A slow burn that uses episodes of a true crime television show to examine the mystery of young Francie, who disappeared years ago. Jennifer's father is in prison and she's always struggled not only with that but with her own understanding of what happened that summer when she was 11 and everything blew up. Each episode pulls more from her mind and roils her even more. You'll feel Jennifer's distress and be pulled along to fund out the truth. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. A good read.

This was the perfect summer read, quick moving, and un- put downable!
It is a great storyline with lots of twists and turns.

Jenny has not had the best childhood, her mom died giving birth to her and as loving as her dad is, she feels like an outsider except when summer rolls around and they pack up to spend time together at their cottage near the swamp, where Tia and Mandy spend summers as well, Tia is Jenny's best and only friend but everything changes when Nora and her mom show up trying to outrun the media frenzy surrounding them because of their connection to a local missing little girl named Francie who is about the same age as the girls. This summer will be very different for many reasons, danger, betrayal, and heartbreak.

Fast-forward 20+ years later, a television series about Francie is causing Jenny to relive the summer that changed her life forever, and not everyone involved is happy about it.

I truly enjoyed the way the author made you feel you were 11 again how it felt to want to have a friend, to fit in, the anxiousness of it all, being a kid is tough and the author was able to transport me right back to that time. I felt the butterflies, the anticipation, fear, and pure joy right along with those girls. I enthusiastically recommend "The last episode" by Lori Roy

This one really worked for me. I’d put it at 4.5 stars. It dragged a little here and there, but I was into it the whole time, and when I wasn’t reading, I was still thinking about it.

As a thriller, it delivers exactly what you want. There are twists, plenty of moments where you’re second-guessing everything, and enough red herrings to keep it interesting without feeling overdone.

But what really makes it stand out is the emotional depth. Jenny’s story is just really well told. The way the book explores her grief, her relationship with her dad, and how that one summer followed her into adulthood felt honest and grounded. The character work adds a lot of weight to everything that happens.

It’s sharp, layered, and satisfying. One of the better thrillers I’ve read in a while.

A really fun summer read and excellently done thriller. I really enjoyed the plotting and found the "show within a book" premise really well done and clever.

While the book occasionally dragged, it never did so for long and I was always pulled right back in. The descriptions about Florida summers with friends, the wildness of the swamp, wanting so badly to fit in - made me nostalgic (although I'm from AZ, I can at least relate to the heat). The unraveling of the mystery and the many twists made this hard to put down.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

Lori Roy mashes Southern gothic vibes with the modern true crime obsession, as Jennifer Jones is forced to revisit the traumatic summer that defined her past—and possibly distorted the truth. The eerie setting of Big Cypress Swamp, a decades-old disappearance, and a reality series digging into long-buried secrets create a rich backdrop for this emotionally charged story.

Roy explores memory, identity, and legacy with a deft hand, delivering twists that feel earned and characters that linger. A compelling, thought-provoking read perfect for fans of true crime with a literary edge.

Thank you Lori Roy, Brilliance, Thomas & Mercer, and Netgalley for the advanced copy!

#thefinalepisode #netgalleyarc #netgalleyreview #netgalley #arcreview #arc #arcreader #review #somanybookssolittletime

This gripping book has you wondering from the start. I did find some of the plot twists to be a bit predictable but that didn't take away my enjoyment. It's part epistolary part tv show episodes, following the disappearance of Francie as well as the aftermath as the episodes of the series about Francie's disappearance get aired and new information is uncovered that was previously unknown.

This was the perfect summer read, quick moving, and un- put downable!
It is a great storyline with lots of twists and turns.

Jenny has not had the best childhood, her mom died giving birth to her and as loving as her dad is, she feels like an outsider except when summer rolls around and they pack up to spend time together at their cottage near the swamp, where Tia and Mandy spend summers as well, Tia is Jenny's best and only friend but everything changes when Nora and her mom show up trying to outrun the media frenzy surrounding them because of their connection to a local missing little girl named Francie who is about the same age as the girls. This summer will be very different for many reasons, danger, betrayal, and heartbreak.

