August never feels like she has belonged and feels lost. She tends to move city to city, college to college while collecting a lot of student loan debt. After trying the last place, she moves to New York thinking it might fit her. She moves into an apartment with three eccentric people. She even becomes a waitress. However, the biggest thing to happen to her is riding the Q line on the subway. She sees this girl who is gorgeous and mysterious. August spills coffee on herself and Subway Girl gives her a red scarf. Ever since then, August cannot forget about her. Subway Girl is always on the Q line whenever she is on and she finds out her name is Jane. Yet, things start to not make sense about Jane and August finds out that Jane has been stuck on the Q line since the ‘70s and wants to help Jane remember herself and get off the Q line. Will they remain friends or will sparks fly even though Jane could be going back to her time?
Okay, I didn’t like Red, White & Royal Blue and I even DNFed it. So, when it came to this book I felt meh about it and thought I may not like it, but I saw a ton of buzz on it, so I requested it from Netgalley. This definitely blew my expectations out of the water. I loved the friendship, unity, and finding yourself themes in this book. Plus, August and Jane are just cute. I laughed a lot and loved every minute of reading this. If you want a good romance, pick this up.

Where do I even start on a book that was so magical in so many ways? When I first started reading this I was in a bit of a reading funk and hadn't been really into sticking with any book for more than a few chapters. There was a lot to take in at the beginning of this book with the vague description of what August was running from and being introduced to the roommates all at once, but once I got over that initial chunk I was hooked. I love how diverse this book is and how many different sides of New York it shows. This book has a fully flushed out cast of characters that you are rooting for all along the way. Sometimes when I've read a book I just really care about a main couple and get mad when we break away from them, but here I often found myself eager to hear about what everyone else was up to and how they would end up.
The pace of this book was perfect and it had up up late at night telling myself just one more chapter. I was so excited by it that I would swap between audiobook and ebook to read faster between driving to work and back and before bed. The audio book narrator was amazing too, she only had a couple of times that where she tried to do a thicker New York accent that it didn't quite work but that was maybe 2 times.
Just everything in this was perfect and made me happy, and now I want to reread this and Red, White, and Royal Blue so I can just always be happy with all these amazing characters!

Thank you @stmartinspress and @netgalley for a review copy if One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston available everywhere June 1/21.

I have saved this picture and review for so long waiting to be closer to the publication date but I can not hold off any longer! You guys need this book. Everybody, even if romance isn’t your jam, needs this book. It’s so sweet, so heartwarming, so fun, so much wonderful all packed into a light sci-fi found family coming of age something for everyone type story.

Like Red, White & Royal Blue, One Last Stop features two main characters who for one reason or another should or can’t be together but they are destined to. Jane is stuck on a time loop attached to a subway car, for her it is forever the 1970s and she can never leave. August falls hard for her and embarks to find a way.
CW include trouble relationship with mother/family ,runaway family member, grief, and a party scene with plenty of alcohol (I may be missing some, please DM if you have anything in particular you’d like to discuss)

Also, they live over a Popeye’s so if you have one nearby grab some lunch because they mention it a few times 😉😉😉

I enjoyed Red, White & Royal Blue so much that I requested One Last Stop on NetGalley without much thought or reading the synopsis. Which means I had so much fun reading it!

Seriously, I was totally and delightfully unprepared for what I was about to encounter. I was thrown off from the rom-com vibes I expected (don't worry, they're still there!) by the appearance of so many sci-fi vibes. I'm not sharing anything more than that because I really want everyone to be as unprepared as I was. I savored my experience with One Last Stop, because it surprised me and I miss being surprised by books.

One thing that I will say about McQuiston's books, now that I've read both of them, is that there are always parts where I feel like I've missed something. The writing and character development sometimes happen so quickly that something really major will happen, I'll be confused about how we got there, and then I have to go back and double-check the plot to make sure I've kept up. It's not necessarily a negative thing, just something I've noticed. Just makes me feel like I need to read closer!

This is barely a review but I would hate to spoil something joyful for other readers and there are so many gems to discover in this one.

