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A review by imogentointon
The Last Anniversary by Liane Moriarty
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The Last Anniversary is based on Scribbly Gum Island in Australia. Sophie Honeywell moves into her ex-boyfriend Aunt Connies house who passed away and left Sophie her house on the island. Sisters Rose and Connie Doughty found an abandoned baby in the only other house on the island which is where the Munro Baby Mystery started, bringing them fame and fortune. Everyone is trying to solve the mystery, however the truth unravels on the night of the 75th anniversary of the Munro mystery along with lots of other secrets.
The story of the Munro baby mystery was intriguing and kept me guessing throughout the book what might of happened to the parents of the baby and why the baby was left to be found. The last 100 pages of the book revealed the truth of what happened all those years ago. I can’t tell if I was shocked by the outcome or slightly disappointed as you’re led to believe a lie for so long.
There is a lot of family members throughout the story, each character shows there own perspectives on the Munro mystery, half of them know the truth and half of them don’t. It was really intriguing to see the characters going through their own personal issues such as postnatal depression, suicidal thoughts, weight shame, not feeling loved, rape, relationships and the fear of menopause.
The book has great character development, I really felt for Grace and what she was going through. Veronica was really interesting to me also, she’s painted as this not very nice person who slowly reveals why she is the way she is.
Overall, I did enjoy reading this book however the first half of the book felt really slow paced and not a lot happened. It took Sophie a while to move into aunt Connies house but once she did, the plot started to get more interesting. The Munro mystery got dragged out for too long, some parts where a bit boring and long winded. However, once I reached the reveal of the mystery, I was actually hooked and really enjoyed the ending, I just wish the build up could of been more exciting.
The story of the Munro baby mystery was intriguing and kept me guessing throughout the book what might of happened to the parents of the baby and why the baby was left to be found. The last 100 pages of the book revealed the truth of what happened all those years ago. I can’t tell if I was shocked by the outcome or slightly disappointed as you’re led to believe a lie for so long.
There is a lot of family members throughout the story, each character shows there own perspectives on the Munro mystery, half of them know the truth and half of them don’t. It was really intriguing to see the characters going through their own personal issues such as postnatal depression, suicidal thoughts, weight shame, not feeling loved, rape, relationships and the fear of menopause.
The book has great character development, I really felt for Grace and what she was going through. Veronica was really interesting to me also, she’s painted as this not very nice person who slowly reveals why she is the way she is.
Overall, I did enjoy reading this book however the first half of the book felt really slow paced and not a lot happened. It took Sophie a while to move into aunt Connies house but once she did, the plot started to get more interesting. The Munro mystery got dragged out for too long, some parts where a bit boring and long winded. However, once I reached the reveal of the mystery, I was actually hooked and really enjoyed the ending, I just wish the build up could of been more exciting.