Guide to The Last Mrs. Parrish Book Series by Liv Constantine

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.

The First Shot (2020; The Prequel Novella)

My Rating: ★★★☆☆

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.

The Last Mrs. Parrish (2017; The Original Novel)

• National bestseller with over one million copies sold
• Reese Witherspoon’s book club pick

My Rating: ★★★★☆

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 Amber’s plans start to fall into place.

But, then they spiral into insanely suspenseful and totally unexpected consequences.

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.

The Next Mrs. Parrish (2024; The Sequel Novel)

• Instant New York Times bestseller

My Rating: ★★★★☆

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!

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 master’s 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 President’s Scheduling and Advance Office.

I recommend reading them in order of publication.