After kissing her husband Owen good-bye, Hannah comes home later in the day only to have a young girl drop off a note from him saying, "Protect her".
"Her" is Owen's 16-year-old daughter Bailey.
Hannah and her step-daughter Bailey have no idea why Owen disappeared but they slowly start to unravel the puzzle. Unfortunately, they find out much more than they anticipated or were ready for, as it turns out Owen wasn't exactly the man they thought he was.
My Thoughts
I started reading this book thinking it was a thriller. If that's what you're after then you're going to be disappointed. There were no action-packed scenes and heart thumping moments of will she or won't she?
Instead, it's more of a slow burn mystery wrapped up in some family drama with a bit of suspense thrown in.
But I really liked it!
It was told from the wife's viewpoint and switches back and forth from present to the near past. I enjoy reading flashbacks because it feels like you get a much better perspective of the situation as well as interesting insights into the characters.
There was a lot of friction between Bailey and Hannah (as you can imagine with a 16-year-old and a new step mother) but Hannah always kept her cool and tried so hard to do right by Bailey. I suppose some readers might think Hannah's constant patience was unrealistic, but I found it lovely and refreshing. And without giving too much away, it's satisfying to see the pair slowly grow closer as they try to understand Owen's disappearance.
I thought this book was intriguing and thoughtfully written. While I enjoyed the mystery the best part for me was the changing relationship between Bailey and Hannah.
There was a nice wrap-up at the end with a very heart-warming last line.
I gave The Last Thing He Told Me 4 stars on Goodreads.
This is the first book by Laura Dave I've read, but I'll definitely be looking for more.
Happy Reading!
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