Reviews

The First to Die at the End is the prequel to the beloved [b:They Both Die at the End|33385229|They Both Die at the End|Adam Silvera|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1494333138l/33385229._SY75_.jpg|49456196], and follows Orion, a young man with a serious heart condition that has kept him on the edge of death for years, and Valentino, a young man restarting his life in New York City after being disowned by his family for coming out as gay, on the first day that Death-Cast goes live… and Valentino is the first person to ever be called and told that his death is imminent. Brought together by chance and an immediate attraction to one another, the two men decide to spend Valentino’s last day together, living life to the fullest despite the shadows that loom over the both of them, one definite and the other still unknowing.

I went into this book with relatively sobered expectations because while I enjoyed They Both Die at the End, it failed to wow me in the way that I was told it would. This one, however, was so much better and despite following a very similar plot structure, hit a lot harder and felt a lot more realistic.

Orion and Valentino were both incredibly sweet, charming characters with very distinct voices, and I warmed to them immediately. Their coming together, and subsequent friendship turned relationship was done with a pleasant amount of care that shielded the plot from becoming all about their romance, something which I think the first did a little bit too much, and more about their respective journey's as human beings leaning upon the kindness of each other.

This hovered at around 3.5-4 stars for me in the end, because there were several little niggles I had that I just couldn't let go of. I wish that we had gotten some more understanding about how Death-Cast worked, because there was a lot of "no one knows, but we all just accept it" which felt a little bit underdeveloped and flimsy at points, and although I understand why they were included, the Mateo and Rufus cameos didn't feel necessary to me, and more of a deliberate push towards having a reference for the sake of it rather than it adding to the story. I also think that Silvera either misled or missed a trick with the ending -

Spoiler

there are a lot of references to the fact that Death-Cast keep missing people off their lists, and that people are dying at random without notice. There is even a reference in the final third of the book that heavily implies Orion is going to die as well as a result of these missed calls, but then nothing comes of it other than a small tie-in to a secondary character. While I enjoyed the inclusion of these secondary POVs, I think that the ending would have been much harder hitting if both of them had ended up dying, one because of a call and one because he didn't get one.

Silvera is a fantastic writer but I do think that he needs to stick his neck out a little bit further and write something that pushes more boundaries, because if he gets it right then it could be incredible. But this was a really solid piece of work, one that I think did better than the first (even if it still didn't make me cry!)

postfireresidue's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

ngelin's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

10_d0ugh's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

rannnn's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

danieldolinsky's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I really loved this book. Although it was a bit slow-paced, and hard to stick with, I really enjoyed it at the end. I truly loved how all the storylines connected by the end. Although there are a couple questions left unanswered, I like that there were as many happy endings as possible.

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