This book is touching and sweet and incredibly sad all at once. I enjoyed this prequel as it provided some clarity for things that happened later on down the line. I felt like the characters are all written very distinctly so the shifting perspective is never confusing. 

heartbreaking to read, i love Adam Silvera and how his writing connects readers to his characters.

Whew. I just finished the book and that was one of the best endings I’ve ever read. Although I found myself comparing this book to They Both Die at the End pretty often, and while I probably enjoyed that one more, this book is so much more inspiring and completely changed my perspective on life (again). It’s really one of those books that makes you sad but you’re okay with it because everything really is gonna be okay. I’m so thankful I read this  

and I’m ready to live for all the Valentinos that haven’t lived enough.

After reading and loving "They Both Die at the End" years ago, I was super excited to get a new story set in this near future world.
"The First to Die at the End" follows Valentino and Orion, two young men who meet on the day Death-Cast launches, technology that alerts you if you will die within the next 24 hours. Valentino is excited to start his life over in New York City with his twin sister. He was not super interested in signing up for Death-Cast, until his sister almost dies in a car accident. Now he wants to know if his end is coming. Orion does not want to sign up for Death-Cast because he needs a heart transplant, so he already knows his death is imminent. When Death-Cast goes live at midnight, one of them gets a call, and they decide to live one more day together, even though they know how their story will end.
It was really interesting to get more of an origin story for Death-Cast because I think it opens up more discourse about whether this technology is really as great as the creators hope it is. On the one hand, knowing when you will die will definitely light a fire under you to live like it is your last day. However, it can also make your last day completely unbearable because you will inevitably keep waiting for death. I think this idea makes for a great story, but I definitely hope this technology remains as fiction.
Adam Silvera has an amazing ability to write characters that I absolutely swoon over. Both Orion and Valentino are such good-hearted people, and even though I knew the ending from the beginning, I held out so much hope that their story would be happy. Maye Death-Cast has some errors and will be inaccurate at launch.
Orion and Valentino were perfect for each other. They were the person the other needed and I loved seeing them support each other through 24 hours. Their's was a love story that I ached for.
I 1000% will read more from Adam Silvera in the future, and I hope he writes more of this Death-Cast world. 

Ahhhh I loved this heartwarming and also devastating prequel! In what I have come to expect from Silvera, no detail or relationship is unimportant, and I LOVED finding all the small references to They Both Die at the End. Also, this prequel was such a beautiful love letter to NYC and all its hidden and ever-changing treasures. The voice actors were also INCREDIBLE at bringing the characters to life. 

 

Adam Silvera is such an excellent writer; I cannot get over how creative and touching his storytelling is. I went into this novel with fairly low expectations because I did not enjoy They Both Die at the End as much as I wished I would, but it was so much more than I could have wished for! It was raw and beautiful and so exceptionally painful - I just kept hoping that the story would not unfold as I thought it would. However, you can always trust Silvera to leave you heartbroken with every one of his books.

Unlike the first book, I found that the disparate stories were woven together very well and I was interested in all the different perspectives. I also found that the characters had distinct interests and relatable feelings. I loved the dives into Orion's writing and the videos from Valentino. As one would expect from a love story that unfolds over the course of less than 24 hours, the love was very instant and some moments dragged a little bit. Overall though, I absolutely loved this and am so happy to have a physical copy of it on hand - I will definitely be rereading it!