Adam Silvera reminds us that there’s no life without death and no love without loss in this devastating yet uplifting story about two people whose lives change over the course of one unforgettable day.
New York Times bestseller * 4 starred reviews * A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year * A Kirkus Best Book of the Year * A Booklist Editors’ Choice of 2017 * A Bustle Best YA Novel of … of the Year * A Booklist Editors’ Choice of 2017 * A Bustle Best YA Novel of 2017 * A Paste Magazine Best YA Book of 2017 * A Book Riot Best Queer Book of 2017 * A Buzzfeed Best YA Book of the Year * A BookPage Best YA Book of the Year
On September 5, a little after midnight, Death-Cast calls Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio to give them some bad news: They’re going to die today.
Mateo and Rufus are total strangers, but, for different reasons, they’re both looking to make a new friend on their End Day. The good news: There’s an app for that. It’s called the Last Friend, and through it, Rufus and Mateo are about to meet up for one last great adventure—to live a lifetime in a single day.
In the tradition of Before I Fall and If I Stay, They Both Die at the End is a tour de force from acclaimed author Adam Silvera, whose debut, More Happy Than Not, the New York Times called “profound.”
Don’t miss Adam Silvera’s bestselling fantasy duology, Infinity Son, and Infinity Reaper!
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I found myself so emotionally involved in this book. Every victory of the characters was celebrated, every heartache was felt deeply, and who ever thought about all the things that could happen in a single day?
This book was brilliant. Powerful. Heart-wrenching. I loved it start to finish. Even though you know what happens from page one (from the title) it still gave me that sinking feeling in my stomach reading it. Highly recommended.
This is my FAVORITE book, and i have a new favorite Author! And for someone who never cries, i cried. great book i even recommended it to my friends!
The whole idea about this story is amazing! This is an alternate world where a company called Death-Cast calls people around midnight to tell them that within the next 24 hours they will die. This gives people the chance to say their goodbyes, do whatever it is you’d do on your last day, and even plan or attend their own funeral. Then there’s this app called Last Friend which brings together Decker’s (what people who are going to die are called) so that no one spends their last day together if they don’t want to. This app is what brings Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio together.
Mateo is a gay Puerto-Rican 18-year old and one of our two main protagonists. He is also one of the most precious characters I’ve ever read about. I spent the entire book wanting to protect him from any harm. His anxiety at the beginning of the story was so apparent and seeing him come out of his shell and gain more confidence throughout the story made my heart so happy. Our other protagonist is Rufus, a bisexual 17-year old Cuban-American. He’s a little rough around the edges, but he is such a loving person. He is loyal to his core, and will do anything for his loved ones.
Both characters show a lot of growth throughout the story and seeing their friendship develop and deepen was amazing to read about. They make the perfect team. They are complete opposites but they complement each other in the best way. I cry just thinking about them.
Of course, Silvera’s writing was beautiful and he perfectly straddled the line between heartbreak and comedy. Like how, this book made me cry and laugh simultaneously. I also really enjoyed all the extra POV chapters. We get just a glimpse into the lives of minor characters or even random strangers in-between Rufus and Mateo’s story.
And I don’t know why, but knowing how this was going to end made it even more heart-breaking. This book made me question my own mortality, how I could literally die tomorrow and if I’m satisfied with how I’ve lived my life so far. It made me face my thoughts on my own death (whenever that may be). I have never felt so called out. How would I react if I got a call saying I was going to die within 24 hours? Yikes, I honestly can’t even think of that.
This was an amazing story and I recommend it to everyone!
Sometimes you just click with someone.
”You may be born into a family, but you walk into friendships. Some you’ll discover you should put behind you. Others are worth every risk.”
This story of life, death, friendship, love and fate will give you all the feels. Even though the title warns you, the ending will still get you.
This book gently takes you by the hand and leads you along on 5his magical adventure. It takes you through two different paths until you find yourself at a single road, and down that road you already know what’s waiting. And with each step, you say to yourself, “No, this isn’t it, it can’t happen.” Until it does, and even when you’re standing there with you’re heart in your hard you still have hope, until the book takes that from you too.
This book is a gut punch and an original story, it was a great read and also recommend the other book written by this author, What if it’s Us.
If you’re going to read the cute, blue faced cover, just be warned, it’s telling the truth.
This was my first Adam Silva book, and I was blown away by the character development and the originality of the story. As the title indicates, this is not a book with a happy ending, however, it was truly breathtaking. I kept hoping for something different to happen, because the characters were so wonderful. I wanted to protect them. This is a book I highly recommend, as the humanity of it is incredibly powerful.
oh this one hit me hard
its been a while since I’ve read this book but it still haunts me to this very day
I bawled my eyes out reading this book! I highly recommend it!
They both die at the end. Really. I knew this the whole way through and I still cried. It’s a unique take on the romance genre and worth reading just for that, but I loved the characters and now, a year later, still remember everything about this story. I read somewhere around 50 books a year, so I get foggy on most books after a while, but not this one.
Amazing book with a great message that I needed to read.
It was an ending I didn’t expect although it was the title….It’s sad and deep but also funny
this book was amazing i would definitely recommend
Such a great book! I miss it like a good friend.
exciting concept whose execution i admittedly did not see much of. i read one section from each point of view. the voices for both of those views were very disappointing, being totally inorganic. they read like they’re written by someone who has gotten his teen dialogue from primetime television scripts, and rufus’s narrative in particular inconsistently utilized the vernacular it’s trying to convey. that specific mishandling is what got me to drop the book so quickly.
really imaginative, but something i could not soldier through.
Not going to lie, I cried.
The premise is that a company called Death-Cast calls you at midnight if you are going to die in the next 24 hours. Main characters Rufus and Mateo both get the call and meet up through an app. They get together in real life and decide how to spend their last day alive.
I didn’t think they would actually die, to be honest. There were plenty of red herrings along the way. It really took me along a rollercoaster of emotions.
I loved and hated this book! I knew what was going to happen the whole time. The premise is that you are called after midnight on the day you die, so you can live you last day however you choose. Without getting into all THAT philosophical questioning, a lot of industries have built up around last day activities and experiences, as well as the “Last Friend” app. This app lets people find kindred spirits on their last day, or just people who want to help support people living their final day. And some a-holes, of course. The two people in the title meet through Last Friend and it’s a shame they didn’t meet sooner, or somehow have more time…I really became invested in the characters and even though you know what’s coming, it was still gut-wrenching at the end
The story was original, and the characters really do die at the end, so you know from the get go that you are in for a bit of drama.
I can’t recommend this book enough ! Go ahead & get past the “death notification” , it isn’t explained, & enjoy the story. This book has a feature that I love when done well, characters cross paths throughout the book in the most random of ways. I could see this as a movie the whole time I was reading. Everything is that believable ! I’ve gushed enough, what are you waiting for , go read this book !