*Spoilers
And first of all: I want to cry.
Second of all: this book is THE GOAT. Like I could NOT put it down and the characters were very interesting.
I heard some people complain about the romance thing that happened but honestly? I think it works well for the book. I mean the whole shtick is these two dudes living out their life in a day. Like you have to expect SOME romance.
Also also also
I LOve the character development. Both mcs improve so much throughout the book. It really shows us how they're actually living life to the fullest in a day.
I want to hear more thoughts about this book. Did you like/dislike it? And what did you like/dislike about it?
by goodgreif_11
22 Comments
I enjoyed it. I kept hoping the title was lying lol.
I also loved this book, I’d say even one of my favorites.
I really liked it! I read it when I was 15 and I cried so much. I knew it was coming but it still hurt lol
I read it and I enjoyed it, but out of the three Silvera books I’ve read (other two being More Happy Than Not & History Is All You Left Me) I actually liked TBDATE the least. Though I read it after having read History Is All You Left Me, and that book surprised me in the best way possible, I though Adam hit a home run with that book, so maybe I just had too many expectations going into TBDATE.
Did they both die at the end?
I think this book is trash and gets waaaaaay too much praise for how bad it was. The book is supposed to be about Mateo and Rufus making the most of their last day on earth but Rufus just follows Mateo around all day waiting for him while he says his goodbyes. Mateo is afraid of everything but never actually takes any chances, even though he knows it won’t make a difference and he’ll die that day no matter what. And despite the book being narrated from their alternating 1st person POVs, there is no mention of attraction or romantic interest (or even a spark of those feelings) from either of them until suddenly they’re confessing feelings for one another.
Honestly, the amount of people who rave about this book and the fact that it’s so popular on TikTok makes me feel crazy. Did we even read the same book?! I really wonder if people are just in love with the concept and then overlay their own emotions over the (lack of) plot because the book made them think about what they’d do on THEIR last day alive.
I’m so glad you liked it!
I honestly hated this book, so it’s cool to see it through another lens.
This is a top 20 book for me. If you go into this looking for a Pulitzer winning fiction, you will be disappointed. It has the rapid pace of teenage love, odd friendships, and whimsical connections with an anticipated but still surprising (when it happens) ending. Firmly middle+ aged, I felt it did a lovely job of capturing how fast 24 hours could seem when you are young and seemingly invincible.
I’ve had this book on my tbr since it came out all those years ago and fault in our stars ruined me for these setups lol
You may also enjoy This is How You Lose the Time War. It has a similar feel yet is very different and a much better book Imo.
I LOVED it. Now go read The First to die at the End
Prepare for more heartbreak 😭
i really enjoyed tbdate too!!!
Tbh I hated it, i think that it was just really obvious and i feel like rufus’ character wasn’t drawn out very well, and there was a lack of depth to their relationship. i haven’t read it in a year or two so i can’t remember it too well- I just remember closing the book and feeling empty and disappointed haha. to each their own though, I’m happy that at least someone enjoyed it 🙂
but i also am happy that the romance thing happened! i think another contributing factor was how >!suddenly the last death was (i don’t remember if it was rufus or mateo)!<but I think that it just felt kinda random and out of place 🙂
I LOVE IT! You’ll need to read The First To Die At The End too at some point – it’s the prequel to this one! And also the sequel to this one is called No One Knows Who Dies At The End and that releases in 2025! I’m a massive fan of Adam silvera if u can’t tell lol
OP you would probably like Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe
i haven’t picked up mine since reading half of it. I’m glad someone seems to like it at least 😭
I’m pretty sure it’s John that dies at the end
I’m late but I just finished the book 10 minutes ago and loved it. It’s a little sad to see that others didn’t like it but to each their own. It was a good read for me and that’s all that matters. 🫡
I loved it so much!! The second one as well and with the third just announced I can not freaking wait!!! Genuinely I am soooo excited! I know he said it is going to be very different I can not wait!
Are they just being homophobic about the romance or just in general? When rereading it I can notice a bit of slight hinting with stuff they say.
I feel like Mateo gets more time with his chapters, and rufus doesn’t get as long ones in comparison. Does anyone else think this or am I wrong?
I’m late to this post, but I just finished reading it about 10 minutes ago. The reason I chose this book is because it happened to be September 5th when I turned it around to read the back, which starts with “On September 5th…”
I hated it at first, but I have a habit of seeing things through, and I enjoyed it by the end.
For the first… maybe 100 pages? Maybe a little less, I was not enjoying it. I didn’t like reading through Rufus’s POVs. I didn’t like the way his character was written and was annoyed by his repetitive dialogue, which continued throughout the book but was more tolerable further into the story. Mateo was overly fearful to a point of annoyance.
However, as the book progressed and the characters developed, they became more tolerable. By page 100, I was invested. By “The End” section, I was feeling the suspense. And by the last page, I was crying. I think the author did a great job of showing the bond between the characters, which made it especially heartbreaking at the end when they didn’t die together.
My fiance made the mistake of asking me how the ending was, shortly after I composed myself, and looked terrified as I broke down into tears. 😂
I think it’s a very interesting concept, and it really makes you consider how the Death-Cast changes lives. It seems like a lot of the characters have lost people close to them. Are death rates higher because of it? How many deaths are caused by the Death-Cast from people going off the deep end, like the bomber did? Would Rufus and Mateo have died that day if the Death-Cast hadn’t brought them together?