This was a really eye opening book. I feel like I learned SO much from reading this and it really made me think about my own life. This was really well researched and presented in a really easy to consume way and not much went over my head which these books tend to do. Overall I thought it was well paced and well presented. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Most folks find this "Terminal Lucidity" fascinating. Its portrayed in books, music, movies and the like-- due to the life long cliff hanger if leaves folks with after the fact. I personally have seen this with a relative and read more than my share in non-fiction accounts. What I find fascinating is how some topics hijack folks curiosity where they end making it --that topic their life's work even though the reasoning will never change the outcome for those who transition or for those who witness the transition. In any event, although morbid I did find the subject matter engaging and more curious about this topic. Great narration and content.
#NetGalley

Thank you NetGally and Publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book came to me at a difficult time in my life has pushed mortality to the forefront of my mind: the death of my mother. In this I have wondered about a "last wind" or an awakening, although this wasn't my personal experience with the dying process. I enjoyed this book because psychology and brain chemistry are fascinating. I also enjoyed the human experience written in this book despite not being religious. Death and dying are such taboo topics and subjects that when the end of life happens in your family, many people are not able to engage with what is actually occurring at present.

While I wouldn't say this is a fun book, it was well-written and thought provoking. I think it is a good book on a topic that is hard to sit with for most Americans.

What an absolutely fascinating topic. I’ve long heard of this phenomenon from friends with their families/friends who are nurses, but have not experienced it first hand.

The book is filled with anecdotal stories, while also touching on the ways that these stories are being verified. It touches on near death experiences as well, as there appears to be some potential overlap here. I love that this book handles these things, but doesn’t go off the deep end for religion. It made me much more receptive to what was being said.

I found it interesting that the author mentioned this is the first book in English that covers the phenomenon, but it doesn't really reference the other texts much, only mentioning that the research is still very new. I feel that the book may be a bit preemptive, in that there are no answers, or really any firm theories positioned here, but it was interesting never the less.

Finally, at the end, I did find it a bit limiting and stereotypical that Batthany opted to rail on Nihilism, which I’m a firm believer of. I believe that you can be a Nihilist and also believe that you have an impact on the world, and pay things forward with a positive attitude. You don’t need to believe in an afterlife to engage with your surroundings. To me, I believe that the notion that there is nothing left of you after you are gone is an incentive to leave a lasting positive impact, as you’ll only live on in the legacy that you’ve left in those you interacted with while in your corporal being. That’s an overwhelming positive vibe to me - true goodness, in that you’re not doing things to earn an afterlife, but doing them because you are simply trying to do your very best in the hopes that those who come after you have better chances.

This is everything. Sometimes I need to read stuff like this to feel like life has meaning. I have seen this happen with my own eyes doing hospice as well. The first time it scared me, then I started to expect my patients to have a final day of lucidity, to rally. It comes up in training so this isn't anything new. People who work with the dying know about it.
Reading about it in this book and then listening to it was absolutely wonderful. We need to talk about it and be aware, plus it helped with "faith."
Thank you for this beautiful arc!

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whoa. what a book to make you think about the body mind and soul as three separate pieces. i’m left wanting to research more and ask coworkers if they have seen anything like TL (terminal lucidity). this book is provocative without being spiritual or religious, very much grounded in the scientific and medical exploration of memories and consciousness.
i’ll be recommending this to the hospital book club, excited to discuss it with other medical professionals. well written for all readers to understand. narrated exceptionally.