The Last Thing She Ever Did
by Gregg Olsen
Thomas & Mercer

Thomas & Mercer
General Fiction (Adult) , Mystery & Thrillers
Pub Date 01 Jan 2018


I am reviewing a copy of The Last Thing She Ever Did through Thomas Mercer and Netgalley:


The community surrounding Oregon's Deschutes River is a place of families and successful careers. Up and comers Liz and Owen have admired their good friends and neighbors, Carole and David, the couple seemingly has it all until their young son Charlie disappears.


No one knows what happened to Charlie except for Liz.


In just an instantaneous horrible accident and the decision to try to hide what happenened ends up destroying her and those she loves the most.


Who is behind the disappearance of the little boy, will he survive or is it already to late?


Find out in The Last Thing She Ever Did.


Five out of five stars!


Happy Reading!

THE LAST THING SHE EVER DID Written By Gregg Olsen
JANUARY 1, 2018; 380 Pages (Thomas & Mercer)
Genre: suspense, mystery, thriller, gritty, fiction

(I received an ARC from the NETGALLEY)

RATING: 4 STARS

This novel is crazy! I mean crazy in a good way. I will warn you that there are some uncomfortable scenes in this book, so if you don’t like gritty suspense novels, you might want to pass on this one. Charlie, a young boy, is out of his mother’s sight for several minutes and vanishes. A neighbour and close friend to his mother knows what happens but coming forward will ruin their lives. Other than Charlie, all the characters were pretty much selfish jerks. Yet, I couldn’t wait to see where the story would go and I was flipping through the pages. What I found interesting was the realism of the split decision moments, but wrestled with the how they reacted to. There was a twist to the ending, I for once didn’t expect and while I am not sure if I liked the ending it was interesting. This novel had be glued till the end and that’s what I love! I recommend this one to my suspense friends.

Beetles never stop. They gnaw silently and relentlessly. Guilt is like that too.
OMG this book truly tested my limits! I don’t tend to get squeamish often but this one made me feel sick to my stomach all the while providing a compelling story and a satisfying conclusion I was sooo praying for.
This book was honestly incredible and solidifies my belief that T&M thrillers are some of the best out there. This is my third one in a month or so and I just can’t get enough.
I loved the characters the author created, all of them so grey and murky, not black and white at all. He really made it impossible to put this book down and I HAD to keep reading to find out what actually happened. The first half of the book is absolutely INSANE in tension and has you stuck with your nose in a book. It was so shocking and oh so good.
In many ways this book reminded me of Crime and Punishment. It was honestly such a good read and something I might pick up again in a year or so because it definitely left an impact.
Would recommend for: If you love thrillers and you’re not afraid of having your boundaries pushed, I strongly recommend this one! Even more so if you’ve enjoyed Thomas & Mercer books in the past. They have some of my favorite thrillers.

I was privileged to receive a free copy of this book shortly after it released on January 1, 2018. Two couples live on the Deschutes River in Bend, Oregon. David and Carole have a young son, Charlie while Liz and Owen are childless. One day while Carole is on the phone with an insurance adjuster, Charlie slips away and disappears. The police are called and days turn into weeks and hope of Charlie being found alive diminishes.

Gregg Olsen has penned a winner of a thriller. I could hardly keep from sneaking back to get into the book, when I should have been working. His character development is outstanding. The clues he leaves behind are sneaky. I highly recommend you clear your schedule before starting this novel, but please do read it. You’ll be glad you did.

I'm not sure that I would call this a thriller but it was somewhat suspenseful. I truly could not find one character to like in this novel. It was a hard to believe scenario that was quite predictable. Mixed feelings about the story...

I was given an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest and independent review.
There were parts of the story that I didn’t like and found a bit implausible. Most of the main characters for one reason or another were not very likeable (no spoiler alerts!) but I believe that this was the author’s intention, which was actually quite appealing.
But on a positive note this was quite a thrilling, fast paced novel which I found hard to put down, as I just had to see how it ended. It would make an interesting book club read as there are so many unanswered questions!
3.5 Stars

The Last Thing She Ever Did is a dynamite of a thriller written by author Gregg Olsen. I highly recommend it. Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas and Mercer for the advance copy.

This book makes you mad, keeps you on the edge of your seat and really throws you curve balls. A great thrilling read.

