Title: The First to Die at the End
Author: Adam Silvera
Publisher: Quill Tree Books
Publication date: October 4, 2022
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Summary
The night before Death-Cast goes live, everyone wonders if it can actually predict death. And how it predicts death. For Orion, death has alwasy been on his mind. He’s lived with a serious heart condition all his life, so he signed up for Death-Cast so he knows when the end is coming.
Meanwhile, Valentino is ready for his life to start. On his first day in New York, he only registered for Death-Cast because of his sister’s recent near death experience. When Valentino and Orion happen to meet at Death-Cast’s opening party, it’s an instant connection. However, when the first round of calls come out, one of them receives a call and one of them doesn’t.
Review: The First to Die at the End
Thanks to NetGalley and Quill Tree Books for an advanced copy of The First to Die at the End to review! I can vividly remember reading They Both Die at the End. I was intrigued to see the origin of Death-Cast. Of course, I knew that it was going to get emotional by the end. It’s Adam Silvera!
If you enjoyed the format of the story in They Both Die at the End, you’ll definitely enjoy this prequel. Silvera has a knack for writing characters that you’re bound to fall in love with in a short period of time. I also enjoyed all of the character connections in this. It’s like an intricate web, and it made the book even more enjoyable for me.
While I enjoyed the story and the characters, it did feel like the story lagged a bit in the middle. There were just aspects of it that felt repetitive; they didn’t feel like they were moving the plot or character development forward. For the most part, though, I was invested. There’s just something about this kind of story, where you sort of know what the ending is going to be, so it’s all about the journey there. And that little sliver of hope that maybe you’ll be wrong.
If you haven’t read They Both Die at the End yet, I’d say you could probably safely read this one first. There are just some character cameos that might not be as meaningful if you don’t read They Both Die at the End first.
All in all, I think this is a strong prequel, and I would be interested in reading more Death-Cast stories for sure!
4/5 stars