Our Last Resort is an engaging and fast-paced novel that immediately drew me in with its intriguing plot and atmospheric setting. The story unfolds in a place so vividly described that it feels like a character of its own. The cast of characters is original and adds charm to the narrative, though I sometimes wished for a bit more depth and development in their arcs. The writing style is simple and accessible, making it an easy read. However, I found that some plot twists and conflicts were resolved a little too easily, which occasionally lessened the tension. Despite these minor flaws, Our Last Resort remains a solid and enjoyable book, perfect for readers looking for a captivating story they can quickly get lost in. I would definitely recommend it for a light but satisfying read.

This book definitely gave off murder mystery vibes. The cult connection also gave it an interesting perspective. Overall I feel this one just fell a bit short for me, I wasn’t super excited to pick it up after getting into it. This may be a favorite for someone else though, so don’t be scared to give it a chance!

Thank you to NetGalley, Clemence Michallon, and Knopf for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a tough read for me as it was a slow burn about a brother and sister who were a part of a cult. The chapters were short and easy to follow but the book wasn’t for me. 3.5 stars.

Unfortunately my download of this book was ineligible and I could not read it. The pages weren't numbered and the format was not readable. It seemed like paragraphs were cut off and missing. Unreadable format. Such a shame but I am still looking forward to reading a copy of this when it comes out on it's expected publication date of August 7, 2025.
Thank you anyways to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my honest review and feedback.

This was a solid read. I liked the flawed protagonists and the past and present timelines. The past timeline was particularly enjoyable as I love receiving insights into cults and their workings. I feel like I would’ve enjoyed diving deeper into this aspect of the story

However, I unfortunately didn’t find any of the twists shocking. I love to be surprised but when they were revealed it just seemed like the obvious choice. Not necessarily a bad thing for some people but just my personal preference!

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.

It's a good book, and I'm familiar with the history of isolation in education. The two timelines that alternate made me uncomfortable, even though the transitions were smooth. The poetic narrative, simple dialogue, and strong characters didn't make me empathize or feel their emotions. But thank you for your approval.

Our Last Resort has the benefit of being a page turner whilst not really offering up anything that makes it stand out amongst the plethora of cult stories and psychological thrillers.

That's not necessarily a bad thing, depends on your current wishful reading. I thoroughly enjoyed this, it is well written, twisty enough with engaging characters.

Overall not quite living up to the promise of this authors debut but great none the less. Recommended.

Thanks to NetGalley and Elliott and Thompson for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I really liked THE QUIET TENANT, but until the end, I think that I liked this book more. The dual timelines were really interesting, and the characters were complex and well-developed. I had no idea what was going to happen, and I did not expect the twist near the end. The end itself though did not do it for me. Things resolved too quickly and seemed a bit anti-climactic to me. I kept looking for another twist. Definitely still a book worth reading when released in August 2025.

thank you to Netgalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

this book was somewhat of a disappointment, considering how much i loved the quiet tenant.

it just felt unfinished, the dual timelines didn’t really work for me.

while the characters were well developed, they never really connected with me. their relationship was the saving grace of this book. i can understand two people being so connected that they’re entirely codependent on each other to the point of unhealthy means. in a twisted way i like how they would do anything for each other, even if it leads to tragedy.

hopefully her next book is a hit for me!

Our Last Resort is about as haunting as Michallon’s previous novel—there’s a deep emotional intelligence running through every line. It’s devastating in its clarity, its control, and its quiet fury. The narrator’s voice in her youth retelling—measured, almost detached at times—makes the horror all the more suffocating without ever hinting at sensationalism or melodrama. Just raw, lucid memory laid bare. The prose is deliberate without being clinical. What stands out is how well the author captures the psychology of grooming, coercion, and complicity—not just from Émile, but from the system he’s built around himself. The emotional aftermath—shame, numbness, disassociation—is rendered with chilling precision. I understood the use of short, broken sentences in The Quiet Tenant—they effectively conveyed the main character’s fear and urgency. But I noticed the author used the same rhythm with Frida, the protagonist in this new book, and it threw me off. Maybe because it hasn’t been all that long since I read The Quiet Tenant. That said, these fragments echo this new narrator’s fractured sense of self and lend the scenes a quiet realism that’s more powerful than anything graphic. It’s not just a story about abuse, but about structure—how manipulation is scaffolded, how power is maintained, and how silence is enforced. I’m only lowering this novel to four stars because it took me a while to connect with Frida and Gabriel, to get into their horrific story, so much so that I thought about DNF once or twice. Then I was hooked and couldn’t turn the pages fast enough.

