Just dive into this wild adventure. I loved it! I went into this book blindly. The synopsis is very vague on story so it doesn’t give much of anything away if you read that. Caz boards cruise ship with her boyfriend Pete and next day she wakes up to being the only one on cruise ship. What would you do in this situation? If you find the main ship captain area of ship completely deserted? This book is a wild ride- up til the very last sentence! The chapters are short and it was an easy quick fast paced read. Many thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for the digital review copy of this novel. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

"The Last One", by Will Dean, is based on an incredibly original and creative premise: what would happen if you went on a cruise, but woke up one day to discover that you're seemingly all alone? That's exactly what happens to Caz, who went on a cruise with her partner, but wakes up to find him (and everyone else) gone. However, as she looks around the boat, she discovers a few more passengers who have been left behind. The four of them must work together to survive without food, water, electricity, or any way to communicate for help. But then things take another turn when they discover they're actually being recorded and telecast all over the world.

This was one of the most unique and suspenseful books I've read in a while! Although I had to suspend disbelief at a few points, I still really enjoyed this book and couldn't put it down. Also the ending leads to the possibility of another book to come! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

This was my first time reading this author. The genre of this book borders on horror. It starts off feeling like science fiction but quickly turns. And that ending!!!!! My Jaw dropped. Give it a chance if you looking for something different.

The Last One by Will Dean is a psychological thriller about being alone on an ocean liner.

First, let me thank both Edelweiss and NetGalley, the publisher Atria Books (and in particular  Maudee Genao from Simon & Schuster) and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.


My Synopsis:    (No major reveals, but if concerned, skip to My Opinions)
49-year old Caz is boarding the ocean liner RMS Atlantica with her boyfriend Pete, the first man she has allowed into her life in a long time.  This vacation is going to be awesome.  The first night they explore the ship, but when Caz wakes up the next morning, she is alone.  Pete is gone, and so is his luggage.

As she starts to investigate the rest of the ship, her anxieties mount.  Most cabin doors are locked, but those that are open are empty.  It is quiet.  She is alone.  There are no other passengers or crew members.  No one is steering the ship.


My Opinions:
WOW.  Simply WOW.  This one grabbed me from the start, and wouldn't let me go.  I've never been on a cruise ship, and have no interest, especially now.   Talk about a locked-room mystery -- of gigantic proportions.  I would not have survived this trip.

The plot, characters, and writing were superb.  The twists were warped, and the ending an OMG moment.

It was a fairly long book (too much about Caz's father).  Yes, there were a couple of plot holes, and I may not have liked the solution nor the ending, but it was definitely tension-filled entertainment!

The entertainment value alone is the reason for my 4 star review.  Despite some flaws, I really enjoyed it!

This book kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. It is really well paced and gripping. The only part that I didn’t like (and why it isn’t 5 stars) is because some of the actions/thoughts of the characters were illogical. Like really illogical. But overall reall enjoyed my read!

Do not look at this if you intend to read the book!!!

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My thought order:

Hmm interesting

Oh what the heck? This is like the Truman show or some shit. Maybe aliens.

Oh man, love this stuff. Like Squid games.

Wait wait wait. I don’t trust anyone.

Oh shit. Frannie, you bitch.

Dumb decisions and even dumber rational but I’m here for it.

The whole time?? Really. My man Smith was struggling too though. Poor Caz and Smith.

I hate Pete.

Oh Lord. 👀

I wanted something to completely take my mind off of what has been going on in my life and this book fit the bill perfectly. It’s not short, I think the hardcopies somewhere like 400 pages, but it flew by in just to reading sessions.

It has incredibly short chapters, and each one of them, almost comically at some points, ends in a major page turning cliffhanger .

It’s important to know that this book is very propulsive, so don’t start it when you have a lot of other things to do.

Also, it’s important to know that this book is intense. This is not for HSP’s. There are several things that happened that had me asking out loud“are they really going to go there?“ So, listen to me, and as I give you fair warning. This book is intense.

I was immediately intrigued by the premise and went into this book expecting one thing and things immediately go awry. I'm not even sure how to summarize this book without giving some of the integral twists away. I'll just say that this book starts following Caz and her partner on a cruise liner. When Caz wakes up on their first morning, she's alone, her partner gone, the ship is empty. And I'll leave it at that. This book is a thrill ride with twists and turns that keep you on your toes. Once you think you've got it figured out, think again. Expect the unexpected with this one.

I honestly don't even know what star rating to give this book. I couldn't put it down. Not because it was necessarily the best thing I've ever read, but because I needed to know what was happening.

If you love psychological thrillers, this book is for you! It was more dark and twisted than anything I was ready for. I'll probably update this review in a few days or weeks when I've actually processed what I've just read.

Will Dean, you are sick and insane, and I haven't decided if I love or hate you for it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria books for the digital ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This book has no business being 130 chapters. I was bored by chapter 15. I DNF this book.

