Thank you for allowing me to review this book. I am giving my rating based on my own personal opinion and not that of any other party.

I was a big fan of Gillian McAllister's book, Wrong Place Wrong Time, so I was happy to read her new novel, Famous Last Words. The idea behind the book sounded interesting, and I was ready for another good thriller.

McAllister continues to show she's a strong writer in the genre. It's a suspenseful story that will keep you guessing until the end.

Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was ~fine~. Famous Last Words is a quick thriller to read, but ultimately felt pretty predictable to me and not terribly unique. A thriller that in a week I will likely not really remember.

Camilla’s life is about to change. After months of maternity leave, she’s ready to drop her daughter off at daycare and return to work as a literary agent. But her husband, Luke, is missing, leaving behind only a cryptic note. Breaking news reveals a hostage situation in London, and the police say Luke is involved—not as a hostage, but as the gunman. FAMOUS LAST WORDS had great pacing in the first half, but the second half slowed and felt a little predictable. The book was very action-packed, with the focus on action versus storytelling.

I have gifted this book more than any other this year- it was incredible and I could NOT put this book down. I was gripped from the start and was sucked in immediately! The twists and turns I never saw coming and it was an overall really satisfying thriller! Gillian McAllister is a genius! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own

Famous Last Words was probably my favorite book by Gillian McAllister so far. It’s a mix of thriller, mystery, and drama that kept me engaged, but not entirely blown away. At first, I rated it 2 stars, but after reflecting on it for a week, I decided to bump it to 3 stars. It's one of those books that sticks with you, even if you’re not entirely sold on it in the moment.
I did enjoy several parts of the story, particularly the ending, which was satisfying and wrapped things up well. However, I found the pacing a bit slow, especially at the beginning, which made it hard to stay fully immersed. My biggest issue, though, was the time jump. It felt unnecessary and jarring, given how large the jump was. That aspect didn’t quite work for me and kind of disrupted the flow of the story.
Overall, I’d say Famous Last Words is an okay read. I’m still undecided about whether I’ll continue reading McAllister’s books, since the two I’ve read have been just "okay." But if you're a fan of slow-burn thrillers with a dramatic twist, this one might be worth a try.

Famous Last Words by Gillian McAllister had me hooked from the very beginning with the “cryptic note” her husband left Cam on the day she was supposed to go back to work after maternity leave. She definitely wasn’t expecting her husband to show up on TV in a hostage situation as the gunman! The action is non-stop and kept me turning the pages. Even if parts of the plot were a bit predictable with some loose ends, it was a great summer thriller read.

Camilla is finally ready to head back to work after her maternity leave. But on that morning her husband is missing. At work, the police come by for her. There is a hostage situation and her husband is involved, and he has the gun. From that morning Camilla's life will forever be different and the actions her husband has taken will impact her for years to come. For Niall, assigned to the case as the hostage negotiator, he wants to reach a peaceful resolution and has to examine how is job has impacted his own life.

Famous Last Words was well-constructed, though I found it hard to keep up the momentum. Gillian McAllister created a truly nightmarish scenario for its main character to live through, and when the second act of the book picks up well after the event and McAllister gets to explore the consequences of such a traumatic event. Camilla and Niall were well-developed characters and their arcs over the story led to a pretty satisfying ending. But when the book starts out with so much energy and intensity its natural for the pace to slow down. McAllister is a great fiction writer, and it seems she infused her own new child with Camilla's situation and anxieties, which helped brought a lot of those issues to life. Not my favorite book by the author, but still a solid thriller with a lot of good twists.

Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for a copy of Famous Last Words in exchange for an honest review.

Always a good mystery thriller from this author. Keeps you guessing at every turn. A great page turner.

TL;DR: If you haven’t read McAllister before, you are missing out!! I first discovered Gillian’s books back in 2022 when I devoured her time-jumping thriller WRONG PLACE, WRONG TIME (A Reese’s Book Club pick!). Her 2023 crime thriller JUST ANOTHER MISSING PERSON was one of my favorites of that year (and we’re adapting it for television at Universal!), and is perfect for anyone who loves Laura Dave, Lisa Jewell, Liane Moriarty, and Shari Lapena. Her books are always dark and twisty, but they also have a lot of heart and emotion, and explore themes of motherhood, marriage, and the sacrifices we make for the ones we love.⁣
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Her latest, FAMOUS LAST WORDS is…REAL GOOD. It comes out TOMORROW (in the US; it’s already available in the UK), and is about a new mother whose world is upended when she realizes the man she thought she knew and loved may have committed a terrifying crime when she realizes he’s the man on TV being accused of holding multiple people hostage in a police standoff. I was completely captivated by this story, and it absolutely has one of the best openings I’ve read in a long time.

