The Last Session is best read with no expectations or additional information. So if the synopsis intrigues you, I urge you to stop reading this review or any other review and just read the novel. It’s a wild ride best experienced with no preconceived notions.

The Last Session was not at all what I was expecting. Having read and loved Bartz debut novel, The Writing Retreat, I requested The Last Session from Netgalley immediately. The Last Session is atmospheric and full of twists and turns I didn’t see coming and had no idea how they would resolve, but resolve they did. The Last Session explores cults (more specifically the Larry Ray cult through Slonim Woods 9 by Daniel Barban Levin), white supremacy in past and modern-day spiritual communities, cultural appropriation, and reincarnation.

The Last Session follows Thea, a social worker working in a psychiatric unit when a mysterious woman shows up catatonic. Thea feels an unexplainable link to her and will stop at nothing to explore that link.

The Last Session is not a novel for everyone, as evidenced by the poor early reviews. Instead, it’s a novel about what the human mind is capable of when placed under extreme manipulation in a cult setting. There were times I wanted to scream at Thea while simultaneously understanding her choices and motivations.

Near the end of the novel there’s a shift in tone and direction. This shift, while predictable was also jarring. I enjoyed this new direction, but I can see why some people didn’t like it and won’t like it once the novel releases.

Overall, The Last Session is a novel that will stay with readers long after they’ve finished reading. It’s a story about cults, white supremacy in spiritual communities, and reincarnation. Bartz will have readers reading long into the night and questioning everything.

Even though I wasn’t the biggest fan of The Writing Retreat, I knew I wanted to read this because of how intriguing the plot was. I feel like amidst the saturated thriller market, Julia Bartz is pushing the envelope with unique storylines.

This started off so strong and had me compelled for the first 1/3. I felt a lot of empathy for the main character.

Ultimately, I think you’d have to suspend too much of your disbelief to buy into this. I had similar issues as with The Writing Retreat - the storyline went off the rails toward the end and lost me. I also am not the biggest fan of storylines centering religious trauma, but I understand that is up to personal preference.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC!

I had high hopes going into this book. The first half I really enjoyed but for some reason, the second half just wasn’t working for me. I did read another book from this author previously that I did enjoy, so I was hoping things would turn around by the end. Unfortunately that wasn’t the case.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advance review copy in return for an honest review. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
I feel like this book had great build up but it led to a disappointing ending. It unraveled in a weird way which is disappointing because the first half was so compelling.

The Last Session follows a social worker who recognizes a woman who comes into the unit she works on as a famous actor from a movie she was obsessed with as a kid. When the woman mysteriously checks out, she follows her to a cult that she's involved with. I really enjoyed reading The Last Session. It had enough interesting twists and turns that it stood out as different than a lot of the other cult-themed books that have come out recently, and some of it was just so bizarre that I had to keep reading to figure out how the whole book was going to come together.

This was a messy book. Messy characters, messy plot, convoluted cults. However cults are full of mess , aren't they? Maybe the point was to BE messy and confusing. Still not sure if I even liked or understood this one.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

"Last Session" by Julia Bart is a compelling exploration of complex relationships and human emotions. The narrative follows characters as they confront personal struggles and their pasts, leading to moments of introspection and growth.

Bart's writing captures the nuances of dialogue and the weight of unspoken words. The setting enhances the emotional stakes, making interactions feel real. The well-developed characters each face unique challenges that intertwine throughout the story.

Themes of redemption, forgiveness, and understanding invite reflection on personal experiences and relationships. Bart's ability to weave these themes into a cohesive narrative makes "Last Session" a thought-provoking read that resonates long after finishing it.

LOVE. Julia Bartz delivers. Compelling and atmospheric! Love locked room mysteries and add the psychological thriller angle as well. Good one

BOOK REVIEW ✨
The Last Session by Julia Bartz

I’m beyond thrilled to have received this ARC from @netgalley! This psychological thriller delivers everything I love—cults, manipulation, mental health struggles, deception, and death. A total page-turner!

The story follows Thea, a dedicated social worker in a psychiatric unit. One day, a catatonic patient arrives, and Thea is immediately unsettled by how familiar she looks. But before she can uncover the truth, the patient mysteriously vanishes.

Determined to find answers, Thea follows the clues to a remote wellness center in New Mexico, where she discovers a seemingly idyllic retreat run by an enigmatic couple. But something isn’t right. As she digs deeper, Thea begins to uncover disturbing truths about the center, its founders, and her own past. The closer she gets to the truth, the more she realizes she might not be able to leave.

