The Last Ferry Out by Andrea Bartz is a masterfully crafted psychological thriller that immerses readers in a hauntingly atmospheric setting. The novel follows Abby, who travels to the remote island of Isla Colel to uncover the truth behind her fiancée Eszter's mysterious death. What begins as a quest for closure quickly unravels into a web of secrets, lies, and danger.
Bartz excels in creating a vivid, almost claustrophobic atmosphere that mirrors Abby's growing sense of unease. The island, once a bustling tourist destination, now stands deserted and eerie, amplifying the tension that builds throughout the narrative. The author's use of setting is not just a backdrop but a character in itself, influencing the story's tone and pacing.
The character development is equally compelling. Abby is portrayed with depth and complexity, her grief and determination palpable. The supporting cast of expats adds layers of intrigue, each harboring their own secrets and motivations. The interplay between these characters keeps readers guessing, never quite sure who to trust.
The novel's structure, with its multiple timelines and shifting perspectives, adds to the suspense, allowing Bartz to gradually reveal crucial information without resorting to cheap thrills. The pacing is deliberate, building tension steadily until the explosive climax that delivers a satisfying and unexpected conclusion.
The Last Ferry Out is a standout in the genre, offering more than just a mystery; it delves into themes of love, loss, and the complexities of human relationships. It's a must-read for fans of psychological thrillers that are as emotionally resonant as they are suspenseful.

3 stars

The Last Ferry Out has a great premise and a wonderfully eerie setting—a remote island with only one weekly ferry, a mysterious death, and an expat community hiding secrets. The atmosphere was the strongest part of the book and kept me intrigued.

Where it fell short for me was pacing and character connection. The story dragged in places, and while Abby’s grief was compelling, her choices sometimes felt frustrating. The side characters leaned toward stereotypes, which made some twists predictable, and the ending lacked the impact I hoped for. Still, it’s a solid, atmospheric thriller with enough tension to keep the pages turning, even if it wasn’t my favorite from Andrea Bartz.

Thank you Netgalley for my e-arc in exchange for an honest review!

Nothing about The Last Ferry Out was groundbreaking, but I still had fun reading this. I always enjoy a story with good twists and a darker mood, so this was right up my alley! I appreciate the LGBTQ+ representation in this novel because I feel like this genre is not always the most inclusive. I would recommend this story to anyone looking for an easy to read suspenseful novel.

The Last Ferry Out is a suspenseful and atmospheric read that kept me turning pages. Andrea Bartz does a wonderful job creating tension, and the setting added a moody, almost cinematic layer to the story. The characters were engaging and the twists felt satisfying, even if a few moments stretched a bit beyond what I found believable. Overall, it was a gripping thriller that I really enjoyed and would recommend to fans of smart, fast-paced suspense. Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read and review this book.

The Last Ferry Out by Andrea Bartz. | ARC
Abby's fiancee Eszter goes to explore Isla Colel. The island has rapidly been receiving tourists and now everyone is excited about the new residents. Eszter goes missing, and is dead. Someone is dropping clues that they know what happened to Eszter... and Abby might suffer the same fate.

Beautiful setting, which is what Andrea Bartz creates. However, the premise was not exactly my cup of tea.

For fans of locked room mysteries that err on suspense and vacation drama where the atmosphere is so pretty but it can swallow you whole and you'll never be found again.

Somewhat predictable LGBT destination thriller.

When her fiancée, Eszter Farkus, dies while visiting a quiet island in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico on a 3 week trip, Abby decides to travel to Isla Colel herself to retrace Eszter’s steps and meet the people she had spent time with before her death from anaphylactic shock. The island, decimated by a hurricane, has no real tourism and only a few expats live there forming a transient community. Abby meets them, trying to understand what happened, and finds that things aren’t adding up. Everyone is hiding something and keeping secrets. Abby starts to believe that she hasn’t been told the truth of what Eszter was doing on the island and how she died.

