On a day just like any other, a spaceship appears on the horizon. And then another. Soon, a hundred thousand ships spread across the globe, streaking the sky with flames. The earth is quickly turned into a wasteland. Human life is all but wiped out.

Clover Martinez had a bright future. She was heading to MIT with hopes of eventually joining NASA. Now she is utterly alone. The end of the earth happened in a blink of an eye, without warning. She wanders aimlessly amongst the ruins of what used to be civilization. What is the point of living when everything you love is gone?

Just by chance Clover hears a voice on the radio calling any survivors to Area 51 – a highly restricted government zone. Here she meets seven other survivors. But why did they get to live when no one else did? The information stored at Area 51 may have some answers. The Last 8 by Laura Pohl is a story about survival. Not just foraging-for-food type of survival but discovering what it really takes to live. Most of the others just want to remain in hiding and although Clover has her own grief, she rallies the others to start really living again.

Clover is a strong young woman but her personality is so insensitive that I found it hard to warm up to her. Pohl stated in her author’s note that it was important to her to show a character that experiences depression but at the same time isn’t weak. I think she worked so hard at removing any vulnerability from Clover’s character that she inadvertently removed any compassion the reader might have had for her. However, I will say that the plot is so good that I let the poor character development slide.

Laura Pohl really knows how to tell a story. There is no filler in this book. There is no preamble, long-winded dialogues or drawn out descriptions. It is nothing but a clean, plot-driven storyline. One action leads to another, as the truth about the invasion comes out. There is nothing predictable about this story either. The ending is a brilliant set up for the next book The Final 7 which is set to be released next year.

— Lesley L.