The Last Close Call

pick

A traveling book that I was supposed to read in September, whoops. This one was borderline so-so for me, mainly because the two MCs were inconsistent and kind of annoying. Also it felt like the overall message in the end was that in the nature vs nurture debate, you can't escape nature (more details in the spoiler), and I didn't care for that. However, the use of forensic genealogy was intriguing and I enjoyed the secondary characters.

TheAromaofBooks The criminal in this one is a serial rapist. He was given up for adoption by his 16-year-old birth mother. At the end, you find out that she had gotten pregnant because she had been raped, and there is this overall vibe that the reason this guy was a rapist was because his dad was a rapist, and that was just the way it had to be, despite him being adopted and raised in a loving home. This isn't stated explicitly, but combined with the fact that ā¬‡ 4w

TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) after they capture the criminal the reader never gets any explanation/viewpoint from him at all - we never find out what his motivation was, if something triggered him to start this, why he left Texas for five years, why he came back, whether or not his girlfriend was remotely suspicious, etc. NOTHING. So all we're left with is ā€his birth father was a rapist soā€ and that just didn't sit well with me. 4w

TheAromaofBooks #HauntedShelf #DeadSerious @OriginalCyn620
#AtoZ @Texreader
#SpookyEdition (Midnight) #BodyCountBingo #Pumpkaboo (Medium) @PuddleJumper
#Spookoween @TheSpineView
#31by31 (14/31) @Catsandbooks
#PSReadathon @Bookwormjillk
#BookSpinBingo #BirthdayBashReadathon 4w

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TheAromaofBooks @Jerdencon @Bookandbedandtea - FOR REAL I am also going to finish my pick for October and then mail them both to Paula before the end of October š‚ I would be interested to hear if you had any thoughts on the nature vs. nurture aspect of this book - was that just me reading too much into it?? 4w

PuddleJumper šˇ‰šˇ‰ 4w

Jerdencon @bookandbedandtea honestly I do believe nature plays a part (I work as a school psychologist so seen this happen) - kids are raised in a wonderful home but still have issues BUT I‘ve also seen the other side of it too - think it‘s one of those mysteries of life and genetics. Also my books will be in the mail beg of next week! (edited) 4w

OriginalCyn620 š–¤š–¤š–¤ 4w

bookandbedandtea @Jerdencon @TheAromaofBooks I did feel this leaned a little hard on nature because I've always wanted to believe nurture weighs heavier in that balance. I'll send my books out next week as well. š„ 4w

TheAromaofBooks @Jerdencon @bookandbedandtea - It seems like nature has to play a substantial role because, like Denise said, you see kids raised in lovely homes and still turn out troubled. Just looking at myself and my five siblings (including one adopted) all raised by the same parents, but all really different as adults, it's obvious that nature is there haha But it felt weird that the conclusion was kind of ā€oh his birth dad was also bad, that explains why ā¬‡ 4w

TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) this guy was also badā€ without any real nuance or exploration of other influences/aspects of the bad guy's life. Anyway, it was an interesting book and I didn't dislike it, but I felt like the ending dragged out kind of purposelessly haha 4w

bookandbedandtea @TheAromaofBooks I think you have a good point, Sarah, about the lack of nuance regarding the bad guy and that more explanation about him would have made for a better story. I could have stood for more if that and less of the romance between the leads. 4w

Jerdencon @bookandbedandtea I agree about the romance part 4w

Catsandbooks š‘¸š¸¼š¦‡š–¤ 3w

56 likes13 comments

bookandbedandtea

The Last Close Call | Laura Griffin

I got to enjoy some porch time this morning since it's less smoky today. š

(It would be nice if that were due to fires being put out instead of weather patterns moving the smoke somewhere else.)

TheBookgeekFrau I can actually see Pikes Peak today! š¸”ļø¸ 4mo

bookandbedandtea Woohoo! It's been weird not being able to see the mountains. Even though it happens a few times a summer these last few years. š 4mo

30 likes2 comments

bookandbedandtea

The Last Close Call | Laura Griffin

I'm hoping to get some reading done in my #happyplace this weekend š˛

lil1inblue What a great view! Enjoy your #happyplace! 4mo

bookandbedandtea @lil1inblue Thanks! I love it here! And, so far so good. š¤˛š¸» 4mo

Bookwormjillk Enjoy! 4mo

39 likes3 comments

aliasNayNay

The Last Close Call | Laura Griffin

so-so

THE LAST CLOSE CALL was a fast read, well written police procedural, interesting topics with a good plot. I enjoy all of Griffin's books but, this one really felt stunted, it needed more action Rowan and Jack are good lead characters, but there was no chemistry at all. I needed more, unfortunately my high hopes for this one crashed. 3* is the best I can do.

2 likes

Reecaspieces

The Last Close Call | Laura Griffin

pick

Check it out!

https://reecaspieces.com/2023/11/10/the-last-close-call-by-laura-griffin-audiobo...

34 likes

SilversReviews

The Last Close Call | Laura Griffin

ā€New York Times bestselling author Laura Griffin delivers a gripping, emotionally charged page-turner in her latest standalone novel.

THE LAST CLOSE CALL is a must-read for fans of bingeable crime fiction and electrifying romantic suspense.

The story follows a talented genetic analyst as she teams up with a detective to solve an elusive cold case.ā€¯

FULL SPOTLIGHT: https://tinyurl.com/b7k8n39r

@lauragriffinauthor

24 likes

Kristy_K

The Last Close Call | Laura Griffin

pick

A serial rapist who has been dormant for a few years returns to Austin & soon escalates to murder in San Antonio. Det Jack Bruner enlists the help of genetic genealogist Rowan Healy to try & identify the UNSUB & capture him before he strikes again. I really enjoyed the police procedural part of the story as they hone in on the suspect; however, I could have done without the romance between Jack & Rowan as I didn‘t feel they had any real chemistry.

36 likes2 stack adds

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