“The Last One” by Will Dean is an intense summer thriller about a vacation gone wrong. Caz and Pete are on the cruise vacation of their dreams, that is until Caz wakes up and Pete is gone. Actually, everyone on the ship is gone. Including the passengers, crew, and captain. Caz is stranded alone on a ship somewhere in the mid-Atlantic during this mystery. But somehow, being stranded ends up become the least of her worries.

Thank you to NetGalley and Emily Bestler Books for the ARC of this novel.

Few writer can draw you in and wreak havoc on your psyche and emotions like Will Dean. The Last One is just another example of how great of a writer Dean is.

Wasn’t a huge fan of this one. I think the premise was great but the execution wasn’t exactly what I wanted to read about. Maybe I had wanted something more along the lines of a ghost ship rather than a competition… idk. I was also disappointed in the ending, it felt like an easy out.

No. Just, no. The plot? ridiculous. The characters? annoying. The twists? DUMB. No one would believe this plot at all, and I get you have to suspend some belief with thrillers, but this was too much for me. I could not hang with this story at all. And the very end? Don't even get me started. I felt like my time was wasted while reading this. I know a lot of people will enjoy this story and the thrilling aspects, but it was not for me.

I really loved The Last One by Will Dean. I always say that I want a story to make me feel major emotions and this book checked all the boxes. I was confused, anxious, curious, grossed out, and extremely angry as I read the story and it was fabulous.

The story jumps right into it with an eerie situation that leaves you wondering and yearning for more info. As it progresses you are left with more questions and more confusion about what is taking place. There’s lots of little twists as you are given more info but it’s never enough to take that confusion away. There are scenes that had me holding my breath in anticipation of what would happen next.

The conclusion worked for me. I feel it’s a plausible explanation and while it was elaborate, it felt reasonable. The big cliffhanger made me want to scream. I was so angry. I felt that the last paragraph was enough to make me drop my rating to 3 stars and proclaim my dislike of the book. Then, I sat with my emotions and realized I actually really loved it. It was the same feeling I had at the end of Saw when Jigsaw stood up and slammed the door to lock them in. That confusion and realization and anger all bubbling into one intense reaction.
Once I accepted the ending, I could picture a rewind of the story (like they love to do at the end of thriller movies) where you see the stuff you didn’t see the first time around so you can understand how this crazy ending makes sense. And having a book give you that huge emotional reaction is pretty fantastic.

I have shared this review on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cvznh6FrHO0/?igsh=Njc2MDc3cXJ1aGxh

Goodreads

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5743207689

And Amazon

Thanks to Netgalley, Atria books, and Will Cain for this ARC. What can I say ? ! I found this story so fascinating. I’ve taken quite a few cruises and next time, I might not fall asleep the first nite, or even the second. I enjoyed all the various ways these people stayed alert and alive. Though I wasn’t sure how it would end, it didn’t expect it the way it did…And the last sentence in the book was awesome ! Now what ?! 4 stars only because I didn’t care for the ending with actors in this scenario.. a great pick for a book club discussion group..

WHAT A BOOK! I had no idea what to expect going in, but this book is perfection. The pacing, plot, character development... I recommend this book to everyone I know.

This book was trippy! At first I was so confused why our MC ends up on a cruise ship alone, but as she soon figures out she’s not alone. The book gave major black mirror vibes and now make me terrified to go on a cruise. There were parts that kind that were dragged out, but felt it was necessary to really understand the atmosphere/ vibes. The ending wasn’t what I expected, but overall a good thriller. Thank you netgalley and atria books for this ARC in exchange for an honest review:

Ehhh, this book was not for me. I am
not into science fiction type books. This felt that way and I lost interest quickly

The Last One by Williams Dean
★★★ 3/5 stars

• synopsis
The Last One is about a middle aged woman who goes on a cruise with her partner. They dine & laugh, having the best first day. She goes to sleep next to him, but wakes up alone. She's now the only one on the massive ship.

