The Last Thing She Wrote

Thank you NetGalley and Julia Bodwell for letting me read “The Last Thing She Wrote” in exchange for an honest review!

I was immediately drawn to the beautiful cover a young woman in red sinking down in what seems like water. The art is incredibly beautiful.

I felt a real excitement for this book. The description, the cover… my first book by Julia Bodwell. It’s always exciting to discover new authors!

The book is on the shorter side, which made it perfectly readable in one sitting.
Right at the beginning, not knowing much about the story, It struck a nerve, as I have personal experience with the suicide of a loved one. I am not taking a stand, my opinion on suicide does not matter in this review, but it made me relate to Freddie so much more. Finding your loved one, dead by their own hand is traumatic. Especially when you have no idea about the why.

Freddie is a boy aged seventeen who lost his younger sibling Kaylee. He feels the guilt you have when you’re left behind. What could you have done to prevent it? What could you have done differently. It’s a very vicious cycle. Freddie finds her diary and things take a twist. Is it really suicide?

I am probably not the right age group for this book, but reading it made me think back to my teenage days (now I feel old…). Kaylee had this sweet kind of innocence , but growing up too fast. I loved the way Freddie cared for his sister, dead or alive. The diary entries make the book intimate and personal.

I could not stop reading it, I needed to know what happened to Kaylee. The book turned out to be different than I thought it would. It has a touch of murder mystery. Still, I love the initial vibe it gave me. It made me remember some of the worst moments in my life and in the very beginning mirrored my feelings very well. I could connect to a much younger character. I loved Freddy, remotely Kaylee as well, also Becca and Antoine (the pink Afro had me!).
The book gave me mixed feelings and emotions and most importantly made me think. It’s such an important topic, without wanting to spoil, not only the effect of suicide.
Julia, what a splendid story! Written so sensitive and thoughtful!

Posted to Instagram & goodreads 24/7/22

I was lucky enough to be gifted this book on NetGalley in exchange for a review.
.
This book combines mental health issues with a mystery, 2 of my favourite things to read. It’s addictive, fast paced and really engaging. We follow Freddie through his grief, after his younger sister has died by suicide. As part of his therapy, he finds his sisters diary which gives insight into what happened to her.
.
It’s a ride with an ending I didn’t expect. It’s a quick and easy read which will make you appreciate family. I really loved it! It was an absolute pleasure to read.
.
If you’re comfortable reading books on this topic I recommend you check this out 🙌🏻
Book is released August 3rd.
4/5
.
Thank you to NetGalley and the Author Julia Bodwell @jbodwellwrites for this ARC ❤️

quick read but very well written! Touches on some important subjects. I really felt the brothers pain over his sister and wanted to know what really happened to her like he did. This felt very accurate to teens today.

Interesting and engaging read that keeps you guessing. I read this in one sitting wanting to know what happens next! Great read! I’ll be looking for more by this author for sure. Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read an advanced copy.

This was such a quick, fast paced YA read! I’m definitely not the target audience for this, but I can appreciate a YA book every now and then.

As someone with an amazing older brother, I appreciated how Freddie was written. He was still a horny, impulsive 17-18 year old boy (he really loved Becca’s lips!!), but you could tell he was a sweetheart who had so much love for his sister—Julia really made that come through in her words.

Because it was such a short book (less than 150 pages I believe), everything happened very quickly and it all fell together nicely despite being SUCH a crazy conclusion. I feel like that’s pretty typical of YA books though, haha.

This won’t be for everyone, but if you’re in the mood for a quick YA fictional mystery, pick this one up!

Thank you to the publishers, author and NetGalley for the free copy of this book.

This was a quick easy read that kept me hooked. I definitely did not expect it to end the way it did. Very well written.

Thank you Netgalley and Julia Bodwell for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I read this story in one sitting, and I enjoyed it greatly. Although it is on the shorter side, the impact it will leave will haunt you for a while.

Freddie is a 17 year old teenage boy who is grieving the loss of his younger sister to suicide.
He harbors the guilt of not being there the night his sister passed. His therapist suggests he goes through his sisters items to help him heal and grieve. He falls across her diary and starts to read it. Will he able to understand why she did it? Could he have saved her?

Why I enjoyed this book:
- Even though this is a dark and triggering plot, I enjoyed how well the story was fleshed out. I really liked Freddie’s character as well. He was a really honest portrayal of a teenage boy
- Once I started, I couldn’t put this one down. The story really sucks you into it. You feel like you are also searching for the answer that Freddie is looking for
- Beautiful and excellent writing.

This book was a hard subject but I did enjoy it. The author did a fantastic job and I like their writing style! Four stars out of five.

Teenager freddy wakes up every morning feeling like his sister just died yesterday. The pain is so big and it doesn't seem to be getting any smaller.
This book is on the shorter side and is a very quick read.
This book is very emotional and deals with survivors guilt.

Loved everything about this book. It was such a GREAT and fast paced read. Definitely a book with a trigger so fair warning if you aren't very susceptible to suicide. Freddie is junior high school who comes home one night after partying wit his friends to an extremely disturbing discovery. His sister, face down in a pool. Quick to jump to action he tries to resuscitate his sister but unfortunately it's too late.

Months later Freddie is still grieving from the loss, and is having a hard time just accepting that his sister would kill herself. She was 13 with so much more life to live. After speaking to his therapist about how to cope and move forward with his life he decides to spend some time in his sister Kaylee's room. It's there that he discovers her diary, he takes it, in hopes that he may be able to find some answers as to why she took her life.

I was gripped to the very end and read this story in one sitting. I totally empathized with Freddie and waned to know the truth about his sister. This was a great refreshing read between my generally massive fantasy series.

The Last Thing She Wrote was a well written book. It had a very good storyline and was easy to follow. I felt so much empathy for Freddie throughout. The story dealt with very deep and intense topics but it was done very delicately.

Wow! I read this in a day as it is the kind of book that you can't stop reading. You feel the anticipation as you turn the pages and it is quite fast paced with each chapter blending into the next. It's extremely well written with interesting characters. It keeps you guessing with a MAJOR twist that you don't see coming.

The plot is interesting with Freddie trying to come to terms with his sister's suicide and the book highlights the grief that the family experiences in parallel with the thriller. Freddie comes across his sister's diary and slowly understands that things aren't as they seem. Definitely recommend!

Thank you NetGalley and Julia Bodwell for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

First, can we talk about how stunning this cover is??? It drew me in even before I read the summary of the novel. The Last Think She Wrote was a heart wrenching story about a brother reeling from the death of his sister. Even after six months he cannot let it go.
Freddie has survivor's guilt; he keeps beating himself up about not being there for his sister the night she died. At the recommendation of his therapist, he finally brings himself to go through Kaylee's room. What he discovers could shake up the very core of his family.
This story reminded me of a lifetime movie, I was absolutely engrossed from the beginning. Following Freddie on his journey to find out what his sister was going through right before she died was an emotional rollercoaster.
Julia Bodwell wrote an amazing story of love and loss and the things we will do for family.
Special thanks to netgalley and Julia Bodwell for providing me with this amazing book.

This is a really great book touching on grief, sibling relationships and even a tinge of mystery. It’s a little on the short side and I consumed it within a day. It touches on suicide which is a topic I’m very familiar with and really made me think. Excellent book for young adults.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Didn't know where it was going or what sort of genre it was. The characters were lovely and it told a great story. I read it in a couple of hours so guessing it wasn't a very long book but will definitely be buying the author's first book. Thank you for the advance copy :-)