Where to start? This title literally set my pulse racing. I was engaged with the central character and invested in her story. Equally, I wanted to know what secrets her husband was hiding and why. Gillian McAllister is skilled at creating tension. The hostage situation is so authentic and I raced through the book, packed with unexpected twists and all in all, a totally satisfying domestic thriller. Simply brilliant.

Very suspenseful thriller. A woman returns to work after maternity leave and drops her child off at child care for the first time. A seige in London becomes very frightening. A real page turner from the start. Gripping.

Another brilliant book by Gillian McAllister. Suspenseful from the start it had me gripped. I expected something different and certainly got it. The story is complex and compelling. I had great difficulty putting it down. I'm not going to give a synopsis as I don't want to give anything away. I'll just say whether you are already a Gillian McAllister fan or not if you like a good thriller give this one a go. You won't be disappointed.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy. All opinions are my own.

Another great thriller from Gillian McAllister with more than a few twists and turns to keep you guessing. A hostage situation that that’s not quite all that it seems unexpectedly separates Cam from husband Luke, turning her life upside down. Niall, the hostage negotiator, is caught up in the fall out, and determined to get to the bottom of what happened, while burying his head in the proverbial sand when it comes to his own personal life.
Five stars from me, with thanks to NetGalley and Michael Joseph Penguin Random House for the chance to read an ARC.

I absolutely adore Gillian's books, she is one of my go to authors always, and so I felt hugely privileged to receive an ARC of this book!

The story begins with Camilla's first day back at the publishers where she works after maternity leave, having first dropped her daughter at nursery. But then some shocking news filters through....there's a hostage situation developing and Luke, her husband, is involved. This is shocking enough, but when Camilla discovers he isn't a hostage but the instigator, her whole world is thrown into turmoil forever....

Where to start with this one?! I instantly loved it and felt hooked straight away. Gillian has such a clever way of making the characters feel real, thus ensuring you care about them, and she does this here in spades.

The whole hostage situation felt incredibly true and is clearly tantamount to the amount of research that must have gone into this book to reach this level of authenticity.

The pace is quick ensuring you always want to know more. Not only is the plot intense and gripping, Gillian's prose is real and powerful.

Another stunning book from the "Queen of the what would you do thriller", it of course comes highly recommended!

Thanks to author Gillian McAllister, publishers Michael Joseph Penguin Random House and Net Galley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this interesting mystery. I loved the concept and didn't see some of the twists coming. I found the middle quite slow but the story picked up again the last third.

Would recommend if you're a can of this author

An ingenious premise for a book - what do you do when your husband has taken two people hostage? Told through multiple PoVs we find out what the messy aftermath is for Camilla, her daughter Polly, and the hostage negotiator.

The majority of the book is actually after the siege, which was super interesting as I didn’t expect it. Lost a star because I did work out a few of the twists way ahead of time. I don’t want to give too much away but it’s one of those you can’t put down once you start and I very much encourage thriller fans to pick this one up!

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for the ARC in return for an honest review.

Synopsis —It’s Camilla’s first day back at work, her daughter’s first day at nursery.
But husband Luke is nowhere to be seen. The only trace of him is an unfinished note. Camilla tries to put it out of her mind; there must be a rational explanation.
At work, there are welcomes back, and too many distractions.
Then it starts.
Breaking news: there's a hostage situation developing in London.
The police arrive: Luke is caught up in it.
But he isn't a hostage. Luke - doting father, successful writer, enthusiastic runner and eternal optimist - is the gunman.
What Camilla does next is crucial. Because only she knows what the note he left behind says, and the clues it might hold . . .

My thoughts ….. what a rollercoaster of a ride !
Who’s truthful who’s not ?
Camilla was an excellent character and you completely invested in her plight! Written perfectly, of who, what, where and how!

I am not putting too much on here as I want you to read it without spoilers ! This is a great read preorder it’s coming January !!!!!!

Camilla is returning to her publisher’s job after the birth of her first baby who is starting nursery that day. Her husband Luke, a writer (ghostwriter) is nowhere to be found. She carries on, a bit disappointed he isn’t wishing them luck with their new beginnings, but determined to get back to the job she loves. However, things do not turn out as planned.

A hostage situation develops in London and the police arrive at Cam’s workplace. The beginning of this book is superb; exciting, fast-paced and unexpected. However, the book then jumps to 7 years later and it all slows down rather a lot: How Camilla is living, the hostage negotiator, the police charged with trying to find out anything about the case… It picks up towards the end and there’s lots of twists. Some of the story is unbelievable (just don’t ask yourself “and how are you going to evidence that, to be believed”???! at the end). But ignoring this and more, read along for the ride. It’s very entertaining.

I decided not to read the synopsis beforehand with this one. Having read from the author before.
I ended up devouring this. I didn't want to put it down.
I had some theories of who I thought certain characters were but the reason behind it I had no clue.
While some things seem a little unrealistic I can look past it as I enjoyed the book so much.

Thank you to Netgalley for my ARC.

I love McAllister. Her twists are amazing, so I had to request this as soon as I could and it didn’t disappoint.

There’s a hostage situation. You’re on your first day back at work after maternity leave. The last thing you need is to find the police in reception asking for you.

It turns out your husband is the hostage taker. When you think about it, he’s taken on a lot to support you and was acting a little stressed at times.

