Thought provoking, for the most part, despite the annoyingly convenient ending. A bit trudgy in certain parts.

I'm still in awe of the amazingly detailed plotting and immersive world building. This story also flipped the post-apocalyptic genre for me since the rest of the world didn't matter - I only cared about these villagers.

As they try to solve the mystery of the murder, layer by layer of clues and puzzle pieces are uncovered. It was thrilling and compelling with a heart-pounding ending.

Stuart Turton is one of my favorite authors. I was thrilled to read his newest book. All of his books are mysteries, but they are each fresh and new— different from each other and different from other books available in the genre. This time, people who have survived the end of the world and managed to create a new kind of community face a new existential threat. When an important person is murdered, an outsider named Emory must face the suspicion of her family and her neighbors as she races to work out what happened in time to prevent the imminent destruction of everything she has ever known. The technology and community in this story feel original and exciting. There is enough detail about what happened in the before times to make the present feel rich without getting bogged down in flashbacks or exhaustive exposition. Turton is one of the most creative voices working in mystery today.

Thank you to Net Galley and Sourcebooks Landmark for giving me the ARC to review!

A murder mystery where the fate of humanity rests upon solving it?? Sign me up!

The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton (the genius behind the 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle) is a whodunnit wrapped in a sci-fi robe that sucks you in and keeps you hooked!

The world has ended due to being overcome by a fog that kills everything it touches, and the last hope for humanity is a small Greek island with sophisticated barriers keeping the fog away. A group of 100 villagers or so with 3 scientists from before the End of the World live, love and thrive here, with the end of the world always on the horizon. But not everything is as idyllic as it seems. Despite there being no violence of any kind since the island's establishment over 90 years ago, one of their beloved scientists has been murdered, triggering the barriers to fail. The worst part is that no one, including the murderer, remembers anything of that night. Now they have 91 hours to figure out who did it and serve justice, or the entire island, and humanity's last hope, will be over run by the deadly fog! What secrets and grudges will they uncover?Will they figure it out in time to save us from extinction? How do you get a confession from someone who doesn't know they're a murderer? I'll leave that, dear reader, for you to find out!

Wow! What a wild ride this book turned out to be! The premise is so unique and is delivered in spades in this book. The writing is so smart, but I feel like I'm spoiling it if I elaborate; but it definitely had me laugh out loud a few times! The characters are fully fleshed out and I really cared about each one of them and their interpersonal relationships and struggles. I also love how things book kept me guessing to the end! I also loved the the fact that parts of the book are a countdown of sorts, adding to the tension and gravity of the story as well as the little sci-fi touches that really brings the story together!

The only negative that I can see is that I found a few spelling/grammar errors, but honestly that's minor. Since reading this book, it's become my favorite read of 2023!

If you're looking for a whodunnit with a unique backdrop, fully fleshed characters, and a great plot with a touch of sci-fi whimsy, then The Last Murder at the End of the World is perfect for you!

This is the second book I’ve read by this author. I really enjoy this author’s work. This was a great mystery story. Like The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, this book required a lot of concentration and was pretty complex. This book was not just about a murder mystery. The story also takes place in a futuristic dystopian society. There are science fiction aspects in this story, which I thought were interesting and novel. I can’t wait to read another book by this author.

WOW. If you loved the 71/2 deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, you are going to love this too! Stuart Turton returns to the world of high concept sci-fi mysteries to great success. Like with Hardcastle, I think this story is probably best read with no idea of what it's about - the twists will be that much more surprising! Overall though, loved the characters, loved the plot, loved the worldbuilding, love love love. 5 stars. If you like science fiction, mystery or both this is a must read.

An island community at the end of the world battles a ticking clock. Add in a murder mystery to this dystopian sci-fi and you'll get a typical Stuart Turton book, one that's like no other author can pull off.

Wow. This might be even better than The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle! In this wholly original tale, narrated by an AI with an unknown agenda, a murder takes place in the last remaining group of humanity. What follows is a twisty, turny, sci-fi murder mystery. I absolutely loved this story! Emory is such a strong character. She refuses to blindly accept everything that happens without question, and she uses that tenacity to try and solve the murder and save humanity before it's too late.

The Last Murder at the End of the World is hard to put down, and the short chapters make it easy to keep reading. The unique plot, likable characters, shocking twists and brilliant solution all make for an excellent novel that I thoroughly enjoyed! Highly recommended and I already can't wait to read the next Stuart Turton novel! Oh, I also enjoyed the references to The Devil and the Dark Water. That was a fun little Easter egg.

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the ARC!

This is my first time reading anything by Stuart Turton, and this was an enjoyable, engaging read. It's not a genre I normally gravitate toward, but I quickly got sucked in and finished it within 2 days. It can best be described as a post-apocalyptic, sci-fi murder mystery set in the near-future. And oh yeah, the main narrator throughout is an AI who's intentions and allegiances are not entirely clear.

