My chest felt heavy reading this, intense as it was. My heart cleaved in two---how could she and knowing why he did.

Wow! Just wow!
This is such a clever and brilliantly addictive and intriguingly juicy book.
Without going too much into this as I think it's best to go in as blind as possible but it's about a murder party 23 years earlier and the people obsessed with it. It is written with 4 different POVs (Leewood - the man convicted of the murder party 23 yrs ago, Perla - who is obsessed with the murder party, Grant - Perla's husband and Sophie - Perla and Grant's daughter) we also get snippets of interviews with many different people after the events of whatever goes down in the book, giving us breadcrumbs along the way.
Let me tell you the chapters are short, which just leaves you wanting more "just one more chapter" will definitely be said. It will have you trying to connect the dots as you act out the possible scenarios in your head and then when you figure it out at around 70% because you will it is designed that way, the book will evolve into a cat and mouse game that will have your heart racing and thinking how is this going to end!!!!!
Amazing, amazing I loved it!
100% recommend!

Thanks to Thomas & Mercer for providing me with a copy for review via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Geez, this story is dark!

It's difficult to review this book without spoilers, so maybe skim this if you haven’t read it yet. I’ve tried my best. The simple summary is that a tragic event called the Folcrum Party murders occurred over twenty years ago when three twelve-year-old girls were attacked at a birthday party, leading to the murder conviction of the birthday girl Jenny’s father, Lee Folcrum.

Over the years, Lee has had many admirers. Unbeknownst to her family, Perla Wultz is one of them, and she’s been harboring a growing obsession with him and those long-ago events. What is her motivation? To everyone on the outside, she’s the devoted, well-to-do wife of Grant, and mom to precocious pre-teen daughter Sophie. Image is everything, right?

All I can say is that spending time in her head is one of the scariest places I’ve been in quite awhile!

The story rotates between the perspectives of Perla, Grant, and Lee, with some journal entries from Sophie and snippets of interviews with various people who are relaying aspects of a crime that has taken place after the fact. There’s also a secondary thread with Lee and an enigmatic male grad student who keeps visiting him in prison ostensibly as part of his doctorate studies. Watching all the threads weave together to form the picture made this a riveting story!

A.R. Torre has once again shown her talent for writing a deviously twisted tale. Every major character in the story was a mystery within the bigger mystery waiting to be revealed. It had tension, intrigue, meticulous plotting and one of the coldest characters I’ve ever encountered on the page. Seriously … brrrr. Ice cold.

My one and only reason for not being able to give it the full 5 stars is that it was simply hard for me to be in Perla’s relentlessly dark headspace at times, and being privy to what those thoughts were about only intensified that feeling. The writing is fantastic, and I still really enjoyed the story, so it’s a “me” issue and not a book issue. For those who like their psychological mystery-thrillers black as night, this should satisfy you!

★★★★ ½

It's been some time since I've finished a book and said "wow" to myself. I'm happy to say that The Last Party is one of those books. I really liked this story, especially how it was told, in spite of it having some very dark themes.

No one is who they seem to be in this story, and their secrets are expertly revealed as the tale proceeds. I can't get into details so I don't spoil things, but I really liked how the bits and pieces were presented to me as a reader. The story is told via short chapters in multiple points of view, and that helped to keep things moving along at a terrific pace. While the story did leave me guessing at parts, there was only one huge reveal that I didn't see coming, but that was okay. Part of the fun is guessing the hidden relationships.

Even though there were some cringe-worthy parts to this (for good reason), I found the presentation engaging and it had me hooked quickly. There were a few slow spots where the reader gets to catch their breath. Overall, this was a terrific thriller/suspense / mystery and it will be on my favorites of 2024 list!

4.5/5 stars

The Last Party is a chilling psychological thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat.

The book focuses on husband and wife Grant and Perla Wultz. We get lots of Perla's POV. They have an almost 12 year old daughter Sophie. We get some of her journal entries. Then there is Leewood, a killer in prison.

It was clear from the start that Perla was a unique and complex woman. I was very intrigued by how she acted. And I was very invested in her family.

This is a dark and disturbing story. And I was equally obsessed, fascinated and unsettled. I was definitely very curious to see where the story was headed. And I did like that we got to see Leewood in prison. I liked finding out more about his crime from 20 years ago.

This book features evil twisted characters, big reveals and shocking outcomes. It was a riveting story. And even though I started figuring out some of the truth I was completely engrossed in the story. But I did find parts quite disturbing. It was a bit hard to read at times. It's not graphic, but whenever bad things happen to children it is upsetting. My heart was definitely racing. The last parts of the book were quite shocking and I could not wait to see how things would play out. Overall this was a thrilling book that I could not put down.

4.5 stars - thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ebook ARC of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts!

Wow, this book was deeply unsettling. Dark, twisted, brutal, calculated, and nearly impossible to put down. If you’re a parent, proceed with caution. Didn’t guess a thing, loved it.

Not my favorite read of the year, I had trouble liking any of the characters. The plot had good potential, but fell short a bit for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. This book officially publishes on 8/20/24!

This book gripped me from the first page and I pretty much read 90% of it in one sitting. This is a very fast-paced read, with short chapters and multiple POVs to further the plot. This is not my first book by this author and it definitely won’t be my last. Giving this one 4 stars because I did guess one of the larger twists; however, it was not the only one. Overall this was a roller coaster of a ride and I would recommend giving this one a read. If you do, please check any relevant trigger warnings before doing so.

Soo good! I put this on my shelf for a while and it was a big mistake. I should have known this author should be read immediately. I really like this author. Her books are twisty and turney and super fun. Highly recommend! Love this author.

If you need a thriller with turns and short chapters, this is for you (But check your trigger warnings)!

Perla Wultz seems to have it all - the perfect life, the doting husband, the best child - but does she really? Leewood Fulcrum has been in jail for 23 years after confessing that he killed young girls at his daughter's sleepover. Now, he's being questioned by a doctoral student and Leewood claims that there's more to the story. The two narratives start to intertwine in a story filled with twists and turns.

I'll admit, this wasn't my favorite thriller I've read. I was able to guess a couple of the big twists early on, which made it less fun of a read. This also felt like a longer book than it actually was, and I think it was because there were SO many chapters (over 90 in a 350 page b0ok - come on!). The chapters aren't all done the same (some have character name POVs and some don't) so that made keeping up with whose POV it was frustrating, as well as the switching back and forth from 1st person to 3rd person POV.


Once I was in the thick of the book (around 60% in), this book got really likable and fun to read! So if you can stick it out to that point, then you're golden!

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas and Mercer for an eARC of this book! All opinions are my own!

Twisty, mysterious, and kept me guessing to the very end. Main character Perla is a lot of everything, over the top. She is also obsessed with the twenty year old murder of two girls at a party. We know the murderer is in prison. But we also get the impression that the danger is not over.

This was a fantastic read by A. R. Torre. That being said, I am adding her other novels to my TBR right now. The chapters are short and easy to read, and the book overall keeps you wanting more.

Perla and Grant live a rich life with their daughter Sophie in a classy neighborhood. Perla and Grant both had some terrible things happen when they were younger, and those things continue to haunt them both from their past.

Leewood Folcrum confessed to murder 20+ years ago, and there are still many people wanting to find out exactly what happened that night. Folcrum has been very private about what happened and has not told the full story, which leaves some people wondering what really happened.

This story will take you through how Grant and Perla are related to the night of the Folcrum Party. And it will make you question many other things and people throughout the book. What an amazing read!!

This was a dark thriller about a 20 year old murder and the connections that each character has to these events. Mainly told from Perla’s POV, the secrets that Perla is hiding starts to unravel. All of the characters were unlikable and had major issues, especial Perla and her daughter Sofia. There were some twists and turns but also some moments that were predictable. However, I was still intrigued by the plot and drawn into the story. I love that it was fast paced and full of obsession and manipulation.

We meet the Wultz family at a diner when Perla steps up to administer CPR to a woman in distress. Her husband Grant seems to be discouraging her and eleven year old daughter Sophie observes. Right from the start we understand the Perla is Over The Top. And not in a good way! What a character!

Perla appears to be obsessed with a crime from over twenty years ago, when a birthday party for a young girl went horribly wrong. Leewood Folcrum is in prison for the crime, and the novel alternates perspectives between Leewood, Perla, Sophie and Grant. There's a true crime podcast (of course there is) and a Greek chorus of quotes at the beginning of several chapters from neighbors, school friends, coworkers, etc. alluding to a bloody crime.

