Audiobook Review: "The Last Resort" by T.J. Emerson, Narrated by Claire Storey and Karen Cass

By bookrantreviews on July 12, 2024

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Immersive, addicting, and full of low-key suspense, "The Last Resort" by T.J. Emerson is a slow burning thriller that lures you one chapter at a time until you are as hooked on Pure Heart as the members.

About the Book

"The Last Resort" by T.J. Emerson

As soon as you first see the house, a former hotel in a picturesque enclave of the Cypriot hills, you know this abandoned resort is the perfect home for you – with breath-taking views, a refreshing pool, and peace and quiet, away from the rest of the world. A place to recover and grow.

But paradise isn't cheap, and as the debts mount, you could lose everything you've worked so hard for.

Until someone makes you an offer: to keep your home, all you have to do is take a life.

But you could never do that… could you?

You'd die to stay here. But would you kill to?

____________________

My Review

Pure Heart is a new-age, spiritual community situated in a former luxury resort in the Cypriot hills. Isolated from mainstream society, the members are all expats who came there to recover from their lives and heal from past traumas under the guidance of self-proclaimed healer Quinn. They all trust and adore Quinn, who serves not only as their spiritual leader, but the head of the community as well. At Pure Heart, she has created a peaceful, accepting space for the members who live there. It seems idyllic. Almost...

Sofia spent most of her childhood at Pure Heart. She was 12 years old when she was forced to leave in order to live with her grandparents in the wake of her mother Eva's suicide. At the time, she didn't want to go. Her childhood had been nothing but happy. She loved it at Pure Heart. The members were family to her. They loved her as their own, and she loved them too, especially Quinn who had been the closest to her and her mum. It's no surprise that when she re-establishes contact with the members ten years later and announces her plans to visit, the members are overjoyed and anticipate a happy reunion. But the Sofia that arrives at Pure Heart is nothing like the young girl who left. Beautiful, successful, and wealthy, she's come for more than a reunion. She's come for revenge against the person she says killed her mother. It's no other than Quinn.

Sofia wants Quinn dead. She wants the other members to kill her. While the members are loyal to Quinn at first, their loyalty begins to shift when secrets are uncovered, truths are revealed, and another character slowly takes over as the new leader.

Immersive, addicting, and full of low-key suspense, "The Last Resort" by T.J. Emerson is a slow burning thriller that lures you one chapter at a time until you are as hooked on Pure Heart as the members. Told from multiple characters' points of view at different periods of time, the book started out feeling like it was about a loving community of friends brought together by Quinn and a new-age lifestyle. It was interesting enough to keep reading, but it seemed more like women's or friendship fiction than a mystery or thriller. However, after Sofia returns to Pure Heart for revenge, that changes. Pure Heart isn't a loving community at all. It's a cult.

"The Last Resort" is a slower paced thriller with mostly un-shocking twists and suspense that builds as slowly as the plot moves. The characters are well fleshed out and interesting. However, Sofia never features prominently as an active character (she's mentioned more than she's present), so I never cared about her or her story. I wasn't that invested in Quinn either. She was manipulative, but not much more. The big twists in the book required an investment or interest in both characters to be thrilling or simply satisfying, so they fell flat for me. So did the ending. However, that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy the book. I did. As a mystery, it worked for me as I tried to figure out why Sofia blamed Quinn for her mother's death and a few other things going on in the book.

T.J. Emerson is obviously a talented author, or I wouldn't have gotten lured in as I did. By the end, I felt like I was part of Pure Heart. I can't wait to read more of what she writes in the future.

e-Book Available on Amazon US

e-Book Available on Amazon UK

aUDIOBOOK aVAILABLE ON the xIGxAG App

About the Audiobook

This is the first audiobook I have ever reviewed. It's also one of the few I've ever listened to from beginning to end. Listening to a book instead of reading it was a huge adjustment for me at first. But the narrators, Claire Storey and Karen Cass, made it easy. It didn't take long before I forgot I was listening to a narration and not a play. Each character had a unique voice that I quickly came to recognize. I intend to listen to more audiobooks because of the narrators of "The Last Resort". They made 'reading' the book more enjoyable than it would have been if I'd read it on my own.

Thank you to Boldwood Books and XigXag for the complimentary copy of the audiobook.

About the Author

Tracey's latest psychological thriller, The Last Resort, is published by Boldwood Books. Before writing fiction, she worked in theatre and community arts. As well as acting, she ran drama workshops in healthcare settings, focusing on adults with mental health issues. Her short stories have been widely published in anthologies and literary magazines, and her feature writing has appeared in Stella magazine, Woman's Own and The Sydney Morning Herald. Her first psychological thriller for Boldwood, The Perfect Holiday, was published in April 2022 and was an Amazon bestseller.

She has a PhD in Creative Writing from The University of Edinburgh and works as a literary consultant and writing tutor. She is also the Creative Director of The Bridge Awards, a philanthropic organisation that provides micro-funding for the arts.

Tracey lives in Scotland and spends most of her time in the hills of Perthshire. She can often be found tramping around the countryside and, occasionally, braving a dip in the chilly rivers and lochs.