3 Stars - Well, this book was really good. It was predictable but the writing was really good. It held my interest and I was enjoying it, then I read the ending and it disappointed me! It didn’t satisfy me! I wanted to know about that unfinished conversation, about what was Carole’s reaction or what she would say after knowing about the truth or what the detective would do; the right thing or wrong one! It was like I read this book for nothing! I expected some answers but in the end I didn’t get them! Told in multiple POV, 3rd person. It’s a standalone novel. Overall, regardless of its ending it was a good read and hope you enjoy it!

Thanks to Gregg Olsen, Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for the advanced digital copy in exchange an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read The Last Thing She Ever Did by Gregg Olsen. I have been a fan of Olsen's work for a long time. His writing is solid and this book is no different...
A young woman, Liz, is rushing to take her bar exam - after studying all night, drinking coffee and taking adderal - she knows she's late and gotta get on the road. She gets in her car, and accidentally, backs into the neighbor's 3 year old child. The child is motionless and appears to be dead; she does the unthinkable, and puts the child in her garage..She will deal with this later, after her exam.
Meanwhile, the mom, Carole, has been on the phone while her child has been outside. She has no clue what has happened, and starts calling for her son. Soon she is frantic and must call the police to help find her little boy. Carole blames herself - she was on the phone and turned her back for a second - and her child is missing.
No one has seen anything in the small Oregon community. But they all have their secrets and they go back years.
Liz is married to Owen and the child's parents live in a mansion next door, Carole and David. The story takes both couples on a nightmare journey where secrets and lies fill their homes each day and night. Where the past can quickly catch up to you and one lie must be covered with another and another...
The police start to look into the disappearance and soon everyone is a possible suspect.
This book will have you thinking - what would you do in this situation. Olsen takes you in the minds of all the characters and builds intensity as you turn each page.
Very good - Recommend!

I rather enjoyed this book, even if I guessed the outcome long before the end of the book. This book was one of the few that, even though I knew where it would end, I was in suspense all along the journey. There were some allusions to adult situations (affairs mentioned), swearing, and violence, of course given the storyline. Given the combination, I would recommend at least mid-teens as the lower end of the reading level for this book, though I don't recall any of the 3 things I try to rate as being particularly graphic, with the exception of a couple of violent scenes. Even those weren't overly graphic for the story content. Overall, a great suspense novel that I foresee doing quite well.

I would like to thank the publisher, author, and Netgalley for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced readers copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I thought this book was brilliant.
It was original, gripping and engrossing.
It grabs you by the neck and doesn’t let you go to the very end.
I have no idea how I have never heard of this author before but, now I will go and check out what else he has written.

I enjoyed this book. I haven’t read a book by Gregg Olsen in years and am glad to reconnect with him as an author. I found this book to be a great suspenseful read.

First, I would like to thank Gregg Olsen, Thomas &Mercer, and NetGalley for providing me with this book so I may bring you this review.
The Last Thing She Ever Did by Gregg Olsen was hands down the most suspenseful book of 2018 that I have read to date! This was my first time ever reading anything by Gregg Olsen and he just made me a huge fan of his work! This book had my undivided attention from the first page when the accident happened 20 years ago! Boy was that chapter intense and had me on the edge of my seat!! The way Gregg described it I felt like I was there watching it all happen. Then the story unfolds into into the present day.
This book is for anyone who loves to read stories that are suspenseful, thrilling, full of secrets, lies, have missing children, accidents, betrayal, a lot of twists and turns, criminal investigation, couples fighting, etc. Then this is the book for you!
My heart totally went out to Carole whose son Charlie was missing in the book! Many times I wanted to hug her and console her. Knowing that the readers knew what happened to her son the whole time. However, she was kept in the dark til the end of the book.
This is one book that I think would make a great movie!

3.5 stars

The characters in this book are a bunch of self-centered a**holes, but they make for an entertaining read!

The Last Thing She Ever Did is a suspenseful, quick read filled with twists and turns. The characters are appalling, the story is over the top, and there's tons of drama--this combination makes for an addictive reading experience!

Behind the closed doors of the beautiful facades of Bend, Oregon yuppie couples Liz and Owen Jarrett and Carole and David Franklin, ugliness lurks. When Liz commits an unthinkable act, their ugliness comes out in full force and their true natures are revealed.

