The Last Girls Standing By Jennifer Dugan

Nilufer Ozmekik

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Jennifer Dugan's previous YA queer romance novels, including "Hot Dog Girl" and "Some Girls Do." When I discovered that she had ventured into the thriller genre, drawing inspiration from 80s teen slashers like Friday the 13th while incorporating queer/LGBTQ representation, I was instantly intrigued. Without reading any comments or reviews, I eagerly embarked on this chilling ride, ready to be captivated.

Throughout the narrative, Dugan skillfully pays homage to the classic 80s slashers, weaving in references and nods that will delight horror aficionados. As a fan of those iconic movies myself, I relished in the familiar tropes and atmosphere that she expertly recreated. It's evident that Dugan has a deep appreciation for the genre, and her homage to the era shines through.

However, the pacing and execution did present challenges for me. The slow start and difficulty in connecting with the characters hindered my initial engagement with the story. It felt like an uphill battle to become truly invested in the outcome. Nonetheless, I pushed forward, hoping that the momentum would pick up as the plot unfolded.

To my relief, the story did gain momentum as I reached the middle, and the final twist proved to be both clever and thought-provoking. It challenged my assumptions and left me questioning the motives and actions of the characters. While the journey to get there was a bit arduous, the destination was ultimately rewarding.

Despite my reservations, I recognize that this is Dugan's first endeavor into the thriller genre, and it shows potential. With her strong writing skills and knack for creating relatable characters, I am confident that her future works in the YA queer thriller realm will be more polished and compelling. I look forward to witnessing her growth as an author and eagerly anticipate her future releases.

In conclusion, while this particular book may not have fully met my expectations, it still offers an enjoyable read for fans of queer representation and 80s slasher nostalgia. I encourage readers to approach it with an open mind and appreciate the efforts made in diversifying the thriller genre.

I give it three solid stars and express my gratitude to NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group/G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers for granting me the opportunity to delve into this digital reviewer copy and share my honest thoughts.

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Kimberly R

Sloan and Cherry go to Camp Money Springs to be counselors after their senior year. They meet there and a romance quickly begins. Just days into their stay a massacre occurs and they are the only two that survive. Sloan goes off the deep end and trouble and mayhem arise.
This was a very creepy read that had me quickly flipping through the pages.
Thanks NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group for this ARC that will be released August 15, 2023!

Mallory

I was so excited for this final girls from a summer camp who survived and then fell in love story, but I’m not sure that I got what I was hoping for. The book was good, although very very weird, and it was a fast read. I think part of my problem was the majority of the action of the story happened before the book began and I was hoping for a little more of that. I will say that the book didn’t go where I was expecting it to and the ending had an interesting twist, but the story itself and the main mystery felt muddled and didn’t have a clear resolution when I wanted one. I love the queer representation, especially in the horror genre where you see it so seldomly, but I didn’t like the relationship and didn’t understand it. It wasn’t a healthy relationship, which did fit the story, but made me regret that queer representation. Overall the book was ok, I gave it 3.5 stars which I rounded up for the twist and I would give this author another shot in the future.

Chelsea | thrillerbookbabe

Thank you to Putnam Books and Jennifer Dugan for my copy of this book. The premise was amazing, about Sloan and Cherry, the only two survivors of a summer camp massacre leaving all the rest of their fellow counselors dead. Months later, the two are dating and bound by the trauma they faced. But as more information comes out about the ritual killings that they survived, Sloan starts to suspect that Cherry is more than just a survivor. Could she be part of it? Is Cherry really a victim or is Sloan slowly losing her mind? And is it all really over, or is there still more to come?

Thoughts: This book wasn’t the slasher I thought it would be. I mean, it was, but there was a lot more going on in this story. It felt like a classic 80s horror movie with LGBTQ representation. However all the characters were shallow and one dimensional. I think the author wanted to show the layers that come with trauma, but the characters were all frustrating and a bit stereotypical.

This book was about trauma, fear, and the way we cope with bad things in our lives. It depicted PTSD well, but I think there were a few too many stereotypes of mental health problems. The ending felt rushed and I felt ripped off after being just as excited at Sloan to see where the book would end. The book was more about an extremely toxic relationship than the mystery, so it was a let down for me. 3-stars.

