A twisty tale, unusually dark for the festive season. Husband and wife Sacha and Neil have to spend Christmas together with Sacha’s dysfunctional family because her father is terminally ill. None of the family like Neil, and he and Sacha aren’t getting on too well either, but when he dies on Christmas day she is distraught, especially as she has no idea if it was a tragic accident, suicide or murder. The story is told in chunks from three different character’s viewpoints and had a real twist at the end. A good read

Neil would rather be anywhere than spending time with his In-laws this Christmas. He has never felt like he belonged in Sacha's family and his marriage is in trouble. Family tensions quickly arise and come to a point during Christmas dinner. What happens next, sets off a series of events that will change every family member's lives.

I really wanted to enjoy this book, but it fell flat for me. The beginning was slow but picked up at the midway point. I liked some of the twist plots, but the reveals were predictable at times. My biggest problem with this book was the characters. I disliked most of the main characters, except for Christy. I found most of Sacha's family was selfish and only there for their own agenda. Even though Sacha and her family knew Neil was depressed, they were unsympathetic, and Sacha didn't seem to care. In the end, I was expecting a different outcome of this story based on the synopsis that was given.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to review Last Christmas. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book.

This holiday mystery was very engaging! I enjoyed that we got different POVs but didn't have to jump between them and it aided in how the story unfolded. I also really liked that though this was a mystery, the way Maria Frankland wrote characters who were grieving felt very authentic and not pandering. This quick read is definitely going on my recommendations list.

So disappointed in this - I was expecting a gripping thriller, but this didn’t deliver at all.

The first section of the book, is about how Neil is miserable, whines constantly and drinks himself into oblivion.

Next is Sacha’s POV after husband Neil’s death. She has seemingly forgotten how they could barely stand to be anywhere near each other!

The three daughters and their husbands are vile, toxic people, who I didn’t care for at all.

I nearly DNF’d several times, but pushed through, even though it was very obvious who the killer was and who was responsible for later events involving Sasha.

1 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, Maria Frankland and Bookouture for an ARC in return for an honest review.

WOW! All the twists! Such a dysfunctional family and so many are guilty. It was a wild ride and in the end, I'm pretty sure that I think everyone got what they deserved.

The last place that Neil wants to spend Christmas is at his in-laws new house, especially since the whole family seems to be aware that he's a depressed, out of work, alcoholic with a strained marriage. A miserable few days is what he expects. What he didn't expect is that the miserable few days at this in laws house would end up being his last days alive. Now his wife is left to figure out the circumstances of his death. What happened? Who is responsible? Nobody in her family really liked him, but who could hate him enough to want him dead?

I want to state first that I feel a little bit mislead by this being classified as a thriller. To me, it is more of just a family drama. It's an extremely dysfunctional family with a mysterious death looming in the middle of it, but mostly the plot is focused on all of the members of the family taking turns being awful to each other.

I feel that it lacked the suspense and anticipation that drive most thrillers, and I also found that even with all the drama that all the characters brought around, it still fell flat for me. I would have preferred if the characters were developed a little deeper emotionally, so I would have felt more moved by each characters distress.

My lack of strong connection to any of the characters aside, I did enjoy the occasional switch in POV. It was really nice to have a peek into a few of the characters lives, I just wish that it could have been fleshed out more.

Overall, I didn't love this book as a thriller, but it was alight as a family drama. If you're looking for a quick read about an extremely dysfunctional family with a bit of mysterious circumstances around the edges, you might enjoy this one.

Well this was a thrilling tale of murder or suicide. Family love and family lies. Secrets and betrayal. As their father is terminally ill the family all gathers to try and have one last Christmas together as a family. Unfortunately it doesn’t go that way. Way too much alcohol is consumed and very hurtful things are said. It doesn’t just end there. When Neil, Sacha’s husband goes missing after being told to settle the differences with his brother in law. As the family tries to figure out what’s going on, here comes the twists and turns that will keep you reading until the very end! Speaking of endings you definitely won’t see what’s coming! Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for allowing me access to this eARC!

Last Christmas was a great thriller that takes place around Christmas time. The different character perspectives and twists that just kept coming made this a quick read.

Ok this book was a LOT! It had more than enough twists in it to keep you pulled in and interested. When turning the pages, you don’t know what surprise is going to be thrown at you.

This story was broken up into three parts each told from a different characters POV. The three different POVs really helped build the suspense but also showed the different issues going on throughout the family.