The premise of Our Last Resort immediately captured my interest. I’ve always found the psychology of cults to be both fascinating and deeply complex, and Michallon’s exploration of this subject drew me in from the outset. I had previously read The Quiet Tenant—a novel I found compelling due to its literary depth and suspenseful narrative—and so I approached this book with high expectations. Michallon clearly has a talent for crafting intriguing storylines.

This novel centers around two main characters, Frida and Gabriel, who grew up together in a cult and escaped at the age of 18. The narrative unfolds across multiple timelines: the period during their life in the cult (before), the aftermath of their escape, and the present day, in which they are staying at a resort. The dual timeline structure offers ample opportunity for character development, and we are given significant backstory on how Frida and Gabriel have evolved. While both characters have experienced hardship, Frida seems to have built a stable life, whereas Gabriel has endured continued tragedy. A central thread is their enduring care for one another throughout these challenges.

However, I found the pacing of the novel inconsistent. Some sections felt overly drawn out, while others seemed rushed, particularly key moments that could have benefited from further exploration. Interestingly, the story includes two murder mysteries. The present-day mystery, set at the resort, developed at a reasonable pace, though I found the resolution predictable. The cold case, revealed in the second timeline, was similarly easy to decipher early on.

The emotional conclusion of the novel, while clearly intended to leave a lasting impact, did not resonate with me in the way I believe it was meant to. Unlike The Quiet Tenant, which I would categorize as a literary thriller, Our Last Resort leans more into the murder mystery genre. This may make it more approachable for a wider audience, but I personally found it less refined and less compelling than Michallon’s debut. The protagonists, while central to the plot, felt somewhat underdeveloped; I struggled to form a connection with them, as they never quite came to life on the page.

Although the story alternates between past and present, the structure felt disjointed—almost as though I were reading two separate narratives. While stories about cults typically offer rich ground for exploring psychological horror, in this case, the past timeline felt underutilized and, ultimately, unnecessary to the present-day mystery. Much of the writing in the past timeline relies on exposition rather than vivid scene-building, which flattened its emotional impact.

In conclusion, while Our Last Resort may appeal to readers who enjoy straightforward mysteries with multiple timelines, it did not fully meet my expectations. I found it a decent read overall—engaging at times, but lacking the depth and emotional resonance of Michallon’s earlier work. I appreciated the opportunity to read this advance copy, but I likely won’t revisit the story or the characters in my thoughts moving forward.

Thank you to NetGalley, Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for providing a digital review copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

I loved Michallon's previous work, but this one just did not work for me at all. There was too much telling and not enough showing for me. The past timeline regarding the cult was not what I wanted and it just felt unecessary. I wanted more from it.

Our Last Resort is a standalone book written by Clemence Michallon.

What to expect:
*Cult lifestyle
*Resort mystery
*Alternating timeline

Brother and sister, Gabriel and Frida, are visiting a luxury resort in Utah when the death of a resort guest leaves them both reliving a different past tragedy involving Gabriel’s wife.

Suspicions and evidence cause the siblings to distrust each other, while memories resurface of a time when they were growing up in cult scandal.

For me, this book would have been better if I had listened to the audio version instead of reading the ebook. I found myself getting distracted very easily while trying to read this, it just could not hold my attention.

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf publishing for the opportunity to read and review this story.

Format: NetGalley ebook
Genre: Mystery / Thriller
Overall score:⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice level:🌶️
Characters: Frida (FMC) & Gabriel (MMC)

This was slow and atmospheric. If you’re into that then you’ll like this. I like the way this author writes. I found myself highlighting a lot of the passages.

What a captivating read! I loved this author's previous novel, so I was so excited to dig into this one, and it did not disappoint! I enjoyed the duel time frames and all of the parts about their life in a cult. I had so many questions throughout the book, and I couldn't wait to get to the end and find out how it turned out. This author will definitely always be an automatic read for me!

I loved The Quiet Tenant, Clemence's debut, and I did think it would be a hard act to follow. Sadly this book doesn't quite live up to that first book.

It's an ok read following 2 people who escaped a cult together. It's set many years later, as they are staying in a holiday resort where a fellow guest is murdered. It explores their childhoods and what led them to the present day.

