The choices we make define our lives. In the blink of an eye, everything can go wrong. Terribly, terribly wrong. We can choose to do the right thing, however difficult, or we can choose the easy way out. Beware, though, the easy way out comes with strings attached.

Longtime Bend, Oregon resident Liz Jarrett has aspirations of becoming a lawyer. She’s been studying hard, and now she’s heading out to take the bar exam. Maybe it’s because she’s running late, or perhaps it’s because she’s sleep-deprived, but something awful happens. Why, of all mornings, did it have to be this one? She has no time to spare. In fact, she will have to break some speed limits to make it anyway. If Liz could undo this tragedy, oh heavens, yes she would. But of course she can’t. And it was an accident, she tells herself. Yes, what happened was an accident, a horrible accident. But what Liz does next is no accident. What she does next is entirely deliberate.

"This is a great parable illustrating the power of guilt. In the end, did Liz make things right, or had she already let them go too far? You decide in this gut-wrenching thriller by a master of true crime."

Liz’s husband, Owen, is on the brink of big money. He and his partner are entertaining business investors that will have them rolling in the green soon. Owen wants a big, modern house like his neighbors own. He wants a flashy, expensive car. He already has begun wearing high-dollar suits. Nothing can stop him now. Nothing, that is, except what his wife did. Liz’s mistake hangs over their heads like a teetering boulder, ready to drop and crush them. If anyone finds out, he’s finished. He’s started to hate her for that morning and how she’s handling herself now. Why can’t she see what it’s doing to him?

Liz’s accident has also affected their neighbors, Carole and David. The couple lives in the grand house that Owen covets, but their lives are beginning to crumble. David starts spending more time at his restaurant, leaving Carole running to Liz for support. Of all people, Liz is about the worst choice; she can barely make it through each day under the weight of her guilt, let alone help someone else cope with their problems.

Meanwhile, the entire Bend community is rooting for a happy ending. However, the events Liz set in motion the morning of the bar exam ensure there will not be a happy ending for everyone. Maybe not for anyone. Too many lies have been told. Too many deceptions have been played out. Too many betrayals have occurred.

Every reader will remember a time when they were faced with a decision like the one Liz Jarrett faced. Maybe not one of such magnitude, but of a similar type. Do you confess what happened or try to get away with it? THE LAST THING SHE EVER DID makes a strong argument for doing the right thing. If Liz had, a lot of grief might have been avoided. But because she didn’t, a snowball that was a lie gathered speed and hurt many people. Now she will likely never recover. Nor will others in this story.

This is a great parable illustrating the power of guilt. In the end, did Liz make things right, or had she already let them go too far? You decide in this gut-wrenching thriller by a master of true crime.