The Last Word
A Novel
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy Now for $32.62
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Carlotta Brentan
-
Jim Meskimen
-
Written by:
-
Taylor Adams
About this listen
After posting a negative review of a horror novel, a woman staying at an isolated beach house begins to wonder if the author is a little touchy—or very, very dangerous—in this pulse-pounding novel of psychological suspense and terror from the critically acclaimed author of No Exit and Hairpin Bridge.
Emma Carpenter lives in isolation with her golden retriever Laika, house-sitting an old beachfront home on the rainy Washington coast. Her only human contact is her enigmatic old neighbor, Deek, and (via text) the house’s owner, Jules.
One day, she reads a poorly written—but gruesome—horror novel by the author H. G. Kane, and posts a one-star review that drags her into an online argument with none other than the author himself. Soon after, disturbing incidents start to occur at night. To Emma, this can’t just be a coincidence. It was strange enough for this author to bicker with her online about a lousy review; could he be stalking her, too?
As Emma digs into Kane’s life and work, she learns he has published sixteen other novels, all similarly sadistic tales of stalking and murder. But who is he? How did he find her? And what else is he capable of?
Displaying his trademark command of rapid-fire pacing, unnerving atmosphere, and razor-sharp characterization, Taylor Adams once again delivers a diabolically disturbing—and deadly—game of cat and mouse.
©2023 Taylor Adams (P)2023 HarperCollins PublishersYou may also enjoy...
-
No Place Left to Hide
- Written by: Megan Lally
- Narrated by: Justis Bolding
- Length: 7 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
To Brooke, image is everything. She works hard to maintain perfect grades, perfect looks, a perfect life—especially after "the incident" that threatened it all. Getting into her dream university puts her that much closer to a fresh start. How can she say no to celebrating with all her classmates? Hanging out with her crush by the bonfire is the perfect end to the night. Except it isn't the end. An old truck starts aggressively tailing Brooke and her best friend on the isolated road toward home. Someone thinks they know the truth about "the incident."
Written by: Megan Lally
-
No Exit
- Written by: Taylor Adams
- Narrated by: Sarah Naughton
- Length: 9 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Darby Thorne is a college student stranded by a blizzard at a highway rest stop in the middle of nowhere. She’s on the way home to see her sick mother. She’ll have to spend the night in the rest stop with four complete strangers. Then she stumbles across a little girl locked inside one of their parked cars. There is no cell phone reception, no telephone, no way out because of the snow, and she doesn’t know which one of the other travelers is the kidnapper.
-
-
Couldn't finish it
- By Drsek on 2019-05-09
Written by: Taylor Adams
-
The Vanishing Hour
- Written by: Seraphina Nova Glass
- Narrated by: Brittany Pressley
- Length: 8 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Grace Holloway keeps to herself. Since narrowly escaping death at the hands of the man who kidnapped her, she’s thrown herself into the small inn she runs in Rock Harbor, Maine. It’s quiet, quaint and, in the off-season, completely isolated—the perfect place for Grace to keep her own secrets. But Grace isn’t the only one with something to hide, and Rock Harbor isn’t just a sleepy vacation town. Someone is taking young women—girls who look an awful lot like Grace did when she was kidnapped so many years ago.
-
-
Well rounded mystery. I would say almost perfect!
- By Amazon Customer on 2024-11-24
Written by: Seraphina Nova Glass
-
The Drowning Woman
- Written by: Robyn Harding
- Narrated by: Brittany Wilkerson, Henriette Zoutomou
- Length: 9 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Lee Gulliver never thought she’d find herself living on the streets—no one ever does—but when her restaurant fails, and she falls deeper into debt, she leaves her old life behind with nothing but her clothes and her Toyota Corolla. In Seattle, she parks in a secluded spot by the beach to lay low and plan her next move—until early one morning, she sees a sobbing woman throw herself into the ocean. Lee hauls the woman back to the surface, but instead of appreciation, she is met with fury.
-
-
Poor Ending
- By Pamela on 2024-12-05
Written by: Robyn Harding
-
The Chateau
- A Novel
- Written by: Jaclyn Goldis
- Narrated by: Carlotta Brentan, Amanda Carlin, Graham Halstead, and others
- Length: 13 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Welcome to picturesque Provence, where the Lady of the Chateau, Séraphine Demargelasse, has opened its elegant doors to her granddaughter Darcy and her three friends. Twenty years earlier, the four girlfriends studied abroad together in France and visited the old woman on the weekends, creating the group’s deep bond. But why this sudden invitation? Amid winery tours, market visits, and fancy dinners overlooking olive groves and lavender fields, it becomes clear that each woman has a hidden reason for returning to the estate after all these years.
