But change was not going to come easily. Her most trusted client Daniel reaches out, pleading for one last rendezvous. He needs her to escort him to a function in the French countryside. Nora is reluctant, torn between her two opposing worlds. But come on! The French countryside? One last job won’t hurt anyone…. ya right!? I thought the audiobook was nicely done, and Kristin Atherton was a great narrator who I thoroughly enjoyed listening to. Dora is in her early 30s and to me, Atherton sounded much older than that, but I also never would have guessed Dora's age unless it was said in the book. She felt like an older character to me and for that reason, I thought Atherton was the perfect fit voice-wise. This is a slow burner for the most part, but the story gets crazy wild, so hang onto your horses! I would recommend One Last Secret to readers that enjoy domestic suspense, revenge, and healthy doses of uniqueness. I couldn't get behind some of Dora's decisions which seemed silly compared to how she is in the rest of the book, but I was here for all the rest.

I really hate books with gaslighting and I didn’t realize how prominently it would feature here. I couldn’t wait for Dora to catch up with what the reader already knows. The pacing is all off in this book and the first reveal isn’t even a reveal because we have no idea who this person is or why we should care. I also didn’t quite get how easily she succumbed to the ‘final gig’. How Elspeth kinda handed her over on a platter, despite obviously knowing what it meant (and why there was no mention of her later!), not to mention Dora’s naiveté in accepting the job and then acquiescing when things got a bit weird in France. One Last Secret is a juicy, tantalising and pacey read that will appeal to fans of Sally Hepworth and other domestic dramas with strong female protagonists. Overall though, I had a difficult time putting the book down because it's compulsively readable and I did want to know how everything was going to shake down in the end. There are some good twists and although I didn't always like Dora's choices I did like her and was rooting for her success.

Dora is an escort, the oldest profession in the world. She is quite upfront about her career but after one client treats her horrifically her friend Evan, a trust fund baby, asks her to marry him and she says yes. However, one client begs her to do one last job which is to accompany him to France and fake a relationship and so she reluctantly agrees. What could possibly go wrong? Dora finds herself face-to-face with a man she has never forgotten, the one man who really knows her. And as old secrets surface, it becomes terrifyingly apparent that one last secret could cost Dora her life… It was abrupt but absolutely necessary! I was about to give 2 stars to this book! But last third changed my mind: at least so many of my questions answered even though they were far fetched explanations! What unravels is predictably dark and dangerous but bizarrely hyperbolic and unbelievable. It’s also really, really repetitive. The characters are all stereotypes (including Dora’s Serbian mother) and the ending feels forced. Dora can’t resist taking one last job - escorting a regular to a French château and pretending to be his girlfriend. No sex allowed. Surely that’s fine?

As for the plot, you don't want to read too much into that at all, best to go in as blind as possible. All you need to know is this: Dora goes on one last girlfriend experience (without the sex) to a super secluded mansion in the south of France. She is gaslit, drugged, and raped while drugged. She does not figure out that her “naps” right after politely eating or drinking something forced on her mean she was drugged even though it happens multiple times. The guy who beat her up is an employee of her daughter’s father who has brought her out there to be murdered by that employee. Dora is a sex worker. Or a ‘hooker’ or ‘whore’ - words that are littered throughout the text���not sure that was necessary. When she’s beaten by a dangerous client, she’s more than a little shaken and her millionaire boy best friend offers her an out. That is more than enough. From here it needs to be a blank canvas. We learn alot about Dora, her past life and her decisions that have shaped the way she lives today. The story is told mostly from her point of view and she is very open about her work and lifestyle. And she makes some good points on how her profession is viewed in society. At the funeral, Dora learns fiancé can swim and just let his dad die for torturing her. No one in super wealthy connected family is bothered that she’s a former escort so yay for her.The action is mostly set in the beautiful surroundings of a chateau in the south of France and this glamourous location pulled me right in! I definitely felt a sense of unease, tension and confusion as Dora entered this location. I also wanted to yell at her and signal a warning that she should have stayed home with her fiancé. Dora was definitely taking an unneces This was my first time reading an Adele Parks book, and it did not disappoint. Dora’s character was so well done and had me rooting for her the entire time. She is then asked to attend one last function at a stunning chateau in the South of France, simply to be there as staged arm candy, no intimacy required, only pretence where necessary. It happens to coincide with her fiance's Evan absence on a work trip and feels it would be doing one last favour to an ex client. Yes, there is luxury, there are beautiful people hanging around the pool, the accommodation is stunning, but almost as soon as she arrives she doesn’t feel herself and she can’t quite put her finger on what is going on. She also recognises one of the other guests and immediately goes into overdrive. It is someone she really would never want to meet again, yet her clarity of thought is letting her down – she is usually at the top of her game, astute and incisive when she needs to act. it is all undoubtedly turning weird. Adele Parks now rises to the very top of my list in the domestic noir category. I have had a really thirst for this genre of late and One Last Secret filled my cup. Unpredictable, wild and tantalising, I couldn’t get enough of this tale of a high-end escort.