Thank you Atria Books for my #gifted copy of Our Last Wild Days! #OurLastWildDays #atriabooks #AtriaInfluencer #AnnaBailey

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: 𝐎𝐮𝐫 𝐋𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐃𝐚𝐲𝐬
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: 𝐀𝐧𝐧𝐚 𝐁𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲
𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝐌𝐚𝐲 𝟐𝟎, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓

𝟰.𝟱★

Wow! Talk about an atmospheric read! Anna Bailey had me hooked from the start with this one, set in Jackknife, Louisiana. Loyal May has recently returned home to care for her mother and her childhood friend, Cutter Labasque has been found face down in a muddy swamp. No one seams to care. Ruled a suicide, the only person who seems to question it, is Loyal, who is determined to find out really happened to Cutter. When Loyal left town years ago, she betrayed Cutter, and while it may be too late to apologize now, she is determined to find out the truth.

This was such a vivid read and I loved the setting and small town vibes. The author did such an amazing job capturing the rural Louisiana vibes and I would definitely recommend this one if you love atmospheric thrillers!

🐊Atmospheric
🐊Small Town
🐊Secrets
🐊Flawed Characters
🐊Gothic Vibes

Posted on Goodreads on May 24, 2025: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
**Posted on Instagram - Full Review- on or around May 24, 2025: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Amazon on May 24, 2025
**-will post on designated date

🐊 Book review! 🐊

Our Last Wild Days
By Anna Bailey
Published: 5/20/25
Genre: mystery/thriller

I really enjoyed reading this book even more than I expected to! There were a lot of layers to the story. It had hometown and family drama in spades. Characters wrestle with their failures and desires in addition to a few alligators. This Louisiana swamp is thick with corruption and mystery. It’s a page turner!

Thank you @netgalley and @atriabooks for the opportunity to read the digital arc of this novel!
I’ll be watching out for @annabaileywrites next book!

#ourlastwilddays #louisianabook #bayousetting #swampsetting #mysterybooks #thrillerbooks #newbook #arcreview #bookreview #bookrecommendation #newlyreleasedbook #atriabooks #netgalley #bookstagram #readthisbook

"OUR LAST WILD DAYS"
BY: ANNA BAILEY

IF EVER A NOVEL WRITTEN IN THE MYSTERY--THRILLER GENRE DESERVED ONE HUNDRED STARS THIS WOULD BE IT!

I took longer reading this because the writing was so GORGEOUS, which I wasn't anticipating since this is my first time reading Author, ANNA BAILEY'S, beautifully written novels. I LOVED IT! I had read a couple of reviews in which at least one reviewer said that this is what she referred to as a kind of slow burn mystery. I respect other reviewers opinions, so while that may have been the case for her, that wasn't my experience, but a few others also said it starts out slow. Since this feedback, mixed with the content had me dreading reading it, I have to say that this turned out to be over the span of my lifetime reading experiences as far as the mystery--thriller genre category the most SPECTACULAR one that I've ever encountered. I don't read this genre often since I prefer feeling swept away by well written novels that makes me feel emotionally moved by an author who can craft memorable passages that bring realism, with well developed character studies that are in depth which Anna Bailey, accomplished that criteria, and so much more in, "OUR LAST WILD DAYS." The mystery-thriller, genre usually is filled with over the top plots and characters that rely on me having to suspend disbelief in which most of them are lacking the kind of electrifying writing that I experienced within this second novel, that I'm almost speechless trying to describe how rare I've encountered such outstanding talent in this genre. Maybe never before, ever, have I been so impressed by an unknown author, (to me) to surprise me within a mystery-thriller novel, been shocked by this type of high quality talent. Anna Bailey's prowess with her command of language that deserves my highest praise since nothing prepared me for how achingly, raw this author has managed to create out of writing about poverty, corruption, social isolation, familial instability, oppressive heat, swamp infested, dangerously inhabited with alligators and snakes, cancer causing pollution industry, gossiping judgmental community, drug trafficking, addiction, murder, violence, small town suburbs, with such authenticity that I would end up not only avoiding for the bleak, and depressing setting and I can't explain only that the writing was so breathtaking that captured my attention has produced in me to my utter amazement was one that left me feeling stunningly uplifted and hopeful with this unique, one of a kind masterpiece.

I actually am very aware of the masterful character development that counterbalances the darker themed, misunderstood Labasque family brothers who are the surviving family outcasts by this community full of judgmental disdain for their reputations of the eldest brother known for fighting. The youngest brother Beau, is addicted to drugs. The novel begins with their sister Marianne, who is referred to being called, "Cutter," is discovered lying face down caught up tangled by the vegetation as having what the Sheriff deems "accidental" drowning. Later it is also referred as Cutter's cause of death being a suicide. She is being poked at with a stick by most of the Sheriff's Deputies except for the one who leaked the drowning to his friend Sasha whose Great Uncle owns the small town newspaper in Jacknife, Louisiana which is how Cutter's estranged best friend, Loyal May who has just returned home from her job as a Journalist in Houston, Texas because of her mother having developed early onset Dementia. Loyal is with Sasha at the crime scene when the two of them hear about a drowning, and they are both there to write a story for the small town, newspaper which Sasha is trying to update the paper to an online publication. Loyal has been away for ten years, and she's working there since she wrote articles for Sasha's Great Uncle while still in high school, and they were surprised that nobody seems to care about Cutter's death including her two brothers. These two do want to find out how it happened, and why.

I really loved Loyal as a main character for her wonderful, caring personality who is very sad to find out that the dead woman was her childhood best friend who she and Sasha were both relatable and decent people who are very disturbed to see that the deputies are poking at Cutter's body with sticks. I think that they are what kept this from getting so depressing since they both were not willing to accept that Cutter would drown since she was experienced at navigating the water and swamp since she had her own small red boat that Loyal remembered them spending many hours on the water in that boat. Sasha is interesting as a main character since his sister Kaylee owns the diner which is a popular place in this tiny community and he has dyed pink hair that looks stapled. Loyal was described as being heavier in terms of physical appearance they both weren't totally always without being teased in their childhoods for being different which gave them the much needed layers to explain how they weren't average which I thought made them more empathetic as adults. They both were extremely kind, that I felt comes from them both building resilience from overcoming their unconventional different reasons for not fitting in on the surface, but managing to develop an inner beauty in the way that really is the most important attribute. I loved how they were so compatible and they were the main reason that they kept me interested since they were both so realistic as having their doubts about Cutter drowning being accidental as the Sheriff ruled. They both had kept following up on investigating what really happened with the coroner ruling Cutter's death a murder.

The way that Author, Anna Bailey described the landscape as untamed was the other aspect that makes this soar to being incredibly atmospheric. In the way she wrote this was to engage me so I could feel like she kept my interest by taking a dangerous place by the flawless job she did with her powerfully engaged me by her making the setting so sensuous that she made use of the heat being so relentless. She constantly used descriptive sounds that the insects made, the moss and Cypress trees, the alligator infested water and swamps always present in how they were an undercurrent theme lurking around in the town surrounded by water. The woods and decay of the Labasques shack they inhabited, located in the center of a swamp. Cutter was the one to cause the Sheriff his lost scholarship and loss of his dream of playing football, since she bit off a couple of his fingers so that he couldn't catch another football. He lost his chance of leaving for College, escaping the deteriorating town. Cutter caused a naive Loyal's deformed hand by tricking her it was safe to put it inside Beau's baby alligators pen that he kept inside a building they were in. What kind of best friend would encourage her childhood best friend to place her hand where it wasn't safe, that resulted in a trusting Loyal having a chunk of her hand getting chomped off when one of the alligators bit Loyal's hand. Loyal got even by using her gift as a writer that alienated the community from the Labasques, which she regrets. Cutter was feral, but Loyal always thought they would mend their friendship, is that what makes her spend all of her time trying to solve what happened to Cutter, by placing her life in jeopardy?

The characters were so heart wrenching and I loved how the plot was fast paced with short chapters that had even a scene about the Albino Female Alligator being rare. Cutter used to go with her older brother to wrangle alligators that the idea of him with Sasha on the boat where he tells Sasha he would love to see her, but it was against regulations to hunt it. Sasha tells the older Labasque brother that he didn't see him as a guy who followed regulations. Cutter's older brother replied that he's used to seeing things in life he wants, but he is also used to not having the things he wants. That is a beautiful scene that shows the humanity that both the Author and by her including that scene proves that we all are people who are more complex. The older brother who was shunned for him being an alligator hunter and one who is known for brawls, that he has layers also. He is satisfied to just admire the beautiful White Albino Alligator from afar. Just seeing her is enough to bring him joy. It's enough to have the chance at another glimpse of her. He knows that the Albino alligator would free them from poverty since it would end their hardship from their extremely tough way of how he earns his money with risking his life just to exist, but he won't harm a female that's nesting. I'll never forget that scene. It's about those who risk their lives on a daily basis by keeping the water safe. Not choosing greed and the easiest solution to get rich enough to end your money problems quickly. Ending your poverty but losing your integrity, self respect, by destroying a rare, beautiful, creature who has just as much a right to inhabit this world you both share together.

I think that the character development, plot, and the atmospheric setting with profound feasts for engaging the senses make this novel, "OUR LAST WILD DAYS," the most dazzling mystery-thriller that I've ever read. I think it's hauntingly realistic that I'll never forget it. Everywhere there is decay, rot, deterioration that's rife with corruption, poverty, social isolation, addiction, drug trafficking, violence, familial instability, swamp infested with alligators and snakes, blazing hot temperatures, cancer causing pollution industry, judgmental gossiping community, violence, murder, small minded thinking is achingly raw, is written with such authenticity that is counterbalanced with the main characters so full of inner beauty is a majestic piece of artistic ability that sings with the breathtaking prose. It is a brilliant achievement that I was amazed with how Haunting, and Unforgettable this novel left me with a feeling of hope. I was so addicted to this author's ability to immerse me with her rare writing style that it soars with her striking sensuous atmospheric attention to detail. I would give this one-hundred stars if I could. Again, I can't recommend this high enough, and I'm looking forward to reading her first novel, and I will be thinking about this since I think it deserves to reach as wide of an audience as possible. A MASTERPIECE THAT HAS ORIGINALITY WITH IT'S GENRE

Publication Date: May 20, 2025! AVAILABLE NOW FOR PURCHASE! I KNOW THAT I'M LOOKING TO BUY MY OWN PHYSICAL HARDCOVER FIRST EDITION, THAT'S SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR! THIS WAS ONE THAT I WAS DREADING, BUT IT'S MY FAVORITE NOVEL THAT I HAVE READ, AND THIS IS NOT MY USUAL CONTENT! I'M SO SAD TO HAVE FINISHED IT!

Thank you to Net Galley, Anna Bailey, and Atria Books for generously providing me with my SPECTACULAR ARC, in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own, as always.

#OurLastWildDays #AnnaBailey #AtriaBooks #NetGalley

I was hooked from the beginning!!
It was amazing and engaging.
I was instantly sucked in by the atmosphere and writing style.
The characters were all very well developed .
The writing is exceptional and I was hooked after the first sentence.

This was a dark and atmospheric small town mystery. I liked this one! A slow read but interesting. Reminded me a bit of True Detective Season 1 with a dash of Where the Crawdads Sing.

Thank you Simon and Schuster, Net Galley, and Anna Bailey for this ARC.

Haunting, lyrical, and southern gothic!
This novel is a slow burn character study, a meditation of guilt, grief, and the messy business of making amends.
The Labasques aren’t like anyone else in this town. They are outcasts who survive off the land by hunting alligators. Loyal comes back to town after leaving at 18 when her estranged best friend apparently dies by suicide.
Loyal is determined to find out what happened to her friend but the local police department want it to stay shut as a shoved case, but loyal cannot accept that.
This story crawls under your skin, it’s short paced but relentless!

Thank you Atria for my gifted copy!

"’They say you can tell the health of a place by its wilderness,’ her
mother says. ‘Well, I say something's not right out there.’”

“We’re living in our last wild days, boy.”

Every once in a while, a book comes around that shatters the glass ceiling. Once There Were Wolves, All the Colors of the Dark, Betty, Razorblade Tears, Our Last Wild Days.

This book is full of so many beautiful sentences. Anna Bailey has such a stunning and artful way with words. “A fingernail of moon scratches at the bellies of clouds above.” It doesn’t get any better than that. Anna Bailey’s words are art.

I was in awe for the entirety of this book. It was just ethereal in all of its swampy, gothic glory. I have been craving something like Our Last Wild Days for too long. Something that filled my heart and soul with longing for a place I’ve never been, but have always wished to visit. And it really felt like I got to visit because of Anna Bailey’s words. They are one of the most talented writers I’ve encountered.

I was truly surprised to find out the author is not from the Louisiana bayou, because the atmosphere seemed so accurate and poignant, like it was coded into their DNA. Bailey managed to bring to life this three-dimensional character that is this half made up swampy town in Louisiana, riddled with trauma and flood lines. This was more than a book about a murder. It was a love letter to the suffering of the people the country neglected. There is scrappiness, resilience, seclusion, and distrust all throughout this cast of characters, and it brings this book into life in such a big way.

I wish I could sum up how I feel about this book. I can’t. I seem to only ramble. But know it was beautiful. It was tragic. It was heart wrenching. And I really was to press it tightly to my chest so that it leaves an indent and never leaves my mind.

This is described as "an atmospheric novel about a young woman who searches for answers after her estranged friend is found dead in the bayou of their rural Louisiana hometown". My first thoughts diving into this one was that the setting was a character all on it's own! The swamps, alligators, and the accents (if you listen on audio) all give the reader (or listener) the atmosphere of what the swamps of Louisiana feel like. There is also a bit of superstition that permiates this story.

We follow Loyal, the estranged friend of Cutter who is found dead in the swamps, Loyal has returned home to help with her mom's failing health, and work for the local paper. With her friend dead, she finds herself digging deep into Cutter's death among the locals who don't appreciate her interest.

Dark atmospheric setting for a murder mystery.

My thanks to Net Galley and Atria Books for an advanced copy of this e-book.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Simon & Schuster | Atria Books for gifting me the sophomore novel by Anna Bailey, after her wonderful debut, Where the Truth Lies. All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4.5 stars rounded up!

Loyal May has tried to put her childhood growing up in the swamps of Louisiana squarely in the past. But when her mom needs help, she grudgingly returns, hoping to also make peace after a fall out with her friend, Cutter. But when Cutter is found dead and presumed a suicide, Loyal is a journalist and is determined to find answers, even though it's too late to make restitutions with Cutter.

Wow - this is an incredibly atmospheric novel, set in the backwoods swamps of Louisiana, where huge alligators are everywhere and hunting them is a way of life. And so are drugs and violence. Cutter's family have had it tough and continue to be outcasts in Jacknife, but there are evil forces in all aspects of life here. These characters felt so real and raw, and I loved Loyal and Sasha, her coworker on the small town newspaper. I also felt for Loyal and her mom, as they both tried to navigate disease and a new relationship. There's a Gothic vibe throughout and I couldn't get enough of this book, and the fight for redemption. Anna Bailey has cemented her place as a must-read author for me!

Dark, atmospheric and highly enjoyable. Our Last Wild Days had me up reading for days! The descriptions in the book was great and really pulls you into the story. The Gothic atmosphere of the Louisiana setting was well done. The characters were flawed and felt like real people. It does have a slow burn, but packs a punch with the feels . The Labasques family aren’t your typical family in Louisiana, Bayou. Outcasts who survive off the land by hunting alligators and selling their meat, they’ve never fit in with the rest of the town. . But when Cutter Labasque is found face-down in the bayou, her supposed suicide barely raises an eyebrow… except from one person: Loyal May, her estranged childhood friend who once betrayed her.Loyal has returned to Jacknife, Louisiana after learning that her mother is having memory issues. She takes a new job working at the local paper. The first day on the job, she and a fellow journalist, discover a body in the swamp. The body is discovered to be Cutter, and Loyal is devastated. Loyal goes in search of answers, uncovering a web of deceit and corruption that implicates those in town.
.

Huge shout out to Netgalley and Atria Books for the early copy of Our Last Wild Days in exchange for my honest thoughts and opinions.

What a wild ride this book was! The story was fantastic and throughout, there was a heavy feeling of foreboding and danger every step of the way! The characters very likeable and written in a way that placed me right there alongside them as they journied through the confines of this mystery. Chapter after chapter the plot kept me on my toes enough that I was constantly trying to figure out the whodonit of all it all and that was a great thing as it made me yearn even more for the finale of the book. The setting of Louisiana was a character all in itself and I loved how certain aspects of this particular location was described and the unique dailogue between the characters also. There was a dry whit sprinkled throughout this one which lightened the mood a bit as well. This was a complete read from beginning to end and I'm looking forward to future reads from this author.

Just published!
"You and me and the devil makes three."
This one has it all - faith healers, white supremacy, missing girls, drugs, shady sheriffs, and gators of course.

4.5
Loyal has returned to Jacknife, Louisiana after learning that her mother is having memory issues and is behaving erratically. Her small town childhood was spent with her bestie - Marianne "Cutter" Labasque, until an event that changes her opinion of the family, and she writes a story for the town paper that burns all her bridges on her way out of town.

When, shortly after her return, Cutter's body is found washed up in the river, Loyal wants answers.

