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A review by fulltimefiction
Her Last Holiday by C.L. Taylor
2.0
This was a hell of a story to believe.
Two years ago, Jenna went to a retreat in Malta organized by Tom Wade, the man behind SoulShrink. But she didn’t come home. She disappeared and the local authorities judged that she had committed suicide jumping from a cliff.
Two other accidents took place on that retreat leaving Tom in prison for manslaughter. However, he will be released soon.
Jenna’s mother is set on blaming Tom for her daughter’s death. She sends her daughter, Fran, to the retreat that Tom organized (or rather his wife, Kate).
The book is told from 3 perspectives, Jenna in the past, Fran in the present, and Kate’s.
The book was easy to read and I finished it rather quickly. I found the first half more interesting, we were learning more about Fran’s family, Tom, and what happened two years ago.
However, I couldn’t understand how the mother would force her daughter to go to a retreat that she believes killed Jenna. Isn’t she worried about her daughter’s life? While sister’s dynamics usually interest me, having a sister myself, I simply couldn’t like it here. There was an astonishing lack of communication and Fran was very selfish not trying to connect with Jenna growing up. I also found the story difficult to believe especially with that plot twist at the end. The thrill of mystery for me is the possibility that these events might happen in real life. These simply, wouldn’t.
Another thing I didn’t like is that the second half kind of got repetitive, especially with Kate. I didn’t find her perspective very useful to the story. But it’s not like I particularly liked any of the characters either. I was mostly indifferent about them.
This is my first book by C.L. Taylor and while this book didn’t impress me, it won’t be my last book of hers.
Thanks to NetGalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.
Two years ago, Jenna went to a retreat in Malta organized by Tom Wade, the man behind SoulShrink. But she didn’t come home. She disappeared and the local authorities judged that she had committed suicide jumping from a cliff.
Two other accidents took place on that retreat leaving Tom in prison for manslaughter. However, he will be released soon.
Jenna’s mother is set on blaming Tom for her daughter’s death. She sends her daughter, Fran, to the retreat that Tom organized (or rather his wife, Kate).
The book is told from 3 perspectives, Jenna in the past, Fran in the present, and Kate’s.
The book was easy to read and I finished it rather quickly. I found the first half more interesting, we were learning more about Fran’s family, Tom, and what happened two years ago.
However, I couldn’t understand how the mother would force her daughter to go to a retreat that she believes killed Jenna. Isn’t she worried about her daughter’s life? While sister’s dynamics usually interest me, having a sister myself, I simply couldn’t like it here. There was an astonishing lack of communication and Fran was very selfish not trying to connect with Jenna growing up. I also found the story difficult to believe especially with that plot twist at the end. The thrill of mystery for me is the possibility that these events might happen in real life. These simply, wouldn’t.
Another thing I didn’t like is that the second half kind of got repetitive, especially with Kate. I didn’t find her perspective very useful to the story. But it’s not like I particularly liked any of the characters either. I was mostly indifferent about them.
This is my first book by C.L. Taylor and while this book didn’t impress me, it won’t be my last book of hers.
Thanks to NetGalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.