This was a really long audiobook. The narrator did a fantastic job, but the story, for me, was far too slow and descriptive. The characters got confusing and the plot I felt was unnecessarily bogged down in literary descriptions. The twist at the very end of the book made me glad I persevered but it wouldn’t be one I would recommend if you enjoy a fast paced mystery. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for giving me access to an early copy of this audio book. I

The story was very slow paced to start with and takes a lot of getting into.. I found the authors voices for characters sometimes merged into one making it slightly difficult to decipher who was talking. When the revelations came about, they didn't seem fitting with the story.

I have read multiple mysteries that revolve around this exact theme: a young writer is hired by an old, dying celebrity to write their biography. Usually, this is a trope I love and one that rarely goes wrong, but in this case, I was unfortunately disappointed. The story is slow, and not much happens along the way. This often made me lose focus and get bored through large parts of the book. There are also many jumps between multiple points of view, and not only are the character switches confusing, but there are also jumps back and forth in time. Although the ending of the story was okay, it wasn't enough to give this book more than 2 stars.

However, the narration of the audiobook was well done, and I liked the narrator's voices and pacing.

n a race against time, acclaimed author Sebastian Trapp, facing a terminal diagnosis, enlists the help of writer Nicky Hunter to chronicle his life story. Their collaboration unearths a haunting mystery: the disappearance of Trapp's wife and son two decades prior. As Nicky delves deeper into Trapp's past, she uncovers secrets that may hold the key to solving this cold case.

While the premise is intriguing, the narrative unfolds at a languid pace, creating a sense of anticipation that isn't fully satisfied. The complex plot, while compelling, could benefit from clearer exposition, especially in the audiobook format.

Despite these challenges, the novel offers a thought-provoking exploration of memory, loss, and the enduring power of the past. It's a story that lingers in the mind, even if its execution doesn't fully live up to its potential.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this audiobook.

Sebastian Trapp, a successful author has been given a few months to live. He invites Nicky Hunter to come and write his life story.
20 years ago, Sebastian's wife and son disappeared on New Years Eve without a trace. Could this cold case now be solved with Nicky writing his story?

This book was very slow, the idea of the book is strong, and I'd hoped for more, but on audio it was all very confusing.

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

DNF at 23% I can’t even begin to describe how slow and confusing this book is! The main character is very underdeveloped and I couldn’t care a jot about her. All the other characters were strange and obtuse and just ???? I really am not sure what went wrong here I loved ‘The woman in the window’ but I would never guess this is the same author! The pace was far too slow and none of the characters were remotely
Likeable and as much as I hate not finishing a book I just couldn’t push through. 1 star is pushing it!

I found this audio book very hard to get into, very slow and definitely a slow burn but felt something was still missing. Normally I fly through audio books as I can't get enough but it took me ages to listen to this one. The story it self was good but didn't grab my attention enough. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for this audio arc.

Thank You, NetGalley and the publishers for an opportunity to listen to End of Story by A. J. Finn.

I loved The Woman in the Window so I was really excited about reading this new book.

When Sebastian Trapp a celebrated author has just a few months to live, he invites Nicky Hunter, with whom he has corresponded for a few years via emails and letters, to come write his life story. 20 years earlier Sebastian's first wife and his son disappeared without a trace on New Year's Eve. Now just before he leaves this world, perhaps the cold case could be solved while Nicky writes his life story.

The book starts slow and manages to hold onto your attention. There is an effort to make it atmospheric and it feels like a slow burn but something is missing, the wow factor probably. I cannot put my finger on it but suffice to say it fell short of my expectations.

With thanks to the author, publishers Harper Collins UK Audio, and NetGalley for providing me with an advance copy of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

I found it hard to get engaged in this book, which is reflected in the fact that it took me almost two weeks to read it. I really liked the premise, with a young writer invited to the house of a famous but dying crime writer to document his life story. Throw in the mysterious and still unsolved disappearances of his wife and young son at the dawn of the new century, and I was hooked!

My experience of listening to the book did not live up to my expectations though. While the narrator did a good job, for me the storyline dragged a little, and was hard to follow in some places. Several times I found myself having to go back to relisten to sections to try to understand what was happening and whose point of view the story was being told from, although this might not be so much of an issue in the printed version.

I did not see the twist coming at the end though, and did enjoy that a lot!

This just wasn’t good. Narrator was fine and definitely can’t be blamed but this felt odd - at times overly frantic and at other times stilted conversation and dialogue. Odd

Thank you Netgalley for my copy.

This book was okay.

Some thing(s) I liked:
✅LGBT themes but not the main focus of the story. Skillfully woven into the fabric of the story

Some thing(s), not so much:
⭕The overstated language was clunky and jarring and plane annoying in the end. In most cases, less is more.

Will happily try another by Finn.

I listened to this in audiobook.
It wasn't my favourite, but I listened until the end.
I didn't see the twist coming.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley for the audio version of this book. Helen Laser is the narrator, and she is one of my favorite narrators out there. First off, the writing is amazing. If I was a tabber this book would look like a study bible. The actual story was slower and not at all thriller vibes. But I enjoyed it and would definitely read another by A.J. Finn.

I found this extremely tricky to follow. I am disappointed as I really enjoyed The Woman in the Window so this was something to look forward to.

The idea of the novel is strong but on the page and in audio it was very confusing and did not make much sense. It was extremely slow and I found it took ages for things to happen.

