“𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐲 𝐚 𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤. 𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐰𝐨 𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐟𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞.”

I LOVED Stuart Turton’s debut, The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, with its blend of classic murder mystery meets science fiction. With a title like The Last Murder at the End of the World, how could I not be excited to dive into his latest?!

Turton has a completely unique way of writing that both pays tribute to genre tropes and flips them on their heads. I thought I knew where this book was headed, when Turton would place a reveal that would blow my theory out of the water. It is super dystopian in nature, with its setting of an island that has the last inhabitants of earth on it after a deadly fog killed everyone else in the world. The description of the island, being on an old navy base, reminded me of an old Reading Rainbow adaptation of Ray Bradbury’s All Summer in a Day, while the village setup and rules reminded me of Lois Lowry’s The Giver, with every villager’s life an act of service. There are a TON of characters that fit into the narrative, and each play a role in the mystery; this can make for tricky reading at first (especially to set up the world building), but it is worth it once you get to know the place Turton has created. I especially loved pseudo-detective, Emory with her unrelenting pursuit of answers to what happened the fateful night with unexplained deaths, destroyed property, and a mysterious fire. The story has all the key elements of a whodunnit: multiple suspects, plausible motives, red herrings, and lots of well-timed reveals (two in particular that made me GASP).

The Last Murder At The End Of The World is a story of control, questions, family, revenge, survival and humanity. It is another unique win from Turton, and I eagerly await his next book to see what he has up his sleeve. Thank you to HarperCollins Canada, SourceBooks & NetGalley for the ARC!

This was a DNF for me. I found the writing style and the story very confusing and didn’t know what was happening a significant way into the book.

You can always expect a unique and puzzling story from Turton! I absolutely love his style of writing and how it so effortlessly puts you right in the middle of a mystery. I read this book in a single sitting, it kept me engaged and I really enjoyed these characters. I will say that at times, it was a bit hard to follow but I hung on as I was confident things would come together in the end and of course… they did!

Mystery | Adult
[Cover image]
It’s the end of the world. Most of Earth’s living creatures were swallowed up decades before in a deadly fog, apparently the result of humanity’s hubris. Only 125 souls remain on the planet, living on a small island protected by a force developed by three scientist “elders” who are now well over 100 years old. The villagers work the island in harmony and peace, producing food, electricity, clothing and other basic necessities, while the scientists share their knowledge and wisdom. Oh, and there’s an omniscient narrator who can read everyone’s thoughts and answer their questions via some brain implant – most useful when you want to know where someone is. But all is threatened when a murder occurs on the island. If it’s not solved quickly, the island’s protective barrier will fail and the deadly fog will move in. I loved the premise of this highly anticipated novel by the author of The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle. It’s a locked room mystery set in a utopian future with a dystopian angle! Turton has created a most appealing world, though there are a lot of characters to keep track of. The murder happens a little more than 25% in, and by then I’m quite attached to this little village and its residents. Unfortunately, I am not as keen on the actual murder mystery. It’s simply not well executed (pun not intended, honest!). It’s confusing, convoluted, and reliant on a change in behaviour that seems too radical to be feasibly a surprise. I finished it anyway, but I think I would have preferred a simpler storyline that didn’t involve a murder with a solving deadline. I did like the helpful hand-drawn map, and the cover is very attractive. My thanks to Harper Collins for the digital reading copy provided through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. For my local friends, Grand Forks & District Public Library has a copy in its adult fiction collection.
More discussion and reviews of this novel: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/136276877

Thank you to NetGalley, Stuart Turton and HarperCollins Canada for the free ebook in exchange for an honest review.

I still feel like I’m digesting this book a bit, which I tend to find with Turton’s novels. They aren’t your regular whodunit that’s for sure. The setting is amazing and I loved the premise but I did feel like it took a lot of information to get to the ending and the why of the whole thing. Overall though, I did enjoy it and I loved the ending.

