Famous Last Words 📝

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: Suspense, Thriller
Pub Date: February 25, 2025

The day starts as any other day for new mother Camilla, who is going back to work for the first time after maternity leave. Her husband, Luke, isn’t home to say goodbye, which she finds odd. As she continues to not hear back from her husband, she starts to worry a bit. Then the police arrive to tell her that Luke is involved in a hostage situation. But he’s not a hostage.

The overall premise and plot for this book was great. I loved the idea and I enjoyed how the entire story played out. This was more of a character driven thriller, and I did really like Camilla, as well as her sister Libby.

While I’ve really enjoyed many of Gillian McAllisters novels, this one fell a little flat for me. The pacing was off. Even though the action starts straight away, it still felt like it moved too slowly. I had a hard time getting really invested until maybe halfway through the book. I was able to piece together some of the reveals, and I did enjoy how things came together. Some of ending was a little convoluted and took me a minute to sort everything out in my head.

This was a fun and little bit different of a thriller, and I think this will be a huge hit for many readers. For me, the pacing of the story was what I really struggled with. If you’re a fan of McAllisters previous works, I do think it’s worth picking up!

3.5⭐️

Cam has gone back to work after her maternity leave to discover that her husband is holding hostages in a siege situation.

We are told the story from Cam’s and the hostage negotiator Niall’s perspective. I found these perspectives fresh and interesting. It starts really strongly immediately drawing the reader into the situation. However after the initial grab I found the pace very slow,there wasn’t enough revealed throughout to keep me fully invested. It took me ages to finish the book despite liking the premise of the story.

Fast-paced, twisty, and fun, another triple for McAllister. A strong entry in the "do you really know who your husband is" genre. Not strictly domestic suspense as the reveal comes more from the crime/thriller world than at home.

Wow. What a ride! I’m still in awe of Gillian’s ability to create a thriller with so much depth of emotion.
There are twists upon twists. Some I connected before they were revealed and a few came as a total surprise. I really was fascinated at how a seemingly straightforward hostage situation was going to result in our “good guy” who looked like a “bad guy” was going to be redeemed. WTG! You will need to buckle up for this one!

Having read this previous author's works I settled myself in for a wild ride. But I just had a really hard time connecting to anything in this story. I am not sure what exactly was off, But it did not do it for me.

Great read

Cam works for a publishing company and just returned to work after the birth of her daughter. She is understandably shocked when she is told her kind, loving husband was holding three people hostage at a warehouse. Even more so when he appears to have killed two of them and disappeared. After seven years of wondering what happened and if Luke was still alive, Cam files the paperwork to have him declared dead so she can move on, possibly with her new co-worker..

The story also follows the life of Niall, the hostage negotiator who made the call to not have Luke shot, but then had to love with the decision that may have cost the life of two people. Two people who were never identified.

Niall never gets over this case. When events unfold after Cam files for the death certificate, he is even more energized to find out what really happened.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it.

OH. MY. GOODNESS. (!!!!!!!!!) THIS BOOK! (!!!!!!!!!)

Camilla is going back to work after maternity leave. Her daughter Polly is attending her first day at nursery and her husband Luke…well he’s no where to be found. That is…until he’s found to be the gunman in a hostage situation. But don’t worry! Everything is totally fine because he’s an all around great guy and this is so out of character for him. He would never actually kill someone…right? RIGHT?!

So listen, this book is a wild ride. Like please hold on tight because the twists, turns and emotions from these characters will have you grasping at your emotional support water bottle and flying through the pages to find out more until that very last page is read. And WHOA. That’s all I have to say about that. Just…whoa.

I absolutely loved this book! It was a snow day read for me and I plowed through it all in a day.

Gillian won me over with her Wrong Place Wrong Time book and this one is no different. She has quickly become an instant read for me and I’m already on the edge of my seat for whatever else she creates!

Famous Last Words hits shelves February 25th and I urge you all to run, don’t walk to grab a copy!

Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow for an arc of this book. All opinions are my own.