2.5/5 The characters and their motives just did not make sense to me. I'm supposed to believe that random people can just pick up gun and precisely shoot? Someone gets caught up in business that has absolutely nothing to do with them and then has a death sentence put on them? Every chapter I read had me thinking that's just an odd conversation to have. It just was not realistic. I could not care about the characters so it did not matter to me what the outcome was.

https://wFamous Last Words is a 3/5 star book for me. It starts on such a relatable, everyday morning. Camilla (Cam) Deschamps is trying to juggle her first day back at work as a literary agent with her baby's first day in daycare, only for everything to shatter when Luke vanishes and becomes the gunman in a hostage siege. What a gut punch of a twist!

I felt Cam in a way that cut to the heart: the fear, the confusion, the impossible ache of loving a spouse who suddenly feels like a stranger. The dual perspectives between Cam and Niall Thompson, the negotiator, added real depth and tension. I especially appreciated how the story unfolded over time. That said, the pacing felt uneven at times. The emotional weight was heavy, and while I love the setup and the character work, it didn't keep me fully hooked through to the end. It's a thoughtful, emotionally raw thriller and I admire how McAllister writes that kind of marriage-on-the-edge tension, but it didn't quite resonate enough to be one of my all-time favorites.ww.goodreads.com/review/show/7057335442

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this book.

Cam's life is shattered when her husband is caught kidnapping 3 people in London. Two are shot, one escapes, and he disappears into the wind. Seven years later, Cam is still coming to terms with her husband's actions and being a single parent.

It was fine. Not really a thriller, not really a mystery. The twists were clear to see from miles away. It isn't badly written, it's just...flat? I don't know.

Gillian McAllister's books are always an automatic read for me! "Famous Last Words" did not disappoint and kept me at the edge of my seat. I couldn't put it down with all of the twists and turns and surprise plot. Gillian knocked this one out of the park!

Famous Last Words by Gillian McAllister is a gripping, emotional thriller that completely drew me in. I loved how the story blended suspense with deep, relatable family dynamics, making every twist hit harder. The pacing kept me turning pages, and the moral dilemmas made the story feel intense and thought-provoking. It’s a clever, heartfelt thriller that stayed with me long after I finished.

There were parts of the book I thought didn't make a lot of sense. The timeline was way different than I assumed based on the description. I appreciated that although things were resolved, there were still ongoing issues and we didn't get a perfect, happy ending.

This thriller kept me on the edge of my seat. It was so good! This is an auto-read, auto-buy author for me! Highly recommend for the twists and turns.

Gillian McAllister does it again, and this one might be my favorite yet. I devoured Famous Last Words in just two sittings and honestly, I’m still thinking about it.

The premise hooked me immediately: Camilla, a new mom just returning to work, catches a glimpse of her husband on the news… in the middle of a hostage crisis. Not as a victim, but as the gunman. I mean, come on. That opening had my heart in my throat.

What I love most about McAllister’s books, and this one in particular, is that the suspense is never just about the plot. It’s emotional. It’s intimate. You’re not just wondering what happened, you’re asking yourself: How well do I really know the people I love? What would I do in her shoes?

Camilla’s voice felt so raw and real to me. Her confusion, her fear, her need to protect her child while questioning everything she thought she knew about her husband... it was all so honest and compelling. And the way the story weaves between the present and the past made it impossible to stop reading.

There are twists, of course and they’re great, but for me, the real power of this book is in how deeply it explores love, betrayal, grief, and the quiet unraveling of a relationship under pressure. It’s as much a character study as it is a thriller, and that’s what made it stand out.

If you love psychological suspense that hits you right in the chest and makes you question every assumption you’ve made… read this book. Gillian McAllister is an auto-buy author for a reason.

This was my first time reading anything by Gillian McAllister, and unfortunately, I don’t think I’ll be rushing to pick up another. The blurb had me hooked but the story itself felt painfully slow.

The pacing dragged, the tension never really built, and I struggled to stay engaged. It all felt rather flat. There’s a lot of introspection, a lot of repetition, and not nearly enough actual suspense. By the time the “twist” arrived, I’d more or less lost interest.

I can see what the book was trying to do but it just didn’t work for me. A great premise let down by a lack of momentum.

Lots of twists, it really kept me engaged til the end! I read it in one day. There were some obvious connections and the end was a little too quickly/tidily wrapped up, but overall it was enjoyable and I will definitely read more by the author!