Every Last Fear: A Novel
"Explosive! A knife-edged thriller that explores the true meaning of family, including love, loyalty, and lies." —Lisa Gardner, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author
“They found the bodies on a Tuesday.” So begins Every Last Fear, a twisty and breathtaking novel from Alex Finlay that traces the fate of the Pine family, a thriller that will both leave you on the edge of your seat and move you to tears.
After a late night of partying, NYU student Matt Pine returns to his dorm room to devastating news: nearly his entire family—his mom, his dad, his little brother and sister—have been found dead from an apparent gas leak while vacationing in Mexico. The local police claim it was an accident, but the FBI and State Department seem far less certain—and they won’t tell Matt why.
The tragedy makes headlines everywhere because this isn’t the first time the Pine family has been thrust into the media spotlight. Matt’s older brother, Danny—currently serving a life sentence for the murder of his teenage girlfriend Charlotte—was the subject of a viral true crime documentary suggesting that Danny was wrongfully convicted. Though the country has rallied behind Danny, Matt holds a secret about his brother that he’s never told anyone: the night Charlotte was killed Matt saw something that makes him believe his brother is guilty of the crime.
When Matt returns to his small hometown to bury his parents and siblings, he’s faced with a hostile community that was villainized by the documentary, a frenzied media, and memories he’d hoped to leave behind forever. Now, as the deaths in Mexico appear increasingly suspicious and connected to Danny’s case, Matt must unearth the truth behind the crime that sent his brother to prison—putting his own life in peril—and forcing him to confront his every last fear.
Told through multiple points-of-view and alternating between past and present, Alex Finlay's Every Last Fear is not only a page-turning thriller, it’s also a poignant story about a family managing heartbreak and tragedy, and living through a fame they never wanted.
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Community Reviews
This was one the books selected for the Crime Mysteries and Thrillers September group reads as well as the one I actually voted for. That doesn’t happen very often; my choices rarely get selected😊
The book summary pretty much lays out the premise for the primary storyline: was the Pine family deaths accidents or murders? Were they related to Danny’s case or something else? What the book summary is pretty vague about is that from pretty much the get-go, the FBI suspect that the Pine family’s deaths may be related to the company that the dad, Evan, worked for, which is connected to the Cartel, and that the family’s deaths are some kind of retribution for something.
There are several secondary storylines too. It’s revealed pretty early in the story that Evan was suicidal and had detailed instructions for his wife, Olivia, after his body was discovered. There is also the storyline of a podcast regarding Danny’s arrest and how he was wrongly accused and convicted. Then there is the storyline of Olivia’s old boyfriend, Noah and the NE AG, that may be able to help get Danny pardoned. Then there is the storyline regarding Olivia’s father being kicked out of the nursing home he’s in and now he has to be moved, but as a favor, Noah, manages to get the nursing home to not kick him out. Suffice it to say, there is a lot going on in this story.
The story flips back and forth between present-day (after the murders) to the past (after Danny’s arrest). There is also a large cast of characters with the story flipping back and forth between Matt, Sarah (the FBI agent), Evan, Judy (the podcast narrator), Maggie (Matt’s sister). Once again, there’s a lot going with a lot of POV’s and by the halfway mark, I have no idea who the killer(s) are.
It's well into the second half when most of the storylines begin to merge, and I still do not know “whodunit”! The end comes pretty fast after that and WOW that ending was a shocker! DID NOT SEE THAT ONE COMING!!! This was a good story; I like it when a writer can keep me hanging for most of the story. Finlay is a good storyteller! There were times that I felt that the writing got a little muddled, but that happens sometimes when you have a lot going on like multiple POV’s, timelines and storylines. Sometimes a writer can pull that off really well, but other times the writing can get a little bumpy.
The book summary pretty much lays out the premise for the primary storyline: was the Pine family deaths accidents or murders? Were they related to Danny’s case or something else? What the book summary is pretty vague about is that from pretty much the get-go, the FBI suspect that the Pine family’s deaths may be related to the company that the dad, Evan, worked for, which is connected to the Cartel, and that the family’s deaths are some kind of retribution for something.
There are several secondary storylines too. It’s revealed pretty early in the story that Evan was suicidal and had detailed instructions for his wife, Olivia, after his body was discovered. There is also the storyline of a podcast regarding Danny’s arrest and how he was wrongly accused and convicted. Then there is the storyline of Olivia’s old boyfriend, Noah and the NE AG, that may be able to help get Danny pardoned. Then there is the storyline regarding Olivia’s father being kicked out of the nursing home he’s in and now he has to be moved, but as a favor, Noah, manages to get the nursing home to not kick him out. Suffice it to say, there is a lot going on in this story.
The story flips back and forth between present-day (after the murders) to the past (after Danny’s arrest). There is also a large cast of characters with the story flipping back and forth between Matt, Sarah (the FBI agent), Evan, Judy (the podcast narrator), Maggie (Matt’s sister). Once again, there’s a lot going with a lot of POV’s and by the halfway mark, I have no idea who the killer(s) are.
It's well into the second half when most of the storylines begin to merge, and I still do not know “whodunit”! The end comes pretty fast after that and WOW that ending was a shocker! DID NOT SEE THAT ONE COMING!!! This was a good story; I like it when a writer can keep me hanging for most of the story. Finlay is a good storyteller! There were times that I felt that the writing got a little muddled, but that happens sometimes when you have a lot going on like multiple POV’s, timelines and storylines. Sometimes a writer can pull that off really well, but other times the writing can get a little bumpy.
Alex Finlay is the pseudonym adopted by a lawyer who has penned law-related books. His first novel published under that name, Every Last Fear is an absorbing, heartbreaking thriller, at the center of which is a young film student who has to come to terms with the death of his parents and two siblings. Finlay describes it as a tale that is, at its heart, a story about a family torn apart and brought back together by tragedy.
On a chilly April morning, Matt Pine has just finished a game of chess with Reggie, the homeless man with whom he has been playing for two years in the West Village's Washington Square Park. It is the last bit of relative normalcy he enjoys before learning that FBI agents are looking for him at his dormitory. Soon he is informed that his mother, father, sister Maggie, and younger brother Tommy, are all dead. Agent Sarah Keller tells him their deaths are believed to be the result of "a freak accident, a gas leak." So why are both the FBI's financial crimes personnel and State Department "working on" the case?
The story of the Pine family is related in alternating third-person narratives, one set in the present and the other the past, from the perspectives of the various family members. Also interspersed are excerpts from the documentary about the case that sent Danny to prison, serving a life sentence for the murder of his high school girlfriend, Charlotte. Matt was only fourteen when Danny was convicted, and little Tommy had not yet been born. Matt thinks of that time as "Year Zero for the Pines," measuring everything in terms of before and after Charlotte. Learning about his family's deaths establishes a new "Year Zero" for Matt, as it falls to him to visit Danny in prison for the very first time and inform him in person.
Matt knew that his family suddenly decided to vacation in Mexico, but not that the trip was inspired by a video message sent to his father, Evan, that convinced him Charlotte was alive, frightened, and in need of help. Matt hadn't spoken to his father since Christmas when they again quarreled. When Charlotte's body was found, she was unrecognizable and Evan does not believe she was identified using DNA. Every day, something sets Evan off on a new trail, motivating him to keep searching for clues to Danny's innocence. He is obsessed with getting Danny's conviction reversed. While conducting research for the book, Finlay was shocked to learn how often people -- especially teenagers -- are wrongfully convicted because they confess to crimes they didn't actually commit.
Maggie humors her father while reminding him that video footage can be manipulated. The message came from the Moloko Bar in Tulum, a vacation mecca on Mexico's eastern coast. Although Evan has financial problems he has not confessed to his wife, Olivia, he tells Maggie that when her mother and little brother return from a trip to their hometown in Nebraska to deal with Olivia's elderly father, the four of them are heading to Mexico. Maggie has been victimized by Eric, an unscrupulous boy at school who posted a horrifying video online after feigning interest in her. She is again pulled to assist her father because his quest is the only thing that returns optimism and light to his eyes, and they bond over the ongoing investigation.