There’s a lot I cannot talk about without spoiling this but I loved the characters. You hear from the wife, the negotiator and an unknown voice. There’s so many unknowns that I challenge you to work out what’s real and what’s not until it’s all revealed at the end.

Another amazing book.

I've been staring at social media recently, feeling very jealous of people who were receiving early copies of this book, and so was thrilled when I was sent a digital copy. Technically I should have left it closer to publication day to read and review, because I had so many others to do beforehand, but I couldn't resist.

It is always a good day when there's a new Gillian McAllister book out, and it is another firecracker, a tour-de-force of a book.

There's not much preamble with this. We get a few pages introducing out characters and the environment we find them in and then bam - we're in!

Looking back at my reading history, I would say thriller is one of my most - if not the most - read genre, and generally I like what I read. But if I'm being completely honest, there are only a certain amount of plot devices and stories and tense situations. And when handled well, they feel completely new and fresh, but when handled badly they can feel repetitive. But with this, Gillian has given us something completely different, at least it is for me. I don't think I've come across stories like this one. It's not a murder-mystery as such as like most thrillers, which made it refresh and that then helps rejuvenate the genre.

I am someone who likes her bed. I don't always get as much sleep as I would like though, not for lack of trying. But I like my bed and my peace. So it takes a special kind of book to steal me away and this definitely did. It broke my main two rules (although at this stage I'm thinking I break them more than I stick to them) of not reading my kindle in bed, and only reading uplifting stories in bed. This broke both! But I had to really tear myself away form it. I was about 3/4 of the way through before I had to put it down because I couldn't keep my eyes open. But I then finished it for breakfast the following morning.

It's split into rough sections: firstly the incident and direct aftermath. And then after 7 years, and years after that. Which I thought was great because all of these things, trauma etc. it lingers, but no-one really focusses on it after the immediate event. And so that was an interesting addition.

I think I've read 5 of her books now and with each one, I think it can't possibly be any better than the one before it, and lo and behold, it is! I don't know how she keeps doing it, it's amazing.

This sounded like it could make a great TV show, providing cliff-hangers at the end of each episode. It would be completely binge-able. It is full of twists and turns and surprises and shocks, and is expertly done. I already can't wait for her next book!

Another fantastic book by Gillian McAllister which drew me in and kept me reading until late. Camilla is happily married and due to return to work on the day her husband Luke goes missing and is then found to have taken three people hostage.
As ever the story is far from straightforward and the solution ingenious

A suspense story to set your nerves a jingling and make you think ‘what ifs’ . Luke goes out early and does not return. Cam’s world is turned upside down and into the stratosphere when he is in a hostage situation and kills. Two love stories are intertwined in Cam and Luke with Niall , the damaged police hostage negotiator, providing the other. Believable characters abound in a spellbinding story

Astonishingly good.

I am in awe of Gillian McAllister as she always manages to create a completely brilliant scenario, totally believable which sucks you into the storyline from the start.

I'd also like to thank her- I have been in a bit of a reading rut where it's been taking me ages to read a book, but I picked this up and devoured it in one sitting. Very gripping and engrossing all the way through, and yet again, all is not what it seems.

When Camilla starts her first day back at the publishing house she works in following maternity leave, her husband is uncontactable which is unusual for him. Then news breaks of a hostage situation in London and Luke is caught up in the unfolding drama.

This was an epic thriller. I fear I am gushing a bit too much now so I will leave it there but just add - READ THIS BOOK, you won't be disappointed!

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Absolutely loved this and flew through it - was engrossed instantly and loved the premise, I think it would make a great adaptation.

A really good book. Characters are very engaging and although I worked out a couple of major things before they were revealed it didn’t detract from the story or my overall enjoyment of the book. I thoroughly recommend.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review and to the author for her wonderful storytelling.

What an excellent read. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and found it difficult to put down. The storyline was very complex and engaging with breadcrumb trails leading to an excellent conclusion. Loved the main characters and the way they added to the plot and its development. It’s the book you come across every so often, that you are desperate to finish to see what happens, but you are enjoying it so much you never want it to end.

You think your life is perfect, you think you know your husband inside out until one day everything explodes around you leaving your whole world in disarray. When Cam can't get in touch with her husband, Luke, she begins to worry, but when she realises her husband is the man responsible for a hostage incident where two men have been shot dead, she is left reeling. Luke goes on the run and Cam has to rebuild her life with their daughter without him. It's unusual for me to be so wrapped up in a story to the point of not being able to put it down but reading well into the early hours as I couldn't bear to lose the tension that built throughout. This is a fabulous, tense story from an equally fabulous writer. More please!

Wow! Just WOW!
Just finished an ARC of Famous Last Words by @@gillianmauthor and have to say I was gripped from start to finish. How twisty was this? How heart wrenching? How immersive? How ... no more words. Loved it! Might just have to give it 10 stars - oh well, if you insist 5* it is.
I've come to expect a good twist or three form McAllister's books, but I really couldn't fathom how she'd be able to deliver it with this one, but boy does she manage.
The richly drawn characters made me feel every heart pull and every frustration. A brilliant premise - what would you do if unexpectedly your rock, the centre of your life does somethin unimaginable like take three people hostage?
The dual narrative was perfect and as well as a hefty dose of darkness, following their love stories was beautifully scripted. This has definitely made my top 3 reads of 2024. Release date is January 2025 though.