Perla, Grant, and Sophie live in a wealthy neighborhood in Pasadena. Perla, a picture perfect mother, can't seem to get Leewood Folcrum out of her mind. Leewood is a well known serial killer who killed 2 young girls at his daughter's birthday party 23 years ago. Told in alternating POVs of the obsessed mom, Leewood inmate 82145, and Dr. Timothy Valden, tasked with interviewing Leewood for his dissertation. Leewood has never spoken with anyone about the events that took place 23 years ago, so will he finally tell his story now that he only has a short time to live?
Review:
4.5 stars. The Last Party packed a serious punch of twists and turns I did not see coming! I slowly started to put the pieces together about half way through reading this, but was not expecting the twisted outcome! I really enjoyed the alternating POVs and the dual time line. It is a bingeable read that you simply do not want to put down! I loved the quick interviews/quotes at the beginning of each chapter. They gave glances at what the side characters and people around the situation were thinking/feeling about the conclusion of this "event" the book was leading up to.
I did find myself a little confused at the beginning of the story. It was hard to navigate all the characters and get a feel for where we were in the storyline since there are a couple of different events being spoken about. Once I was able to separate the events and pinpoint the characters, I was okay, but something to be aware of going into the story. Overall, this was a twist psychological thriller that I highly recommend! A.R. Torre never disappoints!!
The Last Party publishes on August 20th, be sure to pick it up!!!
Thank you to NetGalley, A.R. Torre, and Thomas & Mercer for this ARC of The Last Party in exchange for an honest review!

I’ve long been a fan of Torre’s work, and while this one is one of her darker thrillers, it was less twisty than those I’ve read from her in the past - I found myself waiting for more to happen and perhaps didn’t temper my expectations accordingly.

I still very much enjoyed and will look forward to more from her in the future, but this will not rank in the top of her books for me, unfortunately.

The last party was a thrilling, fast paced read that kept me guessing! Perla is cunning, calculating, manipulative and down right despicable. She has everything in life a women could want. An attractive husband, a smart independent well mannered daughter and a stunning house in an upscale gated community. But past events in Perlas life cause her perfect little family persona to crack. Perlas obsession with the Folcrum murders two decades earlier grip her life in a way I did not see coming bluring the lines of reality.

What is the truth behind the infamous murders 23 years ago? Why is Perla so obsessed? Do yourself a favor and pick up A.R. Torre The Last Party! Absolutely a 5 star read!

Now THIS was a thrill! The twists in this story will really keep you awake! Perla has an odd approach to motherhood, and it just gets stranger and stranger! If you enjoy domestic drama, this is definitely for you!!!

This is one book you won't want to put down! From the very start, you know Perla has a mysterious past, and the suspense of how it all ties together keeps you glued to the pages. The build-up to the big event is brilliant—it makes you anxious, but you can't help but keep reading as the tension ramps up with every chapter. Perla’s meticulous planning pulls you in, and the way the story jumps between characters only adds to the thrill. I loved the clever addition of little news snippets at the start of each chapter—it was a nice touch that made the story even more gripping.

The pace is fast, and once it hooks you, it won’t let you go until you find out how the party (the central event of the story) unfolds. While the ending was satisfying and wrapped everything up neatly, I did wish it had been a bit darker and twistier.

Big thanks to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for letting me dive into this ARC!

This is a dark twisty and fast paced thriller that's often just over the top but you'll keep turning the pages to get answers. The main character-Perla- has no redeeming qualities but it's hard to turn away. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

Hands down this is the best thriller I’ve read in months, it was so original, kept me hooked from the first chapter, and I was dying to know the twists and turns the entire time. I was able to connect the dots towards the end but that did not lessen my enjoyment of this book at all.

The best thing about this book are the characters and their POV, so while the plot is also spectacular, it’s the cruelty and evil in Perla, Sophie’s notes and lessens from her mom, and the darkness in Grant as you learn about them that is what makes this book stand out. It’s also about family, love, protection, and so much more as well when we see Lee interact with Tim about the murder of his daughter and her friends.

