I've read some of Will Dean's earlier books and loved "The Last Thing to Burn," a dark, creepy, nearly perfect thriller. I highly recommend it. "The Last One" is equally gripping, with unstoppable pacing and a haunting atmosphere, and your enjoyment will depend on how well you like the ending.

Caz and Pete embark on a dream cruise, but the next morning Pete is missing, and Caz finds all the cabin doors open and the ship empty, still barreling out to sea. Can you imagine? This story triggered all my worst fears.

Caz discovers there's no food, water, or basic amenities and has to survive from there. I really enjoyed!

I absolutely hated this book. I can't rate it zero stars or I would.
It was not anything that I expected given the completely disingenuous and misleading synopsis.
From almost the beginning when Caz wakes alone I had an idea where this was going.
Yes, I finished it but that is a couple hours of my life I will never get back.
And I will always be a bit leery about this publisher's book descriptions again.

And to make it all even worse, the narrator of this audiobook was horrible. Her accent and the way she tried to voice the other characters was extremely irksome and I finally had to stop listening. The way she pronounced certain words was so bad that if I had not been following along in the e-book, I would have not understood anything.

Regardless, this is a book (in either format) I wouldn't recommend to anyone.

Let me first say that you have to prepare yourself for a very unlikely plot. Also, prepare yourself for being thoroughly entertained. I loved the trope, as I always do (I always feel nervous when enclosed spaces are described) so that spoke in its favor. I still felt it went a bit too far, and when the words came I thought; oh, man!! I also found the backstory unnecessarily long, but I did sympathize with the main character and liked her.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Caz (Caroline) goes on a once in a lifetime luxury cruise with her new boyfriend, Pete. The first night is awesome but in the morning, she wakes up to an empty bed and an empty ship. And it is incredibly difficult to say much else without spoilers.

I was so intrigued with this premise. And the beginning of the book did not disappoint; I was hooked right away. Then it turned into such a slog. This is a nearly 500-page book, and I wish it had not been. I understand the mundanity of the situation; however, I was largely uninterested from about the 20-60% mark. Caz's character was likeable but her backstory was so dull. We understand her drive and motivations early on, then the same information is recycled over and over again. I could have personally done without. I don't feel like I ever figured out anything new or interesting about her.

I did become reconnected with the story again towards the last third of the book. I still think it took longer than needed to get there, but I was legitimately surprised by a couple of the twists. And the ending is really something. Love it or hate it, I think it was an interesting way to go with the story.

omg... that was one of the craziest books I've ever read...
I kinda guessed it 'd be some type of show but how everything was extraaaaaa.
I don't know how I feel about the finality of the book... I wished she could have just gotten to go home but I expected that ending... i felt bad for her like damnit leave that poor woman alone. this book will forever be in my mind. this was definitely one of those can't sleep until you finish it, need to know what happened type of reads.
Part of you will wonder the whole book like this has to be an elaborate show but you just think nooooo no way they couldn't do that to them no way. Another part of you is thinking could people really be that cruel? Is that what people would really do? Is there such a thing as a red room and the morbidity of something like that? How would i react? Could I survive all that Caz endures? Sooo many questions go through your mind the whole time.... This book was WILD.

This was an average thriller with a unique concept. The book started out fast paced and slowed down for about 100 pages in the middle. The book seemed to drag in the middle with no real purpose. I would have enjoyed the characters back story and why they were chosen for the TV show rather than the characters arguing about lighting recliners on fire. The characters needed more depth to get attached to them. Thrillers do not need to be that long, but the short chapters definitely made it seem quicker.

The ending with the main character stuck on a empty plane seemed like the book could have been set up for a book 2. Overall, still kept me engaged.

Oh my, this book....

When Caz wakes up alone on a completely deserted cruise liner, she is understandably shaken. With no idea where all the other passengers have gone, including her partner, Caz is forced to navigate the massive ship alone... or is she?

This book took off right from the get-go. With short chapters that often ended in cliffhangers, I found myself unable to put this book down. As soon as you think you have it figured out, you'll realize you don't. The characters had me second guessing everything - who can Caz trust, are the others really who they say they are, what happened to the hundreds of other passengers? This book will keep you guessing, and guessing and guessing. I highly recommend this page turner and hope to God Will Dean writes a sequel!

A big thank you to Will and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review of The Last One by Will Dean. #TheLastOne #WillDean #NetGalley

Ugh. I really hoped for more from this one. I'll start by saying that this book really hooked me in the beginning, I was flying through it until around 50% when I got stuck and actually put the book down for well... 3 months. I finally picked it back up to finish it and just felt like I was ready for the end to come already. The overall concept of this book is super unique and unlike anything I've read before but for me it seemed wayyyy to far fetched at some points. Unfortunately it just wasn't my cup of tea. BUT I can totally see how some reader would absolutely love this, so don't let me keep you from reading it.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this book!

