I thoroughly enjoyed this book! So many plot twists and this book was very surprising in the best way. The characters were likable, it never got too slow, and the oceanliner setting was perfect. Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC!

Caz and her boyfriend Peter board the Atlantica like any other normal cruise ship. They have dinner, talk a little, and go to bed. The next morning she wakes up alone and the entire vessel is empty. No crew, no passengers, and no cell service. Eventually she happens upon 3 other passengers, each seemingly just as confused as she is but can she trust these people? Instead of a relaxing vacation this trip quickly turns into a sick nightmare. The ship is controlling itself, the radio to call for help is dead, and jumping into the middle of the middle of the Atlantic Ocean is a suicide mission. How is she going to get back to dry land and at what cost?

Originally I thought this was going to be something totally different than what it was. I thought there was going to be a crazed murderer on board picking them off one by one but this was more of a dark web reality show. The suspense was unreal especially with having a cliffhanger at the end of almost every chapter; the kind where you have to cover the last few lines so you don’t spoil it before you get to the end of the page. i’m not exactly sure how i feel about the way it ended but i do have to say i knew EXACTLY what the last line was going to say lol this book was definitely full of twists and it’ll probably be on my mind for a little while.

thank you Netgalley and Atria Books for the ARC!

Mouth drop. My chin has fallen open and it won’t close……..
Wow! I could not put down this locked room, atmospheric thriller, at all. I didn’t want to eat, sleep, contemplated phoning in sick at work to binge read it.
Imagine waking up on a luxury cruise ship to find everyone is gone, except 4 people. You are tgen made to compete in a reality show where the games are life and death.
This was my first book by this author, and I’ll be buying the rest of his books. Maybe because I’m a cruiser this one was so real to me, just absolutely was petrified the whole time.
Thanks to the author, NetGalley, and atria books for the arc of this #bestthrillerof2023 for my honest review.

All the stars to this chilling work of fiction!

What a ride this book was! Honestly love when decisions the characters make are sometimes questionable! It makes the story feel more real in a way. I don’t always like to see perfect characters always making the right choices. So this book was perfect in that aspect. This book had me constantly anticipating what was coming next. This book is a whole journey and the ending had me like…. 10/10 recommend!!

I’m not kidding when I tell you this book was an emotional rollercoaster. I was confused, scared, worried, angry, heartbroken, I felt it all. It was unsuspecting and full of suspense, I did not want to put this book down, and when I did have to pause reading it was still on my mind. I literally woke at 3am one morning and picked it up because I could not stop thinking about it. The short chapters are so easy to read and always seem to end on a cliffhanger pulling me in for “just one more chapter”. Will Dean did a fantastic job with the back story of the characters, getting to know them just enough to have that connection that pulls on your heart strings. This book is one of the few books I would give the description of “unputdownable”. The Last One would make an absolutely amazing film! One that would keep you on the edge of your seat. This was my first book by Will Dean and he did not disappoint; a jarring 5 star from me!

This book was such a wild ride. After embarking on a cruise ship for vacation with her boyfriend, Caz wakes up the next day alone to a completely empty cruise ship. Thousands of people have just vanished.

Initially, I did enjoy where this book was going. But then it went completely left field and I was left confused and annoyed lol. The end page had me even more upset.

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC copy of this book in return for my honest review.

Caz and her boyfriend, Pete are on cruise vacation on the RMS Atlantica. What starts out as an opportunity for them to enjoy time together away from all their usual commitments, quickly turns into something anything but relaxing. Caz wakes up alone, not sure where Pete went. When she leaves the cabin to find him, she’s confronted with an empty ship. Yep, somehow overnight everyone including Pete is gone.
Well, going on a cruise has never been high on my bucket list, but after reading The Last One, it definitely made it firmly land in last place. Caz does find a few more passengers, but they are just as perplexed. Then reality starts to intrude, and not in a good way. This luxurious ship is being piloted by…. no one, they quickly lose access to food, water, and warmth, and it seems that a dangerous game is underway.
Will Dean, you fooled me again! I had this one all worked out pretty early on, until the author showed me how wrong I was. Caz & company are surrounded by shark infested spoiler waters, so I can’t say much about the plot. Only that the reality was not at all what I imagined and the ending……..What!
I doubt the opportunity will ever present itself to meet the author, but if it does, I’ll be sure and tell him what I thought was going on(do authors love to hear what people think about how they thought a story would develop). A fast paced enjoyable read that publishes here in the US in August, and in my opinion, will make a really good beach read.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. Wow what a ride this was. This is the first novel I’ve read by Will Dean but I do have First Born on my shelf and I just might read that next. It’s best to go into this novel knowing as little as possible. Just go along for the ride and don’t let reality get in your way. This is told from Caz’s perspective, she is on a luxury cruise ship with the guy she’s decided she wants to settle down with. The first night goes swimmingly but the next morning Caz wakes up to find her cabin empty. She goes looking for her partner Pete and realizes the entire ship is empty, no passengers or crew. Where did the thousand passengers and crew go? Why was she left behind? Is she going mad? This was a fast paced, short chaptered, easy read. The story goes off the rails but in a very fun way. If you like popcorn thrillers or need an escape read this is for you.

Wow! What a thrill ride. I’m trying to collect myself so that I can write this review. Will Dean has created a masterpiece of suspense, intrigue, and thrills.

Caz and Pete are going on a dream vacation on an ocean liner. Should be fun, right? Romance, luxury, relaxation. I don’t want to spoil anything, so I’ll just say buckle in.

