Unfortunately I struggled through this book and ended up skimming through it, maybe it was because it was the third book in the series and I need to read the others first,

I haven't read this rest in this series, but was relieved to find this could be read as a standalone. Super fast-paced with a lot of tension, this author truly knows how to build suspense very well. It honestly made me feel a bit paranoid about all the info I have about myself accessible on the web somewhere. The book kept my attention well and had me rooting for Jack and Sam to the very end.

A very entertaining, nicely written and a nicely done mystery that kept me interested until the end!
Definitely worth a look!

A very interesting tale that held my attention all the way through. Great plot, twists and turns & the writing kept me hopping! Thanks for the opportunity with this ARC!

I enjoyed this book. It took me a while to get into it, but once I did I liked it.

“Who I really am is the person that exists online.”

Last year I arrived late to the Jack Parlabane series from Christopher Brookmyre with Black Widow, the seventh in the series. The series has followed the trials and tribulations of investigative reporter Parlabane, and in Black Widow Parlabane’s career is in the toilet. In The Last Hack, Parlabane, whose personal life is non existent, is hoping to revive his career. This thriller/crime novel presciently tackles hacktivism and corporate malfeasance.

The Last Hack is partly the story of a young girl named Samantha Morpeth who, following the incarceration of her mother, is forced by circumstances to care for and support her sister, Lilly, who has Down’s Syndrome. Samantha is a powerless young girl whose life-path has been dictated by her drug addicted mother. Living in poverty, bullied at school, rejected by the government agencies that are supposed to help her, Samantha is prey to her mother’s dealers who loot her home to make up for lost payment. It’s no wonder that Samantha, who is so powerless in life should turn to the internet to reverse her lowly position.

After Parlabane comes up with a story on hacktivism of a major bank, he is hired by Broadwave, “a burgeoning cross-media entity that has evolved from a completely new perspective upon news and technology.” Chances are he would have been passed over for the job were it not for his inside scoop from a hacktivist named Buzzkill. But when Buzzkill ends up in trouble, the hacker turns to Parlabane for help. The job with Broadwave offers Parlabane a chance to get his career back on track but helping the hacker may jeopardize everything he stands to gain.

Unfortunately the plot of The Last Hack is quite convoluted. The book starts with a short prologue in which someone is “suffering the after-effects” of an electroshock device, and then the novel shifts to Samantha Morpeth who is sitting in a waiting room of a government agency. Then comes a section with someone calling around to a few different employees at the RSGN Bank. Then we switch back to Parlabane interviewing with Broadwave, and then it’s an internet chat between hackers. This is a group of hackvists known as Uninvited, and their next hack, against a major bank, is organised over chat. The chat is difficult to follow–not only the abbreviated computer-speak exchanges but again it’s a handful of characters who exist in cyberspace and have no other grounding. These strands connect, of course, but it takes an overly long time to connect the dots.

Free-floating prologues seem popular these days but when they’re followed by other seemingly unconnected strands, the book, instead of pulling the reader in, keeps the reader dancing on the periphery wondering what the hell is going on. With the various strands packing the beginning of the book, it took me about 1/5 of the way through before I had a handle on what was happening. Once I got through the first 1/5, the plot took off. Of the two Parlabane novels I’ve read, I much preferred Black Widow.

Review copy

I've really enjoyed previous Parlabane novels but he lost me in the middle of this one. Sam is a character with great potential but Brookmyre muddled her in the mass of hacking info. Some of this was interesting but eventually I didn't care. I was most disappointed that I found myself clicking pages on my kindle, looking for mentions of Lily. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. I know others will enjoy the techno aspects of this (he does write techno well) and there is a mystery here but it isn't my favorite of Brookmyre's books.

Wow, at first my eyes were going fuzzy on me with all the computer talk in this book. However, the author did dumb it down enough for me to where I mostly understood what was going on, not how but the what.

This book was crazy once I got through the first couple of chapters. Hackers who just like to go into corporate websites just because they can. And then, there are the criminals who want to get in to steal things or for other criminal activities. When one hacker is being blackmailed to steal a new product from a computer company, that's when things really take off. And boy did they take off. The action had me holding my breath while my heart sped up.

I definitely enjoyed this book and would like to thank Grove Atlantic and Net Galley for providing me with a free e-galley in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

I liked "Black Widow" the Jack Parlabane book I read last year, but I found the writing in this one to be too choppy and seemingly disjointed.

Mr. Brookmyre attempts chatroom cant when he is working with the hackers, and a breezy newsroom style with the journos. It confused me enough that I quit reading.

I received a review copy of "The Last Hack: A Jack Parlabane Thriller" by Christopher Brookmyre
(Grove Atlantic) through NetGalley.com.

https://www.amazon.com/review/R1CBH44TW18YKI/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm

Jack Parlabane is back - yay! I can never get bored of Christopher Brookmyre's work, one of the best crime writers around, great plots, wicked sense of humour and a keen observer of society. A must for crime fans!

