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3.45 AVERAGE
3.45 AVERAGE
2.5 stars rounded up...
Here's the problem with expectations: something might in fact be pretty great, but if you've imagined it to be a particular way, and it's NOT actually like that, it's really disappointing. I didn't dislike The Last. It was well-written, anyway. The issue I have here, is that it was compared to "high-concept" thrillers like [b:Annihilation|17934530|Annihilation (Southern Reach, #1)|Jeff VanderMeer|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1403941587l/17934530._SX50_.jpg|24946895] which happens to be one of my favorite books, so I expected something quite different from what I got. I expected this to be a high-paced, atmospheric thriller. Maybe a little bit like Peter Cline's [b:14|15062217|14 (Threshold, #1)|Peter Clines|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1338999953l/15062217._SX50_.jpg|20716929]. I mean, LOOK AT THAT COVER. It just screams creepy.
But I didn't really find it to be all that creepy. Or atmospheric. It's really just one man's rather slow-paced account of the apocalypse whilst him and a group of people live in a hotel. I even decided against dropping this onto my mystery/thriller shelf because honestly, I found it to be neither all that mysterious nor thrilling. The "mystery" aspect of the book is weak and almost incidental. The blurb describes the main character as becoming "obsessed with identifying a murderer in their midst," and that statement is extremely melodramatic compared to how things actually go down.
Looking at the two of them—Nathan with his lost father and Adam with his weird little boy in the corner—it was hard not to feel a sneaking suspicion that we were all supposed to be here. I know this is just one way in which the mind seeks to reestablish control, searching for meaning in a largely random and uncaring universe. All the same, this was a strange place. Those of us who had stayed were only here due to accidents, superstitions, because we had wandered off our usual paths. It was as if the building itself had drawn us to it from the most far-flung corners of the world. And when we arrived, the world had ended.
Like maybe the building itself had brought these particular people together. It even says that: It was as if the building itself had drawn us to it.
But it didn't. Does Nathan's father come into play? Yes, in like the last 2 pages. Do we ever learn about Adam's weird little boy in the corner? Nah. That road leads to nowhere. Actually, the whole "this building is really strange" trope goes absolutely nowhere. Maybe it was meant to be a red herring. A dead, stinky red herring.
Also, the ending felt, I don't know, a little deus ex machina. Oh, look, turns out there's this city with a government and other people! Hooray! Oh, maybe it's a little suspect. Hmmm. Jon thinks it's odd that they're expected to be useful. Could something nefarious be going on here? NOPE! That's another road that leads to nowhere. The end.
In short, there are a lot of apocalyptic novels I enjoyed more. Maybe I'm missing the point on this one, but at the end of the day this one was just... boring.
Here's the problem with expectations: something might in fact be pretty great, but if you've imagined it to be a particular way, and it's NOT actually like that, it's really disappointing. I didn't dislike The Last. It was well-written, anyway. The issue I have here, is that it was compared to "high-concept" thrillers like [b:Annihilation|17934530|Annihilation (Southern Reach, #1)|Jeff VanderMeer|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1403941587l/17934530._SX50_.jpg|24946895] which happens to be one of my favorite books, so I expected something quite different from what I got. I expected this to be a high-paced, atmospheric thriller. Maybe a little bit like Peter Cline's [b:14|15062217|14 (Threshold, #1)|Peter Clines|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1338999953l/15062217._SX50_.jpg|20716929]. I mean, LOOK AT THAT COVER. It just screams creepy.
But I didn't really find it to be all that creepy. Or atmospheric. It's really just one man's rather slow-paced account of the apocalypse whilst him and a group of people live in a hotel. I even decided against dropping this onto my mystery/thriller shelf because honestly, I found it to be neither all that mysterious nor thrilling. The "mystery" aspect of the book is weak and almost incidental. The blurb describes the main character as becoming "obsessed with identifying a murderer in their midst," and that statement is extremely melodramatic compared to how things actually go down.
Spoiler
There are certain portions of the book that made me think it was going in a more sinister direction. Excerpts like this kept leading me to think there would be a higher meaning to the group's seemingly preordained convergence at the hotel:Looking at the two of them—Nathan with his lost father and Adam with his weird little boy in the corner—it was hard not to feel a sneaking suspicion that we were all supposed to be here. I know this is just one way in which the mind seeks to reestablish control, searching for meaning in a largely random and uncaring universe. All the same, this was a strange place. Those of us who had stayed were only here due to accidents, superstitions, because we had wandered off our usual paths. It was as if the building itself had drawn us to it from the most far-flung corners of the world. And when we arrived, the world had ended.