Lauren

This book had every opportunity to be the book that I so wanted it to be. Sloan and Cherry survived masked killers as Summer Camp Counselors. Now, they're working through the survivors' guilt of being the last two left. Sloan has a harder time because her mind has shut out the memory. In search of her memory and the truth, we watch Sloan's rapid mental decline, which honestly just broke my heart.

megs_bookrack

If you say summer camp massacre in a book synopsis, I am going to read it. 100%, no further info necessary.

Thank you so much, G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers for the ARC. I love this cover and am really excited to check out this story.

It sounds like the perfect YA Summer Chiller!!!

Cynthia

This book is extremely problematic in its depiction of trauma, which is abundantly clear in the grand finale. Do we truly not care about the harm we do to those struggling with mental illness? Is an ending like that actually jaw dropping? I thought it was ridiculous, even without considering the implications it made surrounding PTSD. But as someone with C-PTSD, I found it immensely insensitive, as well.

Before I reached the end, I felt the story was stuffed with so much filler that it was splitting at its seams. I soldiered on because I wanted the truth just as much as Sloan did. I do believe this probably could have been a novella. I’d be less sour over my wasted time if it had been.

I didn’t feel the author had a firm grasp on what trauma and tragedy looks like. She tried, but there was very little depth to this. It was more of a superficial attempt to bring emotion into the narrative through a textbook comprehension of those emotions. I do not mean to imply that the author couldn’t have experienced her own tragedy or trauma, but it did not feel like she drew deep from the well of knowledge here. The girls’ codependency was well developed, although annoying at times, but my praise stops there. Everything else was flimsy and frustrating.

Don’t get me wrong. Going into this, I expected it to be more of a fun thriller, rather than a profound one, but if you’re going to take so long to build something, at least bring me out of those chilly shallow waters. This was more of an angsty love story revolving around a shared trauma than an actual thrill ride. I suppose I could have lived with that if I hadn’t hated the ending so much.

I am immensely grateful to Putnam Books, Penguin Teen, and BookishFirst for my copy. All opinions are my own.

Shannon

I was really excited about this queer YA summer thriller that features two lesbian survivors of a summer camp masacre. Unfortunately I found it pretty disappointing tbh - the story felt long and meandering and I didn't love that all the action takes place before the book even starts. I've loved this author's works in the past but this one wasn't for me. Recommended for fans of books like You're not supposed to die tonight by Kalynn Bayron. Many thanks to @prhaudio for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

andrea

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin for an advanced digital copy of this in exchange for an honest review!

--

DNF @ 30%

Unfortunately, this isn't working for me.

I see the words "summer camp massacre" and I have certain expectations. I expect campfires and I expect someone getting beaten with a canoe paddle. I mean, I can roll with the punches, but what I definitely didn't expect was a toxic relationship between two girls as they obsessively looked up news articles of the tragedy that they went through.

Sloan's highly suspicious of Cherry. They met a few days prior to this massacre and the injuries that she sustained don't seem to align with the story that Cherry is telling. I've never survived a murder spree, but it feels like sticking closer with a person you think is suspicious is an illogical choice to make?

I think that this book could have benefited with more visceral flashbacks of the trauma, a walk-through of what happened as Sloan tries to piece her memory back together. Instead, the very slow start delivers us color commentary about her varying levels of sadness through each funeral. I don't know.

The writing didn't work for me and I think had my expectations been different, maybe I'd have enjoyed this more.

Jamie Loves Books

2.5 🌟

This unfortunately was so incredibly disappointing. I was really looking forward to this book. The premise sounded fantastic, I love the final girl trope. In the end this book just failed to deliver.

The nice thing is book is really short so if you are just looking for a quick spooky/slasher read it's perfect for that. However with how short this book is, the pacing was way off for me. We enter the story after the massacre and we are trying to piece together what Sloans real memory is. Thru ought we are questioning the true intentions of Cherry. The flashbacks we did get I just ended up not caring.

I do believe there is a book for everyone, this will find its audience just sadly it was not me.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Penguin, and Putnam for this advanced reader copy. My review is voluntarily my own.

Spiri Skye

wtf did I just read

Ava Orofino

I was so BEYOND excited for this review. A thriller centered around queer kids who actually like each other? Sign me up! I expected a massacre at a summer camp thriller, and was thoroughly disappointed. I got a slow paced story with an unhealthy queer relationship and an annoying main character. Not to mention the ending ruined the whole book for me! Maybe it would have been three stars if that ended better.

