02 Apr Book Review: The Last Town by Blake Crouch

Blake Crouch has a talent for writing fast-paced, high-stakes thrillers that feel like cinematic rollercoaster rides. The Last Town, the final book in the Wayward Pines trilogy, is no exception. It takes everything that made the first two books so gripping—the eerie small-town setting, the dystopian mystery, the creeping sense that something is deeply wrong—and cranks it up to an intense, brutal conclusion. It is a book about survival, control, and the terrifying consequences of playing God.

What’s it about?

Picking up immediately where Wayward left off, The Last Town throws readers straight into chaos. Ethan Burke, the sheriff of Wayward Pines, has just revealed the town’s biggest secret: that its residents are not just living in an isolated mountain town, but in the last known human civilization, thousands of years in the future. The world outside the town’s electrified fence is overrun by mutated, feral humanoid creatures known as abbies—aberrations of evolution that now rule the Earth.

For years, the town’s founder, David Pilcher, a visionary but deeply disturbed scientist, has kept the truth hidden, controlling the town with an iron grip. The people of Wayward Pines believed they were still in the 21st century, trapped in an idyllic but strange small town, unaware that they had been placed in suspended animation for centuries before being “revived” into this new reality. Those who questioned the town’s rules or tried to escape were either publicly executed or exiled beyond the fence—sent to their deaths at the hands of the abbies.

But now, Ethan’s revelation has shattered the carefully maintained illusion. The people of Wayward Pines are in full rebellion, and Pilcher, furious that his perfect society is unraveling, takes drastic action. In a chilling move, he shuts off the power to the town, deactivating the protective fence and allowing the abbies to flood in. The creatures, who have been kept at bay for so long, now have unrestricted access to the last humans on Earth.

What follows is pure, unrelenting chaos. As the abbies overrun the streets, killing indiscriminately, the town descends into panic. Ethan, along with his wife Theresa, their son Ben, and a handful of survivors, must fight their way through the destruction, trying to find a safe place to regroup. But safety is nearly impossible to find—Wayward Pines is no longer just a prison, it has become a slaughterhouse.

Meanwhile, Pilcher watches from his mountain fortress, fully convinced that he is doing the right thing. In his mind, the town’s residents have proven themselves unworthy of his great vision, and if they cannot follow his rules, they do not deserve to survive. But not everyone in his inner circle agrees. Pam, Pilcher’s once-loyal sister and enforcer, begins to question whether her brother has lost his mind. As the town burns, alliances shift, and those who once upheld the strict order of Wayward Pines must decide where their loyalties truly lie.

Ethan knows that their only hope is to stop Pilcher before he can wipe out what remains of the town. With abbies hunting them at every turn and Pilcher’s soldiers enforcing his final orders, Ethan and his allies must make a desperate stand. But the cost of survival is steep, and not everyone will make it out alive.

As the book barrels toward its climax, Ethan is forced to make an impossible choice—one that will determine the fate of humanity itself. The ending is both shocking and thought-provoking, raising questions about leadership, control, and whether the survival of the species is worth the price of individual freedom.

What This Chick Thinks

A relentless, action-packed conclusion

Unlike the slow-burn mystery of Pines and the deeper psychological intrigue of Wayward, The Last Town is pure, unfiltered adrenaline. The book barely gives you a moment to breathe as it jumps from one intense moment to the next. The stakes are higher than ever, and the sense of impending doom keeps the tension at an all-time high.

The best and worst of humanity on display

One of the things Blake Crouch does so well in this series is explore how people react when faced with extreme situations. In this book, we see the full spectrum—selfishness, heroism, blind loyalty, and pure survival instinct. Ethan is at his most desperate, Pilcher is at his most unhinged, and the town is in full collapse. It is both horrifying and fascinating to watch how different characters respond when the world as they know it is literally ending.

A satisfying, if brutal, conclusion

This book does not pull any punches. Characters die—some in devastating ways. The violence is raw and unflinching, making the struggle for survival feel real. But despite the brutality, the ending is not without hope. It leaves you with a lot to think about, particularly regarding the price of control and the limits of human adaptability.

A cinematic reading experience

If the first two books felt like a psychological thriller, this one feels like an all-out war movie. The action is so vividly written that you can almost hear the screams, the gunfire, and the chaos as the abbies tear through the town. Crouch has a way of making scenes feel immediate, and it is easy to picture every desperate moment as the town fights for its life.

Final Thoughts

The Last Town is a brutal, fast-paced, and emotionally intense finale to the Wayward Pines trilogy. It takes everything that made the first two books compelling—the eerie setting, the complex moral dilemmas, the sense of impending doom—and escalates it to a dramatic, heart-pounding climax. If you have read the first two books, this one is a must-read. It is not just about survival—it is about the cost of survival, the ethics of power, and the fragility of civilization itself.

If you enjoy dystopian thrillers that blend action with psychological depth, this series is one of the best. It will keep you thinking long after the last page, and it is the kind of book that makes you wonder—if faced with the same choices, what would you do?

Rating: 9/10

Try it if you like

• The Passage by Justin Cronin – Another dark, apocalyptic thriller with a blend of action and deep character exploration.
• Dark Matter by Blake Crouch – If you liked the fast-paced storytelling and high-stakes drama of this series, Crouch’s standalone novel is another mind-bending thriller worth reading.
• Bird Box by Josh Malerman – A similarly tense survival thriller that forces characters to navigate an existential threat while questioning what it means to truly live.