Although not as good as her first book I will certainly read her next book and see how she develops as a writer.

I had high hopes for this one. I really like her debut book “The Quiet Tenant” It kept me hooked til the end.

This one fell short unfortunately.

It was interesting but not enough that I had to finish it in one sitting. The twist wasn’t what I hoped for. In all honesty I’m not sure I’d even classify it as a twist.

What felt like a lack of suspense, thrill or shocking twists has me putting this as a 3.5 star read.

Thank you NetGalley and Elliott & Thompson for this arc opportunity.

Thank you Netgalley and Elliott and Thompson for the ARC.

Frida and Gabriel arrive seeking a fresh start at the stunning Ara Hotel in the secluded desert of Escalante, Utah. Once so close they were able to finish each other’s sentences, they’ve grown apart in recent years after a sudden, unspeakable tragedy. Now, at the luxe resort, they are ready to reconnect between dips in the pool and hikes on spectacular desert trails. It all feels like paradise—until the dead body of a beautiful young woman who was vacationing at the Ara with her powerful, much older husband is discovered.

When the local police arrive and suspicion quickly falls on Gabriel, Frida is forced to revisit memories from their upbringing in a cloistered cult in upstate New York, their dramatic escape, and the scandal that followed. Frida’s belief in Gabriel’s innocence never wavered at the time, but now even she can’t ignore the evidence mounting against him.

Alternating between past and present timelines, Our Last Resort builds toward a shattering climax that uncovers the fate of the murdered Ara guest and poses the question: how well do we ever really know those we love?Taut, gripping, and intense, Clémence Michallon’s latestsuspense novel is a nail-biter until the last page, cementing her status as a major new talent in the genre.

The concept of this story had me interested. Unfortunately, I just couldn't get into this book. Very slow to me, I kept waiting for something interesting/exciting to happen. I attempted to read the authors previous book, but had the same thing happen. Perhaps this just isn't an author for me. 2.5 out of 5

This book by Clémence Michallon is the first one I've read by this author, I do have another one by her on my TBR.

Alas, this one was called "The last Resort" and will be released in the 7th of August.

The point of view in this book is from Frida, who has been raised in a cult and has found a "brother from another mother" in Gabriel, also living in the cult with leader émile.

The story is switching between now and then, so it'll tell you what they've endured in this cult, what made them decide to run away and how they have been faring since then. Now, Frida is in the finance sector and makes good money, whereas Gabriel has moved all the way to Seatle when he lost his wive 9 years prior. Brother and sister have lost contact over the years, so Frida is surprised when Gabriel wants to meet up to discuss them being involved in a documentary.

The Ara hotel, that's where they meet up. But soon after the meet, Frida notices how withdrawn Gabriel has gotten. They used to be so close. A couple of days in, they still haven't discussed the documentary and that's when it happens. A murder takes place on the grounds of the hotel. One of the guests has been murdered, the who dunnit was somewhat obvious (sorry)


When the suspect has been let go, Frida is beginning to question her brother, he has been withdrawn, sneaking around.. He can't have done it, now can he? In a bit of a fright, Frida decides to stay at an inn in town, but the next day.. All has gone to shit. When a newspaper with her picture and that of her brother has been published making them look like a good fit for this murder.

Obviously, a good set up.. But, how do they prove it and how do they get the evidence that's needed to point in the right direction?

I'm giving it a 3 star rating. I liked it but didn't love it, some of they bits in the story were a bit strange in my eyes.

I liked this book, I didn’t love it. This is a murder mystery about two people - Frida and Gabriel- that grew up in a cult and escaped as young adults. They are at a resort and a young woman ends up dead. There are mysteries about how they escaped their cultist upbringing ,, the murder itself, and his wife who died a few years earlier. He was suspected, but not charged with the crime.

The book has an interesting writing style, it is very simplistic. Very short, declarative sentences over and over. The ending was not a surprise, but it was a simple plot, and ultimately a satisfying ending. It is a quick read and I am sure I will forget this book quickly.

My favorite aspect of this book was the throwback to when they were in the cult, I actually wish they would’ve gone into more detail about their agency born cult leader Emile and What the beliefs of the cult were. It ended in a traumatic way, as many separatist cults do.

Thanks to NetGalley and Elliot and Thompson for the ARC. Book to be published August 7, 2025.