Our Last Resort: A Novel

by Clémence Michallon

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

Edge-of-your-seat intrigue ensues when a woman’s body is discovered in the desert. Two ex-cultists vacationing at the hotel become entangled in the mess. Oscillating between their cultist past and the present moment, this adrenaline-fueled ride is great for summer.

From the bestselling author of The Quiet Tenant comes an immersive new suspense novel: Fifteen years ago, Frida and her brother escaped a cult. Now her brother is the prime suspect in a murder investigation—and it isn’t the first time.

A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF THE SUMMER: The New York Times, USA Today, Oprah Daily, Boston Globe, Marie Claire, Crimereads, Apple Books, Goodreads, Brit + Co, She Reads

“Clémence Michallon is one of the most daring, exciting new voices in psychological suspense; she writes page turners with stunning and surprising depths.” – #1 New York Times bestselling author Lisa Jewell

"Thought-provoking and shocking. A perfect summer read.”—Mary Kubica, New York Times bestselling author of She's Not Sorry


Innocence doesn't bail you out; it just makes you easier to trap.

Frida and Gabriel arrive seeking a fresh start at the stunning Ara Hotel in the secluded desert of Escalante, Utah. Once so close they were able to finish each other’s sentences, they’ve grown apart in recent years after a sudden, unspeakable tragedy. Now, at the luxe resort, they are ready to reconnect between dips in the pool and hikes on spectacular desert trails. It all feels like paradise—until the dead body of a beautiful young woman who was vacationing at the Ara with her powerful, much older husband is discovered.

When the local police arrive and suspicion quickly falls on Gabriel, Frida is forced to revisit memories from their upbringing in a cloistered cult in upstate New York, their dramatic escape, and the scandal that followed. Frida’s belief in Gabriel’s innocence never wavered at the time, but now even she can’t ignore the evidence mounting against him.

Alternating between past and present timelines, Our Last Resort builds toward a shattering climax that uncovers the fate of the murdered Ara guest and poses the question: how well do we ever really know those we love? Multi-layered, gripping, and intense, Clémence Michallon’s latest suspense novel is a nail-biter until the last page, cementing her status as a major new talent in the genre.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780593802762
Publisher:	Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Publication date:	07/08/2025
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

CLÉMENCE MICHALLON is the author of The Quiet Tenant, a USA Today and international bestseller and nominee for the Hammett Prize. She’s also a freelance journalist whose work has appeared in The New York Times Book Review, Time Magazine, The Independent, and more. Clémence was born and raised near Paris, has lived in New York since 2014, and became a U.S. citizen in 2022. Our Last Resort is her second thriller. She can be found on Instagram at clemencemichallon and on X at Clemence_Mcl.

Editorial Reviews

2025-05-16
Two old friends, relationship forged in fire and trauma, find themselves at the center of a murder mystery.

Frida Nilsen and Gabriel Miller are staying at the Ara, a comfortable desert hotel in Escalante, Utah, trying to decide whether both of them are ready to participate in a documentary about some mysterious point in their shared past. Late at night, Frida is standing on their suite’s private patio, smoking, when she overhears a fight between wealthy tabloid tycoon William Brenner and his young, glamorous wife, Sabrina. The next day, Sabrina’s body is found, her head caved in. When Frida tells the cops about the couple’s argument, William is arrested, but hours later, he returns to the Ara and seems to have both Frida and Gabriel in his sights. It turns out he recognizes Gabriel from a scandal 10 years prior, when his wife, Annie, went missing and was then discovered dead. Gabriel was never charged in her death, but papers like William’s had a field day stalking him and posting articles and photos that suggested his guilt. But unbeknownst even to William Brenner, Frida and Gabriel share a bond that’s deeper and darker than Annie’s death. They were born into a cult run by a charismatic dirtbag named Émile. Though they aren’t related by blood, this shared childhood and teenage trauma made them as close as siblings, and when they escaped, they had only each other. While Frida remains the narrator, chapters alternate back and forth between the present day and the past, offering a slow reveal from their childhood to their escape from the cult and the difficult years of adjusting to the real world. Michallon does incredible work building both characters and tension; Frida’s self-awareness and vulnerability clash with her strength and even hardness, but that’s what trauma has wrought. As Michallon poignantly writes, “This is who we are.…We start over together. Again. And again.”

