Look, it's a sheep in wolf's clothing: THE LAST WORD.

The Last Word by Taylor Adams
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Emma Carpenter and her dog, Laika, are living alone in a beach house on the Washington coast--hiding from the past. Emma spends her days walking the beach and devouring books on her Kindle. When she reads a terrible horror novel by H.G. Kane, she leaves a one-star review that causes the author to respond, dragging Emma into a rude online argument. Then weird incidents happen at her house. Is it just a coincidence, or is Emma in real danger?

I pick up each Taylor Adams book with a bit of trepidation as his books can genuinely freak me out and also stress me out! This one was no different. There's one setting--a perfectly done isolated beach house. Emma has but one neighbor, an older drunk named Deek. With so few characters, we easily become attached to her and, of course, her dog, Laika. Laika (aka "the space dog") was certainly the star of the show (and the cause of undue stress as I worried frantically if she would survive).

THE LAST WORD goes by at a frantic pace. It's terrifying and increasingly gruesome and bloody. It did indeed creep me out! My main issue was that I predicted a lot of this plot. Still, it did not diminish much of my enjoyment of this crazy, wild ride.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher, William Morrow, in return for an unbiased review. Look for it on 4/25/2023!

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