The Last Line by Scott Lyerly is a new mystery featuring Ellie Marlowe, a neurodiverse lead living with Tourette syndrome.
Title: The Last Line
Author: Scott Lyerly
First Published: July 23, 2024
Publisher: Crooked Lane Books
Genres: mystery
Acquired: from the author
*** Thank you to the author, Scott Lyerly, for providing me with a copy of this book for review purposes. ***
The new production at Ellie Marlowe’s community theatre could save her from financial ruin, but her overbearing lead, Reginald Thornton IV, is determined to antagonise every cast member. Nervous and with her Tourette syndrome flaring, Ellie is relieved when opening night seems to be going well. But then Reginald’s death scene at the end of the play turns out to be all too real.
The state police write the death off as a heart attack, but several things don’t add up and Ellie and her childhood friend, Bill Starlin, the local chief of police, begin investigating. When another person linked to the theatre is attacked, they’re convinced a killer is on the loose.
A solid mystery with an interesting main character
One thing I’ve been trying to do lately is to discover (and read) more mystery books with interesting and diverse lead characters. So I was very excited to get my hands on The Last Line, which features an amateur sleuth that lives with Tourette syndrome.
Ellie’s Tourette syndrome causes her to do things like blink, nod, and grunt, especially when she’s tense or anxious, but this is just a small part of who Ellie is, and it doesn’t define her. What I appreciated about the way this condition was written into the story was not just that Ellie didn’t try to hide it, but that almost everyone around her just accepted it as a normal thing and didn’t really draw attention to it. It’s just normal – and that’s exactly how it should be. It’s such a small, simple way to incorporate differences, but it makes such an impact with how subtle it is that I found it authentic and very well done.
After reading Scott Lyerly’s bio, I discovered that he was diagnosed with Tourette syndrome at the age of nineteen, and I think the author’s own lived experience went a long way into making Ellie’s character more realistic.
I also enjoyed that the mystery was set in a theatre. I’ve read several mysteries set in theatres lately and I love the added drama and backdrop of actors and actresses, many of whom have inflated egos and interesting backstories. There’s something about the stage that brings out the best, and worst, in people.
A nice pairing of amateur sleuth and local detective
I also really enjoyed the friendship between Ellie and local police chief Bill Starlin. They’re childhood friends and both share the bond of loving Ellie’s sister, who died years before. I think it’s great to have a relationship like this where there’s no chance of a romance – they are friends and both are married to other people.
The friendship creates a nice, solid partnership and there isn’t any worry of love triangles or dragged out will-they, won’t-they scenarios present in many other mysteries (not that I’m complaining, sometimes they’re done well, but many times they aren’t.)
Ellie and Bill are also surrounded by some interesting side characters that kept the pace moving along and I hope we’ll get a sequel so that we can get to know more of some of these supporting characters.
The mystery itself is well paced and the action is driven along nicely by the characters. I was never bored and had a blast trying to figure out who the killer was. All in all, this was a fantastic debut mystery and I hope that there will be more adventures for Ellie and Bill in the future.
Quote from The Last Line