I won’t say much more, but seriously go check this book out! I loved it, and if you like dark characters you’ll love to hate, this book might be perfect for you!

I’ve read one of A.R. Torre’s previous novels and absolutely loved it, so was incredibly interested in this one when it showed up on NetGalley. I loved this one just as much, if not more.

The knack this author has for writing twisted, sociopathic characters is out of this world. Perla is one of the most vile FMC I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading about. At every turn she had some new heinously sick plan or idea and was entertaining all the way to the end.
I really enjoyed the ambiguity of the inmate, Leewood’s, commitment to his silence. What was he hiding, for who, and why? I will say that it was somewhat easily pieced together but that didn’t take away from the rollercoaster of a ride that this book was overall. I could not put it down.
I liked the ending a lot, I thought the breadcrumbs dropped throughout culminated well and created a well balanced finish.

This was a tense, dark story full of surprises and I loved every minute of it. Thank you to the author, and Thomas & Mercer for the gifted copy via NetGalley.
Publication date 8/20/24

The Last Party written by A.R. Torre is one of her best works yet, I'm convinced that this is my new FAVORITE psychological thriller yet. I have read a few other books by A.R. Torre and enjoyed those, but The Last Party, I absolutely LOVED this book. If you are looking for a spooky thrilling story, look no further than The Last Party, and have your popcorn ready, because the twists and turns, the surprises, and the secrets will take you on a wild goose chase and you need to have that popcorn popped and ready to go for this thrilling roller coaster ride. In my opinion, this book is the true definition of unputdownable. I was instantly hooked from page one all the way until the very last page, the only issue I had was that I wish it would have lasted longer because it was bone chilling wild. Looking at the cover just gave me goosebumps, but as I started reading this book, I had instant chills until the very last page. After devouring this thrilling book, I can't wait to see what A.R. Torre has in store next for us. I can't recommend this book enough, if you are looking for a bone chilling psychological thriller, then mark your calendars for August 20th, 2024, because you will NOT want to miss this book.

THANK YOU TO NETGALLEY AND THOMAS & MERCER FOR AN ARC OF THIS BOOK IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW!!!!!!!!

"If you waited for life to give you something, you would never get half of what you deserved."

"Currency comes in new forms when you are at a place where money no longer matters."

"Sometimes it's not the people who change. It's the mask that falls off."

On December sixth, over twenty years ago, the Folcrum Party Crime was committed. Jenny Folcrum and her two best friends were having a birthday party and a sleepover for Jenny's twelfth birthday. On that night, Jenny's dad stabbed all three girls over a dozen times, when the police showed up the dad was found holding his daughter with blood splattered all over him. Lucy had twelve stab wounds, Kitty had eight stab wounds, and Jenny had a slit throat. Many people have said that Jenny was mature beyond her years, she was extremely intelligent, but when meeting Jenny for the first time, many people said they saw some sort of jealously in Jenny's eyes. Leewood Folcrum, inmate 82145 is a despicable human being that is serving a life sentence in prison for committing the Folcrum Party Crime. Leewood has cancer, he could have days, weeks, months, and or years to live while he rots away in his prison cell. Dr. Timothy Valden is a doctoral student, and he's writing his dissertation on Leewood Folcrum. Timothy wants answers as to why Leewood did what he did, but the only way Leewood will talk is if Timothy brings him an Arby's roast beef 'N cheddar sandwich, with upsized curly fries, and a root beer. Let me tell you, Leewood is one different specimen of a human being.

Dr. Timothy Valden just wants to get the dirt on Leewood, but Leewood is more interested in learning about Timothy. Leewood calls him Timmy just to get a rise out of him. As Timothy continues to interview Leewood, Timothy has to bring him Arby's which later turns into Chick-Fil-A and so forth. Perla Wultz and her husband Grant Wultz live in a nine thousand square foot home in a private gated Pasadena community with their daughter Sophie Wultz. Perla is a despicable manipulative human being. Perla is perfect in every single way, she has designer clothes, expressive eyes, an oval face, and perfectly painted nails, if one nail ever chips, Perla immediately runs to the nail salon. Grant is completely different from Perla, he's super sweet, he's a man of order, precision, and consistency. Sophie Wultz is eleven years old, almost twelve. Sophie is super sassy, has a high ego, thinks she's normal with a capital "N", but hopes to be famous in Hollywood one day. Sophie is about to have her twelfth birthday party, and her despicable mother wants Sophie's twelfth birthday party to replicate the Folcrum Party Crime. Why would a mother want to kill her own child because she wants to replicate a party crime that happened over twenty years ago? Read The Last Party to find out.