Like maybe the building itself had brought these particular people together. It even says that: It was as if the building itself had drawn us to it.
But it didn't. Does Nathan's father come into play? Yes, in like the last 2 pages. Do we ever learn about Adam's weird little boy in the corner? Nah. That road leads to nowhere. Actually, the whole "this building is really strange" trope goes absolutely nowhere. Maybe it was meant to be a red herring. A dead, stinky red herring.
Also, the ending felt, I don't know, a little deus ex machina. Oh, look, turns out there's this city with a government and other people! Hooray! Oh, maybe it's a little suspect. Hmmm. Jon thinks it's odd that they're expected to be useful. Could something nefarious be going on here? NOPE! That's another road that leads to nowhere. The end.
In short, there are a lot of apocalyptic novels I enjoyed more. Maybe I'm missing the point on this one, but at the end of the day this one was just... boring.
This review comes with an enormous thank you to Viking, an imprint of Penguin Books who were very kind to send me a proof copy of this extraordinary novel in exchange for an honest review. I was actually supposed to attend the launch of this book in Shoreditch, London on Friday night but unfortunately due to some pesky snow affecting the rail network I was unable to get there. From what I've heard though, a great night was had and congratulations to the author and publisher on the recent release of this book.
Apart from being an aesthetically pleasing novel with some of the most gorgeous endpapers I think I've ever seen, I don't think any fans of speculative or science fiction (with a remarkably realistic edge) could resist the pull of that glorious synopsis. I certainly couldn't. Lucky for me the story inside the pages completely matched that stunning outside cover and I was hooked from page one with an endlessly fascinating plot and set of characters.
The Last is Jameson's fourth novel after her debut, award-nominated novel, Something You Are and two further novels in the series, Girl Seven and Road Kill and even though I haven't had the pleasure of exploring these works yet I can tell she is a writer to be reckoned with. The Last immediately pulls you in with its quirky first-person narration in the form of journal entries from historian Jon Keller and ensures you remain gripped with the discovery of a body in a Swiss hotel after a nuclear bombing that has devastated an unknown portion of the world.
It appears to span a mixture of genres from the Agatha Christie like murder mystery to a thrilling, almost dystopian end of the world scenario topped off with a unique, modern twist in terms of style and how the story is presented to the reader. There are a variety of interesting characters to get to grips with and in similarity to another novel I've read recently, not a single one of them are reliable or appear completely innocent which only heightens the drama and tension of the narrative.
I don't believe I warmed to a single one of these characters - even Jon, our main protagonist and story-teller. However, I don't think we were meant to. Each individual we meet within the hotel could have a reason for committing murder and although the reader is never told every single character's circumstances in intimate detail, we are left with the air of mystery that makes us question whether it in fact, could have been them. I adore unlikeable characters, it's always fantastic in my opinion to have an emotion connected to a person you're reading about and if this emotion is a strong one, it's the bait on the end of the line to keep you reading, desperate to know what's going to happen with their story.
The scariest thing about this novel? Perhaps that it has the potential to actually happen with the management (or mis-management?) of nuclear weapons around the world at the moment, something I have very strong opinions on. It's an event not entirely out of the realms of possibility and it really makes you think about how you would cope if you were in the position of being one of the survivors of a nuclear attack. More than that though, I feel the author wrote in a very insightful manner about how certain characteristics and behaviour would be forced to emerge if you were going to survive something like this. I know I certainly couldn't be as ruthless and emotionless as some of the characters in this novel but it was really interesting to see how people coped, which personalities came to the forefront and how plans were made/roles were developed within a group to make the best of such a horrific situation.
After eager anticipation in waiting to read this novel, I'm delighted to say it didn't disappoint. It gave me everything I wanted in terms of character, plot development, thrills and chills and unexpected incidents. I'll certainly be checking out Hanna Jameson's back catalogue of work and am excited to see what she'll bring out next.
For my full review and many more, please visit my blog at http://www.bibliobeth.com
Apart from being an aesthetically pleasing novel with some of the most gorgeous endpapers I think I've ever seen, I don't think any fans of speculative or science fiction (with a remarkably realistic edge) could resist the pull of that glorious synopsis. I certainly couldn't. Lucky for me the story inside the pages completely matched that stunning outside cover and I was hooked from page one with an endlessly fascinating plot and set of characters.
The Last is Jameson's fourth novel after her debut, award-nominated novel, Something You Are and two further novels in the series, Girl Seven and Road Kill and even though I haven't had the pleasure of exploring these works yet I can tell she is a writer to be reckoned with. The Last immediately pulls you in with its quirky first-person narration in the form of journal entries from historian Jon Keller and ensures you remain gripped with the discovery of a body in a Swiss hotel after a nuclear bombing that has devastated an unknown portion of the world.
