This book was hard to put down with every chapter ending in a cliffhanger. With how many “reality” tv shows there are now, it’s scary to think that this might be possible in the future.. but how far in the future?

This book had me hooked from the very beginning. Very engaging and action packed! Trust no one! The ending kinda irritated me, the airplane, IYKYK. Overall, an unputdownable book!

I've seen some AMAZING early reviews for this book so I feel like I'm a big outlier here, but this book just wasn't for me.

I really did love the initial premise of the book. I'm already afraid of vast water, so being stuck on a cruise ship alone is pretty much the thing nightmares are made of (sorry step=grandpa Rich, but I'm ending that sentence with a preposition because I don't know how else to phrase it LOL). I was SO EAGER to know why!? What happened!? How does everyone just disappear?! I actually can't remember the last time I was that eager to know why or how something was happening in a book.

But the book dragged....and dragged.... and dragged and all the excitement I had just wanned and wanned. The characters were so unlikable, which is fine, some people DO just suck. HOWEVER, if the books going to drag, I need someone to enjoy! I also really couldn't stand to read one more line about Caz's' gambling father. Like we get it.

And then we get to the reason why things were happening on the ship and the following scenes and, oh boy, it was just too much for me. I just couldn't suspend my beliefs enough here, even if it was a work of fiction. The ending definitely ends with a bang which I know many people are going to love, but I hated it (and her shit boyfriend).

In conclusion, this whole book felt like a Black Mirror episode AFTER Netflix took over.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for my eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book hooked me from the very beginning. The writing was engaging and kept me on the edge of my seat wanting to know what happened next. I like how the author didn’t shy away from more gruesome topics like Daniel getting a splinter through his eye or the "bodies" in the ballroom."

There were a lot of twists I did not see coming which really surprised me and that was refreshing. I read a lot of mystery/thriller type books and they can get repetitive. I did guess the ending way earlier in the book. I was between a Manifest or April Fools storyline and settled on it being April Fools about halfway through.

The characters were interesting to some extent, halfway through the book I felt they got kind of bland and repetitive. With Frannie and Daniel being actors, I wish there was some kind of slip up. I also wish they were all more distrustful of each other. They all just accepted each other from the beginning. I also think the author introduced storylines for characters but didn’t execute them the best. It was announced in the youtube comments that Smith is a felon, but they just glossed over that. Daniel had been to prison but that was a small conversation and then moved on from. Frannie was basically just worried about her parents and nothing more. What was the secret she kept from her parents? Not sure that was ever mentioned.

I hated the ending. I said several times I hoped this wasn’t going to end in an April Fools Day way and it did. It made the rest of the book I read seem more dull and boring than if the things really happened. I hated the Frannie and Daniel being actors, if that was the case there should have been more than just her and Smith. Also the final page irritated me, I hate the way the book ends. The rest of the book was so good and the ending ruined the entire thing for me.

If I say anything about this book it will be too much. Go in completely blind. If you are worried it is science fiction, it is not. Just. Read. It. Thank me later. This is going to be at the top of a lot of end of the year lists.

Based on the premise of this book, I thought I would love it. I will first say that I think it is an incredibly unique book, and I see while so many love it.

However, for me it was almost a little too different from what I was expecting based on the synopsis. I don’t want to give too much away, but I kind of wanted a little more explanation at the end. I found the beginning to drag on a little, but was very enticed once the pace picked up. Overall I recommend to those looking for a fast paced book, it just wasn’t necessarily for me.

Big thank you NetGalley and to the publisher for the chance to review this book pre-release. This novel was really well written, and kept me engaged the entire time. The end wasn't predictable, and I really enjoyed the main character, I felt very invested in her every action.A more formal review will be available on my IG/TikTok and Goodreads.

OMG! What did I just read!? My head is spinning and I need more! This was a crazy trip. Trust no one and nothing.

3.5⭐️ I really liked the plot and premise of this book. It kept me hooked for the whole time. The very end made for a huge plot twist for myself. However, I did not really connect with the main character and her story line.

We meet Caz (short for Caroline) as she boards her first-ever cruise ship with her boyfriend, bound for New York. They have a wonderful first night aboard and Caz just can’t believe how lucky she is to be on this cruise.

The next morning is an entirely different story as she wakes up to discover that she is alone, totally alone, on the ship. There are no other passengers, no crew, only herself on board steaming across the Atlantic Ocean.

We eventually learn more but I can’t say more without giving away the plot. As the mystery unfolds there are some clever moments, but I never really connected to the characters. I wanted to know how it ended, but it seemed long and unrealistic.

The very end of the book bumped it up to a 3-star read for me. I have given other Will Dean books high ratings, but this one ended up falling a bit short for me.

4.5 ⭐️ Holy cow, what did I just read?!? I don’t recall why I had put this book on my TBR list, I probably saw it hyped up on a bookish podcast. Not the typical book I’d pick, but the synopsis sounded tempting, and just a few pages in I couldn’t stop. The chapters are short, and—without fail—the last sentence leaves you wanting to read the next chapter IMMEDIATELY. I was hooked, and even though one main character was on the annoying side this book ended up being a complete page turner. The descriptions particularly of the ship were so good, I could easily picture all locations and scenarios. Well done! Mostly thriller, it definitely had some horror aspects to it.

A big thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for letting me read and rate this book ahead of its publication date (August 8, 2023).

