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A review by itsmeyseniab
One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I'm going to start of this review by stating that this was my most anticipated release of 2021 and I absolutely ADORE Casey McQuiston's debut Red, White & Royal Blue, so I am very aware of how high my expectations were going into this one. That being said, I find this book to be slightly overhyped (and by slightly I mean... more than slightly). Trust me, I'm just as shocked as you probably are.
The concept itself is very intriguing (I mean come on: a coming-of-age LGBTQIA+ romance with a time travel twist? Sold!) That being said, I found the pacing to be off - it started off strong and I was invested very quickly, but I did find there to be quite a lull in the action from the middle up until the last 50-or-so pages. That would've been fine had I enjoyed the romance but sadly I just...didn't. Shocking, I know (more on that down below).
As far as the characters go I absolutely ADORED August - I found her to be very relatable, funny and wholesome - I could totally see myself being friends with an August in real life. Jane on the other hand had the complete opposite effect on me: I didn't like her as a character whatsoever. She read very dudebro to me (which I HIGHLY doubt was the author's intention here) and I really felt as though she was manipulating August at times (especially during the love scenes but this could just be how I interpreted things). I didn't feel chemistry between these two at all, and therefore didn't buy into their romance one bit, sadly. All of the supporting characters were excellent though, and I really appreciate how diverse this cast of characters is!
As all of my reviews are spoiler-free, I'm not going to go into too much detail but the biggest problem I had with this was the ending. I definitely think it was a cop-out, and the way the story was resolved diminished any empathy that I felt towards the characters (specifically Jane) prior to the final page.
One Last Stop started off very promising, but it ultimately left me wanting more. However, I definitely will revisit it in the future (especially after the hype - and my disappointment - dies down). Wah :(((
The concept itself is very intriguing (I mean come on: a coming-of-age LGBTQIA+ romance with a time travel twist? Sold!) That being said, I found the pacing to be off - it started off strong and I was invested very quickly, but I did find there to be quite a lull in the action from the middle up until the last 50-or-so pages. That would've been fine had I enjoyed the romance but sadly I just...didn't. Shocking, I know (more on that down below).
As far as the characters go I absolutely ADORED August - I found her to be very relatable, funny and wholesome - I could totally see myself being friends with an August in real life. Jane on the other hand had the complete opposite effect on me: I didn't like her as a character whatsoever. She read very dudebro to me (which I HIGHLY doubt was the author's intention here) and I really felt as though she was manipulating August at times (especially during the love scenes but this could just be how I interpreted things). I didn't feel chemistry between these two at all, and therefore didn't buy into their romance one bit, sadly. All of the supporting characters were excellent though, and I really appreciate how diverse this cast of characters is!
As all of my reviews are spoiler-free, I'm not going to go into too much detail but the biggest problem I had with this was the ending. I definitely think it was a cop-out, and the way the story was resolved diminished any empathy that I felt towards the characters (specifically Jane) prior to the final page.
One Last Stop started off very promising, but it ultimately left me wanting more. However, I definitely will revisit it in the future (especially after the hype - and my disappointment - dies down). Wah :(((
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Death and Grief
Minor: Mental illness, Homophobia, Violence, Hate crime, Police brutality, and Racism
memory loss and cognitive issues, familial estrangement, missing persons, implied PTSD, the AIDS crisis, childhood neglect, arson