Fast-forward 20+ years later, a television series about Francie is causing Jenny to relive the summer that changed her life forever, and not everyone involved is happy about it.

I truly enjoyed the way the author made you feel you were 11 again how it felt to want to have a friend, to fit in, the anxiousness of it all, being a kid is tough and the author was able to transport me right back to that time. I felt the butterflies, the anticipation, fear, and pure joy right along with those girls. I enthusiastically recommend "The last episode" by Lori Roy

I really enjoyed this book - the plot was structured very creatively and kept me hooked, and I really enjoyed the characterization.

Ａｕｄｉｏｂｏｏｋ & Ｅｂｏｏｋ Ｒｅｖｉｅｗ
🌟🌟🌟
The final episode by Lori Roy, unfortunately, wasn't for me. I should have DNF'd this book, but I just wanted to see what was going to happen, but not in a happy or good way. Just to say, I finished it. I felt like a lot of nothing happened in this story. I did like the episode-style writing and the dual timeline.

I don't know; I just felt like something was missing and was kind of confused.

The audiobook is narrated by P.J. Morgan, and she did a good job telling the story. She was easy to listen to and understand. Listened at 2x speed.

Thank you, NetGalley, Brilliance Publishing, for the audiobook, and Thomas & Mercer for the ebook in exchange for my honest review.

★★★★

It’s the beginning of summer, and Jennifer Jones is excited. Like every summer, Jennifer and her dad, Paul, are headed to Big Cypress Swamp, where she will spend the next few months with her two best friends. She is also turning eleven this summer, which is a big deal in her family. On their eleventh birthday, the women in her family are said to gain second sight.

”This is her favorite moment at the swamp. The just-before moment when the whole summer is ahead of them.”

Unfortunately, the summer does not turn out as Jennifer had hoped. Francie Farrow, a young girl, vanishes, and her missing person case quickly becomes national news. But it doesn’t end there. Paul Jones is sent to prison for the crime.

Fast forward twenty years, and Jennifer is once again struggling with being labeled as Paul’s daughter when a true crime podcast turns its focus to Francie Farrow’s disappearance. The podcast gained widespread attention with a previous case, revealing the truth in its final episode. Tensions run high, threatening Jennifer’s career and well-being as the nation counts down to The Final Episode and the truth that will finally be revealed.

Lori Roy is a new author to me, and I quite enjoyed her writing. The plot was complex and well-layered. Though it was a bit of a slow burn, there were plenty of subtle clues that hinted at a major reveal. And Lori Roy absolutely delivered. This is a dark tale with plenty of suspects. It seemed as though everyone in Big Cypress Swamp had something to hide. While I had some ideas that turned out to be correct, I could never have guessed the sheer evil that lurked in the swamp. The final chapters left me completely stunned.

The story is told through Jennifer’s memories, letters to her father, and the podcast. While I felt the narrative could have been a bit more concise (some parts felt slightly repetitive) perhaps that is simply part of the retelling style.

If you are a fan of true crime fiction, I highly recommend checking this one out.

Thank you NetGalley, Thomas & Mercer, and Lori Roy for an advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

Amazing True Crime Series, it was chilling and gripping. very hard to put down.

My first novel by Lori and won't be my last.

While this book really promsing, unfortunately this did not pan out. I felt like the characters really didn't connect with me. There is a really good pacing from this book though. I think if you like horror books that are fast reads, you would like this.

The narrative’s use of shifting timelines and various viewpoints, blending scenes from the true crime show with letters Jennifer writes to her incarcerated father, really drew me in. This book is packed with twists and tension, making you doubt every event and every character along the way!

I went through this book both by reading and listening, depending on where I was or how I felt — and somehow, that combination made the experience even more intense. The story had this thick, gothic atmosphere that settled in from the very beginning. It wasn’t easy. At times it felt like I was wandering through a fog — everything dark, a little disorienting, sometimes even emotionally heavy. But I couldn’t stop. Whether I had the book in my hands or the narrator’s voice in my ears, something kept pulling me deeper.

