What a beautiful book this was. I commend Emma Grey for sharing such a deeply personal story inspired by the sudden loss of her husband. While the plot is surrounded by navigating grief, it never feels overwhelmingly sad. I’ve read other books written in the aftermath of intense loss and those were books that I had to occasionally put down because the grief just felt so heavy. Grey sure gave us grief, but more importantly she gave the reader hope, love, laughs, and the reminder that life goes on.

I loved the writing style in this. It was so witty and Kate was an A+ protagonist. She’s the type of character you read and just know you’d want to be her friend in real life. And Hugh?! No words. I’m literally speechless. He can take a seat at my round table of impeccable book boyfriends (that aren’t actually boyfriends). Where can I get me a boss like that, Grey? On that note, I actually loved all of the side characters. Grace and especially Kate’s mom were absolutely hilarious. That epilogue was beautiful and made me so happy.

If you’re a fan of books centered around life after loss and slow burn romances, this is a must read.

4.5

Get your tissues out because this one will make you cry, then laugh so hard you cry, then cry again!

The characters were all spectacularly written, especially the main pov who was honest and flawed and unintentionally funny. There were also a plethora of profound moments that had me reflecting on life and all the good and bad things that led me to where I am. I made me appreciate my husband and daughter more than ever.

“I walk toward the shore, the sand getting firmer and wetter beneath my feet, and step out a little way into the cold water, deep enough to have to dig my feet in solidly to keep my balance.
It’s a lot like grief, standing here. You’re dragged from the shallows into the depths where it’s dark and heavy and you can’t see or hear or breathe. There were times over the last two years when, if I screamed, grief would swallow up the noise. It was bigger than my voice. A whirl of emotion for which there’s no sufficient word in the entirety of the English language.”

Thank you Zibby Books for the alc via Netgalley

Thanks to Zibby Books and Netgalley for an early digital copy of The Last Love Note by Emma Grey, which is being published on November 28, 2023.

This is the story of Kate who lost her young husband to early onset Alzheimer's and is trying to come out from under her grief to live life fully again. This book is heartbreaking and shows such hope. I loved the characters and the Australian setting. Keep your tissues handy!

book tugged on my heartstrings. This story started as a fun rom-com but became personal and deeply meaningful. The story was written intimately. I felt Katie’s vulnerability after losing her husband in such a heartbreaking way at a young age. She had to navigate through life’s unpredictability and steer through her emotions as she struggled with making life-altering decisions. I felt her pain, anger, and frustration with losing the love of her life with a young kid. The book's second half reflects the struggles of trying to move on without ruining the memories dear to the heart from the past. I enjoyed the ending as Katie managed to be more open about taking risks, be more present, and dream a little more.

After reading the author's note, I understood how this book was intended to reflect the author‘s life as she wrote this book. I can’t imagine losing my partner at a young age and trying to steer through life again. This book did a great job conveying the importance of grief and the hope to find purpose again. This book is good to recommend if someone is looking for a good cry or a book to reflect on about life and its unpredictability.

Thank you to Netgallery and to Zibby Books for giving me a copy of the book.

The amount of times my heart broke while reading this is astronomical. A beautiful, tragic love story.

A poetic novel with bits of humor, candor and life lessons. A love note to remind us all to never forget, but also to remember to love ourselves and keep moving forward even though we have been hit with grief.
I highly enjoyed this and definitely recommend.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

Big words coming to you...are you ready?

This book is my FAVORITE romance book I've EVER read.

First of all, I don't love romance, and rather than focusing on the reasons I don't let's talk about WHY this book was so great.

1. The flow of the storyline as it ebbed and flowed in past and current timelines worked really well.
2. Real emotion was weaved into this book by the author and it emitted itself to the reader. Bravo!
3. It had a level of sadness, but overall it was joyful, real and the focus was love.
4. There was a level of humor that our protagonist spoke and thought that was charming.
5. The overall feel is wholesome, kind, supportive and loving.

