Laura Dave's sequel to 'The Last Thing He Told Me' reveals all

Those who read “The Last Thing He Told Me” and wondered what happens next for the characters will get their wish.

Writer Laura Dave has penned its sequel called “The First Time I Saw Him,” out now. A second season of the TV adaptation starring Jennifer Garner and Angourie Rice debuts on Apple TV next month.

“After the book came out, I started getting so many questions, people saying, ‘Well, what happens next?’ I had really imagined it as a standalone book, but I was surprised that I had an answer to what happened.”

“The Last Thing He Told Me” follows Hannah Hall, who has recently married Owen, a widowed man with a teen daughter named Bailey who is less than thrilled by this addition to her family. One day Owen disappears and leaves a note instructing Hannah to protect Bailey. The two are left to figure out what happened.

The book spent 65 weeks as a New York Times Best Seller. It was chosen by Reese Witherspoon for her Reese's Book Club. Dave co-created the TV series with her husband, Oscar-winning screenwriter Josh Singer. She wasn't a writer of Season 2 because she was busy writing the novel.

“The First Time I Saw Him” picks up after the events of “The Last Thing He Told Me” but also fleshes out details from the past.

“If the first (book) is asking the question, what are we willing to do for the people we love? I think the second book is asking, what are we willing to do to be forgiven? And what are willing to for a second chance? And so, to me, that was the journey back to Hannah and Owen's love story.”

In an interview with the AP, Dave talks about her writing, being married to a fellow writer and how “The Last Thing He Told Me” helped to name a baby boy. Responses have been shortened for clarity and brevity.

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DAVE: It really wasn't. As much as these last couple books have been suspense books, there’s been a huge love story at the center of both of them. My editor describes them as suspense novels rooted in hope which is sort of the opposite of what a suspense novel normally is. Normally, you find out that the person sleeping next to you is not who you thought they were. It’s sort of rooted in revenge or vengeance or retaliation. I’m really interested in finding the good even underneath very dangerous behavior.

DAVE: I was on a plane when we were shooting the first season of the show. We all had “The Last Thing He Told Me” crew hats. I was walking down the aisle on the plane, and there was this young mom holding a beautiful baby boy, and she stopped me and said, “Is this like the book ‘The Last Thing He Told Me?’ And I said yes. I didn’t say I was the author. She said, “Oh, this is Owen. I named him after Owen. I love the name Owen that I saw in the book, do you remember Owen?” I broke down.

DAVE: My husband and I are writing the screenplay for “The Night We Lost Him” for Netflix. I know what my next two books will be. One, I've already started.

DAVE: We’re so different in our process. He’ll show me things immediately while he’s writing them. He will show me new scenes because especially with screenwriting, and certainly with TV writing, there’s so much collaboration. So, you do it that way. I’m more like, I have to sort of be in my hole and get to the end and then get feedback. He’s my best reader and my first reader. I love talking about story with him and character. I’m a really big fan of his writing. I don’t know that I could be married to a writer if I didn’t feel like they’re the best writer around, and that’s how I feel about him.

Author Laura Dave poses for a portrait on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Author Laura Dave poses for a portrait on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Author Laura Dave poses for a portrait on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Author Laura Dave poses for a portrait on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Author Laura Dave poses for a portrait on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Richard “Dick” Codey, a former acting governor of New Jersey and the longest serving legislator in the state's history, died Sunday. He was 79.

Codey’s wife, Mary Jo Codey, confirmed her husband’s death to The Associated Press.

“Gov. Richard J. Codey passed away peacefully this morning at home, surrounded by family, after a brief illness,” Codey's family wrote in a Facebook post on Codey's official page.

"Our family has lost a beloved husband, father and grandfather -- and New Jersey lost a remarkable public servant who touched the lives of all who knew him," the family said.

Known for his feisty, regular-guy persona, Codey was a staunch advocate of mental health awareness and care issues. The Democrat also championed legislation to ban smoking from indoor areas and sought more money for stem cell research.

Codey, the son of a northern New Jersey funeral home owner, entered the state Assembly in 1974 and served there until he was elected to the state Senate in 1982. He served as Senate president from 2002 to 2010.

Codey first served as acting governor for a brief time in 2002, after Christine Todd Whitman’s resignation to join President George W. Bush’s administration. He held the post again for 14 months after Gov. Jim McGreevey resigned in 2004.

At that time, New Jersey law mandated that the Senate president assume the governor’s role if a vacancy occurred, and that person would serve until the next election.

Codey routinely drew strong praise from residents in polls, and he gave serious consideration to seeking the Democratic nomination for governor in 2005. But he ultimately chose not to run when party leaders opted to back wealthy Wall Street executive Jon Corzine, who went on to win the office.

Codey would again become acting governor after Corzine was incapacitated in April 2007 due to serious injuries he suffered in a car accident. He held the post for nearly a month before Corzine resumed his duties.

After leaving the governor’s office, Codey returned to the Senate and also published a memoir that detailed his decades of public service, along with stories about his personal and family life.

“He lived his life with humility, compassion and a deep sense of responsibility to others,” his family wrote. “He made friends as easily with Presidents as he did with strangers in all-night diners.”

Codey and his wife often spoke candidly about her past struggles with postpartum depression, and that led to controversy in early 2005, when a talk radio host jokingly criticized Mary Jo and her mental health on the air.

Codey, who was at the radio station for something else, confronted the host and said he told him that he wished he could “take him outside.” But the host claimed Codey actually threatened to “take him out,” which Codey denied.

His wife told The Associated Press that Codey was willing to support her speaking out about postpartum depression, even if it cost him elected office.

“He was a really, really good guy,” Mary Jo Codey said. “He said, ‘If you want to do it, I don’t care if I get elected again.’”

Jack Brook contributed reporting from New Orleans.

FILE - New Jersey State Sen. and former Democratic Gov. Richard Codey is seen before New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy delivers his State of the State address to a joint session of the Legislature at the statehouse, in Trenton, N.J., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)