I loved this book! August moves to New York to escape her mother's endless investigation of August's uncle and namesake who disappeared in the early 70s. Instead she falls into a whole new investigation as she realizes that the girl on her train isn't from the present time and can't escape the subway. I love the way the relationship between August and Jane unfolds and they work to solve the mystery of how Jane ended up stuck on the Q and how to get her out.

I fell in love with all the side characters in this book. From August's coworkers to her roommates, this book is full of the most loveable characters.

(an e-ARC for this book was sent to me from St. Martin's Press and Netgalley, so my biggest thanks to them!)

CW’s for this book: temporary memory loss, mentions of past homophobic violence, use of the d slur, also NSFW

Two years ago, I was introduced to Casey McQuiston’s writing with their debut novel and instantly fell in love. Now here I am, two years later, falling in love with their writing all over again. One Last Stop was honestly my most anticipated book for 2021. I’d been waiting to read this for so long, so if I am being honest, I was nervous going into the book. However I ended up loving it just as much as Casey Mcquiston’s debut.

If there was one word I could use to describe this book, it would be this: mysterious. Jane Su, the love interest of our protagonist August, has been lost in time since the 1970s, and it was so fascinating seeing the mystery of how this happened unfold. I loved seeing CMQ’s spin on the time travel/time warp trope. I was utterly intrigued the whole time, trying to make sense of things alongside August and the rest of the characters.

Speaking of, I loved the main character, August, because of how relatable she was. As a college student in my early twenties, there were times where I could really see myself in her, and I appreciate that so much. Her love interest Jane was also very intriguing, and if I saw her on a train, I’d probably fall in love, too. Honestly, all of the characters were so interesting and unique, and if you’re a fan of the found family trope like I am, you’ll probably enjoy the dynamic between them.

Another part of this book I feel the need to talk about is the amount of LGBTQ+ rep and history that was incorporated into this story. I would say that most of the main cast of characters were part of the LGBT community, and I know it’s slowly becoming more common in books these days but I still find it so comforting and refreshing to see. I also love the queer history that has been weaved into the story. I think it’s cool that both of CMQ’s books so far have incorporated history in some way. I hope this trend continues in future books.

Without spoiling, something I can say about the romance aspect of One Last Stop is that I truly do love August and Jane. They’re so good together, even if they’re also disasters. I feel like if I say anymore, I’ll get into spoiler territory, so I’ll stop there, but just know I love them together. Also, like in McQuiston’s previous novel, things do get very sexual, so if that’s not your thing, here is your warning.

There’s honestly not that much I didn’t like or love about this book. I was hooked from the start, and I probably would have gotten through it all sooner if I didn’t have school to worry about. That said, I am prepared to reread this as much as possible in the future.

First and foremost, I recommend this to RWRB fans. If you enjoyed that book even slightly, I’m sure you’ll like this one, too. This book deserves as much hype as that book has been getting. However please remember both of these books are New Adult, so don’t be surprised when you see that there is adult content. I also recommend this to anyone looking for a wlw book to read, whether you regularly read sapphic books, or if you want to read more and are looking for a good one to get started.

Also, suddenly I’m craving pancakes???

This was a great RomCom. I loved the characters and the secondary characters honestly made the story for me. August moves to New York for college, one of many different cities and colleges she has tried. She ends up finding a wonderful apartment filled with delightful roommates. While on the subway going to school, she meets a beautiful Jane. Jane looks like she walked right out of the '70's! I loved August and Jane together and I truly loved all the characters in this book. It has it all, a little mystery, love, and incredible friendships. I received an advanced readers copy and all opinions are my own.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! No spoilers. Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to. Truly Amazing and appreciated the whole story. This is going to be a must read for many many readers. Maybe even a book club pick.

I received an ARC from the publisher in an exchange for an honest review.

I have been excited about this book since I first found out about its release. I absolutely loved Red, White, & Royal Blue, and this book further cements Casey McQuiston as one of my all time favorite authors.

This book broke me and remade me. Where I felt that RWRB was lighthearted and funny, I felt that this book was more serious and real. The characters were genuine and authentic in a way that I have a hard time describing. The main characters of August and Jane were utter perfection. Even with the unrealistic situation surrounding the plot, it never felt like somethijg completely amiss.

Another wonderful book by McQuiston.

I've never read Red, White, and Royal Blue but, damn One Last Stop was so good. This is my first queer RomCom book and I really enjoyed this alot. The theme of found family was so perfect to me. I seriously loved the roommates the most. August was a fantastic bi protagonist. I laughed, I cried and I smiled. Thank you for letting me read this early.

I absolutely adored this. Case McQuiston has such a special writing style that isn't found anywhere else, and I'm so excited to see what she'll come up with next. I read this in one sitting, and will delightfully be rereading it soon.

I was very excited to read this book and had requested this a long time ago. But the recent situation of the world around me has put me in a bad slump, and I’m having particular trouble trying to read contemporary novels. So I won’t be able to review this one for now, but hopefully I’ll be able to read it someday in the future when things get better.
I did listen to a few chapters in the audiobook and I thought the narration was a lot of fun and banter was pretty cool. I’m sure the rest of this will be equally fun.

What a delightfully quirky and charming read this one was! If you’re like me and fell in love with the authors debut, Red White and Royal Blue and have been anxiously awaiting her sophomore novel you’ll be pleased I think. However I do want to warn you that this one reads differently than that one, and not in a bad way, it’s just much more odd and out there than her first. But it’s still charming, funny and full of diverse characters that will steal your heart, it’s just weird.

As much as I enjoyed both August and Jane as characters and loved watching them fall in love the secondary characters totally and completely stole the show for me here. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but I did find myself more interested in their lives at times than on what was going on between A and J which seemed a little off to me. Just an observation, I was still invested in the main romance but I think the whole time travel thing may have distanced me slightly. I did think the author did a good job of not going too far in the sciencey direction and my brain only hurt a few times trying to figure out time loops or whatever but I think romances grounded in reality are more my jam. This gripey review may make it seem like I didn’t enjoy this one, but I did I think I just had super high hopes and expectations and found it to be a teeny tiny bit lacking at some points. Still recommended but go into it knowing what to expect is my best advice.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press, St. Martin's Griffin for a copy of ONE LAST STOP in exchange for an honest review.

Casey McQuiston does it again. Red, White, and Royal Blue is one of my favorite romances. Sophomore novels can be a little anxiety-inducing because when you write a runaway bestseller, readers' expectations are heightened. This book, however, did not disappoint in the slightest. It has warmth, love, vulnerability, relatability, and a little something extra that I found so interesting.

McQuiston's writing describes everyday experiences with a fresh perspective, and their books offer diversity in their cast of characters. This book has LGBT+ representation throughout and addresses homophobia and the challenges associated with coming out to a family that may not accept one's sexuality.

One Last Stop is the story of August and Jane. August is a twenty-three-year-old who moves to NY in search of belonging. Jane is a twenty-four-year-old who is dazzling and mysterious and looks like she's straight out of the 1970s. Except, she is. She's been displaced, caught in a moment in time that she can't escape, and so August sets out to find out why Jane is stuck and how to get her unstuck. However, finding an answer may mean losing Jane forever, and so the tension between helping and losing it all underlies this heartfelt hug of a book.

Compulsively readable, this is a love story that will bring everyone a little hope this summer and beyond.

One Last Stop was one of my most anticipated reads of the year and it did not disappoint! This book has now joined Red, White and Royal Blue as one of my favourites.

Casey McQuiston just has this way of writing the most relatable characters. You are immediately attached and want nothing but happiness for them. I loved the relationship between August and June. It was wholesome and very well paced. The fine balance between instalove and slow paced. Right away, August was there and willing to help June with her “problem”, no spoilers here.

I’ve never been a fan of time travel books, but I will auto-buy anything by Casey McQuiston, and wow was I sucked in from the first chapter. This is a very different kind and refreshing take on time travel. I would get to the end of a chapter and then convince my self to read one more. I just could not put this book down.