🚢 Read if you like
-locked room thrillers
-survival reality shows
-short bingable chapters
-cliffhanger endings
-Lost, Titanic, or Black Mirror
-the movie Passengers, but on sea instead of in space
-unlikeable characters

🚢I thought it’d be fun to share the notes I made while reading this one↓

-It’s giving the passengers + titanic + lost + survivor
-where the heck is everybody?
-why is this MCs internal dialogue so repetitive
-what the hell is going on
-why did they leave the dogs??
-stfu rats 🤢
-ok this is borderline sci-fi. Like black mirrors.
-I’m sorry, jump into the Atlantic Ocean? No thank you I’ll hang with the rats.
-WTH. The last page. The last line. Talk about wanting to throw my book across the room. 🙄🙄🙄

• my thoughts
This one had a very unique, memorable premise, a lot of twists, & for the majority of the book i was hooked. But at a certain point the twists went too far fetched, & I had to suspend a little too much belief for it to work. It was far too long, it definitely could’ve been 100 pages shorter. But this honestly still would’ve been a 4☆ read just for originality alone - until the end. The last chapter was criminal. In just a few words on the last page, the thing turned upside down & totally left me hanging. So frustrating!!

Thank you @netgalley and @atriabooks for the opportunity to read this ARC ◡̈

The Last One is a gripping thriller from author Will Dean. Oringinally, the reader is led to believe that this will be an ordinary but engrossing thriller with the typical newly married couple goes on honeymoon and scary things ensue. But this is not the case. Can awakens in the morning to find her partner Pete missing and as she emerges from her room on the midsize 1000 passenger luxury liner finds that she is the only one aboard. What happened to the other passengers? And will the reader ever find this out? Will she ever find out? Throughout this original plot Dean keeps the reader fully engaged. Telling more would be a spoiler. This is a very entertaining read.

Oh man, if you want to be fully invested in a book and finish one in one sitting, this is the one for you!! Loved it.
Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this book @netgalley and the publisher

I absolutely loved the premise of this book. I enjoyed following the story as it unfolded and was eagerly anticipating the big reveal. After the reveal the story took a turn that I didn't personally love. It felt a little predictable at times and especially the final twist. The characters weren't very likeable and were at times insufferable. With that said the story kept me engaged and has me never wanting to board a cruise ship.

While I personally just found this meh (too many plot holes and suspension of belief for me) I can see my students who love this type of book reading this so I will recommend to them.

This one kept me on the edge of my seat. I had no idea what the heck was going to happen next in this book. Nothing is what it seems, and I don't know if I'll ever be able to think about boarding a cruise ship without thinking of this book. The mystery was surprising in nearly every twist and the characters were compelling enough that I was invested in what happened to them.

A huge thank you to the author and the publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

This book went in a direction I didn’t think it was going. Overall enjoyed it. Just wasn’t my favorite

This book's premise was incredibly engaging, and I truly enjoyed the majority of the book. It was creepy and atmospheric and everything I want a book like it to be. I also didn't figure out the ending, and the ending really did surprise me (and made me a little mad). Very interesting book, and very well written.

TW: Language, drinking, toxic family relationships, gabbling addiction, death by suicide, dementia, drug addiction, racism, classism, adoption


*****SPOILERS*****
About the book:When Caz steps onboard the exclusive cruise liner RMS Atlantica, it’s the start of a vacation of a lifetime with her new love, Pete. On their first night they explore the ship, eat, dance, make friends, but when Caz wakes the next morning, Pete is missing.And when she walks out into the corridor, all the cabin doors are open. To her horror, she soon realizes that the ship is completely empty. No passengers, no crew, nobody but her. The Atlantica is steaming into the mid-Atlantic and Caz is the only person on board. But that’s just the beginning of the terrifying journey she finds herself trapped on in this white-knuckled mystery.
Release Date: August 8th, 2023
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Pages: 448
Rating: ⭐

What I Liked:
1. The story was interesting
2. Short chapters
3. Liked the authors writing style

What I Didn't Like:
1. So much bickering
2. Plot lied to me
3. Too many plot holes
4. Characters making endless decisions

Overall Thoughts:
{{Disclaimer - I write my reviews as I read along}}

I loved the idea of a person alone on a ship and everyone has disappeared. Reminded me of Stephen King's The Langoliers (from his story collection Four Past Midnight) . Only in that story a woman wakes up on a plane and everyone is gone.

