The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave
The Last Thing He Told Me is a psychological thriller published in 2021.
Hannah Hall opens her door to find a young girl handing her a note from her husband Owen. The note says, “Protect her”. She knows who her husband is referring to in his note; his sixteen-year-old daughter Bailey, Hannah’s step-daughter. But why the note and where is Owen? Confused, Hannah tries to call him but to no avail.
Meanwhile, Hannah finds out that Owen’s boss has been arrested for embezzlement. It comes as a shock to Hannah to consider that maybe her husband is guilty and is making a run for it, leaving Bailey in her protection. Bailey, who is not fond of Hannah and wants nothing to do with her is already asking her about the whereabouts of her father. While Hannah tries to navigate this chaos, she finds a US Marshall from Texas on her Sausalito home’s front porch.
Hannah quickly realizes that there is a lot more to her husband’s disappearance than she thought. Not only she had no idea of the things going on at his work, she realizes that his whole identity may be different from what she knows. So she sets out to Bailey to find out the truth. Unbeknownst to them, they’re headed toward a future that’s far from their imaginations.
How did it make me feel?
The Narrative
The Last Thing He Told Me is not as fast-paced as compared to the typical thrillers but still it was successful in grabbing and keeping my attention throughout the book. I wouldn’t say the story was extraordinary, but it was not a bad one either. I loved the elements of mystery and how the story gradually unfolded them. However, some of the things felt a bit deliberate. For instance, the characters remembering things at just the right time that would perfectly fit the situation to uncover the solution. Or acting on gut feelings at multiple crucial points that were just a bit hard to ingest. Also, I didn’t really get the connection between Hannah’s background to the story at large. However, I really liked the ending. It was heart-warming and nicely wrapped up. The ending left a bittersweet feeling inside of me that I loved!
Audiobook Narration
Narrators: Rebecca Lowman
The narration was good. It went nicely keeping with the essence of the story. So no complaints there!
The Characters
Bailey’s portrayal was to the point. I was constantly annoyed by her interactions with Hannah which is expected if you’re listening to the irrational parley of a 16-year-old. However, I found Hannah a bit too good to be true. Like, you could tell this was a character from the book because of her perfect composure during difficult situations, her precise “gut feelings” and her head-on approach to every shady situation, like she is used to getting into such situations. I wished there was a little more background on Owen. I would have enjoyed a chapter of Owen’s POV in the end.
Would I recommend it?
I think if you’re a thriller lover you’re going to enjoy this book. You’ll not feel like you came out reading an extraordinary story but you will still have thoroughly enjoyed the ride.
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