So we know something bad is going to happen, and that somehow the Folcrum murders from the past have something to do with the present.

This puzzle will keep you guessing as the plot gets tighter and tighter. I couldn't put this down. A.R. Torre is a genius.

My thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the digital ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for gifting me this book for free in exchange for my review! All opinions are my own.

This was a crazy thriller with an ending that made my jaw draw drop! AR Torre knows how to write a thriller that will keep you up all night. Once you start one of her books, you will not want to put it down until the book is over. With that being said, the book was a little too creepy for my taste, but I seem to be able to read more creepier content than what I can watch in tv or movies....unfortunately I am a scaredy cat. However, even though this book made me uncomfortable, I think it was kind of written to make the reader uncomfortable, and I also think that the fact that I finished this book even made me uncomfortable is a testimant to how good of an author A.R. Torre is, because despite it making me uncomfortable, I was hoooked!

Make sure to check the trigger warnings before you read this book.

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Many Thanks again to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this book in exchange for my honest review.

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A chilling psychological thriller about the perfect life of Pearla, her husband Grant, and their daughter Sophie. While Pearla portrays the image of an impeccable wife and mother, the darkness of her past self is planning to commit the perfect crime and get away with it.

Leewood Folcrum confessed to murdering two girls at a birthday party twenty years ago. Pearla is obsessed with this man and believes that after she’s finished with her plan, people will believe that Leewood is innocent and they’ll both live happily ever after, but Pearla’s thorough plan has a few faults that might bring it all crashing down.

Pearla is devious, unlikable, dishonest, two-faced, and unable to feel love. She was the villian in this story and she played her part very well. Do you root for the rouge character with the evil plan, or do you pray that someone intervenes before it’s too late?

This book did have a slow start, but once I hit the 10% mark, I ended up devouring it in just a few hours. There were several twists that caught me by surprise, and that ending was intense! I’ve only read one other book by this author, but I’m excited to read her backlist and can’t wait to see what she releases next!

I really loved this book. There are multiple twists to this story and A.R. did a fantastic job laying everything out. Perla’s chapters kept me on the edge of my seat. I loved the quick little looks into Sophie’s head/journal. And Leewood’s chapters were fantastic too. I am really hit or miss with multiple POV storylines but I found this to be really easy to follow.

I truly enjoyed this book and can say it’s one of my top for the year. If you like a good thriller, this is definitely one to check out. Thanks so much to NetGalley, Alessandra Torre, and Thomas and Mercer for allowing me to read and review.

WOW!! Another great book by A.R. Torre. This was another book I couldn't put down once I started reading it. I found that it was fast paced which doesn't always happen for me with thrillers but this one really had me entertained. This book has so many twists and turns your gonna feel like your on a rollercoaster ride! These characters and story are well written. This story is told by Perla, a mother who has a mysterious connection to the notorious murder, the points of view of Leewood, a prisoner, and 11-year-old Sophie Wultz, they all have issues and are not likable. This is a dark, disturbing read with a satisfying ending. I would definitely recommend this book.

Thank you NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for allowing me to read this ARC for my honest opinion.

The Last Party is a deviously dark and twisted thriller that’ll leave you shook! The author does an excellent job of painting the FMC as the kind of person you just love to hate. She’s manipulative, cunning, and downright villainous.

Filled with lies and deception throughout, the slow burn narrative of this book is as addictive as it is enjoyable. It’ll have you questioning everything you know! The continuous and strategic placement of clues throughout keeps you completely hanging on desperate for all the pieces to come together.

With short chapters that make it impossible to put down, readers can expect several unforeseeable twists in this addictively fast-paced thriller.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the opportunity to read this digital ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

Thank you NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the digital copy of this book. The opinions expressed are my own and freely given.

Perla is "obsessed" with convicted murderer Leewood Folcrum. He murdered his daughter and her friends at her birthday party.

A student comes to the prison to study Leewood and his story slowly unfolds. Throughout the whole book, I was trying to figure out what Perla's connection was, until that A-HA moment. I definitely recommend this story. It kept me guessing.