4.5* --> 5* (edited to change the rating)

When the Clarke family moves from California to Scotland, little do they know that their lives will change a a lot more than they bargained for. Barely established on the Isle of Mull, their teenage daughter goes missing. Local law enforcement doesn’t seem at all interested in looking for Adriana, and the locals have never been what you might call welcoming to this bunch of strangers invading their island.

Adriana’s parents hire a private investigator, Sadie Levesque. She travels all the way from Canada, doing what she does best, which is finding missing teenagers. But when she finds Adriana’s body, she quickly catches the eye of the local police herself. Solving the mystery surrounding Adriana’s death is a constant battle against the police and the locals. Nobody seems at all bothered about what happened to this young girl. But she might not have been the first, and she could quite possibly not be the last either.

I honestly can’t think of a better location the author could have chosen to set this story. The Isle of Mull is wonderfully atmospheric with a delightful sense of isolation, even though getting on and off the island doesn’t seem that much of a hardship. It has a little bit of everything, rugged terrain, mysterious caves, hills, forests, water obviously, and it almost felt like an advertisement for Mother Nature. Furthermore it’s also the perfect place for lore, the stuff of myths and legends, stories about sunken ships and princesses, witches and witchcraft. All of this creates the most fabulous haunting vibe and the island itself is even given its own voice, which is at once delightfully quirky and intensely eerie.

There’s plenty of what seems to be myths and legends in this story but it serves a different purpose than you might expect. There’s an underlying theme about the empowerment of women against an increasingly hostile and misogynistic world. Suddenly this crime novel feels very much of-our-time and it adds another extraordinary layer to the storyline. ‘The Last Girl To Die‘ is often disturbing and sometimes rather gruesome, but if you’ve been reading Helen Fields’ books in the past you wouldn’t expect anything less, and I personally felt it was toned down quite a lot from her “Perfect” series. (Which, incidentally, if you haven’t been reading that one, I’m shooting daggers at you from behind the screen and fully expect you to correct the error of your ways asap.)

It all feels extremely ominous with danger lurking around every corner. There’s no way to know for sure who to trust on this island. I always felt there were little clues Fields was dropping, little breadcrumbs that I somehow put together into something completely different from where the story actually ended up. True to form, there are plenty of twists and turns and while I don’t normally like to mention something like this because it veers into that “twist you won’t see coming” category many of us dislike so much, I would like to point out that one twist left me quite unattractively open-mouthed. Shocking seems like a true understatement and it’s not something I will forget in a hurry.

Helen Fields has never let me down and I was confident from just reading the book description that I would enjoy this book. I had a wee wobble at the start, although I’m not entirely sure why, apart from this horrid mood I’ve been in the last few months. But once the tension was dialled up a notch, I didn’t look back. ‘The Last Girl To Die‘ is twisted, dark, gripping, brilliantly written and proves once again that Fields is rightfully on my list of go-to authors.

Oh crikey, a standalone book by an author I like and respect, set on the island of Mull? Of course I needed to read it, right now! It was actually my ex who told me that I would absolutely love Mull. I still haven't been, but I have every intention of going there, one day :)

Sadie is a Canadian PI, tasked with solving the mystery of what has happened to Adriana, an American girl who has moved to Mull with her family. She is also to act as a buffer between the local police and the family, as the police don't seem to be doing much to find their daughter. When the daughter turns up dead, more questions than answers are thrown up.

There is a mystery surrounding the Clark family; what aren't they telling Sadie? Why are the townspeople so hostile towards her? And Nate, is there a future for the two of them?

An amazingly twisty tale of bruised egos, unrequited love and Scottish folklore and myths and legends (which I love!).

The ending was shattering, to me. Very good, but shattering.

I didn't really understand too well the passages where the island itself was expressing itself. That didn't seem to be necessary here or add much to the story.

Anyway, I really enjoyed this book.

4.5 stars from me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK.

This was a torrid novel looking at the awful deaths of young women on the Island of Mull, off the coast of Scotland.
An American couple’s daughter is missing. The local police have given up, or felt it not worthwhile. The parents call on a Canadian Private Investigator Sadie Levesque to help them. What follows is a twisted and gruelling account of Sadie’s investigative processes. Eleven days after she disappeared, Sadie finds Adriana Clarke in a sea cave crowned with seaweed, and more.
I did not like the ending and found the last chapter took away from what was a sound murder mystery. Solid discovery ran into magic realism. Unfortunate!

An Avon Books UK ARC via NetGalley.

With the atmospheric backdrop of the beautiful island of Mull, superstitions and folklore this is a wonderful setting for this title. Sadie Levesque, who is famous for finding missing teenagers, is flown from Canada to search for a missing girl by her family.
From the beginning Sadie is unpopular with the local police and the twists and turns which follow are compelling, to say the least. The characters are well drawn, the descriptions and attention to detail fascinating.
Clear your diary before you sit down with this book, you won't be able to put it down.
Many thanks to Netgalley/Helen Fields/Avon Books for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

An American family has recently settled on the small Scottish island of Mull. An ancient island steeped in folklore and suspicious residents. When the teenage daughter of the family is murdered one dark night witchcraft seems to have played a part. The family call in a private investigator Sadie Levesque as they feel the police regard them as outsiders. This island and its people have many secrets but you will be left a bit bewildered by all the running in circles that Sadie does. A exciting start gets a bit slow and bogged down in the middle of this story. Keep with it and you will be rewarded with an unusual ending.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Since discovering Helen Fields on NetGalley, she has quickly become one of my instant-request authors. Her police procedural series books are great, but I’ve also read a few of her stand-alone books which really showcase her versatility as an author. The Last Girl to Die is one of these stand-alone thrillers as we meet private investigator Sadie as she tries to solve a disappearance on a remote Scottish Island.

The setting of the book is a good choice, it’s a close-knit community with its own folklore and mythology as well as past incidents and a population distrustful of outsiders. There’s a lot of strong characters (and some red herrings!) throughout the book. The plot also has a lot of twists and turns and it was not easy to guess who the perpetrator was. My only criticism would be there isn’t much characterisation of Sadie herself – I didn’t really feel like we got to know her very well. There’s a point towards the middle of the book where she decides she’s going to go camping and suddenly we find out that she has a lot of outdoor experience – none of which had been hinted to up until this point. I also felt that a lot of people seemed to trust her or give information to her which didn’t feel particularly realistic, and it got to a point where certain things just felt like convenient plot devices.

I was going to give The Last Girl to Die four stars, however the ending really blew me away and surprised me. I don’t want to give away any spoilers but it’s a great twist and also felt really brave and not something I have seen many authors do before. This definitely stepped the book up to a five star read for me.

Overall, The Last Girl to Die is a twisty read with a really strong and unusual ending. Thank you to NetGalley & Avon Books UK for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have read one of Helen Field's books from the DI Callanach series (One For Sorrow) and it was absolutely brilliant so I thought I'd be on to a winner with The Last Girl to Die and whilst it's not as good as One For Sorrow, it's still a great read. This is a standalone so no worries about missing out on anything.

Sadie is a private investigator from Canada hired by Adriana's family to find her and it doesn't take her long to locate her body. She is a bit of a maverick and makes some questionable decisions which only serves to stir up the local constabulary and community in her quest to find out who the killer is. All is definitely not what it seems and soon Sadie has a list of suspects as long as her arm and at risk of becoming a target herself.

Helen Fields uses all manner of skills to immerse you into this story from myths, legends and folklore to her vivid descriptions of the Island of Mull, well fleshed our characters and a pace that moves along well and whilst I felt some of the situations Sadie put herself into as being a tad dubious, it did work with her character.

The Last Girl to Die is full of tension and unease which ramps up towards an ending I wasn't expecting at all ... I love it when that happens ... and I would recommend to others who enjoy dark mysteries that keep you guessing.

Thank you to Avon Books UK and NetGalley for enabling me to read The Last Girl to Die and share my thoughts.

I’ve read some of the author's previous books and they always engrossed me with the characters’ surprising power of wanting to do right at all times. This story didn't disappoint either.

It's fast-paced, creepy and intriguing. There were moments, especially the ones when we discover how the teenage was murdered and found, that left me speechless. It made me think from the beginning that there must be a ritual or something similar to that body to be left to like that. So be worn that there are quite a few vivid descriptions that some might find it unsettling.

The mix of myths and old stories that the locals seem to believe in with all the suspenseful moments made it for an enjoyable afternoon read.

Looking forward to read more by the author in the future as she is one not to be missed if you want to read something more than just a crime thriller.

🆓📖 Very grateful to the publisher for my review copy through NetGalley

I really enjoyed the first half of the book. The setting in Scotland was great, the characters believable, and the story was flowing. Then something happened and I was no longer drawn to the story. It feel dragged out. It was simply too long. I did no longer care for the characters, and the story took turns I did not enjoy. The ending was a bit different from most endings.

The premise was promising but in the end this book didn’t deliver. I found myself skimming chapters because I wanted to know who did it but everything between the murder and the end just didn’t captivate me. I found the main character kinda annoying. I mean for a private investigator her actions were pretty reckless. So unfortunately this wasn’t the one for me.

