Vendor
	Mohrbooks Literary Agency Maren Wiederhold
Categories
Crime & mystery fiction

THE LAST ILLUSION OF PAIGE WHITE

Vanessa McCausland

A Novel

Two women. A tragedy on the lake. And secrets beneath the surface ... The lyrical, haunting new novel from the author of The Beautiful Words

For fans of The Lovely Bones, Before You Knew My Name and Everything I Never Told You

Paige White kayaked across the lake each morning at dawn. Someone was watching her. Many someones watched her online. But was anyone with her the day she was found?

Paige White's beautiful life is documented closely for her thousands of followers: lakeside picnics with her daughter, sunny afternoons in the family van, and romantic dinners with her husband. So when she posts an ominous image, and her body is shortly after discovered in the lake, everyone immediately wonders - suicide or foul play?

Paige finds herself suspended in a strange, idyllic place that resembles her most 'liked' Instagram post, forced to watch as life continues without her.

When Paige's death makes national news, Jane Masters, a journalist who was close to Paige in childhood, reluctantly travels home. Struggling with the morality of covering her friend's death, Jane will confront the town she left behind and the dark undercurrents that she's always known run underneath.

Vanessa McCausland studied English and Australian literature at Sydney University and graduated with honors in theatre and performance studies. She worked as a journalist for nearly twenty years, including as a news and arts journalist for the Daily Telegraph, and her writing has appeared in numerous other publications. She's published four novels in Australia, and lives in Sydney with her husband and daughter.

Available products
Book Published 2025-06-10 by Crown

Comments

I loved The Last Illusion -- a thoughtful, layered mystery with the atmosphere of Jane Harper's The Dry and the social media interrogation of Olivia Muenter's Such a Bad Influence. Vanessa McCausland wrestles with the lasting legacies of our most formative female friendships, the struggles of adolescent belonging, and how difficult it is to reconcile our different versions of self to different audiences -- but most importantly, she finishes the book with that rarest of thriller attributes, a satisfying resolution. I can't wait to handsell The Last Illusion to mystery fans and literary fiction readers alike.

Compelling, haunting and beautifully written, The Last Illusion is a clever, page-turning modern mystery as well as a thoughtful exploration of female friendship, family dynamics and the complex impact of social media on self-identity. You'll be thinking about it long after you turn the last page!

Vanessa McCausland probes boundaries between reality and illusion in this psychological crime, delivering both small-town mystery and an unnerving excursion into the hall of mirrors that is the world of social media.

Enticing and compelling! An intense look at the hazards of social media through the eyes of Paige, who had everything but lost herself. Secrets and intrigue kept me mesmerized until the end. Vanessa McCausland's voice reminds me of Jane Harper.

Atmospheric and poignant

An original concept; poetic writing and an astute commentary on the trap of social mediathis book will haunt you long after you turn the last page. I loved it.

Lyrical and evocative, and with a twisty whodunnit edge, this is Vanessa McCausland's best book yet.

I spent the entire day today savoring The Last Illusion. Intrigue, family drama, secrets from the past! Vanessa's voice is reminiscent of Jane Harper and Celeste Ng. And that twist about the flowers!

McCausland expertly weaves together multiple strands of a multilayered story, including the burdens of Paige's social-media persona and Jane's unsatisfying relationship with her boss-with-benefits in Sydney. McCausland is a thoughtful, subtle writer with a deep understanding of her characters' psyches. What lends a speial poignancy to the story are the chapters narrated by Paige, reflecting deep regret for her life's mistakes.

Sizzling . . . The death of an influencer shakes up a small Australian town in this mesmerizing whodunit from McCausland. . . . When the truth finally comes out, it's a gut punch. This works equally well as a mystery and a warning cry against the dangers of social media.

Give me a thriller with characters I won't soon forget!

A compelling, gothic-tinged novel.expertly portrays influencers' obsession with beauty and perfect photos. McCausland examines with a fresh eye the complicated and competitive relationships among teenage girls and their messy relationships with their parents..It's an emotional mystery that McCausland fires up with forbidden romance, the heartbreak of a motherless child, and a surprising denouement. Social media takes a dark turn in this intriguing tale of regret.

An ambitious and evocative novel that will appeal to both young and old. Vanessa McCausland has written a modern classic with family, friendship and beauty on the surface, and dark currents swirling beneath.

What an addictive read. Vanessa McCausland nimbly combines a twisty small-town mystery with a thoughtful critique of influencer culture, all set against the wild, irresistible beauty of the Australian coastal landscape.