Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Title: One Last Stop
Author: Casey McQuiston
Genre: Romance / LGBTQ
Author Info:
Setting: New York City, New York
Month Read: June 2021
Book Type: Hardcover
Publication: 2021
Pages: 432
*Book of the Month June Pick
TRIGGER WARNING-
Homophobia / Sexual Themes / Substance Use
"Jane is spun sugar. A switchblade girl with a cotton-candy heart."
No Spoiler Summary:
One Last Stop is a lesbian romantic comedy you won't put down.
You meet August, a 23 year old NYC transplant from New Orleans, struggling to find an apartment, a job, and maybe not actually finish college. She has no friends, and a mom who is obsessed with solving the cold case of her missing uncle Augie. She moves into an apartment filled with the weirdest people (who instantaneously adopt her as a new best friend), finds a new job waitressing (and lies her way through the first week as she learns the ropes for a career she's never had), and learns (unsuccessfully at first) how not to slip on ice in winter in NYC and spill your coffee all over your boobs.
Enter Jane- a gorgeous, charming, rough girl on the train who saves Augusts' chest by giving her her scarf. Always in her signature leather jacket/jeans combo and a constant on Augusts' daily commute, August develops THE crush on Jane. Everyday August gets on the train pining for the mysterious girl in the leather jacket, and banter begins to happen.
Something seems to always happen during the banter- whenever August brings up events past the 70s, Jane doesn't know what she's talking about. It turns out, Jane is actually displaced in time from the 70s, and it's up to August and her rag-tag band of roomates and drag queens across the hall to help Jane find her way home. Will Subway Girl ever make it home? Will August learn to open her heart, even if she fears she'll never be able to see the object of her devotion again?
Review:
One Last Stop is a lesbian romantic comedy / time travel novel that sounds way weirder than it actually ends up being. Jane and August are the absolute BEST leading ladies, and Casey McQuiston writes the absolute best dialogue and banter between these weird and wonky (and absolutely lovable) characters.
I did feel a little called out during reading this, first about the 'no Libras need apply' roommate notice, and then her shitting on my very milky, very sugary coffee tastes. (What's up, Jane?) I read this book in 2 days, which is really good time for a 400+ page novel and an infant and a job, and I desperately wish I could read it for the first time all over again.
This should have been a main pick for BOOK OF THE MONTH, ESPECIALLY DURING PRIDE MONTH. I feel like this being relegated to an add-on was sad, because this definitely deserves better and is in contention for my book of the year. It's definitely one of the best 2021 releases I've read so far, and I officially have a new favorite author.
I love a novel that has a supporting cast that you're as obsessed with as you are with the lead characters, and man, Casey gives us a gift with these characters. Everyone has their own distinct personality, and you get multiple love stories which can't ever hurt. I'd die for spin-offs with these characters (hint, hint!) and hope that this isn't the last we see of them.
Recommendation:
LGBTQ Romances for Pride:
Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli (YA)
What If It's Us? by Adam Silvera (YA)
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Call Me By Your Name by André Aciman
Modern Romances:
People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab
Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas (YA)
Alex & Eliza by Melissa de la Cruz (YA)
Beach Read by Emily Henry
The Selection by Kiera Cass (YA)
"When you spend your whole life alone, it's incredibly appealing to move somewhere big enough to get lost in. Where being alone looks like a choice."