Book Review: The Last Time I Lied

The Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager

If you are looking for a 4th of July thriller, then the latest novel from Riley Sager is a solid choice. It is set in a prestigious all-girl summer camp in the Northeast that may or may not be haunted.

This novel follows the story of Emma Davis, a woman who stayed at the camp fifteen years prior when each of her cabin mates (3 in total) disappeared without a trace on the 4th of July. They were never seen again and their bodies were never found. Thirteen-year-old Emma has been haunted ever since.

Now, as an adult, Emma is strangely invited back to the grand reopening of the camp by the original founder to teach the campers art. She agrees because she is determined to find out what happened to her friends. She ends up back in the same cabin with three teenage girls who seem to share the same fate as the girls in the same cabin fifteen years ago.

However, it is no easy task. On top of the general mystery, it becomes clear that someone (or something) does not want her there and will do whatever it must to keep her from finding the truth.

The novel moves quickly - not because your adrenaline is pumping, but simply because you want to know the answer. It is not an intense horror story. Some may label it a thriller, but it read more like a mystery to me.

Unfortunately for me, I ended up feeling a little let down by the end. I feel this is only because I enjoyed Sager's previous novel Final Girls so much. I was expecting the same kind of thrills and chills, but it didn't happen for me. Instead, when one of the biggest mysteries was solved, I ended up shaking my head in disappointment. It was not even the smallest bit believable for me and just did not add up.

With that being said, I do believe others will like it - especially if you have not read Sager's previous novel and do not have the same expectations as I did. But, if you want my honest opinion, I say go with Final Girls instead if you have to choose.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with this copy to read and review!