The Last Party by Clare MacKintosh

The Last Party by Clare Mackintosh
Published by Sphere on August 4, 2022
ISBN: 9780751577129
Genres: Fiction, General, Thrillers, Suspense, Domestic, Crime, Mystery & Detective, Police Procedural, Women Sleuths, Small Town & Rural, Psychological
Pages: 447
Format: Paperback
Source: Purchased Book
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THE TWISTY NEW THRILLER AND TOP 5 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERIN A VILLAGE WITH THIS MANY SECRETS, A MURDER IS JUST THE BEGINNING . . .
On New Year's Eve, Rhys Lloyd has a house full of guests.
He's celebrating the success of his lakeside holiday homes, and has generously invited the village to drink champagne with their wealthy new neighbours.
By midnight, Rhys will be floating dead in the freezing waters of the lake.
On New Year's Day, DC Ffion Morgan has a village full of suspects.
She grew up in the tiny community, so the murder suspects are her neighbours, friends and family - and Ffion has her own secrets to protect.
With a lie uncovered at every turn, soon the question isn't who wanted Rhys dead . . . but who finally killed him.
A GAME OF LIES, THE NEXT DC FFION MORGAN THRILLER, IS AVAILABLE TO ORDER NOW!
'Superb, devilishly clever, with echoes of Agatha Christie' PATRICIA CORNWELL
'Wickedly enjoyable' THE TIMES
'Mackintosh is just getting better and better with every book' PETER JAMES
'Leo and Ffion make a storming debut in this twisty tale' BELINDA BAUER
'A dark delight of a murder mystery!' JANICE HALLETT
'Warm, atmospheric, ingenious - this is the new crime series you need in your life' WILL DEAN
'Insanely gripping' ERIN KELLY
'Mackintosh is a genius' FIONA CUMMINS
'An absolute triumph' CLAIRE DOUGLAS
'Brilliant, so atmospheric' RUTH WARE
'Whipsmart' LINWOOD BARCLAY
'DC Ffion Morgan is complicated, funny and very sweary' LOUISE CANDLISH
'Twists that blindside you all the way' MARI HANNAH
'Every chapter ends on a cliff hanger' GOOD HOUSEKEEPING

The Last Party is a gripping, eloquently crafted tale seeped in dark secrets. Short chapters and lethally potent writing had me aching for each chapter. A fine blend of police procedural and compulsive thriller.

The Last Party ticked all those thriller/crime boxes. It’s so unapologetically Welsh which I loved. This is the first Clare Mackintosh book I’ve read and let me tell you, it won’t be the last. A party to celebrate the new year and the opening of The Shore – a luxurious high-end resort next to the mountains. It’s out of the local’s price range, but owner, Rhys Lloyd throws a party to end all parties – literally, it will be the last one he ever attends.

DC Ffion Morgan likes to keep things simple. Her marriage has recently broken down after disagreements about having children together. it’s not something she ever envisions. She’s back living at her mums with her younger sister, Seren. It’s not meant to be a long-term decision but, apparent from needing to answer to her mum its relatively uncomplicated. The opening sees her trying to extricate herself from a one-night stand, who turns out to be her colleague when she’s seconded to Cheshire police.

DC Leo Brady is also going through the mill. He’s separated from his wife, Allie. She’s pulling all the strings – refuses to let Leo see his son, Harris, due to something he truly believes in – justice. He made a judgement call whilst Harris was in his car and now Allie is making all the decisions – holding the threat of reporting him to social services if he even dares fight her on her decision to move herself and Harris to Australia with her new partner. He feels desolate but with the wise words from Ffion, he realises that he’s been allowing too many people to just walk all over him. Whether that’s Allie or his superior, DI Crouch, he knows he needs to find his balls, stat.

The Last Party has a lot of supporting characters, and usually this format would immediately put me off, but I found it worked here. Each character brough a new layer to uncover, it strengthened the protagonist’s arc’s and I just found myself having a jolly good time reading. The format really gave me Broadchurch or Johnathan Creek (maybe only I remember that one.) It’s one of those crime stories that really does earn the title – keeps you guessing until the very end.

Rhys Lloyd is a nationally known singer from North Wales. He’s won many accolades during his career, and he wants to pay homage to his heritage, so he acquires the land on which to build The Shore – something that earns him the ire of the locals, it’s not something they want blighting the landscape. So, when Rhys Lloyd turns up dead in the loch, many people fall into the category of suspect – even Ffion Morgan, because she’s keeping a secret, but for who and why?

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