This was quite slow and nothing happened as Abby shuffles around chatting up the people who knew her girlfriend. I didn’t really like any of the characters and there really was no tension or suspense as they were talking, talking, talking. Abby doesn’t speak Spanish which makes it hard for her to question the locals, and she’s not certain that Rita, Pedro, Amari, and Brady are being truthful. How did Eszter come to find this place and was she planning to come back home to Abby and get married? It really wasn’t very compelling and the plot was quite thin. No surprises. The conclusion was disappointing.

I was able to listen to the audio book while also following along in the e-book ARC provided by the publisher. There was a cast of narrators for this production including Dani Martineck, Imani Jade Powers and Natasha Soudek. But no male voice. I disliked whomever voiced the Eszter character but the others did alright considering the lack of real drama and uneven pacing. I usually enjoy the immersive experience of doing the formats simultaneously, but I did end up putting the audio aside and just read the last couple of chapters.

Andrea Bartz novel, The Last Ferry Out, tells the story about a grieving young woman named Abby, coming to a small secluded island off of the coast of Mexico. Her fiancé had recently passed away of anaphylaxis while visiting in island in what Abby assumed was just an accident. Abby comes to the island to meet the last people that her fiancé, Eszter spent time with, and to gain some closure. When Abby learns there’s more to the story, and more to Eszter‘s death, Abby digs deeper and deeper into some of the island and some of the resident secrets finding more about Eszter‘s secrets. In true thriller fashion she learns there more to the island and to Eszter than she realized.
There were parts of this novel I really enjoyed. I was very engrossed in the beginning. I love the classic thriller tropes of everyone has secrets, secluded island, locked room mystery. However it did lose me in the middle some of the plot just kind of dragged and the burn was a little bit too slow.
I do enjoy the themes of this book including love, loss, grief, and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a classic thriller with the classic thriller themes.
Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for a copy of this book and exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed the gradual introduction of the characters and the idyllic, yet sometimes eerie, cozy island setting – it felt like a perfect escape. The story's multiple points of view and subtle mystery kept me invested, even though the slow pace was a bit of a challenge for me at times. I would still recommend the book.
Thank you to #NetGalley and #BallantineBooks for my complimentary copy in exchange for my honest review.

#TheLastFerryOut #NetGalley #Happilyaddictedtobooks #RandomHousePublishingGroup #BallantineBooks

Read this in one sitting. It was everything I love in a thriller- twisty, NOT predictable, attention keeping!! Each chapter kept me wanting more.

The Last Ferry Out takes place on Isla Colel, a island of the coast of Cancun. Abby has arrived to visit the place her fiancee Eszter was visiting when she suddenly passed away. Abby has so many questions and wants to see the places that Eszter visited and the people she got to know. The island ex-pats welcome her and she begins asking questions to find out about Eszter's last days. The more she asks the more she wonders what her fiancee was doing on this tiny island. Overall, good read and the story is well written.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the ARC.

Abby is visiting the beautiful island of Isla Colel off the coast of Mexico. Her fiance, Eszter, died here a couple months earlier and Abby is yearning to learn more about Eszter's death. Instantly upon Abby's arrival a group of expats take Abby in and show her around. One of them claims that Abby deserves to know the truth of Eszter's death and agrees to meet, only they never show up. Who among this expat group knows what happened to Eszter? Why aren't they all concerned about the disappearance of their island friend? Abby keeps digging and asking the questions until the answer to all her questions is revealed. The story is told in multiple POVs and dual timelines. I liked Abby and her analytical mind but the drama on the island did drag out the middle of the book a bit for me. Once Abby stopped making assumptions and getting real answers the book snowballed to a very satisfying conclusion that I didn't see coming! The weather for the week Abby was on the island added a slightly sinister atmospheric element that I enjoyed. I was a solid 3 on this book until it was revealed who did it and because of this I'm rating this book 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the DRC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to receive this book for an honest review.

