They Both Die at the End

They Both Die at the End
Adam Silvera
Quill Tree/HarperCollins, 2017
384 pages
Grades 9-Up
Science Fiction

Alternating points of view tell the story of two teenage boys, Mateo and Rufus, who bond during their last day on this planet in the New York City of the near-future. They both get a call from Deathcast, a company whose job it is to inform folks that they will die that day, a little after midnight. Mateo's sole parent is in a coma in the hospital and he is afraid to leave his apartment. He reaches out on an app called "Last Friend" to possibly find someone to connect with. Meanwhile, when Rufus gets the Deathcast call he is beating up the boyfriend of his ex. Running from the cops, Rufus is separated from his friends and turns to Last Friend to avoid being alone on his final day. The boys meet and then spend the day wandering around New York, doing the things that they feel they need to take care of, saying goodbye to important places, and having fresh experiences. Throughout the long and life-changing day they make a true connection and develop feelings for each other. Have they both finally found love now that they are expected to die? Can they beat the system?

This is a book that I thought I read, but somehow missed. It came back on my radar while hearing about the upcoming prequel (The First to Die at the End) due out for release this October. It is having a day at my library right now, whether from excitement over the new title or word-of-mouth from teens who enjoy sad love stories, I'm not sure. This book is what I call a "concept book". It has such a great premise that it is an easy sell. I call it "science fiction", but the closer term would be "speculative fiction" since it's a gentle scientific advance and set in our contemporary culture. This story begs to be used for book discussion and teens will wonder how they would spend their last days and if they would want to know in advance their day of demise. I love that both of the characters are Latino, are written very distinctly and that the book is set in New York City (my favorite place :) I also love that there are some bonus characters with points of view who are defined at the beginning of the chapter as to whether they will be living or dyeing that day. They present some side stories that have relevance to the overall plot. My negative is that the story tended to get a bit "talky" for my taste and I had to roll my eyes at the falling in love in less than twenty-four hours. This could be because I am not the target audience. Teens will be all-in, hang on every emotion, and find their own hearts breaking. Though the middle dragged for me, the ending was great and a huge pay-off. All in all, I enjoyed the book and can see why it is a huge hit with teens.