I had such high hopes for The Last One since I loved First Born, and the novel started off great! Imagine getting on a cruise ship, only to wake up the next morning and everyone was gone? The premise of this "locked room" mystery was so unique, and I really liked the characters, or I liked to dislike them in some cases. The first half was extremely suspenseful. That said, I do think it got a little outlandish at a certain point, so I wouldn't say I loved the second half of the book. Because it felt so unbelievable, the suspense-level significantly dropped for me. Overall, the ending pulled it enough together for me to give it a solid four stars.

This was a book that totally went in a direction that I wasn't expecting. Cass, a hardworking restauranteur, is finally getting away on a much deserved dream cruise with her boyfriend, Pete. Having gone through the trauma of having her dad accused of fraud in her younger years, Cass has never felt worthy of good things. As she embarks on her voyage, she's starting to think that maybe she does deserve good things in life. Then, waking up after a good sleep, things seem off. Soon she discovers that Pete is gone and not only Pete but she can't find anyone else. What has happened to everyone else and more importantly who is steering the ship? A book with an interesting premise that has you questioning what is really going on. Then when you find out it becomes a social commentary and a horror novel wrapped up together. I enjoyed most of the book I just felt that it stretched the middle of the story for too long. The resolution to the conflict was somewhat disappointing and unrealistic. However, the ending had me looking forward to the next from the author. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ecopy for an honest review.

A locked room mystery set on a cruise liner crossing from the UK to the US. This was an incredibly fun read! I didn’t love it but I definitely enjoyed the ride and the ending caught me off guard.

Intriguing reviews gave me the interest to try my second Will Dean book with the first being a little slow. I didn’t feel very invested in his characters but the creative plot for this one made it fun getting to the end. Without giving any spoilers, I did feel a big part of the story was very predictable. If the first two books for an author are just so-so for me then I will typically back off but this one hit a mark that I think will give his next book a try.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity in exchange for an honest review.

I want to thank NetGalley, and Atria Books, for the copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

2.5 out of 5 stars.
I enjoyed the setting of this book as there aren’t many psychological thrillers that are set on cruise ships. The idea of being stranded on a large cruise ship had me hooked from the beginning. As someone who has been on this type of cruise before, I found it easy to imagine the ship and the characters.

However, I didn’t seem to connect to any character and I found myself bored and wanting to skip through certain parts. There were also a few dialogues in which I found to have been more descriptive and drawn out than they needed to be. There was a bit of repetition in dialogues throughout the book that I thought took away from the suspense because they didn’t seem to flow well as a believable conversation. It is a bit long and I think it would benefit from another round of editing.

Overall, I would recommend this book to fellow book lovers who prefer psychological thrillers. It wasn’t my favorite but I think a lot of readers will enjoy it.

I tried so hard to like this book. It just wasn't for me. The writing is fine, I just found it to be a tad too unbelievable and not my style. Thank you for the opportunity.

This thriller set on an ocean liner on the Atlantic has only four passengers, since the hundreds of others disappeared one morning with their luggage and personal effects, leaving the four alone to fend for themselves on a self propelling vessel bound for who knows where.

I thought at first this was sci fi or fantasy, but then the real world of today crept in to give a chilling take on reality and the people who are entranced by it. I kept reading as the challenges for the four ramped up to unbelievable levels, and the ending floored me.

It was a hard to read book, as it may have been the author's intention, but I can say I was intrigued but not entertained.

I've stayed away from thrillers lately but this premise was just too intriguing: a woman boards a cruise ship headed to New York with her boyfriend. She wakes up the first morning to find she is the only person on the entire ship.

The book dragged a lot in the middle. So much of Caz' inner dialogue is repetitive. Which I guess would happen if you trapped on a boat by yourself cut off from the world. But as a reader it really slowed down the story.

I hope someone I know reads this soon so we can discuss. <spoiler>The ending! what?!?! Is the boyfriend doing this all to her? why? was his family affected by her dad's gambling?</spoiler>

*Thank you for the advance reader copy of this book from Atria/Emily Bestler Books and Netgalley. I am required to disclose that in my review in compliance with federal law.

I’d like to say I really enjoyed this book but it wouldn’t be honest… it never caught on for me, never drew me in, and I struggled to even finish it, as may be obvious by how long it has taken me to review it after receiving it. The writing was not bad, so I wouldn’t say I’d not read this author again, but the characters of this one were very unlikeable, the plot was flat, the story just wasn’t really believable as posited. Again, the writing was not bad, you weren’t distracted by typos and bad grammar but this just wasn’t for me, but I do appreciate the opportunity to review.

ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

I really like all the twists and turns in this book! I almost thought it was leading more towards historical fiction for the first few chapters but it quickly changed! It’s a psychological thriller set on a cruise ship where everyone disappears after the first night there except for four people who try to figure out what’s going on and where everyone else went. It felt pretty original and had some big twists that I never saw coming. I also felt like the ending was perfect for how the whole story went! I would definitely recommend if you like mysteries and thrillers!

The Last One by Will Dean. This book was NOTHING like I expected. I mean NOTHING. I was SHOCKED! Definitely the most shocking book I read all year. SO many twists and turns and they literally didn’t stop until the last word on the last page. I loved everything about this book - the characters, the plot, the twists. It was truly a unique book! One of my favorites this year! Thanks NetGalley and Atria books for the ARC!! 5 stars!!

Caz is excited for the vacation of a lifetime with her partner. They are traveling aboard the RMS Atlantica. The first night of the trip is perfect, they have good food, they dance, and they make new friends.

