Last to leave the room : a novel

Title:

Author:

Summary:

The city of San Siroco is sinking. The basement of Dr. Tamsin Rivers, the arrogant, selfish head of the research team assigned to find the source of the subsidence, is sinking faster. As Tamsin becomes obsessed with the distorting dimensions of the room at the bottom of the stairs, she finds a door that didn’t exist before -- and one night, it opens to reveal an exact physical copy of her. This doppelgänger is sweet and biddable where Tamsin is calculating and cruel. It appears fully, terribly human, passing every test Tamsin can devise. But the longer the double exists, the more Tamsin begins to forget pieces of her life, to lose track of time, to grow terrified of the outside world. With her employer growing increasingly suspicious, Tamsin must try to hold herself together long enough to figure out what her double wants from her, and just where the mysterious door leads… -- Amazon.

Edition:

First edition.

Physical Description:

312 pages ; 25 cm

Genre:

Horror fiction.

Psychological fiction.

Paranormal fiction.

Thrillers (Fiction)

Subject Term:

Doppelgängers -- Fiction.

Women scientists -- Fiction.

Identity (Psychology) -- Fiction.

Publisher:

St. Martin's Press, an imprint of St. Martin's Publishing Group,

Publication Date:

2023

ISBN:

9781250282613

Publication Information:

New York, NY : St. Martin's Press, an imprint of St. Martin's Publishing Group, 2023.

Call Number:

STARLING

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Item Barcode	Collection	Call Number	Status	Item Holds
33607003701664	New Adult Fiction	STARLING Caitlin	Searching... Unknown	Searching... Unavailable

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Summary

Last to Leave the Room is a new novel of genre-busting speculative horror from Caitlin Starling, the acclaimed author of The Death of Jane Lawrence.

The city of San Siroco is sinking. The basement of Dr. Tamsin Rivers, the arrogant, selfish head of the research team assigned to find the source of the subsidence, is sinking faster.

As Tamsin becomes obsessed with the distorting dimensions of the room at the bottom of the stairs, she finds a door that didn't exist before - and one night, it opens to reveal an exact physical copy of her. This doppelgänger is sweet and biddable where Tamsin is calculating and cruel. It appears fully, terribly human, passing every test Tamsin can devise. But the longer the double exists, the more Tamsin begins to forget pieces of her life, to lose track of time, to grow terrified of the outside world.

With her employer growing increasingly suspicious, Tamsin must try to hold herself together long enough to figure out what her double wants from her, and just where the mysterious door leads...

Author Notes

Caitlin Starling writes horror-tinged speculative fiction of all flavors. Her first novel, The Luminous Dead , won the LOHF Best Debut Award and was nominated for both the Bram Stoker and Locus Awards. She is also the author of the gothic horror tales Yellow Jessamine and The Death of Jane Lawrence , as well as a novella in the Vampire: The Masquerade audio collection, Walk Among Us . Her nonfiction has appeared in Nightmare and Uncanny . Starling also works in narrative design, and has been paid to invent body parts. She's always on the lookout for new ways to inflict insomnia.

Reviews (2)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Starling (The Death of Jane Lawrence) hits a rare false note in this underdeveloped, anxiety-inducing take on both mad scientist and doppelgänger tropes. The brilliant but deeply unethical Dr. Tamsin Rivers has made a terrible discovery: her city, San Siroco, is sinking. Myrica Dynamic, the corporation bankrolling her underground experiments, demands answers she doesn't have, and her minder, Mx. Lachland Woodfield, makes it very clear that Myrica will hold Tamsin responsible for whatever happens to the city, good or bad. To make things worse--and weirder--a door appears out of nowhere in Tamsin's basement. When it opens, out walks Tamsin's double, who Tamsin names Prime. As Tamsin desperately tries to solve the mystery of the basement door, Prime starts filling in for Tamsin in public, until no one, not even Tamsin, can tell who's the original and who's the copy. For readers, this question is never in doubt, however, leading a third act twist to fall flat. Though the action is pulse pounding, the thematic exploration of identity and the limits of human understanding remains frustratingly shallow. Readers will be disappointed.. (Oct.)

Library Journal Review

Tamsin is the head of a crucial experiment taking place deep beneath the city of San Siroco. When she and her team discover that the city appears to be slowly sinking, they are quick to cover up their possible connection to it. Returning home, Tamsin finds that the same thing is occurring at her house, but only in her basement--and at a faster rate. When a mysterious door appears one night and a double of Tamsin emerges, she must find out what is really happening without alerting her employer. Tamsin's scientific work takes the forefront in this novel, and while it's important to the plot, the intricate detail sometimes bogs down the pace. The character of Lachlan is introduced as a handler for Tamsin, and while some unknown connections between the two are teased, their relationship is left very nebulous. Unfortunately, the novel's twist and ending are predictable. VERDICT It's billed as horror, but the latest from popular novelist Starling (after The Death of Jane Lawrence) is more of a speculative thriller; her fans will still clamor for it.--Emily Vinci