I absolutely loved this very clever and wholly original book!

Such a brilliant concept and very unique. I don't think I've ever read a book quite like it.

It combined some of my favourite genres - dystopian, mystery and thriller into one page turning wonderful read that I could not put down.

As the story progresses, it becomes a more and more compulsive read - the the twists are just ingenious.

One of the best "who dunnits" I have read in a very long time and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this book.

This is a whodunnit set in a post apocalyptic world. It's a strange setting for sure, but an absolute joy to read! Put this on your lists to buy, and then revel in it! Many thanks to NetGalley, the Publishers and the author for the opportunity to read this great tome.

I absolutely loved this book. I went into it knowing nothing beyond the blurb, but having read Stuart Turton's first two novels I had high hopes. He did not disappoint, it's a belter! Difficult to tell too much without spoilers but it's essentially a murder mystery, only he has quite a unique take on the setting and how it all plays out. Brilliant writer, highly recommend.

First book I have read by this author. To say not disappointed is an understatement. Everything was on hold whilst this reader became immersed in a storyline gaining momentum in a race against time to save the last inhabitants still alive after an apocalyptic incident destroyed the world as we know it apart from a small island sparsely populated. This fragile community of survivors live their lives to strictly enforced rules set by elders who brook no dissent. Emory, our chief protagonist consistently questions the status quo enraging the elders and shunned by a community struggling with anyone who does not conform to the mores of this gentle and obedient survivors of the human race. . When tragedy and disaster strikes, Emory finds herself fighting for her life and struggling to ensure the survival of her family friends and islanders. A hugely enjoyable and entertaining book that manages to weave a fascinating preview of a sci fi world where artificial intelligence, scientific brains and a compliant people allow a trajectory of incidents and events that no longer seem incredible but rather an insight into a potential future race less inclined to damage the world around them. Highly recommended as a 5* read with a premise and conclusion that delivers on every level. Many thanks to author, publisher and net

I had read The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle a couple of years ago so I anticipated another unconventional book and this is exactly you get in this blending of a number of genres creating a whodunnit murder mystery in a post apocalyptic world.

We meet the last outcrop of humanity living on a Greek Island. A plague of insects 'The Fog' have devoured the world population and the only place where people remain is this small island where a team of scientists have managed to hold off the swarm.

There are 122 villagers living on this island and three scientists, who are known as the Elders. The villagers are kind and accepting of their somewhat strange society and everything is very regimented but most villagers are accepting of their roles with the exception of Emory a woman who has always been seeking answers to things that don't make sense.

Everyone is controlled by an AI Abi who is in their heads, talking to everyone and controlling all their actions. Indeed some parts of the novel takes the form of a first person narration through Abi's voice as she knows all their thoughts

Then one night, a murder takes place which breaks the rules holding this society together and they need to solve the murder quickly or the island will be taken over by The Fog of Insects. Emory is given 2 days to figure out who commited the murder and get their confession in order to save their lives. Will see figure it out or will the last outpost of humanity die?

I found this book a game-changer in how Turton weaves the different genrea of murder mystery, dystopia and sci-fi together. If you are dubious about sci-fi and looking for somewhere to start then this is a good place as it's more a ticking clock murder mystery than sci-fi. One downside for me is it's far more plot driven than character based, Emory the main character is the only one you're rooting for throughout the novel.

If you're looking for a very different take on a murder mystery or wanting to dip your toes into sci-fi and like plot driven books then this a good one!

I really enjoyed this. It didn’t grip me and blow me away in the way that The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle did, but it was still a really good read full of suspense, mystery and murder.

I really enjoyed the setting of this book. Even though it was post-apocalyptic, it wasn’t depressing. There was a nice rustic village vibe with a nice community. It was nice to see a book that had a bit more hope in it than some of the post-apocalyptic stuff that’s written at the moment.

The mystery was really good. There were plenty of good reveals and I really liked the main character, Emory. She felt almost neurodiverse-coded as she asked a lot more questions than the other villagers and was seen as odd/ different because of it. It made me relate to her a lot.

