Pages: 374
Published: 13th July 2017
Genre: Thriller
Content warnings: Domestic violence, references to alcoholism
Libby Hall needs to hide, to escape from everything for a while. Which is why the house swap is a godsend. The chance for Libby and her husband Jamie to exchange their tiny Bath flat for a beautiful haven on the wild Cornish coast.
But before they can begin to heal their fragile marriage, Libby makes some disturbing discoveries about the house. And soon the peace and isolation begin to feel threatening. How alone are they? Why does she feel watched?
What is Jamie hiding? Is Libby being paranoid? And why does the house bring back such terrible memories? Memories Libby’s worked hard to bury. Memories of the night she last saw her best friend alive . . . and what she did.
I went through almost the full range of emotions while reading this book, and upon finishing it, I have mixed feelings. It is gripping, and powerful, with unexpected plot developments that bring mounting tension as the story progresses. However, it also filled me with a sense of frustration, as there were some disappointing aspects that prevented it from being a truly outstanding read.
My favourite thing about it was the plot. I loved the ideas and the themes presented in the book, even if some of it did feel a little contrived and unrealistic. For example, the house swap and the way that played out seemed far-fetched, but it was interesting and innovative all the same.
There are some great twists, including a major one about halfway through which totally made me reconsider everything I had read up until that point. I actually worked out the twist just as it was about to be revealed, but it still caught me by surprise and made me see the book in a completely new light!
Before then, I had a bit of love/hate relationship with the book. Although there is tension and incident in the first part set in Cornwall, I found it very slow-paced and laborious. The dialogue was poor, and some of the writing was overly descriptive. This made me less engaged with the story, even when it was still posing a lot of fascinating questions.
It all becomes much more of a thriller when the setting switches from the UK to Thailand at around 200 pages in. The tone is different and the pace quickens, and from here I found the book very difficult to put down, especially once the major twist takes place. It was still far from perfect, but I was captivated right up until the end.
I liked the complexity of the characters, and how difficult it was to know who was being truthful and who had something (or indeed many things) to hide. Libby is a good protagonist, there is so much about her that lies beneath the surface, but one of book’s biggest strengths is the way it casts suspicion on just about everyone before dramatically unravelling.
Therefore, it is a shame that I did not always like how it unravelled. It was exciting to read, but there were problems.
Firstly, this book contains WAY too many coincidences. How can so many characters end up being responsible for the things that happen to Libby, when they are all acting alone and have different agendas? Also towards the end, there is a sudden turnaround that felt so unconvincing and not in keeping with the story, that I was left wondering what on earth had just happened!
The way everything initially seemed to be resolved, it all felt very implausible. Some of it did not seem true to the story or characters, given all that had gone before, and though thankfully not a cliche, it still felt like an anti-climax. But then came the epilogue, a twist in the tale that I was really not expecting, and one which left some serious questions left unanswered!
Overall, this was an extremely intense book that provides a lengthy stream of talking points. My thoughts on it are still swirling around in my brain and it has been hard to put them all into words, but I will end by saying that this was a compelling and memorable read with a great plot line that was just let down a little by its execution.
Last Seen Alive is Claire Douglas’ third novel, having earned success with her debut The Sisters – which won the Marie Claire Debut Novel Award in 2013, and Local Girl Missing.
She was born in Bristol, my own hometown, and her latest book, Do Not Disturb, was released in August 2018.
This was quite a read. Last Seen Alive is not a book I will forget in a hurry for its gripping storyline and stirring twists. It had the potential to be truly amazing, but there are negatives which mean a slightly lower rating.
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐.5
Stephen Reads Books 