Our Last Wild Days

Brought to you by Penguin.

In Jacknife, Louisiana, menace comes not only from the lurking 'gators, but from the secrets harboured by everyone in town...

From the Sunday Times bestselling author comes a compelling, utterly immersive thriller

The Labasques aren’t like other families.

Living in a shack out in the swamps, they scrape a living hunting down alligators just to get by. To the good people of Jacknife, Louisiana, they are trouble-makers, outcasts, the kind of people you wouldn’t want living on your doorstep.

So when Cutter Labasque is found face down in the muddy swamp, no one seems to care, not even her two rough-cut brothers. The only person who questions the official verdict of suicide is Cutter’s childhood friend, Loyal May, who has just returned home to care for her ageing mother.

Loyal left town at the age of 18, having betrayed everything she valued most. Now, there may be no way for her to find forgiveness, but there may be restitution, if she can find out what really did happen to Cutter...

Set against the haunting beauty of Southern Louisiana, Our Last Wild Days is a compulsive, evocative novel about a tight-knit community and the secrets they want to keep hidden.

'Propulsive, bold and brutal...A truly atmospheric thriller.' Chris Whitaker, bestselling author of All the Colours of the Dark

'Bewitching... thought provoking, character driven crime fiction.' Paula Hawkins, bestselling author of The Girl on the Train

‘Sublime. The best thing I’ve read in ages.’ Will Dean, bestselling author of The Chamber

© Anna Bailey 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025