LAST ONE AT THE PARTY by Bethaney Clift

"She was dead among the living. She was alive among the dead"

About the Book

In 2020 we all experienced a pandemic. The fear, the anxiety and the uncertainty, it was horrible. Majority of us would have thought the worst and prayed for the bare minimum. Thank god we found our way out of it. A lot of people lost their lives but a majority survived. And we created a new life.

What if that was just the trailer and the picture is yet to come. In this book the author, Bethany Clift has imagined the last three months of 2023 and the year 2024, when there is a breakdown of a virus even more dangerous than Covid-19 and the situation is the worst. Everyone is dead. Every single human on the earth is dead, except our protagonist. She hopes that there should be more. She is out on a hunt to find more survivors. 

On her journey she rescues a Dog. Lucky, her only friend. This is a story of survival of the least fit. The challenges that she faces. The numerous ways she fails. Her bravery and her cowardness. This is a story of self discovery.

About the author

Bethany Clift is a graduate of the Northern Film School, the producer of low budget British horror film Heretic, and the Director of her own production company, Saber Productions. Last One at the Party is her debut novel.

About the characters

Protagonist: It was so surprising how well I felt connected to her. These were the same emotions that I go through. Maybe I am not the only one and this is the situation of our entire generation. But it was so fulfilling to read her dilemma and confusion. It hits more when someone else talks about your emotions. I loved her.

James: Jamse is a sweetheart. The perfect green flag. A mature person. I think i know someone just like him.

Lucky: A loyal companion.

Harry: He was not on my list but I loved his last appearance in the book.

What I liked

This book is amazing. One of my favourites.

I liked the portrayal of the protagonist. She wasn't perfect. Not at all. But the situation was demanding. It's amazing how somebody with little or no energy to survive survives a deadly virus and embraces the new life. She fails. You tend to judge her in between. But then I just couldn't curse her because she resembled me. In most of the situations I would have done the same, although my ideal self would have advised me otherwise.

The description of death is horrific. It's hurtful and in that situation also you can sense the beauty of love. All kinds of love.

I have annotated so many things in the book. This book changed the way you look at life. It is amazing. I would highly recommend this book.