THe Last Hack is an intricately plotted, clever, multilayered suspense thriller jampacked with twists and turns. There’s tons of action and many surprises. This is by far one of best thrillers I have read this year.

“There are no girls on the internet”

In person, 19 year old Samantha Morpeth is timid and shy. Bullied and put down for most of her life, she isn’t one to stand up for herself. She has the burden of taking care of her young sister, as her father is unknown and her mother is in jail. BUT when Sam goes online, she becomes a different person. She is in control and a power to reckoned with. Sam is a master in the hacking world.

Meanwhile, fallen Investigative reporter Jack Paralabane is trying to rebuild his career after being part of a huge scandal.

When someone figures out Sam’s vulnerabilities, they lure her into a hacking mission--one that she must complete in order to protect herself and her sister. Needing help, Sam blackmails Jack. What Jack doesn’t know, is that there are reasons why he has been chosen by Sam to assist. Sam will give Jack what he needs to write an article, so it seems like a win-win.Little do Sam and Jack know, they are being played.

This is a heartstopping, action packed read. Just when you think you have it all figured out, there’s another twist. This is what a thriller should be. Highly recommend!



I received a copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

"The Last Hack is the 8th book in Christopher Brookmyre's Jack Parlabane series. This was the first time I've read a book by this author.

Nineteen year old Sam Morpeth's mother is in jail, leaving her as the sole caregiver for her challenged sister. With that, her university plans are out the window. To look at her, you'd never know that Sam is a hacker - a really good hacker. After all - "There are no women on the Internet." But, after her group causes chaos by hacking into a prominent institution, it turns out that someone has discovered who 'Buzzkill' really is. That someone has decided to blackmail Sam - 'do as I say or I'll reveal who you are - and then where would your sister be.' What does the blackmailer want? The impossible - to steal a prototype from a seemingly impenetrable company.

Sam knows she can't pull it off on her own - so she reveals her real life persona to Parlabane who has used her hacker skills in his investigative journalism. She 'convinces' Jack that he needs to work with her......or....

Sam was a great lead character - I liked the duality of her persona - online and offline. Brookmyre has taken the time to flesh this character out and make her believable. As mentioned, this is my first introduction to Jack Parlabane. He's sketchy, driven, resourceful, talented and although he's not necessarily likeable, I really liked him as a lead.

"The phrase 'veteran reporter' has already been used, which he is not delighted about, but he is sufficiently familiar with the terms 'disgraced reporter' and 'former reporter' to make his peace with it."

The interactions between the two worked well and the underlying secondary plotline brought a personal note to the novel.

I'm not much of a 'techie', so some of what they were up to went over my head. (Although I did pick up some security tips along the way!) Brookmyre never bogs down the plot or pace with too much technical detail. That plot is fairly involved and fast moving. We are presented with many choices along the way as to who is the blackmailer and my guess changed many times. What is scary is that Brookmyre's imaginings are probably not that far removed from reality.

I have a weakness for 'heist' movies and The Last Hack is at it's heart, a quintessential heist novel. And a darn good one. I can see this one as a movie as well. "

This book should have a yellow and black cover and be called “Hacking For Dummies”. It gives rudimentary – and sometimes more than rudimentary – hacking elements. The author has a very thorough knowledge of computers and the cyber terrorism he writes about appears very real. The story reflects excessive paranoia regarding industrial espionage. Nobody trusted anybody, excessively so.

I enjoyed the main characters, but the convoluted twists and turns not so much. The main premise of the book was the war between the hackers. In my opinion, there was too much techno info and not enough story. The story was, however, pulled together for a believable ending.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to give The Last Hack my honest review.

Samantha Morpeth is a nineteen-year-old hacker. Her mother's recent incarceration has left her the sole care-giver of her special needs sister. Unfortunately social services' red tape is preventing her from getting financial support and her dreams of university are fading. Her mother's criminal associates are shaking her down for money and stealing Sam's few possessions when she can't pay up. Blackmail is the last thing she needs but when she's forced into stealing a prototype from a technology company she contacts journalist Jack Parlabane and they work together to figure out who is behind the plot. Things get worse before they get better, though. Will Samantha and Jack survive this adventure?

Excellent Parlabane, let's face it he's not retiring to the Cotswolds any time soon.

Chris Brookmyre cannot write books fast enough for me - another brilliant outing for Jack Parablane

It has been a while since I caught up with Parlabane and I have missed a few books inbetween, my o/h lied and told me a main character died and I stopped reading lol. Jack is up to his usual, trying to stay out of trouble but landing right in the middle of it, or rather being sought out for it. Sam Morpeth is a young woman trying to pick up the pieces her mother has left behind when she went to jail. Looking after her wee sister, trying to keep an education, avoid the drug dealers her mum owes her and local bullies shy Sam has her hands full. Sam has a secret, she is a hacker and forceful online rep lands her in a heap of trouble. With no option but to force Jack to help her, they both must come together to tackle one of the biggest hacks yet, violence and mayhem lies ahead for both.

