keep it interesting.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for an early release copy of The Last Room on The Left by Leah Konen.

The last room on the left has an interesting start that had me captivated from the beginning, I really liked the first half of this book but once the second part hits I lost some interest. The isolation vibes could have hit harder, the book has a lot of characters for a thriller that main point is isolation. The characters are okay, they aren’t particularly interesting but I still believe they are written well.

I’m not particularly impressed with the direction that this book went, when we find out what actually happened it feels a bit like a joke and I kept waiting thinking this can’t be the actual reveal but it is. I kept waiting for a crazy twist but it just never came. Another thing that bothered me was the fact that the author would repeat certain words over and over again to get the point across. It was okay the first couple of times but it’s repeated throughout the book and quickly became repetitive. A short list of trigger warnings to be aware of before reading are: Infertility (this is talked about quite a bit), mixing medications with medications and alcohol, and off page but mentioned a few times sa of a minor.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for my ARC of The Last Room on the Left! I really enjoyed this one and I'm rating it 4/5 stars. Set in a snowy, isolated motel, Kerry settles in to meet her book deal deadline. However, when a blizzard strikes she is quickly thrown into a world of a murder investigation and suspicious circumstances. The genre of thriller/suspense certainty fits this title, as it kept me on the edge of my seat turning pages to see what would happen next. What kept me from rating it a full 5 stars was that I found parts of the dialouge to be unbelievable, and the plot to have some holes. Overall, I would reccomend this one though if you're looking for a suspenful, wintery, chilly, atmospheric read!

Wow! What an absolutely thrilling book. I've read and enjoyed every book by Leah Konen, but this one might be my favorite of them all.

An author goes to a motel that is closed for the season to be the caretaker (love The Shining vibes!) while she writes her book. Immediately Kerry knows that something is very, very wrong. She (and the reader) have no idea what a wild ride they are about to be on!

The book is fast-paced, has multiple points of view, and goes back and forth in the timeline. These are all aspects that I love in a book, and they were well done! Thank you to Leah Konen, who had me audibly gasping several times as I read.

Thank you to Net Galley for the early read- it was amazing!

After multiple failed IVF attempts and a failing marriage, Kerry's life has descended into days of drinking binges. Ready for something to change in her life, Kerry takes a job as a motel caretaker in a remote area of the Catskills. When she arrives, she finds the body of the previous caretaker and starts to fear for her life. When the police come, however, the body has disappeared. Has her drinking started to cause her to hallucinate or is there someone lurking outside who may see her as their next victim?

This book was described as a "feminist take on The Shining," one of my favorite movies of all time, so I was immediately drawn to it. But aside from a remote motel in a snowy setting, it did not remind me of "The Shining" at all. An alcoholic woman with absolutely no hand skillset doesn't fit with my image of a caretaker. And just because there are a few lesbian S&M scenes doesn't make it feminist. The scenes felt out of place and unnecessary. The multiple POVs were interesting and some of the plot twists surprised me, but the ending was pretty predictable and it just wasn't what I thought it would be.

*** I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. ***

The Last Room on the Left by Leah Konen takes place in the Catskills durning a snow strom as Kerry, who is struggling with her many addictions. Kerry is going to be the new caretaker for the month of February. Per insturctions that the owner sent her, Kerry is supposed to stay in room 13. When Kerry finally steps into the room she finds that the last caretaker has never left. The room is been left a mess with clothes, empty glasses, bottles of booze everywhere. With no cell service Kerry tries the landline phone to contact the owner. Kerry then notices something outside and goes to investigate it. Kerry spots a hand sticking out of the snow and she now knows what happened to the last caretaker. When the police finally show up after Kerry walks to the nearest neighbor's house in the snow, the body is gone. Now Kerry is questioning her state of mind. Did she really see what she thought she saw? When the power finally goes out and the storm getting stronger will Kerry be able to make through the nigt? Th Last Room on the Left is a modern day retelling of The Shinning. This book was fast paced and will keep you on your toes. I would like to thank both NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for letting me read an advanced copy of this book.