› Stuart Turton's first book is a locked-house mystery, his second is a locked boat, and now this newest novel is a locked island. My biggest piece of advice is DO NOT READ THE BLURB. I'm not going to explain a lot in my review because I think going into this not knowing much leads to a great time.

› Inspired by his experience working in the tech field, Stuart Turton said he wanted to write a story about some of the things we'll be experiencing soon. The Last Murder at the End of the World is a speculative fiction murder mystery set on a small unnamed Greek island 90 years after the world has ended. It begins 107 hours before humanity's extinction.

You'll have many questions that will be answered by the end of the story. The characters are well-developed with goals, motivation, strengths, flaws, external and internal conflict, backstory, and characteristics. The description, world-building, emotion, and atmosphere are top-notch. I enjoy Turton's writing style with high readability and authentic dialogue. The point of view is unique and The Last Murder at the End of the World is a page-turner. I didn't want to put it down. I had a great time reading this one!

APPEAL FACTORS
Storyline: character-driven, intricately plotted, nonlinear, unconventional
Pace: medium, engrossing
Tone: bittersweet, moody, suspenseful, thought-provoking, mysterious
Writing Style: conversational, compelling
Character: complex, flawed, likeable, strong female
› Final Thoughts
• Stuart Turton has created another genre-bending story that plays with perspective and tropes. The Last Murder at the End of the World is an imaginative and unusual science fiction crime novel about family, humanity, survival, the race against time, and the corruption of power.


Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I liked the story but did not love it.

I had to count the age between generations a few times because I couldn't identify how old they were working on the farm, the pier, when they were born, etc., until it is explained later in the story.

I was also intrigued by the kind of food they were eating. Since they only had food for a certain amount of people, limited land and I assume produce choices, it didn't make sense to me that they ate kiwis?!?

I like the plot and how the book was divided in several parts in time.

The Last Murder at the End of the World was a bit of a disappointment. I have been a fan of Stuart Turton in the past and was anticipating this novel! It’s a mixture of sci-fi/dystopian with his usual mystery flair.

Unfortunately, the mystery aspect left me cold. The dystopian world was so fascinating and what led to humanity’s predicament was captivating!! But that wasn’t a large portion of the book, instead we follow a character trying to Sherlock her way around a murder. None of the characters resonated, it was hard to follow the clues and there were just too many things like “of course no one remembers anything, they had their memories wiped!!”

All those issues led to a lot of loopholes and conveniences which honestly kind of cheats the reader of enjoying a good mystery. Not to mention, I KNOW this man can write a twist, but the twists were either obvious or non-sensical.

Thank you very much NetGalley and Sourcebooks for the opportunity to review this book. Unfortunately, this book is not for me.

It felt robotic and lacked emotion.

I really wanted to like this book. In fact, for the first 50% of it, I convinced myself that I actually did.

I've always been a big mystery thriller fan and enjoy trying to figure out the puzzle before the book's end. However, this book presented a mystery I did not care to solve.

Here are the things that did not work for me:

1. It was hard to form a connection with the characters.
There were too many of them, and they were all introduced at the same time. I hadn't even formed a mental image and persona for one character before another was already being introduced. I did not care for any of them.

2. The narrator's voice was overpowering.
Perhaps the fact that she does not have a personality made this incredibly boring for me.

3. The book felt longer than it should have.
The writing was good, but the story was long and winding. I felt it could have wrapped up in 300 pages or so, but the narrative just kept going with unnecessary drama and a poor attempt at a family drama, and romance subplot. It was not atmospheric, it was not tense—it was bleak and dry.

4. The mystery was one I did not care to solve.
Since I was not able to form a connection with the characters, I couldn't care less who died or who lived. The investigation of the murder was too long and it bored me. From a mystery reader's point of view, this mass memory loss thing is too convenient a plot device.

