3.5 ⭐️ rounded up for Goodreads.

Gillian McAllister definitely has a unique way of writing that keeps me engaged all the way through. I, for the most part, enjoyed this book, although I did figure out the twist about half way through. I also enjoyed the time jump of 7 years. It was something I had never really seen in a thriller book before.

Overall, I would recommend this to people who enjoyed her other books, or who enjoy a multiple POV crime thriller.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Exciting start but too much time spent on secondary characters. The main character in this thriller is Camilla, a book agent. She is happily married to Luke and mother to a baby. It is her first day going back to work and she is nervous about leaving baby Polly with a daycare. But she is even more nervous when it appears her husband Luke is not home and has left a note saying "It's been lovely". Once she gets to work she is confronted by the police who tell her Luke is holding three people hostage with a gun in a warehouse. Camilla's life changes forever at that point especially when Luke disappears and she doesn't know if he is dead or alive or what his reasons would be for holding people hostage.

Seven years later, Camilla is trying to have Luke declared dead and to move on with her life. I was hoping to see a tense thriller where Camilla possibly with the help of a police officer or private detective were trying to solve this mystery. Instead, a lot of time is spent talking about Camilla's sisters battle with infertility and the hostage negotiator Niall's marriage problems. I think the author added in these other issues because she wanted to draw out the various twists but it slowed down the book considerably. After all this time Camilla receives a strange text message with coordinates and she begins to feel Luke might be alive. I found it hard to believe the police would be listening in on her calls and reading her texts for over seven years or have the manpower to be following her. Niall appears to not have any other job duties but following up on this cold case and I didn't find the character interesting. There are some twists to the story that weren't fleshed out well but did explain what was going on and i did like the ending. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this ARC for review.

This is your typical Gillian book. I love love love how fleshed out and deep her books go. You truly don't see the twist coming until it happens.

Tense, twisty, and emotionally gripping, Famous Last Words is an expertly crafted psychological thriller that explores how well we ever truly know the people we love. When new mom Camilla’s husband becomes the perpetrator in a London hostage crisis, her world fractures in an instant. With a chilling note, a screaming news cycle, and secrets unraveling by the hour, McAllister delivers a compulsive, heart-pounding read. A brilliant blend of domestic suspense and moral dilemma, this is a must-read for fans of character-driven thrillers that stay with you long after the final page.

An entertaining read but it was a little slow and the husband’s reason for being away so long felt sloppy

Gillian McAllister has some big hits on the shelves. This one was really good but not my most favorite of hers. The concept is BRILLIANT but something was missing. It was a great book, I was entertained, I was shocked. It was a wonderful read!

The twists and turns in this book were so good! This is one of my favorite authors so I was sure I would enjoy. This author has a way of helping you know and understand the people in the story. Loved the mystery in this one and all of the character development!

Gillian McAllister's "Famous Last Words" is a superb psychological thriller that examines how well we truly know those we love most. This gripping novel follows Camilla, a new mother whose world shatters when her husband Luke commits an unthinkable crime and then vanishes without explanation.

What begins as Camilla's first day back from maternity leave quickly spirals into nightmare territory when Luke takes three hostages near her workplace. The only clue to his motives is a cryptic, half-written note. McAllister masterfully builds tension as Camilla's understanding of her marriage is questioned from every angle.

The ongoing timeline structure—shifting between the immediate aftermath of Luke's crime and seven years later when Camilla receives a mysterious text—creates a perfect balance of suspense. Just when you think you understand what's happening, McAllister introduces another layer of complexity that forces you to reevaluate everything.

The novel excels at portraying the emotional devastation of discovering the person you built a life with might be a stranger. Camilla's journey through shock, denial, and her determined quest for answers feels painfully authentic. Her struggle to reconcile her role as a mother with her need to uncover the truth adds profound emotional weight to the thriller elements.

McAllister's prose is taut and precise, with not a single wasted word as the mystery unfolds. The "twisty" description in the book's synopsis is no exaggeration, the plot continuously surprises without ever feeling contrived or manipulative.

"Famous Last Words" is impossible to put down, combining the page-turning quality of a thriller with thoughtful exploration of marriage, motherhood, and the sometimes devastating consequences of secrets.

𝗤𝗨𝗜𝗖𝗞 𝗣𝗟𝗢𝗧 𝗣𝗘𝗘𝗞
New mother Camilla’s day spirals as news breaks of a hostage situation in London, with police informing Camilla that her husband Luke is the gunman. As she grapples with this revelation, she’s lead on a quest to uncover the truth about the man she thought she knew.

𝗛𝗢𝗡𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗢𝗣𝗜𝗡𝗜𝗢𝗡
The book kicks off with a tense, high-stakes situation and ends with a chase and some big reveals. But the middle really slows down - there’s a lot about Cam’s love for Luke and hostage negotiator Niall’s love for his wife Viv. That side of things just didn’t hold my attention, as I usually prefer a faster pace and more twists scattered throughout.

I liked Niall at the beginning - confident and in control - but he quickly turned into the classic weary detective: failed marriage, haunted by a cold case... And without giving anything away, I think it would’ve been great to see things from the criminals’ point of view to add a bit more energy.

The twist at the end was clever, but I’d guessed part of it early on, which made it land a bit softer. I actually read this for book club, and most of us felt the same - we were hoping for a few more surprises.

𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗧𝗛 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗?
If you love a mix of slow-burn suspense and tragic love stories, this will probably hit the mark. It wasn’t quite my vibe, but the emotional depth, high-stakes setup, and strong narration will definitely work for a lot of readers.