What a ride! AR Torre is one of my favorite authors so I don't even need to read the summary to know that I'm game so I went into this with very little info and I recommend it.

Without giving too much away, we meet Perla right off the bat. We know she is kinda crazy but she seems like she's going to be the fun crazy.. but no. She's the bad crazy.

Perla and her husband Grant have gone through a lot of trauma, stemming back to a notorious murder when they were kids. Perla's life changed and she didn't want to look back.. until now.

Told through multiple first person narrators, along with news clippings and statements from neighbors, we know from the start that a wicked plan is put into place and without a lot of effort on someone's part, no one can stop what's coming.

This was so twisty but gave you breadcrumbs along the way to really hook you in and it worked! I was doing the one more chapter dance for many nights! That's another cool thing: shorter chapters. We didn't have to go too long without hearing the other side.

Definitely another winner from Torre!

Perla makes plans. Evil plans. Wicked. She is a diabolical narcissist. Although I was absorbed in her plans, I shuddered throughout the book. At times I had to put the book down to recuperate from Perla's evil thoughts.
The middle part of the book was a bit too long. But towards the end, I read faster and faster to see how these plans would exactly be carried out.

This is such a twisted thriller and characters are deceiving and mysterious. There are horrifying secrets, unsettling truth and something unfortunate that happened years ago, has upended everyone’s life. The truth is deep buried beneath the tangled web of suspense and mystery. Perla lives with her husband and their daughter. A woman was killed and Leewood confessed of killing two young girls. I won’t say more, read the book to unveil the mystery behind her death. This is a kind of book where you can’t judge the characters for what they have done and truth is not how it appears to be. Past and present intertwines and blurs the line between the truth and deception. I didn’t see the twists coming. The ending was unpredictable.


4.5/5

Many Thanks to the Publisher and Author

Unique in every way. I really needed a good thriller and this was perfect. Perla, Grant and Sophie lead lives like the rich and famous. But, they came from humble beginnings and tragic circumstances. The story is told through multiple characters, using quotes from friends and acquaintances as chapter headings. Readers are kept in the blind about telling details until a few key words placed just right and some pieces fall into place. I was on the edge of my seat with every page, gasping at what was happening. I was honored to receive an early copy and happy to leave my voluntary review.

ʙᴏᴏᴋ ᴛᴏᴜʀ & ʀᴇᴠɪᴇᴡ

📖The Last Party By A.R. Torre
Rating: 5⭐️
Pub Date: Aug 20, 2024

Thank you @thrillerbookloversthepulse & Thomas & Mercer for the opportunity to read and review this book.

What a book of twists and turns! I was able to guess a few however it didn’t make this book any less enjoyable.
Told us glimpses of past and present this book has everything you may look for in a crime thriller!

#thrillersuspense #thrillerpulse #thepulse #thrillerbooks #thelastparty #artorre #kindlepaperwhite #kindlebooks #netgalley #advancedreadercopy #booktour #thrillerbooktours #thrillerbookloversthepulse #arcreader #thrillerreads

Another highly addictive read from A.R. Torre!

The theme of this one is kind of dark since much of it centers around a massacre that occurred 20+ yrs ago at a 12 year old's birthday party.

You have the convicted killer Leewood Fulcrum, who's serving out multiple life sentences in prison, Perla Wultz a seemingly rich housewife who's penchant for orderliness borders on psychotic, her husband Grant, a doting husband, and their 11 year old daughter, Sophie.

The readers job is to figure out how all these people are connected to the Fulcrum murders, what really happened that night, and who's the REAL psychopath!