Cherry and Sloan were trauma-bonded, yes, but their relationship was so entirely toxic. It lasted less than a week and they experienced a horrible experience and were all like “oh yes, we’re soulmates and I can’t be without you”. And maybe that’s my own opinion about clingy ass relationships, but Sloan literally stopped talking to EVERYONE in her life except for Cherry. She was gaslit by everyone, not to mention, which caused her to go utterly psychopathic.

And then all for that for her to go kill Cherry because she understood it all??? Like what ? I didn’t even understand it, it was all too much too fast.

Maybe if the book was more focused on the mystery and less on the clingy relationship (noticed some very similar traits in the book to those I have witnessed who are very toxic people) and the haziness. I miss Natasha Preston. As much as I really enjoyed the concept, I just didn’t appreciate the execution.

Thank you Penguin Teen Publishing and Bookishfirst for the ARC, I had a blast reading and reviewing, even if I didn’t enjoy the book all together.

Alicia Ceasar

The Last Girls Standing by Jennifer Dugan follows Sloan and Cherry, the only two survivors of a summer camp massacre. Bonded by trauma, these two characters rely on each other heavily in the months that follow the event. But when new evidence about the crime begins to surface, Sloan begins to wonder how truthful Cherry is being about what happened. Sloan begins her own investigation to try and recover her own memories about the night and decide what the truth is.

This had so many buzz words for me to be excited about. A queer slasher that takes place at a summer camp? Yes! But unfortunately, this book missed for me on almost all levels. Judging other early reviews, I don’t think I’m alone in seeing this trauma representation as very poor. This is a YA book but I could never recommend it to a teenage reader. The characters are also very bland. I never felt connected to either of them in any way. As a reader, I felt very distant.

Sloan is very wishy washy about her feelings about trusting Cherry. Which may have been compelling if it was mentioned once. But it’s an ongoing conversation throughout the entire book. I only read this book because I was curious about how it would end. But I found myself very underwhelmed by the ending because it didn’t seem to fit the narrative at all.

Truly very disappointed in this book as it was one of my most anticipated summer reads.

Thank you so much to the publisher and netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book ahead of its release. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Adam Rossi

I'm still stunned, and wildly upset with the ending.

Cresta McGowan

What’s Working:

The novel is fast-paced and written with dynamic tension. I turned pages wanting to know what happens next. For a thriller/mystery novel, Dugan has done a great job with making you feel like you’ve got it figured out and then throwing you for a quick loop. Both the main characters, Cherry and Sloan, are tightly-woven through their shared trauma (albeit in a toxic way…we’re getting there), and the cover art for the novel is FANTASTIC!

I also think Dugan did a solid job with the analysis of trauma and how it affects memory. Sloan’s gaps in the night of the massacre are what really drives her characterization — her need to know exactly what happened — and this gives her arc a mostly believable quality (again…we’re getting there). Her created therapist Beth (or hypnotist because it’s stated over and over she’s not a real doctor) uses hypnotism as a way to recover memories and process traumatic events. I know that’s an effective process for a lot of people.

What’s not working (for me):

Cherry and Sloan’s relationship! I’m not sure I can recall another novel with such a toxic, yet sappy and overdone, love interest. By chapter five I wanted to slap them both. Cherry is beyond controlling and dismissive of Sloan — fixes everything with a make out session (gag!). And Sloan spends most of the relationship wanting to be like Cherry…make everything safe like Cherry…fix the world like Cherry…basically crawl inside Cherry and live there. They were ridiculously co-dependent in the most unhealthy way. I get that they’ve graduated high school, but their relationship is harmful in every use of the word.

Cherry is a little sh*t with a mother that I think is supposed to come off as “hippie-dippie” in a casual, cheeky kind of way; however, she really reads as a failed parent. I understand that removing the “parent” in a YA novel is status quo, but the mother was just too much. Additionally, Cherry and her mother are THEIVES scamming people for money to which the author has Sloan deem “resilient.” I could not get past that. As an educator of young adults, authors I beg you to not undermine basic right from wrong. I know teens make questionable choices, but can we not have them doing fake Go-fund Me accounts to take advantage of others.

Sloan’s mother isn’t any better, but I do think she tries. She’s a dishrag that allows Cherry to completely occupy her daughter Sloan’s life despite the insistence on family time; and as we’ve already stated this is beyond toxic. The few times she attempts to “put her foot down,” it lasts for as long as Cherry is out of the picture.

In terms of plot, the twist was difficult to accept. It comes a bit out of left field and creates such a diversion in character that I literally had to re-read it to attempt to understand what I just read. And I’m still not sure. There was a lot of potential here, but the plot hovered a lot more on trauma recovery than thriller, which was a bit of a letdown for how it’s marketed.

HaileyAnne

Thank you, NetGalley, for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Sloan and Cherry are inseparable. Turns out you form pretty close bonds when you’re the only two survivors of a massacre at your summer camp. On that horrific night, 8 others were brutally murdered, but somehow Sloan and Cherry survived.

Months later, the two have become like a single entity. They are always together because they understand each other better than anyone else. Sloan trusts Cherry completely– especially since Sloan has no memory of the traumatic events and relies on Cherry’s account of what happened that night. But as new evidence emerges, Sloan starts to question what really happened. Is Cherry telling the truth? Or is she hiding something? Could this person Sloan loves with all her heart have played a part in the murders?

Whatever direction you think this book is going to go, I guarantee it will surprise you. There were multiple times I thought I had it figured out, but I was wrong every time. I’m not sure how I feel about the ending, but I appreciated that it diverted from my expectations. I also liked that this book was less slasher and more psychological thriller. There are so many summer camp slasher books, it was interesting to read about how the characters cope (or try to) after the fact.

Sloan’s inner dialogue was exhausting at times, as she kept debating whether she could trust Cherry or not. It got a bit repetitive, but it was also realistic inner dialogue, so it’s hard to critique that. I would say I didn’t like the characters, but this is a book filled with unreliable characters, so that’s kind of the point. This is all to say I was frustrated with the characters as I was reading, but that also made me read more because I wanted to know what they were going to do. So while it sounds like negative criticism, it’s actually not.

I have so much more I want to say, but it’s all spoilers, so I will just say that the more I think on it, the more I think I like this book? I can tell I will be going back and forth a lot. But either way, I will be thinking about this one for a long time.

S.A. Crow

# The Last Girls Standing

"The Last Girls Standing" by Jennifer Dugan is a must-read queer YA psychological thriller. The novel tells the story of Sloan and Cherry, the sole survivors of a summer camp massacre. The two are inseparable and bonded by their traumatic experience, making their relationship unique.

The story takes a twist when new evidence comes to light and Sloan starts to question the motives behind the ritual killing that brought them together. Cherry tries to comfort her, but Sloan's doubts only increase. Is Cherry a victim or a perpetrator? Is Sloan confused, or is she seeing things clearly for the first time?

The book has an excellent opening chapter, which captures the readers' attention with the line "Sixteen stitches holding her together when she could not do so herself." The juxtaposition between what people think a victim should feel and what a victim might feel ashamed of feeling is beautifully portrayed.

The novel depicts the aftermath of trauma-induced co-dependency and forbidden familial love in a compelling way. Overall, "The Last Girls Standing" is an outstanding book that deserves five stars.

The portrayal of trauma-induced co-dependency and forbidden familial love is complex and well-executed. I appreciated the way the author tackled these sensitive topics with care and nuance. The relationship between Sloan and Cherry was beautifully written, and their bond was both heartwarming and heartbreaking.

The plot twists kept me on the edge of my seat, and I was constantly guessing what would happen next. The author did an excellent job of keeping the suspense high throughout the novel.

Overall, "The Last Girls Standing" is a must-read for anyone who enjoys queer YA psychological thrillers. It is a powerful and thought-provoking book that will stay with you long after you've finished reading it. I highly recommend it!

jamie

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC!

I had pretty high hopes for this one, and I’m left feeling more than a little let down. I love a slasher as much as the next guy, but I was really ready to finally read a story about what happens to the final girl after the cameras stop rolling. I expected a story about a survivor reclaiming her life and bonding with her fellow sole survivor, but instead I got… this.

First, let’s talk about what worked: this is a quick, highly binge-able read. In fact, I read about 70% of it in one go. Just like Sloan, I needed to know the truth. What really happened that night? What part did Cherry play in it all? The author does a terrific job of making you fly through the pages to finally put all the pieces together.

What didn’t work was how the pieces fit together in the end. Since the release date is so far away, I’ll try to dance around spoilers, so bear with me. Logically, I can see how the ending makes sense. I definitely see the author’s vision, and I think she definitely told the story she was meaning to tell. I just don’t think it is satisfying, in any way. There is a certain element that makes final girls almost universally appealing, and the author really drives a blade through that element at the end.

Ultimately, I think this book is just trying to do too many things. It’s so short that there is no way to pack in all the character development and the storylines the author is aiming for. I think this is a book with an excellent premise and promising characters, but desperately needs more editing and rewriting.

Also, I would ask that an editor remove the word “junkie” when describing a certain character’s backstory.

Content Warnings:

Midnight Snitch

A Good Mystery

I think I would actually rate this book as 3.5 stars. It was well written and a good mystery, I just don’t think it lived up to my expectations.

I really enjoyed the mystery behind the massacre at a summer camp that left Sloan and Cherry the lone survivors. We mainly follow Sloan as she’s still trying to process the events of the summer. Is she just being paranoid as she processes, or is there some bigger picture to what happened? Is Cherry involved, or her mom? Are Sloan’s biological parents somehow involved?

I was intrigued by the mystery as Sloan tried to regain her memories from that night and piece together why it happened. However, the book wasn’t as thrilling as I thought it would be. It was fairly slow for the most part. I was expecting something similar to Sleepaway Camp or Friday the 13th, as the book was described.

The camp massacre was similar to those movies, but we don’t get very much story of the massacre. The story takes place months after the massacre, with the massacre being told only a little bit through flashbacks of Sloan’s. It became a little bit more thrilling when it was discovered that the people behind the massacre were part of a cult, trying to complete a ritual (which we find out early on in the book).

A lot of scenes seemed to drag on, so I just wish there had been more with the massacre to make the book more of a thriller. I don’t want to spoil anything, but the ending is one of those endings that leaves you guessing, so you have to decide for yourself what’s true. It does make the book a little bit more chilling, but personally I like everything to be fully explained with complete closure.

Smriti

I 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 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.

Tiffany

I’m trying to fully understand what I just read because I’m completely in shock.. The Last Girls Standing by Jennifer Dugan is due to be published August 15, 2023.

Overall it was a good read but the story it’s self was so jam packed I could barley keep up. I felt like there was a lot of stuff missing but also way to much stuff to understand at the time. This story is inspired by all of the 80’s flasher films!

Thank you NetGalley, Jennifer Dugan and G.P. Putmam’s Sons for allowing me to read this ARC.

Mere

DNF.

Thank you to PRH and NetGalley for an ARC.

This was not at all what I was expecting -- and I just couldn't get into it. The two main characters were annoying from the getgo, and I get it was supposed to be twisty psychological, but I couldn't get into it. I found the pacing unbearably slow for me.

I did end up skimming to the end to find out what happened and well. Hmm.

Chelsea

90% of this book is just filler, it should have just been a short story. At least then it wouldn't have taken long to get to that horrible ending. The relationship is toxic and only exists because of trauma bonding.

Nicole

3.5 rounded up.

In this YA thriller, Cherry and Sloan are the "last girls standing" in a camp massacre. Once Sloan begins investigating what happened, she finds out more than she bargained for. The story is told in Sloan's POV.

I was really excited to read this - the cover art is amazing and the book description sounded right up my alley. After what they experienced at the camp, it's not unimaginable to see how these two ended up being together and being each other's everything. But the relationship is very toxic (to the point of full-blown obsession, including stalking). Things started picking up in Chapter 5. Once I hit Chapter 15, I couldn't put the book down because I *needed* to know what happened next. Without giving away the meat of the story, I wish the storyline didn't feel rushed. The progression from being paranoid about her girlfriend's involvement in the cult-related murders to believing in the doctrine of the cult was a bit rushed. There was no gradual decline of mental facilities. Bam, boom, it's done. One chapter she's investigating, the next shes in a full fledged mental break. I would have liked to have seen more development in that regard.

That being said, I really enjoyed The Last Girls Standing. It's dark, it's LGBTQIA inclusive and it definitely sets itself apart from the standard lone survivor trope. Being geared towards ages 14+, I feel like the content is appropriate for those not wanting to read heavy sexual content.

Thank you NetGalley for providing an advanced reader copy.

