What can I even say about this twisty book?! I don't want to spill even a tiny drop of a spoiler, so let me say I had no idea where this book was going. I was constantly on guard, increasingly sick with dread, and loved every second. Will Dean does not hold back and is now an autobuy must read author for me. This book was incredibly unique and perfectly constructed for maximum drama. I could feel the drop in my stomach every time something went wrong and the tense atmosphere of this psychological thriller hooked me the entire time. If I was able I would have sat down and read this entire book without moving. I love the look at how a seemingly innocuous thing could lead to such intense possibilities / consequences. What a fabulous book.

I literally have no words! This was more than a book for me but more like an experience! You know those books you wish you could experience again for the first time??? Yeah, this is one of them.

After reading the synopsis I knew I instantly wanted to read this book but I NEVER in a million years could have dreamed up what would happen. Will Dean is a literal genius! I was most definitely white knuckling my kindle the whole dang time reading this book. There is SOOO much more I could say about this book (fear of saying too much & spoiling it) but this one is definitely better going in blind, I promise! Do yourself a favor & move this to the top of your TBR. Honestly if I could give it more than 5 stars, I would 5 million times over. & with that I wish you fair winds and calm seas while reading!

Thanks to NetGalley & Atria Books for an eARC of this title! & of course to Will Dean for writing such a masterpiece.

What a creative story!

While I did think it took a bit too long for this one to really get going (almost a third into the book), I absolutely LOVED the direction it went in and it surprised the hell out of me.

That being said, I felt this book was about 100-150 pages too long. It became too much of the same, but it was engaging enough that I kept reading.

Overall, I think fans of John Marrs & slow-burns will enjoy this one.

3.75 stars rounded up

The Last One by Will Dean was not what I thought it would be based on the book's description. I envisioned Caz being alone and trying to navigate the ship and survive on her own. Without giving any spoilers, I will say that she is not quite alone.

When the book took a sharp turn, I realized that I was not the right reader for this book. Had I known the actual plot, I would not have selected it. The plot was suspenseful enough that I wanted to know what happened, so I continued and continued - through all 445 pages, many of which were unnecessary due to some circular plot points.

3.5 stars rounded down for a misleading premise. Despite this, I will recommend this to readers who like books about . . . this topic;)

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 stars*
this is sort of a tough book for me to rate. on one hand, i really enjoyed a good portion of this book. the concept is really cool, and i love how intentionally vague the synopsis is. you don’t figure out the main concept/idea of this book until a third of the way through (for the sake of spoilers, i will not be discussing what the main part of the story is). on the other hand, this book was a bit too meandering at times, and i didn’t get attached to any of the characters. we are in the head of the main character, Caz, the whole time. she got tiresome after a while with all the complaining she did about her life. it was constant and overbearing, in my opinion. i feel bad saying that because she’s clearly trying to come to terms with some trauma, but after a point i was like “okay, i get it!” i’ve just read thrillers that portrayed female main characters with baggage much better (i’m looking at you, The Last Word!).

i will say that there were some reveals that took me by surprise and some parts that were rather clever. however, there were other parts of this book that seemed to try too hard to be philosophical and have conversations about certain topics (can’t say which topics because of spoilers), but didn’t really make me think much. these weren’t any new or different topics of conversation for me. it felt like it was trying to be thought-provoking, but it just wasn’t really (it wasn’t as pretentious/bad as I’m Thinking of Ending Things, i will say. i hated that book).

anyway, i did overall enjoy this. i read it rather quickly for an almost 500 pg. book. i would recommend it if you like:
🛳️books set on cruise chips
👤first person POV
🏝️survival stories

i would read from this author again, although i enjoyed The Last Thing to Burn more. thank you to Netgalley, the author, and Atria Books for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

what a creative and bizarre story!! it definitely gave me MAJOR manifest vibes with how eerie and unbelievable the plot was! I mean, if you woke up to a completely deserted cruise ship, I think I would just simply lose my mind 🤯

I have no idea what I was expecting from this one after will dean’s previous novel FIRST BORN completely blew me away, but going in blind to this one was well worth it!

this slow-burn thriller left a bunch of clues throughout, like bread crumbs, but it left me feeling very unsatisfied in the end… the plot twists didn’t give a satisfied conclusion, in my opinion, and I felt just as discombobulated as MC caz was. I just couldn’t get around the legal ramifications of this and how f*cked up the entire plot really was.

for me, I tend to enjoy believable thrillers more than those out of left field, and I highly doubt anything like this plot (which I’m leaving out for spoiler purposes) would happen in real life. it was just a little too out there for my taste, BUT it was truly a heart-pounding adventure from start to finish!

thank you to netgalley and atria books for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review! I’m addicted to will dean’s writing!!

rating: 3.5 stars
wine pairing: columbia valley pinot noir

4.5/5!

What a unique book! I had no idea what I was getting into with the synopsis and honestly that’s perfect. So many times they give away clues about the path of the story, but this one was a roller coaster ride I wasn’t expecting. I highly recommend going into this one as blindly as possible and for that reason, I’m going to keep my review vague on plot details.