This book had me hooked from start to finish! I love a good cult story, and The Last Session delivered the perfect mix of psychological tension, eerie atmosphere, and shocking revelations. Fans of The Mirror House Girls, you'll devour this one!

A must-read when it hits shelves in April.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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The Last Session was a spooky thriller! This book had so many fun twists and was written with Hollywood intensity!

This was a DNF for me. It was slow and just plain weird and all over the place. I've read The Writing Retreat and I enjoyed that one so much more than this one.

This was book was bizarre and compulsively readable. I think cults and the dynamics that pull and keep people in them are fascinating which is why the premise of this book interested me. I think that element was done pretty well. Well paced, lots of great twists and turns. There was, however, some content in this that I personally don’t enjoy reading so maybe check on some of those specifics before jumping into this one.

*Thanks to Atria and Netgally for the ARC.

Thea is trying to recover from a fresh, painful break up when a catatonic woman is admitted to the psychiatric unit with no identification. Thea is sure she knows who this women is but just can’t figure it out. This leads Thea to have flashbacks to a traumatic time from her past. Just a few days after the woman’s arrival, her identity is discovered, and she is ripped away from the hospital, leaving Thea feeling unmoored and a little confused.

As we get to know our main character more, we see that there’s something very dark in her past that still affects her to this day. Thea can’t shake the feeling that while her patient has been discharged, she is not okay and was maybe even trying to leave her a hidden message.

On a whim, Thea travels across the country to try to find her patient. Her plan is to attend a weekend retreat at The Center which she suspects is more then just a remote therapeutic space.
Once there, Thea sees for herself that Moon and Sol have created a warm, welcoming space at The Centre where you feel safe, cared for and stress-free.

There are scenes that are extremely weird. There are scenes that are unhinged. And there are some really scary, creepy and unnerving scenes.

All in all an ominous story from start to finish that I highly recommend.

Content warning: alcohol abuse, religious abuse, child abuse, sexual harassment and assault, physical violence, murder, cults and psychosis, off-page suicide.


Available April 1, 2025

Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books and author, Julie Bartz for the advanced copy.

This was honestly a lot for me, I had to DNF it. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc ebook in exchange for an honest review, all opinions are my own.

Rating: ⭐⭐ ½
Genre: Mystery Thriller

This is the first time I read something by Julia Bartz. Many of my friends loved her debut book, so when I had the opportunity to read her latest work, I decided to give it a try. The story follows a social worker in a psychiatric unit called Thea. At her work, Thea comes across a woman with a traumatic past, so she decides to uncover her story.

Thea’s investigation leads her to New Mexico, where she goes to a remote wellness center. What she finds there is shocking. It affects her in a way where the lines between reality, therapy, and manipulation get extremely blurred.

I don’t know what to say about this book! The plot itself seems very intriguing, but I feel the story failed to be engaging. Some parts felt really interesting, and the story was moving in the right direction, but there were parts of the story that were totally over the top and didn’t make sense to me. When a story is over the top, even if in parts, usually it moves fast. Strangely, this one was slow as well.

Overall, I found this book to be a bit of a letdown. If you are going to read it, keep in mind the points I mentioned. Maybe if you get into it with lower expectations, you might end up liking it.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book.

Unfortunately I am DNFing @30% the plot is all over the place, and the trauma felt so unnecessary. The author did included a trigger warning at start of the book, but I just cant continue on. Many thanks to NetGalley & the publishers for this e-arc.

I am a huge Julia Bartz fan and this was no exception! I was so excited to read this and it did not disappoint. I loved the characters and the atmosphere, and all of the twists and turns!

Thea is a social worker who has some unknown attachment to a patient who goes missing & she feels the need to find her. She comes across a couples retreat that she believes said patient is, so she ends up there. All kinds of cult-ish, icky stuff takes place at the retreat. It was at this point that I lost interest in the story. It seemed to just go on & on with stuff I found hard to believe. I found myself bored and getting distracted and just struggling to finish it. It didn’t help that I had no connection with any of the characters.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read an advanced eARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinions.

This was such a wild ride! I really enjoyed it from start to finish. There were lots of wild twists and turns I wasn’t expecting!

The Last Session is the latest suspense novel from Julia Bartz. Creepy and filled with strange character, it's part mystery and part horror, but not in the typical sense. There's a little foray into the paranormal, perhaps, tho not really at the same time. History reliving itself? A chain of souls tied together? Sisters reborn? Many ways to look at it. While I enjoy the author's writing, the plots are somewhat out there for me, whereas I'm more of a traditional reader. I need a realistic sense rather than an ethereal quality of how everything relates together. But still enjoyable and a good alternative path to take from time to time. Will look for the next author's book and add to my queue.