Cover Image: The Last Girl

The Last Girl

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Member Reviews

This book was a little young adult for me. I try to steer away from that genre. However this was an okay read which kept me engrossed throughout
Thank you for the copy

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Since encountering 'The Last Girl', I've noticed that it seemed to start a trend - of teenage girls forming odd clubs or cliques, which lead to dark consequences.

However, this was the first book that I read in this burgeoning sub-genre, and for my money is absolutely one of the best.

We discover that at a very high-class school in NYC there exists the Mary Shelley Club, whose members have to both set and survive a 'Fear Test'. Given that they're rich teenagers, they naturally feel invulnerable, with tests becoming more and more twisted and involved. And that's as much as I'm going to tell you.

This tale moves along at a great pace, with engaging characters and constant wrong-footing of the protagonist (and thus the reader). There's no annoying use of multiple perspective here - we know what Rachel knows and nothing more.

It can be 'meta' as the characters are extremely horror-savvy, so look out for nods to various books and films along the way. But it is certainly its own creature, exploring teenage life up to a point, before diverging into the (to coin an appropriate phrase) Strange and Unusual.

I've already been recommending this to friends, and look forward to seeking out more of the author's work.

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The Last Girl is a YA thriller about a secret club of students at a school that sets up elaborate horror focused pranks. Rachel is new to the school but is quickly recruited by this Mary Shelley Club. It seems like harmless fun at first but when a masked figure keeps appearing during their pranks and people start to die the club starts to become a little too real.
I didn't get quite as caught up in the book as I was hoping to but it was still enjoyable, had likeable characters and a cute little side romance. When the killing started I did like the little red herrings that kept me guessing.
I'd say this is a book more towards the lower end of YA as it was easy to read, a little unsophisticated and didn't have an overly complicated plot.

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I actually liked this one more than I thought! It was really easy to get into and follow the plot. I loved that it was relating to horror films (my fav) and pranks!! It was so tense throughout the whole book - each prank became that bit worse as they went on and it was getting extremely tense towards the end. I loved the twist. It went the way I hoped it would go and I wasn't disappointed even though I think it was quite a predictable ending??? But this didn't ruin the reading experience for me I still loved it!

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First of all a big thank you to Netgalley, the author and the publishers for sending me a copy of this to read and review.

I went into this with quite high hopes and this book exceeded my expectations and I enjoyed it so much more than I thought I was going to. I loved the idea of there being an exclusive horror club that no one knows about apart from its members. The twists and turns in this were phenomenal and I never knew where the author was going to take the plot next. I love how the characters set up there own fear tests with the idea of them winning if they manage to make there intended target scream.

I read this whole book in a day because I just could not put it down. I had to know what would happen next. This book really manages to keep you on your toes at all times and makes you want to try and work out what is happening the whole of the book. It keeps you hanging there in suspense as you think you've figured it out only to have the rug pulled out from under you as something totally unexpected occurs.

This was a fantastic read and I cannot wait to try something else by this author.

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I'm not a big fan of the horror genre, so started the book with trepidation. I was however soon proven wrong, and enjoyed this book immensely! Will try the genre again I promise. Recommended.

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I really liked this book and how it referenced horror films. The writing was good and i liked how the story flowed in this. The main character was interesting but also kind of dumb. This was quick and thrilling but it was kind of weak and predictable in places. I wish that the twist was less obvious but it was still a fun read.

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I absolutely loved this book! The last girl is an exciting young adult thriller! I’ve not read anything from this author before and I’m glad I have the chance to read this! I’m a massive fan of horror films and was amazed to see that I’d actually watched all of the ones referenced in this book! I loved the story line as I didn’t actually know where it was going to go/end! The twist at the end really got me and I was so sad for Rachel! This was a gripping read, and even though I knew what the fear tests were they still creeped me out!
This is a great book for any age not just YA!

Thank you to NetGalley and electric monkey books for this ARC in return of an honest review

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This was an awesome thriller and am going to purchase the authors other titles for the library.
The premise of the Mary Shelley Club with a huge twist that I didn’t see coming made this perfect!

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This one surprised me. As someone also obsessed with horror films it was a delight to see that I knew of and have seen almost every movie mentioned in this book (most more than once). I could completely understand where the main character was coming from, even though some of the relationships in the book were clearly toxic but the need to belong with people who like the same things can be a strong overriding drive making it easy to overlook the obvious shortcomings. Not really scary but certainly a page Turner and hard to put down once started. One problem I found the story was kind of predictable and it's rather easy to guess who the real villain of the piece is. Despite that it's an immensely enjoyable book and I would definitely read this author again. Thank you Netgalley for the review copy.

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After a home break in Rachels mum moves them to a new house and school, Manchester Prep which is full of rich kids. In my head I almost ahd the cast of gossip girl playing this out but really I can only describe it as a dark, twisted version of Cruel Intentions – an we all know the film wasnt all bunnies and kittens.

At the new school Rachel finds a group of kids that are just what she thinks she needs, an unusual group but it works. They all like horror films. They talk about them, watch them, quote them and even have fun trying to scare people just like in the movies.


Somthing isnt quite right thought. Rachel keeps seeing the man from her home invasion, but thats just not possible. Luckily shes got her new friends to take her mind of things, and a boy she likes.

There were things I fully expected to heppen that didnt which I love. I think thats becasue they re what would usually happen in a story. I thought I knew what was going on, had it all worked out. Nope, wrong again. I do feel like theres a mini cliff hanger at the end that just makes me want to DM the author to ask what happened next.

We get led on a rollercoaster of teenage fear, lust and drama. School cliques, parties and late night rendevouzs are all included as we follow Rachel down her rabbit hole. This book is great, twisty and hits some amazing twists and turns.

