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last-seen-leavingWhat: Last Seen Leaving by Caleb Roehrig

Who: Feiwel & Friends

When: October 4th 2016

How: A copy of this novel was provided by Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group for review via Net Galley.

Flynn’s girlfriend has disappeared. How can he uncover her secrets without revealing his own?

Flynn’s girlfriend, January, is missing. The cops are asking questions he can’t answer, and her friends are telling stories that don’t add up. All eyes are on Flynn—as January’s boyfriend, he must know something.

But Flynn has a secret of his own. And as he struggles to uncover the truth about January’s disappearance, he must also face the truth about himself.

4cats2Last Seen Leaving is a YA mystery/thriller with a gay protagonist. Could this be any more perfect for me as a reader? Although, to be honest, I thought that the protagonist was going to be bi, which would have been amazing, but I’m also still pretty darn happy with the fact that this is an LGBTQIA+ novel that isn’t straight up contemporary *cheering*

I had six main thoughts when reading Last Seen Leaving, which I will list for you now:

1) Flynn’s vocabulary was incredible.

For a kid who said he wasn’t super smart, I was using my Kindle dictionary feature more than I have ever in my life before. Considering that Flynn is only fifteen, I thought this was a tad unbelievable, but I guess I got to learn a few new words when reading Last Seen Leaving.

2) The romance was adorable.

I wanted more, but I also really appreciated the fact that the romance between Flynn and Kaz was not the number one priority. Romance shouldn’t be the number one priority in a mystery/thriller book, because if it’s mystery/thriller it usually means there are lives at stake. Which there was in Last Seen Leaving so A+ to include a romance I was 100% behind without making it the overarching important thing in the story.

3) The mystery was equal parts predictable and unpredictable.

Which kinda makes no sense, but when (WHEN) you read it, you’ll understand. I called some things really early on, and called others only a small time before they were naturally revealed. I loved this because there’s nothing better than a mystery/thriller that isn’t completely obvious in its execution.

4) There were so many creepy characters.

SUSPECT EVERYONE. Which is what I did for a while, even though there was one main person who I thought was the most suspicious monkey of them all. But seriously, January was surrounded by the most creepy AF people in the world, and I felt pretty darn sorry for her because she had to deal with their shit all the time.

5) That ending.

The last few chapters were SO INTENSE, and I was 99.9% certain that Flynn was going to be bludgeoned to death, or something equally as horrible. I won’t tell you if the bludgeoning actuated but I’ll tell you that I liked the ending. A lot.

6) I could easily read more.

I’m pretty sure mystery/thrillers don’t get sequels, but I would be so incredibly down for reading more about these characters.

© 2016, Chiara @ Books for a Delicate Eternity. All rights reserved.

trigger warning: murder, rape, sexual assault, physical assault, suicide, and homophobia in this novel

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Posted on: October 21, 2016 • By: Chiara

10 Responses to Six Thoughts on Last Seen Leaving by Caleb Roehrig

  1. Great review, and I’m SO happy to see you enjoyed this one too. I thought it was really well done and I just loved Flynn. I’d like to see a nice contemporary novel with him and Kaz now. haha It’s good the romance wasn’t the main aspect of the book, but you’re right – it does make you want more, but I guess that just means we really like the characters.

    -Lauren

  2. I could always use more LGBT+ mysteries & thrillers, tbh. Lately I have been… somewhat obsessed with the podcast SERIAL (have you heard of it? If not, you should listen – it’s gripping & I think you would absolutely adore it), which has reignited my love for thrillers after many days of being immersed in chick lit. It is good to be back, and this book is first on my thriller TBR <3 Thank you so much for sharing, love!

    • Chiara says:

      Right? I read another recently called Three Truths and a Lie, which was quite enjoyable, and there’s always Dangerous Girls, as well :D I haven’t heard of it! I have yet to ever try out a podcast, though :O Oh, I hope you like this book when you read it, lovely! It is never a problem <3

  3. Karen Blue says:

    Great review! You pretty much said everything I loved about this book. I’m so glad to see you liked it!

  4. I’m so damn excited for this one – has been since I’ve first seen it a few months back, BUT my excitement grew tons after I heard the protagonist is gay, because – like you said – the mystery genre doesn’t have nearly good enough LGBTQ+ representation.

    I like what you said about the romance – I’m one of those people who don’t have a problem with romance in most books, though the quantity of it is always really important & it seems like the author added just enough romance to spice up the novel.

    Wonderful review! Can’t wait to dive into this one!

    Veronika @ The Regal Critiques

    • Chiara says:

      I really love finding LGBTQIA+ mystery/thrillers, especially ones with good representation (and own voices authors!), so I hope you like this one as much as I did, Veronika!

      Ah, I love me some romance, too, haha! But I am always a bit more wary of it in high stakes novels like this, so the balance was super perfect for me.

      Thanks so much! :D

  5. Romi says:

    Ohhh, this sounds ~intriguing~ and I love the fact those last chapters were all kinda of intense because I definitely enjoy (you know, in the OH HELP ME WHAT’S GOING ON way of mixed pleasure and terror) that, and I don’t know – possibly because I don’t read a whole lot of mystery – that it happens all that often. So all the yays for a book that had you sitting on the edge of your couch (hopefully not dislodging Figgy)!

    Also awesome? That you want more from these characters. When I read a standalone, I can have very mixed feelings because I’m definitely not a fan of when standalones become the first in a series and I was N O T reading the book to invest myself in another 1-5, but when a standalone is so gorgeous and perfect and I love everyone in it then I just want more. Often I don’t get more, which is faintly heartbreaking, because there’s the inevitable moment when you read the author’s next book and it’s just not the same at all, even though you knew it wouldn’t be (but hoped it would, all the same).

    I also feel like I have a soft spot for Flynn already, simply because he says he’s not particularly smart and yet uses all the words. That’s sweet, and amusing, and quite cute.
    Also also (because I don’t know other “additionally” words, apparently) yessss for having a romance that isn’t the main focus of the story! It does seem a bit out of place when you’re reading crime or murder mystery and it’s romance everywhere and the focus is not on the finding of answers at all, so I’m glad this felt like a better balance of the two (and you were invested in the romance, to0).
    Lovely review, Chiara! xx

    • Chiara says:

      Mystery/thrillers can be so predictable, especially if you read some close together. But I liked that this one WASN’T predictable (at least not in every aspect – I did pick some things ;)).

      RIGHT? I want another book about Flynn, because seeing him grow up and date Kaz would just be adorable and 10%9% read-worthy, as far as I;m concerned.

      The romance was perfect, and I think that you would like Flynn. He was quite an adorable main character, I have to say.

      Thanks, lovely <3

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