The summer of 1986 was a summer to remember. The local factory was going to permanently shut its doors putting a lot of people out of work. He wanted to give all his employees week of rest and relaxation for them and their families. David and Samuel were good friends. Both their fathers worked at the factory. They had other things in common .. how their fathers viewed them, how they and their mothers were treated. They make a new friend, Julie, who was just a tad younger than them. But then Julie goes missing. Its been 30 years since that summer. David has become a famous author ... Samuel is his publisher. Neither of them have ever discussed that summer .. but someone knows exactly what happened. David and Samuel each receive a manuscript written by an anonymous source. The chapters each tell the story of what really happened that summer. It also states that it was sent to one other person... but who? and why? The story takes us back and forth .. from one person to another. An explosive fire, a child's body, dark secrets. There are many suspects with varied motivations... and there is at least one person who knows the truth of what happened. Twists and turns keep the suspense high until the most unexpected conclusion. Many thanks to the author / Hodder & Stoughton / Netgalley for the digital copy of this crime fiction. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

Terrific plot here, centring on three children meeting on holiday in the idyllic setting of a French beach. Their families are not as innocent as the children, and this becomes increasingly apparent as the story unfolds. Arson, murder, suicides, lies and secrets consume the lives of not just the main characters, but of the many other people involved in the terrible events of that Summer. The plot was more convincing than the writing style for this reviewer, with the narrative suffering from a lack of flow at times, and an occasional confusion over whose voice was telling the tale, but the ending was excellent, drawing all the various strands together and was not predictable until very close to the final paragraphs. Many thanks to NetGalley and to Hodder & Stoughton for my review copy.

France 1986. Sweltering heat. Twelve-year-olds meeting a girl. Infatuation. Factory workers gathering mysteriously. A girl missing. And meanwhile, there’s so much tension under the surface. This story is about David and Samuel, mostly told from David's perspective. Friends from childhood and still friends 31 years later when they both receive a manuscript describing what happened that summer in 1986. But one chapter is different, the final chapter. Another book by Jérôme Loubry has been translated into quite a few languages, including my native one. And now this one has been translated into English. And I’m glad Hodder took the opportunity to do so. Because this is such a well-written book that deserves a much larger reading public. Like I said above, this story has a very tense atmosphere, especially in the flashbacks in the first half of the book. The writing is captivating and vivid, and therefore I could see those kids on the beach, playing in the arcade, feeling the tension but not knowing how to deal with it. Because of the tension in 1986, I liked the first half of the story more than the second half. The second part wasn’t bad at all, but I guessed the major plot twist that made the story a bit more predictable. For me, at least.

This cleverly written thriller is about a book in a book, which I can’t recall ever reading anything quite like it. It tells the story of 3 childhood friends on their summer holiday in 1986 with their families, their current circumstances which are dyer, and the lead up to events that result in a devastating tragedy. The story is told via a manuscript sent to three people, all of who have a tie to the tragedy of 1986. As they read through the pages, they are alarmed by the vivid detail and true the book is to the real-life events that they experienced. However, the final chapter is different for each of them. All three final chapters are required to unlock the mystery behind the book, unraveling who the author is and why they have unburied the past after such a long period of time. This book is full of surprises and twists. You think you know what’s happening and the ending completely throws you off balance! Although, it is quite slow paced to start, it is worth persevering through, it speeds up towards the end where there is a lot of action and revelations which all seem to come about at once. I come close a few times to giving you on the book, particularly try to get into it with the slow start, but I’m glad I didn’t. Once you get to the last 40-35% it truly makes up for the slow start and I didn’t want to put it down once I’d got to that point. Personally for me, I like a book that can grip me from the start. Those first few chapters need to reel me in and unfortunately this book was a bit to slow to start. Like I’ve mentioned, it does make up for it, and it is a good book. The mystery element to it was fab, and it really did surprise me with the end reveal and final twist. I thought I had it sussed but I really didn’t at all, so it was clever how the author deceived the audience in that way. ** I received an advanced copy of this ebook to read and review. Thank you NetGalley, the author and the publisher for allowing me this opportunity **

Psychological thriller It’s 1986 and best friends, David and Samuel, enjoy nothing more than a summer’s day together on the beach. They befriend Julie who is visiting with her Auntie and it’s not long before all three are inseparable. As for all children, the summer seems to stretch into infinity, but it’s brought to an abrupt end when Julie disappears, and a child’s body is found shortly afterwards. It seems to be in vogue nowadays for writers to give readers mountains of seemingly unrelated facts which then become clear as the plot progresses and so it is with The Final Chapter. I’m not a great fan of this approach but there’s no doubt it’s effective and an excellent way to draw in the reader. The plot runs along with two timelines. The first when the boys are children and the second nearer the present day when David is a famous writer and Samuel his publisher. There’s a lot about this book to compliment. The atmosphere of a summer holiday on the beach was well drawn as were the shadowy, threatening character of Red as seen through a child’s eyes. However, much of the action didn’t have a ring of truth and once doubt sets in about the veracity of characters’ actions the author has lost his reader. Additionally, there was quite a bit going on away from the main theme. It was a major distraction and if that was intentional, here’s one reader who didn’t appreciate it. The end twist will not be seen coming and was an excellent drawing together of the loose ends. However, it was weakened by the feeling of it being a little unbelievable and unlikely to have happened. It felt a rather too convenient way to close the tale without it being a credible explanation. Anyone who enjoys “whodunnits” will enjoy The Final Chapter which despite its flaws was an enjoyable read. mr zorg Elite Reviewing group received a copy of the book to review.