I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The magic of the world, the shape of the familiar murder mystery on a more grand and gory scale, was wonderfully brought to life within the pages.

I enjoyed the glimpse we got into the world, brought in piecemeal with the promise of more to come.

A fun story and I did enjoy the characters, I found they had some fun banter.

The plot is fast moving, engaging and full of action.
Were mostly focused on echos and a mysterious clock, the story falls through echos which are like time loops, I’m not much of a fan of time loops so the usual flaws I found were present here (repetitive) however I still enjoyed this thoroughly and loved the strange creatures we engaged with.

I did feel a little confused by how the echo works at times so maybe I blanked out for a moment.

I listed to this via audiobook and I definitely think that was a good way to go, the narrator really fit the vibe of the story.

i really really tried to get into this one but i couldn’t. the world building wasn’t there for me and i didn’t get along with the writing style

Reading “Last Hour Between Worlds” for the second time, this time in ebook format, only deepened my appreciation for the story. The first time around, it was Moira Quirk’s narration that drew me in (and she truly was perfect as Kembral), but this reread let me focus more on the writing itself, and I’m really glad I revisited it.

What struck me again was how effectively the story drops you straight into the action. There’s no excessive info-dumping; instead, the world unfolds naturally, piece by piece, and it’s just as engaging the second time. The time loop structure still holds up beautifully, tight, purposeful, and with just enough twists to keep it fresh even when you know what’s coming.

I still adore Kim and Rika and their messy, layered dynamic. Watching their relationship evolve as the stakes rose felt even more rewarding this time. The romance remains understated in the best way—it supports the plot without taking it over.

All in all, rereading this gave me a greater appreciation for the craft behind the story. Whether it’s your first read or your second, it holds up brilliantly.

A brilliant new fantasy with reality (and mind) bending concepts. The Last Hour Between Worlds takes you on an adventure through increasingly unstable layers of reality as Kembral Thorne tries to figure out what is going on at the deadly party she is trapped in, what is going on with the mysterious clock that signals the coming of each new layer, and also what on earth is going on with her rival/friend/crush Rika.

At times funny, at times terrifying, at times befuddling, this is a great adventure that keeps you on your toes as you try to figure out what is going on alongside Kembral. The increasingly bizarre and reality warping centrepiece of the party is a great setting and the countdown (both literally with the clock chiming, and conceptually as they hurtle towards oblivion) constantly reinforces the impending doom and adds some very real stakes. With each layer they descend, Kembral is closer and closer to running out of time to patch things together and find a way to fix them and get everyone back to reality in one piece.

The relationship between Kembral and Rika is very well written and feels genuine. There are some great human moments between them and additionally with regards to Kembral's fears for her daughter and Rika's mother induced trauma.

A genuinely great fantasy book, a breath of fresh air and something really new and interesting.

Locked room murder mystery in a time loop and in multiple fever dream alternate realities, and it's sapphic? Don't mind if I do.

What an addicting, imaginative read! I was drawn in immediately from the first chapter; the book hooked me and did not let go.

There is an awful lot to hook you with this one. Not only is it a locked room murder mystery (always fun), but there’s a time loop (awesome), and the setting is so vivid and extravagant, the magic is imaginative, and the characters are such great personalities, even the secondary ones. I just enjoyed reading this so much.

I’m at a loss in how best to describe both the time loop at the world in a way that will do it justice, but I suppose it’s not fair to simply say, “Just read this book,” so I’ll give it a go.

There are multiple things that work well for the worldbuilding in this story. The society has defined roles, such as Hounds (investigators, kind of) and Cats (spies and assassins), as well as a defined hierarchy with the Council members on top. This worked to me in giving the secondary characters immediately defined roles, and then letting those personalities fill out those roles. Between big characters like Marjorie, Harking, Jaycel, Blair, and even Pearson, everyone felt fairly fully thought-out and made the party feel vibrant - and Marjorie and Jaycel probably deserve their own novellas, at the very least.

The party itself, at Dona Marjorie’s house, was a great setting for a time loop, especially because each loop also had the benefit (or “benefit?” to the characters) of going down one Echo deeper. It was inspired to make each iteration of the party so different with its decorations and it gave the author a chance to vividly describe some pretty fever dream-esque settings. Which she excelled at!

So, part of the plot of the story is that there is a Prime world, and then sub-worlds called Echoes, populated by, well, “echoes” of the Prime inhabitants as well as god-like beings called Empyreans. It’s a lot more complex than that, but I don’t think I could recap it all even if I wanted to. However, one key point that I was going to make is that each subsequent Echo is more dangerous and even more of a fever dream setting outside of the world of Dona Marjorie’s party. And once again, the author was fantastic at describing these settings and making sure that, for a very cool and creative world, I absolutely did not want to visit these Echoes.

The mystery - or mysteries, I suppose - was political in nature, with so many moving parts and motivations, and that is another thing that very obviously made this a lot of fun. It was quick-paced (I devoured it in less than 24 hours!) and kept me on my toes.

I also want to mention some of the lore of the world, since that was another highlight for me. The whole idea of the naming of the year and the Empyreans being morally grey (charcoal grey, probably) rivals with one another was just a ride in the best way.

Finally, let’s talk about something also very important: Kem, the lead character. I loved her - plucky and determined and stubborn but also very real. And I loved having a lead character who is a mother and that’s a very big part of her identity, especially with her coping with how “mother” will ultimately fit into the rest of her identity. That was so refreshing! Rika, the biggest character after Kem, was equally multidimensional and complex, and their rivalry and relationship in general felt natural and real.

Just an imaginative book that was really rather wonderful, and as much as I liked that it stands on its own, I certainly won’t say no to future books in this world and with these characters.

Thank you to the publisher, Orbit, and to NetGalley for the ARC.

Solid 3.5⭐. Thank you NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for the ARC. (Update: One month later, think I'll round this up because I liked it enough.)

I commend the story for having an interesting concept of alternate layers of reality to play with, but the time loop was literally eleven times too long. It started to drag on and on that my interest waned and I stopped caring about the (admittedly high) stakes by the final act. The highlight of this book for me was the relationship between protagonist Kembral and her rival/love interest Rika. I loved their chemistry and interactions so much that those saved me from ever getting bored.

Kembral being a single mother with a newborn was also a refreshing POV to read. I enjoyed the adjustment of outlook she needed to have—from a reckless, rush-headlong-into-danger attitude to one that's more careful with her life now that she has a child waiting for her back home. Even as I'm a childfree-by-choice woman, Kembral's trait of having her priorities re-aligned because of her child never put me off. In this household, we love and support careerwomen who are steadfast in juggling motherhood and their calling! It's apt in this modern age that women need not have to pick between either.

This made such a concise standalone that I was surprised to see that it is the start of a series. Would definitely return to this world and the sapphics in a heartbeat. Just less time loops, please.