Now, go and do yourself a favor. Get this for yourself and for anyone that you know that loves to read. You will not regret it. It is an easy one to recommend and give to all. The only one caveat I might share is there is loss shared in this story that feels very visceral so if someone is close to that it may not be the right timing.

Thank you to NetGalley and Zibby Books for this complimentary e-book.

The Last Love Note by @emmagreyauthor has been getting a lot of buzz lately. It’s been selected as a November @bookofthemonth pick and is an Indie Next recommendation! ⁠
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If you’re looking for a book that will make you laugh, make you cry, and leave you full of hope, this is the perfect read for you!⁠
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The Last Love Note is the story of a young widow, Kate, who’s a bit of a mess. Two years after losing her husband, she’s struggling to cope with work, single motherhood, and her grief. When an unexpected detour leaves Kate and her boss, Hugh, stranded for the weekend, she gets a second chance at love. But will she take it?

This book had me feeling all the feels and hoping Kate could find her way through her grief to find love again. It will devastate you in the best way. Bring your tissues.

Watch for The Last Love Note, publishing on November 28th.

Thank you to @NetGalley and @Zibby Books for an advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Received this as an ARC via Net Galley. This was just ok for me. From the first few pages it was obvious where this was headed. Cam’s diagnosis and illness were tragic. The rest just didn’t engage me - it felt like telling vs showing and I just never felt pulled into the story. It definitely feels like writing this could have been cathartic for the author as per the author’s note she lost her husband. That loss definitely came through in Kate and Cam’s story.

This book will make you have allll the feels. This is a story that has such depth and heart. This is a story that is perfect for anyone going through grief. Or knows someone going through grief. Honestly, this is a story for everyone because we all have lost someone or know someone that has. It is a story that is heartbreaking but also funny. A story that is touching and sweet but also gritty and raw.

I loved the characters so much. I loved this story so much. Kate is a young mother that lost her husband and is doing her best to navigate that loss while also doing her best to show up for her young son. Hugh is her boss turned good friend. You’re going to love them both. Kate is the definition of strength and Hugh is the definition of kind. He is thoughtful without needing recognition which is the best kind of support. She is real and vulnerable and shows how much beauty there is in breaking.

This story beautifully explores how grief impacts the whole support system, not just the person that directly lost someone. It also explores what happens when grief makes someone’s whole life flip upside down and how they come back from that, how they find their spark again.

“Life is short. And maybe the time will come when you feel ready for that, but there are no rules. There’s no rush. Everyone responds differently. You can’t expect anyone to understand how hard it is unless they’ve actually been there,”

This is probably the easiest 5 stars I have given a book this year. This story will impact you. This story will stay with you and I think everyone should read it. I highly recommend this one but get your tissues ready.

Thank you @emmagreyauthor for writing a story that will stay with me for some time.
Thank you @zibbybooks for another touching story
Thank you @netgalley for the early copy

This one is out November 28th.

I love a book that makes me cry and THE LAST LOVE NOTE took that to the next level! Never have I cried in the middle of a book and continued until the last page. This felt like a meet-cute meets a true love story meets a Hallmark movie without being cheesy! I loved hearing Kate's story of how she fell in love with Cam and all that they went through as a couple and then her, as a widow and single mom. As the reader, I could feel what she was going through and the moments in which she felt her eyes were opening wider.

Emma wrote this beautiful novel that will take hold of your heart and truly look at the world differently. The next time someone is empathetic towards you, you'll be drawn to pause to better understand how they know to be so understanding and kind.

Want to read a book that will tear your heart out and then make you hug it after it’s done with you? If that sounds like a good time I recommend this book. It’s got a slow romance, a grief stricken heroine, and a too perfect love interest. It was a good time.

