Review: The Last 8 (The Last 8 #1) by Laura Pohl

Book Blurb:

A high-stakes survival story about eight teenagers who outlive an alien attack—perfect for fans of The 5th Wave

Clover Martinez has always been a survivor, which is the only reason she isn't among the dead when aliens invade and destroy Earth as she knows it.

When Clover hears an inexplicable radio message, she's shocked to learn there are other survivors—and that they're all at the former Area 51. When she arrives, she's greeted by a band of misfits who call themselves The Last Teenagers on Earth.

Only they aren't the ragtag group of heroes Clover was expecting. The group seems more interested in hiding than fighting back, and Clover starts to wonder if she was better off alone. But then she finds a hidden spaceship, and she doesn't know what to believe…or who to trust.

Find out more about The Last 8 on Goodreads

My Review:

3 Out Of 5 Stars

Genre: Aliens, Dystopian, Survival, Suspense, Teen--

The last 8 was very different from what I expected and I am not certain how I feel about it. The story is narrated by Clover, a very smart girl who ends up watching everything she knows and loves be annihilated by an alien invasion. There was no warning or clear reasoning, the aliens showed up and evaporated everyone, until for some unknown reason Clover is left alive- by herself. What seemed like a potentially action packed story turned into a really sad, introverted battle with depression and lots of contemplation of suicide (even a few almost attempts that didn't follow through), the darkness only saved by the antics of a cute dog companion. Most of the story in general was very dark, way more than I anticipated for an alien story- I expected hope and gumption but instead I got angst and sorrow (which may have been more realistic to be fair, just not what I was looking for).

There were some very nice plot twists that I appreciated and a couple of awesome battle scenes but overall I could not connect to Clover who seemed a little too unemotional and the choices that were made at the end of the story made no sense at all with too easy a resolution. This is the first book in a series and while it was completely unique and had some interesting components, I don't believe I will be reading the next one. Keep in mind that I am sure other people will love this story, it was just not what I was looking for.