3.5

The flow was a little off for this one. At 7% we find Caz alone and the plot really starts, but by 32% we were still waiting for the story to really start.
A unique premise but it did drag on a bit.
Cliff hanger ending that I loved and made me wonder what was happening or if it was all real or made-up.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a honest review.

THIS BOOK

I had no idea when I started reading this book that it was going to take the turn it took. My jaw was on the floor. And then it hit the floor even more (is that even possible). Then when I thought I could pick it up, it fell all the way to the basement.

I will reread and reread and reread this book. HIGHLY RECOMMEND. I will gift this book to all my friends.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advance copy of The Last One by Will Dean in exchange for my honest review and opinion. This sounded fantastic and let me tell you that it was! This is one action packed, suspenseful, page turning quickly book! I couldn't read this fast enough to find out what was going to happen next. I will say at times I thought it was on the border of being sci-fi which I'm not a huge fan of but I did thoroughly enjoy this book.

Will Dean is a very good writer and I enjoyed his last two books, especially the Last Thing to Burn. Unfortunately, this book was more of a miss.

The premise of a passenger on a ship waking up to find the boat mostly abandoned was intriguing. The reason behind the abandonment is best left for the reader to discover within the book. The first person narrator's reference to past trauma seemed disconnected to the happenings on the ship, and the book would have been more successful if some additional background was provided prior to the ship experience.

I normally do not mind endings that are unresolved. This book had so much drama that a closed ending would have been preferable to wrap up this book, unless a sequel is planned (which I assume is not, based on the author's unrelated upcoming novel).

What a wild ride. The longer you read it the more confused and involved you were. Waking up and finding most of a cruise ship gone with limited supply is a bananas plot and so unique. I had no idea where it was going or why. I can't say I was a big fan of the ending and how it was all wrapped up but props to the author for finding a unique story and writing it in a way that didn't border on absurd,

This book was really gripping from the start! I didn’t know what direction the story would go when Caz woke up alone. I still can’t believe the production for the reality show was allowed to do what they did! The bodies in the ballroom was too much to put them through! The ending did feel a little rushed but overall it was a great read.

I flew through this book. I couldn't get enough. I was hooked from the first page to the last page! Can't wait to read more from this author!

What did I just read? That was exactly what I thought when I finished this book! The Last One is a gripping, shocking, jaw dropping page turner!

What the heck?!?! I had no idea what to expect from this book's description, but I enjoy books set on ships so here I am. Caroline is already reluctant to leave her family when she embarks on a luxury transatlantic cruise. But when she wakes up and everyone is gone, she has no idea if it's some sort of mistake, alien abduction, emergency, or what. Things just get crazier from there as she realizes her phone doesn't work and the power on the boat goes out shortly after.
I couldn't wait to see what happened next but I wouldn't say I loved this book as I feel like the ridiculousness of the plot kind of overshadowed any of its societal commentary. I love horror movies, so I'm rounding up to 4 stars.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the review copy.

Well that was a surprise! At almost 450 pages this thriller is long but Dean manages to keep the story moving at a very fast pace to keep the reader engaged. Personally, I really enjoyed the trajectory this novel took about a quarter of the way through. Not only was it a surprise and a welcome change from more recent thriller tropes, it’s quite topical considering today’s society. The trajectory provides an avenue for a social commentary that I think is necessary.

I did have some issues with the novel, particularly the way Dean incessantly clung to the idea that women carry a crushing load of guilt for, frankly, good, albeit controversial, decisions. The internal dialogue of the protagonist, Caz, about her soul suffering guilt was overdone and, at many times, so disjointed from the action of the plot that it was jarring. I also felt that Caz’s internal dialogue wasn’t as mature as her 51 years of age.

Go into this book blind for the most enjoyment and you’ll find yourself flipping the pages quickly to get to the resolution.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the advance reader’s copy. All opinions are my own.

Wow I don’t even know where to begin with this one. Going in blind is essential to the effect this book could potentially have on you. This book could have definitely been shorter which would have helped it be more of a page turner. Some of the back stories and history it gave was just not essential to drive the plot forward. Besides the minor dislikes I had this book had me mindblown to the point that I was slack jawed after some chapters. I don’t want to go into much detail because I don’t want to spoil any of the twists and turns but this one is definitely worth the read.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC on this one!

Really great and atmospheric thriller, with plenty of twists and turns. The characters were well developed answers the story very gripping. I really enjoyed this adventure and look forward to more by this author.