What an entertaining mystery with numerous to reads and characters. Well developed story line, complex structure and well drawn characters. Definitely a binge read. More of a 3.5 to a 4 but I’ll give it a 4.

Thank you for the ARC of Famous Last Words! This book was a page turner! The first part kept me on my toes with the hostage situation. I enjoyed the love story between Luke and Cam but didn’t really care for the negotiator’s love life or how it really added to the story. The middle of the book seemed a little slow, but I appreciated the short chapters. The ending was twisty but needed to suspend belief a bit. Overall, it was a good book that many people will enjoy! Thanks again for the ARC of Famous Last Words!

What a thrill ride of a mystery. I could not figure out where Gillian was going but I was so happy to be along for the ride. New mom Cam finds out her husband has taken hostages in a nearby warehouse and is holding them at gunpoint. Cam is in shock! Her kind, gentle husband and father to tiny Polly could not be doing this... The hostage negotiator, Niall works to find out what is making him tick but before too long it's over. People are dead or missing. Seven years go by and Cam is still reeling. She knows she needs to move on but how can she when she still loves her husband. Twists and turns will keep you page turning until way past your bedtime. Bravo Gillian!

Immediately 5 stars! Intriguing story, so suspenseful, unexpected twists and an ending that I hoped for. This was like no other book I’ve read so far and I just can’t stop thinking about it! Absolutely recommend this one!

Yikes, this book grabs you from the jump and keeps you flipping those pages til the very end.

The mystery of Luke was a good one and even though I kind of knew the general gist of what might happen, the twists and turns it took to get there were worth the ride.

Would it have taken that much more suspension of disbelief to give Libby a different future? Come on!

Recommend to those who love a page turning, suspenseful thriller!

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was an immersive read from a great author! No matter the plot, you know with this author, it’s going to be twisty and turny. This is no exception!

Gillian McAllister never lets me down! This was my first read of 2025 and kicked off the year so strong. I was at the edge of my seat, truly feeling the emotions right alongside Camilla. What would YOU do if your sweet, fun, loving husband was suddenly responsible for the cities most infamous hostage situation with no explanation? The not-knowing would positively destroy me.

This was a very great look at how crime doesn't affect just 1 person or 1 family. The characters grow so much much in this novel and were truely believable.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

I wanted to love it. I just didn’t. The story started out strong, but then it got slow. I’m not sure why Libby and her infertility struggles were a part of the story. I honestly didn’t care. I wouldn’t classify this book as a thriller. I believe others will really enjoy it. It just wasn’t for me.

Excellent plot, writing is a little rough. Hopefully will be edited a little before publication because it read clunky. Still couldnt put it down because the story was great.

Even though this took me nearly a month to read (my fault not the stories fault) I actually really enjoyed it.

What would you do if you woke up and the person you love is involved in a hostage situation and murders someone? How far would you go to find out the truth? When do you give up?

This is a great book for anyone who loves a mystery thriller sprinkled with a love story.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for this copy in exchange for my honest review.

Famous Last Words
by Gillian McAllister
Pub Date: Feb 25 2025
Cam and Luke are the sweetest couple. He's the fun-loving extrovert author and she is the introvert agent who found him. They are living a happy life with their 9 month old daughter and it's time for Cam to go back to work. She expects her first day back to be full of worry and anxiety, but she didn't expect this. Her flighty husband isn't there when she wakes and gets ready to start the day. He's only left a cryptic note.
Then at work, she is escorted out by the police; her husband is all over the news. There's been a seige with hostages in a factory....and her sweet, fun, loving husband is the one with the gun.
Lots of twists and turns. Well-written and keeps the reader invested.
#FamousLastWords
#GillianMcAllister
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Pub Date: Feb 25 2025

Overall I really enjoyed this book! A little slow in the beginning, and I could have done without some of the side stories about the characters (Libby…kinda pointless to read about her), but overall I really enjoyed this story!

There are a couple of lose ends that I wish would get tied up, and I do have a couple of questions that never got answered, but maybe that’s part of the whole mystery. Also…..what’s the significance with 7 years.