Thank you NetGalley, Zibby Books, and Emma Gray for the ARC of The Last Love Note. I was not prepared for the amount of despair that I would feel while reading this book. The beginning starts of Bridget Jones style and I loved it from the start. Then sadness takes over and you go through Kate's journey. You learn of the fairytale love that Kate and Cam for one another. That love that we all wish for. As Alzheimer's breaks her husband down physically and mentally you realize the pain and heartache the process can be. Thank goodness for Hugh, who reminds me of Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice. He helps her grieve through the process and get back on her feet.

This book made me laugh out loud, cry, smile, sob, feel like my heart was breaking and then it put it all back together by the end.

If you have recently gone through the loss of a spouse I feel like this book would be extremely hard. But maybe it would be helpful to know that others struggle through the same situations.

I trudged through the first 75% of this book and enjoyed the last bit.

Kate is consumed by grief after losing her husband. The last few years have been a blur and survival, and when she least expects it, she sees a glimmer of hope in a longtime friend.

What a beautiful, honest book. I loved this story of love after loss, and the story's excellent pacing kept me interested and invested. The pain of grief is specific but made universal by Grey's writing, and the enduring love that's written across these pages is a hopeful testament to connection.

This was a very personal book and heartfelt book for the author. She writes with a passion about love, loss and hope as she experiences widowhood and single parenting at a young age. The book had some humorous moments as she navigates this new life and does some much needed soul searching as she discovers who she truly is and what she wants from life. #SelfDiscovery #TheLastLoveNote #EmmaGrey #NetGalley

A beautiful but heartbreaking story. Bring your tissues especially if you have experienced a close loss like the main character. What I did enjoy that throughout there was always the presence of hope and that things would slowly be easier. Thank you to NetGalley and Zibby Books for this ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book started off uproariously funny, took a serious turn and tugged at the heart strings on every page. Kate just lost her husband to early-onset Alzheimer’s and is struggling to find her way with her young son. Navigating between loss and grief, hope and possibility, Kate’s conflicted on what her future holds. When a business trip turns into a weekend away with her boss, Hugh, Kate finally processes her grief and starts to make plans to heal herself. There on the beach, secrets are revealed, feelings are uncovered and unexpected plans are made. This book had me at hello with an unexpected grenade, neighbor-watching and a trip off the treadmill. But it kept me reading with its relatable characters and the emotional journey they took me on….and sticky notes.

Kate is a widow at 38. The story goes back and forth between present day and her life with Cam (her deceased husband) as he is diagnosed with Alzheimers. It is a heartbreaking story but it is done with just enough humor to keep it light. Kate is a delightful character as she deals with heartache and day to day life, and eventually dealing with life Cam.

This book has heart, by the truckloads! I know it will appeal to many but it was not for me.
It was apparent from the early pages that this author suffered an incredible loss at a young age and exposing her heartbreak by writing this novel was a personal journey. How can a reader really critique that experience?

I take my task of providing my honest reading experience very seriously, and my review is based upon the editing and mechanics of the finished product. The basic premise of the novel was compelling and kept me reading but here are a few of the things that bothered me:

* Ms. Grey’s humor was the bright light within the pages and had me wanting more.
* The side characters were the crazy bunch who informed Kate and how she navigates “life after”. I would have loved more development of some of them.
* The timeline back and forth took me out of the plot and left me feeling disjointed. I appreciated the backstory fill in points but there were too many back and forth (2 years before, 4 years later etc.) to keep me fully invested in the continuity of the story.
*The cadence of the novel felt frenetic. Some parts were too drawn out (leading to predictable outcomes) and others felt incredibly rushed. At about 75% I considered giving up, but was compelled to figure out exactly why this novel wasn’t working for me. I am known to be overly empathetic in my reading, so these feelings surprised me. My first thought upon completion was that I bet they were under a publishing deadline. This was disappointing.

It’s nearly impossible to give a star rating to a book that hits so close to the author’s heart and experience. I keep my social media platforms “positive only” and refrain from posting negative reviews. I appreciate the early copy in exchange for my honest opinions.