And can we talk about the supporting cast!! Myla, Niko, Wes and Isaiah were all so much fun to be with. The bond that the 4 roommates (August, Myla, Niko and Wes) had was heartwarming. They were always there for each other no matter what. It was so nice being able to read something where everyone just believes August for her word. Like no ifs or buts about this mysterious person, who does not seem to fit into their time line.

August and June are amazing, but my favourite character has to be Niko! Every time he was in the room I was just mesmerized by him. I still don’t know what it was, but whenever he spoke I just felt this calmness fall over me and I was in such a peaceful state. I have never felt like that while reading before.

I loved One Last Stop and will definitely be recommending it along with Red, White and Royal Blue!

This was so great! I loved the queer found family of 6F (plus Isiah a.k.a Annie Depressant). The beginning was a little slow but, the last half of this was amazing. I loved the journey the August and Jane went on throughout the whole book and this book made me feel like a warm stack pancakes cover in sweet maple syrup. Or a Su Special.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book.

Oh my god, there are genuinely no words to describe how this book made me feel. Every emotion that can be felt was felt in this book and I loved every second of it.

If there’s anything that Casey McQuiston does well it is characters. And I fell in love with every single one in this book. I don’t think I’ve loved a friend group more than I did with this book, at least not in a long time. Honestly, I’m a bit jealous that I wasn’t a part of their group actually.

Also, the concept and setting of this book was very well done. I could picture myself in New York City, down to the little details, despite never having been there myself. The execution of the time warp plot line was very well thought and planned out, never once did it feel convenient for the plot or out of place.

And the ROMANCE. That’s definitely another thing that Casey does beautifully and this book is no exception. Actually, even the side romances were beautiful and everything I could’ve imagined. But the main romance is on another level. Forbidden, yearning, it was all just too much. And in the best way.

This book was exactly what I needed in my life, one that I will carry both its message and the feelings that it gave me throughout the future. And I know that those feelings will return with every reread and that I will think about these characters constantly. Because they’re exactly what I wanted and more, I can see myself in them while also seeing aspects in them that I can’t relate to. And still loving them all the same.

Needless to say, I loved this book. If you couldn’t already tell.

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston is a wonderful queer romance about finding yourself, finding love, and finding your place whenever you feel lost.

August has spent her whole life trying to get out of the shadow of her mother’s obsessions. Transferring schools hasn’t helped in the past, but moving to New York City feels like starting over. She has new roommates, a new job, and a new city that happens to have cute girls on the subway. Or at least one cute girl in particular. It doesn’t take long for August to start falling for Jane, but Jane isn’t your typical New Yorker. Trapped in time and stuck on the Q line since the 70s, Jane might not know what year it is or what style is currently in fashion, but she does know she likes August. Longing to bring Jane home and have a real relationship with her, August sets out to solve Jane’s mystery. With some sleuthing, the help of her friends, and a little New York City magic, August is determined to help Jane - even if it means losing her forever.

One Last Stop was such a fabulously diverse story. McQuiston features characters of so many backgrounds - different races, different gender identities, different sexual orientations, and different socio-economic classes. I’m hard-pressed to think of another story I’ve read where so many walks of life are represented, and McQuiston does such a wonderful job of including these characters. And if that level of inclusivity isn’t enough, August also enlists psychics and drag queens to help her on her journey.

McQuiston revisits the same easy writing style used in their debut Red, White & Royal Blue. It’s easy to dive into One Last Stop and forget the outside world. Even the most dire situations invoke a sense of humor and hope, and it’s that wit and sarcasm that makes One Last Stop such a fun read. From August and Jane’s first meeting, I knew I’d be rooting for them to get their happily-ever-after. August was a relatable character: young, falling in love for the first time, and not sure about her place in the universe. And Jane is so much her opposite most of the time - experienced, sure of herself, warm, and inviting - that readers can’t help but root for them.

Though not classified as fantasy, there’s a sense of magic running throughout One Last Stop. Through parties, late night dinners at the diner, and drag shows, the plot is rife with a sense of life. I would absolutely love to live in this story with this cast of characters, hitting up drag shows, eating pancakes, and riding the Q line for hours with Jane and August. McQuiston brilliantly weaves acceptance and love into a story about finding yourself and defying the odds. Whether you read and loved Red, White & Royal Blue or are new to Casey McQuiston, One Last Stop has a little magic and romance for everyone.