It appears to span a mixture of genres from the Agatha Christie like murder mystery to a thrilling, almost dystopian end of the world scenario topped off with a unique, modern twist in terms of style and how the story is presented to the reader. There are a variety of interesting characters to get to grips with and in similarity to another novel I've read recently, not a single one of them are reliable or appear completely innocent which only heightens the drama and tension of the narrative.
I don't believe I warmed to a single one of these characters - even Jon, our main protagonist and story-teller. However, I don't think we were meant to. Each individual we meet within the hotel could have a reason for committing murder and although the reader is never told every single character's circumstances in intimate detail, we are left with the air of mystery that makes us question whether it in fact, could have been them. I adore unlikeable characters, it's always fantastic in my opinion to have an emotion connected to a person you're reading about and if this emotion is a strong one, it's the bait on the end of the line to keep you reading, desperate to know what's going to happen with their story.
The scariest thing about this novel? Perhaps that it has the potential to actually happen with the management (or mis-management?) of nuclear weapons around the world at the moment, something I have very strong opinions on. It's an event not entirely out of the realms of possibility and it really makes you think about how you would cope if you were in the position of being one of the survivors of a nuclear attack. More than that though, I feel the author wrote in a very insightful manner about how certain characteristics and behaviour would be forced to emerge if you were going to survive something like this. I know I certainly couldn't be as ruthless and emotionless as some of the characters in this novel but it was really interesting to see how people coped, which personalities came to the forefront and how plans were made/roles were developed within a group to make the best of such a horrific situation.
After eager anticipation in waiting to read this novel, I'm delighted to say it didn't disappoint. It gave me everything I wanted in terms of character, plot development, thrills and chills and unexpected incidents. I'll certainly be checking out Hanna Jameson's back catalogue of work and am excited to see what she'll bring out next.
For my full review and many more, please visit my blog at http://www.bibliobeth.com
2 - I won't read it again. I don't think I was particularly captivated by any of it. I mean, the whole damn time I kept saying 'this isn't a good book'. I think it's partly because the premise wasn't as strong as I thought it would be, and also because the first half was so damn slow compared to the second, that this book is now destined to be dropped near the bottom of my shelf and forgotten about for many months.
The end of the world is a fairly comforting concept, because – in theory – we wouldn’t have to survive it. Maybe what’s been fucking us up, more than anything, hasn’t been finding a way to cope with the world ending but finding a way to cope with the fact that it didn’t.
Rating: 5 stars
This isn't usually my kind of book, but I'm making an effort to get out of my comfort zone when it comes to books lately, and it is seriously paying off with six 5* books in as many months. I don't usually read this kind of book, with apocalypse stories not really appealing to me. After how much I enjoyed this book, honestly I'm willing to rethink the whole genre.
The Last is written from the perspective of a historian who is keeping a record of his experiences in the Hotel Sixieme after a nuclear apocalypse shuts society down completely. What this creates is an intriguing thriller based around a murder, but much more than that it's an amazing study on the collapse of society and the way that human nature might respond to pressures and stressors. I don't usually read books without a happy ending guaranteed, but this book was set after the worst things imaginable had already happened, so I knew there was no perfect ending coming. Still, I hoped, and that's kind of the message of this book, that no matter what happens we must keep hope.
Jon Keller is a flawed narrator, but at least he acknowledges that he's flawed, and admits to as many faults as he can bring himself to face. This makes him fairly charming, in his own way, and each of the other characters is equally interesting, with their own histories and flaws that come out in Jon's stories- people have less to hide when everything's already gone wrong.
The ending of this book surprised me too, but I found it satisfying, despite the lack of a 'happy ending'. It was a new beginning, and I liked that.
Rating: 5 stars
This isn't usually my kind of book, but I'm making an effort to get out of my comfort zone when it comes to books lately, and it is seriously paying off with six 5* books in as many months. I don't usually read this kind of book, with apocalypse stories not really appealing to me. After how much I enjoyed this book, honestly I'm willing to rethink the whole genre.
The Last is written from the perspective of a historian who is keeping a record of his experiences in the Hotel Sixieme after a nuclear apocalypse shuts society down completely. What this creates is an intriguing thriller based around a murder, but much more than that it's an amazing study on the collapse of society and the way that human nature might respond to pressures and stressors. I don't usually read books without a happy ending guaranteed, but this book was set after the worst things imaginable had already happened, so I knew there was no perfect ending coming. Still, I hoped, and that's kind of the message of this book, that no matter what happens we must keep hope.
