The Last Girl to Die: the absolutely jaw-dropping new Scottish crime thriller with an unmissable, shocking twist
£0.90
A TIMES CRIME CLUB ⭐STAR PICK⭐ and AMAZON and KINDLE BESTSELLER!
‘Fantastic. Excellent. Incredible. I could not put this one down for the life of me.’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Reader Review
‘A stunner! Without a doubt, one of the best crime novels of the year!’ – No.1 international bestseller Jeffery Deaver
In search of a new life, seventeen-year-old Adriana Clark’s family moves to the ancient, ocean-battered Isle of Mull, far off the coast of Scotland. Then she goes missing. Faced with hostile locals and indifferent police, her desperate parents turn to private investigator Sadie Levesque.
Sadie is the best at what she does. But when she finds Adriana’s body in a cliffside cave, a seaweed crown carefully arranged on her head, she knows she’s dealing with something she’s never encountered before.
The deeper she digs into the island’s secrets, the closer danger creeps – and the more urgent her quest to find the killer grows. Because what if Adriana is not the last girl to die?
Beautifully haunting with twists and turns you’ll never see coming, The Last Girl to Die is your next obsession waiting to happen. Perfect for fans of Stuart MacBride and L.J. Ross.
‘Oh my goodness, I absolutely and totally loved this book. Outstanding and compelling, it gave me whiplash from all the twists and turns.’ – million-copy bestseller Angela Marsons
‘An adroit and highly atmospheric mystery.’ – Times Crime Club
‘Fields has a knack of keeping you gripped for hours.’ – The Sun
‘Gloriously dark and twisty.’ – Fabulous
Readers absolutely LOVE The Last Girl to Die!
‘Fantastic. Excellent. Incredible. I could not put this one down for the life of me.’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
‘What rollercoaster ride this was. I love it when a book shocks me the way this did.’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
‘Breathtaking. Twists and turns galore. I couldn’t put it down, I loved it.’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
‘A tense, twisty, phenomenal read!’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
‘Haunting. Breathtaking shocks, unforeseen twists, and an emotionally shattering conclusion.’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
‘Twisty, unpredictable and kept me guessing the whole time.’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
‘Breathtakingly brilliant… The ending left me stunned.’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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Additional information
| Publisher | Avon (1 Sept. 2022) |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| File size | 2591 KB |
| Text-to-Speech | Enabled |
| Screen Reader | Supported |
| Enhanced typesetting | Enabled |
| X-Ray | Not Enabled |
| Word Wise | Enabled |
| Sticky notes | On Kindle Scribe |
| Print length | 376 pages |
by I review
Thoughtful who done it with a touch of feminist witchy empowerment (and by Goddesses, Scotland could be doing with that right now , my home country needs all the help it can get “Women Won’t Wheesh”). Yes I will look out for this author again !
by Heidibear
Investigator Sadie a specialist in missing teenagers comes to Mull when an American families daughter is missing and the local police seem slow to take it seriously. Well so much unfolds and Sadie definitely makes so many mistakes but she’s still likeable and the storyline keeps unfolding enough to keep you reading. Just to let readers know it is very descriptive in parts but it is a good read and a very different ending to most thrillers.
by barbara thomas
\Good book,enjoyed it
by Lyn
Loved this book, well written, great characters. I was invested in the lead character which was why I didn’t enjoy the final chapter – I’m afraid I had to rewind and make up a different ending for myself – I know we have to have twists and turns and she wanted to bring in folklore and myths but this will stop me reading more by this author.
by Spicewalker
I love a dark, twisty, mystery laden thriller and, with The Last Girl To Die, Helen Fields has delivered just that. Brooding and atmospheric, there is a real sense of danger and almost resignation that underpins the narrative from the very beginning right through to the final, almost mystical, haunting, conclusion.