Honestly it was just a solid four star. It was a joy to read but didn’t wow me in the way Evelyn Hardcastle did.

As the story begins, tensions run high among the islanders. Suspicions and paranoia grip the small community as they grapple with the reality that a murderer walks among them. The victim, Dr. Elena Martinez, was a respected scientist known for her work on finding a solution to the deadly fog that enveloped the world.

The island's leader, Mayor Thomas Hughes, calls for an emergency meeting in the town hall to address the crisis. He appoints a small group of volunteers to investigate the murder, led by Sarah Reynolds, a former detective from the mainland who happened to be stranded on the island when the fog descended.

Sarah and her team quickly begin their investigation, interviewing witnesses and gathering evidence. They discover that Dr. Martinez has been working on a breakthrough that could potentially neutralize the fog and save humanity. This revelation leads them to suspect that the murderer may have been someone who stood to benefit from her silence.

As time ticks away, tensions escalate on the island. Accusations fly, alliances form and dissolve, and secrets come to light. Sarah and her team race against the clock, piecing together the puzzle before it's too late.

Meanwhile, the fog creeps ever closer, a constant reminder of the impending doom facing the islanders. With each passing hour, the pressure mounts, and the stakes grow higher.

In a thrilling climax, Sarah uncovers the identity of the murderer and the motive behind the crime. But as she prepares to reveal the truth to the islanders, she realizes that the solution to their salvation may come at a heartbreaking cost.

The E-Book could be improved and more user-friendly, such as links to the chapters, no significant gaps between words and a cover for the book would be better. It is very document-like instead of a book. A star has been deducted because of this.

This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and I would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

Stuart Turton is, in my opinion, one of the most original and imaginative authors writing today; I loved his first book, The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, which was unlike anything else I’ve ever read. His second novel, The Devil and the Dark Water, a mystery set aboard a 17th century Dutch trading ship, disappointed me, but I recently read his short story, The Master of the House and loved that one too, so I was curious to see what this, his newest novel, would be like.

The Last Murder at the End of the World combines a murder mystery with a post-apocalyptic setting. The world as we know it has been destroyed by a black toxic fog that has swept across the planet, killing everyone it touches. The only place the fog hasn’t reached is a small Greek island, home to the Blackheath scientific research facility. The island is inhabited by one hundred and twenty-two villagers and three scientists from Blackheath, who have become known as the Elders. While the scientists continue their research into the fog and the security system that is holding it back from the island, the villagers farm the land and obey the rules set out for them by the scientists, while being discouraged from thinking too deeply for themselves.

Disaster strikes when one of the scientists is murdered and the barrier keeping the fog at bay is broken down. If the islanders can solve the murder within ninety-two hours, the barrier will be restored – if not, the fog will envelop the entire island. One of the villagers, Emory, is more resourceful than the others; rather than just accepting the situation and her place in society, she has always been curious and eager to learn. The task of investigating the crime, then, falls mainly to Emory – but to make her job even more difficult, the security system has also wiped the memories of the villagers, so someone could be a murderer without even knowing it.

The Last Murder at the End of the World is a difficult book to write about without spoiling too much. From the beginning, we are faced with lots of intriguing questions. Why do none of the villagers live past the age of sixty? Who or what is ‘Abi’, the omniscient voice who is present in everyone’s mind? Are the three Elders working with the villagers or against them? Everything is explained eventually but I won’t discuss the plot in any more depth here. I think if you’ve read other dystopian/post-apocalyptic novels you’ll already have an idea of the sort of things being explored, such as why some people survived and not others and whether society can be rebuilt to make the new world a better place than the last one.

The murder mystery element is interesting mainly because of the limitations that are placed upon it – the short period of time in which Emory has in which to solve the mystery and the fact that nobody can remember anything they may have done or witnessed on the night of the crime. There are also some surprising plot twists and revelations that meant I was constantly questioning and re-evaluating everything I thought I had figured out. However, this is definitely a book where the characters take second place to the plot; the three scientists are particularly difficult to like and, apart from Emory, the villagers are bland and not easily distinguished from each other. For this reason, The Last Murder at the End of the World is a novel I enjoyed from an intellectual perspective but not from an emotional one.

