Published by Harlequin, MIRA Genres: Mystery, Thriller
Format: ARC, eBook
The Last Affair is the latest thriller by Margot Hunt. The book opens with an intriguing prologue. There is a dead body with a bashed in skull on the lawn. Who killed Gwen? Was it her Husband Josh the local orthodontist that has all the neighborhood moms coo coo for cocoa puffs? Was is the food blogger by day adulteress by night Nora Holiday? Or maybe Nora’s recovering alcoholic husband Carter who has secrets of his own? Better yet, why was she laying in the grass like discarded trash?? When the story begins, we are taken back to the previous six months where it all began and follow the catastrophic events that led up to poor Gwen’s untimely demise.
The Last Affair gave me all the feels and I will admit it will be pretty hard to write a review without spoilers, but I’m going to give it a try.
Here are the players (so film noir J)
Nora & Carter Holiday – Nora is a food blogger with lots of time on her hands, and her husband Carter is a recovering alcoholic. Married over 20 years they are parents to three teenagers. Their marriage has been fragile for sometime and at this point are just going through the motions.
Josh & Gwen Landon – Josh the friendly and hot neighborhood orthodontist who has all the Lululemon moms giddy (Think Marcia Brady & Dr. Vogel) and his bitter resentful wife Gwen who basically hates everyone and everything. They too have been married for over 20 years are parents to two children, one being Abby. Abby abruptly left college after catching her best friend and boyfriend together and came home to lick her wounds.
Tara Edwards – A neighborhood mom who has the hots for Josh and makes him brownies to show her appreciation for her twin’s straight teeth. She recently moved to Shoreham and unfortunately her reputation precedes her. Tara wants to be liked by everyone and goes way too far to accomplish this.
While attending a Food Blogger conference in Orlando, Nora runs into Dr. Josh who also happens to be attending a conference there. I must say I have attended blogger conferences and nothing this saucy ever happened! Somewhere between salads and desserts they are on fire for each other and decide to take it upstairs. When they reluctantly return to their unhappy homes, Josh reaches out to Nora and the affair begins.
Over the next six months we learn of the inner workings of each of the families and although they look perfect on the outside, they are broken on the inside. All is well until Abby spots her father kissing Nora in his car at the beach. Because Abby is so bitter with her life, she decides to play Magnum PI and blows the affair wide open. The series of events that unfolds leads to devastation, tragedy and death.
What I loved the most about this book are the relatable flaws of the wives. Gwen is bitter because she is now 49 years old and has no idea what she wants to do with the rest of her life. Although she is faithful to her husband, she is very resentful and that has boiled over into the way she treats her family. Her character was hard to swallow at times because she was just so blatant with her annoyance at her children and her lack of personal fulfillment. Nora is a successful blogger, but too wonders what her place is with her family now that the children are older and she is disconnected from her husband. Being in midlife I can relate in a sense to BOTH women and could see and understand both points of view. None of the characters are perfect, but they are relatable and THAT to me makes a good book.
Even though the book is about an affair, the story doesn’t focus on the tawdry details. It goes deeper into the family dynamics. The story is told in multiple POV’s and is easy to follow along. I must say there is a serious plot twist in chapter 21 that I loved. The ending will leave you wanting more. The Last Affair was hands down one of the best books I have read this year.
Thank you to Mira Books, Margot Hunt and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review
