“That Last Weekend” By Laura DiSilverio: Review/Giveaway

by Cynthia Chow


Details on how to win a copy of this book at the end of the review & links to purchase it.

For nearly a decade, college friends Laurel Muir, Dawn Infanti, Ellie Ordahl, Geneva Frost, and Evangeline Paul met every September for a weekend together at North Carolina's Chateau du Cygne Noir. After that last night that ended with Evangeline crumpled and broken at the bottom of the stair, it would be another ten years before they would reunite there again. When they each receive the ominous tangerine invitation, they are all at points in their lives where moving on, or just starting over, can entice them back.


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During that last weekend, the friends all had reasons for wanting to give Vangie a shove down the stairs, yet none were willing to openly accuse another or admit to guilt. The suspicions and lies altered their lives forever, and their lost friendships may explain why they are all so unmoored today. A successful lawyer and newly appointed judge, Laurel, can’t help but feel as though she may have missed out by not having children. Ellie has the opposite problem, facing an empty nest and the realization that she sacrificed her career to be a mother and wife. Frustrated artist Dawn has given up her artistic dreams for the paycheck job as a scientific illustrator. Geneva may be the happiest as she looks forward to the birth of her first child, but being a psychologist was not the profession she had planned to pursue.



Image source: Midnight Ink

This dissatisfaction with their lives leads them back to the place they can never forget, to the weekend that haunts them to this day. While most of them hope to ignite their past friendships and renew the bonds that once made them so close, one of them may have less admirable and hopeful motivations. As viewpoints change with chapters, readers are shown different sides of each character, yet never sure which narrator may be the most unreliable of them all.

Known for crafting light-hearted and witty mystery series, DiSilverio’s talents at building suspense and nuanced characters is just as evident here. Judah Boone is far from being a Southern sheriff cliché, and while angered by his inability to close the past case, he proves far more clever and sympathetic than one might expect. Surprises are continually thrown up as secrets are reveals and characters backstories expand, yet it is so well-plotted that one never becomes confused by shifting narratives. This is an outstanding twist on the traditional locked-room mystery, one that also serves as an exploration of the friendships of women. The truth is not always easy to accept, with some of the biggest lies being the ones we tell ourselves. This is simply an extraordinary novel.

To enter to win a copy of That Last Weekend, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “weekend,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen October 28, 2017. U.S. residents only. If entering via email please included your mailing address. If entering via comment please be sure to include your email address.


You can use these links to purchase the book. If you have adblocker on you may not be able to see the Amazon link:



Cynthia Chow is the branch manager of Kaneohe Public Library on the island of Oahu. She balances a librarian lifestyle of cardigans and hair buns with a passion for motorcycle riding and regrettable tattoos (sorry, Mom).

Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.


Comments

  1. I was caught up in the review of That Last Weekend. Definitely a read-in-one-day-skip-the cooking book!
    Nancy Wolter
    nwolter47@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. Loved the description of the book. Great cover. Sounds like a real page-turner. Can't wait to read.
    diannekc8(at)gmail(dot)com

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