Tag Archives: laura dave

Feb28

Lil Red’s Book Club: The First Time I Saw Him By Laura Dave Edition

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Lil Red’s Book Club: The First Time I Saw Him By Laura Dave Edition

Hello everyone and welcome to a brand new edition of Lil Red’s Book Club! In a spoiler free setting, as always, we are going to be discussing the sequel to Laura Dave’s thriller, The Last Thing He Told Me, called The First Time I Saw Him. I read The Last Thing He Told Me five years ago and I have to admit that I don’t remember much of it. However, I guess I liked it well enough because I gave it an eight out of ten stars in my review! Perhaps I would have liked the sequel more if I had a better recollection of its predecessor because The First Time I Saw Him really missed the mark for me. There is no content in this book that requires a trigger warning so let’s get right to it:

It has been over five years since Hannah’s husband, Owen, has disappeared off of the face of the earth due to providing evidence against a dangerous crime organization. It was all for the safety of Hannah and his daughter Bailey and they have been rebuilding the pieces of their lives since he vanished. Bailey is now a college graduate and Hannah is still making fantastic pieces of hand carved furniture. They have also grown very close to Bailey’s maternal grandfather, Nicholas, who was also part of the crime syndicate that Owen turned against. Nicholas also played an integral role in protecting Hannah and Bailey. After decades of loyalty to the big boss, he left with the promise that as long as Nicholas is alive that no harm would come to those he loves.

Unfortunately, that promise is swiftly broken upon Nicholas’s passing and the crime family wants blood. They still hold a grudge towards Owen for his betrayal and as he is in hiding, the only way to get to him is to get to Hannah and Bailey first. Almost as soon as the death of Nicholas is announced on the news, snatchers from the organization are deployed to Hannah and Bailey’s homes. Luckily, they have prepared for this situation for a long time. They hoped that their plan of escape would never have to happen but they are now thrust into it with both of their lives on the line.

Hannah and Bailey are on the run and the name of the game is to get as far away from their usual haunts as possible. Through back roads, safe houses, and the help of a friend with a private jet, they end up in France. Who they meet upon their arrival is certainly not who they were expecting but their help could provide the protection they need and a way to find Owen again. While Hannah and Bailey prepared and perfected their escape plan for over half a decade, other plans were being made too. Plans for a last ditch effort should the truce between Nicholas and his former employer no longer be honored. Hannah and Bailey have one final go at a normal life with or without Owen. Will the help from an unlikely ally see it through? Or will the family they could be simply vanish? Read The First Time I Saw Him to find out!

The only thing I really remember from The Last Thing He Told Me was essentially a wild goose chase. Hannah and Bailey on the run, their initial poor relationship, plans being made, plans changing, and the ever watchful organization hot on their tail. The First Time I Saw Him was basically the same thing minus Hannah and Bailey being besties now. Regardless of how long it has been since I read the first book, I had the nagging feeling as I read its sequel that I have read it all before. The bones of The First Time I Saw Him were so similar to its predecessor that it felt more like a review than a brand new book.

What I remember liking the most about The Last Thing He Told Me was its sense of urgency that was so palpable on each page. Both Hannah and Bailey had no idea what was happening as they avoided peril and I could feel their anxiety so clearly. That swell of emotion was just not there as I read The First Time I Saw Him because its plot had already been done before. Yes, it was scary that Hannah and Bailey were put in this situation once again but it was also such a crazy story that it felt like a really bold move to rinse and repeat it. While I enjoyed Laura Dave’s writing, the sense of deja vu was much too prominent and The First Time I Saw Him felt like something borrowed over something new. This might sound harsh but it just felt like a lazy effort on Laura Dave’s part and I was happy to be done with the book or, rather, the CliffsNotes of the first one.

Overall, I am going to rate The First Time I Saw Him with a three out of ten stars. It was well written but that didn’t save the repeat plot one bit!

What are you currently reading? What should I read next? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Sep7

Lil Red’s Book Club: The Last Thing He Told Me By Laura Dave Edition

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Lil Red’s Book Club: The Last Thing He Told Me By Laura Dave Edition

Hello and welcome to a new edition of Lil Red’s Book Club! Today, we are going to be discussing a thriller by Laura Dave called The Last Thing He Told Me – without giving any spoilers away, of course. This book kept me on the edge of my seat with twists and turns on every page and an ending that almost made my cry. I simply could not put it down and devoured it in less than a week! Now, let’s get to it:

Hannah and Owen have been married for about a year and everything is going picture perfect. They live in a charming houseboat with Owen’s teenage daughter, Bailey, in Sausalito, California and Hannah constantly wonders how she got so lucky. Even though Bailey is not particularly thrilled over the relationship!

Hannah thinks that she knows everything there is to know about Owen until he doesn’t return home from work. Instead of calling, he has a note delivered to their front door with the simple message of “Protect her.” on it. Shortly after Hannah receives the note, we learn that the CEO of the tech company that her husband works for has been indited for major fraud and embezzlement. Fast forward a few days later and Owen has seemingly disappeared without a trace… That is, except for the huge bag of cash he left in Bailey’s locker at school.

As if Hannah didn’t have enough to stress about, the FBI and U.S. Marshals are hot on her trail and she knows that she needs to act fast to save herself, her step daughter, and husband. With the unlikely help of Bailey, they begin to uncover dark secrets of Owen’s past that could put all of them in unspeakable danger. This begs the question of if Hannah and Bailey really even knew him at all.

The Last Thing He Told Me was a fast paced, urgent read because every twist that occurred put everyone closer to being in harm’s way. This is why I couldn’t stop reading if I tried and it was definitely a nice change of pace from the lackluster Such A Quiet Place, which I finished recently. The Last Thing He Told Me also offered a story line that was incredibly unique which made trying to figure out the grand reveal pretty difficult. There were some things I got right and others that I missed and that made it even better.

What I liked the most about The Last Thing He Told Me were all of the different emotions that I felt while reading. Hannah and Bailey’s anxiety was palpable and they were both so easy to root for as they were thrown into such a life altering situation. I felt bad that Hannah’s fairy tale was cut short and awful that the only parent Bailey has left had disappeared off the face of the Earth. This made all of their discoveries and final heart wrenching sentence even more triumphant to the point that I was almost moved to tears.

I really can’t go into detail about Owen’s past because it would ruin the point of reading this book. I can tell you, however, that if you like a good thriller, then The Last Thing He Told Me is definitely worth the read. I am going to award it with an eight out of ten star rating. Laura Dave delivered with flawed but insanely likeable characters and a book that will keep you guessing until the very end. I highly recommend it!

What are you currently reading? What should I read next? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah