Review by oceanwriter - The Last Murder at the End of the World

oceanwriter 's review for:

The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton

2.75

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Given the title, I don’t know why I was surprised by the fact that this book is just as much a dystopian novel as it is a mystery. I don’t know if my opinion of the story would have been different had I gone into it knowingly, but it definitely did take me by surprise.

I struggle to give a synopsis of this because I found it tricky to follow on audiobook. The delivery may be better suited for paper. The gist of the story is that a small island community is cut off from other parts of the world due to a dense fog that surrounds them. They live in relative peace, that is until one of their important scientists is found murdered, jeopardizing their security system.

A common problem I find in several of the dystopian books I’ve read is that the universes are presented as though the reader already knows every intricacy. I felt lost from start to finish, feeling only slightly enlightened as the book went on. Again, this might have been less of a problem if I’d been reading it with my eyes. Even still, it felt like as a whole there were a number of gaps in regards to both plot and character. By the end, I felt nothing had resonated.

Trouble following aside, I enjoyed the narrator, James Cameron Stewart’s performance on the audiobook.

Thanks to NetGalley and Tantor Audio for providing me with a free audio ARC of the book!

Content Warnings