I was initially so excited for this book, then dreaded it after seeing some lackluster reviews. I didn’t necessarily dread reading it, but I rarely felt the excitement. 

Years ago, Lauren’s father was in prison for murder. He was released when she was 10, after a serial killer confessed to the crime. Lauren was thrilled, except for the fact that her own mother’s testimony put her father in jail in the first place. 

Now, years later, Lauren has just moved into her paternal grandmother’s home. Her grandmother is in special care after suffering a stroke. Lauren doesn’t talk to her mother, and can never forgive her for lying. When someone claiming to be the imprisoned serial killer reaches out to her, a series of events are set in motion. 

What really happened to the woman who was murdered?

THE GOOD: The premise is exciting, and pretty original for the most part. There are dual storylines...from Lauren’s POV in the present, and her mother’s POV in 1985. I enjoyed parts of each, more so the past. The last 20% revs up and provides the excitement I was waiting for. 

THE NOT SO GOOD: I repeat - The last 20% revs up and provides the excitement I was waiting for. That means for about 80% of the book, nothing really happens. While I was never painfully bored, I couldn’t help feeling disappointed after numerous times where I thought, “Oh, this is IT. Something is FINALLY happening”...only to have nothing happen. The characters in both storylines make bad choices that had me rolling my eyes. 

All in all, I think a shorter book (or one with a few more surprises) could’ve made a world of difference. While I won’t actively recommend it to anyone, I encourage those who are curious to also read other reviews when determining if this book is worth looking into. 

Thank you to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. 

Expected Publication Date: 3/30/2021. 

Review also posted at: https://bonkersforthebooks.wordpress.com

Interesting read. I found that I was suitably hooked in and wanted to find out more. At times it read like a series follow up so I found I was trying to put the pieces together. I did find it hard to like any of the main characters as well which was interesting. I don't know if you were meant to be rooting for someone but it was not easy!

It's worth a read if you like a thriller /family drama type of book.

A little predictable but overall a decent read. I struggled a bit with the timelines but it not terribly cumbersome.

After her grandmother has a stroke and decides to spend the rest of her life in a care home, Lauren moves into the family home.
Estranged from her mother, whose testimony had put her father in prison for years, Lauren is excited to live in the house of which she has such fond memories. But little does she know that her move in might unearth the family skeletons.

I'm a great fan of Victoria Helen Stone, so I requested her newest book without even reading the blurb.
The story follows Lauren in the present and her mother in the past, and I enjoyed this dual perspective.
At first, when I started reading I was sceptical, the story wasn't one that gripped me right from the start, but it quickly turned out that it was one that sucks you in imperceptibly, and the next thing I knew, I was madly turning the pages.
Overall, it was a really good read. It might be slow to get going, but once it does pick up, the story will keep you in its grip till the end.

Another fab book by Victoria Helen stone. I love her books and this was no exception. Brilliant and I really couldn't put it down. Highly recommended.

Our story begins with Lauren who hasn’t had the easiest of life after her Mother, Donna testified against her Father, Michael about a murder he apparently confessed to her, Lauren who was young at the time at ten years old was away from her father while he was imprisoned until the real killer came forward. Pretty tough for Lauren, so when she’s called back to her child hood home, it can’t be such a bad idea can it, she had some pretty great memories of her dad and her grandmother there, so why is her Mother so against it? 

With an estranged relationship with her Mother and her toxic lies, Lauren puts it down to  the fact that her mother is more batty than she thought, after she tries to worry her daughter about the dangers of her estate which her grandmother is passing on to her for a dwindled down price of what it is worth when she becomes to sick to look after it. 

The characters were dull, each with issues, Donna and Lauren were both weak, Michael was completely and utterly faithless, having a string of affairs including Donna, even though he was married and his Mother, Elizabeth was just vile. I didn’t have any relationship with them and didn’t really care about them either, which indicated to me, it wasn’t going to be one of those books that I would be consumed by. 
Character development is a really big thing with me, it’s almost 50% of the whole book in terms of likeability and reader satisfaction. 

The story itself was mediocre as the book goes by it flits between past and present narrated between both Donna and Lauren’s point of view, both characters I found irritating and would have liked to have seen them to be stronger women in the present having been weaker in the past. I don’t know, it’d be progression for me, whilst she wasn’t where I wanted her to be by the end of the story, she did improve slightly but mostly she was unable to pick a path and follow it. Donna was much the opposite in this respect until she was pregnant and then she became weedy and dull. Where is the fight, girls? It sure wasn’t in this one.

An easy read however it seemed rushed and the story was slow up until the end and then it seemed kind of fast paced, it was an okay read just not my favourite, I wasn’t obsessed or flying high like I have been on other stories but that’s just the way it is.

