I've been wobbling between giving this book one star and two stars. I loved the premise - being trapped aboard a cruise ship is a nightmare on so many levels - so the setup was strong. But then... the explanation for what was going on was... not good. There was also not enough character development for Caz -- yes, her dad was a gambler and thief who ruined their family and her sister was a drug addict but now they run a cafe and all is well but her dad was a gambler and thief who ruined their family... and that's her internal monologue on repeat. And the ending was infuriating and kind of undid everything.

I will say this sucked me in, and I wanted to know what was going on, I was just very disappointed in how it all played out. A lot of other reviewers have really enjoyed this book, so I'm clearly in the minority here.

I received a NetGalley copy of this book for an advanced unbiased review. It was a fun, scary, relevant to today idea. I enjoyed the main character Caz being older, although she seemed twenty-ish at times. Some of the things I guessed, but not the entire idea. Fun little thriller and worth a read.

From one of the top suspense writers in the genre comes a new, terrifying thriller that is sure to be a contender for the BTB Book of the Year. The Last One is the latest in brilliant novels by the ultra-talented Will Dean, who year after year proves he is one of the best writers doing it today.

Caz Ripley is aboard the RMS Atlantica for a nice relaxing trip across the Atlantic Ocean with her boyfriend Pete. When she wakes up after the first night, she finds that Pete is not next to her. As she walks out into the hallway, she finds all of the cabin doors open, and EVERYONE is gone. Or are they??? How will she navigate this ship safely back to shore? How will she eat? Can she survive?

Chapter-ending cliff hanger after chapter-ending cliff hanger, The Last One is a horrifying, nightmare-inducing thrill ride. It's rare for me to get so sucked in to a novel like this one. There are times I literally checked my heart rate BPM because this novel was so intense. I must admit, when I got through the first chapter or two, I was thinking, "How in the hell is Will going to keep up this pace for a whole book?" But good lord, did he ever! I'm going to need the next few days to mentally decompress.

This book will expose your nerve endings and touch each and every one of them with a hot fire poker. With twist after twist and turn after turn, your head will be spinning, you'll fall ass over teakettle, and you'll never want to board a cruise-liner again. This book is not for the faint of heart and is a gut-wrenching ball of anxiety that will tug at your heart strings, but it is so damn good.

I enjoyed this book. This is the first book I've ever read by Will Dean and I will say it won't be the last. I will say that I have always had it in my mind that I would never like a cruise and this book simply reinforced it for me! This was a quick read as well.

Ahoy! THE LAST ONE is a fresh take on the locked room mystery and gives new meaning to SOS!

Ready for a week of R&R at sea, Caz and her boyfriend board a luxury cruise liner crossing the Atlantic to New York City. After a memorable night on the cruise, Caz wakes up the next morning to find that she is the only person aboard the RMS Atlantica and all the crew and passengers have disappeared.

The premise alone is incredible and the pages practically turn themselves as this situation quickly devolves. It’s best to go in blind and let the terror of the high seas sweep you away. This story is of the popcorn thriller variety, but it's extremely entertaining if you’re willing to suspend quite a bit of disbelief.; think Distress signals meets The Hunger Games. The plot twists were plentiful and I absolutely could not wait to see how this saga ended.

Thrills and chills aside, Will Dean presents an interesting social commentary on human nature that provides a bit of depth amidst the cliffhangers. Pick up THE LAST ONE for a summer slumpbuster!

READ IF YOU LIKE:
-A Locked Room Mystery with cliffhangers aplenty!
-High seas and heaping disasters
-A unique premise with an ending you won’t see coming

PUB DATE: August 8, 2023
RATING: 4.5/5 (rounded up to 5 stars)

Many thanks to Atria and NetGalley for an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review. Review will be posted to www.instagram.com/kellyhook.readsbooks in advance of publication date

Completed it in one sitting. I had to know what was going on! The situation and the events kept becoming more and more exciting. While I did figure out what happened before the ending, it was a fun ride while getting to the end. The characters weren't necessarily likeable, I still found myself caring about them and wanting things to go okay. The read was atmospheric, I felt like I was on the ship with the characters. All in all, it was a fun read. Looking forward to reading more from this author.

#NETGALLEY #THELASTONE #WILLDEAN

Thank you Netgalley & Atria Books for an eARC of The Last One, Will Dean's latest suspense novel!

