Loved the North Carolina setting - I’ve lived there and it was so well captured. The people, the feeling ah! Enjoyed the ride!

Megan Miranda does it again!

The Last to Vanish was a slow built thriller full of suspicion and trying to catch clues. I couldn’t put it down once I got into it. Thanks so much for the ARC!

Abby Lovett works at the Passage Inn in Cutter’s Pass. She landed there 10 years ago when escaping her own life and has tried to meld into the towns fabric ever since. The issue with this little town in North Carolina, tucked next to the Appalachians, is that people vanish.

Now it seems likely given the terrain of the mountains that people can go missing. The issue is that now 7 people have vanished (over the years) and there seems to be more to it. The latest to vanish is a young man named Landon West. When his brother comes in search of finding his own answers- Abby gets the “bug.” She can’t stop thinking about all of the missing people, who is hiding what and if she can really trust anyone in this town.

Each character made me wonder about them but just enough. I love the way Miranda plants itty-bitty seeds and the reader tries desperately to crack the case. Almost everyone seems suspicious but also trustworthy. This book had so many shocks as the fabric of this small town is unwoven. I loved Abby as the main character and loved following along. This story had just enough of a creepy vibe. I’ll definitely be recommending this to friends!

Megan Miranda is always hit or miss with me. I loved All The Missing Girls, and then wasn't crazy about The Last House Guest, but then I really enjoyed The Girl from Widow Hills. Now, this book was simply sooooo slow and nothing happened for the sixty pages that I read that I simply couldn't will myself to power through another 300 pages of this. When Miranda is good she's REALLY good but when her thriller is dull, it's really dull, and this one was on that side, sadly.

Oh my gosh I absolutely LOVED this book so much! It hooked me from the very beginning and kept me glued to the edge of my seat!

I think I just have to accept that Megan Miranda's books are just not for me. The setting seemed fun, but the writing was too bland for me.

Megan Miranda can simply do no wrong! I love all her books and this cabin in the woods meets trail hiking mystery is right up my alley!!

Coming from a small town myself, I appreciate the small town vibe. The these are my people mentality.

But those hidden, do not tell secrets, end up costing the people of this town BIG TIME.

I loved the characters, I would LOVE to visit this cabin and trail, and I truly enjoy the character development.

5 STARS!!

I love Megan Miranda books! The way she develops the characters is always so well done. I get invested in the characters and have to know what happens! Her latest was no different. I needed to find out the mystery behind the missing people of Cutter’s Pass and why Abby got so involved. I loved how everything was wrapped up. Overall, the perfect summer read that I expect my patrons will also enjoy!!

Such a good book! I love Megan Miranda books and this one did not disappoint. It was a little slow at first but once I got 1/3 of the way in, I didn’t want to put it down! It was very suspenseful and the end was shocking! Great read! Thank you NetGalley for letting me read the advance reader copy!

I can't believe I finished this book. I felt like Megan Miranda was trying to bore me to death. This story hardly makes sense. The plotting was so slow and just not that interesting.

This was a great creepy read that kept me on my toes! Cutters Pass in North Carolina is near the Appalachian Trail, its population 1,000, however, it is known as one of the most dangerous places in the state as visitors are constantly going missing. This story had a few unexpected twists that made it so enjoyable and I had chills through most of it.

Thank you #Netgalley for an early read of #TheLastToVanish

The writing here is descriptive - heavy and atmospheric, and the slow pace worked really well.. It pulled me in slowly but it got to the point where I kept thinking about it when I wasn’t reading.

Fun and tense, this one kept me wondering. While I did find the ending to be a bit anticlimactic, overall, I enjoyed this one.





eARC kindly provided by Marysue Rucci Books / Scribner and NetGalley. Opinions shared are my own.

Abby is considered an outsider to Cutter's Pass even though she's resided there for 10 years. She works at the infamous inn where people have been known to stay right before they vanish. She stays with the owner of the inn, Celeste, who took her in after the death of Abby's mother. Abby has always been curious about the disappearances that have plagued Cutter's Pass, but when the brother of one of the victims comes to visit the inn, she becomes more motivated to help him uncover the truth, especially after finding a key piece of evidence.

