This month, I dove into They Both Die At The End by Adam Silvera. When I was digging through the library, this book caught my eye. As someone who speculates the concept of death, the premise was exciting to me. Two boys, Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio, recieve *literally* life-ending news from a new technology company called Death Cast–in the next 24 hours, they will die. As expected, this is disheartening news, but both boys tackle this differently.
Mateo and Rufus both have different reasons for finding a new friend on their last day, and luckiley, the Last Friend’s app gives them that oppertunity. Then, they live their last day with all the broken hopes and hearts they’ll let go after the clock hits midnight.
I loved his book because of the things it made me wonder. What happens after death? Can we prevent it? How can I maximize my life so it doesn’t turn into a heap of waste?
Rufus and Mateo want to make Last Friends for different reasons. Rufus, who has lived his life on the edge, cannot be with his friends for their own saftey, but doesn’t want to be alone. Mateo is a shy teenager who has not truly lived life. He hasn’t lived on the edge or stepped out of his comfort zone. He wants to get a taste of life before he dies.
What was wonderful about this book is the twisting feeling you have as you’re reading. You’re smiling at an amazing moment that is heartwarming and almost forget that it’s both their last days. The readers know that both will die at the end…goodness it’s in the title! It’s not the question of if they’ll die, but how and how we’ll feel about it. In the matter of a day, we fall in love with Mateo and Rufus. As we flip the pages, another weight seems to add to our hearts. We know their death is nearing.
And we weren’t ready for it.
There are heartwarming undertones and sad realtities that come with a book. They’re leaving all they love without control over why. They can’t change the course of it and it’s utterly frustrating in the best way possible. The boys won’t grow to be older, have jobs, kids, anything. They’re life is cut shorter than deserved, and that was the saddest aspect.
Adam Silvera does an amazing job at attaching us to these characters, feeling their emotions and their heartbeats, but this book does come with it’s flaws. Though the premise Death Cast is rooted in science fiction, the book is majorily contemporary, meaning us readers don’t get an explaination to how Death Cast can predict death days flawlessly. As an avid reader of fantasy and sci-fi, it would have bothered me if I didn’t know prior that the book wouldn’t delve much into the details.
Second, the relationships and story felt a bit rushed and at times, fake to me. I can’t jump right into the heart of the issue, but certain scenes felt like they sprung from behind the bushes with the intent of scaring you. While there were signs, the blatenet contemporary tones and unbelievable love stories were more outlandish than I’m accustomed too.
Third, the character deaths didn’t impact me as much as I wanted it to. I waited for the whole book with the fear or the two boys dying, but when they did, I didn’t feel much, maybe because I’d anticipated it.
I think this was due to the rushed relationships and seemingly unrealistic behaviors of the main characters.
While I liked this book, it’s not one that I’ll remember for long. It was a fun read that I genuinly enjoyed, but other than the temporary questions about death passing through my brain.
How You Can Make the Most of Your Short Life.
- Live in the moment but think ahead.
- Pursue your dreams with a stable foundation.
- Only care about other’s opinons of you when they’re comment has the intention of helping you.
- Life is too short for you to hate yourself.
- Be proud of who you are.
- Strive for excelence.
- Chase knowledge and education.
- Make new friends and polish old ones.
- Be more openminded.
- Put your heart into everything you do.
- Priotize, prioritize, priorize.
- Think like you’ll die tommorow. What do you have to get done? Now, do it.
- Don’t let amazing oppertunities slip away.
- Enjoy the small things. Don’t chase the fame, chase the love and caring. Nourish your heart so you feel fulfilled. You’re money won’t be with you after death.
- Remeber that you can give yourself a break. Use mistakes as lessons.
- Help those who need you.
- Make an impact in your community, no matter how small.
The Enthusiast 