I haven’t read Victoria Stone before and would probably give her another go as she has a lot of popularity for her Jane Doe series, which seems to do well. This isn’t one I will recommend however as I found it dull, a real slow burner and not very thrilling at all but that’s not to say others won’t. I much prefer fast paced thrillers that have me captivated from the get go, I didn’t feel that this book did that. 

Giving thanks to Netgalley, Victoria Helen Stone, and Lake Union publishers as I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I really really enjoyed this book. I thought it started off kind of slow but once it got going, I couldn't put the book down. I loved the twists and turns and didn't see the end coming at all. I even missed a few details until the very end of the book. The writing was really good and I really enjoyed the characters as well. Defiantly recommend this one!!!

The Last One Home was a fun read!! I’d you're a fan if Victoria Helen Stone, you won’t be disappointed with this one. It has her very own signature writing style couple with that edge of your seat suspense, and of course, a compelling protagonist. Can’t wait to read more from this author!!

This was a great read, enjoyed it thoroughly, great storyline and loads of twists and turns , highly recommend this book x

Sexy , seductive and utterly compelling!! This is a must read . Gone girl vibes and I absolutely devoured this book!!

Every book I have read by Victoria Helen Stone have been great, consistent page-turners. I especially loved Jane Doe, so if you haven’t read that one, be sure to get it right now. Its FREE if you have Kindle Unlimited.

In the upcoming book, The Last One Home, Lauren moves into her elderly grandmother’s mansion after grandma has a stroke. Sounds great but Lauren’s mother, Donna, has told her that grandma is dangerous. Is she a liar? Or is she telling the truth? The book alternates between Lauren and Donna. The family history is complicated and dramatic and I wasn’t sure who to believe.

Check out the synopsis:

Lauren Abrams wants nothing to do with her damaged mother, whose spurious testimony sent Lauren’s father to prison for murder years ago. After a serial killer’s confession to the crime restored justice, Lauren chose to live with her father and grandmother. Now an adult, Lauren has come home to the Sacramento family estate for good, her mother’s lies be damned…

It’s been decades since Donna made her cheating boyfriend pay, but she hasn’t forgotten the past. She knows her estranged daughter has made a terrible mistake by returning to the estate. There’s more to the story of the welcoming old homestead—and her childhood—than Lauren knows.

As Lauren settles in, she is haunted by the questions of what really happened with her father, what her mother might be hiding, and what secrets the family ranch holds. It’s getting so dark, Lauren may not be able to see the truth to save her life.

Going into this book, know that it is not a suspense or thriller, it’s more of a family drama. The last part of the book had me very intrigued!

Coming in March, get it here!

THE LAST ONE HOME  is a twisty tale that really sucked me in.  Lauren was raised by her erratic and angry mother until her father is released from prison after another inmate confesses to the murder that sent Lauren's father to prison.  After that, Lauren goes to live with her father and her grandmother on the family homestead and her life improves immeasurable.  But now, all grown up and still struggling to find her place in the world, Lauren is called home by her grandmother, who deeds her the house.  Lauren is thrilled until the confessing prisoner , a known serial killer, makes contact in a very personal way.  This starts Lauren down a path of discovery she never could anticipated.  Alternating between Lauren's modern-day voice, and that of her mother when she was pregnant, Stone does a stunning job of unspooling a fantastic novel of suspense.  I loved JANE DOE and THE LAST ONE HOME is equally compelling.

I’m sorry to say that I’ve DNF this book at 30%. The storyline is too slow for me and not my cup of tea. I could not be able to finish it.

An amazing book about the family we are given and the ones we make. With a bit of suspense thrown in for fun. Definitely one to add to your list.

I loved Jane Doe so I had was thrilled when I was able to read this ARC however, it was not her best work.  I did finish reading the book but at parts had to really push myself through it.

This book was the first one for me from Victoria Helen Stone. I love that it was told in dual POV and timeframe--though that made it a little slow to start for me.

We start in 1985 when Donna realizes she is pregnant after an affair with a married man, Michael, that was supposed to be casual. Michael he promises to divorce his wife and take care of Donna and the baby. Even though there was an alleged affair with a waitress and continued broken promises, Donna tries to give him a chance. A newspaper article puts things into place and Donna accuses Michael of murder. 

Lauren's Dad (Michael) was exonerated for the murder and she moved in with him and her grandmother at age 10. Now in the present, Lauren has gone through a break up and seizes the opportunity to move into this home on her Dad's land and renovate it to match her style and needs. It is apparent that Lauren's relationship with her mother to be strained because Donna had never admitted that she was wrong for accusing Michael after his exoneration. 

