[Review] Last Seen - Lucy Clarke: Seaside Towns and Disappearances

In LAST SEEN, seven years ago the sons of best friends Sarah and Isla disappeared, only one of them returned, and on the anniversary of the tragedy, the other one disappears.

What intrigued me: Was in the mood for a thriller.

Beautiful Writing

LAST SEEN is a very character-driven, super slow book. It's essentially a psychological, a little dark drama involving family secrets. Clarke's writing is beautiful and lyrical, reminds me a lot of Brunonia Barry's actually, which is definitely a compliment. 

There is something dreamy and magical about the way she paints this seaside town and the prose absolutely creates an uncanny atmosphere that makes LAST SEEN very unique. 

I struggled a lot with LAST SEEN, a lot of the plot is reliant on you listening carefully when backstories get unravelled one by one, and I just couldn't bring up enough of an attention span for the dozens of flashbacks and monologues. Unfortunately, this is one of those subjective things that inevitably always make me lose interest in books. I was looking for something more fast-paced, and this is absolutely not what LAST SEEN is. Regardless, the mystery at the core of the story surely is interesting and I do see a lot of people enjoying this, but subjectively, it wasn't my thing.

Very Character-Driven

I guess you have to have a knick for Adult fiction that's more on the women's fiction side than the thriller side to enjoy this, which is certainly not a bad thing. Especially because of the multiple POVs I struggled to establish the very essential connection to the protagonists that you inevitably need to even remotely care for the story. 

I just wasn't invested in Isla's or Sarah's struggles. I really, really deeply struggled to empathize with their friendship and their worries. A lot of the story is spent establishing how their friendship developed in the wake of the tragedies and you have to truly care about that in order to like LAST SEEN. It's more family drama and women's fiction than thriller. Maybe I was in the wrong mood when I picked this up, maybe it's just not my thing. 

Rating:

★★★☆☆

 

Overall: Do I Recommend?

LAST SEEN is a beautifully written character-driven mystery set in a dreamy seaside town and I'm sure a lot of people will love this. This had a lot of things that I subjectively don't like in my thrillers, so this wasn't really for me.

Additional Info

Published: June 2017

Pages: 416

Publisher: Piper

Genre: Adult / Thriller

ISBN: 978-3-492-06027-1

Synopsis:

"In a small seaside community, there’s always somebody watching…

Twisty, pacy, and superbly plotted, Last Seen is the perfect psychological page-turner for fans of Clare Mackintosh and Sabine Durrant.

Seven years ago, two boys went missing at sea – and only one was brought to shore. The Sandbank, a remote stretch of coast dotted with beach huts, was scarred forever.

Sarah’s son survived, but on the anniversary of the accident, he disappears without trace. As new secrets begin to surface, The Sandbank hums with tension and unanswered questions. Sarah’s search grows more desperate and she starts to mistrust everyone she knows – and she’s right to.

Someone saw everything on that fateful day seven years ago. And they’ll do anything to keep the truth buried."
(Source: Goodreads)

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[Review] Last Seen Leaving - Caleb Roehrig: Sexuality and Missing Girlfriends

In LAST SEEN LEAVING, the police start investigating when Flynn's ex-girlfriend mysteriously disappears.

What intrigued me: Exclusively the hype.

Coming-Of-Age Rather Than Thriller

LAST SEEN LEAVING is a poster child for it's not you, it's me. It's undoubtedly a very skillfully written book, the prose is on point, the characterizations are great - but it's just not my thing. I found myself struggling a lot to get into this and pretty much immediately lost interest when I realized that this is a very character-driven coming-of-age story with a side of mystery instead of a fast-paced thriller. 

LAST SEEN LEAVING isn't really about January or her disappearance, it's pretty much simply an incentive to get the story started and fill some pages on the side so Flynn's self discovery won't be the only thing that this book is about. I definitely welcome this, I like that Roehrig wrapped a second story into this instead of just making this a regular thriller. We do need more #ownvoices stories that aren't solely about characters discovering their sexuality. However, the coming-of-age aspect is ultimately also why I didn't care much for it. I'm not really a fan of calm contemporary books that center around characters and their self-discovery, so LAST SEEN LEAVING didn't grip me at all.

Miscommunication and Slow Burn

Besides the very subjective aspects, LAST SEEN LEAVING is a very slowly paced book, which doesn't really work in the story's favor, considering the genre. I was hoping for a page turner, but I really only got a slow burn story about a small town mystery and a small town boy who got too caught up in heteronormativity to realize that he isn't heterosexual at all. 

A lot of the story relies on misunderstandings and miscommunication to preserve the mystery, which is probably my least favorite trope in the entire universe and also influenced my reading experience negatively. LAST SEEN LEAVING isn't quite as sharp and clean cut and to the point as I like my thrillers to be, which is highly, highly subjective, and therefore just wasn't my thing. Add flashbacks on top, which I also despise, and you pretty much got a perfect mixture of all the subjective things I don't like that are in no way an indicator about the quality of this book.