End of Story by AJ Finn. Helen Laser does a fabulous job narrating over 13 hours in what would have otherwise been a very long book to read. Most of the negative reviews were about the length of the book but the time flew by on the audio. Thank you to NetGalley for my book.

The story opens with a woman's body floating in the koi pond of a San Francisco mansion owned by well-known mystery author, Sebastian Trapp. The story then goes back six days earlier to when Nicky Hunter arrives at the Trapp mansion. Sebastian has invited Nicky to stay with them as he wants her to write a memoir for his closest friends and family as he only has a few months left to live.

His first wife, Hope, and young son, Cole, disappeared over twenty years previously and lots of people thought that Sebastian had something to do with it. Nicky is intrigued to hear his story.

The household has many characters: Diana the second wife, his adult daughter Madeleine from his first marriage, Freddy the nephew pops in all the time along with his new friend Jonathan. Is Nicky safe staying in this large rambling house? She happens to be staying in the attic room which belonged to Cole.

Soon red origami butterflies are found: in a box on the doorstep and then on the typewriter in Sebastian’s office. Cole used to make red origami butterflies.

It was a slow burn book with such unexpected twists. When the big secret was revealed, I thought the story was finished, but then realised there was still another hour to go and wow, so many other secrets were revealed in the end.

The book had a strong detective film vibe, with a creepy mansion and noir-inspired characters. While the atmosphere was entertaining, it occasionally felt over-the-top and a bit cartoonish. The characters were all too witty, with snappy comebacks in every scene, which made their voices blend together and disrupted the immersion. The dialogue didn’t always feel authentic, which was a bit distracting. That said, the story did offer some solid twists and clever red herrings that kept me intrigued. The final twist was unexpected, though it required some suspension of disbelief. Overall, while it wasn’t a book I’d highly recommend, it wasn’t without its merits and certainly had its moments.

Months to live, secrets, a life story, and the search for the truth about the past set the stage for A.J. Finn's End of Story. The synopsis was intriguing. A reclusive writer, the disappearance of his wife and son twenty years ago, and his revelation that he would be dead in three months sucked me in.

Sebastian Trapp invited Nicky Hunter, his longtime correspondent, to come to his home and to help write his life's story. He informed her he had three months to live. Sebastian lives with his current wife, his daughter and his nephew in a mansion in San Francisco. Nicky will stay in the home with them while she and Sebastian discuss his life. Nicky can't help but be intrigued by the mystery surrounding the disappearance of Sebastian's missing first wife and son.

I listened to the audiobook and thought the narrator did an admirable job. My main issue with this book was how slow-slow-slow it was. I struggle with slow burns and this one was you guessed it, slow. I wanted to hurry it up quite a bit while reading. The slowness of the book is the reason for my 2-star reading.

One that thing did work for me was the atmosphere. I love the atmosphere in this book, and I was also invested in learning more about the disappearances in this book. There was one reveal which I did not see coming. I thought the author pulled that off nicely.

Others have enjoyed this book more than I did, so please read their review as well. This is a case of it is the reader and not the book.

Honestly, I was excited to read this book because I loved 'The Woman in the Window' and the plot synopsis sounded interesting. A celebrated mystery author invites Nicky Hunter, with whom he has corresponded for 5 years via emails and letters, to come write his life story. The author, Sebastian Trapp, has just few months to live and he wants to chronicle his life, filled with mystery and tragedy, on paper. 20 years earlier Sebastian's first wife, Hope and his son, Cole disappeared without a trace on New Year's eve of 1999. This single incident destroyed the Trapp family and Sebastian stopped writing for many years. Now with a fresh perspective Sebastian and Nicky hope to solve the cold case along with writing Sebastian's biography.

The story has a lot of promise but there was something off with the narration style. It just irritated me and was infuriating to read the initial few chapters. The writing was obscure and I kept zoning out while listening to the book. It took all my resolve and patience to get through the first 30% of this book. The book picks pace maybe after three quarters but by then the reader is hanging by his/her last thread of patience. The twist in the end was good but it came too late to redeem the book. So if you're planning to read the book, then be prepared for a test of your fortitude or perhaps just skip this altogether 😏

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for a copy of this audio book.

Got it! Let’s remove the rhetorical tone and keep it sharp and direct:

This was literary pain. A thriller so desperate to seem clever that it stumbles over its own convoluted plot at every turn. The author clearly wasn’t concerned with engaging the audience, instead opting for cheap red herrings and endless melodrama. The result is a hollow story trying to disguise its lack of substance.

The protagonist was insufferable, veering between “tragically misunderstood” and “aggressively irritating.” I could not stand him. The supporting cast was no better—flat and forgettable, their only purpose to occasionally spout cryptic one-liners before fading into irrelevance.

The pacing was a mess, alternating between chaotic fast-forward and glacial slow-motion. The so-called twist was overworked and contrived, a frustrating reminder that deliberate confusion does not equal cleverness. It’s the kind of ending that insults the reader’s patience and intelligence.

By the final page, the only relief was that it was over. If this is the End of Story, it came about 300 pages too late.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK Audio for the ARC

I loved A.J. Finn's debut novel and had high expectations to this. Unfortunately I think those expectations let me down. I did think it was ok, but I was never as invested as I should be in a thriller. An interesting concept, but not the best execution. I also felt it was a bit long. Not bad, but I wished for more.