Finlay has crafted a clever, deftly-plotted story about a family beset and challenged by unspeakably horrific events. They love each other, but are keeping secrets from one another. In addition to Evan's financial woes, Olivia has kept something from Evan that could have far-reaching consequences for the entire family. And Maggie has not revealed that she is being cyber-bullied. Matt has kept his own battles with loneliness and his temper to himself. After the family moved to Chicago from Nebraska, hoping for a fresh start when Matt got into a fight at school, he has mostly managed to hide that side of himself, with the exception of one night at a party when he punched a fraternity boy who made a comment to his girlfriend, Jane. "How alone he'd felt carrying around the truth about his brother, watching his father and sister spin their wheels trying to prove Danny's innocence."
As one narrative describes Matt's return to Nebraska to bury his family and his encounters with the residents of the small town they left behind, another details the family trip to Mexico and search for Charlotte. When Matt learns that it appears his family members were murdered, he decides that he survived in order to find out what happened to them. And journeys to Mexico in search of answers, anticipating assistance and cooperation from Mexican officials that does not materialize. He realizes that he is on his own, and remains determined to learn the truth, even as it becomes clear that his life is in danger.
The story progresses at a steady pace, never slowing or losing dramatic momentum, but accelerates once Matt arrives in Mexico. From that point on, clues and revelations come at perfectly-timed intervals that make it virtually impossible to stop reading. While revealing their flaws and difficulties, Finlay also makes the characters, particularly Maggie and Matt, sympathetic and endearing by illustrating that since "Year Zero" they have all just been doing their best to carry on. Matt, in particular, is blessed with an eclectic and entertaining group of supportive, devoted college friends who bolster and uplift him as he navigates his grief and need for answers. When all is finally revealed, it is evident that Finlay has constructed a tautly plausible and coherent story. And, through the inclusion of the documentarian characters and depiction of the media's interest in Matt's family, offers an insightful look at the myriad ways in which public interest and the attendant publicity can intrude upon family struggles and tragedies in the interest of advancing an agenda. Finlay observes that documentaries can educate and inform, but also result in "backlash against entire towns, [and] individuals being convicted on social media without due process."
Full of plot twists and shocking, emotionally jarring developments, readers of Every Last Fear will feel their hearts shattering for the Pine family. And pondering what they would do and what extreme measures they might employ if they became convinced a loved one was wrongly convicted of a horrendous crime. For Evan Pine, the answer was clear, as he told the filmmakers. "You have two choices when you're confronted with your every last fear: Give up or fight like hell."
Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.
On a chilly April morning, Matt Pine has just finished a game of chess with Reggie, the homeless man with whom he has been playing for two years in the West Village's Washington Square Park. It is the last bit of relative normalcy he enjoys before learning that FBI agents are looking for him at his dormitory. Soon he is informed that his mother, father, sister Maggie, and younger brother Tommy, are all dead. Agent Sarah Keller tells him their deaths are believed to be the result of "a freak accident, a gas leak." So why are both the FBI's financial crimes personnel and State Department "working on" the case?
The story of the Pine family is related in alternating third-person narratives, one set in the present and the other the past, from the perspectives of the various family members. Also interspersed are excerpts from the documentary about the case that sent Danny to prison, serving a life sentence for the murder of his high school girlfriend, Charlotte. Matt was only fourteen when Danny was convicted, and little Tommy had not yet been born. Matt thinks of that time as "Year Zero for the Pines," measuring everything in terms of before and after Charlotte. Learning about his family's deaths establishes a new "Year Zero" for Matt, as it falls to him to visit Danny in prison for the very first time and inform him in person.
Matt knew that his family suddenly decided to vacation in Mexico, but not that the trip was inspired by a video message sent to his father, Evan, that convinced him Charlotte was alive, frightened, and in need of help. Matt hadn't spoken to his father since Christmas when they again quarreled. When Charlotte's body was found, she was unrecognizable and Evan does not believe she was identified using DNA. Every day, something sets Evan off on a new trail, motivating him to keep searching for clues to Danny's innocence. He is obsessed with getting Danny's conviction reversed. While conducting research for the book, Finlay was shocked to learn how often people -- especially teenagers -- are wrongfully convicted because they confess to crimes they didn't actually commit.
