T.J. Emerson’s The Last Mrs. Sinclair is a gripping psychological thriller filled with suspense, secrets, and deception. From the very first page, the novel hooks readers with an eerie sense of foreboding and a fast-paced, tension-filled narrative.

Emerson masterfully weaves past and present, unraveling layers of mystery that keep readers guessing. With compelling characters, unpredictable twists, and a chilling atmosphere, this book is impossible to put down.

For fans of dark, suspenseful thrillers, The Last Mrs. Sinclair is a must-read—unsettling, addictive, and utterly captivating until the final page.

Twenty-four-year-old Leah Rose Williams is beautiful and she knows it. Stuck in a boring job, while living in a cramped apartment, she focuses on attracting rich, older men, hoping that a relationship will be her ticket to a better life. She has just dumped Nick, a married man she had been seeing, after he suggested going serious with the relationship.


Leah’s mother has taught her to believe that “All relationships are based on power, not love.” That she must “Step up and claim your power and, once you’ve got it, never ever give it away.” That “You are the prize, Leah. Always remember that.”


In just six weeks, Leah gets into a relationship with Miles Sinclair, 30 years her senior, who whisks her off to his family home in Chateau Clairvallon in France for a short vacation, and then proposes to her there. Soon he fixes up the wedding day in August.


Leah believes that finally she will have the life she was born to. The life she lost after her dad squandered her mom’s inheritance and deserted them.
Leah is thrilled beyond measure.


Though she does not love Miles, she is looking forward to the wealth that will soon be hers. For the sake of the wealth, she puts up with Miles’ age and the fact that he is still grieving the loss of his wife, Riley, who fell down to her death from the roof of Chateau Clairvallon.


At the chateau, Leah meets Miles’ cousin, Vivienne, who is mourning the death of her husband, Dom. Vivienne is now acting as Miles’ housekeeper at the chateau.


Excited about her turn of fortune, Leah prepares for her new life. But she cannot shake away the shadow of what happened to Riley? Was her death an accident or was it murder? And if it was murder, as the rumours in the village say, is she in danger too?



The book reminded me of Rebecca with Chateau Clairvallon being Manderley. At first I thought it was a retelling of Rebecca, but while the basic premise is similar, this one is different. The book is written in four parts, in the present tense PoV of Leah and Vivienne. It starts in May of an unnamed year, then continues up to July in two parts. The third and fourth parts pick up the story from August until the end.

The ‘last’ Mrs Sinclair has dual connotations, and the narrative does a good job of keeping us hooked on the stories of both Mrs Sinclairs.


The Prologue and the Epilogue were both done very well; the former grabbed my attention and pulled me into the story. While the book began on an exciting note, the middle, an extended section, lost steam, dragging the pace.


The chapters are dated only by month. It would have been better to date them too, so we would have some kind of countdown to the wedding, which is a critical point in the story.


The plot perked up at the 81% mark and then things began to happen in rapid succession. The final third was a huge improvement on the middle.


I didn’t like Leah, nor any of the characters. But they were real and relatable. In the end, though, I did feel a sense of pity for one of the characters.


There are themes like love, sex, incest, greed, wealth and power addressed in the book. There are some overly explicit sex scenes in the story, making this book unsuitable for younger readers.


We don’t know the year in which the book is set, only the month. But it seems to be a contemporary time, given that people have mobile phones and Internet, so Leah’s references (twice) to “freshening up between my legs”, instead of showering, sound weird, gross and unnecessary.


There are lots of proofing errors. Vivienne is referred to as Miles’ mother in one sentence.
A good thriller in spite of the issues.
My rating is 3 and a half.

There are several twists in this book- and it, overall, was not what I expected. There are some uncomfortable themes in this book.

This book definitely has some Rebecca elements, which I loved. Leah is a gold digger with a heart of gold. These types of characters can sometimes come off as vapid and stupid but she’s witty and smart. You cannot help but cheer for her.

I also loved the way the author described this creepy house.

Thanks for the advance review copy.

The Last Mrs Sinclair was a wonderfully sinful psychological thriller about a woman Leah Williams that wants the finer things in life. She meets Miles Sinclair and older widower whom has the means to make her life easy. He takes her to his chateau and she learns about the mystery surrounding his first wife's death.
This was the first book I read by T. J. Emerson and it won't be my last. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced readers copy.
Publishing date is March 26, 2025

I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this book!! Written in two perspectives…an addictive read for sure!! Power and money are explored in this suspenseful and twisty narrative. It had me hooked after just one chapter. I highly recommend this book if you are a fan of psychological thrillers.

Without a doubt 5 stars!

Thank you @netgalley and the author for this advanced copy in exchange for my review. All views are my own.

#TheLastMrsSinclair #NetGalley

Firstly, the cover on this is absolutely beautiful and I am absolutely obsessed with it !

The story was a whole vibe from start to finish and I loved it! I love a thriller so I was a sucker for it !

I would recommend this book to everyone and anyone who loves to read !!

Plot twist after plot twist, right to the very end. This should be in everyone's week-end get away bag. A gold digger, jealous family, wealth, lies, deaths/murder, love affairs. This book had it all.

This was just okay for me! I did love the setting of a countryside chateau so the description of that was lovely and fun to imagine in my mind. In regards to the story itself I was just a little underwhelmed. I found it to be kind of long winded for not a super satisfying payoff with the reveal in the end. I also had a hard time liking any of the characters. The main character was good but she was about it in terms of characters I liked. Overall, not bad just not my favorite thriller I've ever read!