Dean has created a claustrophobic and atmospheric setting by choosing to set his story on a massive cruise ship. I could feel the discomfort radiating from Caz throughout the story, which added to the tension and suspense of what was coming next. Dean takes advantage of this by dropping twists when the reader doesn’t expect them. There were a few I saw coming right before they happened, but that didn’t stop the shock of watching them play out.

The Last One moves at a fast pace with lots of cliffhanger chapter endings that keep you glued to the pages. This is one of those books that I thought about while I wasn’t reading it, wondering what would happen next and how things would ultimately end. And speaking of the ending…could there be a sequel coming? I’m keeping my fingers crossed the answer is yes!

A huge thank you to Atria Books for my gifted copy!

AHHHH this book is so good. Great character development, twists and turns you never saw coming. My favorite thing about it was that a lot of the characters I did not like at the beginning turned my opinion around by the end of the book. The last page had me SHOOK!!!!!

It’s been a great summer for thrillers, but I’ll tell you what: I think this book takes the cake in terms of actually stressing me out beyond belief and actually scaring me. Not only that, but it’s such a psychological mind screw I found myself having to really focus so I could make sure I didn’t miss a single detail. In a closed loop mystery thriller loop-de-loop book like this you can’t take a single, solitary detail for granted. You may think that a throwaway line or neglected object means nothing on page 56, but when page 227 comes and it comes back around, you’ll regret not paying attention! (Those page numbers and objects were totally random and plucked from the air–they ARE NOT spoilers.)

For the first half of the first act of this book I was sincerely so stressed out I was livid I was reading an eARC and not a physical copy, keeping me from easily flipping to the end to relieve my stress (yes, I do this when books make me super anxious. Don’t come for me. I have an extremely bad anxiety disorder and 99% of the time I’m fine when it comes to books). I felt absolutely panicked about our protagonist’s (Caroline, or Caz for short) predicament. Not only am I vehemently anti-cruise ship (though, they’re on an ocean liner and not a cruise ship, but the principle applies) because of what they do to the environment and how much shady stuff happens on such ships all the time, but I am one of those people that’s not meant to be left alone. Me and the idea of being left completely alone simply scares the crap out of me. I also have major trust issues, so when Caz eventually comes into contact with three other people who seemed to have escaped whatever has happened overnight to the other thousand-plus souls on board the ship, I felt paranoid and distrustful alongside her (even though she eventually trauma-bonded with them, and I just kept being distrustful because I read a lot of thrillers and I know better).

There’s a lot I can’t tell you about this book because it would just end up being spoilers galore, but I can tell you that this book keeps you on your toes, it will keep you glued to the page, it demands you pay attention, it will keep surprising you, it will shock you, it will make you mad, it might make you stretch your ability to suspend disbelief just a touch (but I don’t think that much), it will horrify you, and in the end you may end up asking yourself, “What in the heck just happened?”

I know I did. I’m writing this review while dumbstruck.

I was provided a copy of this title by NetGalley and the author. All opinions, thoughts, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you.

File Under: 5 Star Review/Conspiracy Thriller/Murder Thriller/Mystery/Psychological Thriller/Speculative Fiction/Suspense Thriller/Thriller

Pete and Caroline (Caz) have just embarked on a romantic vacation aboard the RMS Atlantica. They have a lovely dinner and then settle in for their first night aboard the ship. The next day Caz wakes up to find that Pete is nowhere to be found, nor can she find anyone else aboard the massive ship. This book had me on the edge of my seat in breathless suspense.

Once you find out what’s really going on it turns into more of an action/suspense than thriller. Prepare yourself for some super stressful situations and that’s about all I can say without spoiling the twist. This is the kind of book that you just go in blind and start reading. I saw some tantalizing reviews with sparse details and that drew me in. So here’s my own tantalizing review. Read if you dare.

Content warning: definitely some disturbing scenes toward the end that weren’t my cup of tea. The ending was another twist and I feel like I need to process with someone who’s read it. What a wild ride!
Thank you to Atria Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

This locked room thriller is guaranteed to knock your socks off, so it’s essential to go into it knowing as little as possible. To avoid giving out spoilers I therefore won’t be able to say much about the plot, but I can however, whet your appetite by telling you a little about the premise and the main character.

Caroline Ripley, Caz to her friends, is a middle-aged woman who’s agreed to go on a transatlantic cruise from Southampton to New York with her boyfriend Pete Davenport. She has some trepidation about the cruise as it’s her first time overseas and she normally likes to stay close to home and her family. However, she loves Pete and even though it’s still early days in their relationship she thinks he might just be the one for her, finally someone she feels she can fully trust who makes her happy.

The ship they’re boarding is a state of the art cruise liner, the RMS Atlantica, with every luxury you can imagine. Caz and Pete wine and dine and enjoy their first night together in their luxurious suite. However, when Caz wakes the next morning Pete has gone. Expecting to catch up with him at breakfast she heads out to the dining room. But something isn’t right, it’s eerily quiet and all the cabin doors are open and the rooms are empty. Frantically searching the ship, she finds the same on each deck. The ship is still sailing with no land in sight, so where is everyone? How could they all have disappeared during the night and left her alone? The truth will turn out to be even more horrifying than anything she could possibly imagine.

