Matthew reads, I guess...

  Today I’m talking about Adam Silvera’s The First to Die at the End ( TFTDATE ), which stands as a prequel to Silvera’s They Both Die at the End ( TBDATE ). Was that a sudden opening to this? Yes, it was. But I have something to say. So, there was a time where TBDATE was my favourite book of all time, and it might still be. That’s not a thing of me saying, “Ooh, is it? Is it not?” It’s literally me saying that I have no idea whether it is anymore as my personal tastes have changed. Still, I was very excited about finally getting TFTDATE after how much I loved TBDATE, but I didn’t realise just how damn long this book was. When it arrived, I saw how chunky it was and, for whatever reason, I was not expecting it to be 550 pages. My immediate first thought was what could he possibly need all that space to say? Even then, I was still excited to get into it, especially since I’m a huge fan of Silvera’s books that have this sort of vibe. I know that’s a dumb thing to say, but I mean...

  I think that this was a book that it came on my radar at some point, but then just dropped right off for whatever reason. Then this Christmas just gone, I got a gift card for a book retailer here in the UK and while I was just browsing their website, I saw it. For context, it’s Sixteen Souls by Rosie Talbot. But when I saw it on the website it was very much one of those, “Oh yeah, that book” moments. Also, before buying this book, I had no idea it was set in York, which was where I went to university. What’s fun (for me, specifically) is that there’s a little map of York City Centre, and I can actually see the street I used to live on. The blurb says that when sixteen-year-old seer Charlie Frith realises dark forces have taken one of his ghostly friends, he must put aside his reclusive existence to protect them from a fate worse than death. He teams up with Sam Harrow – the new seer in town – and a ragtag group of spirits to unearth the chilling purpose behind the disappearanc...