Review of "The Last Thing He Told Me: A Novel of Suspense" by Laura Dave

Hannah Hall is a woodturner whose furniture creations are collected by people all over the country.



That's how Hannah met her husband of one year, Owen Michaels. Owen happened to accompany his boss Avett Thompson - CEO of the tech company 'The Shop' - when Avett stopped in to check on a rolled-edge side table ordered by his wife. Owen was fascinated by Hannah's work, and the duo hit it off immediately.



Hannah and Owen now live in a houseboat in Sausalito, California with Owen's 16-year-old daughter Bailey.



Bailey was used to having her dad to herself, and is somewhat resentful of her new stepmom. However, Hannah does her best to be gentle with Bailey, and the new blended family is rubbing along relatively peacefully.

Things take a shocking turn when Owen is expected home one afternoon, to drive Bailey to play rehearsal, and a 12-year-old girl shows up instead. The girl tells Hannah, "Mr. Michaels wanted me to give you this." It's a note addressed to Hannah reading 'Protect her.' There's no explanation and Owen doesn't respond to Hannah's increasingly worried calls.



Later on that evening Bailey finds a cash-filled duffel bag in her school locker, with a note that says, 'Bailey, I can't help this make sense. I'm so sorry. You know what matters about me. And you know what matters about yourself. Please hold on to it. Help Hannah. Do what she tells you. She loves you. We both do. You are my whole life, Dad.'

It seems Owen has done a runner, and Hannah learns why when a newscast announces that the FBI raided 'The Shop' and arrested CEO Avett Thompson for embezzlement and fraud. The bulletin went on to say that arrests of other senior staff were expected shortly. Hannah can't believe Owen would do anything illegal and is flabbergasted by his disappearance.



The next day Hannah gets a visit from a U.S. Marshall who claims he wants to help her husband.....



.....and then from FBI agents who want to get Owen to testify against Avett, but Hannah stonewalls them all.



Trying to think of where Owen might be, Hannah recalls an incident where someone hailed Owen as an acquaintance from Austin, Texas.....which Owen brushed off.



Hannah thinks there might be clues in Austin, so she and Bailey head there to see what they can learn. Big surprises await in Texas, as does danger and intrigue.

On the upside, working together forges a bond between Hannah and Bailey, who come to rely on each other for practical as well as emotional reasons.



Parts of this suspense thriller stretch credulity, but I enjoyed the book and recommend it to fans of the genre.

Rating: 3 stars