Ninety years after a deadly fog envelopes the world, the last remaining humans survive on a Greek Island. Through science they have discovered a way to hold off the fog, and are working on ways to defeat it. As ‘Elders’ of the island, with knowledge of the old world, they are supported by villagers, artificial beings known as crums; and Abi, an omnipresence that can read everyone’s thoughts. When one of the villagers is murdered and the barrier to the fog falls, a villager called Emory is tasked with solving the murder to save the island.

I think the concept of this book is so clever. Stuart Turton’s depiction of the island, its inhabitants and the technology is extraordinary. Behind the imagery, the parallels between humanity and the use of AI and science is uncanny.

I enjoyed the story but found how the narrative jumped quite confusing. Add in Abi as an all-seeing character that just randomly pops up sometimes, made it even more so. I found myself having to re-read bits constantly. I also found it quite long and got quite frustrated towards the end. I sympathised with the villagers, and whilst I think the author did try to gain sympathy with the elders, I found it quite difficult.

I’m really stuck on rating this book. Do I think it is worth recommending? Yes, it is definitely unique and I can imagine people having strong opinions on it. Would I read it again, myself? Probably not as it was hard work. Though I do find myself wondering if I would enjoy it more the second time around now I know the ending.

Hooked yet again. There were so many twists and turns, no-one could rely on anyone or anything, you never see what's coming. There are lots of short chapters Which I love. I can't wait to see what Turton comes up with next.

I am yet to read a Stuart Turton book that I haven't liked! The Last Murder at the End of the World started off a little slowly as it took me a while to get used to Abi as the narrator, but I was absolutely gripped from about two thirds of the way through, I did not want to put it down. It had lots of twists I didn't see coming which had me second guessing myself up until the end. As well as the thriller element of it, the characters felt really well developed and I found myself much more emotional than I was anticipating for an apocalyptic sci-fi book. I adored Evelyn Hardcastle and have been looking for a book as engaging since, I think this comes very close!

I quite enjoyed my first dip into the Stuart Turton literary pool, I would recommend it to my bookish friends who appreciate a tightly wound and complex storyline with a larger cast of deeply layered characters, but for me I felt that there was too much going on. That was completely my attention spans fault. Stuart's writing is very atmospheric and intoxicating.

Strange and Beautiful

Well I was not expecting that!
Stuart Turton is a master world creator and The Last Murder at the End of the World was a fascinating ride through a post apocalyptic mystery with twists and turns at every corner.

An small island community who have 92 hours to solve a murder to survive.

Although it took me a little while to fully immerse myself and get to grips with all the characters, I thoroughly enjoyed the ride.

This book was, thought provoking, strange and beautiful all rolled into one.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for this ARC.

This is definitely well written and very clever - but too clever for me. The story is a countdown to the extinction of humanity and yet there are only 3 human beings on this island that has survived the end of time. The rest of the community are villagers who have been grown rather than born! This dystopian story was a step too far for me. For a non-person to be responsible for solving the death of one of the few human beings seemed unlikely. Yes, there was a crime to be solved but it felt quite contrived for me. Obviously not my genre.
Many thanks to Netgalley/Stuart Turton/Bloomsbury Publishing plc for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

I have read and loved Stuart Turton's previous two novels so I was really excited to finally read this one. I don't think the blurb really does this book justice because I really had no clue what I was getting into and the book got weirder and weirder the further I read.
It is the end of the world with just over a 100 people surviving on a Greek Island that managed to get some barriers up before the fog came. The island wakes up to a murder and everyone's memory of the night before is wiped with the barriers down and they have around 2 days to find the murder before they all die.
Everyone on the island is connected to Abi, a mitochondrial network that can read their thoughts and even control the people when necessary and I was very intrigued about the plot of this story.
This is quite a fast paced story that is very complex as the main character, Emory, is tasked with becoming the investigator to try and solve the murder before everyone dies. There is lots of science involved and interesting twists that make for a fascinating read that I didn't want to put down.

