This is the second novel by Claire Douglas I've read, and her third published. It required proper concentration, especially in the later parts of the story, which I was happy to give. I recognised the effort put in to planning the work and enjoyed it all the more for it. To inhabit the world of Libby for a few days was at first a welcome distraction from the world, then a nightmare. It was scary, prescient, real. The plotting was masterful, the characters nicely drawn. At first one or two felt like caricatures but their motivation was revealed later. Claire Douglas knows how to do twists well, and she deploys them again and again as soon as the reader is settled from the previous one. I raced through the second half of the book in a night because I needed to know what happens! A page-turner for sure where even the clean-cut and the goody two-shoes have dark secrets. Where just a name that once comforted can chill...

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book. It was absolutely brilliant, from start to finish it had me wondering what the outcome would be. It didn't disappoint me. It's one of those books that you could read a few times and not get bored with it. Brilliant storyline the characters where great too, I enjoyed reading it. I look forward to reading more from Claire Douglas.

Thanks to Net Galley & Penguin UKfor an ARC of this book in exchange for a review . Wow what a read, psychological thriller, gripping story from beginning to end.. Claire Douglas has created a masterpiece.
Two girls meet while travelling in Thailand, there is a fire in the hostel they are staying in, it would seem only one girls survives the fire.
Several years later, Libby is now married to Jamie and once again Libby has escaped a fire and rescued the children in her care, the story makes the news, bringing attention Libby did not want.
They are offered a house swap to a Cornish Hideaway, seems like the perfect place for them to relax and pull together. It's very remote.
Libby feels they are being watched and followed, is she imagining things? what is Jamie hiding from her?
The story picks up pace as secret after secret and lie after lie is discovered. Has Libby also got secrets?
Lots of twists to this story and right at the end yet another. Can't praise this book enough - brilliant.

thanks for netgalley for the advanced copy. This was the first book I have read by Claire Douglas and I loved it. They was so many twists and it kept me guessing and trying to figure it out right till the end. perfect for girl on the train fans. I will definitely now be checking out this author's other books and future releases.

Libby and Jamie have been experiencing difficulties in their marriage, and when the chance of a house swap comes up Libby decides it would be a great way to relax and rediscover their love and trust for each other.
The house is beautiful, completely renovated with the latest high-tech gadgets, overlooking the bay, although remote from other homes. Libby soon becomes suspicious that she is being watched, becoming wary and anxious. As the story unfolds, various events begin to disturb her and you are told that a traumatic event happened in her past, which gradually unfolds as the book progresses.
There are several twists and turns in the book which left me feeling surprised, and occasionally confused, as I wasn't sure which character was telling the story.
I found this book to be a compelling read, the characters are likeable and well developed, and you can't wait to turn the page to find out what happens next, although you don’t want the book to end. The author writes beautifully, developing her characters and story, and I would love to read other books by the same author.
Highly recommended.

An amazing story that just keeps changing directions . It will.leave you feeling .

Absolutely loved this book. The story starts on page 1, no unnecessary chapters straight into the plot.

Loved the twists which I didn't see coming, completely unpredictable.... so very well written. Easy reading.... in fact I read this over 34 hours. I couldn't put it down.

Will add this to our next book recommendation blog list.

There are quite a lot of these types of these books around st the moment. Not quite chick lit, not quite mystery, they have created a new genre all of their own. I have read several of them and tend to think "oh no, here we go again", when I realise the plot is ratcheting up with the usual clues that the heroine is not who she appears to be, the scenario is not what you at first thought and so on. This particular one got quite complicated and at one point I totally lost who I was actually reading about. The ending was really quite predictable. I would only read this as, perhaps, a holiday read, when I didn't need to think too closely about the story or the writing.

Brilliant book completely engrossing from beginning to end with some amazing plot twists.

Libby is offered a home swop from her flat in Bath to a place in the country by a doctor and his wife wanting to stay close to their sick daughter. Libby and her husband set off with the hope of a relaxing time after all the pressures they have faced of late. Whilst there incidents start to happen that makes Libby's paranoia grow. Their trip is cut short after a find in the garden bringing them back to Bath.
Libby's life starts spiralling out of control when a man is found dead in her back garden - her being the only connection. Her arrest brings the past into the forefront and what happened in Bangkok friends travelling and a fire ending Karens life but beginning Libby's instead and where does Beth fit into it all. This story was brilliantly thought out where you alligances to Libby, Beth and others switch at a regular pace. The twists all add a new whodunnit to the story and the ending leaves to you wanting more. I cannot wait to read more of Claire Douglas's books
With thanks to netgalley the publishers and the author for an ARC of the book in exchange for a honest and Frank review

Libby and her husband Jamie are offered a house-swap for a week, exchanging their compact flat in Bath for a large, beautifully renovated mansion of a place in Cornwall. Libby deals with the owner only by telephone but an amicable agreement ensues and Libby and James seem to have fallen on their feet. Things don’t add up, though, and the place begins to get creepy. Jamie suffers from food poisoning and when he has to spend the night in hospital the dream holiday falls flat. The mysterious owner then tells them he’s going to stay in London so they can return to their own poky flat.

This is a superb story about identity. It seems to be a pet theme of the author’s and she handles it very deftly. The story develops, taking us away from the picture we had built up and replacing it with another. I found myself not knowing who to like or trust. Another great story from Claire Douglas.

I received a copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Libby and her husband Jamie have been going through a bit of a rough time. Libby, a teacher heroically saved some of her pupils when a fire broke out at her school. Unfortunately this led to Libby suffering a miscarriage. Jamie is recently self employed and is trying to build his business up. One day a leaflet
comes through their door offering a house swap for a couple of weeks to a hideaway in the country. Thinking this is what herself and Jamie desperately need they decide to go ahead. When they get to the hideaway however strange things start to happen. When they eventually have to leave and go home because of an incident things get worse.

Up until three quarters of the way through this book I was loving it. There was a lot of tension, suspicion and paranoia. I kept changing my mind over who was responsible for doing these things. Then a secret is revealed which changed the direction of the story a bit. It had elements of a book that I had read several years ago which I did not particularly enjoy. I just wish that the story had gone in a different direction as until then this had been a five star read for me. I also think that there were too many loose ends which is frustrating when you have invested your time in the story.

Claire Douglas certainly knows how to grab the audience's attention from the very first chapter!! Libby and her husband Jamie, although relatively newly wed, are having a difficult time. When an opportunity presents itself for a house swap, they jump at the chance for a break, a chance to heal themselves and their marriage.
As the book progresses, skeletons that are buried deep in the long forgotten closets are suddenly itching to leap out, singing and dancing!
Libby may have worked hard to create the life she has with Jamie, but it seems that some things just don't stay buried!!

I am a huge fan of Ms Douglas' last novel Local Girl Missing and have recommended it to so many people over the past few months as one of the best psycological thrillers I have ever read. This new offering in no way disappoints. It is equally well written with just as many sub plots and breath takingly clever twists and turns - a sure fire success once again. Excellent read.

Brilliant read again from Claire Douglas. I love all her books and this is up there with the rest. Both Katen Fisher and Libby Hall are troubled souls when they meet backpacking in Thailand in their twenties in 2008.
Now in the present day Libby is married to Jamie, is working as a teacher and wanting to start a family. She seems to have it all. But then when she does a house swap in Cornwall with a wealthy private plastic surgeon her life begins to spiral out of control.
Lots of twists and a good plot, I didn't like Hannah and Katie though!
Look forward to the next one.

wow not sure how to review this book without giving away too much of the brilliant plot! i will say "read it, it's great!". i read this in two sittings dismissing housework and ironing!

the first half of the book slowly paves the way for the explosive second half giving just enough information to the reader to keep them interested and guessing!

many thanks to netgalley and the publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

A gripping story from page one. The book is full of so many twists and turns and it is not possible to see who was telling the truth or who was lying to cover up their past life. The fact that Jamie believes that Libby needs counselling to overcome her various paranoia's adds credence to the story line that perhaps she is in need of help and will not admit it. The story line really becomes into its own when they take on the house swap and it gives Jamie a chance to relax from his stressful start up company. Sad to say everything that could go wrong does and it made me as the reader decided that I would never do a house swap. As the story line intensifies so does the twists that bring so much intrigue in to the book. I loved this book and had no idea what the punchline at the end would be. An amazingly well written book with graphic descriptions throughout bringing the scenes and actions to life for the reader.

