The Only One Left
by Riley Sager
Summary
At seventeen, Lenora Hope
Hung her sister with a rope
Now reduced to a schoolyard chant, the Hope family murders shocked the Maine coast one bloody night in 1929. While most people assume seventeen-year-old Lenora was responsible, the police were never able to prove it. Other than her denial after the killings, she has never spoken publicly about that night, nor has she set foot outside Hope’s End, the cliffside mansion where the massacre occurred.
Stabbed her father with a knife
Took her mother’s happy life
It’s now 1983, and home-health aide Kit McDeere arrives at a decaying Hope’s End to care for Lenora after her previous nurse fled in the middle of the night. In her seventies and confined to a wheelchair, Lenora was rendered mute by a series of strokes and can only communicate with Kit by tapping out sentences on an old typewriter. One night, Lenora uses it to make a tantalizing offer—I want to tell you everything.
“It wasn’t me,” Lenora said
But she’s the only one not dead
As Kit helps Lenora write about the events leading to the Hope family massacre, it becomes clear there’s more to the tale than people know. But when new details about her predecessor’s departure come to light, Kit starts to suspect Lenora might not be telling the complete truth—and that the seemingly harmless woman in her care could be far more dangerous than she first thought.
GoodReads Nominee for Favorite Mystery & Thriller 2023
My Review
I LOVED this book! I know the reviews are mixed, but this one absolutely hits the mark for me. It was also my first Riley Sager book. I had been DYING to read one of his books, so I was giddy when it became available on my library app. I listened to the audiobook and thought it was a phenomenal experience. Both of the narrators were superb, and I highly recommend listening to this book.
I also think readers should go in as blind as possible, so I won’t say too much about it. What I will say is it’s very atmospheric and feels gothic-esque. I thought the pacing was on point and the story grabbed me from the very beginning. I was highly addicted to this story and finished it in just a few days. It’s very bingeable and kept me guessing the whole time. I thought about it when I was not listening to it.
It does a great job of dropping the breadcrumbs along the way as we try to figure out this murder mystery. Like many others, I would compare this story to the real-life Lizzie Borden case. I had so much fun with this story and trying to figure it out! There are SOOO many twists and turns. It bordered on too much and definitely felt over the top, which I know people criticized it for that, but I loved it. I was all here for it and loved the wild ride we went on. I got whiplash multiple times and wanted more!
I thought it had interesting characters; I loved the atmosphere; it was a bit eerie and creepy; the mansion also felt like a character. I also enjoyed the dynamics between Kit and Lenora. I could go on, but I don’t want to reveal too much or spoil anything.
Read this book if you like: tons of family secrets, forbidden love, a good murder mystery, a gothic-type setting with a spooky mansion, eerie atmosphere, lots of tension, shocking twists, and big reveals. It has it all! I would love to see this adapted into a movie. I can’t wait to read more by this author!!
Highly recommend, especially the audiobook!!