Evelyn Clarke
HQ
7 April 2026
352
eBook - PDF
Thriller
ARC via NetGalley
Six authors.
One private island.
Seventy-two hours to write the ending.
* * * *
World-famous author Arthur Fletch is dead. His final novel, the most anticipated book in history, remains unfinished. But the ending won’t write itself.
When six struggling authors are invited to Fletch's private Scottish island and presented with the opportunity of a lifetime, the plot thickens: whoever writes a worthy ending will receive a game-changing book deal and two million dollars.
Why have they been chosen to attend? Who is behind the invitation? And just how far would they go to secure a place on the bestseller list?
They have just seventy-two hours, a typewriter and a blank page. All they have to do is write…
Starting is often the hardest part. But getting to the end could be murder.
The Ending Writes Itself is a book I likely wouldn't have gravitated towards without V. E. Schwab's involvement. I read the occasional thriller/mystery, but it's not my main genre of interest, so I only requested this one because I am a huge V. E. Schwab fan and read everything she publishes. When the book started, I was a little taken aback, as it didn't feel like a thriller or a mystery per se. For the first half of the book, nothing much happened at all except for introducing the characters. All these characters were distinct, memorable and well presented, each with their own quirks and points of interest, so it wasn't boring to hear to about them. Nonetheless I did keep wondering when things were going to take off. All the drama was essentially crammed into the final third, and from then on the deaths kept piling up. However, I never felt any tension or concern about this, perhaps because there was a somewhat comedic element floating beneath the surface throughout. The conclusion was satisfying enough, but as I closed this book I worried about whether it was being promoted in the right way. I had expected a full-on thriller, but it was more tongue-in-the-cheek than that, with commentary on the publishing industry and lots of related in-jokes. I am giving it 3.5 stars. It was an enjoyable and fairly light read, but it never grabbed me in a deeper way and I can't see myself ever wanting to read it a second time, unlike many of V. E. Schwab's solo works. If you go into this expecting a tense, edge-of-your seat thriller, you will likely be disappointed. However, if you approach it more as a satire, then you are likely to enjoy it more.
I received this book as a free eBook ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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