Beth Lathrop is found dead - murdered. Who by? That’s it. Book is in three parts. Two parts too long = approximately 300 pages where I was bored out of my skull. Soooooo much unnecessary detail and I think when dead Beth joined in the narrative that finished me off. The ending was good (actually it wasn’t) and I raised a resounding cheer. I know others loved it so maybe today I’m The Grinch.

This book made me healthy, rejuvenated, relaxed, rested, energized because it helped me to fight with my sleep deprivation and gave me an amazing sleep! I was bored to death. Even I started to write my will and reviewed my bucket list when I’m reading it. The beginning was promising: Beth and Kate, two sisters suffered from a big tragedy that ended with their parents’ death and a valuable paintings’ stealing. A now Beth is dead and the very same painting’s stolen. Then too many characters starte...

Great premise and potential, but seriously overwritten, bogged down with redundant details and inconsistent characterizations. The pacing was off, the plot twist inconsistent and an editor's pen needed to do some serious work here. Disappointing.

Murder, Family secrets, infidelity, betrayal, friendship, and a tragic past. This was a who done it with a whole Lot of suspects. What I liked best about this story was the relationship between the sisters and how their past tragedy had ties to the current murder. The bulk of the story is told from the perspective of Kate and while I did like her she wasn’t easy to get to know. This was a story that kept me guessing... Red herrings, miss directions, loads of secrets, and plenty of suspects. The

Favorite Quotes:He always thought of his first encounter with a homicide victim as two people meeting. An encounter every bit as important in death as it would have been in life, as revelatory as a conversation— in some ways more so. She had the feeling she might fall off the world. Everything felt dangerous; she wasn’t sure her skin could hold her bones and blood and heart inside.She was the crème brûlée of mothers: hard shell on the outside, total mush on the inside.Every few weeks the morgue

Luanne Rice is a master storyteller and that truly shines in her latest novel, Last Day, the story of four friends, two deaths and the secrets kept hidden to the end.Sisters Kate and Beth had survived a tragic ordeal in their teen years but, like so many, that tragedy pushed them apart rather than pulling them together. Kate is closed off from all emotion and Beth has infused her life with love, giving to the community, loving her daughter and caring for her friends. When Beth is murdered, Kate

A woman has been found dead, secrets are revealed, crime is solved. There is very little action in this story, and LOTS of LOTS of reminiscing for the sake of back story, and also feelings. I found it quite tedious to get through. The characters are so shallow that the family drama was just a bunch of annoying whining. Rice completely lost me when she went on and on about the greatness of motherhood. Newsflash: childfree lives are very fulfilling! Ironically, the mom characters in this story are...

Tripe, even for a free Amazon First book. Plot is unforgivably slow, characters are unlikable, police investigation is completely unbelievable, and the ending is outrageous and unsupported. I could go on, but there is simply nothing redeemable about the book. I gave it one star because it was an utter waste of my time, plus it was personally offensive on several levels. Its greatest offense is one of my pet peeves: a stalking relationship that is portrayed as heroic or even romantic. A police of...

This was a brilliant book so twisty it kept me guessing who did what and to whom all the way to the end. I was racing through it so I could find out who did the murder I guessed two or three times but got it completely wrong.

When Beth and her sister Kate were young they experienced a horror event that shaped their lives and took their mother from them. At the same time a painting called Moonlight was taken. The detective on that case was Conor Reid. Since then he has kept an eye on the two women. Beth went into the art world, running a gallery and raising a daughter with her husband Pete. Kate retreated into herself. Her one great solace was flying. As a pilot she was never happier than in the air. When he same pain...

I was really hoping for more from this book. I enjoyed the haunting scene that was described at the beginning of this book which I read using the Look Inside feature and that’s why I chose this book but it’s just downhill from there. I still held out hope for at least an ok procedural but this book really falls apart towards the end, and I saw where it was going so I don’t say that because I was at all surprised. Unfortunately the author chose to have this story play out with multiple POVs which...

Plenty of mystery and suspense with a touch of supernatural in this fast paced mystery novel of what happened on Beth's last day before she was brutally murdered. Beth and her unborn child seemed to be loved by everyone in this small community... but obviously someone had a reason to kill her. It is up to her big sister, Kate to find out who and why... and hopefully not get in the path of the murderer at the same time.I like that the book is circular in that in relates to past events. Themes of

An expertly crafted story about four friends, two deaths, and the secrets that have anchored them for so long. This was my first Luann Rice novel and I really enjoyed it!Last Day opened in a very powerful way! It is Beth Lathrop’s last day. Her friends, family, and loved ones wake up expecting her to be alive. Instead, Beth Lathrop, six months pregnant and in her own home, has been murdered in her own bedroom. When her sister Kate finds her, Beth has been dead for several days.This alone is quit...

Sorry to be a downer on this one but I couldn't wait for it to end. The thing with mysteries is they follow a formula. You KNOW the main person of interest isn't guilty--esp if they are a person of interest in chapter 1 or 2 or 4 or 7 or 8 etc... It felt like a waste of time going through all the motions and sidebars when you knew it wasn't going to be any of those people, b/c (not a spoiler alert if you've ever read a single mystery book before) you know it's going to be someone you never expec...

I enjoyed this women’s fiction, family drama, mystery thriller read. This book surprised me with a story full of twists, that had me in a delightfully surprising ending. I loved how Rice was able to write amazingly relatable characters in situations and settings that I enjoyed reading about. Rice wrote with such eloquence that grasped my attention from the beginning. This was my first Luanne Rice book and I will be picking up more books from her in the future.

I read this book because my friend always said how much she loved Luann Rice and, as an Amazon First Read, this was a good opportunity to try her work. I am ambivalent about the novel. The location was interesting and well described and the background of the sisters' tragedy was chilling, but the characters didn't seem authentic. Using the Compass Rose device to define the four friends seemed to lock the author into a framework of personalities. Even the police officer investigating Beth's murde...

Luann Rice does what she does best- write about families, sisters, secrets, relationships, with a little mystery thrown in. Personally, I loved reading about locations familiar to me and the nod to a murder that took place here years ago. Definitely recommend.

This is the first book by Luanne Rice I have the pleasure reading. It won’t be the last. Her writing is gorgeous, and she creates intricate scenarios that lead the readers to believe that they know what will happen next and it does not always go that way. This keeps you reading and wanting to know where the story will go. 𝗟𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗗𝗮𝘆 is the story of two sisters, one painting, and a repeating event. Kate is devastated when she discovers her sister Beth’s murdered body. A flow of memories assails her...

I gave up on Luanne Rice a long time ago; the novels she released in the 1980s and 1990s with interesting, nuanced characters gradually evolved in the 2000's into shmaltzy melodramas with cardboard heroines and hokey dialogue. But this was a cheap Amazon "First Reads" option so I took a chance again, only to remain woefully unimpressed. There was way too much info-dumping and too many unnecessary details, which made getting through the book a chore. The detective investigating the murder seems t...

I don't know what happened here, *spoiler alert*. Kindle First selection for January and was hooked from the beginning. Have to admit it was slow at times, but you could never truly nail in on the "who dunnit". I did think of the premise of the possibility of the actual killer but never saw the motive or buildup. Then, boom here we are at the end and we are suppose to believe this? There's no depth as to what motive Scotty had here. I was expecting more to it then what was played out. The last 2...