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The Last Page
THE LAST PAGE is a suspense thriller situated at the intersection of two seemingly unconnected domains—the realm of academic publishing and the high-stakes world of cocaine trafficking.Dr. Cameron McClellan has just moved his family to the Gulf coast of Florida. After securing a new job at a local university, he is approached by the editor at a newly formed publishing company to write a book for them. Unbeknownst to Cameron, however, the publisher is merely a front for illicit activity. After the body of a colleague washes ashore on a local beach—and as they begin to uncover more details of the operation—Cameron and his wife, Kat, begin to further suspect that something isn’t right. As the couple gets closer to solving the mystery, catastrophes strike the McClellan family. Only Luis, the detective friend of the McClellans, stands a chance to help the them all survive.THE LAST PAGE is a follow-up to Mertler’s first novel, Tequesta University (Mirador Publishing, 2018), and follows several of the same characters through new suspense-filled exploits.
446 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 31, 2019
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5 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
September 17, 2020
The last page
The title itself attracted me to read this book and I must say it is one of the best fiction book I read, fully loaded with mystery, thrill and suspense. The pace of book is absolutely classic so easy to read and written very well. The characters are so fascinating and the suspense of the book keeps you engaged to keep on reading. The plot is so easy to follow and every chapter forces you to read next.
The Last Page is a suspense thriller based on the intersection of two unrelated worlds. A must read book if you love the suspense and thriller plots. The characters are so related that I felt like knowing them.
The book is well paced, easy to read (always a bonus) and written really well; as were the characters. There is a good deal of suspense in the book as you would expect but it is evenly spread out throughout the story, keeping you engaged and reading until the end.
The plot is well written and easy to follow. The events develop smoothly. The characters are so likeable. There is no dull moment. Scenes are so clear, felt like flowing in front of eyes.
The title itself attracted me to read this book and I must say it is one of the best fiction book I read, fully loaded with mystery, thrill and suspense. The pace of book is absolutely classic so easy to read and written very well. The characters are so fascinating and the suspense of the book keeps you engaged to keep on reading. The plot is so easy to follow and every chapter forces you to read next.
The Last Page is a suspense thriller based on the intersection of two unrelated worlds. A must read book if you love the suspense and thriller plots. The characters are so related that I felt like knowing them.
The book is well paced, easy to read (always a bonus) and written really well; as were the characters. There is a good deal of suspense in the book as you would expect but it is evenly spread out throughout the story, keeping you engaged and reading until the end.
The plot is well written and easy to follow. The events develop smoothly. The characters are so likeable. There is no dull moment. Scenes are so clear, felt like flowing in front of eyes.
May 24, 2020
Sun. Drugs. Murder. Academia! Ahem...what more can you ask for in this unprecedented times of lockdown!
I love reading fiction, and if it comes with a dose of academia, oh boy! I get mesmerised! This book was an icing on the cake, with a jerry on the top! I gleefully devoured in one sitting! The plot is well written and easy to follow. The events develop smoothly. The characters are likeable. There is no dull moment. I highly recommend it. A must-read!
I love reading fiction, and if it comes with a dose of academia, oh boy! I get mesmerised! This book was an icing on the cake, with a jerry on the top! I gleefully devoured in one sitting! The plot is well written and easy to follow. The events develop smoothly. The characters are likeable. There is no dull moment. I highly recommend it. A must-read!
June 10, 2020
A murder mystery in the sun! When I picked this up I was not exactly sure how the mixture of academia publishing, sun, drugs and murder would work but I was pleasantly surprised by this read. The book is well paced, easy to read (always a bonus) and written really well; as were the characters. There is a good deal of suspense in the book as you would expect but it is evenly spread out throughout the story, keeping you engaged and reading until the end. A highly recommended lockdown read.
August 11, 2020
The plot keeps thickening! 🥺🥺 First start today and I went 10 chapters all in! The creativity and dexterity with which this this book was written blows my mind! Every chapter calls on the next! ❤️❤️
Edited: Done with the Novel and one thing I'm sure of is I'm definitely reading more books written by this brilliant author. I couldn't be more satisfied with the resolution of conflict.
Isn't it weird that we all hope that a supposed bad character doesn't die or has a happy ending?? 🤔🤔
Edited: Done with the Novel and one thing I'm sure of is I'm definitely reading more books written by this brilliant author. I couldn't be more satisfied with the resolution of conflict.
