Book Review: They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera
They Both Die at the End
Series: Death-Cast #1
Author: Adam Silvera
Published: September 5, 2017
Paperback: 389 pages
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Read: May 21-30, 2025
Jessica’s Rating: 5 stars
Book Description:
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.
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.
Jessica’s Review:
What else can I say about They Both Die at the End that I haven’t already said? Let’s find out:
Here are links to my double review with Kim and then when I listened to it a second time before the prequel came out.
My Double Review with Kim
My Second Listen/Read
Now, in 2025 a third in the series recently came out (with a fourth releasing next year!) So of course I have to re-read Silvera’s series! And this time I actually read it! Some friends of mine all switched books last year and we annotated them, so reading the book with their comments added to my enjoyment seeing what they thought!
Here is a picture with their commentary added in:
I just love this book. It is the journey that Mateo and Rufus go on for their last day. Knowing the ending from the title, you just can’t help but find yourself getting attached to these two teens and hoping against hope that Death-Cast is wrong. This book is not about dying, but learning just how to live.
Just a couple of quotes from the book this time:
“And you wouldn’t have waited for me to be brave. Maybe it’s better to have gotten it right and been happy for one day instead of living a lifetime of wrongs”.
“Two dudes met. They fell in love. They lived. That’s our story.”
Again, I did not cry reading it, but got emotional. And I know those ugly tears will reappear for my re-read of The First to Die at the End.
Throughout their end date Rufus takes pictures and posts them on Instagram. At the end of the book his username is mentioned. Be sure to note that once you have finished this book look him up. It is an actual Instagram account!
I just noticed that this book was released on September 5, 2017, which was Mateo and Rufus’ end date. I’m feeling so many emotions now!
Adam Silvera, you are brilliant with your writing in this world of Death-Cast. Keep bringing this world to us with more people meeting!
Audiobook Review: So Happy Together by Olivia Worley
So Happy Together
Author: Olivia Worley
Narrator: Michelle H. Lee
Published: June 3, 2025
Audiobook: 8 hours 47 minutes
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Listened To: June 1-5, 2025
Jessica’s Rating: 4 stars
Book Description:
Jane and Colin are soulmates. He just doesn’t know it yet.
For twenty-four-year-old Jane, finding love in New York City is even harder than making it as a playwright—especially when all her swiping through the apps leads to one meaningless connection after another.
So when Jane meets Colin, a sweet software engineer, she can’t believe her luck: they’re perfect for each other. Even when Colin breaks off their blooming relationship after six dates, Jane is certain this is just a stumbling block. She’ll get him back. She knows she will.
That is, until Colin starts dating Zoe—perfect, luminous, up-and-coming Brooklyn artist Zoe. Even worse, she’s actually kind of nice. But Zoe doesn’t have what it takes to love Colin. She’d never stay with him through thick and thin. All Jane has to do is prove it, and they’ll be so happy together.
But when Jane sneaks into Colin’s apartment, she makes a shocking discovery—one that will ensnare them all in a dark and complicated web of lies, secrets, and murder.
Jessica’s Review:
The cover of So Happy Together caught my attention and after I read the book description I wanted to read it: We have a female stalker! And I did enjoy it. The novel takes place in New York City. Jane meets Colin through an app (as people do these days) and they have six dates; they sleep together and after that Colin ends it. But Jane knows they are meant to be together, so she starts stalking him! I was all about reading a female stalker! Jane worms her way back into Colin’s life and one day sneaks into his apartment, and discovers something that is shocking to her.
It would help if you know some about Hamlet and Ophelia as Jane is a playwright and written a play about Ophelia. I am not familiar with this play at all. I don’t feel I missed out on anything not knowing a thing about Ophelia or Hamlet.
This story has a lot of twists and goes in several different directions. We have disappearances and murder. I enjoyed listening to this one. The narrator, Michelle H. Lee did a good job with her narration. Her interpretation of Jane was ‘fitting’ for a stalker and her narration kept me involved in the story.
Many thanks to the publisher Macmillan Audio for granting me a copy to listen to and review.
Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Audiobook Review: The Murder Machine by Heather Graham
The Murder Machine
Author: Heather Graham
Narrator: Tim Paige
Published: April 29, 2025
Audiobook: 7 hours 55 minutes
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Listened To: May 26-29, 2025
Jessica’s Rating: 3 stars
Book Description:
Artificial intelligence meets genuine murderous intent.
This state-of-the-art smart home has a next-generation entertainment system, an ultramodern kitchen where every appliance is online and even a personal AI to control it all. Standing above its owner’s lifeless body, FBI agent Jude Mackenzie is faced with the daunting task of discovering how the woman was killed by her own home. How do you catch a murderer that doesn’t leave any fingerprints?
Enter Special Agent Victoria Tennant, whose familiarity with cybercrime reveals the stark a machine can only do what it’s been directed to. As the number of grisly “accidents” begins to rise, the pair must race to uncover the perpetrator even as they find themselves caught in their digital crosshairs! There’s nowhere to hide when danger may be as close as the very phones in their pockets.
Jessica’s Review:
The description of the book intrigued me; AI is becoming ‘normal’ whether we want it or not. (I’m in the ‘not wanting it’ group. Hello… Skynet is coming!) When I read the book description about a ‘smart home’ and the owner being murdered, I wanted to read it.
And I loved the beginning! I was pulled in from chapter one with the aftermath of the death of the home owner. But I didn’t connect with the two FBI agents and the fact that they fell for each other just didn’t work for me. The story line was reasonable for me, but I could have done without that.
The narrator did a good job with the novel.
The idea of AI becoming a ‘murder machine’ is an idea I am still wanting to read more of. Especially since out world is becoming so much more dependent on AI. I mean, who will know what is actually real or not real?
Thank you to the publisher for granting me a copy to listen to and review. I wish I could have enjoyed it more.
Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK