Have read this authors books before, and knew this would be another page turner. A great story, full of intriguing characters. Would thoroughly recommend..

I really enjoyed this book! I liked how it was told from different people’s perspectives and how it jumped back and forth between past and present. The storyline kept me engaged and guessing all the way to the end of the book. I love how the characters interacted and linked together too, great book!

C. L. Taylor always delivers and this is no exception. Fran sets out to discover what happened to her sister who disappeared, presumed dead, on a retreat 3 years ago. It’s a fast paced read with a couple of twists you won’t see coming. For me, this is C. L. Taylor’s best to date.

It was my first book by C.L.Taylor, but what enjoyable read it was!
The story is told from several POVs, which I personally like very much in books of this genre: 1) Fran - 51 years old woman, who is haunted by the mysterious disappearance / suicide of her sister Jenna nearly 3 yeaes ago during; 2) Kate - wife and assistant of Tom, who is the shrink and is trying to recover after the terrible story that happened at Malta during retreat session, organized by them, which ruined their lives; 3) Jenna - Fran's sister, who participated in the retreat in Malta and where something strange started to happen.
The plot twists in the book were either wow and in some moments unexpected or predictable, but still quite good and entwined with whole plot.
I also cannot omit how vivid and detailed the descriptions in the book are! And some parts were honestly creepy.
In general the book is very interesting and can be read in just one evening! Now I will definitely check other books by the author.
I would like to thank NetGalley, Avon Books and C. L. Taylor for providing me with the e-copy in exchange with my honest opinion.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon Books for the advanced copy of C.L Taylor's "Her Last Holiday".

Her last holiday follows Fran on her quest to find out what has happened to her younger sister Jenna when she goes missing and is presumed dead whilst at a wellness retreat in Gozo.

The Chapters switch between Fran, Jenna and Kate and follow past and present storyline.

Her last holiday was easy to get hooked on, for the parts set in Gozo, it transported me to a holiday I feel like I haven't been on in forever- what with the current pandemic. It gave me an opportunity to escape to a different country even if it wasn't all that it may seem!!!.

I didn't see some of the plot twists coming towards the end of the storyline and that definitely kept me on my toes, you get to see the characters in a whole new light and again, people may not be what they seem.... This completely threw me off course because I can usually see where the plot is going. I loved the fact that I was about to be shocked and my emotions for characters completely swayed. We all love a happy ending and that's what we get, all loose ends tied up and well thought out and not rushed like some thriller endings.

***** Solid 5 stars from me! *****

This was my first book by C.L.Taylor and I enjoyed it. It was a bit predictable in places, however it was easy to read and follow, easy to keep track of who was who. Would still recommend!

When Fran`s sister Jenna disappeared from a wellness retreat on the island of Gozo, it appeared she had committed suicide, although her body was never recovered.
The man responsible for the group, Tom Wade spent two years in jail for the death of two other group members.
Now Tom is about to be released from prison and Jenna`s parents want their daughter Fran to discover the truth of what happened to her.
When they learn he is advertising another retreat in Snowdonia, its decided Fran must go undercover.
The story is told from the point of view of Fran and Kate ,Toms wife, in present day and of Jenna at the retreat on Gozo.
Fran is subjected to joining in mountain activities, canoeing as well as in depth one to one chats with Tom himself. She is totally out of her comfort zone.
The more she ferrets for information the more she suspects someone wants to stop her discovering the truth.
I found it a little slow, maybe too many characters and sadly as I guessed the truth of what had happened to Jenna before the conclusion I was left a little disappointed.
Thanks to Netgalley and Avon books for the chance to read this as an ARC

When Fran's sister Jenna goes missing from a retreat on the island of Gozo everyone believes that she took her own life including Fran, but their mother has different ideas and believes that she was murdered by the SoulShrink owner Tom Wade.
After the death of two fellow retreat clients Tom Wade is arrested and sentenced.
After his release his wife Kate insisted that they set up another retreat this time in Wales.
Fran's mother insists that she attends and has already paid for the trip.
Will Fran be able to find out exactly what happened to Jenna in Gozo or is she putting her own life at risk?

This was a very complex and slow paced mystery. I have to admit, this wasn’t one of my favourites of CL Taylor’s books. She has become one of my go-to authors so my expectations are always fairly high! I wasn’t totally gripped by the story, the pace was maybe a bit slower than I normally like? I’m still saying it’s a good book, it was an okay read. But I have rated Taylor’s previous books 4/5 stars, so it did just fall a teeny bit flat for me.