Isn't it weird that we all hope that a supposed bad character doesn't die or has a happy ending?? 🤔🤔
May 27, 2020
Truly one of the best fiction I have read - mystery, thrill, suspense, everything was just awesome. It never let my energy down during the read.
Scenes were clear and very well depicted in words.
Good job by the author.
Scenes were clear and very well depicted in words.
Good job by the author.
May 9, 2020
I started my academic career almost 3 years ago, but thankfully it's not as exciting as this one. I enjoyed reading this book, it was the entertainment I needed in a time like this. I liked all characters, but I think the detective is my favorite. It's written well, the events develop smoothly, and it has the right amount of suspense to keep you engaged. Glad I chose to read it.
October 4, 2021
What I liked
- the mystery does get thicker and thicker as you read on, dual perspective really carrying the plot forward, which I liked. However, since it was dual perspective, it lacked the element of surprise as one side was the drug dealers' and the other was the author's. I already knew what would happen / who the culprit was because the book would show the dealers' perspective first.
-The mystery was interesting, as we got to see how Cameron and the detective will solve the crime.
What I didn't like
- The writing style was not really for me. I tend to prefer writing style that does a lot more showing than telling + a lot of description of the scene / characters so I can infer their emotions rather than it being through the character talking. In this book, there were more telling than showing, which did not help me to get into the story.
-the characters did many things that I didn't agree with, not just the drug dealers obviously but Cameron and other characters. Their actions did not really align with the scene / their emotions - e.g) I found it odd that Cameron was happy and bought a boat after finding out his friend was brutally murdered. - he was sad and then after a little while he was happy seeing a new boat.
-the way the characters speak (again personally disliked the writing style) was very flat in my opinion, and did not feel like what actual people would say in these situations. I wish we had more deep / developed conversations that show the different sides of the characters.
-The whole drug on books raised many questions - did the dealers really think that their authors would not question anything? It's just so immoral to deceive the authors like that and to deceive the readers. What if the readers do not want to get addicted? Not that I would know of drug dealing business (thankfully), there were many clear holes that the dealers in the book did not consider.
-one of the lines said something along the lines of 'strong personality' / 'extroverted and likeable'. I thought this implied that introverts are not likeable or have strong personality, which are not true!
- the mystery does get thicker and thicker as you read on, dual perspective really carrying the plot forward, which I liked. However, since it was dual perspective, it lacked the element of surprise as one side was the drug dealers' and the other was the author's. I already knew what would happen / who the culprit was because the book would show the dealers' perspective first.
-The mystery was interesting, as we got to see how Cameron and the detective will solve the crime.
What I didn't like
- The writing style was not really for me. I tend to prefer writing style that does a lot more showing than telling + a lot of description of the scene / characters so I can infer their emotions rather than it being through the character talking. In this book, there were more telling than showing, which did not help me to get into the story.
-the characters did many things that I didn't agree with, not just the drug dealers obviously but Cameron and other characters. Their actions did not really align with the scene / their emotions - e.g) I found it odd that Cameron was happy and bought a boat after finding out his friend was brutally murdered. - he was sad and then after a little while he was happy seeing a new boat.
-the way the characters speak (again personally disliked the writing style) was very flat in my opinion, and did not feel like what actual people would say in these situations. I wish we had more deep / developed conversations that show the different sides of the characters.
-The whole drug on books raised many questions - did the dealers really think that their authors would not question anything? It's just so immoral to deceive the authors like that and to deceive the readers. What if the readers do not want to get addicted? Not that I would know of drug dealing business (thankfully), there were many clear holes that the dealers in the book did not consider.
-one of the lines said something along the lines of 'strong personality' / 'extroverted and likeable'. I thought this implied that introverts are not likeable or have strong personality, which are not true!
January 22, 2020
I’ve always used well written fiction and mysteries to slow down and get my mind off of the world of assessment and accreditation. But to add in a dose of the real world of academia, that was the icing on the cake. Can’t wait to see what is Dr. McClellan’s next adventure!
Read
July 13, 2020I was really looking forward to reading this book since it was centered on academic publishing. I figured, I might decide to write a book someday, what better way to learn about publishing than from a novel?
In the book, professor McClellan and his wife had just moved to Florida's gulf coast to start over. He is offered a job in a university and his wife gets a career change becoming a real estate agent. Everything seems to be going fine with their new lives until he is approached by a publishing company asking him to write a book for them. Unbeknownst to him, the company is a front for one of the biggest drug trafficking schemes in the area. By asking innocent questions and making remarks, he begins to ruffle the feathers of his employers and finds himself in big trouble.
