The Last to Vanish: Megan Miranda

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The story is told by protagonist Abby Lovett in a moody atmospheric tone. Abby has a connection to the hotel and the missing hikers, but the reader doesn’t know why for most of the novel. When Landon’s brother, Trey, shows up to investigate his brother’s disappearance, Abby wonders what he’s finding. Afterwards Trey asks Abby for Landon’s journal but she says the police have it. She intends to burn it. The Last To Vanish is Megan Miranda at her finest: an eerie edge-of-the-earth location, riveting characters, and thrills that just don’t quit. Loved this novel.” —Laura Dave, New York Times Bestselling author of The Last Thing He Told Me

The Last to Vanish | Book by Megan Miranda | Official

This is a quiet, slow moving story for most of the book and might be too slow for many people. But I enjoyed the time the story took and the threat of something bad lurking, of something going to happen, the pressure of things left unsaid. Everyone seems to have secrets and it's impossible to know who to trust. Phones lines keep going down, things keep going missing, people show up where they shouldn't be. See why I wouldn't want to go hiking there? Insiders don't often have the advantage that outsiders do. It's all in the position of seeing life from the peripheral edge. Abby’s character grated on the nerves a bit too. It’s no secret that her imagination runs away with her, but it did induce some eye-rolling from this reader. Her tendency to accuse people without evidence and beg for the truth was a bit irksome. When she wasn’t doing that, I did like her character.Now, the string of unsolved disappearances that haunts the town is again thrust into the spotlight when Landon West, a journalist investigating the story, himself disappears. So the gist is that a bunch of people over the years have disappeared without a trace from the idyllic mountain community of Cutters Pass, NC. Abbie, who runs the local Inn, sets out to find the truth when the brother of the latest guy to disappear shows up in town. Abby sends a text to Rochelle asking for help. She’s alone with Harris and starts asking him about Alice Kelly. He says they arrived on the trail and she fell and hit her head. He “brought her home.” But danger was a concept fueled by uncertainty, that grew stronger the longer we went with no answers. Time kept expanding here. With every new, unanswered question, something stirred.”

The Last to Vanish: From the New York Times bestselling

The plot is slower than Miranda’s usual works, but I don’t mind that. I enjoy descriptive writing like that of the town, the inn, etc as it helps a reader understand the dynamics of small town life. Cutter’s Pass seemed like a place where nothing bad could happen, with it’s touristy, downtown which offered snowflake shaped lights and hot chocolate in Winter, Farmer’s Markets, and ice cream on outdoor patios in Summer and The Last Stop tavern year round for food and libations.There were a lot of rumors about us here, as a collective about the things we knew, the secrets we kept. But they ignored the obvious." Don't miss this one!! I'm still reeling in it. Great job, Megan Miranda! You are still one of favorites! The town is known for the Fraternity Four, a group of 4 young men who vanished 20+ years ago, the bodies have never been recovered – it’s as though they just VANISHED!!

The Last To Vanish – Bookends Megan Miranda | The Last To Vanish – Bookends

Abby sleuths her way into the mystery of the missing hikers. She has worked at the hotel for over 10 years, yet the townsfolk treat her as an outsider. Miranda is brilliant in bringing the reader into the woods, feeling the danger and suspense and pervasive sense of unease.. She reminds me of Jane Harper in her skill in writing a beaut of an atmospheric story. How would you characterize the relationships that Abby has with other characters? Are her relationships with the town’s longtime residents different from her relationships with semi-outsiders like Georgia? What about with Trey? If you don’t like books that suddenly turn paranormal (same!) I am here to assure you that does not happen in The Last to Vanish.Explore the role that “outsiders” play in The Last to Vanish , as well as in real life. Are they, like Landon and Trey West, able to pierce through the secrets that close-knit communities hide? Consider, in your evaluation, the role that Abby (who is both an outsider and not) plays in this novel. What kinds of revelations is she privy to as someone who occupies this unique position? There are a lot of thrillers with a small town setting and a past/present format. Books like All Good People Here by Ashley Flowers or The Survivors by Jane Harper. A new guest arrives on a stormy night. He's got a connection to Landon. In fact, he's Landon's brother Trey. Abby feels unsettled with him there giving off vibes that darken the reputation of the inn. But soon she realizes that Trey may be on to something. And that something may be putting herself in danger. The beautiful setting in a small mountain town famous for its proximity to the Appalachian Trail was brought to life so wonderfully that I felt that I was taking a scenic vacation. An unsettling one, but I was transported all the same.

THE LAST TO VANISH | Kirkus Reviews THE LAST TO VANISH | Kirkus Reviews

Abby speaks to the sheriff, who says that the photos Trey found don’t contain any valuable information. Abby takes Trey to talk to the sheriff. Since the phone lines at the inn have been out, she calls for phone line repair. Harris Donald, the repairman, says they lines have been tampered with. What does “haunting” mean in the context of Trey’s role in the novel, and what does the word mean for the inhabitants of Cutter’s Pass at large? Are the longtime residents, like Celeste and Cory, haunted by different things than Georgia or Abby are? Discuss.Overall, even though this was a bit of a closed door mystery, it was dull, many times going nowhere that was frustrating and wearisome.(in other words BORING) The characters were also annoying and it didn't help that I didn't like a one of them. After finishing, I truly felt I was the one driving that car round and round with no escape button. Harris: who says Alice’s death was an accident but then killed Farrah and Landon to cover up Alice’s death. Ten years ago, Abigail Lovett fell into a job she loves, managing The Passage Inn, a cozy, upscale resort nestled in the North Carolina mountain town of Cutter's Pass. Cutter's Pass is best known for its outdoor offerings—rafting and hiking, with access to the Appalachian trail by way of a gorgeous waterfall—and its mysterious history. As the book begins, the string of unsolved disappearances that has haunted the town is once again thrust into the spotlight when journalist Landon West, who was staying at the inn to investigate the story of the vanishing trail, then disappears himself. What role does technology play in this novel? Consider how it’s used by characters as it relates to the truth (both the uncovering and the obscuring of it). Additionally: you might explore the difference between the author’s de- scriptions of nature and the author’s descriptions of manmade objects. Do they vary in any significant way? Discuss.