Yes, it's just as amazing as you all hope it is.

Casey McQuiston's writing has touched so many people and will continue to do so for years to come, but it's hard to believe sometimes that her books are not written for me specifically. RED, WHITE & ROYAL BLUE came into my life when I was 22, living in Austin, and on the verge of questioning my sexuality for the first time. When I started to realize I was bisexual, Alex Claremont Diaz is the character that helped me contextualize my own experiences and gave me the courage to be myself. For this reason and a thousand others, RWRB became my all-time favorite book and genuinely changed my life. So naturally, I approached Casey's second book with both uncontainable excitement and unprecedented terror. With a book you anticipate this highly, especially an author's follow up to your favorite book ever, there are two possibilities. Either the book won't live up to your expectations, and you'll be crushed, or the book will be just as amazing as the first, and you'll be blown away and reduced to a puddle of emotion on your bedroom floor. Both of these outcomes scared me for different reasons, but I am thrilled to declare that Casey McQuiston's sophomore novel is not only a worthy successor to Red, White & Royal Blue, but also just as shockingly, deeply personal to me. Because while Alex Claremont Diaz came into my life when I was a questioning 22-year-old living in Texas, I met August as a 23-year-old bisexual woman from the south who found herself living a (relatively) new life in the Prospect Park area of Brooklyn. August rides my trains, she lives above my neighborhood Popeyes, and I saw myself in her in ways I have not seen myself in a book character in quite some time.

For me, the true magic of One Last Stop is the way that this book, set in my own neighborhood, could still transport me to a a different place. The familiar and the fantastical perfectly combine in this book in a way that make me feel as if I could have my own unbelievable, once-in-a-lifetime love story on my own block. It made me love this beautiful, crazy city more than I already do, and made me miss the daily routine of riding the subway--which shouldn't even be possible, haha. Casey manages to create magic in the familiar, and that alone could earn this book 5 glowing stars.

One of the most surprisingly delightful parts of this book are the friendships and the sense of queer community that Casey establishes between August and her friends. Brooklyn and New York City in general is such a special place to be queer, and seeing a queer found family like this one play such a prominent role in this book made my heart sing. I went into this book knowing that August and Jane would steal my heart, but I never could have guessed that I would become just as obsessed with Niko and Myla and Wes and Isaiah. Romance books that emphasize the power of friendship alongside romance are few and far between, and made this book extra special for me. Niko and Myla might have been my two favorite characters in the whole book, even. I laughed out loud through so many of their scenes and was also touched by their own backstories.

But of course, I could not praise this book without talking about how much I adore the romance. Jane and August have INSANE chemistry, and I love that we got to know and love each of them as people before we ever saw them come together as a couple. I was so interested and touched by Jane's stories of her past, but also desperate for her to be able to stay in the present day with August. This romance made me scream, gasp, blush, and laugh. I was so afraid to get to the end of this book because I was not ready to say goodbye to August and Jane's relationship. I've sat on this review for several months and still my passion for this love story and these characters has not faded.

Fans of Casey McQuiston and new readers alike, brace yourselves. You're not ready for this book. I can't wait for this book to be out in the world for everyone!

The little family that makes up the apartment in One Last Stop is definitely the lynchpin of this story. These characters that Casey McQuiston has created are pure warmth. They make a truly strange and interesting story feel a little more real. August goes very quickly from being alone to having a family, comfort, a home. Reading about this ragtag band of misfits is like drinking a perfect cup of tea when you’re sad. McQuiston shoves August into a plot that is perfectly tropey and yet endlessly fresh and interesting. I’ve read my fair share of party scenes in books and yet I think I’d give my kingdom for a chance to go to Easter Drag Brunch at Annie’s. And on top of all the fun and comfort and home and plot, she gives August a love story. Cool, exciting, blush-inducing love, the kind that makes you sort of panic through the last entire half of the novel. A love that is strange and undeniable. For a story about a girl stuck on a train, this book isn’t ever static. I think a lot of readers are going to be drawn to it. I can’t wait to start recommending.

I love a book with a full cast of queer characters! Though time travel is not generally my thing - One Last Stop still worked for me. The mystery aspect was interesting and engaging, but as the book ended I found myself wishing that I’d had more time with August and Jane existing together in the world of the current timeline.

