One Last Stop Review
Hi, bookworms! I hope you’re all doing well. It’s officially winter here in South Africa and I am loving it. After a very impromptu break last week, I’m back with my One Last Stop Review. Let’s jump in!
Title: One Last Stop
Author: Casey McQuiston
Rating: 4 Stars
CAWPILE: 7.4/10
Genre: Contemporary, romance
Content Warnings: Homophobic violence and hate speech, police violence, the AIDS crisis, racism, childhood neglect, arson, historic hate crime resulting in loss of life (full list can be found on author’s website)
Format: Advanced Listening Copy (Audiobook)
Publisher: St Martin’s Griffin
Date Published: June 1st 2021
Goodreads Description: For cynical twenty-three-year-old August, moving to New York City is supposed to prove her right: that things like magic and cinematic love stories don’t exist, and the only smart way to go through life is alone. She can’t imagine how waiting tables at a 24-hour pancake diner and moving in with too many weird roommates could possibly change that. And there’s certainly no chance of her subway commute being anything more than a daily trudge through boredom and electrical failures.
But then, there’s this gorgeous girl on the train.
Jane. Dazzling, charming, mysterious, impossible Jane. Jane with her rough edges and swoopy hair and soft smile, showing up in a leather jacket to save August’s day when she needed it most. August’s subway crush becomes the best part of her day, but pretty soon, she discovers there’s one big problem: Jane doesn’t just look like an old school punk rocker. She’s literally displaced in time from the 1970s, and August is going to have to use everything she tried to leave in her own past to help her. Maybe it’s time to start believing in some things, after all.
I received a review copy from LibroFM. All opinions are my own.
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You can use my LibroFM referral code to buy this audiobook!
One Last Stop Review
Characters – 9/10
I will admit to having some trouble warming up to August, our main character, in the beginning. But she really grew on me and now I love her. All of the characters in One Last Stop just made me sad that I could never meet them in person. Jane was by far my favourite. She’s edgy and witty and fun and I really want to be friends with her.
I would also love to be friends and roommates with Niko, Myla, and Wes. All of them just took my whole heart. They’re so pure and I would give anything to visit Pancake Billy’s with them.
One Last Stop is also a celebration of everything queer and it is wonderful. There’s so much love in this book and between the characters. It’s truly a found family trope that will make your heart melt.
Atmosphere – 7/10
I first heard about this book through my friend Mieke over at Mouse That Reads (check out her review here). My first thought was “romance on the subway? How?”. Luckily McQuiston is a genius who can make anything work. I loved the setting. Personally, I’ve never been on the NYC subway, but the whole ride (get it) felt so real to me. I also really loved Pancake Billy’s House of Pancakes and I was hungry the whole time while listening.
McQuiston really makes queer New York feel so real. I want to be part of it.
There was one thing that bothered me, though it was no fault of McQuiston’s. The audiobook narrator didn’t click well with me. She went from whispering sentences to shouting them, and I was playing musical chairs with the volume the whole time. It was slightly annoying, and since this is an audiobook review I thought I’d mention it.
Writing – 8/10
McQuiston really knows how to play with your emotions through her writing. I’m not usually an emotional reader, but I have to admit that I laughed and cried (metaphorically) with the characters. Overall I think the writing was really great.
Plot – 6/10
Now we’ve come to my one complaint about this otherwise perfect book. The pacing was just a little off. The beginning and end of the book were really slow. The middle was full of montage moments (mostly telling not showing) and this book probably could have been a little shorter. It’s not a big complaint, but I was a little bored in some places.
Aside from the romance plot, there’s also a fairly big side plot involving August’s family. I don’t want to spoil too much, but I think McQuiston handled this plot point very well. I would have liked some more information surrounding the event, since I’m not familiar with US history, but there’s always Google.
One Last Stop Review
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Intrigue – 7/10
Contemporary science fiction, or soft sci-fi, is quickly becoming one of my favourite sub-genres. I would not entirely classify this as sci-fi, but there were elements. The whole time travel plot was really interesting, and all of the shenanigans surrounding the side characters had me thoroughly hooked.
Logic – 7/10
Of course, we were going to get a HEA. In my mind, the science should not have worked like that, but you know what they say. “Timey whimey stuff.” I’m glad McQuiston managed to find a way to work it out and make it believable.
Enjoyment – 8/10
I really enjoyed this book, and I highly recommend that you read it too.
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I’ve not heard of this book before but One Last Stop sounds like a fab read. Great review.
I never knew what this book was about and just enjoyed the cover and that it featured a queer character. Now it appeals even more.
It is the first I am hearing of this book. Sounds like it was a good read despite the minor flaws.