Reviewed by Mrs. Foley
From Destiny Library record, "Five New York teenagers try to concentrate on their new band while the city suffers from a mysterious epidemic that is turning people into cannibals."

Not quite as good as the first book, Peeps, but very entertaining. Also interesting to music lovers is the fact that the title of each chapter is the name of a band. Westerfeld gives info on each band at the Author's Note. The characters from Peeps do play a role, but not until the last third of the book or so. Both books would be good for those students interested in reading more vampire fiction.

Review from Booklist (September 1, 2006 (Vol. 103, No. 1))
Something horrifying is bubbling up from the earth, and vampires stalk the streets of New York--but in this electric sequel to Peeps (2005), Moz and his buddy Zahler think only of forming a band. One night Moz, with the help of passerby Pearl, rescues a Fender Stratocaster guitar. Like Moz, Pearl is a musician, and a band is born. Soon the band recruits a singer, a Peep with her parasite mostly under control, and a drummer who literally sees the music and the terrifying things it attracts. Eventually itbecomes clear that the new band will play a key role in the coming struggle against the powerful evil. Westerfeld continues his captivating, original vision, improving it in this tightly plotted sequel. The new characters are engaging, and the breezy dialogue is graced with both unique slang and a touch of humor. Teen will savor the picture of a band finding its sound while saving the world. Both new readers and Peeps fans will eat this up. ( )

Reviewed by Long Nguyen for TeensReadToo.com

Set against the apocalyptic foreground first seen in PEEPS, THE LAST DAYS is a sequel to the former, and definitely does not disappoint.

Scott Westerfeld is one of the most consistently solid young adult novelists today and his latest only keeps the bar high and the readers happy. The Texas native is widely known for his innovative interpretations of "fantasy-esque" worlds and is the highly acclaimed author of THE MIDNIGHTERS and UGLIES trilogies.

THE LAST DAYS is a story based in contemporary New York City with a splash of dystopia tasting. Westerfeld takes on the always fun topic of vampires, and, as seen in PEEPS, revamping the whole legend behind the blood-thirsty immortals into his own super interesting view, basing the theory around "vampireism" as a disease similar, if not identical, to the Black Plague that ravaged the globe centuries before. Westerfeld delves more into a biological explanation, which involves carriers, kissing and biting, and a whole lot of rats.

It's summer, and New York City is going crazy. The temperature is much more intense than usual, even for summer; the sanitation is no longer under control (rats!); people are disappearing, afraid to travel on the subways; and Moz and Zahler are a two-man, kind of half-band. But soon their luck will change when they meet Pearl, a Juilliard music student, and her newly turned carrier friend Minerva. The four of them, along with street drummer Alana Ray, whose mental condition allows her to view farther into the depths than is advisable, join together to write music so epic, even they do not understand the magnitude of what is going to happen. Things are changing faster than you think.

So sit back, relax, and get ready to read these five teenager's soundtrack to the end of the world. It's going to be a good one. Masterfully written, old Westerfeld fans as well as new ones are sure to be blown away by the sheer raw sonic power of THE LAST DAYS. ( )

The Last Days is a twist on all vampire stories. It was a good sequel to Peeps, but not as good. The characters were all band memeber who dream of becomg rock stars together. But their dreams are side tracked as they must battle something evil lurking underground.

I like this book and recommend it to all music lovers and those who have read Peeps. ( )

While The Last Days is a sequel to Peeps, it does not quite pick up where the last one left off. Instead, we meet a new crew of characters, all of whom are struggling to make sense with how their city is changing. Music is what brings these characters together, not the struggle (set up in the first book and continued here), but they are drawn in none the less.

As is frequently the case, I didn't enjoy the sequel quite as much as the first book. There were more characters to focus on, so I feel like I didn't get to know each of them as well. That said, the plot and pacing are great and the ending is really satisfying.

Peeps and The Last Days are enjoyable books -- I recommend them both to teen and adult sci-fi/fantasy readers.

http://archthinking.blogspot.com/2009...

"Peeps" was a wonderful book - this sequel got on my nerves. It was too... not entirely working. It was a good book, don't get me wrong, but Westerfeld has had better days. ( )