The Last Murder at the End of the World

This one hooked me from page 1. The mind-blowing premise of The Last Murder At The End Of The World is revealed in the first few pages of the novel: the world as we know it is dead and all that’s left is a single green island, surrounded by a global killer black fog, and inhabited by 122 villagers, 3 scientists acting as a de facto government for this quasi-idyllic society, and one exile. Oh, and one more thing: as we start the book it’s 107 hours until humanity’s extinction. Most of the villagers are very content with their lives, completely unaware of impending doom. Their days are arduous, but they don’t seem to mind. Their days and nights are highly regulated by the scientists, but they don’t seem to mind that either, in fact they revere the scientists, who they call the Elders. One of the only villagers who questions anything is Emory, one of the two central figures in the book. Emory questions why the Elders have so much control over everybody else’s lives. She questions the circumstances of a boat accident some years back that killed her husband Jack and four other villagers. She questions what happens to them when they sleep, seeing as how they sometimes wake up with scrapes and bruises they don’t remember having. And she questions why no one else questions these things. At the other pole we have the other key figure, Niema Mandripilias, the leader of the scientists. It’s in the book’s prologue that Niema and an initially highly mysterious second individual named Abi finish their esoteric calculations showing that, in order to stave off doom, somebody is going to have to die in the next four days. But in doing that, that one person just may save the world. Part of this scenario Niema and Abi have figured out involves a special announcement to be made by Niema in two days time, after one of the village’s regular evening music recitals. Flash forward to the morning after the recital, and Niema is dead, skull crushed by a fallen beam in a burning barn. Almost the whole population of the village, the two remaining scientists included, show signs of a violent struggle. And not one of them can remember the preceding twelve hours. Was the announcement ever made? Was the possibility that she herself might end up dead what spooked Niema so? Is there another death yet to come, and if so, at whose hands? Why can’t anybody remember anything? I’m going to avoid going any further, and I’ve actually omitted some key points that happen in roughly the same time frame. This is still early in the book – actually most of what I’ve described is given away either in the prologue or on the book flap – but I just wanted to give you an idea of how fresh and inventive The Last Murder At The End Of The World is. It’s a great whodunit/whydunit that crosses over into the territory of other genres and does so extremely successfully. You’ve got to read this. 10/10

This was my first exposure to Mr. Turton’s writing, and it was quite interesting. I am not sure just how to rate the story. It is quite different than most any other SciFi story I’ve read, especially apocalyptic stories. It is very well written, and quite easy to follow the cast of characters. I would say there are very few surprises, until you get to the end. The ending itself is actually quite well done, and a bit of a twist. (There are hints along the way, but quite subtle.) That said, the story itself takes a lot of twists and turns. They are done in a way that I would not call them surprises, as they are similar in nature to detective classics. I also felt it a bit slow for some time, but it did pick up the pace about half-way through, and finished with a rush of evidence and theories. I would call the story entertaining, with a minor moral overtone. I doubt that I’d do a continuous diet of this style of story, but every so often, it’s a good diversion.

This is one of those books that hooked me immediately with its premise… but didn’t fully stick the landing. Set on a secluded island inhabited by the last survivors of a world-ending fog, The Last Murder at the End of the World introduces a fascinating, almost eerie society. Everyone works together to survive, life is structured and controlled, and, strangely, people die at exactly 60 years old. Overseeing it all are the Elders, scientists who remember the world before everything collapsed. Then, everything falls apart. When one of the Elders is murdered and the island’s defenses fail, the clock starts ticking. The deadly fog is coming, and the only way to stop it is to solve the murder in just a matter of days. It’s a killer setup, part post-apocalyptic survival story, part locked-room mystery. And for a while, it really works. The standout for me was Emory. She’s sharp, fearless, and easy to root for. I loved her determination and the way she pushes against the rigid structure of her world. That said, her deductive leaps sometimes felt a little too convenient, like she was connecting dots that weren’t fully there yet. My biggest issue, though, is the length. There’s a great story buried in here, but it feels weighed down by unnecessary detail and detours. A tighter edit could have made this far more impactful. Instead, it drags in places where it should be building tension. And then there’s the ending… Without spoiling anything, it felt like a bit of a cop-out. After everything the story builds toward, the resolution didn’t quite match the journey. It left me more confused than satisfied, like the payoff didn’t fully earn the complexity that came before it. Overall, this is a creative and ambitious novel with a lot of intriguing ideas, but it doesn’t quite deliver on all of them. Worth reading if you enjoy high-concept mysteries, but be prepared for a slower ride and an ending that might not land for you.

