One Last Stop

Written by: Casey McQuiston

Rating: 3.5/5
Warnings: Mental health struggles, Death, Some violence

Unfortunately, this book didn’t do much for me. I enjoyed the storyline overall, but it was harder to keep engaged with the book throughout. I really enjoyed Red, White, and Royal Blue, so I was hoping to like this one too, but it was not the same!

Synopsis:
August moves to New York at 23 to be on her own. She moves in with two weird roommates. One day, on her commute to work, she meets Jane on the subway. She realizes that Jane is stuck in the 70s, so August must either forget about her or learn to love another!

3.5 Stars
One Last Stop was one of the books I was most anticipating in 2021. The premise was enough to get me excited, even without the fact that this is the follow-up to the much beloved Red, White & Royal Blue. Unfortunately, it took me about the first quarter of the book to really get into the story. I had such a hard time connecting at first, that I almost gave up. But something happened as the loose threads started to come together and by the end, I was completely invested and emotionally engaged in the story.

In the end, I found this story to be unique and emotionally satisfying. I appreciated the high stakes drama at the end, and thought the characters were well-developed (especially the leads) and the resolution of August’s relationship and investigation involving her mother were tied up nicely. There isn’t a lot of comedy in this, which seems to be the case with a lot of the more recent romcom releases, but the novel makes up for it with heart. You won’t regret sticking with this unconventional romance.

Content warnings: depictions of bigotry, remembered violence, missing family member, rejection by family.

This was a sweet and entertaining romance that takes place in my favorite city which made it even more of a delight to read. I loved the setting, all the side characters, and the quick-witted banter between them. You can find family, unconditional love, and acceptance in the most unlikely places. There were many heartwarming instances in this book. The thing that fell flat for me was the romance between Jane and August and the time travel aspect of it.

First of all, big humongous thanks to NetGalley for giving me access to a digital copy of this book! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Second of all, Casey McQuiston has done it again! I honestly don't think I can properly express my love for this book in words, but I am going to try.

The characters are all so beautiful and amazing and diverse and I fell in love with every single one of them instantly! I related a lot to August, my entire family is really involved in crime investigation and a part of law enforcement in one way or another, so I understood a lot about how she grew up and how her first thoughts and instincts were about ensuring her safety and avoiding and situations which could lead to potential disaster. I saw a lot of myself in August and it was the most amazing thing ever, feeling so seen and understood and it made me tear up a lot, not going to lie. Jane on the other hand is everything August isn't and it works so perfectly. Jane is vivacious and full of life and so brave and honest and present and I fell in love with her as fast and August did. The rest of the characters were more than just side characters; they were as much a part of the story and gave the book so much life and love and they filled with me an intense longing to have what they all do.

The writing was, of course exquisite. Casey has a way of writing that is so blunt and honest and also whimsical and poetic at the same time. Emotion pours from every sentence and I felt everything the characters did intensely.

I was pleasantly surprised by how much of this was a mystery, and even a little heist was involved which was one of the best parts. Like August, I can't resist a case that needs to be solved so this swept me away immediately. The pacing was perfect and the plot was executed so magnificently.

The romance between August and Jane takes the crown. I desperately want what they have. It was so beautiful seeing them get to know each other and understand one another and fall for each other over and over. My heart soared and raced and stopped and I just felt giddy and deliriously happy at the end. I have no doubt I will be reading this over and over and over again.

4.5⭐ OK this book was not at all what I thought, but OMG so cute! So many storylines but they all intertwine to make one wonderful story. My favorite part of the book was actually the party at Isaiah's. I loved the love story, the mystery, and yes, even the unrealistic time travel. Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I liked One Last Stop, but I didn't love it. It was slow for much of the book and didn't hold my attention. And time travel is not one of my favorite tropes. Overall, it was okay but not a book I would reread.

ONE LAST STOP was such a fun, entertaining, and original book! It is not a genre I usually read, but many things have changed in my life the past year that opened my mind, heart, and world in a positive and welcoming way; making me appreciate this book even more. I DEVOURED this romcom and felt exhilarated and excited while reading it. The characters were absolutely quirky and eccentric, the writing was easy and comfortable, but most of all, the story was entertaining and delightful as all heck! I am looking forward to reading more by this new to me author and this genre!

