📖 ARC Review

My Rating : ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4 Blissful Stars

Ok so this is my first Jason Rekulak novel and I think what I’ve learned he’s a BIG tease 😜

There was several moments when I said to myself ahh ok something is going to happen, this is it and then just kidding nothing . It was like one of those Jack in the boxes and you keep cranking the handle waiting for that clown to jump out sitting on edge waiting and waiting ….

“ So I willed myself to accept Maggie’s explanation of Dawn Taggart , and I ignored the quiet voice in my brain saying something felt wrong “.

This is a slow 🐢 burn suspense read with a straight and arrow narrator that I really grew to love.

Read this if you like :
💒 Single POV
💒 Reliable Narrator
💒 GREAT Storytelling
💒 Lodge - Wedding Settings
💒 Slow Burn
💒 Second Chances
💒 Loveable Characters

Frank gets a call from his daughter Maggie , and he hasn’t spoken to her in years and is given the news she is getting married . Frank is so excited for the opportunity to rekindle his relationship with his daughter and says he wouldn’t miss it for the world !

Quickly out of the gate our quizzical narrator depicts something is off with Maggie’s rich finance and his wealthy family and Frank will NOT stop investigating to what this family is really all about .

Will Franks findings get him in trouble and cost him his life or will he rekindle his relationship with his daughter?

This story is far from a thriller , but does not lack in the great story telling department , our narrator was 🤌 and was far from perfect . The way the author pulled me in wondering where the story was going was so well done , I honestly had many thoughts going through my head wondering where the author was taking us and even though near the end we knew how it was going to transpire , I think it worked . Would I have wanted something different and a bit more shocking 😳 Yes ,but I think the author wanted something a little more subtle for readers who aren’t big thriller fans !

Thank you NetGalley, Little Brown Book Group & Jason Rekulak for this wonderful & fun ARC !

Respectfully Another Read by Angie

QOTD- Will you read this 🤷🏻‍♀️

I was ecstatic to receive an arc and did not waste any time getting started, as I absolutely loved Hidden Pictures. This is a slow burn, but with excellent writing that flowed so easily. Kept intrigued and could easily picture all the scenes. Finished within 48 hours, look forward to the next release!

I absolutely LOVED Hidden Pictures so I was super excited to be given early access to this book. Unfortunately for me it was extremely underwhelming. It’s marketed as an ”edge of your seat thriller” but I would describe it more as mild suspense that wasn’t very thrilling at all. I found the dad very irritating as a character and didn’t warm to him enough to invest myself into his story. The other characters weren’t particularly likeable either and the mystery elements didn’t really go anywhere. There was no jaw dropping twist like at the end of Hidden Pictures. There wasn’t any twist at all really. I feel like it had a lot of potential but for me it was a bit of a mid read and I just felt really meh after finishing it.

Thank you to Netgalley for giving me early access in exchange for an honest review.

Surely one of the most highly anticipated thrillers after the huge success of Hidden Pictures.

The Last One At The Wedding sees everyday guy Frank contacted out of the blue by his estranged daughter Maggie, she’s about to get married and he’s invited. Maggie is marrying into one of the richest families in the country.

The characters are well established, fair to say it takes a while to get going. It builds up nicely and there are some good twists and unexpected turns. It’s smooth and steady rather than shocking and spectacular, but it kept me reading and entertained.

I think it’s a better novel than Hidden Pictures, definitely recommended.

Thanks to Netgalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK

What an amazing read! Now in my top five reads of 2024 so far! I really enjoyed Hidden Pictures and can say that was even better!
I enjoyed the story being told from Frank's (Maggies dad) point of view and I really liked him, a decent and uncomplicated human being.
I liked his Tammy and enjoyed Abigail as a character, too. I was totally surprised by the turn the story took to show Maggies as the 'bad guy's this was unexpected and super clever, made me realise I had assumed that Aiden would be the buddy, was nice to not guess any of the story's plot at all.
I appreciated the thread in the story highlighting hoe parents are not good at seeing their children in a clear and unbiased way, as a parent myself, I can see how Frank may have looked away and not acknowledged that Maggie is a dangerous and manipulative person.
All in all, a super duper read, was sad when I got to the end!

I thought this book was going one way. I was wrong. This book is purposive. I read it in one sitting. I was hooked all the way to the end.