The Last Thing She Remembers was my first JS Monroe novel. The description sounded enticing and I was excited to dig in.

The first half - or two thirds - lived up to my expectations. It was fast-paced with twists and turns. I love some good unreliable narrators! But unfortunately for me, this book took a weird turn. I don't know how to explain it and certainly can't describe it without ruining it for others... but let's just say it wasn't for me. On top of the "weird turn", I felt there were a lot of things that didn't add up and loose ends. Once a book becomes too unbelievable, it loses me a little bit.

Despite the above, The Last Thing She Remembers was a fun read and certainly kept me entertained.

The Last Thing She Remembers by JS Munro

Brief Summary: A woman shows up in an English countryside town without bags or identification and can’t remember who she is but said she used to live there. The towns people try to figure out who she is and her story.

Highlights: I loved that the doctor reviewed all types of amnesia with the patient including retrograde, anterograde, and dissociative fugue. Unfortunately that’s the only positive thing I have to say about this book. There were too many characters and too much was going on. You really have to suspend disbelief to subscribe to the plot. I was constantly asking myself what is really going on but in the confused way. This novel dragged on and on and I really struggled to finish.

Explanation of Rating: 1/5 this novel was not for me and I really can’t recommend it.

Thank you to Net Galley and Harlequin for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review

This novel kept me guessing right up until the end! I loved the character developments and plot twists and I look forward to reading another novel by this same author! Thank you netgalley for my free copy!!

Ok, so a lot of this was kind of farfetched and required a significant suspension of disbelief. However, if you can achieve that it's quite good. I particularly enjoyed that if had some plot elements that kind haven't seen before in this type of book (regarding memory, methods, motives). The characters were reasonably likeable in most cases, and there was just enough going on to keep the story complex without being too confusing. I look forward to this author's future books.

A stranger arrives at a home in a village in England, but she can't remember who she is or why she is there. The couple take her into their home but are disturbed by how she knows the house as if she has lived there. The husband Tony is intrigued by her and thinks that she looks like a Jemma that used to live in the house. Fearing that she may be this Jemma, she takes off into hiding. While some think she is a murderer, another thinks she is his daughter, and other wants her for himself. Many twists and turns to keep your interest.

This was ok. I think around half way through I became really invested. The first part was too much telling and not enough happening. I think it was on the thin side for plot. It may have worked better if we had a chance to actually experience maybe a piece of the night that Tony met Fleur and Maddy and then go to the present. Something was just not working for me in terms of the way that the plot unfolded and I was a bit bored.

I really enjoyed Find Me so I will still be looking for future mystery/thrillers by this author.

I will post the positive aspects of the book to instagram on 7/17. Thank you for the opportunity to review.

I rode along for the harrowing experience of this woman with amnesia There was much suspense and mystery along the way. Just when I thought I could put the book aside, something else would happen and I had to keep reading. I love a book like that.
Many thanks to Harlequin and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Last Thing She Remembers is the story of a young woman who shows up in a small English town with no memory. She is thought to be two different people, is she a former resident that no one wants back or the mystery daughter of a old flame. Who is correct?

This book is so different from anything I have read recently. And while it is a 400+ page book the chapters are short and it reads so fast (maybe because you won't want to put it down). All I can say is grab this book and read it now. You will not be disappointed.

Ok, I started this book, laid it back down, then started it again. A few times. I got almost half way and just could not get into it. It is just not what I was hoping for.
I didn’t like hardly anything about it and am very sorry.

I hope maybe I can pick it back up and finish it and then will post a new review to that affect.

Thank you to #NetGalley and #Harlequin Publishers.

I am only giving this book 3 stars and the third star is because it was given to and I couldn’t quite finish it.

In J.S. Monroe's The Last Thing She Remembers, this spine-tingling thriller will leave you breathless and at the edge of the seat. It all started with a woman who arrived at the home of Laura and Tony Masters in London. She claims she had lost her luggage and doesn't remember anything, not even her name. After they take her in for the night, things became change. For the time being, they call her "Jemma" and introduce her to the village. "Jemma" visits Tony's pub that serves vegan food and meets Luke, one of her lawyer's friend. The Masters couple became suspicious of her and how she knew the layout of their home among other things. They also believe she could be a woman called Jemma Huish, a deranged serial killer with mental health illness. While Laura wants her gone, Tony acts differently and becomes protective of her for some reason. They help her try to remember her name and to write her notes on what she called. When the police is brought in, they needed to take a closer look in Huish and if she could've been the person they've been looking for. For Luke, he believes this woman could be his daughter, the one his former girlfriend from high school put up for adoption thirty years ago. While Tony and Laura drift apart, Tony closes in on her and tells her not to write it down on paper. And at an intense showdown at the forest, the police shot the actual Jemma Huish when this woman isn't her. So who was she and why was she there? When she remembers her name is Maddie, she begins to remember what happened to her a decade year and how she sought revenge on Tony Masters, while the police discovers his sordid and twisted past and his fascination with seahorses and memories. In the end, she turns the tables around to tell her side of the story and have justice be served.