There were a few lulls in the book, but not many. I was interested and invested for most of the book and I really enjoyed the twists and turns at the end. Trust me, you won't see some of them coming, or at least I didn't. I would rate this book a 3.5, but I rounded it to 4 because I loved the moody, spooky vibes. The setting is one of the best parts of the book!

I would not describe this book as a fast-paced thriller, so if that's what you're into or looking for, then you will be disappointed. It's more of a slow-burn mystery. The only thing I think would have made this book better for me was if the author would have given the readers more background information on the people who disappeared. I do not feel like those characters were developed enough, and truly the only character that was well developed was Abby, the MC.

Special thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you @scribnerbooks for my advanced reader copy. ⁠
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A touristy mountain resort where you can escape the pressures of every day life and enjoy some fresh air. Sounds great, right? Except people keep going missing and somehow the resort is always at the center. Abby Lovett, on site clerk at the resort, finds herself drawn to the mystery and determined to find out what is really going on.⁠
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I really enjoyed this one! The setting is absolutely perfect. Abby's POV and internal thoughts really add to the dark mood. I had hoped that reporter would have more of a play in this book but he didn't appear much. This one isn't all that deep in terms of character development but it was still a great and quick summer read.

Abigail Lovett has worked at the Passage Inn in North Carolina for the past ten years, despite the history that haunts the hotel. The close-knit community of Cutter’s Pass has never solved the mysterious disappearances of seven different people over the past twenty-five years. When Trey West shows up to investigate the disappearance of his brother, the last person to disappear, Abby is thrown into the investigation as she begins to question how well she really knows the members of this community.

Unfortunately, this book was a complete miss for me. I was initially enticed by the premise and the atmospheric, mountain resort setting, but I found the novel to be rather slow. Nothing much seemed to happen for a while, and the story was not holding my attention. While I have seen plenty of positive reviews, I would personally recommend Megan Miranda’s 2019 novel, The Last House Guest, over this one, but I will definitely check out her future books.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Scribner/Marysue Rucci Books for my gifted e-ARC.

The Last to Vanish
by: Megan Miranda
Scribner, Scribner / Marysue Rucci Books
Pub date: July 26, 2022
Genre: General Fiction (Adult), Mystery & Thrillers

Setting is everything and easy to visualize, while hiding under the covers, in Megan Miranda's new mystery. The Passage Inn, with its cozy cabins and room, can offer a welcome respite to outdoor adventure seekers in the North Carolina mountain town of Cutter's Pass. Word quickly spreads to visiting hikers and rafters, however, about the mysterious disappearance of several individuals in the area over the years. These perplexing unsolved cases add the elements of danger, darkness, and foreboding for both locals and tourists.

The central character is Abby, manager of The Passage, with a supporting cast of co-workers and locals. Trey, brother of missing journalist Landon, checks in at the inn to stay while investigating. Miranda adeptly built the suspense while keeping me immersed in the atmosphere of a small community near the Appalachian Trail. The beauty of surrounding waterfalls, trees, and paths is thrown off balance by the puzzling intrigue surrounding missing persons.

I love nature and hiking, but I can't see myself on trails anywhere near Cutter's Pass. I did love this story, though, which would make a wonderful mystery movie to enjoy on a dark winter night, just not in a room at The Passage Inn!

Thank you to Net Galley and Scribner, Scribner / Marysue Rucci Books for the advance reader's copy and opportunity to provide my unbiased review.

#NetGalley #MeganMiranda #TheLasttoVanish #scribner

The Last to Vanish takes place in Cutter's Pass, NC, dubbed the most dangerous town, after a series of mysterious disappearances over the last 25 years. No one knows why people keep disappearing on the trail to the waterfall. Is it a serial killer, or just bad luck?

Abigail Lovett started working at The Passage Inn ten years ago, yet she still feels like an outsider. She has heard about the mysterious disappearances, but doesn't think much of them until journalist Landon West, who was staying at the inn while investigating, disappears as well. It isn't until Landon's brother Trey shows up months later, poking around and looking for answers, that Abby finds evidence that may start to unravel the truth. Will Abby be able to help Trey before another person disappears?