The setting is unique and intriguing - most of the earth and every living creature on it have been wiped out by a mysterious fog full of carnivorous insects that tear apart anything in its path. Of course humans being humans, the knowledge of this coming calamity is enough to cause civilizations collapse into violence before the plague's arrival. Salvation is available - but at a price. The survivors subsist on a primitive island led by 3 scientists/researchers known deferential as "The Elders" who have rigged a shield to protect the island from the fog. Every inhabitant on the island is born connected to the AI and live in a society founded on the principles of kindness and service for the greater good of the village. Strange things are afoot, but the idyllic days make the mysterious nights easy to overlook. That is until the lead scientist is found dead and the AI failsafe protecting the island is deactivated. A countdown begins until the fog destroys everything. The AI will only re-activate the protections if the guilty party is identified and dispatched.

This novel is well-paced with short, addictive chapters, making it too easy to want to read just one more. Major plot advancements roll out pretty early on keeping you engaged. I appreciated the strong female characters throughout the story. There's lots of twists and turns as you learn more about the island and its inhabitants. Despite being a pretty quick read, there's enough meat here to easily envision this being adapted into a scripted series and I would 100% want to watch it. Will definitely check out more of this author's work.

If you liked The Hunger Games or The Silo, you'll probably enjoy this.

** spoiler alert ** Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this eARC!

I loved The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle and found The Devil and the Dark Water to be intriguing, but it didn't capture my attention in the same way that "7 1/2 Deaths" did. When I was granted "The Last Murder" I was the over moon and nothing about it disappointed. In fact, it was more than I could have ever hoped for.
The concept of the book was perfectly plotted by Turton and I felt fully enmeshed in the lives of the villagers and their island. "The Last Murder" brought up so many issues that our current technological world encounters and questions. I found the arrogance of the elders and the belief that they knew best as humans to be so interesting and reflective of our current culture. I thought "The Last Murder at the End of the World" was thought provoking, heart warming at times and perfectly paced and plotted. I predict this one will be a hit at it's release next spring. Highly highly suggest!

I very much enjoyed this book. The characters were well developed and the story kept me engaged throughout. I would recommend this book to others. Thank you for the opportunity to read this ARC!

Stuart Turton is an imaginative, ambitious writer. I was delighted to find out that this locked-room mystery took place in a post-apocalyptic science fiction setting. The novel has a bit of an Oryx and Crake feel where you know something strange is going on in the future but it’s not apparent at first. There is also a definite Lost vibe, where bizarre things happen on an island of mystery. Those are all plusses for me! I was very invested up to around 35% of the book, where the pacing became an issue, the story became repetitive and I just lost interest. I did read/skim the rest of the book and the big reveal was quite fun, but otherwise, it was just not a book written for my taste. If the author could tighten the plot, cut back on the repetition and amount of info-dumping, then I think it would have been so much better. This is exactly the same experience I had on his previous book so I guess his writing is not for me, but I do understand that I am in the minority.

I found this to be a highly intriguing and well told story. It's a near-future murder mystery, which is becoming one of my favorite sub-genres. The setting is an island where the last tiny group of humans are surviving an extreme apocalypse, imprisoned there by a cloud of killer insects. The island was home to a genius scientist with the most advanced research company and lab on the planet. The head scientist and two of her assistants are alive, along with a small population of locals. When the head scientist is murdered, all sorts of fascinating secrets come to light. The characters are well developed and nuanced, each of them likable in their own ways, and their conflicts very understandable. It's truly a mystery what happened, right up to the very satisfying ending. Highly recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced ecopy of The Last Murder at the End of the World.

Yet again, Stuart Turton delivers a wholly original and fun novel that is much more than a mystery. The Last Murder at the End of the World is a complete mashup of dystopian/sci-fi/murder mystery, and it was a delight. The world as we know it had been taken over 90 years previously by a fog featuring human eating bugs, but a few scientists remained that were able to put up a barrier surrounding an island where they cultivated a village of human-like residents. Then comes a murder, and one of the villagers who has never quite fit in with the crowd is on the job to find the killer. There's so much more to say about this book - the messages about the human race, the hope in the future, and just the sheer complexities of the world Turton created. But instead of saying it, you should just read it. Fun and adventurous - couldn't ask for more.

YAY! I truly can’t believe I got an ARC of this as it’s my most anticipated book for 2024. The 7 1/2 Deaths is one of my favourite all time books so I do have to say I’m enamored with Stuart Turtons writing but I also don’t want to compare this to 7 1/2, There is already so much competition for authours out there that I don’t want to add to it by an authour also having to compete with their own previous works so let’s get down to it shall we??

A post apocalyptic book with Turtons classic twists and turns, secrets, and science fiction influences. I was immediately like A CULT but that’s not quite the situation here. I will never want to spoil a book ahead of time, especially one like this. It’s one of the points in reading Turton, he will weave you through storylines that never lose their grip on you and surprise you at every turn. But a big plus for me, he never loses you. The twists don’t come out of nowhere and they’re not silly like so many thrillers nowadays that pull out their “twist” at the end but it’s just nonsensical. You won’t find that here. It’s very clear to me when a writer plots out their full story ahead of time before they even start writing and that’s prevalent here. He’s prepared. He’s figured out every single aspect and is ready to take you on a wild ride from the get go.

The characters, whether they’re likeable or not, have you rooting for them. You want the truth but is it worth the cost?? Absolutely. I’m already hankering for another story by him. He did it again and I will purchase the book on release day so I can add it to my collection. I know I’ll be reading this again when it comes out in May.

The outstanding new high concept murder mystery from the Sunday Times bestselling and Costa Book Award winning author of The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle . An ingenious puzzle, an extraordinary backdrop, an audacious solution. Available to pre order NOW.

Great mystery/sci-fi with excellent plot twists and great characters!

I LOVE STUART TURTON. I will read anything he writes and I will DEVOUR it. I didn't even need to read the description of this book before I wanted to read it. It was SO GOOD, and I love the Easter egg to reference Devil and the Dark Water!

I don't want to give much away in case new readers are looking over reviews but this was lovely. I just finished it today and I want to go back to the beginning and re-read it. I loved all the strong female characters (there were really only two main male characters and both were, shall we say, crotchety and scarred). I really loved that most things were explained but I also appreciated that some things weren't (these are small things, like how Thea and Niema managed to stay young - not sure what concoction of meds they were on to stay forever young). I didn't want this book to end but it was triumphant and glorious and I kept thinking how this would look on a TV screen.

Thank you for the chance to read and review. My only concern is how long before Turton's next book comes out?! (Maybe I can take some memory potion and read it for the first time again!)

This was an ambitious and unusual book that just didn’t cut it. The dystopian setting was unusual and there was a great reveal half way through. But then the book just segued into tedium and repetition snd increasing unbelievability (just like Turton’s last book). Ultimately this was a disappointment

A deadly fog has swept over the planet and killed most of its inhabitants, save for a few scientists and some simple villagers on a protected island. When one of the scientists is murdered, a dead man's switch is triggered and villager Emory must solve the murder in order to prevent the fog from destroying her home.

The Last Murder at the End of the World is a suspenseful blend of a murder mystery and post-apocalyptic science fiction wrapped up into a single book. From the description, I expected the story to be focused more on the murder mystery than the science fiction, but it turns out that there's a pretty equal amount of both. Novels heavy on science fiction – especially of the dystopian variety – aren't usually my jam, but somehow this book mostly worked for me?

Emory is a fantastic main character. While all of the other villagers are compliant and eager to serve their “elders,” Emory is defiant and full of questions regarding their existence on the island. When she's tasked with solving the mystery of Niema's death, she fearlessly confronts the scientists in charge and is unwilling to give up even when things seem hopeless. Her daughter Clara is equally brave and adventurous and is determined to help her mother accomplish her task. All of the major players in this book are complex individuals, and I particularly enjoyed watching Niema's story posthumously unfold over the course of the novel – is she a hero, a villain, or something in between?

The mystery itself is suspenseful and full of twists and turns. There are several people on the island who could have wanted Niema dead, all with different motives, but who actually did the deed? The answer to this question is complex and multi-layered, and I, for one, did not see it coming at all.

This book is fairly unusual in that it's narrated by an omniscient A.I. named Abi. It was a little confusing to me at first since the story primarily follows Emory, but occasionally Abi speaks in the first person and it'd take me a minute to realize that the “I” wasn't Emory speaking. Abi is an excellent storyteller, however, and I appreciated the all-encompassing point of view that her narration provides the reader.

I'm pretty sure there's a moral of sorts to this story, one that revolves around not waiting for a higher power to solve all of your problems for you and taking control of your own future. There's also probably something in there about leaders not being infallible and not following them blindly and all of that. But perhaps I'm just reading too much into it?

Final rating: 4.15 stars, rounded down. It was a wee bit too sci-fi-y for my tastes at times, but the superb writing and intriguing plot kept me turning pages nonetheless.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing me with an advance copy of this book to review.

The world and all the people in it are gone. With the exception of some scientists, who saw what was coming, and some people who for some reason can only live for 60 years. Niema,Hephaestus,and Thea are the only remaining scientists. They are the only ones who know what the world away from this island has become. They are also the keepers of so many secrets!
But then the unthinkable happens. One of the scientists is murdered, and the villagers have a very short window to figure out whodunnit. If they can’t, the black fog that has killed everyone on earth will penetrate the island’s defenses, and the last remaining humans will perish.
Thea entrusts Emory to figure out what happened. Since everyone’s memories from the night of the Murder have been wiped, it will not be an easy task. But Emory has always been different than the other villagers. Questioning everything but getting very few answers. Her tenacity is humanities only hope, and she uses every skill she possesses to find the murderer.
A very good story that kept me guessing, and learning more about what happened to the world and this island’s secrets. Some of them surprised me, and some of them made me despise the choices humans are willing to make. So many layers to all the lies and the truth, well, let’s just say it was not at all what I imagined. Emory was such a great character, and I was cheering her on to figure everything out before the fog killed everyone.
The 7 ½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle is still my favorite Stuart Turton book, but this takes the number two spot.