More twists and turns than Spaghetti Junction. The comfortable atmosphere of a seemingly opportune house-swap - a flat in Bath for a magnificent house in Cornwall. Was Libby Hall rather naive to accept, at face value, a note pushed through her letterbox offering the swap from someone who claims urgent need for such an arrangement as he and his wife need to visit their daughter, who awaits an operation, at the local hospital. Would you not be suspicious at least? Well, not for Libby and her husband Jamie, who are going through a rough patch in their marriage.

The secluded house in Cornwall is not everything it at first appears. Is Libby being watched? Does her paranoia come to the service? What is she hiding from her past? And what of Jamie? Does he have secrets that he keeps from Libby? Is Libby really who she has claimed all along to be? Do past events in Thailand have a bearing on the way she acts? Just what is she hiding?

Those past events will lead to a cataclysmic outcome as the secrets and lies unravel with terrible consequences. Atmospheric, claustrophobic, a plot that often left me blind-sided and not a little confused at times. And then, the final twist.... Great stuff!

Another 5 star winner from this author. Absolutely BRILLIANT, had me hooked from the very first page.

I'd read a previous book by Claire Douglas (Local Girl Missing) and while I quite enjoyed it, it was by n0 means unputdownable and didn't exactly blow me away.

Last Seen Alive, on the other hand, had me thoroughly gripped.

It begins when Libby - recovering from stressful events in both her recent and more distant past - and her husband Jamie (plus dog Ziggy) agree to a week's house swap, exchanging their very ordinary flat in Bath for a beautiful, incredibly luxurious country house in Cornwall following a desperate request from a stranger. It's clear there is more going on here than meets the eye, and indeed strange and often alarming things start to happen very quickly.

While this premise was in itself not especially original, I really enjoyed this part of the book. Claire Douglas builds up the tension very nicely and while it was obvious that *something* was going on and all was not as it appeared, I had no idea what. I was also finding the straightforward, linear style of storytelling quite refreshing, devoid (apart from a very short section right at the beginning) of the flashbacks, flash-forwards and multiple narratives and timeframes so beloved of current psychological fiction. I have nothing against these devices which can work very well indeed, but they do seem to be all but compulsory now.

This does change, however, in the second part of the book, when everything suddenly gets turned on its head in a rather mind-bending way and it takes a while for the reader to work out what on earth is happening. This was very effectively and cleverly done, though it's difficult to say any more without risk of spoilers! And yes, there are flashbacks and yes, there are changes of narrator - though it is not overdone.

All in all I enjoyed this enormously. The plot was unpredictable, often surprising, and does become quite complex, but ultimately the twists and turns more or less made sense The only thing which jarred a little was the ending, which left the reader on a knife edge with matters unresolved - if with a certain sense of natural justice perhaps being dispensed. While I'm not someone who necessarily requires everything to be tied up neatly with a bow, though, this was just a step too far in terms of future uncertainty! I hope Claire Douglas will at some point resolve this, perhaps through a reference in a future book.

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the advance copy which was appreciated and enjoyed.

A fantastic read with real characters, a well constructed plot, just the right amount of mystery and a steady build up of tension.

This is the story of a struggling couple living in a flat in Bath who jump at the chance of a house swap with the owners of a much grander and isolated cliff-top residence in Cornwall. Their idyllic week away is spoiled by a number of unexplained problems and co-incidences, and they return to their flat with the suspicion that all is not well, but are not sure how or why. As more strange events occur in the following weeks they become suspicious of everyone, and the marriage comes under yet further strain.

In "Last Seen Alive", the slow build up of tension and the release of background detail about the couple was done with style and skill, causing me to constantly re-evaluate the characters as new information came to light.
The themes of guilt, blame, trust and identity are explored thoroughly in this book, and readers are lead astray with red herrings, suspicions and changing allegiances.

As for the writing, it was excellent, and as usual Claire Douglas is particularly good at dialogue and interaction between the characters. All in all, an excellent read which will stay with me for some time.