Three sisters’ secrets collide in a shocking novel of suspense by the Wall Street Journal and Amazon Charts bestselling author of the Mercy Kilpatrick series.Twenty years ago Emily Mills’s father was murdered, and she found his body hanging in the backyard. Her younger sister, Madison, claims she was asleep in her room. Her older sister, Tara, claims she was out with friends. The tragedy drove … friends. The tragedy drove their mother to suicide and Tara to leave town forever. The killer was caught. The case closed.
Ever since, Emily and Madison have tried to forget what happened that night—until an eerily similar murder brings it all back. It also brings FBI special agent Zander Wells to the Oregon logging town. As eager as he is to solve the brutal double slaying, he is just as intrigued with the mystery of Emily’s and her sisters’ past.
When more blood is shed, Zander suspects there’s a secret buried in this town no one wants unearthed. Is it something Emily and Madison don’t know? Or aren’t telling? And Tara? Maybe Emily can’t bear to find her. Because when Tara disappeared, she took a secret of her own with her.
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This is the first Kendra Elliot book I’ve read, and I really enjoyed it. Great twists and turns as well as character development. I felt like I was right there in the small town with the intriguing Aunts and the whole family.
Secrets from the past collide with a modern day murder in this thrilling suspense novel by Kendra Elliot!
When restaurant owner Emily Mills goes to check up on a late-for-work employee, she comes upon a shocking crime scene. The woman is dead and her husband is found hanging in the backyard– a déjà vu moment for Emily who found her father the same way twenty years earlier.
A horrible coincidence or is there a mysterious connection?
FBI Agent Zander Wells is brought in to help the local sheriff’s department on a possible hate crime of a young couple, and finds a town steeped in secrecy.
As the investigation delves deep, a desperate criminal amps up his game, threatening Emily and her family. Will the truth cost the Mills girls their lives?
This is a gripping mystery with multiple storylines that all weave together into a surprising conclusion I didn’t see coming (Gotta love a good mystery!), but thought there were several threads left dangling by the end of the book to give it a 5* review. Racism is the leading factor in the storyline, yet the author doesn’t use it as a platform to teach us a valuable lesson- rather it’s sensationalized and then almost forgotten in the subsequent murder/mysteries that take place throughout the story. I feel that was an important moment lost.
Overall, a good story,
I give The Last Sister 4 lovely kisses
“I voluntarily read an ARC of this book which was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.”
Every family has skeletons. Kendra Elliot’s tale of the Mills family’s dark secrets is first-rate suspense. Dark and gripping, The Last Sister crescendos to knock-out, edge-of-your seat tension.
This is the first book in a new series by suspense fiction author Kendra Elliot. She is a new author for me but after reading this book and reviews of some of her earlier books, I definitely need to read more books by her.
The book is a well written page turner. Every time I thought that I knew who the ‘bad guy’ was, I would find out several pages later that I was totally wrong. As an added bonus to the suspense story, there are the beginnings of a new romance that hopefully will become stronger in the future books in this series.
Emily, Madison and Tara lived with their parents in Oregon. Twenty years before, their father had been found hanging in the back yard and their house was set on fire. Several weeks after that, their mother committed suicide. Emily and Madison went to live with their three aunts and Tara disappeared the night of the murder. The killer was caught and sent to prison and the case was closed. Except that all three sisters had secrets about what happened that night. Emily and Madison work in the diner that was started by a relative years before and are living a good life with their aunts. Until…there is a murder in town similar to their father’s murder. Did someone copycat their father’s death and if so WHY? A husband and wife are found dead nearby – the wife was stabbed multiple times and the husband was hanged. The wife worked at the diner with Emily and Madison and the husband was a much loved history teacher at the local high school The two cases were similar enough that the FBI was called in. Zander, the lead agent and his partner Amy have to decide if there is a connection to the earlier crime and after questioning Emily, Zander feels that she is hiding something from him. His interest in her starts to go beyond the crime and we have the very beginning of a new romance. As Zander and Amy investigate the crime, they realize that the sisters and the town hold many secrets and until they find the answers other lives will be in danger.
Thanks to the publisher for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own.
THE LAST SISTER (Columbia River Book #1) by Kendra Elliot is the first book in a new romantic suspense/FBI mystery series. This book is easily read as a standalone, but a few of the characters are carry overs from Ms. Elliot’s Callahan & McLane series.
Twenty years ago, a family was shattered when the father was found hanging from a tree and their home burned to the ground. The mother committed suicide a week later, the eldest daughter disappeared and that left two small girls with secrets that they would hide for years.
Present day. FBI Special Agents Zander Wells and Ava Callahan are sent to investigate a double murder in a small Oregon coastal town that is eerily similar to a twenty-year-old crime that was supposedly solved. The tip came from Emily Mills who found the slain couple and was one of the sisters who survived the old crime. Zander is determined to solve this double homicide, but he is also intrigued by the old case and Emily.
