They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera
They Both Die at the End
Pros
- Original and thought provoking
- Complex characters
- Queers of Color
Cons
- Queer death
- Some self-shame
- Will leave you wanting more
Title: They Both Die at the End
Author: Adam Silvera
Original Publication Date: 2017
Original Publisher: Harper Teen
Queer Representation: 1 gay and 1 bisexual protagonist
Page Length: 384
How would you spend your last 24 hours?
Memorable Quote:
“Maybe it’s better to have gotten it right and been happy for one day instead of living a lifetime of wrongs.”
Review:
Nobody knows how Death-Cast gets its information, but they do know that it is always right. If Death-Cast calls you shortly after midnight, one thing is certain: some time in the next twenty-four hours you are going to die. The caller from Death-Cast does not tell you when or how, but you can be certain that you will not see another day. Neither Mateo nor Rufus was expecting a call from Death-Cast on September 5th, but then again very few people are. And they certainly were not expecting to spend their final day together, but thanks to Last Friend, an app designed so that people do not need to be alone on their End Day, that is exactly what happens.
Mateo and Rufus turn to Last Friend for very different reasons. Mateo, a quiet introvert whose father is in a coma, has no one else to spend his End Day with and does not want to be alone. Rufus, on the other hand, has plenty of friends, but after watching his parents and sister die in front of his eyes, does not want to subject them to the same fate. The two boys must decide what to do in their final hours, and as they take turns deciding on activities and destinations, they learn about each other and about themselves; they learn how to live enough for an entire lifetime in a single day and how to make that day count.
Silvera weaves together an entirely complex tale that readers will not want to put down even after they have finished. They Both Die at the End is told in the alternating perspectives of Rufus and Mateo with occasional breaks from the main narrative that show how Death-Cast has changed the world. Readers will fall in love with Mateo and Rufus as they fall in love with each other and will inevitably hope that the title is meant as a trick. Silvera forces his readers to truly contemplate their lives and hopefully inspires us all to live our lives to the fullest. While this message is far from original, and many of our questions remain unanswered, the delivery is so profound and thought-provoking that it would be difficult for any reader not to count this book among their favorites.
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