Book Review: One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston
Length: 422 Pages
Genres: Contemporary Romance, Lesbian Romance
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Stars

"I fell in love with you the day that I met you, and then I fell in love with the person you remembered you are. I got to fall in love with you twice. That’s— that’s magic. You’re the first thing I’ve believed in since— since I don’t even remember, okay, you’re— you’re movies and destiny and every stupid, impossible thing, and it’s not because of the fucking train, it’s because of you. It’s because you fight and you care and you’re always kind but never easy, and you won’t let anything take that away from you. You’re my hero, Jane. I don’t care if you think you’re not one. You are."

Trigger Warnings in this book for Past Homophobic Violence and Mentions of Racism

I've never read anything by McQuiston before but I was so excited for One Last Stop I even made it one of my most anticipated reads of 2021! Unfortunately, I felt a bit let down by this one. I think it is simply a case of me not vibing with it, because it is a good book, just not necessarily a good book for me.

One Last Stop follows August Landry -- professional student, cynical virgin, and retired Nancy Drew wannabe. Raised by her single mother who is obsessed with solving what happened to her uncle (her namesake, Augie), August has learned everything there is about keeping herself distant and safe. When she moves to New York, she hardly expects to make friends, let alone meet someone special but boy, does she. On the subway, after a crappy day that ends with her spilling coffee all over herself before class, a mesmerizing woman lends her a scarf and August can't get her out of her mind. She starts seeking her out, and like magic, she's there every single time.

To make ends meet, August takes a job at a forty-five year old pancake place, Billy's, thanks to her new roommates pulling the strings to get it for her. Shockingly, August sees the woman, Jane, in a photo on the wall. A photo from the 1970's.

Jane is trapped on the subway, and has been since the 70's. She doesn't remember anything about her life before and August is determined to help her, even if it means losing her in the process. And worst of all, August thinks she might just love her.

So, I think the idea for this book is so original and cool. I love anything time-travel, especially time-travel romance, and the thought of a modern bisexual and a lesbian from the 70's, a time strife with both violence and hope for the LGBTQ community, was a stroke of genius! My favorite part of this book was Jane, who is soft but strong, sweet and sour, and a total heart-throb. Every scene she was in was made instantly better by her! I waffled on August, whose problems oftentimes seemed caused by her own standoffishness. 

My main issue with One Last Stop came with not only the writing, which is just not my bag but is what's popular right now, but with the conversations everyone has in the book. To put it succinctly, every single character talked like a Tumblr post. I had a hard time believing they were real people and not just vessels to carry funny/quirky sayings and weird anecdotes, especially since I'm in the same age range as them and also have a fairly varied and eclectic friend group.

I think this was an excellent Lesbian romance with an inventive plot and will be an absolute favorite for someone else! It just (sadly) wasn't for me!