“If you give this book a one-star review, you might end up dead.
THE PULSE-POUNDING NEW NOVEL FROM THE AUTHOR OF TIKTOK THRILLER SENSATION NO EXIT

Emma is house-sitting on the rainy Washington coast with only her golden retriever for company. She likes the isolation, the peace and quiet, and the opportunity to read.

But her latest pick, a poorly written and gruesome horror novel, is disappointing and Emma leaves a one-star review. A message dings back – the author, H.G. Kane, has replied and he’s furious. Emma brushes it off, until disturbing incidents start to occur. Scratches in the night. A figure crawling around in the shadows.

Kane has written sixteen other novels, all similarly sadistic tales of stalking and murder. He knows he’s a brilliant writer – he just needs to make Emma understand…

Expect the unexpected in this pulse-pounding novel of psychological suspense and terror from the critically acclaimed author of the TikTok sensation No Exit.”

Hello and welcome to damppebbles. Today I am delighted to share my review of The Last Word by Taylor Adams. The Last Word was published by Hodder & Stoughton on 18th May 2023 and is available in hardcover, audio and digital formats with the paperback to follow. I chose to read and review a free ARC of The Last Word but that has in no way influenced my review. My grateful thanks to Emily at Hodder Books for sending me a finished copy.

Emma Carpenter is housesitting for three months on the Washington Coast with only her dog, Laika, for company. Emma revels in the isolation with human contact kept to an absolute minimum. The beach house she’s staying in is a fair distance from its closest neighbour so without anyone to talk to, Emma spends her days reading and walking along the shore. Running out of reading material, Emma (who occasionally communicates with her closest neighbour, Deek, by holding up messages scrawled on whiteboards and read from afar using binoculars) downloads a book Deek recommended. But it’s a load of rubbish. Badly written, gruesome, over the top and misogynistic – Emma has never been so happy to see the words ‘THE END’. So enraged is she by what she’s read she heads to Amazon and leaves a scathing one star review. Almost instantly an email arrives from the author telling her to remove the review. Emma declines. But shortly after, strange things start to happen. Scratches at the window, creeping shadows in the house at night. Emma realises she’s living in her own horror story and she may not make it out alive…

I loved The Last Word (and I’m not just saying that because I’m nervous about giving this book a bad review! 😂). It’s a twisty, non-stop, high-energy read which drew me in from first page to last. I really liked Emma. There is clearly something she’s running away from, something traumatic that still affects her deeply, but the reader doesn’t get to discover what that is until later in the book. When Emma’s past is revealed, it made me warm to her even more. But I feel I’m getting ahead of myself. Emma is a kick-ass protagonist who uses the pain of her past to fight back with all metaphorical guns blazing. She’s invested in surviving, of course! But because of her grief, because of what she’s running away from, she doesn’t mind if this is the end. And that makes her all the more of a fierce adversary for whatever is waiting outside the door. I loved her fire. Very final girl-esque of the author, which I always appreciate.

Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. I loved The Last Word. It’s pacey, thrilling and hugely entertaining from start to finish. A very well-written cat and mouse thriller that had me turning the pages late into the night, choosing Emma’s plight over my own beauty sleep! You think you’ve got the measure of the book, but in all likelihood you probably haven’t. You may think you’ve reached the end of the story, but in all likelihood you probably haven’t. There was always a little bit more to come and I loved how well and intricately plotted The Last Word was. Twists and turns galore that had me gasping out loud. I thoroughly enjoyed the isolation of the beachside setting, the characters drew me into the story and the plot was highly compelling. A very engrossing read which ticked all of the boxes for me and I’ll certainly be downloading all of the author’s previous books ASAP. Highly recommended.

I chose to read and review a free ARC of The Last Word. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

The Last Word by Taylor Adams was published in the UK by Hodder & Stoughton on 18th May 2023 and is available in hardcover, audio and digital formats with the paperback to follow (please note, the following links are affiliate links which means I receive a small percentage of the purchase price at no extra cost to you): | amazon.co.uk | Waterstones | Foyles | bookshop.org | Goodreads | damppebbles bookshop.org shop | damppebbles amazon.co.uk shop | damppebbles amazon.com shop |

Taylor Adams is the author of several acclaimed thrillers including No Exit and Hairpin Bridge. No Exit has been published in 32 languages and was recently released by 20th Century Studios as a Hulu Original Film. Adams lives in Washington State.