As Zander and Ava investigate, the killer threatens Emily and her relatives and then strikes again to hide his crimes past and present. Secrets long buried need to be revealed for the past and present cases to be solved before someone else is killed.
I was completely engrossed in all the plot threads in this suspense. Past and present, multigenerational secrets. I like that Ms. Elliot shows the insidious, not in-your-face racism that can infect and destroy multi-generations and towns. Zander and Emily each deserve to find happiness and I feel they were perfect for each other. There is no sex in this story and Zander and Emily are very attracted to each other, but Zander waits until the case is solved.
I highly recommend this book and I cannot wait for more book in this series. There is intriguing investigation, secrets revealed, and the start of a romance that had me turning the pages continually from beginning to “The End”.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. No matter what book of Kendra Elliot’s you pick up you will not be disappointed. She will calmly take you on the ride of your life as you traverse through the prose. Every one of her books is well written with interesting characters.
This story has many secrets to wade through as you progress through the book. By the end you will agree that Kendra Elliot is one of today’s most fantastic authors. Enjoy!
A fast, action-packed mystery with great coastal Oregon atmosphere, a complex family dynamic between three sisters shaped by tragedy, and just a hint of romantic tension to hook readers into wounded, determined FBI agent Zander Wells. This is the start of a new series for Elliot, and I look forward to more!
Set in a a small coastal town of Oregon, The Last Sister by Kendra Elliot is ripe with engaging characters and a masterfully woven, complex plot. I listened to this book on audio, and it only took a few minutes to know I would fly through this “page-turning” suspense.
The Last Sister is exciting and suspenseful! Engaging characters and a complex plot kept me on the edge of my seat until the very last page.
Great suspense and a fresh take on the secrets we keep and those we most fear. Really intense read, which makes for fantastic fiction!
I recieved a free copy from Netgalley and I’m leaving a voluntary review.
This is a small coastal town mystery that is action-packed from the start.
The writing flows smoothly. It has a lot of twists and turns as the story progresses.
I recommend this book wholeheartedly
The Last Sister by author Kendra Elliot is filled with secrets, mystery, and family drama. This is the first in a new series by this author. I have enjoyed each series Kendra Elliot has written and look forward to the Columbia River series.
Emily Mills goes to check on an employee who has not shown up for work and is shocked by what she sees in the backyard. A body is hanging from a large tree and Emily is shaken to her core. Twenty years earlier she had seen her father hanging in the same way. The murder of her father was the beginning of her family being torn apart. Soon her mother would be dead and her oldest sister left home and has never returned or called. What secrets lurk in the past for these three sisters, Tara, Emily, and Madison?
I won’t post spoilers, but this story will grip the readers’ emotions as the motives for murder are revealed. Since there is a possibility the murders are a result of a hate crime, the FBI is involved in the investigation. Special Agents Ava McLane and Zander Wells take an interest in finding the answers to the troubling coincidences and links of the current murder with the murder of Emily’s father years ago.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and give my review of this book.
I really wanted to like this book but it just didn’t work for me. However, it had a super cute cover!
You can check out my booktube video review at https://youtu.be/I9LVNQ1OKZE
or read my review on my blog at https://lisasiefert.com/book-review-the-last-sister-by-kendra-elliot-columbia-river-book-1/
Surprise Ending
This story had so many twists and turns that I thought I knew where it was heading. Boy, was I wrong! On to the next! #HappyReading
Kendra always delivers a great read!
Great mystery that keeps you reading. New turns with every chapter!
More like 3.5 stars
First off, I read this book directly after a fabulous thriller that I couldn’t put down so this had a lot to live up to. I didn’t connect well with the characters or the relationship between them. Usually I’m all about that little bit of romance you get sometimes with a thriller but I just couldn’t get into this one. The story itself was just ok for me. Very little action and an anticlimactic ending with no real ” Oh my Goodness, I didn’t see that coming” moments. Am I sorry I read it? No. Will I continue with the next book. I’m not sure.
What I loved about this book: I loved how the author connected all the crimes together in this story and I didn’t need to take any leaps to believe them. The characters were charming and realistic and the setting was both creepy and beautiful. It seemed like a well-researched book that didn’t rely on any tropes to hold the story up. Enjoyed it immensely!
This is the first novel I’ve read by Kendra Elliot but it certainly won’t be the last!
THIS REVIEW IS FOR BOTH THE AUDIOBOOK AND EBOOK VERSIONS
This was a very interesting story. The narration was wonderfully done they really captured the characters. I would recommend this book.
I love thrillers because the endings are either shocking or twisted, and this one was both. The theme of family, especially sisters, was lovely. Emily’s aunts are a hoot and added a soft touch. Also enjoyed the small town feel. I will read more by this author and in this series, for sure!