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bleepbloop's review against another edition
tense
3.75
LOTS of eye injury detail
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content and Injury/Injury detail
abbybiegs's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
i wasn’t a big fan. it was sold as “horror”, but it’s more of a “thriller” book. i got kinda bored at some parts and it felt anti-climactic. kinda disappointing to me honestly.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness and Medical content
Minor: Gore and Toxic relationship
ivywwx's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Medical content, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I was really excited to pick up this new release to enjoy during spooky season.
"Last to Leave the Room" is a science fiction mystery about a scientist and a mysterious door. Dr. Tamsin Rivers is a highly successful and regarded scientist who is on the team to help uncover why the city of San Siroco is sinking. During her time working at home, she becomes fascinated with the dimensions of her basement because they do not make sense given her home's blueprint. While she is studying the basement she discovers a door that she did not notice before, and from the door emerges a doppelgänger of her.
I had really high expectations that I was going to love this book, unfortunately, I did not really get into the story. Tamsin is an interesting point of view to read from because I found her to be really unlikeable. She is so driven by her work; she comes across as detached from humanity and oftentimes she is cruel to those around her. Her mind is impressive, and I enjoyed seeing such an intelligent woman, but I ended up not being invested in her story, and unfortunately just not caring what happened to her.
I do think the author explored Tamsin's descent into madness quite well. She slowly seems to be losing her mind, and it greatly impacts her ability to function as a "normal" human, and to adequately complete her work.
Ultimately, the idea of a doppelgänger was a disappointment to me. I felt like Tamsin should have been more shocked to find a clone of herself, and especially as a scientist, she would have realistically handled the situation differently. I think more realistically she would have taken the clone into her office so the team could have studied what was going on.
Overall, this book felt mediocre. I would probably recommend this to a very specific audience, and I will likely pick up more from Caitlin Starling in the future.
"Last to Leave the Room" is a science fiction mystery about a scientist and a mysterious door. Dr. Tamsin Rivers is a highly successful and regarded scientist who is on the team to help uncover why the city of San Siroco is sinking. During her time working at home, she becomes fascinated with the dimensions of her basement because they do not make sense given her home's blueprint. While she is studying the basement she discovers a door that she did not notice before, and from the door emerges a doppelgänger of her.
I had really high expectations that I was going to love this book, unfortunately, I did not really get into the story. Tamsin is an interesting point of view to read from because I found her to be really unlikeable. She is so driven by her work; she comes across as detached from humanity and oftentimes she is cruel to those around her. Her mind is impressive, and I enjoyed seeing such an intelligent woman, but I ended up not being invested in her story, and unfortunately just not caring what happened to her.
I do think the author explored Tamsin's descent into madness quite well. She slowly seems to be losing her mind, and it greatly impacts her ability to function as a "normal" human, and to adequately complete her work.
Ultimately, the idea of a doppelgänger was a disappointment to me. I felt like Tamsin should have been more shocked to find a clone of herself, and especially as a scientist, she would have realistically handled the situation differently. I think more realistically she would have taken the clone into her office so the team could have studied what was going on.
Overall, this book felt mediocre. I would probably recommend this to a very specific audience, and I will likely pick up more from Caitlin Starling in the future.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, and Injury/Injury detail
theomancy's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A lot more of a psychological horror mystery than Starling's other books, in comparison to the action packed Jane Lawrence and the Luminous Dead. I really enjoyed this, and it may be the most well constructed of her books that I've read, but I'm not sure it tops the list as my favorite 🤔
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Drug use
Minor: Forced institutionalization
sarah984's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This took everything I liked about The Luminous Dead and dialled it up to eleven. Claustrophobic, tense, ambiguous, and the characters are great. It dragged a little bit about halfway through, but the ending was worth it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Medical content, Dementia, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Death, Gore, Blood, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
Minor: Animal death, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, and Vomit
caidyn's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
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? Yes
4.25
Another great book by this author! It was great and such a great mix of dystopian sci-fi and horror.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, Medical trauma, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
literarybitch's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is for:
• Fans of The Echo Wife by Sarah Gailey
• Readers who only like the video portions of House of Leaves
• ???
• People who are gay like Gideon The Ninth is gay
• Fans of The Echo Wife by Sarah Gailey
• Readers who only like the video portions of House of Leaves
• ???
• People who are gay like Gideon The Ninth is gay
7.9/10
#WhatsKenyaReading
#WhatsKenyaReading
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Torture, Blood, Medical content, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Eating disorder and Gore
linguistique's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
In Last to Leave the Room by Caitlin Starling, the city of San Siroco is sinking. The basement of Dr. Tamsin Rivers, head researcher investigating the subsidence problem, is sinking even faster. One evening, a door appears on the basement wall that wasn’t there before, and out of it walks an exact copy of Tamsin. Who is she? Where did she come from? How did she get here? And how can Tamsin stop the subsidence from destroying the city?
What I love about Starling’s style of horror is how psychological and character driven it is, and Last to Leave the Room is no different. Dr. Tamsin Rivers is, I believe intentionally, unlikeable as a character, narcissistic and self-serving and cruel. But Tamsin is, at her core, a scientist, and her obsession with the subsidence felt infectious. I appreciated the care Starling took to develop Tamsin’s character and show the research process, with Tamsin hyper-focusing on meticulously collecting data and measuring the progress of the sinking. I loved the way that Starling seeded doubt about whether Tamsin was a reliable narrator, allowing the reader to wonder what was real and what was an invention of Tamsin’s mind.
While I eventually grew to sympathize with Tamsin, I loved Lachlan’s character even more. She is tough and intimidating, but her job as company muscle was portrayed in what felt like a realistic way, with excellent disability representation.
Overall, I enjoyed this book, and at about the halfway mark it gripped me so tightly that I could not put it down until I finished it. I rated this book four stars because I was left wanting a little more from the ending. The resolution seemed rushed, and I am left with so many unanswered questions. However, I grew to love the characters, and it was great to be back in another unsettling world of Starling’s creation.
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for gifting me a copy of this eARC!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Murder, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual content
becandbooks's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement and Panic attacks/disorders