3.5/5 stars!

This novel was certainly enjoyable and finishes off with a happy ending, but I didn’t vibe very well with Fran, one of the main characters.

<b>Her Last Holiday</b> centers on the perspectives of Jenna (past), Fran (present), and Kate (present). Jenna went on a retreat two years ago and disappeared. Her disappearance and lack of solid evidence or body, was ruled as a suicide. Fran, Jenna’s older sister, two years later goes on a similar retreat with the same company to get to the bottom of what happened to her sister.

The plot held my attention the entire way through. I was interested to get to the bottom of what happened to Jenna.

As I said previously, I didn’t connect well with Fran as I found her to be cold and selfish. She seemed generally displeased by most things and was really distant with her family, her sister especially.

As the story progressed, I really did not like Kate. I will not say more because it will reveal to much of the story.

Jenna’s perspective felt more genuine, and especially as her back story became more evident, you could really understand why she chose the decisions that she did.

The Fitzgerald family dynamic is definitely unbalanced! But I did enjoy reading about their family and their families history, as it really shone a light on why Fran and Jenna are the way they are. It was also nice to see Fran evolve throughout the novel, which by the end, made her more relatable. One thing I would have been interested in pursuing is things revealed in the last 3-5% of the book. I won’t give more information, as it will detract from the story line for those who haven’t read it!

All in all, I did enjoy reading his novel and my first experience with this author.

<i>I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher of this advanced digital copy for the opportunity to read this novel in exchange for an honest review! All opinions expressed are my own. Upon publishing of this novel, I will also be posting my review to Amazon Canada.</i>

4.75 stars

This book cautions us about wellness gurus and exposes some of the truths that happen when clients aren’t looking. A few years ago, Jenna went on a retreat that ended in tragedy: she has gone missing, two people died and Tom, the guru has been charged and convicted for his negligence. The book starts on the date of his release, and it is told in three point of views: We follow Fran in the present as she tries to figure out what happened to her sister 3 years ago, and signs up to the newest retreat Tom is running. We follow Jenna in the past as she takes us through her experience in the retreat up to the accident and her disappearance. We also follow Kate, Tom’s wife, through whom we learn about the behind the scenes from both the present and the disastrous retreat.

I absolutely loved this book, it was enthralling, engaging, fast paced and original. I enjoyed and partake of Taylor’s take on some self-help guru’s and beyond that I really loved how all the characters were presented and developed. All the voices were clearly their own, and Taylor brought us on the journey of each woman’s feelings and motivation. I love when you read a book and understand the character’s actions, even if you disagree with them, you see a character congruently make choices within their character. Taylor gave us this in this book.

I really loved the ambiance of this book, and how the plot was executed. It was a consistently good book and I wish it hadn’t finished! I do have to say that even though Taylor played fair on this book, I feel that she threaded a very thin line with one of the twists. Not enough to take away from my thorough enjoyment, though.

I am definitely reading more books from this author! I found her style was a perfect fit for me!
Thank you, Avon Books UK, C.L. Taylor and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of “Her Last Holiday” in exchange for an honest review.

#Netgalley #herlastholiday

I absolutely love this author’s books, and I was so excited to get the chance to read and review this book. Well, just be warned, don’t read this book until you have cleared your diary, because you won’t be able to put it down! Yet again, this author has caused me a late night, as “one more chapter” became the rest of the book.

Everything in this book lends itself perfectly to the element of suspense and the atmosphere of trepidation and fear.

There’s a feeling that Fran is entering the lion’s den by going on the wellness retreat, given what happened to her sister. I was on tenterhooks the whole time, fearing that she would be found out, and that something awful would happen to her. There certainly seem to be a lot of secrets about, and not everyone is who they seem.

We get a dual timeline, with snippets of what happened to Jenna on her retreat. Just enough to whet the appetite, and to make you need to find out what the conclusion was, but all is not revealed until near the end, in a series of shocking and heart-pounding twists and turns.

Yet another triumph from one my favourite thriller writers, this book will have you totally enthralled and riveted. Can’t recommend it highly enough. It’s out in April, available to pre-order now.

