Thanks to G.P. Putnam's Sons Books and NetGalley for advanced copy for honest review. This review is based on uncorrected text.

You just graduated high school. The summer before starting your freshman year at college. Getting your bearings and earning some credit as a camp counselor, Sloan Thomas was doing just that. Thrilled to be getting away from her parents for the first time at Camp Money Springs. Freedom! A day late, Sloan shows up to meet the other counselors and she spots HER - Cherry, a beautiful, charasmtic girl. She has all the feels knowing this will be a great summer! All ten counselors getting ready to open to campers in just days when the unimaginable happens and the nightmares begin. All the screams. All the noises. Being dazed and confused. Waking up in the hospital Sloan is getting 16 stitches, but it could have been much worse. She is alive. One of two alive. She remembers bits and pieces, the snap of a twig and the glint of silver, but that is literally all she can remember. She has Beth, her 'not a real therapist' trying to help navigate her back through that night, but to no avail. Now to get to the ending is where I am stopping with no spoilers. The ending (uncorrected) will have you guessing till the mind blowing end! Not what I expected! 4 Stars, recommend!

I have so few and yet some many thoughts about The Last Girls Standing. This was my first Jennifer Dugan book, despite her popularity and previous successes. And while this books certainly had potential, it very much fell flat for me.

The concept of the book is good. It follows a trauma bonded couple after they become the sole survivors of a mass murder. Things about the murder aren’t adding up and Sloan turns on Cherry, leaving the reader to piece together the clues and follow Sloan as she figures out what really happened.. The plot was well considered and thought out in that respect. But the execution left me wanting and bursting with frustration. For a debut in thriller novels, it was a bold choice that just missed its potential. The book had too much going on at once and the ending. THE ENDING. So anticlimactic.

My biggest let down with this one was the pacing. The book was 80% over before the action really kicked into gear. That first 80% was mostly Sloan and Cherry having the same argument again…and again…and again. The characters themselves felt one dimensional, underdeveloped, and vaguely boring. Their overall voices were too close to differentiate at times and I just couldn’t get myself to care about them enough to be fully immersed in the book. I spent so much time frustrated by them and their interactions, that I missed whole paragraphs of text and had to reread them. The lack of communication in their relationship made sense with the thriller element of the book and the need to keep the reader guessing, but it was hard to get past.

I did like how this book deals with showing multiple reactions to trauma. I like that Sloan’s response is so different than Cherry’s, though we get far more of Sloan’s as the narrator. It brings to light how differently people process things, but definitely didn’t show PTSD in full. It felt very tiptoed around. I wish the author had spent more time developing those experiences and honing in on them.

Overall, I was very disappointed in this one. Not something I feel like I would recommend to others, though I would potentially pick up a book by this author in another genre.

What started off as a promising read dissolved into a bit of a disappointing one. There are a lot of elements about this book that I enjoyed at first: the unreliable narrator, the unfolding mystery, the homage to 80s/90s summer camp slasher vibes. But unfortunately, this book really struggled with pacing for me. Some parts were drawn out to the point of excess and other parts I wish we had spent more time on. It felt like we just kept going back and forth through the same cycle of events with no real movement forward. And the resolution itself left me with so many unanswered questions and a sour taste in my mouth about the depiction of trauma and trauma processing as a whole. I think the premise was interesting and that was what made me want to read the book...but around the midway point, my curiosity was just not enough to keep my interest in this book.

I was really intrigued by the premise here, but it ultimately fell flat for me. More than a final girls story, this seemed more like a psychological thriller with a bait and switch conclusion that was disappointing after investing so much time into the story. I also feel concerned about what message it sends about people with mental illness as a result of trauma.

So I happened to pick up “Melt With You”, a romance book by this author a while ago. Although that book wasn’t for me, I absolutely love seeing authors delve into new genres and styles and I adore a good thriller so I decided to give her debut thriller a try. The cover of this book also really caught my eye!

Unfortunately, after reading it, this book did not at all meet my expectations. It felt like it was being pulled in too many directions ultimately leading to a very anticlimactic ending.

