The Last Mrs. Parrish book series by Liv Constantine is oh-so devious! These New York Times bestselling psychological thriller books have been insanely popular with readers of The Literary Lifestyle and worldwide. Here, you’ll learn everything you need to know about reading it, including the reading order and more. Let’s get literary!
The Last Mrs. Parrish Book Series Order
- Genre: psychological thriller
- Age rating: adults 18+
The Last Mrs. Parrish books in order of publication date:
- 2017: The Last Mrs. Parrish (original)
- 2020: The First Shot (prequel)
- 2024: The Next Mrs. Parrish (sequel)
- 2025: Untitled (prequel; Jackson’s origin story)
The Last Mrs. Parrish books in order of the storyline:
- Untitled (prequel; Jackson’s origin story)
- The First Shot (prequel)
- The Last Mrs. Parrish (original)
- The Next Mrs. Parrish (sequel)
READING TIPS
The Last Mrs. Parrish can be read as a standalone or after the prequel, The First Shot.
The prequel, The First Shot, is optional, but it provides a lot of context for the sequel, The Next Mrs. Parrish. I definitely recommend reading it if you plan on reading The Next Mrs. Parrish. 2025 will bring a prequel about Jackson’s origin story, but no other details are available yet.
The sequel, The Next Mrs. Parrish, is also optional, but I really enjoyed it! It picks up where the original leaves off and follows the same characters and plot.
In my opinion, the best reading order is following the publication dates.
Overall, The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine is worth reading if you enjoy dark psychological thrillers. Itโs a bestselling thriller with over one million copies sold, and it was a popular Reeseโs Book Club pick. Readers love it for its shocking twists and diabolical characters.
Book Reviews and Plot Summaries
For a long time Reese’s book club pick The Last Mrs. Parrish was the #1 bestselling book among readers of The Literary Lifestyle. Readers here further flocked to books similar to The Last Mrs. Parrish. Like these readers, I found it to be a super dark, satisfying, twisty psychological thriller like Verity. Thereafter, the prequel and sequel were released, diving deeper into the twisted plot.
There are no spoilers in the plot summaries and book reviews.
The First Shot (2020; The Prequel Novella)
My Rating: โ โ โ โโ
Plot Summary: The First Shot tells the back story of Amber Patterson, from sneaking out in the middle of the night to starting a new life. And, she’s one woman who’s willing to do anything to get it — at anyone and everyone else’s expense.
In Colorado, she meets her “future husband,” and the thrills begin in her strategic, no-holds-barred plan.
Review: The First Shot is a novella that can be binged in one sitting. I expected it to just contain background information, but it really does begin to ignite the thrills in Amber’s story.
It’s not absolutely necessary to the overall storyline, but it can be read either before or after The Last Mrs. Parrish. It’s definitely helpful to reading the sequel, The Next Mrs. Parrish, as it provides a lot of context for that plot. Additionally, I definitely think most fans of this series will enjoy taking another journey into Amber’s dark and twisted mind and life.
Buying Tip: The First Shot is the prequel to The Last Mrs. Parrish. At first, it was an Audible original, only available on Audible. Now, this short novella may also be purchased in paperback and ebook format on Amazon.
The Last Mrs. Parrish (2017; The Original Novel)
- National bestseller with over one million copies sold
- Reese Witherspoonโs book club pick
My Rating: โ โ โ โ โ
Plot Summary: In The Last Mrs. Parrish, Amber Patterson is a woman with a plan for a bigger life: to take over the glamourous and seemingly perfect life of socialite and mother of two, Daphne Parrish. She seeks to get Daphne out of the picture and become the new Mrs. Parrish, married to a handsome real estate mogul, Jackson Parrish, and the stepmother of Talullah and Bella.
Through a series of lies, Amber and Daphne become friends and Amber begins working for Jackson’s company. The pieces of Amberโs plans start to fall into place.
But, then they spiral into insanely suspenseful and totally unexpected consequences.
At the end of The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine, Jackson is arrested for tax evasion. Daphne has moved to California with her mother, with whom she has reconciled, and her daughters. A pregnant Amber has married Jackson, who abuses her. Daphne reveals to Amber her true knowledge and involvement in Amber’s plot.
Review: The Last Mrs. Parrish is a real page-turner that keeps you on the edge of your seat, especially once Amber’s plan is set into motion. John Lennon once said, “life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans,” and nothing could be more true for the seemingly master manipulator, Amber.
This psychological thriller is absolutely addictive. It’s full of truly shocking twists, oodles of dark secrets, and two-faced diabolical characters that have kept over a million readers mesmerized.
I easily consider it to be one of the best thriller books I’ve read throughout my lifetime.
Movie News: An adaptation is in the works; however, there haven’t been any recent updates.
The Next Mrs. Parrish (2024; The Sequel Novel)
- Instant New York Times bestseller
My Rating: โ โ โ โ โ
Plot Summary: The Next Mrs. Parrish picks up where The Last Mrs. Parrish leaves off. It thrusts the reader back into the lives of Amber, Jackson, Daphne, Tallulah and Bella, as they cope with the fallout of everything that happened. (No spoilers!)
It also weaves in a suspenseful storyline about Amber’s past (detailed further in The First Shot. Again, no spoilers! This is really all you need to know, I promise.)
Review: It’s got to be hard to write a sequel to such a popular and twisty thriller, but this one delivered! It allows us to see what happened next to the characters and weaves in their same devious natures, which hooked us all in the original!
The secondary storyline about Amber’s past brings in added intrigue and thrills as well. If you really enjoyed The Last Mrs. Parrish, it’s a no-brainer!
Reading Tip: The author shared a fun and helpful book club reading guide for The Next Mrs. Parrish.
About the Psychological Thriller Authors Known As Liv Constantine
about
Liv Constantine is a pen name for two bestselling thriller-writing sisters, Lynne Constantine and Valerie Constantine.
Previously, Lynne earned a masterโs degree from Johns Hopkins University and was a marketing executive. She also writes The Jack Logan series as L.C. Shaw. Lynne serves as the Vice President, Education and Members Services of International Thriller Writers.
Valerie earned a degree, summa cum laude, in English Literature from University of Maryland. She served as a White House Assistant in the Presidentโs Scheduling and Advance Office.
Recap
The Last Mrs. Parrish book series includes:
- the original book, The Last Mrs. Parrish (2017),
- The First Shot (2020), an optional (but recommended) prequel novella,
- and The Next Mrs. Parrish (2024), an optional (but recommended) sequel.
I recommend reading them in order of publication.