Trigger warnings: suicide, gambling, depression

The Last One had SO much potential. The premise was intriguing and it had me hooked from the start, eagerly awaiting the reveal of the central mystery. It was well-paced and it kept me guessing right up until the very end. However, the book ultimately fell short for me due to its disappointing ending. It’s clear from the reviews that the ending is very polarizing, but this was firmly in the “didn’t work for me” category.

*A huge thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for providing me with the ARC e-book in exchange for an honest review.*

Thank you Net Galley for allowing me to received this book for an honest review.

I have mix feelings about this book. I started it with excitement and was hooked but then I found the book boring. I couldn't continue. I tried but I felt like it dragged on.

Sadly, to say I did not finish.

I am just going to start off by saying that this book just got me out of a thriller slump. It is unlike any thriller I have ever read and broke the mold in the best possible way. It was intense and stressful in exactly the way I want a thriller to be stressful.

We are following Caroline as she and her boyfriend, Pete, cross the Atlantic on what should be a relaxing trip on a beautiful ship. The morning after their arrival Caroline wakes up to discover Pete is no longer next to her. As she steps out of her cabin and into the ship she realizes it’s not just Pete who is missing, but every passenger and crew member has vanished. From there you will just have to read it yourself because there is a twist every few pages and I don’t want to give any away. In the end, just when you think you have reached a resolution, the author throws in one last curveball that made my stomach drop.

I would definitely say that while I would absolutely recommend this book, it is certainly not for the faint of heart. It has somehow beautifully woven together the feel of a traditional thriller with strong dystopian vibes. I am quite shocked my watch never warned me that my heartrate spiked while I was reading it. I cannot wait for this book to come out because I need to talk to people who read it.

I enjoyed The Last One, but it was drastically different than I was expecting going into it!

Caz (Caroline) is the sole person left aboard a ship floating, seemingly with no control, in the middle of who knows where... except that's not at all what is actually going on, and I can't say literally anything else about the plot without spoiling the book. Just go into it knowing it will absolutely not be what you're expecting (at first, anyway) and even what you think on day one of Caz being alone isn't going to be what you expect!

Instead of a locked-room type thriller or even a dystopian/sci-fi twist, this reads more along the lines of a survival of the fittest type scenario. I didn't *love* this, albeit unexpected, twist. I would've loved some sort of eery and potentially unexplainable addition to the story, especially with the somewhat similar documented, unsolved situations as mentioned by Frannie.
I was thrown off for sure, but after a certain point, most of the book became quite predictable. It was also quite long for the content... the beginning is very slow and it takes quite some time to get to the information you want, as well as the action. It was a bit hard at times to focus my attention. This didn't stop me from wanting to finish, though.

Overall, The Last One was well written with fabulous world-building and the characters were quite diverse from one another. The only negative about the characters is that they
were, at least from my own point of view, quite unrelatable and a tad unrealistic. I was slightly
annoyed at the constant talk of Caz's family. It was very repetitive and honestly, boring.

I can definitely say without question that I was straight terrified at the idea of being "lost" at sea on a giant ocean liner, not knowing where I'm headed, and ALONE. I was freaking out inside at the beginning, so many scenarios running through my head. I now have even less of a desire to ever board a cruise ship or any other large floating vessel, so thank you to the author for that! Definitely give this one a read if you enjoy a good mystery, and it doesn't hurt if you're already terrified of the open ocean!

I loved the author's other books, but this one fell flat for me and I couldn't believe it. I will try any future ones and look forward to it.

I want to start off by thanking Netgalley for this arc. This book blew my mind, and took a turn I was not expecting. It kept me on the edge of my seat, and I thoroughly enjoyed my first Will Dean book. I will say the ending fell a little flat for me, so I did deduct a star. However, still a solid 4/5 for me and will be recommending this to my friends.

I absolutely loved Will Dean’s “First Born” which I characterized as a psychological thriller. “The Last One” is in the domestic thriller/mystery category, too, but I had moments of wondering if it was really a horror novel. Every description and review will mention that reluctant passenger Caz Ripley gets on a luxury cruise liner with her boyfriend and then wakes up to find herself utterly alone, one thousand passengers and crew have gone “poof!”. After that point, it’s hard to write more without creating spoilers. But my first impression truly was that this was a “left behind” situation — you’re dead, Caz, and you can’t see all the living people aboard. Deal with it for the next 448 pages while we discover your probably mysterious backstory. But that wouldn’t be the engrossing, intense, suspenseful, nerve-racking, scary book that this turns out to be. Long books need to be eye-opening page-turners and have bizarre twists, and “The Last One” fits that description.

One note: if you find a box that’s marked “Do Not Open the Box”… do you open it? Plus, trigger warning: abandoning 13 dogs onboard (also without water and food) almost did me in (I walk out of movies if a dog dies).

And that’s all I can say without spoilers — but you need to read this to find out why other reviews are sidestepping the plot, too. And there’s an ending that will knock your socks off. 5 stars!

Thank you to Atria Books/Emily Bestler Books and NetGalley for a free advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review

Literary Pet Peeve Checklist:
Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): NO Frankie does have equally rare hazel eyes.
Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): NO we’re in the middle zone of the ocean, so no landscaping errors were expected. Caz does yearn for the sight of a rose bush.

Interesting premise - Caz wakes up on a luxury cruise to find everyone gone, food locked up, and no clue as to where the boat is headed. I love a good locked room myself and this definitely kept me engaged. I did feel like it got a bit silly at the end but still a fun read! Thanks to NetGalley for the chance to read and review this book!

I wanted to love this. I was interested in the premise but this just fell flat for me. It was not at all what I expected and it just didn’t work.