The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave

 

Oof. Another one that started out pretty strong and got more and more boring as the book went on. The Last Thing He Told Me is told through the narration of Hannah Hall, a 40 year old woodturner who is looking to solve the mystery of her husband Owen's disappearance. Initially, it is believed that her husband is on the run from some illegal activities involving his company, but as thriller readers, we know that we will likely find out this isn't the case. I was quite intrigued at the beginning, but the book turned out to be more of a mystery than a thriller - I never felt like I was on the edge of my seat, I was merely curious of where the story was going to go. Another pet peeve - the book introduces a lot more characters in the final third of the book to explain the mystery, something I don't like because it comes across as a cheap device to me. 

The Last Thing He Told Me tells us how Hannah Hall met Owen Michaels through her high end furniture showroom. Owen was accompanying his boss's wife Belle Thompson at the time. Owen and Hannah fall in love. Owen has a 16 year old daughter from a previous marriage named Bailey. Bailey is not overly excited with this new relationship but Hannah is always very nice to her. 

The three of them live in a houseboat on San Francisco Bay. Hannah and Owen are now married for a year. One day, a 12 year old child delivers Hannah a note. It simply reads "Protect her". Hannah finds out from news that Owen's boss Avett Thompson is arrested. The company is under investigation due to falsifying financial reports, and it's presumed that Owen is on the run. 

Hannah doesn't believe Owen would do anything illegal. Bailey finds in her school locker a large amount of cash in a duffle bag with a message telling Bailey to take care of Hannah. With the discovery of the cash, Hannah knows Owen is likely not coming back, but she knows Owen would never leave Bailey if there was any other option. Hannah is now on the hunt for the truth.

A US Marshall, Grady Bradford approaches Hannah and tells her he can protect her and that Owen is not who she thinks he is. Hannah isn't sure if she should trust Grady or not. By talking with Bailey, Hannah realizes that Austin, Texas has some special significance to Owen, so they go there.

By visiting a church and speaking with Owen's college professor, Hannah figures out that Owen's real name is Ethan Young. He had changed his and Bailey's identities after he sent his father-in-law to prison. His father-in-law Nicholas Bell was the attorney for a crime syndicate for 30 years. When Nicholas lost a big chase, the crime syndicate killed Ethan's wife Kate. Angry, Ethan worked with authorities to arrest Nicholas and 18 crime associates. Ethan and Kristin (Bailey) were under state protection but that protection was compromised, so Ethan and Kristin went on the run and changed their names. The US Marshall Grady Bradford was the one assigned to handle their witsec case.

Owent went on the run to protect his daughter's life. He knew with his company going into fraud investigation, his identity would be in jeopardy and the crime syndicate would go after his daughter. By running and having Hannah taking care of Bailey, no one would have to know Bailey's true identity. (This is beyond stupid.)

The end of the book happens years later when Hannah runs into a stranger at a furniture design showcase. The man looks very different from Owen but is wearing the unique wedding ring Hannah had designed. He tells her something that indicates he is Owen. Bailey calls her "mom". 

Interesting start of a book with nice build up for the first 1/3 of the book, but unfortunately, the book could not live up to the expectations the beginning lead you to have. By the time the mystery was solved, I could care so little. 2.5/5 and that feels a bit generous.