This is not your ordinary murder mystery and it’s all the better for it. Set on the Scottish island of Mull, the story taps into myth and legend and long held belief of the history of the island which is set to lead to some absolutely devastating consequences. Drawn to the island to investigate the disappearance of an American teenager, Sadie Levesque is a Private Investigator used to seeing the worst and best of people, but who is perhaps still unprepared for what she is about to find on the island. Suspicion and animosity – and that’s just from the local police force. What the islanders will make of her intervention in their business … well that is somewhat of a mixed bag too.
I love that this story blends all the hallmarks of your classic PI investigation with something a little more mystical and ethereal. On the face of it we have a missing person investigation that takes a dark and possibly predictable turn. Delving back into the history of the island, Sadie learns that this case may not be so unique, and that there are many things about Mull that have the capacity to surprise and upend any firm beliefs she may have about the many characters she meets. It is one of those stories where it is hard to know who to trust, where conspiracy seems to be around every corner, and even the clients do not appear to be entirely honest. It gets those spider senses tingling and I found myself second guessing the motives of nearly everyone that Sadie met, even, and maybe especially, the police. A conspiracy of silence is perhaps the best way to put it, but as to what people were hiding and why it was very hard to gauge. The author kept motives hidden right until the critical point, leading us as readers down blind alleys, or into darkened dead ended caves as would serve the setting better.
Sadie was a character I warmed to quickly even though she was occasionally aloof, but seeing and hearing the story through her eyes gave us a clear feeling of how it was to be an outsider in such a close knit community. There was one other narrator in the book, an unexpected one at that, but one who held a very unique perspective on the lives, history and behaviour of the inhabitants of Mull. It is a somewhat unique point of view, but it really did fit the style of the story and helped to enhance the atmospheric and sometimes claustrophobic tone.
The setting of Mull was absolutely perfect, although I’’m sure the island and it’s inhabitants are far more welcoming than may have appeared on these pages. Artistic licence in full flow here. But that whole sense of the isolation, of being cut off from the mainland and being beholden to the tides and the weather if ever in need of real help, that whole closeted community vibe and the natural suspicion of outsiders, is something that could only have worked on an island. And the importance of myths and legends in forming the story are really helped by this rugged and sometimes unforgiving landscape.
The book is, beneath everything, a celebration of the strength of spirit of the women of the island, and the overwhelming sense of masculinity and misogyny that still prevails in many communities. That image of the menfolk storming with pitchforks to keep their women safe popped into my head so many times and yet, ironically, it is more often than not, the menfolk that women need to fear. Whether that turns out to be the case in this story … well you’ll have to read to find out. Nothing is ever quite that straight forward.
Cleverly plotted and haunting, this is the kind of story that really captures the imagination, a mix of history, modernity and maybe even mysticism in one neat package.
by Angelbear
From the first page this book will grip you and not let go until the very last page. The characters are well thought out and the storyline was addictive. The ending was a total shock but I loved it! Highly recommended!
by lily mandolin
Were I living on Mull rather than just having visited it, I would not br happy about this book. The author professes to love the island and does state clearly that no islander resembles the locals. All very well, but given the overall portrayal of those living there, maybe it would have been better to use a fictional island setting. I felt for the local police officers especially, along with the menfolk depicted in a certain way, and using Mull’s folk tales as the base for the story is not, to my mind, a valid enough reason for using a real place for a gruesome tale such as this when those living there are not shown in a good light. Yes, I was interested in the actual story and liked the main character despite her occasional waywardness which so often signalled obvious repercussions. I cannot speak of the ending as I never disclose them, suffice to say I was truly caught unawares – and disagreed with it! I see that other reviewers felt similarly. That said, a twist such as this one is always an author’s prerogative and I respect that, but even so…
I cannot give this chiller-thriller too high a rating because of all of the above although is it very well written. I saw the book on sale in Tobermory after I’d read it while still on the mainland and wondered what the islanders make of it. I didn’t ask the bookseller as I didn’t want to be overheard and perhaps ruin his sales. But I would love to know the reaction of locals, even the strong women referenced amongst the cast of mostly dreadful characters. Maybe my perception is all wrong. In a way, I hope so as Mull is a beautiful place with lovely locals.
Would I read this author again? Oh yes! If only to find out if she specialises in unexpected endings!