When Caz wakes up the next day something is off. Pete is missing. When she goes to find him, she realizes to her horror that the ship is seemingly empty. The Atlantica is cruising through the Atlantic Ocean, unmanned and shes alone. Unfortunately for her, being on the abandoned ship is only the beginning of her terrifying journey.

Ah, this thriller is probably one of my favorites of the year – I loved it that much and I’ve read a few books. My favorite type of thriller is a locked room or there about – and this one was basically that just based on a cruise ship. Cruises always freak me out a little in general, just something about being basically a floating city in the middle of nowhere. When I first picked this one up I cried a little inside because it is about 450 pages, but it was such a fast paced read that I didn’t even noticed because I just flew through it. My absolute favorite part of this book was the ending. Just YES! I’ve seen some reviews say they hated it – but for me it was *chef’s kiss*, just perfect.

If you are looking for an unputdownable locked room thriller, then pick this one up.

Thank you so much to Atria Books, @atriabooks, and Netgalley, @Netgalley for this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for my ARC of The Last One by Will Dean.

I am genuinely torn if I should be rating this book 1 star or 5 stars. The premise sounds immensely intriguing - Caz wakes up the first morning of her luxury cruise vacation with her partner, only to discover she is completely alone on board the ship. All other passengers and crew have vanished without a trace and she is left to unravel the terrifying journey that is about to begin.

With this description, I found myself immediately drawn into the suspense. However, nothing is what it seems… I am wondering if the way the book is described is to draw us in and align us more with the experience of deception and deceit that Caz experiences in the story. The parallels of thinking I am going to be reading one thing and it turns into something completely different, and the experience of Caz in this book, are not lost on me.

In my opinion, the way this book was written has two sides. On one hand, chapters are short with cliffhanger endings and I felt like I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. Although it’s a fairly long book, it flew by and I was fully absorbed in the heart-pounding suspense. On the other hand, I found it to be lacking in the character development and dialogue. At times, I found myself wanting to skim chunks of Caz’s backstory because it was so utterly repetitive. It also felt disjointed and I feel it didn’t flow with the storyline taking place.

As a fan of Will Dean’s previous books and this genre as a whole, I devoured this book. But as a psychotherapist, I found the exploitation of a character’s mental sanity and well-being to be grotesque. The ending of the book solidified this for me.

Thank you so much for the copy! I enjoyed the atmosphere descriptions throughout and could really picture everything. The book did drag
on for me at time and felt the beginning was slow to grab my attention. Interesting read but felt the pace could have been a little faster to further gage my interest and attention

I am having a hard time deciding how to review this book. There were times I really enjoyed it and other times I did not enjoy it. The concept was completely different from most thrillers and I think it was a well written book. It was an interesting read, that's for sure!

This book was so good and incredibly atmospheric! I found myself chilly despite reading in 80 degree weather. I found myself feeling parched even though I was sipping on my emotional support water bottle or hungry even though I had just eaten. Will Dean does an excellent job of making you feel like you’re part of the chaos on that cruise liner. While the book was a little long and towards the end it dragged a bit, it overall had me absolutely mesmerized and I couldn’t get enough. Also can we talk about the ending? I literally yelled “WTF” and found myself desperate for more. As they say a few times in the book, “don’t trust anything you see or touch.”

I am so thankful to Atria Books, Netgalley, and Will Dean for granting me both digital and physical access to this twisty thriller before it published on August 8, 2023.

I wish I would have quit this book when I wanted to at 9%. This book is very long and quite graphic in it's descriptions. Basically, the potentially unreliable narrator is left on a cruise ship with some other potentially unreliable characters and bad stuff happens. I'd give more details, but spoilers. You never really get a chance to breathe, as it's just horrific situations over and over again. I know some people like that, but it's too stressful for me.

Did I stay up all night just to read this in one sitting? Yes. Yes, I did. My mind was blown so many times reading this! Oh. My. Gosh! The ANXIETY this book gave me is unreal! I love a story that can keep me guessing the entire time, always thinking I know what’s going to happen and then being completely wrong. This was a heart pounding, jaw dropping and intense story. I’m completely blown away.

Our main character, Caz, wakes up after her first night on cruise liner RMS Atlantica completely alone. Her boyfriend is nowhere in sight. She leaves her cabin to look for him only to discover there’s no one. The ship is abandoned. The luggage is gone. Even the captain and crew are MIA!

I don’t want to give away any spoilers but wow! I am so happy I didn’t look any details up on this book. I planned to read a couple chapters before bed and ended up finishing it all. Who needs sleep when there’s a suspenseful mystery like this?! The ending was amazing. The way I GASPED. Please read this book. It’s amazing. 5 HUGE stars from
me!! Thank you so much to Netgalley and Atria Books for my ARC copy. My thoughts are my own.

📱”The Last One” by Will Dean

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Published August 8,2023

Thank you @netgalley for this early kindle edition.

Clever and insane, twists, turns, and backstabbing…”The Last One” is a roller coaster. Caz, not one for vacations or cruises decides the luxury cruise liner RMS Atlantica is the trip of a lifetime. The first night is perfect, with her and Pete eating, drinking and getting familiar with the expansive ship. When Caz awakes the next morning and Pete is gone, she begins to worry. When she leaves her room and finds the ship empty, as in no crew or other passengers- she freaks out.

This book was so bizarre! It is very hard to discuss this unbelievable, locked-room mystery without any spoilers. It has a bit of a Hunger Games and The Truman Show feel. 😉

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