I absolutely LOVE this book! I fell in love with every character. I fell in love with the city. I fell in love with the feeling. Family. Belonging. Person. Place. Time. Filled with humor and love, wit and charm. This is a book I will read time and time again as I am sure I will not stop thinking about it for some time. Absolute gem!

This is a DNF for me. I loved McQuiston's first novel, but I just couldn't get through her sophomore work.

An absolute gem of a book!! It's fun and full of wonderful characters. It captures that feel the city has --that anything can happen. It will make you swoon! I LOVE this book.

My biggest issue was August as a protagonist. Most of her actions felt very convenient and the way that the things continued to fall into place for her [ such as never having to do any assignments, to the way her family was intertwined with Jane's story, to the way she was absent from work for long stretches of time and was yet still able to pay her share of the rent and never get fired ] was all too coincidental for me. So much of the book also had the romance feeling very one-sided to me, and not in a fun unrequited way, but in a rather disturbing I was uncomfortable with how the relationship had been framed way. There was something about this dark skinned Asian woman being saved by this white girl from the south that just rubbed me the wrong way. The way the narrative was framed as Jane being in this position where she couldn't remember anything without August and August being the key to unlocking everything, it never felt as though Jane had any sort of agency in a story that was essentially about her but was being relayed to us through August. Even August was odd as several times throughout the novel it read as though we were experiencing things through an unnamed third narrator as the running commentary in the book just didn't make sense. It was also hard for me to believe that August would dive so headfirst into trying to unlock the mystery surrounding Jane given how the novel sets her up as no longer wanting to be in the kind of life her mother had raised her in, and even the final decision August makes about her future later in the book doesn't seem grounded in any kind of reality that had been conveyed to me.

I also was not a fan of the pacing. This book seemed to drag for large stretches of filler content only to then speed through what could have been important and plot-related content. Not that I think any of it would have actually helped because by the time I hit the 50% mark I was fully ready to call it a day and be done with this reading experience. By that point, things had been o slow to develop that the adding tensions didn't really do anything for me as a reader. Especially given that as a romance I knew that nothing bad could really happen to our characters and the efforts in the last third to subvert that were more annoying than feeling like they offered any kind of meaningful payoff.

Overall I did not enjoy my time reading this and I likely would not recommend it to others as I simply had too many issues and there weren't nearly enough things I enjoyed to

One of my favorite books of the year. I was not expecting the extra time travel element, but it made the story that much more interesting! I actually like this one more than the previous book by the author, which was hard to top. I love seeing girls supporting girls and controlling the narrative. Definitely one to buy!

I started this book at 9:30pm last night... and stayed up till 6:30am to finish it. I never once felt tired, or felt like I needed to skip to the end. It was a beautiful 8 hours of constant need to see how these two characters ended up.

I laughed- I can’t tell you how many times I laughed. I cried- oh did I cry. I was in awe. I was starstruck. I was... way too attracted to these fictional characters and HOW DARE CASEY make the perfect girl for me in a book. I’m obviously talking about both August and Jane.

I’m a SIMP for anything with a touch of time travel in it and I do blame that specific reason on why I love this book so much. Done so beautifully.

ALSO... how... how did Casey McQuiston make me love... everyone in this book so much!? How!? I can’t tell you the last book I read where I just loved... everyone.

Please, pleas pre-order, read & read again. I’m gonna go cry now. (Also- thanks for the ARC- seriously- I’ve never been so thankful)

I really loved this book! The found family aspects were especially wonderful, and I love seeing so many people who accept and love each other so well.

August meets lovely Jane on a subway and finds that the best part of her day is spent in those little moments with Jane.
Soon she realizes that something is off about Jane, does she even belong in this decade?

This book surprised me! I wasn’t expecting such a love story in this sci-fi esque book. Some great steamy romance in this female/female relationship and I was here. for. it.
The side characters were so fun in this one as well. August’s rag tag roommates and their dynamics made me think of the show New Girl, but add in some LGBTQ love, a psychic, a drag queen, and it’s all the more better. I love how McQuiston can write a character that makes you want to meet that person IRL so bad. And somehow you feel like they are already a friend of yours.

I don’t want to spoil much with the whole “time travel/ alternate universe” plot. You’ll have to read that for yourself. But what I will say is that sometimes I had a hard time buying into it. I’ve read several other books recently with a similar vibe and while this one is definitely unique, it wasn’t the driving point of the book for me. So it was hard to push through the book at times, especially with this being a longer book.
Some cool things happen though. Some plot twists and turns. This was very different than McQuiston’s debut Red White and Royal Blue. But it worked! And I found the different vibe to be really fascinating. Not to mention all of the scenery of it being set in NYC. I love NYC and this book made we want to book another trip. Such a cool city.

Overall I gave this one 4.5 ⭐️s. And I recommend picking this one up when it releases on 6/1/21!

I really enjoyed this fresh F/F romance with a weird scfi/fantasy type twist?! It was a fun read, but it did not live up entirely to my expectations for some reason I can't quite explain. Although I did enjoy this one more than her previous book, Red, White & Royal blue (mostly because I read it during election time which was a hot mess). I would definitely recommend this book to customers looking for a more engaging romantic read!

This book is hot and sexy. A virgin from New Orleans falls for a stranger on the subway and the sparks fly! August wanted to be alone amongst all the people in the big city, reinventing herself and trying another new college, but that’s not what happened. She wound up with these awesome roommates who become like family. Their neighbor is a drag queen and they’re all big into the scene and it is really cool to see her open up and enjoy parties. One of the roommates is trans but it was only mentioned in passing, which is cool, but he’s also psychic, so that’s kinda weird. Another is a super smart engineer-turned-artist who I wish was my best friend. Then there’s the night shift guy with low self-esteem who’s in love with the drag queen. Everything circles around: not only with her friends, but with her life. She finds out the skills she’s been hoping to shed are what make her special and might even save her subway girl.

Big thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was so thrilled when I recevied this ARC from NetGalley. Red, White and Royal Blue was one of my favorite books in 2019. I couldn't put it down and the relationship in that book was perfectly crafted and executed. Even though I had nothing in common with the characters I loved them and rooted for them.
One Last Stop is somewhat similar. There are very complex characters from so many diverse communities. You will absolutely root for the main characters to find a happy ending, even if you arent sure what that happy ending is. I was quite confused when I started this book. The fantasy aspect of it was confusing to me but towards the middle of the book all became clear and I fully understood the road block to this otherwise perfect relationship.
What I loved most about this book was the idea that you can find a family outside of your blood family, that loves you and helps to nurture you to become the best version of yourself. August finds love in so many ways in this book and while I wasnt sure about where this character was headed, I really enjoyed reading this book.

Red, White, & Royal Blue is one of my very favorite books of all time, so I was afraid this one wouldn't live up to it. And it didn't. But it's also a VERY, VERY different book. This one has sci-fi/paranormal vibes that have no presence at all in her debut, and are completely at odds with the rest of the very contemporary book, but it still works?

Very cute book that is easy and quick to read. Perfect to read on the beach or anywhere you need a fun quick page turning book!
Thank you to netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I was a little worried for this book following up on the massive success of Red, White, and Royal Blue (primarily because wlw romances are not as popular as mlm romances in general, but also because sophomore novels can be tricky to stick the landing), but my worries are assuaged now that I've read it. Casey McQuiston did it again: bringing me a charming cast of characters who actually sound and make jokes like current twenty-somethings, all while giving me the romance butterflies in my stomach. I think this one is slightly less explicit than Red, White, and Royal Blue, but I would still only suggest it to 18+ readers. The B plot mystery with August's mom also kept drawing me back in as much as the romance between our two protagonists. This book was a home run all around.

This book wasn’t what I was expecting… But that is probably because I didn’t read the full description and was thoroughly confused when August was trying to discover if Jane was dead or not. Whoops.

The story centers on August, who moves to New York to get a break from her mom and figure out what is she supposed to be doing with her life. Within the first couple of days, she has found friendship in her quirky roommates and has developed a crush on “Subway Girl,” the cute girl who always seems to be riding the same train. Like, always...