I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

Okay, there is a lot to unpack with this book!
I thought that this book was very well written, and did a great job keeping you engaged and wondering what in the world would happen next. It kind of had a slow start for me, but at about 150 pages in, I couldn’t put it down.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC!

Such a unique storyline! So different than anything I’ve read before. It got a little slow in the middle and I found that I kept waiting for some kind of explanation on what was happening. I pushed through though and was glad I did!

Read if you like:
☝🏻 Single POV thrillers
📖 Short Chapters
🔐 Locked Room Thriller
🛳️ Cruises
🔦 Survival Shows

What would you do if you woke up and were the only one left on a cruise? Freak the eff out!? Meeeee too!!!

This book gave ALL the vibes and was such a great read! The short chapters made the pacing excellent and made the book feel shorter than it was.

I don’t want to say too much but if you like a good ending that might make you want to throw the book a little that you can’t stop thinking about then I highly recommend this one!

Also, never going on a cruise after reading this one 😂

Thank you so much Atria for my ARC of this one!

Honestly, this one is being added to the did not finish pile. I wasn't completely sure what to anticipate but tried to stick it out. I wasn't drawn into the story but the main character was relatable. I would try other work by this author,

Holy crap, what did I just read?? I don’t know what to say about this. I don't want to give a synopsis, because I feel it is important to go into this knowing as little as possible. There are twists upon twists in this one. It’s bonkers. And terrifying.

This one was a bit of a miss for me. While the premise is incredibly intriguing, I couldn’t get invested in the main character or the writing style enough to keep reading. Not for me, oh well.

Will Dean never feels too deliver …. they are almost all home runs but this one most definately is….It’s def one of my top 3 they’ve written and that is saying a ton!! I’ll be recommending this specific book to everyone so know.. instead of just this author in general … seriously such a talented author , they seriously never miss !!! 5 star read in my opinion and I give them sparingly!

I am again in the minority with a Will Dean book. I did not enjoy this book. Yes it had some very intense things going on but it was so unrealistic. I didn't for a second believe one bit of this story. Not that any of it was true but still. Usually you get a realistic sense with a book.

A couple, Pete and Caz, board a ship for a much needed cruise. They have a great first night. But what comes next is nothing but horrific. No matter how you read it, it's horrible. Caz wakes up and no one is on this ship. Not one single person. All the cabin doors are open and the rooms empty. The thousands of people are all gone. Including her love Pete. What the heck? What is everyone?

Then of course there are three others who were left behind. Frannie, Daniel and Walter Smith who goes by Smith. They are informed that they are now the participants of a reality tv show and have to complete tasks. Whoever does the best will win a significant sum of money. But they are first starved, left thirsty, cold, and so alone. On a huge cruise liner they are abandoned. Each is giving a task to complete. Some may not even survive.

You meet each of these people and as a group how they work together to make it through. After a devastating loss it's finally down to two. Walter and Caz.

Caz spends a lot of time on the water before she is finally rescued. Now the part I really did not like. I can't tell you all or I give away many secrets. I did figure this out even the very ending which was another unbelievable storyline.

I read this hoping it would grab me and make me enjoy it but that never happened. It is very well written and would probably make a great movie but as a book I just didn't enjoy it. If this happened I would NEVER leave my significant other. It just would not happen. Yet Pete left. Of course it was not what he wanted to do. He was swept up in a mob but still.. I would have fought.

Thank you #NetGalley, #WillDean, #Atria/EmilyBestlerBooks for this ARC. This is my own true thoughts about this book.

3 stars from me. Read it and decide for yourself. You may love it. I didn't.

SLIGHT SPOILERS AHEAD:

Well, this was a complicated book. I can't express my feelings without commenting on the ending, and without giving it completely away I will say it felt rather unbelievable and undermined everything the characters had been going through up till the last chapters.
The writing was fine. However, this book was exceptionally long, which felt even worse once I reached the ending.
Although the concept was sound it was not built up to in a way that made sense. I was left a little confused by the last line of the book.
Mostly it's a good idea but not a great execution.

Star Rating: 2/5

A cruise with a new, romantic interest that sounds wonderful! This is the vacation of a lifetime and definitely not something they can pass up. Things are going great until the day after the first night when our main character wakes up, and her love interest is missing. She walks out of the room to explore to figure out where her boyfriend went and finds that there’s nobody on this cruise ship except for her, she’s mid ocean and doesn’t know what to do.

I was really excited for this book after I heard some of my favorite Youtubers give it really high praise. I think that it’s good to go into this book knowing pretty much nothing and it definitely is a long book and it takes you on this slow burn ride, but it’s completely worth it. This is so much fun and I highly recommend it for any mystery, thriller readers, and people who enjoy survival stories.

Overall, I had a really fun time with this book, and I will definitely be reading from the author again. Thank you to Netgalley & the publisher for the e-arc.

Perfect palette cleanser. Wasn’t my favorite but wasn’t bad! Little too cheesy for my taste. It would be a perfect vacation read.