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The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave

In Reviews by Aster4 Comments

Protect her. The only message her husband Owen is able to deliver before disappearing. Despite her confusion, Hannah knows who the note refers too - his sixteen year-old daughter, Bailey. Bailey who wants nothing to do with her and her new role as step-mother.

But as her desperation to find Owen increases and the company he worked for continues to crumble, Hannah realises her husband has been lying. Owen is not who he says he is and Hannah believes Bailey could be the key to unlocking his past. By understanding his secrets, maybe they can bring Owen back but as they begin their journey to find the truth, they discover more than they bargained for and a discovery neither could have ever expected.

| Why The Last Thing He Told Me Is A Hit Or Miss

The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave is a hit or miss novel. Based on my own personal opinion, I would have put this novel as a not worth your time read but I have to acknowledge the resounding positive response others have had after reading this novel. It is why this is a hit or miss, because I do think your response to reading this will go either way.

This novel lacks character development and contains repetitive thoughts making the story tough to connect too and it is also stated as a thriller - this is not a thriller. This is a domestic fiction with a bit of mystery and if that is what you are craving, then this may be a hit for you!

The ending is solid and as long as you don't mind a bit of dragging on occasion, then this may be a good read. There are pro's and con's to this novel and for me, I say skip but the public says read. Up to you as always to decide.

| Plot Progression

Owen goes missing and Hannah and Bailey start upon a journey to find him discovering along the way that Owen is not who he seems. There are many secrets he has kept and their journey revolves around them uncovering the truth so they can have their family member back.

The plot is not as fast as you would expect for a mystery novel and is why I lean towards classifying it as domestic fiction. Anticipate the plot being a bit slow but still intriguing, a decent plot over all with a touch of intrigue throughout.

| Characters

You may find the characters to be one-dimensional. Hannah, the protagonist, definitely could have benefited from more depth and personal relation to the secrets and Bailey was portrayed as a child when in reality she was sixteen. I think a bit more growth would have pushed this novel to be great and assisted in making it more complex. The plot was strong but the characters fell flat for me and are a strong aspect of the novel that you should consider if deciding to read The Last Thing He Told Me.

| Ending

It was an ending I did not anticipate and one now that I have had time to reflect is worthy of reading. You will not be disappointed (or you might be) with the ending of The Last Thing He Told Me and if you crave a light mystery, then this is for you.

Main Genre | Fiction

Year Published | 2021

Rating | 4.5 / 10

Worth Your Time? Hit Or Miss.

| My Thoughts

WARNING: Skip My Thoughts for a spoiler free review.

The premise of The Last Thing He Told Me was intriguing but fell flat. It seemed to me the novel transformed from a mystery of who and where Owen is into a martyr-esque story of what Hannah was giving up for Bailey. Hannah knew Bailey and Owen for two and a half years and I don't know if it is the cynic in me but her resounding devotion to them was a bit intense for me and how the novel continually harped on what Hannah was giving up for Bailey, a teenager who since meeting Hannah had disliked or at least was intensely apathetic towards.

It was mentioned over and over that Hannah would not be able to grieve the "loss" of Owen until Bailey was fully grown and that her own pain would have to be pushed down. I understand this perspective, it is a real situation many individuals, especially guardians struggle with, balancing their own pain and also the pain of somebody that care for, that is tough. It just frustrated me that Hannah never talked to Bailey about it as Bailey was sixteen and I feel at the age of sixteen you have the capability to understand another's grief and that the grief may have bonded them together even more which the ending indicates it does but throughout the novel, never was that mentioned. I wish there had been more open communication between the two main characters.

I understand why she was willing to push the pain down and give up seeing her husband again but I wish it hadn't been so focused on it being only for Bailey. She was in her mid-thirties, why would she want to start her life again? Hannah had a successful career, friends, and a family and the story never focused on that aspect of what she herself could lose if they decided to go into witness protection but only Bailey. This was why the novel aggravated me because the decision on what to do was complex but never thought through from her own perspective?

Also, Bailey was portrayed to be much younger than her age? If you are reading the spoilers, did you think that too? I think we can all agree that sixteen year-olds are mature beyond their years and dumb as rocks simultaneously, that is kind of a guarantee when hormones and development are involved and is why the lack of input by Bailey in the mission to find her dad and the final decision was so strange. Sixteen year olds have the ability to make decisions and Bailey was never consulted? I think that is why she was written to act younger so her thought process regarding the whole situation wouldn't matter as much. And yeah, I know she made the final decision but I just wish she had a bigger role throughout the novel as the story revolved around her.

I think some complexity character-wise and less self-introspection (the amount of times the phrase "but it's for Bailey" was uttered drained me emotionally) would have pushed this novel towards being a true intriguing mystery. In all, an average novel to listen too but one I wish had more dimension. I did like how at the end, and is why I said I liked the ending, how Bailey called Hannah Mum which showed character growth and demonstrated how they found one another and formed their own family.

| Your Thoughts

Did you decide that The Last Thing He Told Me is worth a read? If so, let me know what you thought of the novel below! And check out My Thoughts once finished for guess what, my thoughts on this literary adventure!

Are you looking for something else? Check out these fiction novels instead!

Was this worth an hour of your time? Because it was not worth an hour of mine.

The pinterest image for The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave book review. There is a blue floral print background with the novel centered in the middle and the cover facing the front.
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Comments

  1. This book has been recommended to me. I’ve had enough death among my family & friends the last 5 years that I’m not interested in reading a thriller if the motherless child dies or her stepmother or possibly her father ( although it smells like he dies) so should I read or pass? I’m trying to avoid overt spoilers. However one reviewer said the end was ” heartbreaking”. I’m more of the end was “vengeance” kinda girl. Thank you.

    1. Author

      I personally do not classify this a thriller, I see The Last Thing He Told Me as a domestic fiction novel. If that intrigues you, then I think this would be a good choice as with what you’ve commented, it would fall into the read category for your requirements. But, I think there are better choices out there that would provide the “vengeance,” vibe better than The Last Thing He Told Me. Consider Every Last Secret by AR Torre and Don’t Look For Me by Wendy Walker. Don’t Look For Me is a good choice if you want a similar concept – missing parent, determined family member, intensity; there is death in the novel but it does not pertain directly to the protagonists. The Last Thing He Told Me also has an ending that is more unique than heartbreaking, it is not what you would anticipate and you will either like it or not, just like you’ll either like or dislike this book. If you have any intrigue in reading The Last Thing He Told Me go for it and if you do decide to read it, I would love to hear your thoughts because mine are intense and I adore hearing what others think.

  2. I share your opinions . . . just saying. I write a blog on wordpress. How do I follow you or subscribe to you posts?

    1. Author

      Thanks for asking Claudia! It is awesome to hear you would like to subscribe, I am setting up a notification system by the end of October 2021 to make the possibility of subscribing to Aster’s Book Hour a reality.

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