August wasn’t my favorite protagonist, but I did enjoy her. I liked the backstory of her being somewhat of a child spy and how far she is willing to go to help her friends and loved ones. I wish she had a little bit more sass or something to her—she just felt a bit bland at times. Jane, her love interest, was definitely her opposite in that regard! She is extremely confident, charismatic, and magnetic. I could definitely feel their connection.

The storyline is a little drawn out, in my opinion. The book is over 400 pages and with the main problems being Jane trying to remember her memories, it was rather slow. I kept waiting for something to happen and take a turn. However, the word “warmth” does come to mind when I think of this story. It’s not fast-paced and isn’t the steamiest—instead, it’s a good slow burn. It’s comforting, it’s nice, it leaves you feeling content. If I knew it would be this type of story in advance, I probably would have loved it more.

I absolutely adored Red, White, & Royal Blue, and this one just doesn’t live up to it (that is a hard level to reach twice!). I am most definitely a Casey McQuiston fan, though, so I will continue to look out for more of her books!

Thanks to the publisher for this ARC!

Thank you so much, NetGalley, St Martin's Press and St Martin's Griffin, for the chance to read one of my most anticipated reads of 2021! I loved Red, White & Royal Blue so much and I couldn't wait to read this book!

August is twenty-three years old, cynical and she doesn't believe in magic or cinematic love stories, but in facts and that she will be okay if she's on her own, alone. Moving to New York City, moving in with three peculiar roomates and waiting tables at a 24-hour pancake diner won't change anything. So taking the subway. Or at least so, she thinks. Meeting Jane, charming, peculiar, weird, with a rock punk style and a cute smile changes everything, above all since August discovers Janes is displaced in time from 1970s and she doesn't know how or how to get off the train. August is determined to help Jane get back to her time, understand what happened and how to change. Even though falling in love isn't exactly in her plans.

A queer found family, a girl lost in time and another who start believing in magic and destiny and love again, One last stop is a moving, funny, dreamy, thoughtful and beautiful story and I loved every single page!
It's like a warm hug, a fuzzy and comforting blanket, a magical story that makes you believe in impossible things and bonds and love.
The story is filled with complex and skillfully written characters, so well rounded it's like you're there with them, following in the subway, eating pancakes, laughing with them, finding clues, falling in love, doing seances and so much more!
August is a wonderful main character, smart, funny, weighed down by her past, with a complicated relationship with her mother and with herself, finding difficult to find a place to call home. Reading how she starts to think of her house as home, as her roomates as friends and New York City and Billy's as a permanent place is moving and beautiful.
I love how analythical and smart she is, so involved in her files and researches, even though she's researching something so impossible and peculiar.

Myla, Niko, Wes and Isaiah are amazing characters and I fell in love with them, with their games, jokes, fears and adventures. A wonderful and protective queer found family and I loved everything about them, how they are so skillfully written and intricate, how, even though they are so different from one other, psychic Niko, witty Myla, moody Wes, funny Isaiah, their bond is strong and impossible to break and how they include August right away in their family.
Jane, the impossible girl, the misplaced girl, is a captivating mystery and the way August decides to help her, solving her case and her situation was hilarious, moving and romantic.

This romance is peculiar, magical, full of funny, intriguing, mysterious, steamy moments and the story is captivating and I devoured this book, because it reinforced my belief in magic and destiny. It's a dreamy book and I laughed so much, I swooned and I loved everything and every single character.

One Last Stop was absolutely magical. I literally could not stop reading it. I was already a big fan of Casey McQuiston's writing, but this book blew me out of the water.

The book follows August, a young woman who transferred to a school in New York City, who is going through the struggles of finding an apartment, a job and new friends. She starts seeing this same woman named Jane on the subway and develops a huge crush, but when she tries to ask Jane out she must decline because Jane has been riding that same subway since the 1970s and she's been stuck there without aging and cannot leave.

The book is about solving the mystery of Jane, and about falling in love with a person and a city and with the groups of people around you. It's about finding a family when your own blood family has continued to disappoint you.

The time travel aspect of the book comes off very realistically and I would recommend this book to people who don't generally go for science fiction or fantasy. I will say that one strange thing about the book is that it continually refers to it being 2020, but clearly the book was written before the pandemic hit. That is sadly a product of our current situation, but obviously not the fault of the author.