Very great storyline here. But, I felt the author would have done justice to this book if he created exciting plot twists. We were practically being told exactly what would happen even before they did, which made me wonder why the book was in the thriller section. And the fact that it took me almost a month to read this book, which ordinarily would take me less than a day, lends credence to my claims.
In the book, professor McClellan and his wife had just moved to Florida's gulf coast to start over. He is offered a job in a university and his wife gets a career change becoming a real estate agent. Everything seems to be going fine with their new lives until he is approached by a publishing company asking him to write a book for them. Unbeknownst to him, the company is a front for one of the biggest drug trafficking schemes in the area. By asking innocent questions and making remarks, he begins to ruffle the feathers of his employers and finds himself in big trouble.
Very great storyline here. But, I felt the author would have done justice to this book if he created exciting plot twists. We were practically being told exactly what would happen even before they did, which made me wonder why the book was in the thriller section. And the fact that it took me almost a month to read this book, which ordinarily would take me less than a day, lends credence to my claims.
October 4, 2020
It's a good book . It is a novel I like it and but I didn't complete you really enjoy reading this book ok and it is very suspicious and I little bit like it someone somewhere so overall it was a nice book go for it۔
The Last Page is a suspense thriller based on the intersection of two unrelated worlds. A must read book if you love the suspense and thriller plots. The characters are so related that I felt like knowing them.
The book is well paced, easy to read (always a bonus) and written really well; as were the characters. There is a good deal of suspense in the book as you would expect but it is evenly spread out throughout the story, keeping you engaged and reading until the end.
The plot is well written and easy to follow. The events develop smoothly. The characters are so likeable. There is no dull moment. Scenes are so clear, felt like flowing in front of eyes
The Last Page is a suspense thriller based on the intersection of two unrelated worlds. A must read book if you love the suspense and thriller plots. The characters are so related that I felt like knowing them.
The book is well paced, easy to read (always a bonus) and written really well; as were the characters. There is a good deal of suspense in the book as you would expect but it is evenly spread out throughout the story, keeping you engaged and reading until the end.
The plot is well written and easy to follow. The events develop smoothly. The characters are so likeable. There is no dull moment. Scenes are so clear, felt like flowing in front of eyes
July 18, 2020
The Last Page - the title itself gave me cryptic feels.
Being the second book in the series, it starts off with Professor and Wife relocating to a new place. New place gave author enough premise for start of new troubles.
As the blurb promises there's enough mystery and thrill in the book but for someone like me who loves reading mystery novels, I felt it was more of a thriller than mystery. Also character development was poor and felt little bland when it came to inter-character interactions. Especially since it's the second book, I think there would have been enough space for little character growth.
Overall I would recommend this as a thriller read.
Being the second book in the series, it starts off with Professor and Wife relocating to a new place. New place gave author enough premise for start of new troubles.
As the blurb promises there's enough mystery and thrill in the book but for someone like me who loves reading mystery novels, I felt it was more of a thriller than mystery. Also character development was poor and felt little bland when it came to inter-character interactions. Especially since it's the second book, I think there would have been enough space for little character growth.
Overall I would recommend this as a thriller read.
July 7, 2020
Very interesting book, Academic publishing, Professor, Book, Drug, Murder all is there. An interesting cocktail of all these makes it a very readable book, you always want to know what happens next. There is no mystery however the pace is maintained.
It will not disappoint you for sure. Go read it!!
However to be honest there are a few proofreading/editing mistakes that should be corrected and also the interaction between the McClellan couples at times seems a bit too formal not sure how but feel that it could be made a bit less formal maybe romantic ??
It will not disappoint you for sure. Go read it!!
However to be honest there are a few proofreading/editing mistakes that should be corrected and also the interaction between the McClellan couples at times seems a bit too formal not sure how but feel that it could be made a bit less formal maybe romantic ??
July 8, 2020
Reading The Last Page was like an amazing experience like sitcom on Internet. I read the author first time and hugely admiring his capacity to write suspense so well. I liked the way he detailed every scene in the story. I enjoy suspense and thriller so this was a good read for me. I wish to read more of this author. The last page made me read till last page without any doubt.
July 18, 2025
This book was awesome! The characters were very relatable and the story line was suspenseful. Throughout the book, I found myself rooting for certain characters and then changing my mind. I couldn’t put the book down. I kept asking myself what would I do in Celeste and Aubrey’s shoes?
- great job Mr Mertler. ( hope all is well)
- great job Mr Mertler. ( hope all is well)
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews