After finishing the first installment of this series, I couldn't wait to get my hands on The Last City. H.J. Nelson did not leave us unsatisfied with this epic journey we are taken on with Ara and Kaden as they head out to The Last City, in search of both sanctuary and to find her father. Sam is heavily searching for both Ara and Kaden as well, after recovering from his accident in first book. I was left with the first book in my mind long after I finished it, and I know it will be the same for this one.

We met some additional characters along the way, and were able to learn more about things going on in this dystopian world we are experiencing, all while having the experience of action and adventure along the way. This was an incredible read, and I highly, highly recommend it! Easily a 6 star book for me - if we could go that high!

I cannot wait for the next installment of this beautiful story!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the arc of this beautiful story to read in return for an honest review.

This was a great follow up. I loved the last she and felt this book was at the same level. I really enjoyed the characters growth throughout. This is definitely going on my read again list.

This one picks up right were book one left off. And although I wouldn't say it was better than book one it was really good. It kept me on the edge of my seat and I can not wait for book three!! This is the next series that Hollywood needs to wake up to!

Just as good, if not better than, the first book in the series. I'm always a sucker for these kinds of stories, and this author does it so well.

This book is the second in a series (of three total, i think), and if you enjoyed the first, I think you will enjoy this one as well. There are multiple POVs in this book and you learn a lot more about the world at large (a dystopian oppressive setting) in this one more. But for every answer, you get double the amount of new questions. But in the middle book of a series this is usually the case. I will probably check out the third to finish out the story and see what happens to all of the characters.

"The first rule of living through the apocalypse. Trust no one."
Ara is desperate to reunite with her father, put the events of Bosie behind her, and find sanctuary in The Last City. But once she finally arrives, she wonders if she's made a huge mistake. Kaden will do anything for Ara, including being forced into a dangerous expedition which results with him running for his life. Sam is in search of Kaden and Ara, but can't seem to find them anywhere. Then, he runs into M, a mysterious girl he embarks on an adventure with. Can Ara, Kaden, and Sam uncover the secrets of The Last City and survive the apocalypse?
I have been eagerly waiting to read this book since I finished The Last She over a year ago. This was an interesting and exciting addition to the series. As soon as I started, I couldn't wait to see how it would end. My jaw dropped at some of the revelations and I cannot wait to read the next (and final?) installment, The Last Creation. The full cast for the audiobook did a wonderful job voicing the characters and portraying their concern and confusion. I have loved this series thus far and can't wait to see how it'll come to an end.
I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley and Edelweiss+. I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

Loved this book! Awesome sequel to the Last She! I would definitely recommend if you read the first book and would purchase this to add to my library.

The Last City, the second in the post-apocalyptic series that began with The Last She, follows Ara as she reunites with Kaden, and with other characters from her past. Throughout this story, she has beyond survival and is attempting to make sense of the world and the aftermath of "the plague" that took out most of the world's population.

Have you ever had the experience of reading a narrative in which the plot points would be PTSD-inducing, extreme occurrences in reality, but that the characters react to with little if any emotion? Perhaps this can be explained away by the fact that often, in real life, people repress reactions to destructive occurrences that fundamentally alter their lives and relationships. And some characters, just like some people, are more observant than reactive, and process emotions long after an event has occurred.

However, in fiction, this lack of reaction - especially where it's exhibited by every character - can create a distance between the reader and the plot. So while the main character, Ara, begins the Last City will little reactive emotion at the beginning of the story and ramps it up to a bit of reactive emotion by the end, I don't quite buy it. The movie of this book that plays inside my head as I read is cartoonish. Nothing moved me - I did not laugh, and neither did I tear up.

The plot is nevertheless interesting, the twists did indeed keep me reading. But one needs a firm connection to the characters to really be "sold" on a story. I think if Ara and the other characters began the story will bigger reactions to the life-altering plot points and ramped up from there, I would have found The Last City much more compelling than I ultimately did.

The Last City
A sci-fi suspense thriller, romance, and coming-of-age, The Last City engages readers of these genres as a sequel to The Last She. Three characters tell the story as they struggle to find their way in a strange new world.

The Last City, a sequel to The Last She, expands upon the apocalypse and its three main characters, Ara, Kaden, and Sam. It introduces the reader to the mastermind and nemesis of The Last City, Ara’s grandfather, Walter, also known as the Chancellor. His One City, One People, One Rule mantra uncovers a diabolical direction for a new Earth. The novel digs deep into The Last City’s formation and Ara’s significance. Readers will be drawn into the story with Sam, Ara, and Kaden’s viewpoints and contributions. Other curious characters—Talia, Septimus, and Sevyn are introduced. Questions from The Last She are revealed, but the end’s cliffhanger suggests a third novel.