LAST SEEN LEAVING is definitely an important story regardless, and if you generally don't mind slow and character-driven books, you'll probably love this.

Rating:

★★★☆☆

 

Overall: Do I Recommend?

If you're looking for a coming-of-age thriller narrative starring a gay protagonist that discovers their sexuality while investigating a disappearance, I guess this is perfect for you! LAST SEEN LEAVING is definitely well-written and unique, but just wasn't my thing, unfortunately.

Additional Info

Published: May 22nd 2017

Pages: 416

Publisher: cbj

Genre: YA / Thriller

ISBN: 9783570173343

Synopsis:

"Flynn's girlfriend has disappeared. How can he uncover her secrets without revealing his own?

Flynn's girlfriend, January, is missing. The cops are asking questions he can't answer, and her friends are telling stories that don't add up. All eyes are on Flynn—as January's boyfriend, he must know something.

But Flynn has a secret of his own. And as he struggles to uncover the truth about January's disappearance, he must also face the truth about himself. "
(Source: Goodreads)

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Recommendation: Girl on the Verge - Pintip Dunn: Being Thai and New Girls

In GIRL ON THE VERGE, Kan's mother offers to take care of Shelly, who eagerly becomes Kan's new best friend, but also arrives with a mountain of secrets.

What intrigued me: Wanted to read more from Pintip Dunn.

Young Voice and Creepy Vibes

GIRL ON THE VERGE needed a while to get me interested. I didn't quite know what to expect, I thought this would be some kind of angsty contemporary. But once Shelly arrives and weasels the way into the reader's (and Kan's) heart, you'll immediately know something is wrong. There's a strange air of uncomfortable mystery around her that you can feel oozing from the pages the entire time. Dunn definitely knows how to orchestrate a mystery and make you feel uneasy. 

Aside from Shelly and her secrets, a large portion of the novel is spent gushing over love interest Ethan. He's your typical high school cool kid with the twist that he unapologetically enjoys traditionally feminine things. I really enjoyed seeing a character like that, though the romance aspect didn't do much for me, which is highly, highly subjective. Generally, GIRL ON THE VERGE  is one of those reads that exist at the lower end of YA, a little over upper MG in my opinion, which is definitely not a bad thing, just something you have to take into consideration when reading this. I certainly didn't expect a fairly younger than YA-sounding voice in a thriller story, so GIRL ON THE VERGE definitely caught me off guard. Had I known from the beginning, I probably would've liked this a lot more, but this is subjective.

#Ownvoices Excellence

I was immediately impressed with the way Dunn managed to put that unique diaspora feeling of not feeling like you belong in either worlds into words; this definitely warrants a recommendation alone. I've seldom seen authors go there and explore this feeling in as much detail, honesty, and eloquence as Dunn does. Especially if you're Thai diaspora, or Thai-American, this hopefully might mean even more to you, you need to get your hands on this book. 

GIRL ON THE VERGE definitely does a lot for diaspora readers in terms of validating and normalizing their experience, which I am immensely grateful for. The amount of strength, sheer talent, and determination it must have taken to put these feelings into words renders me speechless. GIRL ON THE VERGE perfectly illustrates to me what #ownvoices really is and what it means. For that alone, this deserves a glowing recommendation. Even if the other aspects don't really sound like something you'd be interested in, GIRL ON THE VERGE deserves all the support for its radiant and heartfelt portrayal of what it means to be diaspora.

Rating:

★★★★★

 

Overall: Do I Recommend?

If you're diaspora, or even Thai diaspora, this is an absolute must-read. Doesn't matter what your reading preferences are, I've seldom seen an author provide such poignant and moving representation for diaspora readers in terms of feeling like you don't belong. Definitely recommend this to your diaspora friends.

Additional Info

Published: June 27th 2017

Pages: 256

Publisher: Kensington

Genre: YA / Thriller

ISBN: 9781496703606

Synopsis:

"In her small Kansas town, at her predominantly white school, Kanchana doesn’t look like anyone else. But at home, her Thai grandmother chides her for being too westernized. Only through the clothing Kan designs in secret can she find a way to fuse both cultures into something distinctly her own.

When her mother agrees to provide a home for a teenage girl named Shelly, Kan sees a chance to prove herself useful. Making Shelly feel comfortable is easy at first—her new friend is eager to please, embraces the family’s Thai traditions, and clearly looks up to Kan. Perhaps too much. Shelly seems to want everything Kanchana has, even the blond, blue-eyed boy she has a crush on. As Kan’s growing discomfort compels her to investigate Shelly’s past, she’s shocked to find how much it intersects with her own—and just how far Shelly will go to belong…"
(Source: Goodreads)

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