Jon Keller is a flawed narrator, but at least he acknowledges that he's flawed, and admits to as many faults as he can bring himself to face. This makes him fairly charming, in his own way, and each of the other characters is equally interesting, with their own histories and flaws that come out in Jon's stories- people have less to hide when everything's already gone wrong.
The ending of this book surprised me too, but I found it satisfying, despite the lack of a 'happy ending'. It was a new beginning, and I liked that.
The idea that this could realistically happen is unsettling. Jameson explored our need as humans to have an answer for everything, especially things that just are. Although I enjoyed the book, I found myself only getting properly hooked 3/4 of the way through and because of that, the rest felt slightly rushed with questions still left unanswered - both in a good and bad way. It is a thought provoking, thrilling novel that makes you wonder what sort of person you would become if you had nothing left to lose. Would recommend.
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book had me so hooked more than 90% of the way through and the ending just came out of nowhere. Super bizarre, choices and twists that seem totally inconsistent with the rest of the novel, and so unsatisfactory.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Drug use, Gun violence, Suicide, War
so much potential; inadequate execution. I totally dug the premise of this novel - 20 people are trapped in a remote swiss hotel when a series of nuclear attacks decimate the world and wipe out major cities. I also enjoyed the idea of a locked room mystery aspect when a child is found dead in a water tank.
unfortunately the ending just really didn't work for me. It was inconclusive; completely flat; boring; it didn't match up with the rest of the book. All the way through, I thought this would easily be a 4* or even 5* read but the ending is so important and this one really sucked. I needed more and better resolution. It felt like the author didn't realise how to solve her own mystery and just winged it in the end.
unfortunately the ending just really didn't work for me. It was inconclusive; completely flat; boring; it didn't match up with the rest of the book. All the way through, I thought this would easily be a 4* or even 5* read but the ending is so important and this one really sucked. I needed more and better resolution. It felt like the author didn't realise how to solve her own mystery and just winged it in the end.
Jon Keller is at a conference in Switzerland at L’Hotel Sixième when the world ends. He is just trying to survive in this strange land but he comes across the body of a young girl, he’s convinced someone in the hotel is the killer.
So I have mixed feelings about this book, which is making writing this review quite hard but I’ll try my best!
The characterisation is really strong, with each character different and unique, if not all that likeable.
We see the whole story through Jon’s diary. He claims that he’s writing it down for historical purposes but like when he starts investigating the little girls death it’s more about keeping his sanity than anything else.
The hotel is almost like a character itself. A blood soaked history, with murders, suicides, even a serial killer stayed there once! I feel that this could have been played with a little more, really amping up the horror factor.
I have to be honest as a piece of dystopian fiction it’s great, as a mystery, which is what I expected it to be from the blurb...not so much. I almost DNF at 40%, but I kept on just because I really wanted to find out what happened to the little girl, yet the ending for me, felt a little lacklustre.
I’d recommend this to people who love a realistic dystopian novel with complex and intriguing characters.
So I have mixed feelings about this book, which is making writing this review quite hard but I’ll try my best!
The characterisation is really strong, with each character different and unique, if not all that likeable.
We see the whole story through Jon’s diary. He claims that he’s writing it down for historical purposes but like when he starts investigating the little girls death it’s more about keeping his sanity than anything else.
The hotel is almost like a character itself. A blood soaked history, with murders, suicides, even a serial killer stayed there once! I feel that this could have been played with a little more, really amping up the horror factor.
I have to be honest as a piece of dystopian fiction it’s great, as a mystery, which is what I expected it to be from the blurb...not so much. I almost DNF at 40%, but I kept on just because I really wanted to find out what happened to the little girl, yet the ending for me, felt a little lacklustre.
I’d recommend this to people who love a realistic dystopian novel with complex and intriguing characters.
wooowww finally after weeks i’ve finished reading this book. such a very interesting read. i totally enjoyed reading the book. this isn’t boring at all. tho it has a lot of gaps? and left me questioning some parts even after the story ends.
they have quite a lot of characters, it’s hard to keep up sometimes, like who is who. or is it just me being stupid.
i like Tomi, because she’s cool lol, everyone else is either shady or not very important.
but seriously tho, there are some parts that is still unexplained.
like, where the heck is the body?
why does people want to buy the hotel?
they have quite a lot of characters, it’s hard to keep up sometimes, like who is who. or is it just me being stupid.
i like Tomi, because she’s cool lol, everyone else is either shady or not very important.
but seriously tho, there are some parts that is still unexplained.
like, where the heck is the body?
why does people want to buy the hotel?
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A