What a great read. I could not put this book down I had to see how it would end. Definitely recommend this great read

This was a great read! I really enjoyed the plot and it was extremely well written. The characters were well developed, and this author is one I always enjoy reading. I will definitely recommend this to others!

So good! I thought I had it figured out, and maybe I had a few tidbits, but nowhere near what was happening!
Cam and Luke are settling in with a new daughter, life is going well. Until suddenly out of the blue, Luke kills two people and disappears. But, of course, all is not as it seems!

Famous Last Words is full of never-ending twists and turns! Camilla wakes up one morning in June a happily married new mother, until she finds the note from her husband telling her he loved their time together. The plot races from that moment to finding out her husband is holding three people hostage. However, in this story nothing is as it seems. Is Luke the bad guy, or is there something more sinister going on?

This is the best suspense/mystery novel I’ve read in quite some time.

Cam is going back to work after nine months of maternity leave (she clearly doesn’t live in America). She thinks her worst problem is that her baby still isn’t a great sleeper. Shortly after returning to work, however, she’s contacted by the police. Her kind, happy-go-lucky husband is in a hostage situation. He’s the hostage taker.

It simply doesn’t relent from then on. Told mostly from Cam’s point of view and the hostage negotiator/detective's POV, the pacing is so well done.

NetGalley provided an advance copy of this book, which RELEASES FEBRUARY 25, 2025.

this one was okay. didn’t hate it but didn’t love it. the pacing is pretty good and well written but fell a little flat to me.

“Famous last words” is Gillian McAllister’s newest psychological thriller. It is dually narrated by Cam (the wife of a man who takes three people hostage) and Niall, the hostage negotiator. It’s best to go into this book blind, there are many twists and turns and it’s a very fast read. I enjoyed the story, but felt like all of the twists came in the last 10% of the book and it was a bit uneven.

Such a great, engrossing thriller. I (unfortunately) read it in one sitting...and was up until 4am doing so. The set-up was just so fascinating, and the execution didn't disappoint. Also, police surveillance is scary, and probably wasn't terribly exaggerated in this book.

A good fast-paced thriller about a young mother who is asked by the police to come talk to her husband who seems to have taken people hostage in a warehouse in London. She can't imagine her kind loving husband being involved in a hostage sistuation, even less so as the hostage taker. Niall, the hostage negotiator, is also confused when his instincts fail him in this case. But all is not how it seems and as the story unfolds with many twists, both of them realise that they need to trust their instincts. An enjoyable read.

Amazing read! Gillian McAllister never disappoints, and this book is no exception. The storyline was refreshingly unique, keeping me hooked from start to finish. A perfect blend of fun and suspense that made it impossible to put down!

I was given this book by NetGalley for an honest review-
What a book! How well do you. Know your husband?
Cam drops her daughter off at daycare not realizing how her day will tumble. The police tell her there was a hostage situation and Luke, her husband was the gunman. This is unbelievable- totally not the man she knows or is married to. What could have happened? A life of secrets culminates into a desperate situation. Can she find the answers?

I carried this book around the house (and out of the house) with me because I had to read more every chance I got. Multiple times I turned the page and had a WHAT reaction - not just with plot points, but how the story is told.

I was invested in Camilla and Niall and had to know what would happen to them. Camilla's husband, Luke, is essentially a MacGuffin, so I was wasn't rooting for any particular reveal. I just wanted answers!

Such a great book! There were sooooo many different twists and turns and I was genuinely surprised by this one! I love how it makes you keep wondering what is happening and kept me guessing. Loved it

Thank you to NetGalley, to the author, and to the publisher for this complementary ARC in exchange for my honest review!!!

Gillian McAllister is one of the titans of the mystery/thriller genre, and Famous Last Words did not disappoint!

Cam's world is upended when her extroverted, fun-loving, silly husband suddenly goes viral for committing a significant crime before disappearing...Cam can't believe that her Luke could've ever committed such acts, but there's no disputing that he's disappeared and left her to raise baby Polly alone. Will she ever find out who her husband really was? Was she really that clueless about who she married? And how was hostage negotiator Niall so impossibly wrong when he read the scene?

This expansive, emotional read takes place mostly over 7 years and will leave you breathless before leaving you totally satisfied. I really felt the pain and confusion in Cam; her struggle caught between two lives; a before and an after; a with and a without. I so desperately wanted her to find answers, worried about her safety, and cheered her on in trying to find happiness in big and small ways. You'll be on the edge of your seat trying to puzzle together how it all fits together until the last 5% of the book - where so much falls into place in ways you definitely won't see coming.