I've read books by Andrea Bartz but this one fell a little short for me. I found it hard to engage with the character and storyline.

atmospheric thriller that follows Abby, who journeys to the remote Isla Colel to uncover the truth about her fiancée Eszter’s sudden death. Stranded by a storm and surrounded by a tight-knit group of mysterious expats, Abby’s investigation rapidly spirals into a chilling mystery with unexpected twists. Bartz delivers evocative prose, rich in setting and emotional depth, exploring profound themes like grief, identity, and the elusive nature of love. While some readers find the pacing and flashback-heavy structure uneven, the novel remains compelling, marrying suspense with a poignant, character-driven core.

than you netgalley for the arc

I really enjoy the author's other thrillers. This was not my favorite, but it was entertaining and the perfect summer read.

3.1/5 ⭐️ Stars - Thank you to NetGalley & the publishers for an ALC of 'The Last Ferry Out' by Andrea Bartz. This one had an intriguing setup, told through multiple POVs across shifting timelines, but it ultimately felt like a very slow burn.

The Premise: Abby’s fiancée, Eszter, dies unexpectedly while on vacation at Isla Colel. Determined to uncover the truth, Abby travels to the island and becomes entangled with the group of expats Eszter spent time with. Just as one of them hints at knowing more about Eszter’s death, he suddenly goes missing. What follows is a night of unraveling secrets, where Abby is finally forced to confront what really happened.

While I kept waiting for that shocking twist, the big reveal near the end felt underwhelming—more “meh” than jaw-dropping. Given that this is from an author whose previous book was a Reese’s Book Club pick, I think I just expected more. Still, the atmosphere and mystery of Isla Colel make this a solid suspense read. My rating likely comes down to high expectations and the fact that I’ve listened to some stronger mystery thrillers recently.

While I have only read one other title by Andrea Bartz (We Were Never Here), the author has a reputation of writing twisted suspense and thrillers. The Last Ferry Out is definitely a more "toned down" suspense novel which may appeal to a reading audience that may find that Bartz took it a little too far in her previous books. However, this one disappointed me and was not the page-turner I expected. Perhaps it's because it recycles the same recipe we see in way too many thrillers: an island, a death, and a storm trapping the MC on the island with a suspicious group of people.

But for those looking for a milder suspense novel, this may be up your alley if you don't want to be kept up at night by the "heebie jeebies"! But for seasoned thriller and suspense fans, this isn't one I would recommend prioritizing on your tbr shelf.

🙏Thank you Random House Publishing and NetGalley for a gifted advanced electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

⚠️ Potential Trigger Warnings (may not be an exhaustive list): self-harm, suicidal ideation, family conflict.

I am very torn about giving this review 3 or 4 stars. I loved the atmosphere of Isla Colel and I felt that Abby’s character was genuine. I can understand her wanting to return to the island to give the goodbye she wasn’t able to give after Eszter’s death.

High-achieving Eszter had a lot going on; between her school project, her family issues, and making future plans with Abby, she was a bit overwhelmed and needed the island escape.

The island characters were believable in their backstories but certain actions had less believability as the story went on.

I liked the few chapters that showed the perspective of other characters, but I felt at times they were just to advance the plot in a lazy way.

Overall I enjoyed reading this but I think a few edits could have turned this novel from a good one to a great one.

Thanks again to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine Books for providing me with a digital review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Love Andrea bartz’s thrillers - always unique and engrossing with a lot of momentum. Interesting location for this one.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a readers copy of this story. My reviews never contain spoilers and are freely provided.
This is a compelling mystery. A young woman named Abby travels to a secluded tropical island where her fiancée died. She had made friends with a group of expats that Abby now hopes to connect with in order to uncover the details of what exactly happened. Abby is a very suspicious person and is quite reckless in her approach to digging for information. That was the biggest downfall in the story for me. I found it a reach to believe that someone would be that brazen confronting people that they have just met in the way that Abby does.
Overall, not a bad read, it was just a bit of a stretch for me.

Abby’s finance mysteriously dies on a secluded island and she feels the need to retrace her last week or so to determine what really happened. Along the way she meets a group of expats each with their own history casting suspicion far and wide.

The main thing I liked about this book was the unsettling island vibe! Almost everything else was a miss: characterization of Abby, uneven pacing, a lackluster ending, and a needlessly puzzling epilogue. I don’t think I’ll read this author again. Thanks to NetGalley for the early digital copy!