There was a quiet momentum to it all, like things were slowly unraveling but always heading toward something. I didn’t always understand where it was taking me, but I felt like I had to trust it. And in the end, I was glad I did.

It was hard, in a strange, beautiful way. Not the kind of story you rush through — more like one you have to feel your way through, piece by piece. Listening gave me the tone and texture, while reading let me sink into the details. Together, it all came alive.

3.5⭐️
As a fan of true crime shows, really enjoyed this book. The story is told by episodes of the show and multiple time lines. A page turner, couldn't wait to get to the final episode to see what really happened. Thank you to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for ARC.

I enjoyed the alternating timelines and multiple POVs through the episodes of the true crime show and letters written. This book is intense and twisty but I found it somewhat predictable, which is not bad, as I think it's hard to surprise.

Having just visited Florida, I was up for a mystery set in the swamps of this southern state.

A young girl goes missing in the night. She is taken from her bedroom, and the only witness is another young girl staying in the same bedroom. Nora. Nora befriends three other young girls in the community, who will forever be woven into this tragic story. This incident leaves a wake of devastated families, unanswered questions, loose accusations, and shocking secrets. This is a story told over a course of two decades. I found it somewhat predictable, but there was enough surprising elements to keep me entertained.

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer for the advanced copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. These opinions are entirely my own.

Four and a half stars rounded up. Lori Roy’s “The Final Episode” was the first book I read of hers. The summer Jennifer Jones turns eleven, she has high hopes she’ll gain the “second sight” the women in her family are said to get when they turn eleven. That summer is life-changing for many people, but not necessarily in the way Jennifer hopes.

When the book begins, Francie Farrow has gone missing while having a friend, Nora Banks, stay over. Nora tells Francie’s parents that a man took Francie out of her bedroom. By the time the summer has ended, Francie has not yet been found and Jennifer’s father, Paul Jones, has been arrested after Nora is attacked.

The book alternates timelines between the summer of Francie’s disappearance and present day. The summer of Francie’s disappearance is revealed as episodes from Inspired by True Events, a series that looks at unsolved crimes. As Jennifer watches each episode, she grapples with the father she remembers growing up versus that fateful summer. She has long believed in his innocence, but she starts to doubt him, as well as herself.

I enjoyed reading about Jennifer reconnecting with Tia, one of her few childhood friends. I was distrustful of one of the characters long before a few reveals were done. However, there were still a few surprises in store for me from the author.

Overall, I recommend this book. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my ARC.

👀 T R A G I C T U E S D A Y review 👀 featuring “The Final Episode” by Lori Roy!

Jennifer Jones and her childhood friends grew up spending their summers at the Big Cypress Swamp in Florida. The summer she’s about to turn 11, a young girl named Francie Farrow goes missing and Jennifer’s own father gets sent to prison for it.

Now 22 years later, a TV show called “Inspired by True Events” is investigating the cold case of Francie Farrow. The show starts digging up the haunting past of a little girl who disappeared from her bed and was never seen again. Jennifer is forced to relive the nightmare, while putting up with threats against her as the final episode approaches its air date.

I enjoyed how the story was told in alternating timelines and from the POVS of multiple characters through the episodes of the true crime show and letters written to Jennifer’s father in prison. This book is intense and twisty and has you questioning EVERYTHING going on and EVERYONE involved!

Thank you kindly to @lori_roy_author @thomasmerceruk @amazonpublishing @netgalley for my #gifted advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review. This book releases on June 24, 2025!

Okay this book was a solid 4.25 for me. It has me guessing every which way except the right way. Told from the POV of an 11 year old and again when she is in her 30s. I enjoyed the different looks on things from before and now. I gasped at one of the reveals. Thank you NetGalley for early access to this book