Not memorable - I literally redownloaded earlier this week to find I had already read it. Still, it was a book that I consumed. Not too bad, for a book.

I was given this book by NetGalley for an honest review-
Kerry divorced, an Alcoholic takes a caretaker position at a motel thinking she could finish writing her book. And then she looks out the window and sees an arm in the snow. Is she seeing things or is this real? Who can it be? Is there a killer here? And as things become real she must fight for her life!

This book was fabulous! I’m so excited to have found a new author that has a backlist for me to devour! This was such a clever mystery . A snowy setting, so many suspects, twists , turns and surprises. I read it so fast and it was a fun ride! I highly recommend you try this one out!

This was exactly the type of unpredictable thriller that I love to escape into!

I really enjoyed the isolated roadside motel setting, the alternating timelines following two winter caretakers, and how the storylines converged. I think the comparison to The Shining is a little misleading since the setting and alcoholic main characters are really the only shared elements, but the story took a few turns I didn't see coming and the unexpected twists kept me flipping pages even if the story didn't venture into horror territory as I expected. The psychological aspect of wondering if events were real or perhaps imagined while a character was under the influence and impaired added an extra element of suspense and doubt that I really enjoyed. 

The Last Room On The Left was a fast read where one chapter flowed into the next, and before I knew it I was at the end. It's a fun escapist thriller for those who love women-in-peril plots, plenty of twists and turns, and wintry, remote settings.

Kerry's life is a mess, her marriage is falling apart, she is drinking a lot, and now may have to repay her advance if she doesn't get her book written. She takes a job as a caretaker for a motel in February. The motel will be closed and is isolated without internet service so she won't be distracted writing her book. The night she checks into her room, there are clothes and personal items everywhere even though the January caretaker should have left that morning. The next day she is horrified to see a dead woman in front of the hotel. She walks a mile to the nearest house since she is snowed in and when the police arrive, the body is gone. Not able to resist temptation, she drinks alcohol left by the former caretaker and starts wondering if what she saw was real. In alternate chapters we learn about the January caretaker and the odd and sometimes frightening events that happened to her at the same motel. I don't agree that this is a feminist take on The Shining but I do think it's an unique mystery set in the winter in the Catskills.

It sounded like it would be good. I did not enjoy it very much. Didn't care for the main character. At leadt there was a twist. ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.

Calling this “a feminist take on The Shining” is …aspirational.

I did enjoy the beginning and thought it had some creepy potential, but I should have paid attention to the drunk white lady red flag and quit while I was ahead because this quickly devolved into a very standard thriller.

Three friends who find their lives drifting apart. The actress uses her connections to help the struggling filmmaker and struggling writer to hook them up with month long stints as caretakers to an upstate New York motel which is closed for the season. Siobhan is the first to take the job and hopes the solitary life will help her finish her horror film and finally make a name for herself. When the isolation starts to get to her, Alison arrives to add some structure to her creative process and keep her company. When it is Kerry's turn to take over the caretaker duties, she finds the room she should be staying in a total party-wreck with no sign of the previous caretaker (not knowing that it was her friend Siobhan.) When Kerry finds a body in the snow behind the motel, she freaks out and calls the police, but upon inspection of the property, no body is found and Kerry (an admitted drunk) is left to wonder if she imagined the entire thing.
Add in a property dispute with the neighbors, a shady recluse and a runaway young girl and the situation becomes even more muddied.
Told in alternating chapters between Siobhan and Kerry, readers get a sense of what has broken apart their years-long friendship and how the current events at the motel will determine where they go from here.
Reads very much like a screenplay, just add some creepy music to ramp up the suspense!

Meh...overly hyped as a female shining.. didn't make that great of a grab though. Too many characters for isolation novel...and Noone was likeable. Hard to relate or even care what happens to them.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.