Our Last Resort is the sophomore novel from Clemence Michallon.

"Fifteen years ago, Frida and her brother escaped a cult. Now her brother is the prime suspect in a murder investigation—and this isn’t the first time.
Frida has always believed in her brother’s innocence, but the evidence against him is mounting.
How well do we ever really know those we love?"

This story is told in dual-timeline. Frida and Gabriel reconnect after many years apart at a desert resort. A woman dies and memories come flooding back about their time together in a cult and the lengths they had to go to escape. There are secrets about the cult and about Gabriel's dead wife. Michallon builds the suspense until she reveals the surprises and the importance of family.

Short chapters make this a quick read. Good new story from Michallon.

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf for an advanced reader copy of Our Last Resort by Clemence Michallon in exchange for my honest review. This is my first novel by this author and I found her writing to be beautifully crafted. I was intrigued by the premise: Frida and her brother Gabriel escape from a cult and 15 years later reconnect at an exclusive resort in the Utah desert. A young wife is found dead and Frida and Gabriel become prime suspects.

Told in dual timelines from Frida’s perspective, the reader discovers why she and Gabriel are so bound to each other and why they’re now estranged. The scene building and inner dialogue is excellent. The novel is suspenseful, but I found the overall pacing to be slow for me, until the climax at the end. Frida and Gabriel are deeply flawed which make their actions and the final twist not totally surprising. I struggled with the combination of unlikable characters and slow pacing. For fans of literary suspense, this novel's well-written nature makes it worth considering, even though it didn't quite resonate with me. 3.5/5⭐️

Frida and Gabriel arrive at luxury resort Ara hoping to enjoy a peaceful and relaxing stay. That is until one of the other guests is found dead and suspicion soon falls on Gabriel. As police began to question Gabriel, Frida begins to invoke memories of their past growing up in a cult and ultimately their grand escape that ends in tragedy.
I really enjoyed The Quiet Tenant and was looking forward to reading the second novel from this author. I couldn’t put it down as each chapter ended with me wanting more. I’m not really a fan of books about cults, but somehow the author did it right! This book was a murder mystery that had a lot of moving parts from the past that all came together in the end. I really liked Frida as a character. She went through so much but always tried to do better. I also thought she was kind of witty and loved when she would reference things from “a mob show” because I knew what show she was referring too as it is also one of my favorites. With its past and present timelines, fast paced chapters and overall mystery, this book will not disappoint!

2.5⭐️ After reading and loving The Quiet Tenant, I was really looking forward to Michallon’s new book. Unfortunately, it didn’t live up to my own hype.

I’m usually a sucker for cult vibes in a book, and I did enjoy those parts of the story. However, some of it felt repetitive at times, and I do wish there was maybe a little more “showing” rather than “telling”. I also felt like the jumping back and forth between the past and present was disjointed sometimes. I had a hard time connecting to Frida and Gabriel, and I think that affected my reading experience. The plot slowed a lot in the middle, and I felt like I was pushing through certain sections.

That said, I do think this was well-written. The scenery at the hotel was beautifully described, and I could easily picture it. The twists were interesting (if not shocking to me), and the book overall was very readable.

This book wasn’t for me, but I can see others enjoying it.

Brother and sister Gabriel and Frida are enjoying a reunion at a luxury resort in the Utah desert when a a young woman is found murdered. Frida is quick to suspect the woman's husband, but the evidence starts to point to Gabriel. Told entirely from Frida's POV and alternating in timeline between present day and past, Frida is forced to confront old traumas, actions, and relationships that have led her and Gabriel to this moment.

The pace of this book was fast and kept me interested. It wasn't as shocking as I expected, as I was able to predict a lot of the twists. The cult aspect didn't play into it as much as I expected either. Overall it was an enjoyable read and is a great summer thriller, but didn't come together or shock me as much as I wanted it to.

Because this review is less than 4 stars, it will be included in a new release round-up at the end of the month. I will update my feedback with the link once it is posted.

Cults and a murder mystery!
This story has two time lines and they were both so very interesting to me. Some of my guesses were wrong but the big twist I just knew. I was hoping there would’ve been something more to tie the two time lines but it was still a fun and quick read.
Half way through I just couldn’t put the book down and had to finish it. The story definitely picks up speed and rushes you to the ending.

Sexual content and graphic scenes were very minimal. There are some TWs.

A bonded,but not biological, pair of siblings, Frida and Gabriel, were teenage escapees over 20 years ago from a cult, and have come to a luxe desert resort in Escalante, Utah, to catch up with each other after a 9 year estrangement. Their peaceful stay is interrupted when the young wife of a rich bully (Frida overheard them bickering) is found dead. Gabriel, whose past includes another suspicious incident, won’t cooperate with the police, and becomes a suspect. Did he know the victim? And is this somehow tangled with his recent life that Frida doesn’t know about?