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I couldn’t enjoy this one. It wasn’t for me, my apologies. I didn’t managed to finish the book and whilst I appreciate your patience in my getting my thoughts back to you and for sharing the book with me, I just couldn’t force myself to finish it.

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If you are a massive horror fan, this is the book for you. Bonus if you're a YA horror fan. This truly is like Scream meets Gossip Girl. There are plenty of awesome pop culture references to horror films. Highly recommended!!

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Unfortunately I didn't enjoy this book. I did try to get into it, but whether it was because of the narrative or the storyline, I found it difficult to take to. It ended up being a 'did not finish', but I wish the author well.

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The Last Girl is an intense and riveting story. Rachel Chavez and her mother move to New York, where her mother has a job teaching at a posh, private school. Rachel is the new girl, and therefore an outsider until she meets four other students who form the Mary Shelley Club, a secret club obsessed with horror and fear their aim being to orchestrate pranks...

This was a great read with some wicked character dynamics. Tense and with some really fabulous interactions between the players, I was gripped throughout. Goldy Moldavsky's clever writing kept me skew-whiff, plotwise. I read The Last Girl with a genuine feeling of unease. Don't miss this one!

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Electric Monkey via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

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The Last Girl is an addictive thriller that will have you hooked and on the edge of your seat. Full of the horror stories we've loved to fear over the years. It's a roller-coaster read that you won't forget.

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After being attacked in her home and killing her attacker in self defence, Rachel Chavez turns to horror movies for comfort. Struggling to make friends and fit in at her new fancy high school, Rachel is recruited by the Mary Shelley Club – a mysterious club that carries out elaborate pranks inspired by horror movies. It’s all a fun escape for Rachel, until a sinister figure appears wearing the same mask as her attackers and she begins to realise that the Mary Shelley Club is more than just a game for bored teenagers.

The Last Girl (AKA in the US as The Mary Shelley Club) is a solid teen thriller. It hits all the requirements of the genre: A tortured but spunky heroine, teen romance angst, suspense, and plenty of drama. Unfortunately, it also contains plenty of flaws.

First things first, this book had a really promising premise. The “fear test” idea was really cool, and worked in the context of bored rich kids looking for fun. However, some of the things the club did got so extreme so quickly that it instantly lost any element of realism. It was like a season of Gossip Girl, which was totally farfetched but at least they gradually developed from sex and drugs to more extreme vices, rather than leaping straight in with murder. The Last Girl started strong, but sadly descended into mild chaos and wasn’t believable enough.

The thing about this book that got to me much more than the plot flaws was the total lack of general knowledge of horror from the characters. The members of the Mary Shelley Club are all horror junkies, and therefore have a wide, detailed breadth of knowledge of the subject. But, in order to show how knowledgeable these characters are, the author has given the rest of the world in the book apparently no knowledge at all and this really bothered me. Two of the questions Rachel is asked before she’s allowed into the club are basically “Who is Mary Shelley?” and “Who is the killer in Halloween?”. You do not need to be a horror fan at all to have heard of Mary Shelley or Michael Myers, and it was frankly offensive to assume that anyone who isn’t into horror wouldn’t know who they are. I haven’t read Frankenstein or seen Halloween, and I’ve heard of both in reasonable detail – There are plenty of people who actively dislike and avoid horror but would still understand references to Chucky.

Anyway, rant over. This is an averagely decent teen thriller but definitely could have been better.

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I picked up 'The Last Girl' completely randomly as I wanted to read a thriller/mystery and even though I had forgotten the synopsis of this book, I knew it was in that genre, and I am so glad that I picked this book up because it was so good!!

From the very first chapter, I was completely hooked and did not want to put it down until I had read every page, and even after I finished this book, I wanted more!!

Everything about this book was incredible. I spent most of the book thinking that this would probably be a typical YA thriller that I would only give three stars to because most YA thrillers really disappoint me at the end, but that plot twist??? I was so shocked and I have so many questions because of the ending so if the author wants to write a second book I would 100% read it.

This book is perfect for anyone who loves mysteries/thrillers and definitely if you love horror movies, as the whole premise of this book is around the characters love for horror films.

I can't wait to read more books by Goldy Moldavsky in the future as 'The Last Girl' was just incredible. The writing, the characters and the story were all just so amazing and I loved every second of reading this book.

Thank you to Electric Monkey for providing me with an advance copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

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OMG! This is soooo good. I know it's a YA thriller, but, I'm way past that age group and I loved it!

Rachel is a new girl in a new school, having changed schools when she had a horrific experience. Now she feels like a freak and so, is pleased when she's asked to join a strange club....but, although she feels she now belongs...there's something strange going on.

This is such a good thriller and had me guessing throughout. It's a page turner with, at it's heart, a slasher movie, but, is so much more.

For anyone who enjoys thrills and horror, this is for you. It's got movie references, a group of strange friends and a mystery. Loved it!

Thanks to NetGalley and Egmont publishing for the opportunity to preview and I wish the author, Goldy Moldavsky every success with this excellent read.

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Rachel, & her mum, have moved after a terrifying ordeal in her previous house. She is now the ‘new girl’ and feels she definitely doesn’t fit in. Also she is still having nightmares & anxiety can overcome her without warning. She is delighted when she notices that Freddie seems to like her and he introduces her to the ‘Mary Shelley Club’ where the members can indulge their love of horror. Rachel could not have imagined the train of events this would set off as the members of the ‘club’ embark on their individual ‘Fear Tests’.
A real page turner that will draw you in & push you to keep reading to uncover the real horror at the heart of the club

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