This time-split, queer rom-com is like a John Hughes movie in book form. A great cast of character who are diverse, hilarious, and utterly quotable. This book is great for fans of Talia Hibbert and Jasmine Guillory.

tw:
I just finished one last stop a few mornings ago and it holds a special place in my heart just like rwrb. The fact that both of these books came to me during deeply personal and difficult times in my life and they both just resonated with me so deeply? Casey McQuiston has such a talent for writing such amazing found family type books. I loved every page and I can't wait to reread it.

Spotting a hot stranger on the subway can lift anyone’s spirits. A brief flirtation between stops may fuel a week’s worth of far-fetched fantasy. You might wax poetic to your friends, coworkers, or Twitter: “I saw an angel today.”

But what if you kept running into them, always on the same train?

In Casey McQuiston’s One Last Stop, 23-year-old August moves to New York determined to be alone—safe from distractions like love or friendship. Her plans are almost immediately derailed by a ragtag crew of queer roommates, a job serving pancakes, and a sexy, tattooed Chinese American lesbian.

Each time she sees Jane (with her devastating jawline, vintage Pride pins, and cassette player) her heart melts a little more. Yet cynicism and general romantic obliviousness aren’t the only things keeping them apart.

Jane is more than the highlight of August’s commute, she’s trapped on it. Mysterious circumstances have left her untethered from time and bound to the Q. And August will do anything to save the woman she adores, even if it spells disaster for her own happiness.

McQuiston’s new adult novel presents a queerness infused with hope. The writer fearlessly weaves LGBTQ history, gentrification, and personal loss into the fabric of young love. Rather than obscure the characters’ joys, these moments of heartbreak, grief, and anger give them refreshing emotional depth.

If you appreciate the quotidian sci-fi tenderness of "The Time Traveler’s Wife" and take personal offense when someone disrespects a bus driver, this is the book for you. August and Jane’s story transports readers to the end of the line and beyond.

Okay, so Casey Mcquiston is two for two. And in fact, I think I love this one even more than Red, White, & Royal Blue. Which, honestly? I didn't think was possible. This book and these characters will be living in my head and heart forever.

August and Jane are just so great together and all the supporting characters are just *chef's kiss* perfection. This was hilarious and heartwarming and moving. Casey McQuiston took such care with this book and I'm just drowning in a puddle of feelings.

One Last Stop starts off with August moving to New York City. Originally from New Orleans, August needs space from her mother and her mother's obsession and is trying to find a place where she feels like she belongs. In the process of finding a place to live she meets people who, though she doesn't know it at the time, will become like family and then, then there’s Jane. And Jane is everything August didn't even know she was looking for.

But things aren't exactly what they appear with Jane and if there is one thing that August is fantastic at, it's getting to the bottom of things. And thus the journey begins. Filled with mystery, found family, and all different types of love: this is not a book to miss out on.

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston
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This is such a fun and sweet romance! McQuiston has this gift of taking an imaginative and wild concept and making it feel realistic and relatable. Intent on taking control of her life, August Landry moves to New York City, enrolls in college, finds an eclectic group of roommates, lands a job, and falls in love with a girl on the subway. Seems like everyone’s fantasy, right? But August falls in love with Jane Su, a young woman who is fascinating, beautiful, smart, kind, and seems to know everyone. She also seems to always be on the train. As August falls more and more in love with the punk rock loving Jane, she also discovers that Jane doesn’t just seem to love a different time, she is literally from another time. Jane Su went missing 45 years ago and her connections to August’s life run far deeper than a school girl crush.
As the two discover more about Jane’s past and what may have trapped her on the train, August and her incredible group of new friends do everything they can to save Jane from living on the train for eternity.
I am a true sucker for a found family and August definitely won the lottery with her amazing roommates. Niko, bartender by day and part-time psychic, knew August would be a great fit through a handshake. Myla, artist and engineer, instantly goes out of her way to make August feel at home, but you also learn that she is always the warmest and kindest person in the room. Wes, former trust-fund baby now cut off from his family, is madly in love with the drag queen next door and has an adorable dog Noodles. The four roomies are instantly inseparable best friends and their bond carries over to saving Jane, and August, from a devastating fate. I loved that August was able to find this close connection to such an amazing group after a childhood spent with just her mother. We quickly discover that there is more to her and her mother’s relationship than a love of true crime and the quest to find her missing uncle, an uncle that went missing before August was born. When the truth comes out about why August and her mother were such a tight team, August needs her new friends to fall back on for support.
Full of heart, hope, and witty banter, One Last Stop, is a smart and hilarious story of otherworldly love that transcends time.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read and review this title. The pleasure, as well as opinions and mistakes, was all mine.