Love a locked room mystery? What about a locked cruise mystery? Sign me up!

Main character Caz steps on board the exclusive cruise ship, The Atlantica, with her new boyfriend Pete. They have a fabulous first night. That is, until she wakes up and realizes that not only Pete is missing - But so are all of the other guests and crew (Except a select few).

This book oozes tension and is extremely atmospheric. The chapters are quick, ending in cliff-hangers, and will certainly have you flipping through, saying "please, just one more!" It gets to the point where you're wondering - Seriously, what can (and will) happen next?! It's tough to review this one without giving anything away regarding the plot or the ending. That being said, buckle in for a wild ride. I anticipate this one will be a popular 2023 read!

Imagine boarding a luxury liner with your significant other and waking up the next morning with your partner missing. Not only that, but the ship is completely empty. No passengers, no crew, nobody.

This book was all kinds of crazy and I loved every minute of it. I have always been a little terrified of the ocean, especially on cruise ships. The dark vastness of if it makes my mind go to places it shouldn’t, and well, after reading this book I can honestly say I don’t know if I will ever take another cruise again 😮.

This book was terrifying and twisted and I flew through all 448 pages in a day and a half.

And the ending, the very last page. Read it, read it again, and be prepared to gasp out loud.

THE LAST ONE is one of the best locked room thrillers I have ever read! #Neflix needs to snatch this story up right away!

Thank you @netgalley and @atriabooks for my e-ARC.

Wtf did I just read

Insane. Insane in the membrane.

Unputdownable. I read a fair amount of thrillers and most of them are just so...you know..they're fine. But this (THIS!!) is such a nonstop thrill ride and so legitimately creepy it's basically horror. It's about a woman named Caz who hasn't had the easiest life, but she's got herself a good man who's taking her on a luxury cruise across the Atlantic Ocean. She wakes up the first morning and the ship is a ghost ship- all the beds have been made, and all the passengers and crew are gone.

I can't even say anything else because of spoilers. But from Chapter 2 I had no idea where this was going. Holy cow. It's so uniquely scary. There was one part I was so tense that I realized I was holding my breath because I was so worried.

I liked Will Dean's "First Born," but The Last One is lights-out bonkers and incredible. I'm a Will Dean fan now, for sure. (Also, shout-out to Will Dean for dropping a Gastonia, NC reference: as someone from Charlotte I'm offended but it made me laugh). Thanks to the author, Atria, and NetGalley for letting me read this. I genuinely loved it.

A woman goes on a vacation cruise with her boyfriend and the next morning she wakes up to find that she is absolutely alone on the ship in the middle of the ocean.⁣
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Will Dean does it again Folks! Last year my favorite novel was The Last Thing To burn, one of his books that is truly exceptional. So when I saw this one on Netgalley I immediately had to request it and was lucky enough to be accepted.⁣
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This book is amazing and might just be my favorite book so far this year. The twist do not stop coming in The Last One. I literally skipped on sleeping to read more of this novel, the binge was REAl! This is a novel that’s intense and most definitely will keep you guessing.⁣
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You will think it’s going one way only to be stunned at the next second. The Last One is a must read, I could not rave about it more!!

Caz and her boyfriend go on a cruise, leaving England for NYC. After a festive first day aboard, she awakens in the morning to discover she’s the only one on the ship, which is now totally deserted and out at sea. The Last One is a riveting, impossible-to-put-down thriller that will have you guessing until the very end. To reveal any more of the plot would be a disservice, as this book goes in a totally unexpected direction. The tension is palpable, as the author deftly places you right next to Caz throughout the story with descriptive but understated detailing, superb pacing, and a plot that will knock your socks off! Truly a great read that will stay with you long after the last page is turned. Don’t skip this one Five outstanding stars! I received an arc of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Last One will leave you guessing right up to the end. And in some respects, you still won't figured it out.
Author Will Dean takes the reader on a high seas adventure featuring a party of one. Middle aged Caroline ( Caz to her friends) sets sail on her first transatlantic boat excursion on board the Atlantica (not a cruise ship) with current boyfriend Peter.
The first day is great. Caz and Peter enjoy the ship's beauty and decor, the thousand or so travellers and 600 staff. When she awakes the next morning, Caz is completely alone.
Is this all an Hallucinogenic nightmare? Is it a game? Will Caz find any other survivors? And who will feed the dozen dogs in lockup?
To give away anymore would be mutiny on the high seas. The Atlantica becomes a floating haunted house as Caz searches for answers, food and drinkable water.
New perils wait round every corner, deck and porthole.
Psychologically exhausting and tension-tightening, The Last One is as weird a boat ride as one can imagine. Book your ticket if you dare and climb aboard for a Twilight Zone trip to a holiday from hell.

My thanks to Atria books, Will Dean and Netgalley.
This was a fantastic story that had the misfortune of not stopping while it was ahead.
Honestly? I kinda dug the neck outta this book.
For the life of me, I hadn't a freaking clue as to what the hell was going on! Then, things started making sense and I was baffled. How the hell could something like this happen?
I'll be the first to admit that the "big bad" once revealed was a hoot!
Unfortunately, the final few pages were even too much for me. I'm a great one for falling into a story and wrapping my head around the unbelievable. This though? Ridiculous! Took the book from a 5 star review to 3.

Thank you for the ARC, first of all.

I love books where people are stuck somewhere and have to survive, which is why I requested this book!

But I read about 30% of the book and couldn't read more. It's too repetitive, it's slow, the characters not attaching, and the writing isn't good enough to keep me enthralled. I jumped to the big reveal at the end which is ultimatly fun.

Will Dean took an issue of trust and made it into a intricate series of what a 50 year old woman (Caroline (Caz) Ripley) had endured and needed to believe. Yet in this book Caz didn't know what to believe, who to trust, and to believe in herself. I read this book in one day (my wife was sick and we are in Rome). She's on a Ship (the Atlantica) and through the story she's found only 4 other people who are on it. When did the other people leave the ship? The story twists and turns and you believe what you read at the time. I would say more but you should read the book to know what happens and I won't give you any spoilers. Trust is the issue.

Caroline Ripley is finally taking a vacation with her boyfriend, Pete, aboard a luxury ocean liner. But what happens when Caroline wakes up to a completely empty ship, still charting it’s way across the Atlantic?

The premise of the book hooked me: how does an entire ship full of people disappear overnight? How will Caroline survive? *Can* Caroline survive?

Though all of these questions are answered, I still found the way the plot progressed a bit slapdash. There were plot points that, once revealed, seemed completely unnecessary.

This book was ultimately not for me but I still think if you’re interested in the premise, give it a try!

The Last One by Will Dean
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I don't even know where to start! This was the stuff nightmares are made of for me!

Caz and her boyfriend Pete board a an ocean liner on route to New York City. The first night goes well but when Caz wakes up she finds herself alone. All the passengers have vanished out of thin air. Eventually throughout the day she finds 3 more passengers.
What is happening? Where did everyone go? Who will help them?

I really can't say much as it would spoil so many things. I have never been on a cruise and the thought of something like makes me never want to! 😅

Thank you to @netgalley, @willdean and @atriabooks for allowing me to read this ARC.

Caz wakes up on a ship to find she is the only one aboard. What ensues is a story I promise you have never read before.

I loved this book! It was so refreshing to read a story that I have never read a variation of before. I was shocked at each twist and turn. There were heart-pounding and jaw-dropping moments. Just when you think you understand what is happening, you don't! The ending was perfect.

Thank you to Netgalley & Atria Books for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Well that was different! Don’t think I’ll be going on a cruise anytime soon…or should I say OCEAN LINER!
The beginning dragged a little bit for me. But once the big reveal, things really picked up and those short chapters kept me going. I felt deeply for Caz and despised Frannie. And I let out a “No Way!” at that very last page.
Will continue to pick up all Will Deans books.
Thanks NetGalley for the early read!

So I spent far too much time in this book worrying that the author was going to pull an “and it was all a dream” ending to this. I mean, the story is bizarre and I simply couldn’t figure out what was really happening. I’m happy to say that, when the author finally explained it, it was something I definitely didn’t see coming.

Now, I’m not completely convinced that everything was logical here. Even with the explanation, there were bits bugging me – like why and how and what on earth? But I also didn’t care.

This book is entertaining as could be. It’s fast paced, mysterious, and has a few bits that make you go ick. (Okay, someone’s boyfriend/partner REALLY icked me out. Like, ew!)

Honestly, I had so much fun with this and I’d love to read the author again.

• ARC via Publisher