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In this queer YA psychological thriller from the author of Some Girls Do and Hot Dog Girl, the sole surviving counselors of a summer camp massacre search to uncover the truth of what happened that fateful night, but what they find out might just get them killed. You don’t usually meet the love of your life while running from masked men with machetes, but that’s exactly what happens to Sloan after surviving a ritual killing that left so many of her fellow summer camp counselors dead. Cherry, the only other survivor, becomes a lifeline for Sloan, their traumatic experience bonding them in ways no one else can understand. As the girls get closer, and Sloan learns more about the motives behind the attack that brought them together, she begins to suspect that Cherry may be more than just a survivor—she may actually have been a part of it. Cherry tries to reassure her, but Sloan only becomes more distraught. Is this gaslighting or reality? Is Cherry a victim or a perpetrator? Is Sloan losing her mind, or seeing things clearly for the first time? Against all odds, Sloan survived that hot summer night. But will she survive what comes next?
Publication Year: 2024
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0 0I feel bad giving this book a one-star rating-- those are usually reserved for books I DNF. That being said, this book was not for me. You can probably tell by the fact that I started it at the very end of May and finished it half-way through July.
The Last Girls Standing follows two lone survivors of a summer camp massacre, Sloan and Cherry, who trauma bond and date. Sloan doesn't really remember what happened during the massacre-- but Cherry does. And Sloan doubts Cherry is telling her the full story. Desperate to find out what really happened, Sloan does some sleuthing on her own.
It has a fascinating premise, but here's the thing: it was done poorly.
Showing the effects of trauma wasn't done well-- I've been skimming other reviews and I think there's a general consensus that the representation was poor. I felt very disconnected to the characters and they weren't even likeable, which, if you've read any other review of mine, you'd know is the most important to me.
The book's not long, and miraculously, that screwed with the pacing. Nothing happens for the first half of the book, and the second half is just me side-eyeing everyone in the book. The books not long enough for me to see any literary justification for Sloan killing Cherry (because the cult story is adding up to her?) and the extremely rushed ending.
I didn't like this book. I don't really DNF books anymore, but I was very close to doing that. The only reason I didn't was because by the time I read a third of the book, there wasn't much really left, so I just kind of went "why not?"
I'm sure that this book has it's own audience, but I wasn't a part of the demographic that would enjoy this.
I received an e-ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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