5. Cliché Ending for a Dystopian Book
I was really excited when the first shocking twist was revealed. It was a peak dystopian plot twist! However, after the murder unfolded, everything became too cliché. The false suspects, wrong conclusions, and the very predictable and disappointing ending were just like every other dystopian book.

I don't get the hype. I do not recommend this book.

This book breaks the mould. It's a mash-up of sci-fi, dystopian, thriller and mystery to name a few. Expect the unexpected. I found it delightful.

Thank you HarperCollins Canada, HarperCollins Publishers and NetGalley for this Advanced Reader E-Copy of #TheLastMurderAtTheEndoftheWorld. This is my first Turton and it will not be my last.

I am not a sci-fi reader at all but I liked this book. It’s a classic whodunnit set in a post-apocalyptic island with the only remaining humans. It’s got elements of “The Giver” and “The Mist” and that HBO show which I will not name because it’s a major plot twist. I always find it hard to review thrillers, there is a lot of restraint involved to make sure I don’t ruin the story for anyone. This book got me hooked until the very end as the characters were in a literally world-ending murder mystery scenario. I’m also more of a psychological thriller kind of reader but the plot worked for me, still suspenseful without the cool sci-fi bits overshadowing or halting the momentum of the storyline. Lastly, the book allowed me to reflect on humanity’s propensity for violence, and our inability, as a race, to not repeat the tragic parts of our history.

Thanks NetGalley and Harper Collins for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I really enjoyed this murder mystery. As we’ve dealt with COVID, the pandemic references were relatable. I thought that I had things figured out, but I was still surprised. I appreciated how the book was so action-packed, and the ending was outstanding. Check this book out when it’s released this week.

The Last Murder and the End of the World by Stuart Turton is a post-apocalyptic murder mystery about humanity, violence, the search for truth, and hope. Emory and her fellow villagers live on a island surrounded by a deadly fog, protected by the three elders who have survived from the old world. When everyone wakes to find their memories of the last day erased, the barrier that keep out the fog shut off, and one of the elders dead, they are issued an ultimatum: solve the murder and the barrier will be turned back on - otherwise everyone will die.

I had such a great time with this book. The mystery is compelling, the setting fascinating, and Turton's exploration of power, personhood, and freedom well woven throughout. I loved the great, intricate worldbuilding, from the villagers to the lush island with its lighthouse and secret lab. There's a lot of biology-based sci-fi mixed with futuristic technology. For the mystery, there were plenty of twists and turns, misdirections and subtle hints. This book is a bit shorter than Turton's previous books, but I think it works to keep the pace up.

This book is one where you have to question everything, but you also have to look for the obvious answers and piece them together. Emory made a great sleuth. She was a fascinating character, fuelled with curiosity and determination. Through her relationships with her daughter Clara and her father Seth, Turton explores love, grief, faith, and family. I liked that they were involved ins solving the mystery, and that everyone had to question their fundamental beliefs about their world.

With this book, I did notice a bit of a pattern with Turton's endings, but I'll be keeping an eye out in his next one. This book has a blatant reference to his first book, and a small reference to his second books in it, which was also fun.

For me, one of the tell tale signs of a good book is when I put it down, I want to pick it right back up again - and that is how I felt reading The Last Murder at the End of the World. The story takes places on a post-apocalyptic island, with the inhabitants being the only ones left after a mysterious fog decimated the rest of the world. The 122 villagers are led by three elders, scientists, Niema, Thea and Hephaestus. But when one of the elders is murdered, a countdown begins to solve the crime or be swallowed by the fog.

I enjoyed so many aspects of this book, but I don’t want to spoil it because the twists and turns are what make it so enjoyable. Suffice to say, from the first turn of the page the reader is engulfed in the island mystery. The island setting gave me LOST tv show vibes, which I loved, and I felt like I was there. The short, fast paced chapters make it compulsively readable. The characters are nuanced, the villains are the perfect mix of sinister and sympathetic. I particularly enjoyed Emory's character and her relationship with her family members. And there’s a mysterious narrator, Abi, an AI voice that lives in the minds of everyone on the island. What more could you want!