I compulsively read this book from start to finish because it was addictive. The main characters aren't really likable, but they're strange and you just want to try and figure out what makes them tick, even if that makes you feel like you're looking into the eyes of something that's just straight evil. There was something said about Leewood towards the end that really confused me and that confusion about his character caused me to drop a star, but if you like psychological thrillers I would definitely recommend picking this one up! The other thing that caused me to drop a star (and this is being picky) is the cover. It has NOTHING to do with the story, at all. I feel like someone dropped the ball on this, but again, I'm being picky!

The Last Party by A.R. Torre is a book that you will most likely find disturbing. It's the story of a woman, Perla Wurtz, who is a wife and mother of one daughter. The Wurtz's live in a gated community and don't want for anything, at least in a material sense. Perla's husband, Grant, is totally in love with her and a committed husband. He has a good job and treats Perla and Sophie, their daughter, with love. Everything seems great, right? Think again. Grant's sister was killed while she was at a birthday party 23 years ago. The man who confessed to the crime, Leewood Folcrum is in prison. It was supposed to be a birthday celebration and sleepover. Three young girls who were around 12 years old were stabbed and 2 were killed. One of the girls killed was Grant's sister. He never got over the loss of his sister and thinks about it every day. Fulcrum's daughter, Jenny, was the victim who survived with a knife slash across her neck. She was adopted by a wonderful couple and they left her everything when they passed.

A young doctoral student, Tim Valden, is interviewing Leewood while he's in prison. He wants to write his dissertation on the party and why Leewood did what he did. Every time he visits Leewood he has to bring him fast food to get him to talk. He's getting closer to getting some answers, but Leewood is sick and won't be around that much longer. Will Tim find out what happened that night that led to Leewood stabbing 3 young girls? Why is Perla so fascinated by this crime? Why does Perla suddenly want a nose job, liposuction, and removal of a mole? Why does she hire a nanny when Sophie is about to turn 12? The Wurtz's are throwing a 12th birthday party for Sophie and she's very excited. Will Sophie get everything she wants for her birthday? Will the nanny be a big help or will she become a problem? Will Grant figure out what Perla is up to? Will Perla figure out what Grant is up to? This book leaves you on edge throughout and the twists will blow your mind. I rate The Last Party 4 stars with a high recommendation. I'd like to thank NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an advanced copy in exchange for a fair review. #TheLastParty

Two timelines and multiple POVs had me hooked from start to finish with this beauty. I couldn't wait to see how the book came together and I didn't have to wait long. There was always so much happening with quite a few twists. This is definitely a page turner you don't want to miss out on reading. I was lucky enough to listen to the audiobook while reading my ebook which added to my enjoyment of the book.

engaging, captivating and thrilling! had me on the edge of my seat till i finished and i highly highly recommend!!

I found the reading experience to be quite engaging and diverse, which was a refreshing change. The story had a unique premise that initially drew me in and kept me curious about what would happen next. However, as I progressed, I felt that the plot could have been more intricate and layered. There were moments when the storyline felt predictable, and I was left wanting more twists and surprises.

Despite this, the characters were exceptionally well-developed. Each one had a distinct personality and background, making them feel real and relatable. Their interactions and growth throughout the story added a lot of richness to the narrative. I found myself genuinely invested in their journeys and emotions, which is a testament to the author's skill in character building.

Overall, while the storyline didn't fully meet my expectations, the strong character work made the read worthwhile. The author has a knack for creating vivid, memorable characters that stay with you long after you've finished the book. If you're someone who values character-driven stories, this book is definitely worth a read.

Thank you, NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer!

Perla and Grant seem to have it all. A beautiful marriage, a beautiful home, and a beautiful daughter. However, it's not as picturesque as one is led to believe, and not everyone's intentions are all that wholesome. We are forced to see that some coincidences may actually just be a part of a much larger and more sinister plan.

The last party takes us on a twisty, turny ride. Looking in from multiple perspectives, you truly see that not all is at it seems. Everyone has a past, but only some choose to bring the past to the future.

Who is who? What is what?
The last party leaves you questioning everyone and everything.

To be published August 20 2024