If the covid pandemic made you think twice about going on an ocean cruise, then this may turn you off the idea forever. What follows is nightmarish, as Caz is thrown from one ordeal into the next and stretched to the limit in her desperation to survive. I wonder if Will Dean is able to think up dark and fiendish plots because he lives in a wooden house the middle of a Swedish Forest. Those long dark winters must give him plenty of time for melancholic thoughts and conjuring up devilish images.

The dark, creepy plot is certainly cleverly imagined and will keep you on the edge of your seat as the tension mounts. Yes, it feels totally beyond belief, but in a very entertaining way and maybe not totally implausible given the dark underbelly of today’s world. The novel will quickly hook you in and keep you invested in finding out how it ends. It’s both terrifying and gripping with jaw-dropping twists you won’t see coming. And that final ending you will either love or hate!

This is one of my favorite genres - give me an isolated, locked door mystery thriller any day. I flew through this book, it kept me on the edge of my seat with twist after twist. The only thing keeping it from being a 5 star was the ending. It was just not satisfying at all after 400 pages of buildup. Overall, 4/5 stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this free digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. This published August 8, 2023.

I got half way and had to throw in the towel. I hate to do that with a Netgalley book but I just couldn't go on. I got to 50%. the first 35 % is basically drilling into you that they are alone on this boat. Then when the twist is revealed kindof, just way too ridiculous for me.

I am glad that I am in the minority with this review and wish the author great success with this but it was just not for me.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book.

I am still in shock!
This book was so so good. So tense and so twisty that was impossible to put it down. I didn’t expect that at all, and that ending!. You keep thinking about this story all the time, and that shows how a great book is.
I really loved it and highly recommend.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Out now and do yourself a favor, go read this book!

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book. This was one of my favorites of the year. It was so unique kept me guessing. I thought I had the ending figured out and I was so surprised. First they wake up to only find 4 people on the ship but then it turns into so much more! One sitting read!

Minor possible spoilers ahead, read at your own risk. Nothing’s in detail or explicit, but some people are sensitive…..

3.5 stars. Goodreads really needs to get a half-star system.

I really struggled with what to rate this book.

I don’t want to say too much more about the book’s plot other than what’s in the official description, because this is a book that’s going into blind. But it starts out with Chaz waking up on an empty luxury ocean liner - and because this part comes early on, I feel comfortable telling you - she meets a couple of other “left behinds” who all quickly struggle to figure out what the heck is going on.

I absolutely LOVED the storyline, the action, everything. There were twists throughout, some I guessed; some I didn’t; some I thought were coming and didn’t; some parts I was holding my breath reading to see what was coming next! Like I said, by the time it wrapped up, I was satisfied.

And then, the ending.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: AUTHORS, DO NOT THROW A RANDOM LAST LINE/PARAGRAPH CLIFFHANGER IN THERE FOR THE SAKE OF IT. IT’S NOT CUTE.

So yeah, I was upset at that point. Why ruin what was a great 5-star book at that point? It didn’t alert sense to me.

So overall, loved the book, expect for the very last pages. I’d recommend reading everything but those, you’ll still get a full story, but without the ruined ending.

I would encourage anyone who is interested in reading this book to NOT read anything about this book before picking it up, especially not the back cover synopsis. I think the back cover ruins this entire book because it sets the reader up for disappointment, but I also think without reading the back cover, the book is interesting, slightly terrifying, and one I would have picked up just because of the cover.

Are you a fan of cruise ships? Do you like spending a week on a boat with hundreds of others? In The Last One, Will Dean takes a character - Caz - and makes her wake up alone on a ship. The ship is sailing itself and she can't find any other passengers. What has happened?

This story took me a while to get into. I thought Caz was pretty annoying and whiny along with Smith. Dean does a pivot and the story gets a little more interesting. Then it feels forced. After the final reveal there's an a-ha moment. And then you know what's coming. I was a little disappointed that it ended like that. Almost a cliche ending .
If you're able to suspend belief and reality, thriller fans may enjoy this one.

Caz wakes up to find herself alone on a cruise ship in a state of confusion. After wandering around, she realizes there are three other passengers who also have no idea what is going on. They are cut off from all communication and quickly realize they need to work together to figure out a way off the ship. They are forced to scavenge for food and water and conquer challenges. Can they trust each other and make it out alive?

I wasn't expecting the competition/social experiment/reality tv storyline, but it sucked me in! It was fun and mysterious and unlike anything else I've read. Throughout the pages, I was feeling like it would be a 4 star read, but the ending annoyed me so I'm rounding down to 3 stars.

Thank you to Will Dean, Atria Books, and NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I saw a YouTube review about this book and was lucky enough to get an ARC. The review gave nothing away and it’s better going into this blind…. I’ve never been on a cruise and stuff like this just cements crazy made up reasons why. Ughhh this book drive me crazy but had to keep reading.