Why read The Last?

Book cover of The Last

Book description

This propulsive post-apocalyptic thriller “in which Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None collides with Stephen King’s The Shining” (NPR) follows a group of survivors stranded at a hotel as the world descends into nuclear war and the body of a young girl is discovered in one of the hotel’s…

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Why read it?

2 authors picked The Last as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Rebecca Frost

Author

I’m a sucker for post-apocalyptic stories, and this one’s beautifully told.

In The Last, the big event just happened, and Jon’s struggling with being half a world away from his family after all the bombs drop. He’s torn between what he has to do for survival, stuck at this Swiss hotel with others from around the world, and how he might be able to get back to – or even simply contact – his wife. Their last conversation didn’t end well, and it’s haunting him on a personal level as he tries to keep up with the changing world and…

From Rebecca's 3 favorite reads in 2023.

Melissa Caribou Annen

Author

This is a mystery within a mystery—an end-of-the-world survival story that slowly unfolds how the world's end happened. The mystery of a little girl found dead, but not from anything happening in the world. This book made me think about how I’d react in a similar situation. We all hope we’d be level-headed and survive. But as this book tells, you never know.

From Melissa's list on The best books with a murderous serial killer that will keep you up at night.