-
-
Great story, well performed
- By Anynomous on 2023-09-10
Written by: Jaclyn Goldis
-
The Only One Left
- A Novel
- Written by: Riley Sager
- Narrated by: Christine Lakin, Dawn Harvey
- Length: 12 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
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. 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.
-
-
Kept me guessing
- By Susan Bergin on 2023-07-20
Written by: Riley Sager
-
No Place Left to Hide
- Written by: Megan Lally
- Narrated by: Justis Bolding
- Length: 7 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
To Brooke, image is everything. She works hard to maintain perfect grades, perfect looks, a perfect life—especially after "the incident" that threatened it all. Getting into her dream university puts her that much closer to a fresh start. How can she say no to celebrating with all her classmates? Hanging out with her crush by the bonfire is the perfect end to the night. Except it isn't the end. An old truck starts aggressively tailing Brooke and her best friend on the isolated road toward home. Someone thinks they know the truth about "the incident."
Written by: Megan Lally
-
No Exit
- Written by: Taylor Adams
- Narrated by: Sarah Naughton
- Length: 9 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Darby Thorne is a college student stranded by a blizzard at a highway rest stop in the middle of nowhere. She’s on the way home to see her sick mother. She’ll have to spend the night in the rest stop with four complete strangers. Then she stumbles across a little girl locked inside one of their parked cars. There is no cell phone reception, no telephone, no way out because of the snow, and she doesn’t know which one of the other travelers is the kidnapper.
-
-
Couldn't finish it
- By Drsek on 2019-05-09
Written by: Taylor Adams
-
The Vanishing Hour
- Written by: Seraphina Nova Glass
- Narrated by: Brittany Pressley
- Length: 8 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Grace Holloway keeps to herself. Since narrowly escaping death at the hands of the man who kidnapped her, she’s thrown herself into the small inn she runs in Rock Harbor, Maine. It’s quiet, quaint and, in the off-season, completely isolated—the perfect place for Grace to keep her own secrets. But Grace isn’t the only one with something to hide, and Rock Harbor isn’t just a sleepy vacation town. Someone is taking young women—girls who look an awful lot like Grace did when she was kidnapped so many years ago.
-
-
Well rounded mystery. I would say almost perfect!
- By Amazon Customer on 2024-11-24
Written by: Seraphina Nova Glass
-
The Drowning Woman
- Written by: Robyn Harding
- Narrated by: Brittany Wilkerson, Henriette Zoutomou
- Length: 9 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Lee Gulliver never thought she’d find herself living on the streets—no one ever does—but when her restaurant fails, and she falls deeper into debt, she leaves her old life behind with nothing but her clothes and her Toyota Corolla. In Seattle, she parks in a secluded spot by the beach to lay low and plan her next move—until early one morning, she sees a sobbing woman throw herself into the ocean. Lee hauls the woman back to the surface, but instead of appreciation, she is met with fury.
-
-
Poor Ending
- By Pamela on 2024-12-05
Written by: Robyn Harding
-
The Chateau
- A Novel
- Written by: Jaclyn Goldis
- Narrated by: Carlotta Brentan, Amanda Carlin, Graham Halstead, and others
- Length: 13 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Welcome to picturesque Provence, where the Lady of the Chateau, Séraphine Demargelasse, has opened its elegant doors to her granddaughter Darcy and her three friends. Twenty years earlier, the four girlfriends studied abroad together in France and visited the old woman on the weekends, creating the group’s deep bond. But why this sudden invitation? Amid winery tours, market visits, and fancy dinners overlooking olive groves and lavender fields, it becomes clear that each woman has a hidden reason for returning to the estate after all these years.
-
-
Great story, well performed
- By Anynomous on 2023-09-10
Written by: Jaclyn Goldis
-
The Only One Left
- A Novel
- Written by: Riley Sager
- Narrated by: Christine Lakin, Dawn Harvey
- Length: 12 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
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. 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.
-
-
Kept me guessing
- By Susan Bergin on 2023-07-20
Written by: Riley Sager
-
Room for Rent
- Written by: Noelle West Ihli
- Narrated by: Lisa Cordileone
- Length: 7 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The rundown rental house didn’t seem so bad at first. But now, someone is stealing her food. Rattling her bedroom doorknob. Digging through her belongings. Each night brings more disturbing incidents. And each night, Nya is more convinced that it’s not an intruder. She suspects the culprit is hiding in plain sight: her peculiar roommate-of-necessity, Sidney.
