The First Time I Saw Him
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- Pre-Order
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- Expected 6 Jan 2026
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- USD 14.99
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- Pre-Order
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- USD 14.99
Publisher Description
Laura Dave continues Hannah Hall’s pulse-pounding journey in the riveting and deeply moving sequel to the #1 New York Times bestselling blockbuster and Apple TV+ show, The Last Thing He Told Me.
How far would you go for a second chance?
Five years after her husband, Owen, disappeared, Hannah Hall and her stepdaughter, Bailey, have settled into a new life in Southern California. Together, they’ve forged a relationship with Bailey’s grandfather Nicholas and are putting the past behind them.
But when Owen shows up at Hannah’s new exhibition, she knows that she and Bailey are in danger again.
Hannah and Bailey are forced to go on the run in a relentless race to keep their past from catching up with them. As a thrilling drama unfolds, Hannah risks everything to get Bailey to safety—and finds there just might be a way back to Owen and their long-awaited second chance.
A gripping, rich, and deeply moving novel about the power of forgiveness, The First Time I Saw Him picks up right where the epilogue for the “genuinely moving” (The New York Times) The Last Thing He Told Me left off, giving readers the eagerly awaited and absolutely exhilarating sequel to Dave’s global blockbuster.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
The reappearance of a missing man puts his wife and child at risk in this fast-paced thriller. Five years ago, Hannah Hall’s husband, Owen, disappeared, leaving her and her stepdaughter, Bailey, to forge a new life. Now Owen has reappeared, signalling that Hannah and Bailey must flee the ruthless crime syndicate that caused him to run years before. Best-selling author Laura Dave knows how to portray the heartrending twists and turns of complicated family relationships, all while delivering adventure at a breakneck speed. In Dave’s sleek prose, Hannah and Bailey—and even Owen—learn hard lessons about trust and forgiveness, making us sigh and yearn even as we held our breath in fear. Weaving together multiple viewpoints, the author amps up the tension in a globe-trotting race through beautiful settings that make the danger feel even more discordant. A non-stop thrill ride with love at its centre, The First Time I Saw Him kept us breathless.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Dave's heart-pounding sequel to The Last Thing He Told Me picks up five years after artist Hannah Hall's husband, Owen, disappeared and left her to care for his surly teenage daughter, Bailey, in Southern California. In the interim, Hannah and Bailey have forged a close relationship, and worked toward repairing Bailey's connection with her maternal grandfather, Nicholas, whose involvement with a crime syndicate sent Owen on the run. The women's stability is disrupted when Owen reappears at one of Hannah's art exhibitions and slips a message into her pocket warning her that she and Bailey are in danger. For reasons Hannah doesn't understand, a deal brokering their safety has fallen through, and the women are forced to flee. Meanwhile, chapters following Nicholas and Owen reveal that the men have spent the last five years working to orchestrate an elaborate compromise with Nicholas's former colleagues that guarantees their family's permanent freedom. The pacing is brisk from the very first page, with Dave nimbly juggling multiple perspectives and timelines en route to a finale that provides readers with satisfying answers to their questions. The result is a solid suspense novel with plenty of appeal for Dave fans and newcomers alike.
