The Last Act Of Hattie Hoffman By Mindy Mejia

[amazon_link id=”1784295760″ target=”_blank” ][/amazon_link]’The Last Act Of Hattie Hoffman’ is the thrilling new book by Mindy Mejia.

Eighteen-year-old Hattie Hoffman is the brightest star of her small town – until she is brutally murdered on the opening night of her high school play. Set across eight months before and after her murder, we flick between three narrators, Hattie, her high school English teacher Peter and local town sheriff Del Goodman, to find out what secrets this small town is hiding and what really happened to Hattie Hoffman.

For the last 24 hours, my head has been stuck in this book, it’s amazingly written, cleverly seen from the perspective of the victim, potential suspect and the police officer investigating the case and with these three very different narratives made for absolutely brilliant reading.

In the beginning of this story, we meet Hattie, she’s an aspiring young actress, who dreams of threading the boards on Broadway, but her dreams are cut tragically short when she is brutally murdered. The story begins on the night of the murder and then the following chapters, mix between both the past and present as her murder is investigated.

Hattie, is a confident young woman, she enjoys nothing more than stepping into character and begins to find over time, she is unsure of who the real Hattie is. But then Peter Lund steps into her life, as the new English teacher and she finally finds her true self as they embark on a secret relationship. Peter is unhappy in his life, he’s moved back to the small town as his mother in law is unwell and his wife Mary, wants to be close to her and be her carer. Feeling isolated and alone, their marriage becomes strained and Peter finds himself attracted to Hattie, a sharp and witty young woman who shares his passion for literature. Their relationship is fun and tentative, but also forbidden as they try to keep their feelings secret.

The story flashes back and forward between the narrative of the pair of them as they try to ignore their feelings towards each other and to when they finally give in. Whilst Sheriff Del Goodman, a gentle man who knew Hattie as a child is determined to find the killer of his friends daughter. His narrative in the story makes for interesting reading as he investigates the case, piecing clues together to find the killer.

An atmospheric psychological thriller that made for genuinely thrilling reading. The lead character is both likeable and unlikable in equal measures but also relatable in the fact that she is a small town girl wanting to escape to the land of opportunities. Riddled with twists and turns and a never ending list of suspects. A tragic love story with a cruel twist, ‘The Last Act Of Hattie Hoffman’ is an absorbing story that was impossible to put down.

You can pre-order [amazon_link id=”1784295760″ target=”_blank” ]The Last Act of Hattie Hoffman from Amazon [/amazon_link] and will be available to buy from good bookshops from 9th March 2017.