An easy 4.5 star read for me, rounded up to a 5! Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an ARC - all thoughts and opinions are my own!

When Camilla is told her husband has taken 3 people hostage, she is in complete shock and disbelief. This isn't her Luke, and she knows he would never put her or their 9 month old in this predicament. Years after the hostage case, and Camilla is still deeply in love with her husband. All she can do is pray he comes back to her one day.

Gillian McAllister is an automatic author I purchase - but this was not my favorite of the books. I did not feel clear on who the enemies are, since they were mentioned towards the beginning of the book, then not again until the last 1/8th. Although a fast read, I do think there could have been more suspense.

This book had me sitting on the edge of my seat and I couldn’t read it fast enough! The plot had me anticipating what was coming next. I really enjoyed receiving and being able to review this ARC. The story bounced between Cam (whose husband is accused of a serious crime) to Niall, the hostage negotiator of said crime. Both with varying views, still trying to understand how their worlds fell apart, and how to keep loving even when it has.

Cam has the perfect life. She has a great job, an attentive husband, and a beautiful baby girl. Everything is perfect…until it’s not.

Cam is ready to go back to work after finishing maternity leave. She gets up and is ready to start the day, but Luke her husband isn’t there. On her way out the door she sees a note he has left, saying, “It’s been so lovely with you both” . Cam drops off their daughter at daycare and goes to work. Not long after arriving the police come and ask to speak with her. They tell her Luke is involved in a hostage situation and he is the gunman. Cam doesn’t believe her husband is capable of what the police are accusing him of.
The story is broken up into multiple parts starting on the day of the Siege with each part progressing by seven years as Cam searches for answers.

This book immediately grabbed my attention with its unique story line. It was exciting, fast paced, and unpredictable.

Thank you William Morrow, Netgalley, and Gillian McAllister for an advance reading copy of this book.

Camilla is a young mom heading back to work, taking her daughter to daycare, but where is her husband Luke? He left a note that makes no sense to her. Something is wrong.

When she gets to work, she hears the breaking news about a hostage situation and then the police show up wanting to talk to her. She learns Luke is a part of it and he is not the hostage! Not her Luke, her sweet husband and a devoted father. How can this be? She is overwhelmed trying to understand what the police are telling her and what she knows of Luke.

The story is told from the POV of Camilla who is determined to find Luke before the police; and the POV of the hostage negotiator who is also determined to find Luke before something bad happens.

This book started strong for me, with a bit of lull in the middle and picked up quickly at the end, as the reader, along with Camilla and the Hostage Negotiator and are all desperate to find out what is really going on.

My thanks to Net Galley and William Morrow for an advanced copy of this e-book.

Famous Last Words started out really strong, and I was immediately sucked into Camilla's panic and confusion over the burgeoning hostage situation involving her husband, Luke. However, the actual hostage situation only comprises a small percentage of the story, and most of it is told seven years afterward. Camilla's flashbacks and "I know my husband; he was a good person" memories soon become quite repetitive and didn't really do all that much to further the story, so the rest of the book fell a little flat for me.

Cam is quite the introvert, as we are told over and over again, so her circle of friends/family (and consequentially, our cast of characters) is rather limited, and the bulk of the story, aside from the whodunnit aspects, focuses on her relationships as well as the relationships of Niall, the hostage negotiator. I felt like we got a little TOO deep into some of these relationship aspects, and they felt a bit like filler information at times, especially that of her relationship with her sister, Libby.

There were a couple of twists that I thought were rather predictable - one was so obvious that even the least sluethy of readers will likely deduce the outcome from its onset, and one that I admit I didn't see coming, but in hindsight REALLY should have given the limited cast of characters.

In the end, this was neither a good nor a bad read for me. It did keep my attention, but as I said, the whole storyline just didn't capture me as much as I was hoping it would.

Camilla and Luke are living happily ever after with their new baby daughter.
Until they're not.
Luke leaves the house one day for work and ends up in a hostage taking situation with 3
others. And to Cam's shocking dismay, Luke is the hostage taker.
Two of the hostages are shot by Luke and he disappears and becomes a most wanted man.
The story is spine tingly good with great characters and terrific follow through between the then and present day, time lapse..