-
-
Excellent book!
- By Emily on 2024-12-24
Written by: Noelle West Ihli
-
Keep It in the Family
- Written by: John Marrs
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Knowelden, Steve West, Simon Mattacks, and others
- Length: 10 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mia and Finn are busy turning a derelict house into their dream home when Mia unexpectedly falls pregnant. But just when they think the house is ready, Mia discovers a shocking message scored into a skirting board: I WILL SAVE THEM FROM THE ATTIC. Following the clue up into the eaves, the couple make a gruesome discovery: their home was once a real-life murder house, with the evidence still concealed within the four walls.
-
-
Not his best
- By Amazon Customer on 2023-09-10
Written by: John Marrs
-
One Last Secret
- Written by: Adele Parks
- Narrated by: Kristin Atherton
- Length: 13 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A week at a beautiful chateau in the south of France—it should be a straightforward final job for Dora. She's a smart, stunning and discreet escort, and Daniel has paid for her services before. This time, all she has to do is to convince the assembled guests that she is his girlfriend. Dora is used to playing roles and being whatever men want her to be. It's all about putting on a front.
-
-
A drag
- By cj on 2023-08-22
Written by: Adele Parks
-
Small Town Horror
- Written by: Ronald Malfi
- Narrated by: Joe Hempel
- Length: 10 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Andrew Larimer has left his past behind. Rising up the ranks in a New York law firm, and with a heavily pregnant wife, he is settling into a new life far from Kingsport, the town in which he grew up. But when he receives a late-night phone call from an old friend, he has no choice but to return home.
Written by: Ronald Malfi
-
Someone's Listening
- Written by: Seraphina Nova Glass
- Narrated by: Amy McFadden
- Length: 9 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Faith Finley has it all: She’s a talented psychologist with a flourishing career, a best-selling author, and the host of a popular local radio program, Someone’s Listening, with Dr. Faith Finley. She’s married to the perfect man, Liam Finley, a respected food critic. Until the night everything goes horribly wrong, and Faith’s life is shattered forever. Liam is missing - gone without a trace - and the police are suspicious of everything Faith says. They either think she has something to hide, or that she’s lost her mind.
-
-
An entertaining listen
- By Aiko Lisa on 2023-11-12
Written by: Seraphina Nova Glass
-
The Last Time I Lied
- A Novel
- Written by: Riley Sager
- Narrated by: Nicol Zanzarella
- Length: 12 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Two Truths and a Lie. The girls played it all the time in their cabin at Camp Nightingale. Vivian, Natalie, Allison, and first-time camper Emma Davis, the youngest of the group. But the games ended the night Emma sleepily watched the others sneak out of the cabin into the darkness. The last she - or anyone - saw of them was Vivian closing the cabin door behind her, hushing Emma with a finger pressed to her lips. Now a rising star in the NYC art scene, Emma's paintings catch the attention of Francesca Harris-White, the socialite and wealthy owner of the very same Camp Nightingale.
-
-
book
- By michelle on 2021-06-03
Written by: Riley Sager
-
Saving Noah
- Written by: Lucinda Berry
- Narrated by: Carrington MacDuffie
- Length: 6 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Meet Noah - an A-honor-roll student, award-winning swimmer, and small-town star destined for greatness. There weren't any signs that something was wrong until the day he confesses to molesting little girls during swim-team practice. He's sentenced to 18 months in a juvenile sexual-rehabilitation center. His mother, Adrianne, refuses to turn her back on him despite his horrific crimes, but her husband won't allow Noah back into their home.
-
-
The profound sadness
- By Jbf on 2025-01-25
Written by: Lucinda Berry
-
Everyone Is Watching
- Written by: Heather Gudenkauf
- Narrated by: Brittany Pressley
- Length: 9 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Five contestants have been chosen to compete for ten million dollars on the game show One Lucky Winner. The catch? None of them knows what (or who) to expect, and it will be live streamed all over the world. Completely secluded in an estate in Northern California, with strict instructions not to leave the property and zero contact with the outside world, the competitors start to feel a little too isolated.
-
-
Boring plot
- By Reema Amir on 2024-08-04
Written by: Heather Gudenkauf
-
The Haunting of Ashburn House
- Written by: Darcy Coates
- Narrated by: Eva Kaminsky
- Length: 9 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Everyone knows about Ashburn House. They whisper its old owner went mad, and restless ghosts still walk the halls. They say it's the dwelling place of something cruel and sinister. But when Adrienne, desperate and in need of a place to stay, inherits the crumbling old mansion, she only sees it as a lifeline...until darkness falls.
-
-
This scared the be-Jeepers out of me
- By Anonymous User on 2025-01-23
Written by: Darcy Coates
-
Night Will Find You
- A Novel
- Written by: Julia Heaberlin
- Narrated by: Karissa Vacker
- Length: 11 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Vivvy Bouchet, daughter of a known psychic, was ten when she saved a boy’s life by making an impossible prediction. Now she’s an astrophysicist in Texas, devoted to science, but the boy she saved has become a cop who continues to believe she can see things no one else can. When he begs for help on the high-profile cold case of a kidnapped girl, Vivvy steps back into the ocean of voices that once nearly drowned her.
-
-
Loved it
- By Karen Melanson on 2024-12-28
Written by: Julia Heaberlin
-
The Only Survivors
- Written by: Megan Miranda
- Narrated by: Alex Allwine, Erin Moon, Andre Bellido, and others
- Length: 10 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A decade ago, two vans filled with high school seniors on a school service trip crashed into a Tennessee ravine—a tragedy that claimed the lives of multiple classmates and teachers. The nine students who managed to escape the river that night were irrevocably changed. A year later, after one of the survivors dies by suicide on the anniversary of the crash, the rest of them make a pact: to come together each year to commemorate that terrible night.
-
-
Boring
- By Carter on 2024-11-21
Written by: Megan Miranda
-
The Night Guest
- Written by: Hildur Knútsdóttir, Mary Robinette Kowal - translator
- Narrated by: Mary Robinette Kowal
- Length: 2 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Iðunn is in yet another doctor's office. She knows her constant fatigue is a sign that something's not right, but practitioners dismiss her symptoms and blood tests haven't revealed any cause. When she talks to friends and family about it, the refrain is the same—have you tried eating better? exercising more? establishing a nighttime routine? She tries to follow their advice, buying everything from vitamins to sleeping pills to a step-counting watch. Nothing helps. Until one night Iðunn falls asleep with the watch on, and wakes up to find she’s walked over 40,000 steps in the night.
-
-
Kept me entertained
- By Dayana Kibilds on 2025-01-14
Written by: Hildur Knútsdóttir, and others
What listeners say about The Last Word
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 2023-05-14
I like it!
It a good story! And the structure of two different people point of views is nice and makes it hilarious. At some point I feel too scary to leave the book to go get water.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- PE anonymous
- 2023-11-26
Unique
I found this book very unique, the narration was really well done. I was engaged in all of the characters, including the characters I didn’t like…I found it a good change in a genre I am currently fixated on.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anynomous
- 2023-10-05
An actual masterpiece
This is one of the best written books that I have ever read. I read and love a lot of novels but I haven't really claimed one as my favourite since I was a teenager and my favourite books were really just the first books to impact me deeply. But this book is now undoubtedly my favourite book. It's honestly a masterpiece. It's technically a horror or domestic thriller but what makes it exceptional is not its theme. It's how the story is narratively developed and the author's ability to cultivate suspense. At its heart, this book is about the skill and deceit of writing and the complexities of perception, and I can't even with how good it is. Without giving anything away, it's a geniusly crafted analysis of rhetoric and storytelling delivered in the most suspenseful and engrossing story that I've ever read. Fucking brilliant.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Cassandra Dietz
- 2024-09-04
My best read of 2024
This was a fantastic book. The narrators were impeccable, the story was gripping and unique. Highly recommend!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Leigh
- 2023-05-02
Great!
Interesting plot that kept me guessing! I really liked the main character! Not that I’d dare to leave a bad review after reading this book! 😉
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Theo Ferreira
- 2023-07-02
Loved it!
Kept me guessing and waiting for the next twist!! Loved the way there was two storytellers!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ingrid Garcia
- 2023-07-12
Not for me
The main event goes on and on and on. I skipped three chapters and it was still too long for me. It’s also very predictable. Not for me.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- JnnSin
- 2023-09-03
Gripping
Had my heart in my throat from the start. Tense and scary I couldn’t stop listening.
Well Done ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- sharlene
- 2023-05-22
Surprisingly good
It was a rollercoaster ride. Reminds me of the old horror movies when you are waiting for the next twist to jump out at you.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- R. S.
- 2023-07-25
Best book I’ve experienced in a long time!
I enjoyed this book so much! It was beyond what I expected it to be, and even when I thought I had it figured out the twists just kept on coming.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!