I got this arc in exchange for an honest review

Unbelievably gripping, from the gut wrenching opening to the totally unexpected ending, this book will keep you transfixed. From Helen Fields the author of the brilliant D I Callanch series comes this brilliant standalone
Private investigator Sadie Levesque arrives in Mull at the request of a family whose daughter has gone missing. As an outsider she’s about as un welcome as those that employed her. A mystical murky unfriendly place, the further she delves the more she alienates herself . An excellent read with an amazing ending

I felt involved in the investigation that Sadie Levesque, Private Investigator was on where she had been employed to solve the mystery of a teenage disappearance on the Isle of Mull, which soon turned to be a murder investigation and then another girl's disappearance.
She was not welcomed by the locals or the local police force who all made her job difficult. She found support from a journalist who had investigated a disappearance several decades before and the pathologist. I was even left wondering if Sadie could trust these two men, who could she trust?
A really gripping read.
Oh wow I was left reeling at the end of this book!
Thanks to the author, Net Galley and Avon Books for an ARC in return for an honest review.

As a fan of Helen Fields' works, I wasn't expecting anything less than a gripping story with great characters that you wouldn't want to put down and that's exactly what I got. Plus the "surprise" appearance of a character from the Callanach series... I absolutely loved this and couldn't recommend it more!
Thank you so much for the opportunity to read this wonderful ARC.

I love Helen fields books and this was was just as good as her others. Set on an island off the coast of Scotland this story had a creepy feel to it. It had the usual shocks and twists which I love but, I didn’t find out who the culprit was until near the end. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

This is a great crime thriller.
Set on a remote island in Scotland, private investigator, Sadie is asked to find a missing teenager.
The family moved here from America and it’s clear they don’t trust the Police.
Sadie searches the island and eventually finds the girl’s body and it’s not a pleasant sight.
The family ask Sadie to find their daughters killer, but the local Police aren’t too happy with Sadie poking about in their case.
Another girl is soon found dead in a similar way but there are enough differences to make them question if it’s the same killer.
Sadie is good at her job but doesn’t appreciate the danger she is in by staying on the island, as someone wants her gone.
This is a gripping crime thriller with a few surprises in store.
Thanks to Avon Books UK and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

There are some good things about this book to recommend it and others that are peculiar. The procedural elements are great and the main investigator is believable, the small island mentality is captured beautifully. No in some book descriptions you will find the phrase ;the landscape is like a character itself' well in this book the author takes this to the extreme by having the 'Island' narrate sections itself. Not for me. I enjoyed other elements of the island history and the mythology.

An overall ok read.

I love the author’s Luc Callanach series and I liked this stand alone book, too, just not as much. (I have a secret crush on Luc!) It’s a good story, and the main character is a hard working, caring, female private investigator specializing in missing teenagers while doing a few dumb, risky things along the way. The Scottish coastal setting is chillingly atmospheric, and the mystery is intriguing with myths and legends of witches and shipwrecks. The ending was a sad, unexpected shocker for me.

I am a huge fan of Helen Fields so was excited to dive into this stand alone and it didn’t let me down. Helen sets the scene beautifully and you really feel like you are on the Island with Sadie. It’s atmospheric, kinda creepy, and I really like the mix of murder and superstition. I wasn’t a massive fan of the chapters where the Island is talking to the reader but the writing from Sadie’s POV kept me hooked. There were a few eye roll moments of Sadie putting herself in danger but it helps keep the suspense up. I also really enjoyed the mix of likable and unpleasant characters. I had zero idea who the bad guy was and was just patting myself on the back for working out the obvious twist. The ending was a massive shock and I still think about it now. It was so well written even if I was a little bit outraged. It’s one of those books that when you finish it you have to take a minute to process what the hell just happened.

Just be warned the murder descriptions are graphic if that’s something you want to avoid.

I received a copy of the ebook via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Sadie Levesque is a Canadian private investigator called to a tiny island, Mull Scotland, ust across from Glasgow. She's been hired by the family of Adriana Clark to solve her murder. The murder seemed to be some kind of ritualistic thing and Sadie has her work cut out for her.

This is an usual murder mystery because of the location. The island is small and unwelcoming to newcombers and with every part of her investigation, Sadie is met with a suspicious and uncooperating police chief and the unfriendly citizens who live there.

The story is long and convoluted and it's not the type that i normally enjoy. It took me sometime, after three or four starts, to get into it and it's not something I would recommend. Frankly I didn't enjoy this book at all and unfortunately i would not recommend it. Having said that, i don;t wish other people to be put off by my totally personal review.

Many thanks to NetGally, Harper Collins and Avon Books for allowing me the opportunity to review Th Last Girl to Die

WOW What more can I say, This book is superbly written, it is atmospheric and chilliing. Set in the Isle of Mull the fact that the island is cut off helps build the tension and the plot keeps you guessing as all the islanders could be responsible for the murder of Adriana Clark’ a 17 year old girl. found dead in a cave in a ritulistic way.
I will definitely look forward to next book from Helen Fields.