Thanks to @Netgalley and @williammorrowbooks for access to this advanced readers copy

This wasn’t my favorite book of Gillian McAllistwr. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed it for sure. I’ve just enjoyed their other books more.

Gillian McAllister continues to write what I call thrillers with heart. She deftly blends smartly drawn characters with tight plotting. Like her other books, Famous Last Words is really a portrait of a marriage disguised as a mystery. Fans of Wrong Place, Wrong Time will not be disappointed, and fans of both thrillers and relationship novels will enjoy McAllister's genre-bending.

This book started off really strong but got a little boring in the middle. While I did enjoy the story it took a long time for me to get through. I liked the other book by this author better

Thank you, William Morrow and NetGalley, for my eARC of Famous Last Words by Gillian McAllister. All opinions expressed are solely my own.

I really enjoyed this thriller/mystery by McAllister; it drives home the question of how well do you ever really know someone? In this one, we're following Camilla who has just found out her husband is being accused of holding hostages and murder. We then follow her and Niall, the hostage negotiator, as they try to figure out what really happened that day.

This was written in dual POV, which I like, and we got to see the wife's story and Niall's point of view. I appreciated the twists and turns of the story, and how ultimately the two characters story lines become enmeshed. The writing was great, the plot was interesting, and the twists kept me wanting to read more.

I recommend this to anyone who enjoys mystery thriller books, dual POVs, and those who like to read about complex characters.

Thanks, William Morrow!

Unfortunately, though I loved and gave McAllister's last book a 5 star, this one wasn't for me. I think it was a bit too repetitive, and I wasn't as invested in what was going on - perhaps different viewpoints would've helped? Not sure.

𝕿𝖍𝖗𝖎𝖑𝖑𝖊𝖗 𝕿𝖍𝖚𝖗𝖘𝖉𝖆𝖞

𝙁𝙖𝙢𝙤𝙪𝙨 𝙇𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙒𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙨
by @gillianmauthor
@harpercollins
Out Now!

What It’s About:
It is June 21st, the longest day of the year, and new mother Camilla’s life is about to change forever. After months of maternity leave, she will drop her infant daughter off at daycare for the first time and return to her job as a literary agent. Finally. But, when she wakes, her husband Luke isn’t there, and in his place is a cryptic note.

Then it starts. Breaking news: there’s a hostage situation developing in London. The police arrive, and tell her Luke is involved. But he isn’t a hostage. Her husband - doting father, eternal optimist - is the gunman.

What she does next is crucial. Because only she knows what the note he left behind that morning says...

Famous Last Words is the story of a crime, a marriage, and more secrets than Camilla ever could have imagined.

My Thoughts: I started this last night, stayed up late, and finished it today. This was an incredibly suspenseful thriller that kept my attention and focus and made me turn the pages to the oh so twisty conclusion. I enjoyed how this was structured with a time gap. Camilla (Cam) was a compelling and intelligent FMC as she attempts to unravel her husband Luke’s misdeeds and the parallel investigation of the determined police hostage negotiator, Niall, who could not stop the original crime- was a fabulous dual narrative adding drama to this must read suspense thriller.

Need a book you won’t put down?
Pick this up!

I’m so behind on my ARC TBR, but valiantly working on both that pile and my sauna reads (physical TBR). Thank you to the tagged author and publisher for the opportunity to read this terrific thriller! This is a great book for vacation or a plane ride too.

I'll be recommending this one to my thriller-loving friends. It kept me turning the pages and guessing the whole time. The central mystery was well done and I liked that the book was about more than just that - the relationship between Cam and her sister Libby was really special too.

The twists kept coming with this one—some I predicted, some I didn’t. Her love and belief in her husband even after all those years inspired me!

Sometimes good people do bad things for good reasons… but it is much easier to believe that bad things are done by bad people. It’s the easy answer. It’s the fast solution. It’s the quickest justice… or is it without justice? Who else is hurt in the aftermath?

The lives of literary agent, Cam, and her ghostwriter husband, Luke, intertwine with Niall, a hostage negotiator, when all their lives fall apart during the same incident. There must be more to the story, and none of them are willing to accept the simple solution the Met wants them to.

This book was exciting with a wild start that grasped my attention right away, great execution throughout, but the ending started to unravel and fell a little flat for me.

A fun, quick read!

So I just finished Famous Last Words by Gillian McAllister and... I have mixed feelings. It was solid, but not a total standout for me—hence the 3 stars.

The premise is super intriguing (like, that setup had me hooked right away), and I really do appreciate how McAllister always dives into complex moral territory. There were definitely moments that made me stop and think, which I love in a thriller. And her writing? Always smooth and easy to sink into.

But overall, it felt like the tension didn’t quite hold all the way through. Some parts dragged a bit for me, and I found myself waiting for that big “wow” moment that never fully landed. I wouldn’t say I was disappointed, just... not fully satisfied.

Still, if you’re into twisty, thought-provoking thrillers with a slower burn, this might totally work for you—it just didn’t blow me away.

Gillian McAllister is a phenomenal writer. I have read and really enjoyed several of her thrillers. While I did find this enjoyable, I did not find it as gripping as some of her other reads.

New mother Camilla wakes up one day to find her husband, Luke, is missing. After locating a cryptic note he left for her, she learns that he has taken two hostages at gunpoint. Does Camilla really know her husband?

The book is divided into four sections. The first section introduces the hostage situation, and it grabbed my interest immediately. The second section dragged a bit and lost some steam for me. By the third section, the plot had picked up and grasped my interest again. In the end, I found the large plot twist to be a little on the predictable side. Overall, I enjoyed the book but didn't find it quite as enjoyable as some of the authors other titles.