Maggie humors her father while reminding him that video footage can be manipulated. The message came from the Moloko Bar in Tulum, a vacation mecca on Mexico's eastern coast. Although Evan has financial problems he has not confessed to his wife, Olivia, he tells Maggie that when her mother and little brother return from a trip to their hometown in Nebraska to deal with Olivia's elderly father, the four of them are heading to Mexico. Maggie has been victimized by Eric, an unscrupulous boy at school who posted a horrifying video online after feigning interest in her. She is again pulled to assist her father because his quest is the only thing that returns optimism and light to his eyes, and they bond over the ongoing investigation.
Finlay has crafted a clever, deftly-plotted story about a family beset and challenged by unspeakably horrific events. They love each other, but are keeping secrets from one another. In addition to Evan's financial woes, Olivia has kept something from Evan that could have far-reaching consequences for the entire family. And Maggie has not revealed that she is being cyber-bullied. Matt has kept his own battles with loneliness and his temper to himself. After the family moved to Chicago from Nebraska, hoping for a fresh start when Matt got into a fight at school, he has mostly managed to hide that side of himself, with the exception of one night at a party when he punched a fraternity boy who made a comment to his girlfriend, Jane. "How alone he'd felt carrying around the truth about his brother, watching his father and sister spin their wheels trying to prove Danny's innocence."
As one narrative describes Matt's return to Nebraska to bury his family and his encounters with the residents of the small town they left behind, another details the family trip to Mexico and search for Charlotte. When Matt learns that it appears his family members were murdered, he decides that he survived in order to find out what happened to them. And journeys to Mexico in search of answers, anticipating assistance and cooperation from Mexican officials that does not materialize. He realizes that he is on his own, and remains determined to learn the truth, even as it becomes clear that his life is in danger.
The story progresses at a steady pace, never slowing or losing dramatic momentum, but accelerates once Matt arrives in Mexico. From that point on, clues and revelations come at perfectly-timed intervals that make it virtually impossible to stop reading. While revealing their flaws and difficulties, Finlay also makes the characters, particularly Maggie and Matt, sympathetic and endearing by illustrating that since "Year Zero" they have all just been doing their best to carry on. Matt, in particular, is blessed with an eclectic and entertaining group of supportive, devoted college friends who bolster and uplift him as he navigates his grief and need for answers. When all is finally revealed, it is evident that Finlay has constructed a tautly plausible and coherent story. And, through the inclusion of the documentarian characters and depiction of the media's interest in Matt's family, offers an insightful look at the myriad ways in which public interest and the attendant publicity can intrude upon family struggles and tragedies in the interest of advancing an agenda. Finlay observes that documentaries can educate and inform, but also result in "backlash against entire towns, [and] individuals being convicted on social media without due process."
Full of plot twists and shocking, emotionally jarring developments, readers of Every Last Fear will feel their hearts shattering for the Pine family. And pondering what they would do and what extreme measures they might employ if they became convinced a loved one was wrongly convicted of a horrendous crime. For Evan Pine, the answer was clear, as he told the filmmakers. "You have two choices when you're confronted with your every last fear: Give up or fight like hell."
Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.
This was pretty middle of the road for me. I didn't hate it. I didn't love it. It took me over three weeks to read, which should not happen with a thriller.
I liked the multiple POVs. Call me a weirdo, but I almost always love multiple POVs in a book.
(WEIRDO)
The pace was good. There were twists and turns. The writing was fine. I felt several pangs of sadness, which either means I'm too emotional or that the author managed to manipulate my emotions. Maybe both.
But at the end of the day, when I closed it, I knew I would never think about it again. I'll probably forget about 95% of it within a couple weeks.
Onward and upward!
3 Stars
I liked the multiple POVs. Call me a weirdo, but I almost always love multiple POVs in a book.
(WEIRDO)
The pace was good. There were twists and turns. The writing was fine. I felt several pangs of sadness, which either means I'm too emotional or that the author managed to manipulate my emotions. Maybe both.
But at the end of the day, when I closed it, I knew I would never think about it again. I'll probably forget about 95% of it within a couple weeks.
Onward and upward!
3 Stars