Whitney

I adore Jennifer Dugan - her writing is always so fantastic and relatable - and I've read nearly all of her YA fiction. As a horror fan, I was especially excited to see that she'd tackled a YA thriller/horror novel, as I have a real soft spot for YA horror and I was excited to see Dugan write outside her typical genre. "The Last Girls Standing" is a sapphic story about two girls who were the sole survivors of a massacre occuring at summer camp. Our protagonist is Sloan, deeply traumatized by her experiences and haunted by the memories she can't quite remember about that fateful night. Her girlfriend is Cherry, vivacious, take charge and mysterious. When Sloan starts trying to get her memories back, she begins to worry that perhaps the massacre that permeates her nightmares isn't as resolved as the police had led her to believe.

This was a quick, enjoyable read. Dugan as always is really good with creating layered, interesting characters that have good qualities and bad, and uses those bad qualities to make an interesting thriller that keeps you guessing. About 60% through I was certain I knew where the book was going and I was wrong, which is awesome! Unfortunately I feel like the ending was weak; without going into depth, a character did an about-face and it wasn't telegraphed quite well enough to feel realistic once it happened. Still, any fan of YA horror will enjoy this book and it's certainly a wonderful late-summer horror tale perfect for staying up late wtih!

Noel

Thank You Net Galley For The ARC.
The Last Girls Standing

This book is a Cat Fish. Don’t Let The Pretty Cover Fool You.
Initial Guess for Review Based on First Chapter: 3??
Actual Review After Reading Book: 1 Star.

Sloan finds a flyer on her schools bulletin board for a camp counselor position. In order to get away from her overbearing adoptive mother, Sloan interviews for the position and gets the job. Once there, she meets Cherry Addison Barnes and instantly falls in love.

Machete wielding masked killers butcher everyone except Sloan and Cherry leaving them as the last girls standing.

After the murders, Sloan and Cherry try to live normal lives while going to therapy. Sloan deflects most of the questions her therapist asks her. The events are partially blocked out due to a concussion she received. Yet, vivid memories and nightmares haunt Sloan. After finding a rabbit mask in her girlfriends new apartment, Sloan takes it upon herself to finally unlock what really happened that night at camp.

This can be a best seller, if you don’t publish it, rewrite, condense and edit scenes to makes them better. Make it more exciting. This was not it. The “therapy” sessions need to be reworked. I’ve seen more action on a nature channel.

Comments:

Right off the bat, I love the representation but I felt there was more chemistry between Sloan and her best friend Connor than I did with Sloan and Cherry.
Then I felt like there was no chemistry between any of the characters.
There were a lot of chapters that were really wordy that would have been fine being three pages like a James Patterson novel. I found myself skimming to the dialogue at times. Reading the essential bits. There were scenes that induced anxiety and they were wordy but it worked because it was building tension and suspense in a chapter. Sloan is frustrating, Connor, cherry, Allison are pushy and eerie and likes to gas light. It feels like there was forced drama in certain areas to further the plot. It didn’t have me wanting to read the next chapter. It had me dreading reading the rest of the novel. After ten chapters, I started to get anxious because i knew it was going to be a terrible rating.

Near chapter 18, I started skimming the novel because it had too much explaining decisions, describing minor things, and character dialogue with characters that had little to no chemistry. I was in it to find out the ending at this point. I wanted to DNF the book but I wanted the ending to change my mind. I don’t care if I missed details after this point. I was just tired of the word vomit. This reminded me of when I read Anxious People and I could not get over how many words that book contained versus how it could have been condensed.

The story just didn’t bring intensity. For the subject matter, you want Sloan to be scared for her life and not trusting anyone. You want clues that she could die at any point. It always felt like Sloan was too safe. It never felt like a cat and mouse chase, it felt like Sloan messing around and never finding out.

Everyone controls Sloan by withholding information from her and gas lighting her just so that she isn’t in a bad mood or feeling sad or scared, instead of being open and honest with her. How come Sloan had to find something out in every chapter by a coincidence or because another character let it slip.

These characters are not likable.

Why do these characters ask so many questions and don’t wait for an answer from the other character????????? ~ this is one long question because I read so many questions in this book.

What a coincidence that this is the second person to say “you came in guns a blazing,” after they didn’t tell Sloan something. Beth tapped her lips. “You came in here, guns blazing.”
Why is this still a YA trope of “we can’t tell you something because you’re young and reckless and you’re not a real adult with real emotions.”

Why the hell did the toxic therapist think comparing Sloan to the killer was an okay thing to do?
This makes me not want to get therapy.

This had to be written on chat GPT.

I was hoping this book was going to be good. I was hoping it would make me anxious to read the next chapter but it had me dreading opening this book. I wanted to be fair and provide a fair review of what I did and did not like because this was not it.

Not good. Nothing happens. Nothing. I mean nothing.did I say nothing. Like Sloan wakes up and walks to places and that’s it. That’s the whole book.

Good concept poor execution. Very poor execution.

What I did like:

I liked the social commentary that when rich people die, they seem to matter more than normal people. For example, there is a rich girl and her parents alluded during a 60 minutes interview that they think their daughter should have survived and Sloan and Cherry should have taken her place. This book is about how difficult it is to heal from traumatic experience and how everyone wants you to move on right away. And trying to heal because everyone keeps looking down at you with pity.

It was nice to see someone talking about how sometimes police can be blasé about a potential danger even though they have all the evidence to prove that someone might do something, the Edward Cunningham story reminded me a lot of the Jeffery dahmer case.

The cult was interesting and I wish there were more scenes trying to infiltrate it to find out more about it. I wanted more information about the cult and hope deep it went.

Chapter notes of Good/Bad Things:

Chapter 5- Ewwwwww, gaslighting.??? Odd chapter…

Chapter 6 - psychological thriller. Unlocking the mind and memories. Trippy. Love it. Here for it.

Chapter 9: weird that Connor conveniently turned on the TV.

Chapter 17: chapters missing from book sash gave her after Sloan gets off of connors car. Suspicious….

Chapter 18: should have been chapter 7 and chapter 7 should have been where she found the box and was able to look through it. Word Vomit. Ma’am please condense.

Chapter 19: should have been chapter 9. This book could have been paced better. Rearrange a few chapters and take out a few chapters.

Book Summary Breakdown By Bulked Chapter:
Chapter 1 - 10: Sloan trying to live normal life, Sloan finds the mask, she starts to unlock memories, plea deal for killer announced.

Chapters 11 - 15: Sloan takes it upon herself to dig deeper in to the mystery of who the killers were and to find out more information about the pod Morte Homius.

Chapters 15 - 20: it’s been twenty chapters and nothing has happened. What am I reading? This book killed me the same way the author killed the camp counselors, brutally and slowly…

This sections from chapter 20 is the reason I dislike this book:

“We have to stop kidding ourselves, Sloan. You are not okay. You’re not. We might have both survived the attack, but you’re not living. Not even a little. Last night you said I should have left you there to die, and now you’re all guns blazing wanting to run back to the person who left you catatonic for days. I do get to decide. Your mother does get to decide. You are not well, Sloan. You’re scaring me more and more every day. You actually accused me of being a part of Morte Hominus last night! You’re not thinking straight!”
“Because of you. Because of you and your secrets! You’re constantly keeping things from me. And I’m not just talking about the stuff in your closet. But also this! The Fox! Would you have even told me about Kevin’s thing if I hadn’t been there when Magda gave you the invite?” “
“Stop calling him ‘The Fox’ like he’s some magical movie villain or something! He’s not. He’s just a regular man in a creepy mask. We are not the babes in the wood. He is not a cunning fox. This is not a fucking fairy tale. His name is Edward Cunningham, and he lived in a goddamn van! He’s forty-three years old and never had a job or a family or contributed to this world in any way, and I wish he’d fucking fry.”

Sloan is right. They treat her as fragile and they don’t help her. They lie to her, baby her, and gas light her.

Chapter 21-25: Im tired of this book. And I’m only ten chapter away from finishing and nothing has happened. This had to be written by someone who uses AI or doesn’t know what keeping the audience/reader engaged means. When I say nothing happens, nothing happens. It’s been 26 chapters.

Sis, you need to condense. This is too much.
The whole book is Sloan waking up and going to bed. I guess it’s fitting because this book felt like a terrible fever dream. It felt like it would never end and nothing was happening!!!!!!!!!!!

Why couldn’t this book include all the families of the dead?
Why did it have to be the Sloan show?
I don’t care about someone grasping for straws and doing nothing in the whole book. Maybe that was the point of the book. Maybe the message was that nobody cares about survivors, they just care about what they went through. But why ,are it this boring?????