This book was brilliantly creative. One of the most suspenseful books I’ve read. The twists are abundant. The mystery is one of those that keeps you turning the pages faster and faster. And that ending was a doozy. It’s one of those books where the last line of every chapter is a cliffhanger.

This is one that will definitely stick with me. Read it if you even remotely enjoy suspense, mystery, thrillers.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the advanced digital copy.

I loved Will Dean's book "First Born" and it was a 5 star read for me last year. So I was thrilled to get the opportunity to read this new one. The Last One is a tense, crazy, nail biting, edge of the seat thriller and suspense! I couldn't put this down. The atmosphere of being on a cruise ship alone gave me so much anxiety. The story takes so many turns- and when plot points came up that felt improbable - the author had viable explanations that worked for me. I had no idea where the story was going! It was so good to be so perplexed! Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

This book was such a wild ride and a very unique concept! The main character wakes up on a cruise ship to discover that she is the last person left on board. I think this book is best enjoyed going in as blind as possible as there are so many twists and turns, right up until the end, that will keep you on the edge of your seat! The entire concept of the book and the situation that is happening to the characters really makes the reader think about what they would do with each presented choice. It is a very unique and thrilling novel that you will not be able to put down!!

This was such a creative and original plot - I loved it! The twists were fantastic, I never knew what was coming next, so it was such an exhilerating read.

ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you, Atria and Netgalley, for the advance reading copy of this book.
This book was fast-paced and kept me guessing throughout . Definitely had an original concept for the storyline. I wasn't 100%satisfied with the ending, but enjoyed the book overall. 3.75 out of 5 ⭐️

This was such a wild ride and I had NO idea how it would end. Such a twisty thriller- just don't read on or before a cruise!!

Thank you for the opportunity to preview The Last One.
Hold on this is a stunner
What would you do if you woke up while on vacation on a luxury liner to find the ship empty.
You would think you were dreaming but Caz soon finds she is alone.
She searches the ship and soon meets 3 other passengers who are also on board.
And the table is flipped very quickly. With no food or water the survivors are in a battle with forces that are determined to break them until……
Wow this was so different and a very scary read.
5 stars. Recommend!

This novel is a fast paced, intense locked-room thriller.

From the initial description I had formed several guesses as to what could have happened. I was wrong all on accounts which I thoroughly enjoyed. The storyline is unique, different and gripping. I read it one session, in my opinion it was unputdownable.

This was definitely one of my favorite reads so far in 2023!

Thank you to Net Galley, Atria Books and Will Dean for providing me with an ARC of this novel.

Review posted to Goodreads.
I will post to TikTok, Twitter , Amazon and Instagram the week of publication!

A BIG thank you to Atria Books and Netgalley for providing me a copy of The Last One. I read The Last Thing to Burn by Will Dean last year and thought it was great, so I was really looking forward to reading this!

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5, rounded up.

The good:

-I loved the unique premise of the book and did not see the story line going where it did mid-book. I was hooked after that point and this was a really fast paced read for me.

-I did NOT see the very last twist coming. It was really fun and I thought about it even after finishing the book.

The bad:

-The character is supposed to be 49 or 50 and I just found that totally unbelievable, her thoughts seemed like that of a much younger woman, 25 or so.
-The back-story about the main character's father's gambling addiction was too heavily discussed and it got VERY dull and tiring to read about by the end.
-I am a big fan of short chapters and prefer them in my books... but there is (not exaggerating) 133 chapters in this 448 page book. The chapters were so short that it sometimes felt as though it was interrupting the flow of the story.

Overall, I think this would make a good beach (or cruise ship) read, but its not one I would rave about or go back and read again.

Will Dean's prose in The Last One skims along at 29 knots per hour. The character motivations are well-defined. Dean ratchets up the tension in each chapter as the danger — both physical and psychological — mounts. However, I found that the ending felt like a move that was done for the writer, rather than the reader in order to push the implications of the title. I would have wished for more closure. Nevertheless, this is a great example of an expertly executed high-concept thriller.

Wow…I think I’m still suffering from my own form of shock. The Last One is an exceptionally unique and utterly gripping locked-room thriller. I was so immersed in this story I had to keep reminding myself it wasn’t real.

I am huge fan of Ruth Ware and Lisa Jewell, so the premise seemed like it’d be right up my alley. Given the description, I confess I was expecting some sort of dystopian science fiction novel. I certainly didn’t see that twist coming. While there are some pretty sizable plot holes, and I had to suspend my own beliefs and reality, I could not turn the pages fast enough. It’s just one intense event after another.

And that ending…I’m torn between its sheer brilliance and my disappointment there wasn’t more closure.

The plot holes, lingering questions, and my internal debate over the ending are the only reasons I’m not giving this five stars. This is one of those books you’re so terrified by (I mean this in the best sense) that you can’t help but to keep thinking about it. I fully expect to have nightmares tonight.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books/Emily Bestler Books for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

This book succeeds in two areas; the pacing and the concept. The story moves tense and quickly from event to event and each chapter is just the right amount for the "just one more chapter" readers out there to pull you in to see what happens next. I genuinely could not put this book down, and that is hard to do. The concept for the book is unique and the overall idea does provide you with a thrilling mystery as to what happens next. That's where this book gets two stars, and everything else is what detracts from this book.

The idea is one thing - its execution is another entirely. Yes, there are many developments and choices that make you constantly wonder, "What is happening?" But by the final page, there are far too many unanswered developments to make the plot believable or enjoyable.

My feedback for the publisher centers around the idea that there are things mentioned far too often, and things mentioned that REQUIRE further explanation to satisfy the narrative that are never mentioned again. This includes key plot points and character elements.

The ending to me is not an emotionally satisfying one for the reader.