Poor Neil, what happened to him was just awful and then for the truth to be kept a secret for so long was even worse. Then what happens to Sacha just months after Neil is even worse. But when the truth comes out everything, it’s shocking

I’m always on the lookout for Christmas thrillers - there’s so few of them compared to cozy mysteries & romances, so I’ll almost always read them when I see them. However, this was one I should have ignored.

None of the characters are likeable and I could not find any redeeming factors to make me care about them. I found them to be immature & vile and I thought the writing was very simplistic. There’s so much drama that by the time we reached the conclusion, I just didn’t care. Calling this a psychological thriller is perhaps the best writing in this work of fiction.

Last Christmas is a Christmas thriller about a woman whose husband is killed on Christmas. Since it happens at her parents house, she knows that someone in her family is responsible. What unfolds is a lot of secrets and the truth about her husband.

This book was just ok for me. I wanted to love it since it’s a Christmas thriller and I have been looking for Christmas thrillers. However, there were some things that bothered me in this one. I’ll start with what i liked. I thought the writing was good and the story was fast paced. The twists were not super predictable so that was good. It also had a lot of Christmas vibes throughout that were fun to follow.

My major complaint with this story was the main character. The first few chapters, she is belittling her husband and talking horribly about him. They have a lot of problems and everyone is horrible to him. And then he dies and a lot of horrible things are revealed about the wife. So this whole time she was doing a lot of horrible things behind his back and he’s the bad guy? That just really sat with me wrong. This story was also a lot of family drama that I did not enjoy either.

Thanks so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc of this book!

“Grief is the cost of love”

It’s Christmas, a time for family. Except this family is toxic, deceitful and a bunch of barefaced liars!
“Last Christmas” is a multi point of view domestic thriller that follows Sacha and her sisters through dark times, deaths and grief.

This was ok. I wouldn’t have called it a psychological thriller though, it’s more a family drama storyline. A quick and easy read. None of the characters were particularly likeable though, and I found it quite predictable. The ending also wasn’t very believable, I think that could’ve been done better.

Trigger warnings - suicide, fertility issues.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for my advanced copy.

You had me at ‘Last Christmas’! I really enjoyed this twisty thriller and it kept me turning pages well into the night. This is domestic drama at its finest filled with toxic relationships and devastating consequences. 5 stars!

Last Christmas by Maria Frankland-

The synopsis for this novel had me believing that this would be a “page-turning, psychological thriller.” In fact, I was looking forward to having my mind blown. I was highly disappointed.

This book started painstakingly slow. I was bored out of my mind for the first half this book. The first 50% of this book is spent in Sacha’s parents house with everyone picking on Neil, who was absolutely miserable and never wanted to be there in the first place. Neil is suffering from clinical depression and his wife Sacha isn’t very sympathetic toward him or what he is going through. To add to his already crippling depression, he’s been told he’s basically infertile and is dealing with feeling like he’s failing his wife yet again, by not being able to conceive a child with her. It’s Christmas time and Sacha wants to spend the holidays at her parents home because her father is terminally with cancer. Neil tries to get out of going but ultimately gives in to Sacha’s badgering and goes. To deal with Sacha and her bat sh*t crazy family, Neal drinks and ends up making a fool of himself. Neal’s drunken first night in the parents home is really just the beginning of a debacle of a family holiday.

I found the plot twists and subsequent events of the novel to be predictable. It was easy to guess what was going to happen and who was responsible for what. The support characters were seriously flawed and there weren’t many that were easy to like. The best characters were poor Neil and Sacha’s parents. This wasn’t the worst book I’ve ever read but it wasn’t nearly as exciting as I expected it to be. Whomever wrote to synopsis deserves an award though, they tricked me into thinking I was going toe reading one heck of a thriller.

I received an advance reader copy and am leaving my review voluntarily.

"Last Christmas" by Maria Frankland is a compelling family drama with some issues, yet it offers several redeeming qualities that make it a worthwhile read. I'd give it four stars because of the book's ability to immerse readers in the complex lives of its characters, despite some shortcomings.

The story isn't a typical suspense thriller; instead, it focuses on family drama. It's set during the Christmas holiday, but it's not really a festive story. Christmas serves as a backdrop to bring the family together and adds depth to the narrative.