It is a bumpy ride as we learn more about what happened all those years ago--was Donna just bitter about things and accused Michael or murder to get back at him? Are the renovations the right thing to do? What will she find?

Thanks to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Lauren is 35 years old, she is coming back to her Grandma's beloved house, where she grew up and created great memories with her father. Her return awakes her mother's fears again, she knows Lauren is making a mistake coming back, but Lauren doesn't trust her because when she was just a child, her mother lied and sent her father to prison for murder. He was in prison for 10 years, until the killer confessed. A story about the past, family, love, sacrifices, the true story about Lauren's life. 
.
I read this book really fast, I was so eager to have answers because it keeps the secrets until the last pages. The story jumps between past and present, in the past we follow the mother's life when she was 35, pregnant and in love with Lauren's father, so we keep up what happens until she decides he is a murderer. In the present we have Lauren, all her recently struggles being an adult with an split family, a lot of lies, resentment, and her need to belong somewhere. I like that dynamic of having both perspectives, at the end I was feeling that the combination of both past and present gave the book more tension and made it more interesting. 

At the beginning I was not connecting with Lauren chapters, I thought there was nothing happening, she was a normal woman trying be useful and entertaining, but Donna's chapters had all the action and emotion, but once I read more and I advanced with the book, both chapters were exciting. I was feeling a lot of things, rage, sadness, frustration, anxiety and at the end there was an scene that scared me. The tension in the book was increasing through the pages, it started pretty normal but while I was reading I noticed how the author did a pretty good job creating and environment that scares and overwhelms. 

My favorite character is the Grandma I think is well constructed, I like Lauren but not that much at the beginning but I enjoyed reading her development and empowerment. The Father I didn't get to know him well, but with the information that I had I could picture him perfectly. I enjoyed a lot reading about Donna, she is pretty strong and badass. 

It was the first time that I read this author, I liked her style, there are a lot of details, descriptions, but specially the way she focus on the characters thoughts and feelings, allowing the readers connect and understand them. Definitely, this is a book about characters. I have to say is an slow burning reading, when you start reading is low tide, but then is all a storm and you won't be able to stop.

A good and interesting read!

I would recommend this to everyone who loves a good story with captivating characters! Definitely a good read!

Slow Burn Family Mystery With Explosive Twist. Let's get a common criticism dealt with up front: No, this is NOT a Jane Doe novel. That dispensed with, this *IS* a great example of Stone's ability to tell more than one type of story in more than one way. What we get here is a compelling slow burn family mystery involving killers, rapists, mistresses, and one confused kid. Told in dual timelines from the modern era and the 80s, we see mom and daughter explore their situations and come to startling revelations - though neither is quite prepared for the explosive revelation at the end of the tale. This picks up some of the creepier elements of Christopher Rice's Blood Music while spinning an engrossing gothic - in the classic sense of the word, involving a foreboding building - mystery all its own. Very much recommended.

I was so excited to read the newest Victoria Helen Stone book, and the first chapter didn't disappoint me - much.

Why did I get the impression, as I was plodding through the remaining chapters, that this was an old manuscript that was dusted off and given a quick edit to take advantage of the demand for new titles during these COVID Times?

The main character, Lauren, comes across as vapid and  directionless, and she really only grew a spine towards the end of the story.  The plot  went in so many directions at once, but then seemed to retrace its steps and even repeat itself.  I was often baffled, and even a bit bored.

The two narrators, Lauren Abrams and her wild-cat, ungovernable mother, Donna, could not have been more different.  Lauren was downright "wishy-washy" - never able to make up her own mind and afraid of discovering the truth, whereas Donna came out  with both guns blazing and took no prisoners.  Or at least she did, until she got pregnant with Lauren and then her hormones took over and all of her badass instincts kept being over-ruled and misdirected by the gutless and equally faithless Michael (Lauren's father).  Promises, promises!  Seriously, Donna?

What a cast of dull, improbable and go nowhere characters.  Even Donna had me rolling my eyes from time to time.  You're guessing I was disappointed in this one right?  YOU'D  make a great detective!  (Lauren was a bust!)   How on earth did  Lauren solve the mystery of who killed that poor girl - oops, oh yes, I forgot, Lauren got a confession, right from the horse's mouth.  So there!  I did guess the shenanigans involving the serial killer, but, that, too, was another convoluted story line.  

The writing is still good (I give high marks for good grammar!)  but after a while I just prayed for a mercifully swift ending.  Once you've read one of the Jane novels,  indecisive heroines from this author just don't cut it for you anymore. I'm rating this one a 3.4 out of 5 because the author can write a decent sentence.
My thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.