e-Audio, 17:49:55
Narrated by: Frankie J. Alvarez, Kyla Garcia, & Anthony Rey Perez
Release Date: May 6, 2025
Published by: Quill Tree Books
Read from: MY 6-8, 2025
Death-Cast Series, #2
Source: Audible Unused Credit
Content Warning: Suicidal Thoughts, Suicide Attempts, Self Harm, Gun Violence, Domestic Abuse, Alcoholism, Addiction, Panic Attacks/Disorders, Violence
For Readers Interested In: 2sLGBTQ+, Full Cast Audio, Most Anticipated, Racial/Ethnic Diversity, Romance, Sci-Fi, Series/Companion, Tear Jerkers, YA/NAIn this third book of the USA Today and #1 New York Times mega-bestselling They Both Die at the End series, two strangers—each with their own complicated relationship to Death-Cast—help each other learn to live.
Paz Dario stays up every night, waiting for the Death-Cast call that would mean he doesn’t have to keep faking his way through this lonely life. After a devastating day, Paz decides he’s done waiting around for Death-Cast. If they say he’s not dying, he’ll just have to prove them wrong. But right before Paz can die, a boy saves his life.
Alano Rosa is heir to the Death-Cast empire that encourages everyone to live their best lives, but he doesn’t feel in control of his own existence thanks to his father. And with a violent organization called the Death Guard threatening Alano, his End Day might be closer than he thinks. It’s time to live.
Fate brings Paz and Alano together, but it’s now up to the boys to survive the tragic trials ahead so no one dies at the end.
This book contains themes that some readers may find difficult.
*MY THOUGHTS*
Y’all this took me through the ringer! And yes I cried with this one too. I think this is the one in the series that I cried the most so far. Being inside the head of this depressed teen had me going to the teens in my life asking how they were if they needed to talk etc.
So this time the main characters were people we had met before but didn’t know that we met if that makes sense. One of them is the Death Cast creator’s son. And he was considered “royalty” because of who his dad was. He was looked at so closely in everything. And then when it came out that he decided to not keep his own calls, things got sticky. But I loved that about him. He deserved whatever gave him the most peace.
As far as Paz, he made me so sad. I wanted nothing more than to climb into that book and help him. But I also got mad at him a lot. He put SO MUCH on Alano by letting him be the center of him and Alano was also a child. And yeah he was reading up on certain things, but he wasn’t licensed. I just felt all around bad for him. (But I also got mad at Alano for allowing himself to be used like that. Memory or not.) Normally I’m not ok with having the love interest seemingly heal you, but this isn’t that. Paz still has trouble before and after him. He accepts the helps after they get it together and that makes me happy.
The ending threw me for a loop. It was not where I was expecting this to go. it also leaves an opening for another book in the series which I actually just saw is actually happening. There’s so much that’s revealed in this book that another one just had to happen. And I really hope the things that were secret in this one come out but only once one of them is healed. please don’t pile things on to them.
I will say it was pretty repetitive tho. It was entirely too long imho. It kept having the same scenes happen which I thought was a bit too much. And of course they were quite graphic, so I thought just showing them over and over was a bit excessive. I think the same message could have come across without the same thing happening constantly.
This series is breaking me, but I continue to read it anyway. I really hope to be able to read the other when it comes out later next year. I don’t think this series is for everyone, but I will say, if you are ok with reading it, give it a shot. It’s real, raw, and honest, and people need to know and see that there are kids out there that feel this way and should be treated as if they know themselves. Depression is real and should be treated as such.
Overall, I give this