Another great book from Cally Taylor! She has a knack for keeping you guessing. Set in the world of self help groups with this one seeming to prey on vulnerable people. The main two characters are sisters Fran and much younger sister Jenna who seem to have a somewhat difficult relationship. Jenna disappears from a wellness retreat run by Tom and Kate. in Gozo. Tom ends up in prison charged with the deaths of two other attendees but he has never commented on what happened to Jenna. Once Tom is released from prison, Fran encouraged by her domineering mother books herself onto Tom's new retreat in the hope of finding out exactly what happened to her sister.

With. a cast of people who I changed my mind about several times you finally find out what happened to Jenna. This is a story with twists and turns and sometimes you are not sure who is telling the truth! Although I did guess one of the twists (maybe we were supposed to?!) I wasn't prepared for the major twist at the end which I thought was a great way to finish Fran and Jenna's story,

I also enjoyed the development of Fran's character who obviously was the type of person that was clearly uncomfortable in discussing her feelings and baring her soul, but to be undercover at the wellness retreat she was forced to reveal more about her real self and her true feelings.

Fans of Cally Taylor's will not be disappointed!

Thank you to Cally, Avon and NetGalley for the opportunity of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I very much enjoyed this book. It has a good story and excellent main characters. I would definately recommend this book.

I struggled to put this book down. The story is so twisty and just when you think you have it all clear and figured out - you just don’t. A really enjoyable read.

I am at a loss to how exactly rate this book. I enjoyed the book, I truly did. It was a real page-turner and I was curious to know the fate of the characters. But I didn't like any of the characters themselves.

51-year old IT teacher, Fran goes undercover as a guest to a retreat conducted by self-help guru Tom Wade, to investigate the alleged suicide of her younger sister Jenna, at Wade's retreat at Gozo two years ago. The retreat is supposed to be his comeback after a short stint in prison for the deaths of two other guests at Gozo. Fran soon finds an ally in one of the guests and together they investigate what really happened to Jenna.

The opening scene of the book, where Fran confronted an eve-teaser on the train, was a real winner. That alone compelled me to keep reading. While I had sussed out who the villain was, once all the characters had been introduced, the motive behind their actions fell flat for me. There was also the fact that Tom had no actual qualifications to be a self-help guru, apart from being a survivor of depression himself. Fran and Jenna were portrayed as middle-aged women still under the thumb of their demanding mother, Tom was weak and spineless, and Kate, Tom's wife was shrewd and manipulative. While the character of Joy showed promise, there wasn't enough to write home about. At the end, the only person I really admired was Kate, because even though she was appalling, she repeatedly reinvented herself after being knocked down, rather than wallow in self-pity.

Overall, I found the book compelling enough to finish it. But it is definitely not on my list of favourites.
A big thank you to Netgalley and Avon Books for providing a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Every book I’m blown away at the skill and intricacy of Taylor’s work. Her Last Holiday is told from the view points of three women and each one has a very clear and distinct voice, something which other authors have tried and failed to do well. There are so many layers to this story; grief, loss, control and a need to find yourself and belong. All these come together to create a brilliant mystery that left me guessing right to the end. I loved this!

Thank you to NetGalley for this advance copy of Her Last Holiday.

I really enjoyed this book overall. I didn’t realize this had multiple POVs going in but I think it really kept you on your toes to see how things change be misconstrued from person to person. This book definitely had me guessing for a majority of the book on who done it. (I can normally pick the killer out a mile away but not with this one. However I did guess it before the actual revile)

I enjoyed the concept and the characters felt well fleshed out and real. The only thing I didn’t like was that I felt it was drug on after the climax. I understand the purpose of the last few chapters but at the same time I could have enjoyed the book just the same without them.

If you are a fan of mystery’s and who done its. I think you’ll enjoy this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

First, I really REALLY enjoy C.L Taylor's books, however this one fell a little flat for me. I loved the idea behind it..a sister looking for a sister and she signs up for the same retreat that her sister disappeared from. The creator of the retreat has been in jail and is just being released.

It your classic who done it mystery, but I felt like it was a little too neat and too easy to figure out. Usually Taylor's books keep me guessing but this one was a little blah for me.

Absolutely incredible read. I was hooked in right from the start and wanted to know everything right away! I couldn't decide who to feel for, who to trust and the whole tone of the book was uneasy and enticing.

It was a completely pleasurable experience to read through these amazing pages and yet again C.L Taylor has smashed creating a masterpiece for fans of the genre.