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.

Innocence doesn't bail you out; it just makes you easier to trap.

Frida and Gabriel arrive seeking a fresh start at the stunning Ara Hotel in the secluded desert of Escalante, Utah. Once so close they were able to finish each other’s sentences, they’ve grown apart in recent years after a sudden, unspeakable tragedy. Now, at the luxe resort, they are ready to reconnect between dips in the pool and hikes on spectacular desert trails. It all feels like paradise—until the dead body of a beautiful young woman who was vacationing at the Ara with her powerful, much older husband is discovered.

When the local police arrive and suspicion quickly falls on Gabriel, Frida is forced to revisit memories from their upbringing in a cloistered cult in upstate New York, their dramatic escape, and the scandal that followed. Frida’s belief in Gabriel’s innocence never wavered at the time, but now even she can’t ignore the evidence mounting against him.

Alternating between past and present timelines, Our Last Resort builds toward a shattering climax that uncovers the fate of the murdered Ara guest and poses the question: how well do we ever really know those we love? Multi-layered, gripping, and intense, Clémence Michallon’s latest suspense novel is a nail-biter until the last page, cementing her status as a major new talent in the genre.

Frida and her brother Gabriel escaped a cult 15 years ago. Now they are back under scrutiny when Gabriel is the prime suspect in a murder, and sadly, this isn’t the first time. Now Frida must work to clear her brother’s name while also fighting back the memories from their childhood.

I’ve been looking forward to this book, since I really loved Michallon’s first book The Quiet Tenant. This did not disappoint. Something of a locked-room mystery, the murderer is someone at the resort. Frida and Gabriel are struggling to deal with their past that continues to haunt them both. The story is told from Frida’s point of view, flashing back to their childhood in the cult and modern day.

Don’t miss this! It’s compelling and I read it over two days. It will keep you intrigued for sure!

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf for providing me with an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Available July 8, 2025.

First off, I would like to thank Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor| Knopf and author Clémence Michallon for allowing me to read this novel, Our Last Resort, via Netgalley. All opinions following are my own.

This novel follows two main characters, Frida, the narrator, and Gabriel, her brother. Both escaped from a cult about 15 years before the novel's inception. Ten years ago, they were both living on the East Coast together. Gabriel was married to Annie, a wealthy heiress, and Frida was working in finance. They all spent a lot of time together until Annie went missing and was found two weeks later. Immediately, the investigators honed in on Gabriel, but after three interrogations, he was cleared. However, the damage to his reputation had been done. Not able to escape condemnation from those around him and craving a fresh start, Gabriel moved across the country to Seattle, WA. Over the next decade, he and Frida slowly become estranged. When a documentary film team reaches out, though, to talk about Annie, whose murder has remained unsolved, Gabriel emails Frida saying they should do it together. She agrees but wants to spend some time with him before to get to know him again. They decide to vacation at the luxurious Ara Hotel in Escalante, Utah.

At first, everything seems to be going well. That is until Frida stumbles upon an argument between a wealthy tabloid owner, William Brenner, and his much younger wife, Sabrina. Obviously intoxicated, he is getting rough with her and calls her a who** and liar. The next morning, Sabrina is found murdered.

It seems obvious to Frida who murdered her, and she talks to a detective about what she saw the previous night. However, when William is released from custody, evidence starts pointing at Gabriel, who also begins lying to the police.

Frida desperately wants to believe her brother is innocent, but not many men have one, let alone two, women get murdered around them.

For the most part, I enjoyed this book. Some things I didn't figure out, and I liked the fast pace of the book. That being said, I felt like some of the plot was almost too obvious, and so I ended up giving this one ⭐️⭐️⭐️. It releases on July 8.

I really enjoyed the whole cult aspect of this. It was really interesting and I would have loved to hear more about it. I liked that it showed their troubles growing up before and after the cult.
I didn’t love this as much as The Quiet Tennant but it was still a good read and I would recommend it.

Although there are some surprising twists and turns along the way, the main character, who is somewhat hard to like from the start, becomes less and less likable as the book goes along. Ultimately, she has committed some actions that are selfish and unforgivable and cannot be dismissed merely because of her difficult upbringing. This makes it hard to like her or the book.

I was a huge fan of Michallon's previous novel, The Quiet Tenant. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to read this novel early. The first half of the book drew me in. Both timelines, past and present, had me hooked. I felt invested in Frida and Gabriel's past and in finding out what happened to Sabrina Brenner. I never felt like one timeline dragged down the pacing of the book, and that they were equally interesting. However, I felt that the ending felt a little short. While there were twists, the ending felt rushed and unsatisfying. Overall, I did enjoy this book and would recommend it to those who enjoy a quick mystery.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for the free e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Frida and Gabriel are at a luxury resort when someone is murdered. We then find out they grew up in a cult. What follows is a white lotus-esque murder mystery alternating between their time in the cult and their escape. What unfolds is how traumatized these 2 are as a result of living in the cult.

This had me hooked! Lots of wild twists with this locked room thriller. Couldn’t put it down! 4 stars!!!