Told in Frida’s present POV and via her flashbacks to their tortured past, author Michallon has delivered another intense, twisty thriller after her debut novel, “The Quiet Tenant.” Both main characters are deeply affected by their distorted childhood experiences; both of them have survival skills that affect their sense of morality. Michallon creates a compelling, well-developed, intelligent character with Frida — the result is another haunting piece of crime fiction. 4.5 stars!

Literary Pet Peeve Checklist:
Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): YES Sabrina has green eyes, matched by emerald green sunglasses. Gabriel has mismatched eyes, one brown and one blue.
Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): Hmmmm. Keeping a magnolia tree in southern Utah would really require a lot of maintenance and constant care.

Thank you to Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage and Anchor and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy!

DNF at 20% - I am so bummed but this just wasn't working for me. After looking at some other reviews, it seems like some of my quibbles were only going to get worse so I'm putting this aside. I'm definitely interested to see what comes next from Michallon.

Frida and Gabriel were raised as siblings in a cult in upstate New York. We're introduced to them when they are vacationing at a luxury resort in the Utah desert. In alternating timelines, it is revealed that the two have grown apart and why, after being inseparable for years. As tensions mount at the resort after a guest is found dead, suspicion drives a further wedge between the pair, and no one is as they seem.

I really enjoyed this book. I don't read a ton of thrillers and even less about cults, so that was an element that made this fresh for me. I was quickly drawn into the story and read compulsively to figure out how everything was connected.

Clémence Michallon's debut, The Quiet Tenant, has been on my TBR for a year and I'm bumping it up the list after reading this!

I loved The Quiet Tenant; it was my favorite book of the year. So when I saw that another book from this same author was going to be published, I was so excited, especially when I was given access to this free ARC copy.

I wont go on and on telling you how great this book is, how much I loved it. I will just say, do yourself a favor and read it. You won't regret it. Another masterpiece story. I love her writing and the 2 POV's, going back and forth between the past and the present.

Thank you Knopf and Netgalley, for the free ARC copy, in exchange for an honest review.

For me, this was a perfectly passable thriller that was quick, easy to read, and fast paced.

There wasn't anything too groundbreaking and the reveals/twists were a little underwhelming and I did see the major one coming.

I liked the short chapters, the dual timelines, and it was a quick read for me - I *almost* finished it in one setting and I found the writing to be easy to follow and had enough of a hook to keep my attention.

Murder mystery with a cult twist! Very engaging read!
Frida and Gabriel are on a trip to Utah after falling out of contact for many years, where another guest is killed. Who did it? While trying to determine who is the killer, we are taken through the traumatic pasts of Frida and Gabriel and what they had to do to survive.
The dual timeline is well written. Characters have depth and I found myself empathetic toward them. There were so many twists and turns that I did not see come and ending surprised me. What would you do for your person??

Overall, this was a great read and I wish I had read it sooner!

A haunting thriller that lingers like desert heat.
Our Last Resort is a chilling exploration of sibling loyalty, buried trauma, and the shadows we carry. Clémence Michallon masterfully entwines past and present, pulling us through the sun-soaked façade of a luxury resort into the dark heart of a decades old wound. With a gripping pace and a quiet ache beneath every sentence, this novel kept me questioning the truth and the cost of believing in it until the final, devastating twist. A must-read for fans of psychological suspense with real emotional stakes.

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Our Last Resort was a fast-paced mystery about "siblings" Frida and Gabriel. They formed a family bond while growing up together in a cult. This story is told in a dual timeline so we learn about their upbringing and present day where they are being investigated for a murder. We also learn that Gabriel has possibly killed before...

3.5 Stars

Thank you to Net Galley and Penguin Random House Publishing for an early copy of Our Last Resort by Clemence Michallon

Our Last Resort is both a dark tale and a reflection on the depths of human behavior. Can crimes be committed for the right reasons and must those crimes continue to haunt someone now denied a normal and satisfying life?

Frida and Gabriel have been raised in a strict commune in the Hudson Valley led by an enigmatic Frenchman committing serious crimes that go unpunished. When Frida and Gabriel as young adults set fire to the compound with the goal of killing the leader, the result is an unexpected horror that haunts them both as they attempt to live lives in a normal, social world. Their friendship will be tested when on a trip to a desert resort in Escalante, Utah, a murder occurs which will set them at odds immediately with the local authorities.

Beyond the crime-solving plot, author Clemence Michallon develops the main characters so completely that one realizes that Frida and Gabriel are almost two sides of the same person, always there for each other, sometimes at great risk.

Take this at a slow pace for a thriller. The tendency is to move along rapidly to the murder's conclusion, but there is so much to understand about the characters' thoughts and actions that every page counts!

Frida and Gabriel, who were raised as siblings, have drifted apart since they broke free of the cult that defined their childhood. Now they're hoping to reconnect at a five star luxury resort in the Utah desert. However, the death of a fellow guest quickly turns their retreat into something much more tense.

After Michallon's twisty, tense debut, The Quiet Tenant, I was excited to get my hands on her sophomore novel. I'm pleased to say that it didn't disappoint! The tension, which builds consistently throughout these pages, and atmospheric setting combine with spectacularly developed characters to make this book memorable. Michallon reveals twists and turns over the course of this well paced novel, which kept me on my toes (and on the edge of my seat!) every time I thought I had something figured out. My best advice is to go into this novel blind and let the layers fall away as you move through the story. The fast pace and tight pacing made this a very quick read for me.

I would have classified The Quiet Tenant as a literary thriller, and I feel that Our Last Resort leans more into the murder mystery subgenre. Michallon clearly has talent for writing in both subgenres and I've added her to my auto buy author list. Thank you to Knopf and NetGalley for the chance to read this book prior to its publication in exchange for this honest review. I'm looking forward to seeing what this author has in store for us next!

I read The Quiet Tenant by this author last year and thought it was clever and well-structured. It had this quiet intensity that kept me turning the pages. It wasn't for everyone, but I enjoyed it so much, I named it one of my favorite reads of 2023. So when I saw that Michallon had a new book out, I was genuinely excited. I had high hopes for this one. A desert resort, a sibling duo with a traumatic past, a murder? Yes, please.

But, sadly, it never really took off for me.

The story centers around Frida and Gabriel, a brother and sister who, years ago, escaped a cult. We meet them in the present day, checking into a luxury resort in the middle of the Utah desert. They’re meeting up to talk about the possibility of participating in a documentary about the cult and the murder that happened there. It'll also be a chance for them to reconnect after some time apart. Of course, because this is a thriller (at least on paper), a young woman ends up dead, and Gabriel quickly becomes the prime suspect.

We jump between the past (cult days) and the present (murder fallout), which I usually love in a story. I’m a sucker for a good dual timeline, especially when it builds tension. And the structure here is done pretty well. The transitions are smooth. The writing itself is clean and purposeful. But despite all that, I just couldn’t bring myself to care much. Nothing really gripped me. I didn’t find the mystery all that mysterious, and the suspense never built to anything that felt surprising or unsettling. I kept waiting for a moment, be it a twist, an emotional gut-punch, something, but it never came. Even the reveal felt muted.

As far as the characters? They’re fine. Frida didn’t annoy me, but I didn’t feel particularly invested in her, either. Same with Gabriel. I liked the idea of exploring the aftermath of a cult upbringing. How that shapes your future relationships, your trust issues, your entire sense of self, but it never got deep enough to make me care. There’s a lot of potential in their backstory, but it stays mostly on the surface. Even the resort setting, which should’ve been eerie or at least a little atmospheric, felt kind of flat. I wanted the heat, the isolation, the silence of the desert to really seep into the tension of the story, but it mostly sat in the background. It never became a character the way I hoped it would.

Honestly, the word that kept floating around in my head while reading this one was: fine. The book is fine. The writing is fine. The premise is fine. The execution is fine. But it didn’t leave much of a mark. It’s one of those books that I’ll probably forget in a few weeks—not because it’s bad, but because it just didn’t stick.

Now, I do think some readers might enjoy it more than I did. If you’re not expecting a twisty, edge-of-your-seat thriller, and you’re more into slower-paced stories about siblings, trauma, and buried secrets, you might vibe with this one. It’s a quiet book, more introspective than pulse-pounding. Just go in with the right expectations. As for me, it was just okay. I’m still excited to see what Michallon writes next. She clearly knows how to structure a story and create a mood. I just wish this one had taken a few more risks, or at least pushed a little harder on the emotional front.

Would I recommend it? Maybe. Depends on what you’re in the mood for. But if you’re looking for something you’ll be thinking about long after the last page, this probably isn’t it.

I had high hopes going into this book because I had really liked another book from this author. I am glad I can say it lived up to my expectations. This book is a great thriller and I think others would really enjoy it. Also, as someone who is from Upstate New York, I was definitely drawn to the book. I will definitely be recommending this book to others. I also highly recommend reading this authors other book, The Quiet Tenant.

Thank you Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor and Clémence Michallon for the copy of Our Last Resort.

I really enjoyed this author’s debut thriller, and this one was no different. I became very invested in finding out what happened and couldn’t wait to get to the ending. Great read!!

- I am sad to say I am throwing in the towel. DNF @ 31%
I wanted to love this book so much. It had all the things you’d love in a book Mystery, Murder, Cult & hidden secrets but just fell so flat. I felt like there wasn’t much to the story & it just kept dragging on. I’ve been reading it for 2 months, had to restart it once & just didn’t want to go back to it. I also didn’t find it very exciting or thrilling at all.
I’m not saying others wouldn’t enjoy it but I did not. It didn’t keep me interested enough to even want to come back to it. (30% was hard work!)


Thank you NetGalley for the chance at this ARC read.