Oh, what delightful confusion! I loved Stuart Turton’s last two novels (The Seven and a Half Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle needs to be read by everyone, by the way) and I couldn’t wait to pick this one up. The Last Murder at the End of the World featured twist after turn, leaving me stunned and satisfied. Half of the fun for me is trying to figure out what the book is even about. The descriptions never actually describe anything. Yes, this is a murder mystery. Yes, the suspects are all stuck on the last island not overrun by a fog that destroys anything it touches. Yes, everyone there- including the murderer- have forgotten what happened. But those are just the broad strokes and there is always the possibility (okay, probability) that the author is pulling one over on the reader. The Last Murder at the End of the World features a narrator in the form of Abi, an AI that is linked to the mind of each villager. However, Abi either doesn’t have or can’t share the answers, so everyone, even the murderer, is left stumbling in the dark. One of the village elders has been killed in a place where violence is unheard of. The entire island has only a few days to solve the mystery before the devastating fog overruns them and leaves desolation in its wake. I loved the idea of a narrator that isn’t giving all the information. It left me scrambling to find meaning in every interaction written. The clues are there, but darned if I could find them! Unlike other mystery-meets-postapocalyptic novels (I’m sure there are tons of those, right?), the characters are both more and less than expected. The characters themselves vacillated between frustrating and fascinating. While there are generally hidden depths to characters in mysteries, I felt that in some ways it was quite the opposite here. Some of the characters were actually much less than they seemed to be, as far as personalities went. Although absolutely nothing was done without reason, this was an odd change and left me off balance. In fact, the entire book kept me off kilter in the best way. The ending was fantastic, and I spent the last few chapters holding my breath. It was rather painful. The setting wasn’t my favorite of the books I’ve read by this author (which is all of them), but I love the way he changes things up with each time. I never know what to expect, and isn’t the best part of a mystery? Stuart Turton is an auto-buy author for me. If you read just one of his books, he’ll become the same for you.

After reading a couple of Stuart Turton's books I think I can say fairly comfortably that he's a Hemingway of mystery novels. You're either going to love what you're reading, or you're going to suffer through every word of it, and there won't be a whole lot of in-between. Thankfully for me, I'm a huge fan. I absolutely loved The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, but it was by far one of the more polarizing books my book club has ever read in its 4.5 years of existence. I never know what to expect when I crack open a Turton novel, because they're each so different, but I've enjoyed the hell out of myself each time. You really do have to put in some mental labor with Turton's books, and I find that they're much better understood if they're read more than once. I get why that's not for everyone! TLMATEOTW is a sci-fi apocalypse murder mystery, in which the last 122 people on Earth have 107 hours until extinction, unless they can solve the murder. Turton offers social commentary that challenges us to question which qualities make a good and fair leader, what can ethically be sacrificed for the good of a society, and what "humanity" actually means in a world driven by technology. I really enjoyed the way AI intertwined with the narrative and raised questions as to if and when it is ever ethical for AI to influence individual decision-making to achieve a certain end, especially if it is beneficial for society at large, but at the expense of the individual or a smaller subset of the society in question.

Really great book. Very creative world, unexpected plot twists. I really enjoyed reading this one. If you like a dystopian world mixed with a murder mystery, this is perfect. Couldn't put it down.

I enjoyed this book, but the plot lines at times were hard to follow. I got it in the end. And the end was satisfying as we like our stories to be!

I absolutely loved The Devil and the Dark Water so I have been anxiously waiting for this new novel. I will say that it is unique and very creative. I loved the first half and was thinking it was going to be another 5 star read. But for me, the second half fell apart. There were way too many characters making the goings on very convaluted and confusing. It was difficult to make sense of it all and I found that by three quarters in I just wanted it to end. I am very disappointed but I have his first book to read so will try that one.

Stuart Turton's willingness to reinvent his approach with each book is bold and compelling—one of the reasons I eagerly anticipate his every release. His earlier works, The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle and The Devil and the Dark Water, showcased his range: the first a whodunit with a Groundhog Day-like twist, the second a dark tale of superstition and conspiracy aboard a 17th-century ship. Now he ventures into new territory with a sci-fi apocalypse whodunit, as the title aptly suggests. Set in a post-apocalyptic future, The Last Murder at the End of the World unfolds on a small Greek island where a deadly fog has decimated humanity. The survivors—122 villagers and three scientists—live under strict rules enforced by an AI voice embedded in their consciousness. When a murder occurs, the islanders must solve the crime before their protective systems fail and the fog consumes them all. As time runs out, the story weaves a gripping tale of survival, community, and hidden truths in a world on the brink of oblivion. The book's greatest strength, as with Turton's previous works, is its seamless blend of genres. He masterfully combines a classic locked-room mystery with a post-apocalyptic setting and speculative science fiction, creating something remarkably fresh. However, the book's ambitious scope, paired with its relatively short length, occasionally leads to superficial treatment of certain elements. This is particularly evident in the whodunit aspect—the numerous subplots make it challenging to remain invested in the murder mystery. Yet Turton's skilled world-building and talent for crafting intricate puzzles make the story captivating from beginning to end. Pros: Inventive genre-blending, unique world-building, and an engrossing plot. Cons: An underdeveloped whodunit element

I liked Stuart Turtons first two novels very much; genre blending mystery novels with low fantasy intertwined. This latest work, though, does not quiet measure up: The characters fails to convince and some seem plagiarized from the earlier books. The plot and twist comes across as somewhat forced, athough that might be expected when an author decides to to "novels with a twist" - compare with the works of M. Night Shyamalan . Not a bad read though and Turton is skilled in writing so I got through the book fast enough. Still looking forward to Turtons next book since he is a rather original writer with a keen since of finding new conceptual ideas.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book, thought it was imaginative, well developed characters, I loved the concept of the narrator because it was unique to anything I have read, cleverly done mystery where I didn’t know who was responsible until it was discovered in the book. I noticed some errors which did stump me, twice the wrong character was mentioned in the book and I re-read those parts thinking I must have been confused about what character I was reading about but found I wasn’t and in fact the wrong character was named but I wasn’t sure if it was done on purpose or not in a way to show the narrator wasn’t perfect..

Un roman d'anticipation dystopique avec un message très édifiant.

Bellissimo e scritto bene