Even though the novel has many tropes, The Last City is an intriguing story with down-to-earth characters. I look forward to the next novel in this series. Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read and review it. #The Last City #Scifi #YA

3.5 stars

After reading the first in the series, The Last She, I was left with so many unanswered questions and so many unfinished storylines.

Thankfully, this sequel answered a few questions that I had, and created more to be finished in the third installment. It took me a few chapters to really get into this, especially after how the first novel left off. We find out that Sam is alive (and was nurtured back to life by a random man that is not alluded to in the beginning of book two - we open onto Sam living by himself in the mall - no mention of the earlier man/rescue.)
We get to see Ara and Kaden traveling to the Last City in search of Ara’s father and sister. Instead, we soon find out that Ara has an unexpected living relative within the city with a great deal of power. Kaden felt like a side character in this, not giving anything to the story. However, Ara and Sam’s viewpoints gave us so much in terms of plot and story development. At least with Sam’s perspective we got to see Boise like in the first novel, as well as have a bit of an adventure with M. Ara’s perspective was all about uncovering what is really going on in “The Last City”. So that left us with Kaden’s perspective where he just lamented about how much he loved Ara and failed everybody in his short life.

In terms of Ara and Sam’s chapters, we had so much more action and drama than the first novel, and we got some answers we were looking for in the first novel in regards to some of the medical testing as well as the city itself. It was also great to get some new characters, even if they weren’t 100% fleshed out.

Good news! This didn’t suffer from middle book syndrome - if anything, the first novel suffered from that and this one felt like the true beginning to this series. This was much better paced, but I still had some issues with “time jumps” or “scene jumps” as I did with the first. I just think it’s Nelson’s style of writing that makes it a bit harder to connect moments.

Overall, I enjoyed this more than the first, and am excited to see the finale and how things will finally get resolved in this apocalyptic world!

The Last City is the second book in The Last She series and should be read after the first book. It picks up a few months after the previous book ended and follows the point-of-views of Ara, Kaden, and Sam. I really enjoyed learning more about Sam in this book, who has been living on his own in Boise since recovering from his accident. Meanwhile, Ara and Kaden travel to The Last City, which really brings a dystopian element to the series. Like the first book, The Last City pulled me in from the beginning and kept my attention until the end. I enjoyed continuing the stories of Ara, Kaden and Sam while also meeting some interesting new characters along the way too. We are able to learn more about the mysteries from the first book, while continuing to have action, adventure and romance. Apparently, there’s a 3rd book in the works, so I’m really excited to see where the story goes next!

I received a free review copy of this book through NetGalley, but all opinions expressed here are my own.

The Last She was one of my favourite books of last year and I honestly am dumbfounded as to why it hasn't become as popular as I think it should. I was thrilled to get the chance to read the follow up, The Last City. We get to see our lovely characters, Ara, Kaden, and Sam - as well as a few new faces - figure out what it is that makes the Last City so great. But is it? I am a huge fan of dystopian stories and this one hit all the marks.

Going into this I didn’t realise it was a sequel, however besides being confused initially I did understand the plot and do think it can be read as a stand-alone. I found this to be a well written dystopian novel, I didn’t think it was very unique though and followed some of the usual cliches but it was a nice read with interesting characters and I enjoyed reading multiple POV’s which you don’t find in many dystopian novels. Overall this was a good read but nothing special.

Okay I am going to get my one qualm of this one out of the way before we get to all the good stuff: It took me a second to get back into this world and characters. But no need to worry, this book certainly doesn't suffer from the dreaded "middle book syndrome". In fact, quite the opposite. I found the story very exciting, and the way the author developed the plot to work really well, feeling like a complete story in itself rather than just setup for the final installment.

The book has three points of view, but they all are pretty necessary, and they all weave the story together in a way that really works. Of course, we're catching up with the titular "last" She, Ara, as she attempts to figure out what the heck her dad had to do with the apocalypse, and why he wants her to go to this other titular "last" city. Her newfound love interest from book one, Kaden, is back to help her out, and we also get a point of view from Kaden's brother Sam, who I adore. This was actually handled really well- I worried it might complicate the story, but instead it works really well to let the reader know what is happening in multiple locations. Speaking of which, I love that we get a lot more insight into the world, and get to travel to new locales in this installment.

Basically, this installment is going to answer a lot of Ara's (and the readers') questions, but it's going to give us a whole new batch of questions going forward, and I love that. There is a lot that happens in this story, and a lot of it was pretty shocking. Because I don't want to spoil anything for people who haven't read the first book either, I will keep this short and simple, and say this: If you enjoyed book one, I think you'll like this one just as much if not more. And if you didn't start the series yet, you really should, because I love messy apocalypse fare.