This book was a slow, tension filled build up until the final moment. I kept changing my opinion on what the truth would be, and was definitely surprised by the ending. Megan Miranda knows how to weave back and forth between past and present to keep the reader guessing until the very last possible moment. She created an atmospheric read, developing a sense of mystery and foggy haze that encloses a small town, making it seem cut off from the rest of the world. A must read for people who enjoy Miranda's books and a suspenseful mystery.

Another success by Megan! I can always depend on her to keep my attention and keep me guessing. There are multiple ways this could have went and they way that the story did go wasn't what I had guessed. I was definitely fooled again.

Let’s go hiking!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

⏰ 𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫: Cutter’s Pass, NC has a long history of missing hikers. Add one more with the disappearance of Landon West, journalist, and now his brother has shown up seeking answers. Abby Lovell has lived in the town for 10 years and feels like she will never be an insider in this small town. As the manager of the local inn at the center of the controversy, she also uncovers question upon question. Is someone in town responsible for the disappearances or is someone else out there, lurking?

💡𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬: This is my 5th Miranda book and I am most definitely a fan! Enjoyed this book and most definitely recommend it. This novel is a stretch - different, slower, and less “twisty”, but still intriguing with an entertaining character dive into Abby Lovell, who I liked as the protagonist. I live in the Carolinas (nope, this is a fictional town) but I totally relate to the town because my bro is a major hiker and I’ve accompanied him on hikes before so I KNOW this town - built for hikers but the people who live there are insular and secretive. I found that plot angle engaging and enjoyable and accurate in portrayal.

The plot is slower than Miranda’s usual works, but I don’t mind that. I enjoy descriptive writing like that of the town, the inn, etc as it helps a reader understand the dynamics of small town life.

My reticence in rating this higher is mostly based on a huge plot point - where a HUGE piece of information that the protagonist storyteller KNOWS isn’t revealed until later. So in a way, it feels like a “cheat” rather than a twist. There wasn’t a REASON for this lie by omission, thus my feelings of being cheated - like “oh well if I knew THAT earlier…”. The other peevish eye-roller is that Celeste is in her 50’s but all the descriptions would have the reader believing she’s an 80 yr old with a cane and some Bengay.

𝗔𝗹𝗹 𝗺𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄𝘀 𝗮𝘃𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗮𝘁 𝗦𝗰𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗽𝘆𝗠𝗮𝗴𝘀.𝗰𝗼𝗺 𝗮𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗽𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.

📚𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: Mystery

😍𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨: Miranda fans and mystery lovers, just don’t expect the usual.

🙅‍♀️ 𝐍𝐨𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨: Those seeking quick reads, those who hate descriptive writing.

Thank you to the author, NetGalley and Scribner/Marysue Rucci Books for my advanced copy in exchange for my always-honest review and for now making hiking a scary endeavor (in a good way!)

Megan Miranda books are always ones I devour quickly and then hand off to family members with praise. This one will be the same. Miranda writes in a way that emerses me in the story. She balances descriptions in ways that allow me to see everything without feeling like the story is slowing down. I could picture this tiny mountain town and the exact trail to the falls (it helps that I live in a tiny mountain town and have taken many such trails to many such falls). That emersion leads to investment in the characters and their plight.

Many people vanish from this trail? Why? Are they all connected? There is no way to be sure and the residents of this town are very insular and mistrustful of outsiders. It takes a long time to become a local. After a decade, Abby still isn’t sure if she is one. She thinks the locals know more about what has happened to the missing hikers than they let on. But so they really? If you’ve ever lived in a small town you will know that knowing doesn’t matter as much as thinking you know and not wanting others to know that you know or don’t know. If that doesn’t make sense I’ll invite you to some of our local pages. Craziness.

I highly recommend The Last to Vanish. It has a beautiful and ominous setting, interesting and deep characters, and a few twists to keep you reading.

One of Megan Miranda's best books. Eerie, suspenseful, edge of your seat page turner about a series of disappearances in a small town. On the outside this small community appears picturesque and safe, but it seems everyone has something to hide. Thoroughly entertaining thriller