One Of The Most Spot-On Descriptions I’ve Ever Come Across. So despite having this as an ARC for at least a few weeks, specifically because Ruff is a Lead Author in the Facebook group My Book Friends – which I’ve been active in since its founding several years ago – I only got to it about a week after its release due to some real-life issues happening these last few weeks and continuing through Summer 2026 or so. And yet my review won’t have Goodreads’ discriminatory banner against Advance Review Copy reviews since my review is coming in a week late. And yet, at least as of the time I’m writing this review almost exactly as this book completes its first week of public availability, that description right now really is exactly what I say in the title here – one of the most spot on descriptions I’ve ever come across. Which is pretty awesome itself. It means I really don’t have to tell you much more about what to expect with this book.
Instead I’ll speak more directly to my own experience with the book, which I always make it a point to do anyway, and tell you that for me, this was a very quick and engaging read. Yes, at a hair over 300 pages it can seem long to some readers (and short to others), and in fact for its genre it is in the shorter half of books – yet Ruff manages to pack quite a bit of actual story in here, with Tony Stark’s quip about Nick Fury in the first Avengers movie – “his secrets have secrets” absolutely applying here. Which actually makes for a great quick read, one that right when any given thing starts getting anywhere near overstaying its welcome… bam! We’re moving on to something else.
Indeed, the only thing that I could really nitpick on about this book is that at least some of the revelations and twists don’t really seem to have any hints or breadcrumbs *at all*, and yes, I subscribe to the idea that *every* twist should have at least *some* level of foreshadowing. Instead, we get a version of a tale from a song that first hit number one over 5o yrs ago and then was done as a *cover* (as I only found out when writing this review!) that became a Southern staple nearly 20 yrs after its original recording. (In perhaps a bit of tragic history that at least to Southern kids of the 80s such as myself, this cover becoming a hit when it did meant at least *I* never knew of the original version of the song!) But this is as close as I’ll get to naming this song in the review, and perhaps there are some of my own readers who can piece these clues together well enough. (I guarantee you it will make a lot of sense once you read this book and then look for songs that meet my clues above based on what you find in the text. 😉 )
Ultimately this really is one of those books that reads faster than its not-that-long page count would suggest, which is awesome for those who are perhaps trying to squeeze reading in to whatever nooks and crannies they can find in their schedule. (Lines. Take your Kindle or even Kindle app on your phone in lines. You’re standing there anyway. May as well read instead of doomscrolling. You’ll be much happier. 😉 )
Very much recommended.
This review of The Last Seat by Jenifer Ruff was originally written on April 10, 2026.