Gillian McAllister took a while between novels because she had a baby during that time. It seems to have inspired her latest domestic thriller, FAMOUS LAST WORDS, which involves a twisty plot that takes readers down the rabbit hole and all the way to Wonderland before its finale.

On the first day that Camilla Deschamps drops off her infant daughter, Polly, at daycare, two officers --- DS Steven Lambert and PC Emma Smith --- share information with her that she finds impossible to believe. Her husband Luke, who is employed as a ghostwriter, apparently is involved in a hostage situation at a London warehouse. Shockingly, he is holding three innocent people hostage.

When Lambert and Smith go through Camilla’s home, they find Luke’s laptop, as well as evidence of visits to the dark web, strange messages, and a good deal of information that was completely wiped off the disk’s memory. Camilla is beside herself; to the best of her knowledge, her easygoing husband has had no enemies, skeletons in his closet, or run-ins with anyone who might drive him to criminal behavior.

"Around every corner of this story is a psychological thriller that dares the audience to go down one alley only to find themselves completely spun around and rethinking everything they thought they knew to be true."

The London P.D. brings in one of their hostage negotiators, Niall Thompson, who wants Camilla to be on the scene to help talk her husband down. Tragically, Luke ends up shooting and killing two of the three hostages and eludes police capture. Niall is clearly disappointed in how everything went down, but after meeting with Camilla, he begins to think that there is more to this situation than meets the eye.

Camilla also works as Luke’s literary agent, which should lead one to believe that she knows how his mind works better than anyone. The action leaps forward seven years, which seems like an eternity for Camilla and Polly. Luke never resurfaces or even contacts them. However, Camilla does receive an anonymous manuscript that appears to be a great thriller. Upon further inspection, though, it seems to be telling a story that is remarkably similar to the events that transpired at that warehouse.

With her new semi-boyfriend, Charlie, assisting and supporting her, Camilla begins to delve deeper into her husband, who she still can’t believe is a cold-blooded murderer. She ends up joining forces with Niall, who offers his assistance on his own time, and the two begin to unravel a backstory and possible conspiracy that could explain Luke’s true motives and what was actually going on during that heated and deadly day.

I really need to tread lightly at this point because Gillian McAllister so brilliantly plots FAMOUS LAST WORDS that any more detail would spoil all the fun for the reader. Around every corner of this story is a psychological thriller that dares the audience to go down one alley only to find themselves completely spun around and rethinking everything they thought they knew to be true. The chapters are told from the perspectives of different characters, which adds to the surprises of this entertaining puzzle of a novel, while the narrators uncover all the juicy tidbits that McAllister leaves for us.