3.5 stars
A suspenseful murder mystery centered around Frida and Gabriel (brother & sister) who escaped a cult as young adults. After spending several years apart after Gabriel was accused of murdering his wife, they come together at a resort to reconnect. Bonder by childhood trauma of growing up in a cult, Frida questions how much she truly knows her brother when a woman is found murdered at the resort.
This was a bit slow for me. I didn’t find many of the twist very shocking. I was hoping to enjoy this more than The Quiet Tennant but I didn’t find that to be the case. Thank you NetGalley & Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for this ARC.

Thanks to Net Galley and Pantheon for an early ARC of this novel from Clemence Michallon. This is my second read from this author and I enjoyed it even more than the first.

Two siblings who were raised in a cult in the Utah desert find themselves - now grown adults - at the center of a murder at a luxury hotel. The dual timelines and cliffhanger chapter endings were so well done that I couldn’t wait to see what happened next. I did figure out the twist, but only about 10 pages before the book revealed it so I’d consider that a good surprise still. I really loved how this book played on the aspect that we are all flawed humans, and none of us are purely “good” or “bad.”

This is a great summer thriller to read poolside on vacation - though you won’t look at your fellow travelers the same way after!

“Our Last Resort” by Clémence Michallon is about two “siblings”, Gabriel and Frida, who escaped from a cult as teenagers and have spent the rest of their lives trying to deal with what happened to them there. What they did there. The story jumps back and forth between present day when Gabriel and Frida are on vacation at a resort together, and their time growing up as a cult and the years right after they left. While they’re at the resort a woman is killed. And it’s not the first time a woman in Gabriel’s orbit was killed. But did he do it? Did Frida? Did someone else?

The way the story is written is very strange and hazy. It has an almost dreamlike quality to it. Nothing feels totally real. I’m not sure if that was intentional, done to describe the surreal turns that their lives have taken over the years, or if perhaps it’s the writer’s style because she is French? I don’t know, but it didn’t work for me. Because of the writing style I found it hard to connect with the characters or picture any of the settings.

While I did not enjoy this book, fans of more literary mysteries might enjoy it.

This book had me hooked from the start. While I’m not always the biggest fan of cult themes, this one was done really well. Very believable and just the right amount of creepy atmosphere to leave you feeling slightly unsettled. I definitely found myself completely invested in the unraveling of secrets and the slow-burn suspense.

The only thing holding me back from giving 5 stars was that after such a compelling buildup, I was hoping for something with more punch or at least one last jolt of surprise. The ending kind of just quietly melted away. Still, the journey there was absolutely worth it. If you enjoy character-drive thrillers, this one is certainly worth adding to the list.

I was very excited for this one. I loved this author’s previous book The Quiet Tenant, so I had high hopes for this one, but unfortunately it didn’t quite hit the same mark for me. I went in expecting a thriller but I definitely felt this was more of a mystery—which was fine, just not what I anticipated. I did enjoy the dual timelines, and while the story started off a bit slow, it did eventually pick up. The ending was intense, and the twist was definitely surprising!!

This was an enjoyable enough read, but nowhere close to the authors debut. This felt like more a standard mystery thriller and I feel like I will sadly be forgetting a lot of the plot points.

OUR LAST RESORT is a gripping psychological thriller. I thought Frida and Gabriel were both very interesting characters and learning about the cult they were in gave me a good insight into their behaviors. The reveal of their buried secrets was quite surprising and I found the flow between the past and present timelines to be entertaining and easy to follow. I definitely recommend checking this book out!

Many thanks for my gifted copy.
This review will be shared to my Instagram account @coffee.break.book.reviews closer to pub date.

This was my first time reading a book by Clémence Michallon. The premise definitely intrigued me, especially after hearing so much praise for The Quiet Tenant (which I haven’t read yet). But honestly, I’m not sure how I feel.

There were things I enjoyed — the writing, the dual timeline, and the bond between Frida and Gabriel, which had a nice found-family element.

But I was expecting more. I wanted to read a thriller, after all. It didn’t really feel like that to me. I kept waiting for a big twist or something that would surprise me, but it never came. The story ended up feeling pretty predictable.

Overall, it was an okay read — not my favourite.

Thank you NetGalley and Knopf for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. <3

I very much enjoyed The Quiet Tenant, so naturally I jumped at the chance to request an ARC of Clémence Michallon's newest novel Our Last Resort. Once again, Clémence delivers the perfect thriller, complete with a creepy cult backstory, family secrets, exotic settings, and a few unexpected twists. I was hooked from the very beginning and absolutely flew through Our Last Resort. A great psychological thriller to kick off the summer!

First of all thank you so much to NetGalley and Elliott & Thompson for this eARC.

TRIGGER WARNING: Sexual Assualt/Rape-- please read with care.

In theory this has all of the makings of what I would LOVE as a mystery/suspense novel. Our main characters escaping a cult, being interviewed for a documentary, murder along the way... sign me up! The cult storyline is incredibly interesting. Right from the beginning we are presented with a situation between our cult leader and a child. It is brtual, gasp-worthy even. But then we enter what is, in my opinion, the slow, slow burn of a read, The book maintains a simmer throughout, we never really come to a boil. So, if you are looking for twists, turns, jaw dropping moments, this might not give you what you are looking for.
We follow two timelines from only one of the main characters point of view. This character is obviously the stronger of our two "protagonists". Frida supports her "brother" Gabriel throughout the entire story. We vacilate between having affection for her as a main character to being incredibly frustrated with her decisions. Their bond is unbreakable until the very end.

This was my first book by this author. I did not read The Quiet Tenant. I know that this book has been raved about on Goodreads and Bookstagram. The content of this book is interesting. But the pacing was just not for me. I was not on pins and needles waiting to get back to the read. There were some interesting components, but overall, I just don't think that this was the right book for me.

** I will post my final review on Goodreads after the publication date.**

I was lured in after LOVE LOVE LOVING The Quiet Tenant, this had a completely different vibe and the writing didn't work for me. I wanted to love it but unfortunately this one fell flat for me

I read about 20% and was just kind of bored, I didn't feel like the stakes were high enough and I wasn't particularly invested in this one. The Quiet Tenant was just okay for me, I liked it but was hoping this one would be even better, but it just felt slow to me.

This was a very good crime novel—though I wouldn’t quite call it a thriller. It’s not a high-speed roller coaster ride, but more like peeling back the layers of an onion. Gabriel and Frida’s story is rich, complex, and emotionally raw. What really stood out to me was the author’s subtle writing style. Instead of relying on twists and dramatic turns, the story unfolds naturally, guided by the depth of human emotion and the complexity of our nature.

I found myself deeply connected to the characters, even when they made questionable choices. The way the author breathes life into them—flaws and all—makes it impossible not to stand by them. There’s something haunting and beautiful in the honesty of it all, and I absolutely loved that.

I’m incredibly grateful to Elliott & Thompson and NetGalley for allowing me to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Nah I'm very disappointed with this book so I dnf it at 63%. First of all I thought it would be a thriller, but I will say that it's more a murder mystery... It took a while to come into the book and when I did I thought it was very slow... Nothing exciting happened at all. I kept reading with a lot of patience but unfortunately I couldn't get through this book.... To boring and to disappointing for me...

I was a big fan of the authors debut, The quiet tenant. That captivated me, I loved the multiple POVs and the writing style. So going into this book I was excited to see what the author was going to do next.

For me, this just didn’t hit the right way. The past vs present timeline was at times confusing and almost like I was reading two different stories. Yes, the cult felt intriguing and interesting to begin with, but I don’t think it was explored enough and therefore, didn’t have the impact I thought it would on the present timeline.

The characters also just weren’t at all likeable for me. Again, the past timeline does help you to understand them and their weird behaviour at times. However, I don’t think it really gave us much more than that.

The overall, murder mystery was okay but again it wasn’t anything mind-blowing and I honestly at points felt quite bored reading this.
I think some people will love this, but it wasn’t for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for a review.

What a wild ride! This thriller had me itching to keep reading. The present day story was fine but the cult flashbacks and all the time leading up to current day really did it for me. While some of it wasn’t hard to guess what was going to happen, it didn’t detract from me wanting to actually find out the truth. I didn’t love The Quiet Tenant but am so glad I gave this a shot! Definitely recommend

Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and the publisher Elliott & Thompson for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

The story revolves around Gabriel and Frida, who, after growing up in a cult, share a childhood trauma that unites them like siblings. Hoping for a relaxing getaway at a desert resort, they unexpectedly find themselves embroiled in a murder investigation.

As a mystery lover, I thoroughly enjoyed this story, particularly the dual timeline that alternates between their time at the resort and their shared past escaping the cult. The narrative captivated me, compelling me to keep reading. Despite a predictable ending, it offered a powerful emotional insight into their complex relationship.

This book fell so flat for me. After loving The Tenant so much I had high hopes. This book is a shockingly quick read but the plot is slow and boring and "twist" had zero shock value.

DNF at 50 pages. Unfortunately Our Last Resort did not work for me. After enjoying this author’s previous work a lot, I was looking forward to reading Our Last Resort. I found it really quite boring and slow. Additionally, I was expecting a thriller, and this turned out to be more of a mystery. I just found myself dragging through the pages, forcing myself to read without enjoying it. Overall, after how exciting and fast paced The Quiet Tenant was, Our Last Resort really let me down.

Thank you to Netgalley and Elliot & Thompson Publishing for the ARC of this book.

Frida and Gabriel grew up as siblings in a cult they eventually escaped from. They’ve been tightly bonded and fiercely loyal ever since, although they’ve grown apart in recent years. When they meet up at the Ara Hotel in Escalante, Utah, they’re hoping to reconnect and renew their relationship. But the desert paradise turns into a nightmare when the wife of a powerful media magnate is found dead. Suspicion quickly falls on Gabriel… because this isn’t the first unusual death that’s happened close to him.

After loving the author’s masterful debut “The Quiet Tenant”, this was a highly anticipated read for me. This book is beautifully written, with a vibe that feels almost literary but still very accessible. If you approach this book as a thriller, you may be disappointed, but if you come at it knowing it’s a slow burn mystery with a lot of backstory about trauma bonded “siblings”, I think it’s more likely to work for you. From that standpoint, I think a lot of readers are going to love this book.

Unfortunately, I am not one of those readers. The dual timelines are well crafted, but neither of them felt fully satisfying to me. The cult timeline doesn’t feel original or delve far enough into the cult’s behaviors and manipulations. The cult leader is very David Koresh coded and the narrative even references Waco specifically. The present timeline at the Ara Hotel isn’t suspenseful enough to be compelling, given that there aren’t many characters and therefore very few potential murder suspects.

Thank you to NetGalley and Elliott & Thompson for providing me an advance copy of this book.