One of the complaints I have about this book is that I wish that Caz had spent more time alone and trying to figure things out before coming across other people. I wanted that atmospheric feeling of isolation and to be frightened about what was happening, but it was cut too short when she found other people.

I wish we could have more of a sense of Caz as a character before we are introduced to more characters. We learn things as we go along with everyone else but I wanted her to be set apart from them so I cared more about her as the main character.

Okay cool we are introduced to the jerk of the group.

Omg this has turned into your standard story of a group of people not knowing what is happening. This whole plot was a lie. She was like alone for 20 minutes. I spend more time alone on a weekend than this story promised.

Where is all the food? They were able to start fires but they can't cook any food?

So they are being held on the ship and being watched by an audience. The voice didn't say who was watching though, so assuming they wouldn't starve them is interesting. I'm assuming that they are hoping they eat each other.

These people are WAY too calm for what is happening to them.

I just think it's odd that all of them would stay on this where they are being held hostage without any decisions before they are put in this situation. At least one of them would leave. They just keep saying that they can't be held here against their will but they have been for days while they were starving and thirsty.

How are they not creeped out that there are other people on the ship that were able to give them the food that they ate? It just feels like the characters are just so dense when it comes to things.

Okay so I guess it's a dark web type game. I don't understand what the point of them having everyone (crew & customers) get on the ship and just to keep 4 people for the game. How could you get so many people to just abandon their cruise so that a few people could be on a game show? Not only that the amount of effort and energy to remove those many people. No one asks Michelle how they made everyone leave.

This whole time they are starving and they just now when they are so hungry and have lost weight and are weak decide they are going to eat the dogs food. Why??? Why do they care so much about the dogs enough that they are willing to starve. They are ready to let themselves just die.

I understand that the ship is freezing but put on more clothes and cover up. Our ancestors survived before fire was even a thing but these people act like it's the end of the world.

There were so many things that happened in this book that just made no sense. If this is the dark web why would people post it on YouTube? Why would they announce to the world that there was a contest? Why would they give the contestants a chance to get off the ship before and then afterwards?

Don't worry everything is fake and it's a TV show. I mean what would they have done if someone killed another person for food or for the chance to win? I know Daniel and Frannie were actors but they didn't know what Smith and Caz would do when pushed. Or maybe when Caz of Smith jumped from a giant cruise ship.

Final Thoughts:
Sigh. This book frustrated me to no end. Where was the threat? Everything that happens in this book is a result of them choosing to stay on the ship and of them killing scaring themselves. They did dumb things after dumb things.

What was the point of the bodies in the ballroom?? Why fake that??

Omg the stupid plane ending where everyone is gone!! Please please tell me how you empty a plane in the air in the 5 minutes of someone being in the bathroom???

I did really enjoy how fast paced the book was and the way the author wrote, I just left this book with even more questions. So many questions.

Thanks to Atria/Emily Bestler Books and Netgalley for this advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

THE LAST ONE
Will Dean

A weeklong getaway. Endless, dizzying days at sea. Nothing but blue for miles around.

“Water, water, everywhere, nor any drop to drink.”

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Sounds like a nightmare!

Caz is stranded at sea. There is no food, there is no water, everyone else has vanished and she has no idea how to get help. And as the plot unravels, we learn just how nefarious her time at sea will be, what’s at stake, and what she’ll have to do to get off of the boat.

What we won’t know until the very end is why.


THE LAST ONE quickly turned into a survival of the fittest situation at sea and I was on the hook. It was so much fun to put my detective cap on and try to solve the mystery along with the passengers on the boat. There is a bookish puzzle (no spoilers) to solve and a bigger overarching mystery. All of which led to my enjoyment of the book.

I had fun with this latest from Will Dean and recommend it to readers who love to solve mysteries and who are easily able to suspend disbelief. Because there is a lot to get over with this storyline. But if you can look past the unbelievable, I think you’ll enjoy THE LAST ONE.

Thanks to Netgalley, Atria Books, and Atria/Emily Bestler Books for the advanced copy!

THE LAST ONE…⭐️⭐️⭐️

The premise for this book was so intriguing and then it went in a direction I did not expect.
There were parts that didn’t always work for me but I was a fast paced, fun thriller that kept me turning the pages.