The novel offers mystery aplenty, but at its core, there is a deep and compassionate humanity.

Kirkus Reviews

Praise for Our Last Resort

“Michallon masterfully weaves past cult abuse into a taut present-day procedural, blending psychological complexity with enough terror to make you white-knuckle your beach chair.”
—Oprah Daily

“Nail-bitingly taut."
—Boston Globe

“Clémence Michallon is a genuine talent, with a gift for unexpected angles, finding fresh ways of approaching even the darkest subjects that make them feel reinvigorated and daring. You come to Michallon for beautiful, thought-provoking prose and deep characterization. In Our Last Resort, she finds tenderness in a story about cults, dreaminess, and compassion in the lengths to which people will go to save themselves.”
—Ashley Winstead, USA Today-bestselling author of Midnight is the Darkest Hour

“Michallon does incredible work building both characters and tension…. The novel offers mystery aplenty, but at its core, there is a deep and compassionate humanity.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“With a chilling cult backstory that feels ripped from the headlines and a complicated heroine you can't help rooting for, Our Last Resort is both an immersive mystery and a haunting exploration of just how far we'll go to protect those we hold most dear.”
—Andrea Bartz, New York Times bestselling author of We Were Never Here and The Last Ferry Out

“Michallon deftly moves between three timelines to create a thriller centering on deeply flawed characters who had to learn quickly how to interact and live in the world and will do anything to keep each other safe…. This page-turner is a satisfying poolside read.”
—Library Journal

“Clémence Michallon lures readers in with a luxurious, lush setting, her beautiful prose and a distant crime before dropping a bombshell. Thought-provoking and shocking, Our Last Resort tests the bounds of family and reminds us that, no matter how hard we try, we can never forget our past. Readers will be thinking about this one for a long time! A perfect summer read.”
—Mary Kubica, New York Times bestselling author of She's Not Sorry

“Full of dark twists, shocking surprises, and strong messages about love, lies, loyalty, trust, suspicion, control, and connection.”
—Booklist

“A tale of childhood survival wrapped around a psychological whodunnit, Our Last Resort is a taut and twisty exploration of how far we might go to save the people we love the most. Clémence Michallon is the real deal; from her nuanced characters to her hypnotic prose, readers who enjoyed her dazzling debut will be delighted to find that her sophomore novel packs the same powerful punch.”
—Stacy Willingham, New York Times bestselling author of Forget Me Not

From the Publisher

Clémence Michallon is a genuine talent, with a gift for unexpected angles, finding fresh ways of approaching even the darkest subjects that make them feel reinvigorated and daring. You come to Michallon for beautiful, thought-provoking prose and deep characterization. In Our Last Resort, she finds tenderness in a story about cults, dreaminess, and compassion in the lengths to which people will go to save themselves.

USA Today-bestselling author of Midnight is the Da Ashley Winstead

With a chilling cult backstory that feels ripped from the headlines and a complicated heroine you can't help rooting for, Our Last Resort is both an immersive mystery and a haunting exploration of just how far we'll go to protect those we hold most dear.

New York Times bestselling author of We Were Never Andrea Bartz

A tale of childhood survival wrapped around a psychological whodunnit, Our Last Resort is a taut and twisty exploration of how far we might go to save the people we love the most. Clémence Michallon is the real deal; from her nuanced characters to her hypnotic prose, readers who enjoyed her dazzling debut will be delighted to find that her sophomore novel packs the same powerful punch.

New York Times bestselling author of Forget Me Not Stacy Willingham

Clémence Michallon lures readers in with a luxurious, lush setting, her beautiful prose and a distant crime before dropping a bombshell. Thought-provoking and shocking, Our Last Resort tests the bounds of family and reminds us that, no matter how hard we try, we can never forget our past. Readers will be thinking about this one for a long time! A perfect summer read.

New York Times bestselling author of She's Not So Mary Kubica