Our Last Resort is the second novel I've read by Clemence Michallon. I was a huge fan of her book The Quiet Tenant so I was very excited to get my hands on this new release. Siblings Frida and Gabriel have had a rift for the past almost decade, and they've decided to mend it at an exclusive resort in Utah. However, they encounter some devastating unforeseen circumstances that place them as the main persons of interest in an investigation. They soon discover that they might now know each other as well as they've always thought they did. Secrets are not their friends. I enjoyed the quick pace of this book, and the setting was a fun aspect. The author did a great job describing the environment, and that truly added to the storytelling. Read and enjoy!

What's better than a cult story, a murder mystery, and gorgeous prose? This is going to be a big one. In the coming weeks, I'll be sharing a review on my instagram account (@stressiereads) and Goodreads profile.

I highly recommend marketing this one as a literary thriller (i.e. God of the Woods, Wild Dark Shore) because I see it in that realm more than popcorn thrillers. It does not hook the reader the way mass market thrillers do, so if someone is expecting that, they'll be disappointed.

Thank you for the copy!

Clemence Michallon does it again! Her debut was one of the creepiest books I’ve ever read and this follow-up is no exception.

Thank you to Knopf and NetGalley for the ARC of Our Last Resort in exchange for an honest review.

I had a good time with this one! I haven't read her first book The Quiet Tenant yet but I heard good things so thought I would request this one. It has a dual timeline between past and current day, which is always risky because a lot of times one storyline is more intriguing and easier to read through than the other. While I found the modern-day timeline a little more fast paced, getting the backstory of the two main characters and how they grew up remained interesting as well. I liked the two main characters. Their relationship was complex after everything they experienced together. I love me a story about survival and resilience.

I have no complaints about the writing - it wasn't the most literary book I've ever read but I also wasn't rolling my eyes with extreme disbelief either. The twists weren't the most original, but they were well done and I think fit the story well.

Overall, no complaints. Out of all the thrillers I've read in the last year or so related to cults, I think this one is my favorite.

Gabriel and Fredia escaped a cult. 15 years later Gabriel is accused of murder while they are on vacation.

Disappointed in this one. Michallon’s first book, The Quiet Tenant, was so gripping from start to finish. I was so excited to get this ARC but quickly lost interest. The characters were boring, the book didn’t get somewhat exciting till 70% through, and the climax was predictable. It lacked the thrills and twists.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. Book releases July 8, 2025.

4.5 stars. Omg.. this really lived up to what I’d come to expect from Michallon (remember The Quiet Tenant)!! So good!! Raised as siblings (not by blood) in a commune for mothers and children, Frida and Gabriel reunite as adults at a luxury resort in the Utah desert, hoping for a fresh start in their relationship. But the illusion of paradise is shattered when another guest is found dead and Gabriel becomes the prime suspect. To clear their names, Frida is forced to confront their pasts — namely, the fallout from their childhood in a cult. If you’re looking for a great mystery, to gasp in horror.. and be kept on the edge of your seat.. this is the story for you. I find cults so engrossing to read about and this takes you back to the beginning when Frida and Gabriel were traumatized as children while living within a cult led by its manipulative leader, Emile. To say this is a heart-pounding experience is an understatement and I loved every spine-tingling minute of it. Is fantastic! Pub. 7/8/25

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced reading copy in exchange for an honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ — A Solid Thriller with a Split Focus

This was an overall good thriller that kept me engaged, though I wish the story had focused more clearly on either the cult or the afterlife aspect. The back-and-forth between the two made the pacing feel uneven at times. That said, this is my second book by this author, and I still enjoyed the ride.

Some parts dragged a bit, but the fast-paced sections really delivered and made it worth pushing through. While I found the plot a bit too predictable, I appreciated the subtler elements that weren’t so in-your-face—they added a nice layer of depth.

I finished it in about two days, which says a lot about its readability. Overall, a good pick for fans of thrillers who don’t mind a few bumps along the way.

I read her first book and absolutely loved it. This was a great follow up. Good storyline with compelling characters!

While I loved The Quiet Tenant, this book didn’t resonate with me quite as much. I enjoyed the twists but getting to the point where anything truly starts to be revealed is some what painful. This book is told both in the past and the present. You can tell that past lived trauma truly bound Frida and Gabriel. However, all of the back story really took you out of the present murder investigation and I personally feel ate up too much of the plot line. Yes is it necessary, to an extent, but I wanted more current day plot. Overall, this is an okay book, not quite as powerful in my opinion as her last novel. I will recommend this only if people tell me they liked The Quiet Tenant.
Thank you to Knopf, Pantheon Vintage and Anchor and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this title.

Frida and Gabriel became siblings in a commune and stayed close after running away from the commune, holding each other's secrets close. Decades later, taking a vacation together at a luxury spa, tragedy finds them again. The big question: are they involved and will this pull them apart or strengthen their bonds? I was never really sure where this story was going and kept turning pages despite needing to do other things. However, I did not feel that this story had the depth of intrigue and suspense that I was expecting. Not sure why, because it was a very solid plot, but maybe I was expecting too much from it? Needless to say, the character development and story were excellent. A worthy read!

Thank you Knopf for the gifted digital ARC.

There was something about this one that just fell flat for me unfortunately. I was only interested in the present day story, so the flashback chapters had me kind of checking out, and I didn't feel particularly connected to the characters at all. There were a couple big reveals that fell quite a bit flat for me as well. It was very well-written, I just felt like I had read variations of this plot several times before.

I will definitely continue to read this author in the future, regardless.