I was thoroughly absorbed by this one, as someone who loves a dark and gritty small town story. These aren't characters you easily fall in love with, but they do become people you can root for.

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

3.75 rounded up.

Good. Atmospheric. Dark. So much under the surface waiting to break through. (Not just the gators!) Flawed and deeply human/relatable characters. The plot felt so real and maybe that’s what added to the sadness/hopelessness in this mystery.

Advanced reader copy provided by Atria and NetGalley but all opinions are my own.

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I did enjoy this book and read it in one day. I only gave it a four star because I got confused in parts of the book and had to go back and reread parts. I would recommend this book.

This book delivered on everything I love about gothic mysteries. The atmosphere and setting were spot on and used so effectively in the storyline. While reading, I could feel the hot, humid, heavy air of the Louisiana Bayou. This coupled with the slow-burn suspense felt suffocating and I was totally obsessed with the story while reading.

The small town aspects were also done really well. Sometimes a story can get overwhelming with all the characters in the small town, but I felt the author did a great job with character development. No two characters felt similar to me and I was able to easily distinguish who was who. The intricacy of the relationships with the characters was also well done. I felt myself invested in each of their storylines. I also became very interested in gator hunting which was not something I thought I would ever say.

My only critique is the resolution of the mystery. The sheriff being guilty and his motive felt unoriginal and predictable to me. However, him getting killed by the albino alligator was PERFECT. Definitely interested in reading more from this author in the future!

When Loyal’s mom starts having memory issues she decides to return back to her hometown and she starts working at the local paper. When the body of her estranged childhood best friend is found in the water, Loyal and Sasha, a fellow reporter start investigating what happened. A book that was incredibly well written and made you feel like you were in the Louisiana swamp lands. The book was very atmospheric and the characters were beautifully tragic.

Thank you to Netgalley and to the publishers for allowing me to read this advanced copy.

Wow. What an insightful and fascinating read. I loved the incisive commentary, the imagery, the brutality, the prose. Everything was just so seamless and I was kept guessing all throughout the book as to what would happen next and who the culprit was. Not only the imagery but the description of the Southern landscape and life were so visceral and real. I lived for a while in the swampy areas of the south and it felt like I was right back there with the people, the culture, the scenery, the nature, and the oppressive heat of the air. I also felt that the commentary and depictions of adolescent friendships, on memory loss, on the perceptions of people in certain social groups of themselves and others, and the rise of certain present-day movements were so well captured. I would strongly recommend this and thought it was an excellent southern gothic mystery. It felt authentic and never veered into what I would consider camp or cliche.

This had an interesting premise and I loved the whole swamp atmosphere. It just lost steam toward the middle for me and I felt it a bit predictable. Unfortunately I find this will be a forgettable read.

If you loved Crawdads and want a book that will take you back to the bayou, this is it! Except it grittier, realer, and a lot less romantic. This was my first Anna Bailey and it won’t be my last! She has a real gift for setting the scene. You will feel like you are in the living, breathing swamp with all that lives in it. The characters are real and terribly flawed. The first half was a bit of a slow burn but then I couldn’t put it down thanks to all the twists. No spoilers here, but the author takes you for a ride trying to figure what is truly happening in the swamps of Jacknife Louisiana and the surrounding parishes.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review

I sadly had to DNF this one at 22% of the way through. The synopsis definitely intrigued me, as I love any book that is set in the bayou.
The writing was very atmospheric, which I liked, but there were multiple mentions of animal violence within the first 22%, and that's one of the only (if not THE only) triggers that I have when reading. None of the mentions of animal violence were detailed or graphic, but they were in there nonetheless. I almost stopped at the very first mention of animal violence, but since it was just a brief mention, I continued reading in the hopes that there would not be any further animal violence. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case.
I also didn't love the focus on the FMC's weight. There were comments about her thighs extending past the edges of the seat of the car, someone referred to her as a "lardass"...I just didn't care for that. I am assuming (and actually hoping) that it serves some larger purpose to the overall story that would've hopefully been revealed had I continued reading.
Lastly, some of the characters felt SO stereotypical, almost like caricatures of people that live in the deep South or in the bayou. I've spent a limited amount of time there, so I'm certainly not the expert on it; perhaps that's really how it is, but to me, some of the characters just felt really over-the-top.
At any rate, those things really turned me off to the point that I decided to DNF. I'm sure there are people that will love this book, but it did not resonate with me.
Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for the arc in exchange for my honest review. I'm sorry this one was a miss for me!