Adam Silvera’s The First to Die at the End is more than a prequel—it’s a prologue to the emotional logic that governs the Death-Cast universe. Steeped in both dread and wonder, it tells the story of what happens when strangers meet on the most uncertain night of their lives and choose to live with intention, no matter the looming deadline.
Where They Both Die at the End left readers devastated and in awe, this novel begins with hesitation, skepticism, and the cracking open of possibility. The result is a story that, while tragic, is also curiously life-affirming.
What Is the Book About?
Set in New York City on the very first day that Death-Cast makes its End Day calls, The First to Die at the End follows two teens—Orion Pagan and Valentino Prince—who meet by chance just hours before one of them receives the call that they’ll die within the day.
Orion, who’s lived under the shadow of a terminal heart condition, has already signed up for Death-Cast. He wants certainty—something to anchor his fear. Valentino, on the other hand, is hopeful. He’s just moved to New York to model, to live openly as a gay man, and to begin anew. He signs up at the last minute, not expecting anything but a fresh start.
When the call arrives—for one of them—their paths twist into a single, breathtaking narrative about love, mortality, and the right to one final, meaningful day.
Characters That Live Fully, Even When They’re Dying
Orion Pagan:
A deeply introspective aspiring writer who carries trauma from 9/11 and a fragile heart—literally and metaphorically. Orion’s voice is filled with longing for life, but never self-pity. He is the kind of character you want to protect, even though he’s learned to fend for himself. His vulnerabilities are sharply drawn, and his quiet bravery lingers long after the last page.
Valentino Prince:
Charismatic, confident, and full of hope, Valentino is a young man willing to begin again in a city that doesn’t promise safety. His journey—from a closeted home to the open streets of Manhattan—is not just geographical but emotional. His modeling career, his love for his twin sister Scarlett, and his desire to live unapologetically make him a radiant foil to Orion’s more hesitant energy.
Together, they form one of Silvera’s most moving pairings—tender, awkward, and unflinchingly real.
Major Themes: When Time Is the Villain and Love Is the Remedy
1. Mortality and Choice
What do you do when you might not have tomorrow? That question pulses through every page. Silvera doesn’t romanticize death, but he does insist that the knowledge of it has power—not to destroy, but to clarify.
2. Queer Identity and Joy
Though grief is at the core of this novel, queerness isn’t a source of it. Orion and Valentino get to fall in love, flirt, argue, laugh, and be scared—not because they’re queer, but because they’re human. It’s rare and wonderful to see LGBTQ+ teen characters written with such normalcy, warmth, and complexity.
3. Faith and Skepticism
One of the book’s most philosophical threads explores belief: in God, in science, in systems like Death-Cast, and most critically, in other people. Through Valentino’s conflicted view of Death-Cast and Orion’s cautious acceptance, the book becomes a quiet meditation on how belief shapes our actions.
Adam Silvera’s Writing: Intimate, Inviting, and Introspective
Silvera’s prose is uniquely his: conversational yet literary, modern but emotionally timeless. There’s a rhythm to the dialogue that makes every conversation feel urgent, like the characters know they don’t have time to waste. Inner thoughts are raw and honest, occasionally repetitive but never insincere. His use of alternating POVs between Orion and Valentino gives readers a dual perspective on love and loss, heightening the impact of even the quietest moments.
Where some authors rush toward plot, Silvera lingers on feeling—and that’s where the novel thrives.
Highlights That Make This Book Stand Out
- Expanded Worldbuilding – We see Death-Cast at its inception, and Silvera explores both public paranoia and personal hope around this concept.
- Representation with Care – Queer romance, mental health struggles, chronic illness, and trauma are all depicted with a nuanced, respectful touch.
- Interwoven Cameos and Easter Eggs – For fans of They Both Die at the End, the novel contains connective tissue that enriches the entire Death-Cast world.
- New York as a Living Character – Times Square, subway steps, Sixth-floor walkups—Silvera’s New York is chaotic, alive, and exactly where this story needed to be told.
What Could Be Stronger?
- Pacing in the Second Half – The emotional buildup sometimes stalls as the plot nears its inevitable conclusion, leaning too hard into sentimentality.
- Some Characters Feel Lightly Sketched – Outside of Orion, Valentino, and Dalma, a few secondary figures come and go with little impact.
- Emotional Redundancy – Orion and Valentino often ruminate on death in similar ways, which may wear thin for readers craving sharper distinctions between their voices.
Still, these are minor concerns in a book that, overall, delivers everything fans of the Death-Cast universe could want: heart, heartbreak, and honesty.
Series Evolution: Setting the Emotional Foundation
As the opening entry in the Death-Cast timeline, this novel retroactively amplifies the power of They Both Die at the End. By showing how it all began—with uncertainty, with disbelief, and with a deeply personal love story—Silvera gives us the history that makes the future hurt more.
With The Survivor Wants to Die at the End releasing in 2025, it’s clear that this trilogy is building toward something more than just endings. It’s asking us to think about what it means to survive. To live after someone dies. To carry the weight of memory forward.
You Might Also Like…
- More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera – identity and memory colliding in speculative fiction form.
- It’s Not Like It’s a Secret by Misa Sugiura – for readers who love tender coming-of-age LGBTQ+ stories.
- We Are Okay by Nina LaCour – another introspective YA novel about grief, love, and finding yourself.
- Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell – for fans of brief, beautiful teen romances that bloom in uncertain conditions.
Final Verdict: Life Isn’t About How Long You Live—It’s About What You Do With It
The First to Die at the End is a beautiful contradiction: a book about death that feels achingly alive. Adam Silvera has a gift for making final moments feel like firsts, and this book is a celebration of that perspective. Orion and Valentino’s day together may be short, but its emotional resonance stretches far beyond the confines of its 24-hour timeline.
More than a tearjerker, it’s a call to action. A gentle whisper to stop waiting, to say what you mean, and to love harder while you can.