Last Witness A gripping psychological thriller that will keep you guessing

Wow, almost cried there. That's a hard feet to achieve with me, so very well done. "Last Witness" can be devided into two parts, each leading to an individual showdown. The first comtains what's already promised to happen: Amanda going undercover. I was very excited about that one from the very start, computer nerd crawling out of her secure heaven, interesting. And it sure was. Her meetings with McAllister have been an experience of their own, with him behaving far differently than formerly expected. Villain or no villain? I seriously had doubts about that at this point. And then there were the little bits and pieces that made me question if he might know about who Amanda really was. For all intents and purposes he should have but I wasn't sure until about the end of half of the story. The second part of the book portrays more the emotional stuff, goes deeper into the minds of the characters, shows Amanda how she is caught between mourning Will, feelings for Shane and her fight for safety for little Ewan (who is sooo cute by the way). The whole situation is very difficult for all of them, being so far out of their comfort zones: Shane, as a cop, is helping Amanda comitting crime after crime, and Amanda has to exchange the online world for brutal real life. It's all written in such a believable way that I was biting my nales for those two, hoping against all odds that there would be some way for them to get out of this mess unscathed and happy, preferably happy together of course. Shane I pitied pretty often. The man loves Amanda unconditionally, he would do anything for her. Sometimes I've had the impression that she is taking that for granted, just waiting for him to have enough of her constantly mentioning Will, how she misses him, doing all this stuff in order to avenge him and provide a safer life for his son. But, admiringly, he's staying with her, supporting her, even though one can see how difficult it is for him to let her do all these life-threatening things. Somehow, I could never really blame her for it. She's been through a lot, lost two very important men in her life, so I can understand her need to hold onto and fight for the loved ones still alive. There are many flashbacks to be found in this book, especially towards the end of it, making what's happening there even more exciting with the interruptions. I liked how they provided a deeper inside into the characters and their relationships with each other and how they came up in similar situations, making them fit perfectly into what's happening at the time, helping to understand why Amanda is reacting the way she is. Not every mystery is solved, but that's okay. It leaves something to puzzle over, and who knows, perhaps these things will be picked up in a sequel? I wouldn't mind. I remember being not so happy with how I was left after "Wrong Number". It felt like the story had just really started then. But I must say, I'm very glad about it now because it has laid the foundation to this amazing emotional sequel which has drawn me in completely. Do read it, it's more than worth it.