BOOK REVIEW: LAST RITES by Ozzy Osbourne with Chris Ayres

Shane | 3 August 2026 | Reply

BOOK REVIEW: LAST RITES by Ozzy Osbourne with Chris Ayres
Sphere/Hachette 2025
Paperback
Reviewed by Shane Pinnegar
93%

The main problem I had with 2010’s I Am Ozzy was that it didn’t sound enough like Ozzy’s voice: the stories were rehashes of those we’ve heard many times before, and it felt, to be honest, like he was dialling it in (or not as involved as Shazza would have us believe).

Last Rites, however, is the opposite. Similarly ghost written/co-authored by Chris Ayres, it sounds like Ozzy from start to finish. It focuses on the trials and tribulations Oz had to endure in the last 8 or so years of his life – and it is an at times agonising read, especially in light of the fact that it was published not long after he’d passed.

As well as being one of the prime architects of heavy metal and some of the best music made in the past fifty years, Ozzy was often an agent of chaos thanks to alcohol and drug addictions plus mental health issues. Truth is, the stories of his misadventures are hilarious as well as fascinating, and he’s a fascinating raconteur when he’s on form.

His health issues – starting with a finger infection, leading to spinal issues relating to a quad bike accident, bolts in his neck, perpetual pain, severe restriction in his mobility and a general decline – make for far more difficult reading, but he remains pragmatic throughout. Which, in a way, makes Last Rites sadder still.

Highly recommended, which is more than I can say about I Am Ozzy.