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A review by disgracefullee
The Last 8 by Laura Pohl
2.0
This book was a mixed bag for me. Clover is an engaging narrator, and I loved reading her perspective on the apocalypse. She really felt real, and her being aromantic was really important to me. The way she approached situations was a lot more fun to read than the usual emotion driven protagonists. Clover is cool and calculating, and rarely lets anything ruffle her feathers. (Although if I might add, Clover apparently lacking many emotions and then also being aromantic is weird to me. It's not like aromantic people don't feel emotions- they just don't feel romantic attraction, and the stereotype that they don't have feelings is maybe not the best one to be propagating). Nonetheless, she felt like a real person, which is pretty important in a story about aliens and world ending apocalypses.
The rest of the characters in this book did not feel distinctive. Rayen, Brooklyn, Avani, and Flint talk and act in exactly the same way. They feel like they're all meant to be the exact same wisecracking sidekick. I understand it's difficult to pound out distinct personalities sometimes (especially when you're working on a NaNoWriMo schedule), but when your entire book depends on the idea that these are the last 8 people on the entire planet and their friendship will save the world, they need to all feel like real people. Half of them felt unnecessary. (Also, maybe this is a pet peeve, but the names in this book are too similar. We have three A names (Avani, Andy, and Adam) and it's super difficult to remember who's who.) The only people that felt distinct were Clover, Adam, and Violet. The rest felt like slightly different clones of each other.
Final verdict: Meh. Take it or leave it. I enjoyed reading Clover's perspective, but didn't feel connected to the whole point of the story, so do with that what you will.
The rest of the characters in this book did not feel distinctive. Rayen, Brooklyn, Avani, and Flint talk and act in exactly the same way. They feel like they're all meant to be the exact same wisecracking sidekick. I understand it's difficult to pound out distinct personalities sometimes (especially when you're working on a NaNoWriMo schedule), but when your entire book depends on the idea that these are the last 8 people on the entire planet and their friendship will save the world, they need to all feel like real people. Half of them felt unnecessary. (Also, maybe this is a pet peeve, but the names in this book are too similar. We have three A names (Avani, Andy, and Adam) and it's super difficult to remember who's who.) The only people that felt distinct were Clover, Adam, and Violet. The rest felt like slightly different clones of each other.
Final verdict: Meh. Take it or leave it. I enjoyed reading Clover's perspective, but didn't feel connected to the whole point of the story, so do with that what you will.