Words leave imprints in your mind like footprints in the sand...
beach reading
starry skies to read under
reading in nature
  • Location: Dorset

Last Seen

Last Seen

Why a Booktrail?

2000s: In a small seaside community, there’s always somebody watching…

  • ISBN: 978-0007563388
  • Genre: Suspense

What you need to know before your trail

Seven years ago, two boys went missing at sea – and only one was brought to shore. The Sandbank, a remote stretch of coast dotted with beach huts, was scarred forever.

Sarah’s son survived, but on the anniversary of the accident, he disappears without trace. As new secrets begin to surface, The Sandbank hums with tension and unanswered questions. Sarah’s search grows more desperate and she starts to mistrust everyone she knows – and she’s right to.

Someone saw everything on that fateful day seven years ago. And they’ll do anything to keep the truth buried.

Travel Guide

Dorset “Sandbanks”

Life on a beach sitting amongst the beach huts and playing in the sand should be good no?

Sarah and Isla think so and having been through pregnancy together, they both like to bering their children up together and so find that the local beach is a great place to spend time. But how would you feel if your son wasn’t rescued from the sea and your friend’s was  – the pain and suffering from one simple day on the beach is hard to imagine.

Lucy Clarke loves the sea and the sense of adventure, that long distant horizon and the possibilities of what might be out there. Here the sea becomes a nightmare and the beach a dark place indeed but the atmosphere and the spirit of the sea and sand come out loud and clear. Those beach huts are almost a character in themselves!

Booktrailer Review

Susan: @thebooktrailer

I am always a bit nervous reading about missing children although the stories are actually so much more about the parents and the aftermath. this was a gripping novel as a beach with sandhuts is a happy place right? The beach with memories and childhood games changes in a second and it’s a scary thought.

The two mothers and how they react to the incident are heartbreaking and it’s all too real. Imagine how you would feel if that were you? I admit I found the alternating chapters a bit tricky to read on a kindle as it wasn’t always clear who was talking – I did start writing it down but at least you could flick back in a real book.

Lucy always captures the settings she writes about so well and the sea is a theme here as in her other books – the way it can represent something so tragic here and the significance of the pull of the water and that never ending horizon is very well evoked. Lots of meaning in this novel and a good summer read.

Booktrail Boarding Pass: Last Seen

Author/Guide: Lucy Clarke  Destination:   Dorset, Sandbanks  Departure Time: 2000s

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