Our Last Wild Days by Anna Bailey: REVIEW

Synopsis

In Our Last Wild Days, journalist Loyal May isn’t exactly thrilled to move back to her hometown of Jacknife, Louisiana, or to work for its small local paper, but her mother is in the early stages of dementia and needs family close by. Loyal had left town as a teenager under a dark cloud, and before she can try to make things right, her childhood best friend is found dead in the swamp. Her death is ruled a suicide, or perhaps a tragic accident, but Loyal suspects it was murder.

My Review

This isn’t the mindless thriller I was expecting when I first saw it. Firstly, it’s more of a slow-burn murder mystery, emphasis on slow. And secondly, this book has some things to SAY. I dug it. I dug it a lot.

The murder mystery

I’m not a big reader of mysteries, because I don’t really care about figuring out whodunnit. I’m more interested in how the writer hides clues than in deciphering them myself, if that makes sense? So I can’t really speak to whether or not the mystery would be predictable to an avid mystery reader. I just know that, even though some of my early suspicions did turn out to be well-founded, Bailey did a great job of hiding clues in plain sight. I don’t want to get too specific in case of spoilers, but if you get to the end and think, “But wait a minute, that scene earlier…” Nope, you just misread it. Clever!

I’ve seen some reviews that mention dangling plot threads, and yeah, I think there was one thread that was never completely tied off. That didn’t bother me, though. Everything is at least explained, if not resolved.

The main message

As for what the book has to say… there’s a strong message here about religious hypocrisy and toxic masculinity that I think is very well delivered. It all feels believable, and even familiar. Every single character is touched by it in some way. But rather than relying on cardboard villain stereotypes, Bailey does a good job of getting inside everyone’s heads and exploring the ways that people convince themselves that they’re the good guys.

“These are our last wild days”

The subtle but unavoidable message that resonated the most with me, though, was the environmental criticism that Bailey managed to thread throughout the novel. I was pleasantly surprised when the title turned out to reference environmental damage rather than carefree adolescence. The main message about hypocrisy and toxicity doesn’t just pertain to human interactions but to our treatment of the greater natural world as well. The quote that the title comes from made me gasp out loud. On the whole, this book is beautifully written and offers the reader a lot to think about.

Conclusion

I absolutely loved this book. However, I seem to be in the minority on that? Most early reviewers give it 3 or 4 stars, and on some level I agree. There are plenty of flaws in this book, and I’m sure it annoys Americans that it’s full of British spellings (but now you know how Brits, Canadians, and Aussies feel when you “correct” our spellings to yours in American publications!), but for some reason it really resonated with me anyway. Bailey’s writing is clear, evocative, and sincere. The characters are well-drawn, believable, and show a satisfying amount of growth. The mystery has enough surprises to hold the reader’s interest while being slow-burn enough to let us enjoy the scenery. I enjoyed every minute of reading it.

Pre-order Our Last Wild Days now on Bookshop.org* (Release Date: May 20)
*As an affiliate, I will receive a small commission from any purchase made through this link.

Thanks to NetGalley for granting me early access to an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!