Title: Last Known Contact
Author: Phillipa Nefri Clark
Published: July 8th 2020
Publisher: Self Published
Pages: 364
Genres: Fiction, Contemporary, Suspense, Romance
RRP: $24.95
Rating: 4 stars
Sometimes the only person you can trust is yourself
Her father is missing. Her estranged husband Dennis is his last known contact. The detective on the case is a man she once loved and turned her back on after a tragedy tore them apart.
Ellie Connor thought her father Jack trusted her with his business empire, but now she doesn’t know what to believe. With Jack gone, Ellie seems to be the only one genuinely concerned for his safety.
Jack’s head of security, Paul, is convinced Dennis is hiding something about her father’s disappearance. But could Paul have his own motives for deception? When shocking secrets are uncovered about the company, Ellie’s belief in her father is shattered. Is it possible he is in the business of building lies?
Someone is determined to stop Ellie from learning the truth. And if Ellie trusts the wrong person, the results could be fatal . . .
A gripping new suspense from the author of the River’s End series and the Charlotte Dean Mysteries.
Review:
Merging romance with suspense, deception, intrigue and trust, Last Known Contact is the latest contemporary fiction arrangement from Phillipa Nefri Clark. This self-published author strives to provide her audience with a thrilling mystery novel that pulls out all the stops from page one to the gripping close.
Trust is the main theme than encircles Last Known Contact. When the story begins, lead character Ellie Connor is faced with the prospect that estranged her father is missing and possibly dead. To complicate matters further, Ellie’s husband is the last person to have been in direct contact with her father. Additional problems arise in this case via the detective assigned to Ellie’s father’s disappearance. Ellie must confront a former lover, a man she abandoned in the face of a past tragedy. With plenty of suspect dealings surrounding Ellie’s father and his business pursuits, a complicated picture begins to form of the missing man. Ellie is torn and she doesn’t know who to place her trust in the longer her father remains missing. With a number of suspects coming to light as this case progresses, including Ellie’s father’s security specialist, secrets begin to rise to the surface. Ellie’s opinion of her father continues to plummet, but this daughter is determined to find out what happened to her father, even if puts her life at risk.
I have supported the writing of independent author Phillipa Nefri Clark for some time now, making my way through a number of her novels. Last Known Contact is her latest release, which presents the reader with a good dose of mystery, crime, suspense and a touch of romance. I enjoyed my time with the lead character of this novel as she worked to uncover the truth surrounding her father’s disappearance.
As soon as you enter the pages of Last Known Contact the sleuthing process begins. I needed to put on my detective hat instantly with this one, as I was immediately embroiled in a perplexing disappearance and possible murder case. Phillipa Nefri Clark has produced an astute mystery narrative, filled with plenty of possible suspects, leads to follow and plot flips. The novel flows very steadily, so the reader is engaged throughout.
Drawing in themes of business, family tensions, relationships, love, regrets, tragedy, loyalty and trust, Last Known Contact leaves the reader with plenty to contend with. Within her novel, Phillipa Nefri Clark provides a balanced set of both good and bad characters. In the lead Ellie, we have a strong and resolute woman, on a path of self discovery that will change her life forever. Ellie is an everyday woman, who many will be able to relate to. My final word on this novel is the strong theatrical focus to the story. I could see Last Known Contact in the form of a television miniseries, or even a movie.
Take a chance on Last Known Contact. I recommend this one if you enjoy Australian romantic suspense novels.
Last Known Contact by Phillipa Nefri Clark was published on July 8th 2020 by the author, details on how to purchase the book can be found on the author’s website here.
*With thanks to the author, Phillipa Nefri Clark, for providing me with a copy of this novel, in exchange for an honest review.
Last Known Contact is book #29 of the 2021 Australian Women Writers Challenge