Oh, how I wanted to love this book. Like so many, I really adored Red White & Royal Blue and have very much been looking forward to Casey McQuiston's next book. But unfortunately, this one just fell short for me. I don't think this is a problem with the book so much as my expectations and what I wanted out of the book, versus what it actually was. What I wanted was a fun, fluffy, feel-good romance like I'd gotten in RW&RB. What I got was a book that very much focused on early 20s coming-of-age/finding yourself, a LOT of queer history, and a light sci fi story about a young woman thrown out of time, with a side dish of romance. And ultimately, I wanted the romance to be the main course. So like I said, this is more a case of what the book WAS versus what I wanted it to be. Because it IS a good book; it just wasn't the book for me at this time.

5/5*

Red, White & Royal Blue (review here) is hands-down one of my favourite books. I talk about it all the time, I often wish I could recommend it to my students (but I can't because I teach high school and it's just a touch to sexual for that age group), and it’s a book that I’ve reread countless times since I first received it. So of course I was thrilled to find out that Casey McQuiston was coming out with a new novel, and I liked that this book is completely different in that there’s a fantastical element to the love story. I’m thrilled that I was given an advance copy because I don’t know if I could’ve waited any longer to read this book! Happily, I loved it as much as I loved her debut novel.

Amazing Characters
I absolutely adore the characters that McQuiston created in this book. While August took me a second to warm up to, I promptly fell in love with her by chapter two. And a big part of that was with the help of her roommates - Myla, Niko and Wes - who help August come out of her shell, with both them and with the reader. All the characters in this book are so much fun to read about, in a large part because they are giving us the opportunity to see characters and people we don’t normally see in mainstream love stories. The way that characters are portrayed - their different genders, sexualities, and personalities - is so beautifully and seamlessly done that I honestly feel like I know these characters and I wish I could be friends with them in real life. This book is educational in that it shows that there is no one "right" way to be. It’s all about being who you truly are and finding your people who will be there to support you no matter what.

Fun Mystery
One of the best things about this book is that I really didn’t know where the “Jane is from the 19070s” storyline was going. It’s usually pretty easy to tell how contemporary romances are going to end, and I love that because I want the happy ending. But in this case, the mystery around why Jane is stuck on the subway and how she ended up here genuinely takes a lot of the novel to figure out and there’s no clear answer as the reader for how this will play out. And I love it! August has literally trained her entire life to be able to help someone in this situation and figure out who Jane truly is. It was really fun to read and see their story (and their romance) progress. It’s clear McQuiston had a lot of fun writing this book, and I can’t imagine how much research she would’ve had to do to figure out the scientific logistics of it all! But it makes for a really fun read and a solid contemporary/romance/pseudo-mystery novel.

Love the Little Details
There were so many little things I loved about this book that helped to make it what it is. Things like the beginning of every chapter, where we’re given newspaper blurbs and missed connection ads that slowly help us piece together some of the mystery around Jane. Likewise, the details given to background characters (aka all the other employees at Billy’s) is excellent because it makes the story come to life. We’re given so much about August’s world and I honestly felt like I could go to New York and have pancakes at Billy’s and see these characters there. But the best details about this book is the insight given into what it was like to be LGBTQ+ in the 1970s. And it’s heartbreaking in so many ways. As August leans what it would’ve been like, we also realize just how far (and honestly, there’s still so much more work to do) we’ve come as a society. But also how cruel the world was to people who didn’t fit into the heteronormative restrictions of the period. It made me further appreciate everyone who has had to fight for their right to live the life they want even when everyone around them tries to tear them down.

This book is going to be another high recommendation from me! It has great characters, a fun storyline, and it’s just such a wonderful and entertaining book to read. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a fun contemporary romance or to those looking for LGBTQ+ characters in romance novels. McQuiston has once again created a beautiful love story and I am so excited for this to come out so that we can all keep talking about it!