Bottom Line: One of the best "middle books" I have read in a looong time, this one ups the ante and brings even more thrills to the series! Cannot wait for the next book!

This was a great sequel! I am such a fan of post apocalyptic books and this is becoming a new favorite in this genre! It was interesting to have the city environment with advanced technology in this book. I was really excited to have Sam’s POV along with Kaden and Ara. It was definitely full of adventure, action and surprising plot twists. There were some great new side characters I enjoyed. I can’t wait to see what will happen in the next book!

he Last City was a step up in characters, plot, stakes, and mystery .I highly recommend it and look forward to book that will follow this in the series. A well deserved 5 stars!

I really enjoyed this book, it was a good continuation after The Last She, and gave me nostalgic dystopian vibes, like the books I read when I was in middle/high school, but in a good way! I feel like a lot of authors don't write with that feel anymore. A more formal review will be available on my IG/TikTok and Goodreads.

I was given this ARC by the publisher in exchange for an honest review, thank you!!

I absolutely loved loved loved The Last She (book 1) and it was one of my favorite reads that year. It gave me so many nostalgic dystopian vibes from when I was a teenager and the world building was great, the action, etc. I really enjoyed that book.

That being said, this one was just alright for me. There was a lot more having more questions than answers throughout this book and I really missed some of the action from the first book. I know this book was set in the last surviving city of the world, but I really missed the dystopian vibe of the whole thing. I was also not a huge fan of the plot twist at the end, the big one I mean (if you know you know). I also missed a lot of the interactions between Ara and Kaden, I hated that Sam was separated from them the entire book, I totally got from the very first time she showed up who the mystery girl was, and her whole plotline was kind of a drag for me too. I liked the dystopian nature of the book, but it turned far more sci-fi and it wasn't what I was expecting, so I think that is why it didn't capture my attention as much as the first one. I still liked it and I will definitely continue on with the last book when it is released! 3.5/5 stars

This is a sequel to the Last She.

This is going to be a bit bumpy so buckle up.

Did you know that Ara is looking for her sister and her father in the Lost City or is it the Last City? the author could not decide which name best fit the Last/Lost City. However, the reader was reminded of Ara's quest EVERY SINGLE CHAPTER that Ara was the voice.

Sam's a new voice in the story and one that I enjoyed, however, his role was predictable and based too much upon the Hunger games for me to even entertain the notion of really liking him.

Kaden, went from being out of the Lost/Last City to all of a sudden in the ranks of the new recruits. WHAT?! Also did the reader know that Kaden loves Ara? Don't worry if you don't know it, but the author will remind you constantly.

Overall the story moved at a snails pace. Constantly rehashing the characters quests, the plot was predictable and the only saving grace was Talia, who was never fully formed as a character.

This is one sequel that really did not need to happen. It could have been combined into the first book OR into the last installment. I am hoping that there is only one more installment.

I gave the first book in this series, The Last She, 4 stars because I hadn’t read anything quite like it before and I felt it was not only compelling but also so refreshing in its writing style and in how much adventure and adversity the motley crew of main characters went through during the book. It was a fantastic read and, at the time, I couldn’t wait to read the next installment.

I don’t know what happened between The Last She and The Last City, but this book has lost so much of the vivacity and suspense the last book had, and I think that’s because we went from wilderness to “civilization”, and it became evident pretty early on what the Chancellor’s (our antagonist in this book) grand plan was. In comparison with the originality and the unknown variables of the first book, the eye-rolling predictability of the evil plot in this book frankly made me a little peeved. It’s been done. It’s been done in a million ways and even the way this book does it isn’t even that original. It feels lazy.

H. J. Nelson’s writing and imagination still manages to keep my attention and make me want to see what’s coming, but I’ve lost so much interest in this series compared to the break between the first book and this book. It’s just a shame that this book seems, for lack of a better term, underbaked. Too many people focused on the wrong things, causing filler material that only served to make the book longer than it needed to be. A plot twist near the end that wasn’t even needed. A question asked repeatedly throughout the book that’s never answered. This book could’ve used more baking and more editing, to be sure.

I’ll look for the third installment when it comes in the hopes Nelson can salvage this story and resolve the whole arc, but this installment on its own wasn’t a solid read.

I was provided a copy of this book by NetGalley and the author. All views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this review are mine and mine alone. Thank you. Due to personal policy, this review will not appear on any bookseller or social media website due to the 3 star or lower rating. Thank you.