I really enjoyed this mystery by Stuart Turton, the loss of everyone’s memory means that absolutely everyone is a suspect, even those trying to solve the murder. The isolated island setting also made it reminiscent of a closed room mystery, but with the scope for far more suspects, meaning that as a mystery it felt very fresh and different from the average detective novel.
The mystery kept me guessing until the end while also making sense, being difficult to work out but not so far-fetched to make it unbelievable or unsatisfying.
The sci-fi and dystopian elements in the story were a lot of fun, and I enjoyed the melding of genres. That said, if you’re dubious about reading sci-fi I would say this is more of a mystery in a lightly sci-fi world, so if that isn’t your genre you may still really enjoy the book.
I enjoyed the perspective of Abi as another thing to set this apart from a normal mystery novel, but I think she could have done with a better introduction, I especially found the prologue quite confusing for that reason.
My main critique is that the first third of the novel was quite slow. Although I understand the need to introduce us to the characters and see their relationships before the murder occurs, I feel that this could have been achieved in a shorter space of time. For example, we get a few chapters from Magdalena’s perspective at the start and then her character is seemingly forgotten until near the end. Similarly, the tension in Emory and Clara's relationship is built up a lot only to be fairly inconsequential as soon as the murder happens and they start to work together. From the synopsis it sounds like we would start the book with the murder and wiped minds, and although I liked that we got to see them before this it definitely could have been shorter.
Overall I would rate this 3.75 stars, rounded up to 4 here. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy.

Highly atmospheric and fiendishly clever. 4/5 stars.

Having been impressed with Stuart Turton’s previous books (The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle and The Devil and the Deep Water) I was delighted to get an advance copy of The Last Murder at the End of the World. But would I enjoy it more than The Devil and the Deep Water, which I found to be overly long and rather confusing in places?

In short: yes. This is a leaner story with far fewer central characters. That said, some readers may find it rather annoying at first as the set-up is shrouded in its own mystery. Who are the villagers? How did they get to the island? And we are faced with many more unanswered questions, even before the murder mystery element of the plot kicks in. If you don’t enjoy being kept in the dark or would find it too stressful not to know what the heck is going on, you may struggle to get into this story.

I liked the main investigator character, Emory, and her daughter, Clara. The scientists were also an interesting group. However, I’d argue this story isn’t really about character. Like a classic Christie mystery, the plot is the star of the show. I didn’t feel there was much heart in the book and it is more of a fun, entertaining puzzle than an emotional read. I wasn’t that bothered by the thought that everyone on the island was close to being wiped out. But, even so, I found the final chapters to be a tense experience as the seconds tick down to the satisfying conclusion.

And speaking of tension, the pace throughout the book is cracking with short chapters keeping things moving along. I thought the revelations were well-timed and the reader is told just enough to keep them hooked. The countdown to the arrival of the deadly fog keeps the pressure high from the moment the murder is discovered.

Readers may struggle with the main narrative voice. It’s a disembodied consciousness which resides in the minds of all the island inhabitants, reading their thoughts and talking to them. It is narrating the action in third person but then also speaks to us using first person. This can be a little jarring until you’re fully immersed in the story and used to it.

Overall: mystery readers and fans of Stuart Turton’s previous books are highly likely to enjoy The Last Murder at the End of the World.

Turton's ability to write completely unique mysteries, almost, in fact completely reinventing the genre is impressive. His imagination seems to be boundless and make for a thoroughly entertaining reading experience.

In this novel his latest helping of dystopic intrigue leads the reader through a maze of clues and revelation examining themes of what is at the heart of humanity and the idea of good and evil.

This honest review is given with thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this book.

I recommend this to any mystery fans that also like their books a little weird. Full of twists you can't predict.

I’m a fan of the author and loved The Last Murder at the End of the World. What I enjoy about the author’s work is his originality. His books are all very different and you never know what to expect. I love it when an author takes me by surprise. This book is exactly what I’ve come to expect – original, starling, engrossing and full of surprises. I read a lot of dystopian / end-of-the-world novels. It’s one of my go-to genre’s. The Last Murder at the End of the World offers something a little bit different, in a good way. The plot is original and inventive. I loved this book and would recommend it.