This book is about hacking, hacking for initially the "right" reasons, not for financial gain and showing that even the best laid intentions can go awry. That consequences have actions and the old adage the world is a really small place, never knowing when your past may come back upon you. Sam I found to be a frustrating character, online a force to be reckoned with, offline in her own words "a victim". She also grated because she is such an intelligent girl who makes some very questionable choices and falls prey to many things she should be able to spot a mile away. Jack is Jack, in trouble, cheeky, likable rogue whose heart is in the right place, I forgot how much I liked him.

Split two fold, we have the whole hacking side of it and the personal life and struggles of Sam which helped break up the computer stuff. Whilst a good chunk of it was really interesting and highlights just how vulnerable we are with our online activities it was nice to have a human emotional aspect of the story. The book doesn't have the earlier grit, dark unpc humour the very first Parlabane books do, maybe because Jack (and Brookmyre) has ages but there are still wee flashes of it. 4/5 for me this time, thanks to Netgalley for sending me a copy to review. Available to buy under the title Want You Gone, not sure why they changed it, I think I preferred The Last Hack.

In 1999 I used to play a Computer game called Championship Manager 99/00. It was totally addictive and I spent many a long night telling myself that I would have just one more game and then end up spending most of the night playing it to take Aston Villa to the UEFA cup final. This book was my 2017 equivalent of Championship Manager. Like Christopher Brookmyres last book Black Widow, this is a totally addictive page turner of a story.

This book is a tension filled, fast paced story set in the world of hacking and is told through both Jack and Sam. It makes you think about your online habits and just what kind of breadcrumb trail you leave on the Internet every time you update your status or even mark a book as read. I didnt have a clue how it was going to end or what route the story was going to go down. Unlike my review its a fantastic piece of writing that I didnt want to end.

Highly recommended.

I'm a fan of Brookmyer's Parlabane series and I really enjoyed this one. The secondary character is sympathetic even if the plot is a little incredible. That said, it was a pleasant read, and the twist (somewhat predictable) was enjoyable.

I am a big Brookmyre/Parlabane fan and so I was very excited to read this the eighth book in the series. I have found that quite a few series start to flag once the get over 6 or so books but not this series. It has matured throughout and every new addition has breathed more fresh air into the main character as he has evolved. Each new book adds another layer to the brilliant Jack Parlabane and each story takes him to a different place, with some of the same people, but always refreshingly different.
In this book we delve into the wonderful world of hacking. Parlabane is drawn (dragged) into this world by a hacker already known to him, one who has "helped" him in the past, one who is on a long list of people who "have something on" him. Samantha Morpeth is in trouble. Trying to make ends meet and look after her sister, she makes a big mistake, one that someone takes advantage of. Needing help, she blackmails Parlabane into assisting her with a very daring robbery. Jack has no option and together with Samantha, formulates a plan to get what is needed. With him at the sharp end and her behind a screen, will they manage to get out unscathed, and more importantly, will they get away with it?
Blooming heck, this was one roller coaster of a ride. I was especially fascinated with the skills of the hackers as they conned their way into systems, sometimes bypassing some rather sophisticated security. I was also quite shocked at how easy it was, maybe a little scared too. As I followed what Samantha and Jack were doing, occasionally with my heart in my mouth, I was also trying to work out who the baddies were. Who was the puppet master? Who was friend and who was foe? Not an easy job given the twists and turns that this book kept taking.
Parlabane was typical Parlabane. Having just managed to crawl his way out of the mire once again and score a new job, he is faced with the possibility of loosing it all again. Ironically the reason he got the job is also kind of the reason he may loose it again. Loose his job and maybe more, his freedom and life also being threatened along the way.
I found the interactions between Jack and Samantha to be excellent. They complemented each other as characters very well. They are really polar opposites in many ways but as they say, opposites attract and eventually, I thought they worked together very well. There are also a lot of similarities between the two as well; they are both determined and protective.
The plot is brilliant and very well executed. Just when I started to believe one thing, something else happened which made me initially question things and then a bit later on completely turned it all upside down. There were a few things in the reveal that I had my eye on, had an inkling about, but I have to admit that Mr Brookmyre completely pulled the wool over my eyes for quite a bit. He also had me shouting "no" quite a few times. I do have a bit of a thing for Parlabane and I am quite protective of him and I know he's a bit of a lad, walks on the wild side, crosses the line, but he's my Jack, he's not all bad, and I don't like it when... well... that'd be spoilery and we can't have that!
Anyway, all in all another great addition to one of my favourite series. One I have followed for a fair while and one that I hope will keep going for a long time yet.

My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.