One significant problem is the discrepancy between the book's blurb and the actual story. The blurb suggests that Sacha suspects her family of wrongdoing, but the central theme is more about unraveling the mystery of Neal's death, whether it was an accident or suicide. Some elements mentioned in the blurb, like Christie's memory issues, do not align with the actual events in the book, which can lead to some confusion.

The cover, featuring blood splatter, may mislead readers into thinking it's a more violent story than it actually is. Neal's death is certainly tragic, but it's not as gruesome as the cover implies.

However, there are several positive aspects to the book that deserve recognition:

Engaging Family Dynamics: One of the book's strengths is its ability to draw readers into the intricate web of family relationships. This immersion into the family's dynamics allows readers to connect with the characters on an emotional level.

Compelling Character Development: Despite the characters' flaws, the author skillfully develops them throughout the story. Their complexity and the way they evolve over the course of the narrative make for an interesting and relatable reading experience.

Mystery Element: Although the story isn't a traditional thriller, the mystery surrounding Neal's death keeps readers engaged. The gradual revelation of secrets and the sense of intrigue add depth to the plot.

Realistic Family Conflicts: The portrayal of family conflicts and tensions feels authentic, making it easy for readers to relate to the characters' struggles and dilemmas. This realism adds depth to the family drama.

Entertaining Read: Despite its imperfections, "Last Christmas" remains an engaging and entertaining read. The blend of family drama and mystery keeps readers invested in the storyline, making it a page-turner.

In summary, "Last Christmas" is a book that, while not without its issues, manages to captivate readers through its engaging family dynamics, character development, and the allure of a family's secrets. It's an entertaining read for those who enjoy family dramas with a touch of mystery, despite its deviations from the thriller genre. Thanks to NetGalley and the author for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

As three sisters travel to their parents house to celebrate Christmas with their terminally ill father, what could go wrong?

The family dynamic between the sisters, parents and brother-in-laws is very interesting and I am sure that some readers can relate to some of their struggles when trying to celebrate the holiday and putting on a "happy" face. The "last" Christmas they will all celebrate together is one that no one will be able to forget.

The author's ability to tell the story for various points of view keeps the reader interested and wanting to find out more behind the events that occur on Christmas day. I did enjoy how the author chunked the points of view into different parts instead of meshing them together in each chapter. I believe it gave the reader a more accurate viewpoint of the day when it focuses on one character at a time.

I’ve read a couple of novels from Maria Frankland in the past and enjoyed them both. So I was looking forward to this one, billed as a psychological Christmas thriller.
Unfortunately, it became apparent soon after starting that this is a domestic family drama rather than any sort of psychological thriller.
Stuart, the patriarch of the family, has been diagnosed with terminal cancer, so he and his wife Wendy invite their three daughters and respective husbands to spend what will be Stuart’s final Christmas in their flash new home. The novel opens from Neil’s perspective who is married to daughter Sacha. Neil is out of work and suffers from both depression and alcoholism and has infertility issues. He is treated abominably by Sacha and all the rest of the family. The next daughter Christy is married to Adam who has no redeeming qualities whatsoever. Finally, there is Rebecca married to Greg and expecting her third child. The pair of them are beyond horrible.
Then a death occurs. By this time, I completely didn’t care. The characters are all so over-the-top vile that they wouldn’t be out of place in a bad soap opera. Serious issues such as depression, alcoholism, and terminal cancer are all included just for effect and not given the serious treatment they merit.
I will stick with the author, but this particular novel is a no from me.
My thanks to Net Galley, Maria Frankland, and Bookouture for an ARC in exchange for an open and honest review.

I probably would have liked this book if it wasn't advertised as a psychological thriller. Because it's not. It's a story about a dysfunctional family and overall was an enjoyable book but I couldn't get into it because I was expecting something different

Perfect for readers who like stories about dysfunctional families

Thanks to NetGalley for an early copy of Last Christmas.

From the first page of the book it had me gripped. It had some twists and turns. But I didn’t find it that much of a psychological thriller. Either way I liked the book. Wasn’t great and it wasn’t bad it was just somewhere in the middle and that’s fine.
⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Thank you Bookouture and NetGalley for an early copy of Last Christmas. What a twist this book took, I Never would have predicted it!!!!! The wake lunch was a bit unreal until it all came together and it really did make sense. This was mind boggling, I couldn’t read it fast enough, every chapter something else was happening. LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this novel. I can’t stop thinking of all the twists, I Love when an author writes a Great book, thank you Maria Frankland.