The Hero
Libby Hall never really wanted to be noticed. But after she saves the children in her care from a fire, she finds herself headline news. And horrified by the attention. It all reminds her of what happened nine years ago. The last time she saw her best friend alive.
The Swap
Which is why the house swap is such a godsend. Libby and her husband Jamie exchange their flat in Bath for a beautiful, secluded house in Cornwall. It's a chance to heal their marriage - to stop its secrets tearing them apart.
The Hideaway
But this stylish Cornish home isn't the getaway they'd hoped for. They make odd, even disturbing, discoveries in the house. It's so isolated-yet Libby doesn't feel entirely alone. As if she's being watched. Is Libby being paranoid? What is her husband hiding? And. As the secrets and lies come tumbling out, is the past about to catch up with them?
Libby Hall never really wanted to be noticed. But after she saves the children in her care from a fire, she finds herself headline news. And horrified by the attention. It all reminds her of what happened nine years ago. The last time she saw her best friend alive.
The Swap
Which is why the house swap is such a godsend. Libby and her husband Jamie exchange their flat in Bath for a beautiful, secluded house in Cornwall. It's a chance to heal their marriage - to stop its secrets tearing them apart.
The Hideaway
But this stylish Cornish home isn't the getaway they'd hoped for. They make odd, even disturbing, discoveries in the house. It's so isolated-yet Libby doesn't feel entirely alone. As if she's being watched. Is Libby being paranoid? What is her husband hiding? And. As the secrets and lies come tumbling out, is the past about to catch up with them?
I hadn't really heard all too much about this book but it sounded intriguing enough for me to request it on netgalley, then when i spied a few of my real life friends delving in i knew i had probably left it a little too long to read.
When a note is pushed through Libbys door at the very moment she realises she and her husband Jamie need a break away, especially after the fire that led to her been in the paper and giving her undue attention that she has spent her life avoiding. It was already bringing back bad memories plus she was dealing with alot as well. A chance to visit a lovely house in Cornwall for a week and fix their strained marriage.
However, all isnt as it seems and as a few odd occurring happen, Libby starts to feel like she is loosing the plot and with Jamie certainly not believing her, can her marriage survive and what on earth is actually happening?!
Last seen alive is a slow burner of a thriller that allows the reader to get a feel for the characters, it builds the drama and tension until it finally stars to reveal what led to these events. Its only in the last section of the book we start to get answers. I found the characters mostly unreliable and couldnt decide who was trust worthy and who wasnt. It really was a clever read that i couldt put down and wasnt a great idea to read on a lunch break because it was so easy to loose track of time with a read like this.
A fantastic unexpected read that is one for those who dont mind a narrative building before it all comes tumbling out.
4/5
Claire Douglas always wanted to write novels and, after many years of trying to get published, her dream came true when she won the Marie Claire Debut Novel Award in 2013 with THE SISTERS.
Her second and third novels, LOCAL GIRL MISSING and LAST SEEN ALIVE (Penguin), are Sunday Times bestsellers.
The synopsis sounds so cool and I'm glad you liked the book. I love unreliable characters, totally adds to thrillers! The cover is awesome as well!
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