I really enjoyed this book . The characters were interesting even with all their flaws . It had just enough tension with the gradual build up and the ending was unexpected. I definitely would recommend this book and I can’t wait for the next from this author. Five stars from me

I always love a good thriller! This book from the start sets a tone you know some shits about to down. Leah is one of those characters you don’t know if you wanna love her or hate her. Honestly by the end of the book I was rooting for home girl 😎 The ending of the book was something I didn’t see coming but looking back every detail mattered. TJ Emerson did an amazing job setting up the story and delivering an ending!

A fun thriller about money, deception, s*x and lies when Leah wants to live a life of luxury she will do whatever it takes to get there. The atmosphere of this book I feel would be perfect as a summer read or on a vacation. I did not see the very last twist at the end coming in the epilogue.

Thank you NetGalley and Boldwood books for the ARC

Leah has always dreamed of a rich life full of luxury and extravagant things. All the things she never had growing up. So when she meets Miles who makes all her dreams come true; she is stoked to finally settle in the life she always dreamed of.

Miles a well off widower finds comfort with his new love with Leah. But things take a drastic mix of events in their chateau. How could there not be dark turns when his first wife died so tragically in the house? Were all the rumors Leah heard about Miles true? Was his first wife's death really a mistake ?

Find out and read this book!

OMG I loved this! Last Mrs. Sinclair is a gripping psychological thriller that blends suspense, power dynamics, and an atmospheric chateau full of secrets. Leah Williams, determined to secure a life of luxury, sets her sights on Miles Sinclair, a wealthy older man still mourning the loss of his first wife, Riley. But when Leah moves into Miles’s grand French estate, she discovers that Riley’s tragic death may not have been an accident. As tensions rise with Miles’s enigmatic cousin Vivienne, Leah becomes obsessed with uncovering the truth—only to find herself entangled in a dangerous game of deception. With alternating perspectives, this novel masterfully keeps readers on edge, delivering unexpected twists and an addictive, fast-paced plot. Fans of domestic thrillers will devour this compelling read!

Leah Williams grew up with money, until she didn't. Events in her childhood taught her what it was like to live with the "haves" until things changed drastically and she had to endure being part of the "have nots." All this did was made her realize she was destined to live a luxurious life and would do whatever she needed to do in order to get there. She doesn't seem to be bound by a strong sense of ethics, but she does decide to never get involved with a married man again.

This lead her to meeting Miles Sinclair in a bar where he's crying into his champagne over the anniversary of his wife's death, and Leah intertwines herself into his life. Before long, Miles invites her to his French Chateau for a vacation. Come to find out, his cousin is staying there acting as the housekeeper in an effort to keep herself busy following the loss of her husband. And as she starts to spend more time there, she realizes that Miles' former wife died there at the chateau!

The more she learns of the chateau's history, the family's past and about Mrs. Sinclair's death, the more she realizes that things don't really add up. The author does a fantastic job in keeping the reader guessing and relating well to Leah especially. I had to force myself to put the book down and get some sleep! Well done!

Thanks to NetGalley, Boldwood Books and T.J. Emerson for the eARC.

Pub Date Mar 26 2025 | #TheLastMrsSinclair #NetGalley

Overall, I enjoyed this book. Part One was my favourite. It made me think of the novel, Rebecca: the house that means so much, the wife before who died, and the new wife unearthing secrets.

After this, this book became more of a usual psychological thriller, not that it's a bad thing. I did work out a lot of the reveals fairly early though. It didn't spoil my enjoyment.

The epilogue is odd. I don't think it was needed. The turn it took for a particular character didn't fit the rest of the book in terms of genre. I also think the final revelation wasn't totally believable in terms of switching culprits for a crime. Surely the victim would've known even in the situation they were?

Leah wants to find herself a rich, older man. She finds this one evening in Miles Sinclair who she meets in a London bar. In his fifties he’s a good 30 years older than Leah and is also a widower. His wife died in tragic circumstances in France and he wants to move on. Their relationship develops quickly and both think they have found what they are looking for.

He takes Leah to his French chateau where she meets his recently bereaved cousin, Vivienne. She does not seem to like Leah and decides to mention Riley, Miles’ first wife, at every opportunity she gets. Leah begins to feel uneasy at the place where the former Mrs Sinclair died. All around her are memories and the locals have hinted that Riley’s death was not an accident, as claimed.

As plans for a wedding are accelerated Leah realises she will not be getting the wedding day she envisaged. With no friends or family nearby and trying to find out how Riley died, is she sure she is doing the right thing?

Lots of twists and turns here make for a very exciting read! I read this very quickly and can honestly say I really enjoyed it! All three characters are flawed and it’s easy to see what Leah is trying to do by marrying into a rich family. But Vivienne and Miles have their own secrets and have a very close relationship. Can Leah get to the bottom of what happened to Riley?

I absolutely loved this book. It’s glamorous and has some excellent twists right up to the last few pages. An excellent one for a holiday read or just wanting to escape to France for a ride through the countryside or a lounge by the pool! Highly recommended!

Thank you very much to NetGalley and the author for the advanced copy.

The characters were well developed and I found myself staying up way past my bedtime to finish it. Thank you so much for the opportunity to read this incredible book! I will definitely be sharing it with all of my fellow book lovers!

I mostly enjoyed this book. There were a few sections where I had to do some speed reading to stay interested, but overall it was a good book focusing on money, power and relationship dymanics. The ending felt right for the book as well as the shocking twist at the end which I was not expescting at all.

"The Last Mrs. Sinclair" is certainly an addictive psychological thriller. It is an unsettling yet compulsive read that will have you hanging onto every word from start to finish. From the very first page, I was hooked and couldn't put it down! The story is twisty and filled with secrets that will keep you guessing at every turn. Just when you think you've figured it out, Emerson throws in another jaw-dropping twist that leaves you wanting more. Trust me, if you're looking for a thrilling escape into a world of suspense and intrigue, this is the book for you! Highly recommend.