The characters felt a bit one dimensional and I felt little to no investment in any of them or their relationships. Cherry and Sloan were meant to showcase what a trauma bond can look like but I don’t think it was executed as well as it could’ve been. The depictions of trauma were so scattered and at some points just downright strange. I think there definitely could’ve been more research put into what PTSD can look like instead of seemingly throwing different symptoms in and calling it a day. The pacing of the book also felt a bit off with it only really picking up in the last 1/4 and additionally, the cult felt as if it was thrown in as a connection point instead of it playing a huge part in the plot like it was meant to.

Overall I was a little disappointed with this book. However, like I said, this is the author’s first thriller and I have no doubt that with more time and experience in the genre they can only improve!

This one will keep you guessing until the very end. It was a bit of a slow start for me, but once it got going, I was intrigued.
The author is clearly a fan of the horror genre with several classic horror references and tropes throughout. I enjoyed this and would read more by this author.

Thank you so much for the ARC!

This book was definitely interesting, that I can say for sure. I struggled a bit with this book. I felt like it was dragging on when I wanted to get to a resolution or have some answers. I also wasn’t satisfied at all by the ending. However, it did keep me guessing the entire way. Every time I thought I knew where the story was going to go, or who the “bad guy” was I was misdirected. There were some very intriguing aspects of this book, but overall it wasn’t a favorite of mine sadly.

I’m…not really sure what to say about this one. It definitely kept my attention and I was interested to see where it would go, but now I’m left feeling utterly confused and kind of disappointed. I was very excited about this one, a queer slasher thriller set at a summer camp. But it was more about a VERY clingy and codependent relationship between the two survivors of said massacre with a very slow and repetitive pace and a completely unsatisfying ending. I feel like a lot of people are going to be misled by the cover and the synopsis. I absolutely understand the concept of trauma bonding, but Sloan and Cherry’s relationship was just incredibly unsettling and unhealthy and was being portrayed as romantic, which I was not liking. Honestly, the only character I thought was a decent person was poor Connor who was trying to be a good friend to Sloan. Sloan herself, I tried having sympathy and slack for, but she just irritated me for most of the book and Cherry stressed me the hell out with her constant showing up and clinging on to Sloan. If the ending would have gone the way I was hoping, I think I could have forgiven most of these things, but the ending was so ridiculous and made absolutely no sense. This one was definitely a miss for me.
TW: descriptions of mass murder, PTSD, mentions of animal death, death

Thank you to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers for an advanced digital reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review.

What a great read. I haven't read from Jennifer Dugan before, but after this one I will be checking out what she puts out in the future. I thought the cover was great, plus the story itself was phenomenal.

I wanted to love this. Hello queer wlw rep in a summer slotted release?! Perfection in theory, not in execution. I re-evaluate all reviews prior to posting final thoughts to socials so I need to sit with this.

Both of the main characters, again, felt unique in their initial description, but the execution made them feel underdeveloped. I want to enjoy the twist but when there's such a lack of connection to the main characters, it's hard to be invested in the stakes, let alone stakes that are sensical. I wanted to read this because the description made it sound like what I'd wanted from the Fear Street movies in a book with more nuance. Fell short for me and that has me torn with the final rating because 2 feels too low yet I don't know if it meets my criteria for a 3 star rating if I'm being completely honest.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC!

I had pretty high hopes for this one, and I’m left feeling more than a little let down. I love a slasher as much as the next guy, but I was really ready to finally read a story about what happens to the final girl after the cameras stop rolling. I expected a story about a survivor reclaiming her life and bonding with her fellow sole survivor, but instead I got… this.

First, let’s talk about what worked: this is a quick, highly binge-able read. In fact, I read about 70% of it in one go. Just like Sloan, I needed to know the truth. What really happened that night? What part did Cherry play in it all? The author does a terrific job of making you fly through the pages to finally put all the pieces together.

What didn’t work was how the pieces fit together in the end. Since the release date is so far away, I’ll try to dance around spoilers, so bear with me. Logically, I can see how the ending makes sense. I definitely see the author’s vision, and I think she definitely told the story she was meaning to tell. I just don’t think it is satisfying, in any way. There is a certain element that makes final girls almost universally appealing, and the author really drives a blade through that element at the end.

Ultimately, I think this book is just trying to do too many things. It’s so short that there is no way to pack in all the character development and the storylines the author is aiming for. I think this is a book with an excellent premise and promising characters, but desperately needs more editing and rewriting.

Also, I would ask that an editor remove the word “junkie” when describing a certain character’s backstory.

