*based on ARC edition*
I very much enjoyed this book. The Last Human is a strange one, though, and a bit of a misnomer until you get to the end and understand why it was called that.It is an apocalypse story, in so much that the world has been destroyed by a virus, but it is really more of a story about the humanity that is either gained, lost, or maintained under such circumstances. Clay, the voice we hear in the telling, struggles to maintain his humanity under extreme torture and abuse by those who claim they want to save the world. There is the stereotypical "everyone turns bad" scenario in which the world ends and 99% of the humans left are caricatures of evil, sometimes for no real reason except to be evil. While from a reality standpoint I don't think this holds true, the story is written so incredibly well that I forgave that. This story is about love where there shouldn't be any, struggling when it would be easier to die, and finding a home in a place in which that concept no longer exists. My one gripe is the ending twist, because we aren't hearing Clay, we're hearing someone else tell the story as they think Clay would tell it. It was a bit jarring, honestly, but again the writing is so well done that even though I instantly disliked a character that I previously cared for, you have to give the author credit for being able to switch both tone and character so effortlessly. This is a good read and should be experienced, especially for anyone who is as much a fan of the genre as I am.
I very much enjoyed this book. The Last Human is a strange one, though, and a bit of a misnomer until you get to the end and understand why it was called that.It is an apocalypse story, in so much that the world has been destroyed by a virus, but it is really more of a story about the humanity that is either gained, lost, or maintained under such circumstances. Clay, the voice we hear in the telling, struggles to maintain his humanity under extreme torture and abuse by those who claim they want to save the world. There is the stereotypical "everyone turns bad" scenario in which the world ends and 99% of the humans left are caricatures of evil, sometimes for no real reason except to be evil. While from a reality standpoint I don't think this holds true, the story is written so incredibly well that I forgave that. This story is about love where there shouldn't be any, struggling when it would be easier to die, and finding a home in a place in which that concept no longer exists. My one gripe is the ending twist, because we aren't hearing Clay, we're hearing someone else tell the story as they think Clay would tell it. It was a bit jarring, honestly, but again the writing is so well done that even though I instantly disliked a character that I previously cared for, you have to give the author credit for being able to switch both tone and character so effortlessly. This is a good read and should be experienced, especially for anyone who is as much a fan of the genre as I am.
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