I was really surprised by how good this book was. I read a lot of romance novels but I’ve never read anything quite like this. Casey McQuiston writes attraction between characters in a way that is almost electric and give you all the feels.

I did think it was a little slow to start and probably a little longer than necessary but there was one scene that really stood out to me as poorly written. Jane (a Chinese woman) has just gotten in a fight with a man who said racist and homophobic things to her and August (a white woman) tells here that “people aren’t like that anymore” McQuiston even takes it so far that Jane replies with “that’s not what this is about.”

We had been on such a good roll throughout the book talking about how it was black trans women who started the stonewall riots and had on more than one occasion mentioned police brutality so this scene felt really out of place. White characters and authors shouldn’t be qualifying how much racism there is in the world given that they don’t experience it. I don’t think this was intentional or even aligns with the authors views but they handled the scene in a very clumsy and privileged way. We should have gotten a more nuanced conversation about racism and homophobia today, but instead they went on to talk about how hard it was for Jane to know she was stuck out of her time and confined to the subway.

This book checks a lot of boxes on paper. It's a quirky, cute, fun, has time travel, a heist, pancakes and drag shows. What's not to love? Unfortunately, One Last Stop fell just a little short of expectations, though I did still enjoy myself reading it (one exchange between Myla and August in particular on page 342 about her ex-boyfriend Greg had me rolling with laughter).

While Jane and August's romance (and the complications surrounding it what with Jane being displaced from the 1970's and trapped on the Q train) is the center of this story, for me it was the diverse supporting cast of characters that really stole the show for me. It was Myla and Nikko, Wes and Isaiah (and Annie Depressant) that I really found myself continuing on with the book for. They were the ones who I felt truly carried the story and I was sorry that I didn't get to follow them more.

The chemistry between Jane and August, in my opinion, felt a bit one-sided and lacking in chemistry. It probably didn't help that it felt like there were major plot points that felt like they were dropped for rather large chunks of the book only be dug up last minute to finally move the plot forward and neatly tie everything together at the end. August & her mother's strained relationship over the case of her missing uncle (I literally forgot about that case file Suzette sent August until it was conveniently needed to push the plot forward again), Pancake Billy's impending closure are just a couple of examples of this. So, while I saw the various plot twists coming when it came to both of those major events, there wasn't enough build up to them to truly make the payoff worth it.

My favorite moments of this book were the ones that involved August and her friends. Isaiah's Easter Brunch, the Christmas in July party, the gang hungover at the apartment, August and Wes's slow burn friendship. Those are the scenes that I would recommend this book for. It's what I loved most about this book. Which is unfortunate since this really was a romance book and all, but the romance aspect just fell a little short.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read though and Casey McQuiston's writing style is so enjoyable that I'll definitely consider reading more of whatever she writes in the future.

Thank you so much to the publisher & NetGalley for this arc!

This story was beyond my expectations! It’s got romance galore, roommates with lots of personality (giving me some serious New Girl vibes), and even some time travel!

I haven’t read any other books by this author, but after reading this one I will most definitely be picking up more by them. The characters felt like they were all so well thought out, and there was so much great representation. The plot was so unique and intriguing. My emotions were all over the place!

I highly recommend checking this one out!

Like most other cave-dwelling Millennials on the internet, I absolutely adored Red, White, and Royal Blue earlier this year, so had very high expectations going into this. I saw lots of commentary on TikTok about how this book was better than RWRB, so suffice it to say I was PUMPED when I got a copy from NetGalley.

One Last Stop tells the story of August, an early twenty-something brand new to New York. Having bounced around from city to city, major to major, August finds herself lost in life and looking for a fresh start in a city she can be anonymous in. So, with what little savings she has, she moves to the big apple, finds an apartment with an engineer-turned scientist and her Trans psychic partner, a recluse gay man in love with the drag queen across the hall, and of course, Noodles the dog.

August is used to being alone with few belongings- it's how she survived her childhood of being dragged around by her mother as she tried to solve her brother's disappearance, some 40 years before. She grew up with the mantra of 'I don't need anyone,' so it's a surprise to August when she finds herself falling for a girl she met on the train. Enter Jane, who is an enigma wrapped in a mystery wrapped in a fluffy red scarf. Jane has no memory of who she is or where she comes from, which would be a problem alone, but she's also stuck in time and can't get off the Q train without bouncing right back on it.

As August and Jane start to fall in love and learn more about themselves, there's also a deadline approaching- the train will be shut down in a few months, and with it, Jane may disappear forever.

Ultimately, One Last Stop was a cute love story with a very unique plot. I fell in love with Niko and Wes, although Jane's abrasiveness didn't do it for me. The book is laugh-out-loud funny, and there are times I found myself grinning along with the antics. It's also about found family, as August navigates her way into adulthood and finally builds relationships with people who start off as roommates, become friends, then become family.

August's mother can go to Hell, though- who the hell raises a child with the explicit purpose of using them to score information on a case you may not have otherwise had access to? August forgives her WAY too easily, I think.

Overall, a great Queer book with lots of representation, and one I'll be recommending to our patrons to read.

One Last Stop is a celebration of identity, found family and finding a place for yourself in this lonely world. Through well-written characters that you will 100% fall in love with and an incredible tour of New York City and its complex subway system, you will find yourself transported to a place that you won’t want to leave (or until you’ve at least had a taste of Billy’s Su Special). I’ve only been to NYC once and I was honestly disgusted by its subway, there was a constant smell of vomit permeating the air and an unsettling feeling of being looked at… but Casey McQuiston somehow made it magical yet vivid enough to be believable in its wonder.

But the NYC Subway is just a piece of the bigger picture that centers the mystery that is Jane Su. I really appreciated that this wasn’t just your typical Contemporary Romance novel, the odd science-fiction-mystery aspect to it made the story all the more interesting to me (though I will say that I found it paradoxical that it took them so long to piece together who Jane Su was, kind of dragging the book along, when they conveniently already had the methods in finding those answers). Unfortunately, I wasn’t all that invested in Jane and August’s romance, it felt like August was just pining from afar until she realized that Jane IS a mystery which ended up catapulting them into this whirlwind adventure leading to their steamy moments. I definitely would have appreciated more development in their relationship prior to the discovery about Jane and her mysterious identity.

Though I liked August as an MC, there were times (especially in the beginning) wherein I found it hard to connect with her. Her cynicism and jadedness was familiar to me but I just couldn’t completely click with her. While my connection with August wasn’t that good, I, however, fell deeply in love with her roommates and Isaiah/Annie. They were absolute delights and were, for me, the highlights of this book. They made the atmosphere so quirky and warm and welcoming and each page wherein at least one of them would make an appearance, the whole scene just becomes brighter. They were August’s own found family… and what a family they were.

This book was good, and I’m sure for other people, it’s probably close to perfect, but I just didn’t fall in love with it the way I thought I would. So many parts of One Last Stop were incredible but looking it as a whole, it was just a good book. I will say Casey McQuiston’s writing has gotten so much better from RWRB (which was already great) and their prose definitely drew me in, and honestly leaving me basking in queer magic (which I loved).

It's better than the author's first book, and that is the most charitable thing I can say.

The speculative element was mind numbing.

The characters make a lot of references people their age wouldn't even get. Who under 30 knows what Quantum Leap is, honestly? Who is this written for? It reads like a YA but the characters are in their 20s, act like they're in their 30s, and make references like they're in their 50s.

I started skimming at around 30%. I just didn't want to read this.

The highly anticipated sophomore novel from the author of [book:Red, White & Royal Blue|41150487] does not disappoint. McQuiston writes some of the best prose of her generation. My two issues were names within the enormous cast of characters (please can we not have characters named Wes and Winfield, my tiny walnut brain can't distinguish) and that I would have liked to see August's experiences with Hurricane Katrina expanded, but these are small issues.

Bring tissues, and headphones for all the glorious music references throughout.

I had no idea what this was about going into it. I knew I loved Red, White, and Royal Blue so I assumed I would love this too. While it took a bit longer for me to connect to August and Jane once I did I was in there. Casey does such a fabulous job painting a picture and making you really feel invested. This was a subway love story with a sprinkle of unexpected time travel. I found myself rooting for Jane to stay but feeling torn like she needed to leave and then being utterly devastated when she did.... and then that freaking scene at Billy’s I just gasped and hoped that it was her, because it had to be her. Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this one!