The Last Housewife by Ashley Winstead is an intensely dark and sinister thriller that I could not put down.
Synopsis
Since the traumatic events of her college days, Shay Evans has built a quiet suburban life with her husband in Texas. Her one guilty pleasure is listening to a true crime podcast called Transgressions. One night, Shay learns via the podcast that Laurel, her best friend from college, has passed away on campus under suspicious circumstances.
Shay and the host of the true-crime podcast team up and try to find the truth behind her death. But the more they investigate, the more bewildering and terrifying the situation becomes, and they see what’s beneath the polished surface of upper-crust society.
Review of The Last Housewife
This compelling thriller follows Shay’s POV with podcast transcripts mixed in.
From the title, I thought this would be something like a neighbourhood drama or the typical unreliable housewife who self-medicates. But then I remembered this is an Ashley Winstead book, and she doesn’t do typical. Sure, this book may start in the suburbs, but the overall scope of it is huge. It even gets a bit cinematic. I’d love for this to get adapted to the big or small screen.
The ending was literal perfection. It might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it worked for me.
As I mentioned, this book dives into some dark topics, which may be triggering for some readers. There’s a whole list of content warnings at the beginning of the book.
The author’s debut In My Dreams I Hold a Knife was one of my top thrillers of last year. I think it’s safe to say that The Last Housewife is my favourite thriller this year thus far. AW has fast become an auto-read author for me, whether that’s romance or thriller, I will eat it up.
If you enjoy dramatic twists and don’t mind suspending disbelief once in a while, then you’ll likely love this as much as I did.
My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Expected Publication: 16 August 2022
I received an arc via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
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