In this post-apocalyptic whodunnit, there is an idyllic island where a small population resides, the ancestors of the only survivors of a deadly fog that wiped out the world's population. As with many dystopian novels, what starts out as a peaceful haven soon becomes a ticking time bomb when the inhabitants have 92 hours to solve a murder of be wiped out. This book was part sci-fi, part murder mystery and part psychological thriller. It found it really clever how Turton spoke to human nature- both in how MC Emory's true need to question could not be overridden and the overall moral that this story was trying to convey. It was quirky and intriguing and not the typical book I would have picked up, but I did enjoy it.

I'm going to keep this short and sweet because the be all end all of the whole experience, I'm sorry to say, is that this is another case where the best part of this book is the synopsis. Because the reality of this was nothing like what I expected and I disliked the characters and events and the telling of it. I was bored the entire time and I crawled my way through this for probably two-ish weeks.

It's got a really pretty cover though.

That's it, that's the review.

The Last Murder at the End of the World was my first novel by Stuart Turton and it won't be my last. The novel was full of suspense and twists and turns that had me unable to put the book down. I loved that the theme is both murder mystery and post apocalyptic. Turton develops each of his characters so well, that even when you don't like someone, you can't help but feel empathy for them. The beginning of the novel sets the tone for life on an island after the rest of the world has been wiped out by the fog, while the second half has you following along with Emory and Clara as they try to solve a complex murder.. I was pleasantly surprised to be left guessing right up until the end.
I would highly recommend! Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

The Last Murder at the End of the World is a murder who done it set in a post apocalyptic world. There are a set number of inhabitants left who not only are trying to solve the murder but are involved in a race against time to save what is left of humanity.
While I found the story a little slow and at times hard to digest, I also found it to be a page turner full of science fiction intrigue concerning AI that sees into everyone thoughts. It is also thought provoking with regards to how
the scientists and the villagers will keep humanity going into the future.
Just when you think you have everything figured out we learn something else about this little community at the end of the world. The creativity in the writing left me with a novel unlike any I have read before and it left me thinking even after finishing the last page.

Thanks to NetGalley and Killer Crime Club for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The Last Murder At The End Of The World was so promising with that banger blurb unfortunately for me it just did not live up to it. It was hard to keep track of all the characters, I had trouble with the post apocalyptic which I thought I would love (me problem), it just fell flat for me but I think it will appeal to a lot of readers.

THE LAST MURDER AT THE END OF THE WORLD By Stuart Turton

Instead of stars, this book gets --> 🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯

It was pitched to me as LOST meets Agatha Christie. That's all it took to convince me to read it and love it and create a long list of people who I now need to peer-pressure into reading it.
If you've read Turton's previous work you know that he likes to blend genres, do the unexpected and switch things up with every book. I mean, they're all technically "locked room" mysteries (the best kind imo), but the setting of each book is vastly different. With The Last Murder, the world has been destroyed by a fog that overtook the planet and wiped out everything it touched. Everything except for one island in which 122 villagers and three scientists live, trying to make a better world... of what's left of it. It is all going seemingly well until a beloved scientist is found murdered. The event of this death triggers the lowering of the protective barrier around the island, the one keeping it safe from the fog. Unless the guilty person is found, and executed, within 92 hours, the barrier will remain down and the last remaining humans will die. Add on to that the fact that everyone's memories have been wiped and they have zero recollection of that evenings events, it is a high-stakes, time-presured, sci-fi murder mystery story full of twists and turns.

THE LAST MURDER AT THE END OF THE WORLD is on sale May 21, 2024. (Pre-orders available now)

Thank you @harpercollinsca and @netgalley for the arc!

#arc #2024reads #TheLastMurderAtTheEndOfTheWorld #stuartturton #murdermystery #LOST #scifi #bookstagram