A woman suffering from amnesia turns up at the house of Laura and Tony claiming to live there. With no identification or possessions and concerned for her well-being they invite her to stay and take her to the doctor's the next day. Sensing a familiarity the doctor thinks she recognizes the woman, a convicted murderer.
As the story progresses we meet other characters in the village the couple live in, all of whom have their own theories as to this mystery woman's background and identity.
An interesting premise that I would have enjoyed more if the story had a quicker pace. Confusing at times with many twists and different points of view.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin/Park Row for an arc of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

If this book was a tv show or a movie, I'd have been screaming at it the whole time. Yes, I'm one of those people that talks to the tv. I talk to my books too, but usually inside my head.
The Last Thing She Remembers starts with our main character knowing nothing. Not her name, where she's been, where her bag is, etc. All she knows is that she'll be fine if she can just make it home. The only problem is, it's not her home. Laura and Tony live there. They invite her to stay while they try to help her discover her identity, which gives off immediate bad vibes. Also, maybe she's a murderer on the run.
I found the whole premise to be interesting because I have epilepsy and will occasionally have fugue states and not remember entire periods of time. I have a "safe space" that I remember, which is exactly what seemed to happen to our MC. But eventually I stopped seeing the connection between that and this wild amnesia and started wondering just exactly what the hell was happening. In a good way. It reminded me of Gillian Flynn, who btw needs to release so more books. This is a great read in the meantime. 3.5/5
*I received a copy of this book from netgalley in return for my honest review.

5 Reasons to Read The Last Thing She Remembers:

1. Are you looking to add a little "crazy" in your life? Well, look no further because this one takes the cake. In a small Wiltshire village a woman knocks on the door to a home she claims to be hers. She has nothing with her, no identification, no luggage, no memory. All she knows is this is where she lives, and she is reliant on the couple currently living there to help her find her true identity. What ensues is a whole lotta cray-cray.

2. Fast paced and in another country. Two major selling points in my book. I love when I can't seem to put a book down, and I also love books that have a European spin to them. I sped through this one because I was dying to know if the Mystery Woman was legit in her amnesia, or if she was putting on a farce.

3. The alternating view points made the ride through this novel that much more interesting. There were a few theories that were slightly far-fetched, but without going into too much detail, it did pull together in a suspenseful little package at the end.

4. The main characters lie. I like when I trust a character, and then they stab me in the back... is that weird? That happened in this one. I found myself trusting the wrong people at the wrong times, and then I was wholly not disappointed when things took a complete turn and made me theorize in a different direction.

5. The chapters were quick and easy, making it a good one to pick up and put down. As many of you know, I love when I have a kindle read and a physical copy of a book so I can read when I'm putting my children to bed. This was a great one for that because it allowed me to start and stop as my sleepless children dictated without confusing me with long chapters.

I’ve never read a book like this one. The premise is entirely unique, and while it wasn’t the most action packed book, I just kept wanting to read it. That’s largely why I’m giving it a high rating. This book drew me in from start to finish. While I felt like a lot of the characters and plot lines should have been fleshed out more, this book worked very well. It jumps around between the perspectives of several different characters, which I felt added a nice dimension to this book. The overall mood of this book was very dark and slightly detached, which is a style that I’ve come to enjoy recently. While I obviously can’t speak much on the plot of the book, I must say that I thought this book was done very well. It took interesting turns at points where I wasn’t expecting it to. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who’s even remotely interested by the premise.

WOW, what a great book! This is a new author to me but one I plan to read again. It is certainly a page turner with an unexpected ending! Thanks for such a great read!

The Last Thing She Remembers by J. S. Monroe is a enthralling, addictive read which I enjoyed. Thank you to Park Row Books and NetGalley for the advanced copy. It’s about a woman who tries to reconstruct her life and identity while suffering from stress induced amnesia. The captivating storyline grabs you from the very beginning, flows chapter after chapter and keeps you guessing until the end.

Synopsis: Following a rough week of traveling for work, Jemma’s handbag with all her important possessions including her passport, credit cards, laptop, and house keys is stolen at the airport. Even more disturbing, when she goes to report the incident, she realizes she can't recall her own name. Home and her past no longer exist in her mind, but the only thing in her pocket is a train ticket “home.” Jemma is a source of mystery when she arrives at the sleepy Wiltshire village where she thought she lived and quickly becomes a cause of fear and curiosity amongst the locals when no one recognizes her. Is she a victim or a killer? Where did she come from? All at the same time as she is thinking: Who are these people? Who am I?

I liked this book, however wanted to like it more than I did. I wasn’t invested in the characters, and found the middle to be drawn out a little too much. I enjoyed the ending more than the rest of the book though.

This book was a very good read! Suspenseful and engaging, it was hard to put it down! It had many twists and turns. Highly recommend!

This is a difficult book to rate. I’m going to try and segregate what I like and dislike about this book so it’s easier to understand why I rate it the way I do. This publisher usually has books that are to my liking but this one wasn’t a good match.
What I like: it’s quick paced with short chapters that make you want to read ‘just one more’. It’s engaging and truly a well written thriller. It has lots of twists and turns and it keeps you on your toes. It’s not predictable.
What I dislike: it’s got too much going on and not all of it is relevant. It jumps around too much in a bid to keep the mystery but that gets tiring. The first half is fast paced but the second half is annoying. What I like about thrillers is that they are difficult to figure out; while this book meets that requirement, it isn’t because of the brilliance of the plot, on the contrary it is because the climax is not believable. I don’t mind disappointing endings but this was just not believable. The book needs more editing, it is unnecessarily repetitive.
Thanks to Netgalley and harlequin for giving me this ARC for my review.

This book definitely kept me on my toes. When a person arrives at the train station, nothing is as it seems. She is immediately taken in by a couple for the night. She is mistaken for someone who is a murderer and someone's long lost daughter. She really doesn't know what to think. Everyone has an angle and a reason for finding her place and they are not all good. I wish the story would have wrapped up a little better, but really liked it for what it was. Thanks for the ARC, Net Galley.