Monday 27 February 2012

The Last Three by Almon Chu

from amazon 

"'Just three more stops,' I thought to myself. I gripped my knife, the handle digging into my flesh. I closed my eyes and tried to think of Eris." A descent down the path of self-destruction, does salvation lie around the corner or is it merely an illusion? 

The Last Three is a captivating story of a lost soul on the streets of a modern dystopia.

review

I'm very picky when it comes to deciding what to read. Most of the books I end up picking up come highly recommended from several sources. And most of them are of the young adult genre. Reading The Last Three by Almon Chu convinced me to try and widen my reading choices. As you may never know where you might find a good book! The Last Three is part dystopian, part frighteningly real and on the whole, extremely engaging. The world of The Last Three is steadily built with the different voices, activities and moods. The secondary characters feed on the main character, Jon's, paranoia.

Jon and Eris's relationship broke my heart. To me, it was Jon's devotion towards Eris that made Eris worth even a second glance. The other secondary characters also startled me with their vibrance. They all have personalities that make them jump out of the page. My heart went out to Rean and Jon's friends were interesting and did much to compliment Jon's sense of foreboding. 

Another thing that stood out was the writing. I loved certain passages in the novella that delivered the urgency and intensity of the moment so well. By simply put words and whispers of the mind, I was easily taken to that moment. There are several times when my heartbeat quickened and I thought, that was brilliantly written right after I felt myself sinking into the sights and smells of the crumbling city.

Jon's psychological and physical health wanes from the beginning as he realises that certain relationships were nothing but a lie. He can feel himself becoming weak, feeling listless and lost and what's beautiful is that you see the city crumbling with him. The city crumbles as it threatens to swallow him whole.

I've read very few novellas and almost nothing comparable to The Last Three. It's gritty and there is usage of strong language making it strictly for adult readers but it is definitely worth reading, even if you usually don't give other genres a chance. It's available at the Amazon Kindle store for just 0.99$ so pick it up. You may never know... you might get sucked in, just like I was!

Publication date: 15th October, 2011
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
Source: Obtained from the author, Almon Chu, in exchange for an honest review

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

6 comments:

  1. Oh, WOW! I don't read very many novellas either but this one sounds like such a fascinating one! At a first glance, I wouldn't expect this to be a super-cool dystopian book, but you make it sound so fantastic! :)

    Really awesome review, Ajoop! Gritty and engaging and frightening real... I probably never would've thought to pick this book up on my own, so thank you so much for putting it on my radar! :)

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  2. Hm.. I love reading dystopian novels. So mostly I will try this one out. Thanks for recommending.

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  3. Gosh, such a enchanting review! This book is not the kind I usually read, but your review persuade me to check this out! I LOVE heartbreaking story, the best books are the one that stays in your heart even long after you read it! Thanks for making me aware of this book, Ajoop! :)

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  4. Wow, this sounds like a fascinating and gripping read. I just love it when I get sucked into great writing. I am interested in the crumbling city and psychological health, sounds like another good book for my inner psychologist!
    I miss your Tell Me Something Tuesday Posts, hopefully you can participate again soon.

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  5. It looks interesting. Thanks for your thoughts on this. I bookmarked the Amazon page.

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  6. @Mimi Aww, thanks Mimi <3 I hope you give it a try! I didn't expect to love it either because it's not the kind of book I usually read :)

    @Harish Thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoy it, if you do pick it up!

    @Hilda yay. Yeah, heartbreaking describes this novella perfectly :,( Definitely stayed in my mind for a long time.

    @Heidi The books definitely left me with a lot to ponder over! Do check it out, Heidi :) I kind of end up doing memes alternate weeks. It just kind of happens. Agh. I miss TMST posts too! I'm definitely in this Tuesday :)

    @Medeia Thanks for stopping by and bookmarking the Amazon page :D

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HI. Thanks for reading! Feel free to comment. :)