This is a fun, yet flawed read. Some elements didn’t add up for me, but I’m not going to get into that in this review. The characters are vile, but their behavior didn’t bother me as it serves a purpose. This is a very readable book, but I found the ending disappointing. With such awful, outrageous characters, I was expecting more! Overall, I would still recommend for the entertainment factor.

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

What a nerve-racking book! It made me feel for characters I thought I couldn't. A bit, anyway... as this book is full of characters that are difficult to like. Just when you think you've identified the worst character... oh, you're wrong. Bad decisions run rampant in this one. Suspenseful enough to keep your attention if slightly predictable. I know a lot of people won't be a fan of the ending... but even though it was jarring, I was okay with it.

Liz and Owen are on their way to success. After a lot of hard work and long hours, he's about to experience a windfall... and no slouch herself, Liz is about to take the bar exam. No, it's not her first time... but hopefully this time she'll nail it. She doesn't know that the day of the exam will certainly change her life, but not in the way she hopes.

If Liz and Owen are on their way to greatness, Carole and David have already arrived. She left her work at Google quite well off and now creates art, and he owns a successful restaurant in town. They have more money than most people would know what to do with. Carole now stays at home with her long-awaited young son Charlie. When she takes her eyes off him while he's playing by the river to speak on the phone, she expects him to be right where he was when she returns... her well-behaved, sweet boy. But he's gone.

Most of the middle class long-standing residents of the neighborhood resent the rich newcomers who build large, block their views, and push them out, but the two couples are close. It's always seemed like a good thing, but when a tragic accident happens, they all may live to regret it.

This book will horrify you at times but keep you reading.

I received a copy of this book from Net Galley and Thomas & Mercer, thank you! My review is honest and unbiased.

Liz is a basketcase. Owen's a little sh*t. Carole was careless with her most precious thing. What mother leaves a 3 year old by a body of water? I don't care if he was the most well-behaved child or not. Leaving a 3 year old alone even for a few minutes is not a good idea. I see the potential in this plot, but I guessed early on what was going to happen. The ensuing 200 pages were full of angst and hate. I wanted to try a Gregg Olsen novel. He is a good writer, I just think this plot wasn't the best.

The Last Thing She Ever Did is a fast and engaging thriller. This was my first experience with Gregg Olson and I can definitely see why many people like his style of writing :).

Gregg Olson knows how to leave his readers on the edge of their seats! Can I just say... talk about a year of bad luck!! Yikes!

Liz and Owen live in a small Oregon community by the Deschutes River. They are good friends with their neighbors David and Carole who appear to have it all with a sweet and charming little boy. One day, David and Carole's son Charlie disappears when he is playing outside by the river. Little did Liz know, this earth shattering event of Charlie disappearing will effect both couples in ways that the reader can't imagine. What truly happened to Charlie that day?

What I liked about this novel? Very engaging! Gregg does a nice job with leaving his readers with wanting more from every page that is turned. Characterization was also pretty strong. Can, I just say both men were JERRRKKKSSS lol.

What I didn't like so much? The ending.... I was extremely disappointed. I feel like a lot of the books I've been reading lately haven't had a strong ending. The author kind of leaves you hanging to use your imagination to figure out "the last thing she ever did." The last chapter was weird.. to me it was conversation between characters and just completely stopped. I wanted a more solid and thrilling ending.

Overall 3.25 stars on this one for me.

Thank you so much to Thomas & Mercer and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Review published on Goodreads: 1/8/18.
Publication date is 1/1/18.

I really like the setting of this book. The Deschutes River is one of my favorite places. I would love to live in one of the house the author described, and watch the water go by. This story will keep you turning the pages. It will make you so sick to your stomach that you are reading as fast as you can for relief, that everything works out okay, that Charlie is okay! You will want to strangle Liz. This book is full of selfish, disgusting individuals and some get what is coming to them.

I have no clue what the title has to do with the story, but the first thing the book does is have a kid die in a flash flood car accident and then hop ahead several years to have a survivor of that accident hit a neighbor's kid with her car. This was a good, well-written story and I probably should be giving it 4 stars, except that I did not like a single darn character in the book! They were all horrible, selfish, disgusting humans. I couldn't get past that and it tainted my entire reading of the book. I think perhaps even Mr. Olsen realized there was a problem and tried to resolve it, but the ending was too little and too late.