I'm sorry but this is quite possibly that absolute worst (and nonsensical) ending to a novel that I have ever suffered through. And I do mean a suffered through it. But now you won't have to!

The first may 20% of the book was good. It had me engaged and wanting to read more and making predictions. And then suddenly...it lost me completely. There are so many irrelevant details included. So many side characters that have absolutely no impact on the story and don't need to be included.

And then there's the ending. The ultimate let down. The unsolved quest for answers. The left field psychotic break. The fade to black finale. The most disappointing ending a "thriller" could have ever provided.

Pretty good horror story! I really loved the psychological aspects of it and I def will reread it/buy it around the fall when I'm in more of a spooky mood! (I'm a mood reader so it's three stars for now but I feel like it could get a higher rating if I were in the mood for horror!) Also, the cover art is amazing and pulled me in from the beginning! The writing was really compelling overall but I have to give it 3/3.5 stars! (Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC! It was pretty decent)!

Thank you to Netgalley for providing this arc!

I have been saying for a long time that there is a severe lack of summer camp slasher books in circulation. It’s a such an underused plot nowadays and I’ve been dying (no pun intended) to see more of it.

Now into the review, I really appreciated the centering of a queer couple for this story seeing as it’s such a popular genre in the LGBTQIA+ community, but with that said, the relationship didn’t make much sense to me. Both characters lacked in personality and I couldn’t really describe either of them in a definitive way if anyone asked me to.

The pacing in the story was hard to follow. The first 50% was very slow and didn’t hold the conflict I hoped it would. It was clear that the reader was supposed to believe that Cherry was in on everything, but there wasn’t also plot points that also made me doubt that she was a part of it until the very end. With suspense, I always like to feel like I could be wrong all throughout the story. I never want to feel like I’m firmly in one camp or the other while reading. I want to feel just as conflicted as the main character is.

The ending twist was unexpected, but not just in a surprising way. It came out of left field. It’s clear that Sloan’s mental state was slowly devolving, but I didn’t peg her as a delusional murderer. I really appreciated the deep look into how trauma would effect a slasher survivor cause that is a view we rarely see in horror, but her jump from paranoia to believing in the cults belief was too quick.

I could have believed her killing Cherry out of fear and self defense because she was under the impression that Cherry believed it, but it didn’t seem genuine that in the last 10% she switched up like that over one conversation with the fox.

I think the premise of the story was super interesting and there were definitely parts where I was glued to it, but the ending was not on par with what I was expecting.

I will admit, once the plot hit a certain point, I was skimming. So this book didn't really work for me, but it was *incredibly* effective at capturing a back-and-forth tension over whether the MC was being gaslit or paranoid.

Well… I really wanted to love this book. And I did enjoy it for the most part, but the ending left me so unsatisfied. I need more answers than we’re given and hate being left like that. Sloan and Cherry both drove me a bit nuts through the story, clearly they were nuts too.

Wow! Thank you NetGalley for a copy! I throughly enjoyed this story and was on the edge of my seat the entire time. I was completely blown away by the ending as well. Did not see it coming!

I received an ARC for this book in exchange for an honest review.
I have… mixed feelings about this book. It was very interesting, fast-paced, and we’ll-written.
However, I did have some issues with it. The protagonist’s relationship was just so unhealthy. She literally blocked out everyone in her life except for Cherry. And the “surprise twist” at the end wasn’t what I saw coming, however it felt sort of out of place and an unnecessary, unrealistic display of trauma and what it does to a person.
I did enjoy the constant wondering of who’s telling the truth and who’s gaslighting though.

I’m trying to fully understand what I just read because I’m completely in shock.. The Last Girls Standing by Jennifer Dugan is due to be published August 15, 2023.

Overall it was a good read but the story it’s self was so jam packed I could barley keep up. I felt like there was a lot of stuff missing but also way to much stuff to understand at the time. This story is inspired by all of the 80’s flasher films!

Thank you NetGalley, Jennifer Dugan and G.P. Putmam’s Sons for allowing me to read this ARC.

We love an unreliable narrator! This was a few of my favorite things; final girl trope, sapphic love, summer camp. it was a perfect thriller with an unexpected twist that made me want to shake the main character repeatedly for being so daft. I just wish we actually knew what was real and what was not!