Noooooooooo!!!!! What is this chapter:

Chapter 26:
She goes to her hypnotist fake therapist for help and her therapist decides that she is cut off from uncovering her own memories because it’s too much for Sloan.
Did the author do any sensitivity readings for this. This a problematic piece of work.
“You can’t cut me off like that.”
“I’m not a drug dealer,” Beth said, her voice hard. This was clearly not up for debate. “I’ve given you a substantial amount of leeway in this process. More than most. And I need to maintain my professional integrity. Frankly, I shouldn’t have even brought you down today.”

Every time the main character is going to find something out, everyone around Sloan keeps informations from her.

“I’m not a doctor, Sloan, as you love to point out. I think perhaps you’ve outgrown your use for me.” “
“Are you firing me?” Sloan laughed. Of all the possible outcomes, this one was unexpected. “That’s not very live, laugh, love of you, Beth.”

Chapter 26 - The End: not worth the read.

Character List:

Sloan: Main character. One of the last girls standing. Adopted. Distant after the incident. PTSD induced flashbacks. Has a birth mark that intersects with her injury she received the day of the murders. Took sixteen stitches to patch her up. Environmentalist. Would go for bands like Doha cat and Olivia rodrigo. Is good at reading people.

Beth: therapist. Sloan doesn’t consider her a real therapist.

Cherry: sloans girlfriend. Brown hair. One of the two last girls standing. In to grunge bands. Dark. Pessimistic. Giving Billy Loomis - Scream Vibes. Freckles. Sun-kissed skin.

Allison Thomas - 46 years old. sloans adoptive mother. Sent her to therapy. Overprotective. Hawk parent.

Connor - sloans best friend since childhood. Golden brown skin. Dark curly hair. Bisexual daddy ❤️. Diversity yassss.

Rachel - connors girlfriend that thinks Sloan has to get over the ordeal that happened.

Rahul - Indian, tall

Becket - wore expensive hiking boots all the time. Ableist/capitalist according to Cherry.

Simon - sloans brother, plays baseball

Brad - sloans adoptive father.

Kevin - the middle-aged camp director who had turned his white skin various shades of red and brown due to his aversion to sunscreen, and had a penchant for listening to Nirvana and Soundgarden on repeat all day.

Cherry Addison Barnes -
Charla - was in the video interview with Kevin for sloans interview.

Dahlia - a white college sophomore from downstate with the longest, prettiest brown hair that Sloan had ever seen;

Hannah, a Korean American who considered not keeping up with the latest celebrity gossip a moral failing;

Anise, who once boasted without a hint of irony that she could trace her ancestors back to the Mayflower.

Shane, a quiet Black boy with an unusual obsession with cryptids, who upon meeting who upon meeting Sloan had launched into a speech about the Mothman’s continued relevance in American history, and had barely uttered another word after.

Ronnie, the camp cook, a thirty-four-year-old Black man obsessed with perfecting his own snow cone recipe,

Magda - artist, also has an only fans. Benefited from the murders and took advantage and did interviews for her daughter.

Edward Cunningham - the Fox. Arrested. His cyanide pill was a dud.

Sasha - edwards so called sister. White hair, too much make up.

Marco - Italian man that changed the pod.

Fox - Edward Cunningham
Bear - nothing
Stag - nothing
Lion - nothing
Bobcat - nothing
Bunny - Marco

Typo:

Chapter 9: Today, we were able to reach a plea agreement the (that) satisfies all parties involved, and we’re looking forward to transferring him into a maximum-security facility in the near future.

Chapter 15:
Weird wording.
I can’t tell (take out tell or explain) explain ‘why you’ or ‘why there’ or any of the other things that you asked in your email. But maybe,”

Kayleigh Cowan

This book has everything: lesbians, slasher sleep away camp, survivors guilt, cults, ritualistic killings, soulmates, annoying little brothers, shitty therapists, and Reddit crime fighters.

nico

thank you to netgalley for the arc

✭breanna✫

Wow! Thank you NetGalley for a copy! I throughly enjoyed this story and was on the edge of my seat the entire time. I was completely blown away by the ending as well. Did not see it coming!

Title	:	The Last Girls Standing
Author	:	Jennifer Dugan
Rating	:
ISBN	:	0593532074
ISBN-10	:	9780593532072
Language	:	English
Format Type	:	Hardcover
Number of Pages	:	320
Publication	:	Expected publication August 15, 2023

The Last Girls Standing Reviews

Releated on The Last Girls Standing