After being forced to take a "mini sabbatical" from her job, Clara Pine Lake Camp to reunite with her summer camp friends. Upon arriving, she discovers that the camp has been sold. Armed with a letter from her 15-year-old self and a checklist, Clara is determined to make this the best last summer.

I ended this book with tears running down my cheeks because I was so overcome with joy for Clara and her friends. There was so much to love about this story, and I will start with one of the biggest draws for me.

When I was kid, I dreamed of going to camp, but alas, it was not in the budget. It was frolicking in the fire hydrant for me. But my curiosity and adoration of camp life is still strong, and I got such a huge dose of it with this book. Spencer did a beautiful job bringing me to New Hampshire and pulling me into this idyllic setting. I could see the cabins and the swings. I could smell the lake and the campfire smoke.

All that was made even better with heaping helping of nostalgia that came via the "campers" recollections of summers past and the ways they tapped into that in the present. Reading about the relay and capture the flag was a lot of fun. There's a certain freedom about being an adult in a traditionally kid setting and partaking in those activities from your past. It really brought a smile to my face.

As did the friendship between these six campers that has endured for over 20 years. They were still friends who could pick up where they left off regardless of the last time they saw each other. I love that! It also seemed that some romantic relationship can still the test of time.

Clara and Mack seemed like competitors, but mostly, they had just been pining for each other for decades. Over the years since camp ended for them, there was always something still burning between them that emerged when their paths crossed. I am glad that 15-year-old Clara's letters inspired grown-up Clara to finally make her move and declare her feelings for Mack.

But that letter would also serve as the push Clara needed to make other much needed changes in her life. Following the end of an eight year relationship, Clara had thrown herself into her work. She thought this was what she wanted, but she ended up burnt out. This was a blessing in disguise because it gave her the time to go back to camp where she had the space to examine her life and figure out what really mattered to her. I love that, too!

It brings me great joy to see people find their happy, and I found Clara's journey to be one that made me proud of her and put a smile on my face. By the time the epilogue came around, my heart was bursting at the seems, and thus, the happy tears flowed. Overall, this was a story with humor and heart, and a fantastic way to spend that One Last Summer.

What a super cute, quick, summer romance. Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for the opportunity to read this.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for the arc. This was more of 4.25 stars for me. I enjoyed this book about Clara Millen, a marketing professional who's thrown herself into her job, becoming such a workaholic that her boss forces her to take a "micro-sabbatical", aka forced vacation, claiming that Clara is exhibiting burn-out. Clara feels betrayed by the job that she's devoted her life to during the past few years, but now she has the opportunity to attend an annual reunion at a summer camp she attended every summer back when she was ten years old, up to fifteen years old. Clara considers the friends she made at the camp her best friends, and she's been avoiding attending the reunions due to her job. One of those friends is also her summer crush from all those years ago, Mack, who Clara shared a kiss her last summer at camp.

This was a fun read, focusing on friendships, and the paths someone takes to have the perfect life. The interaction between the group of friends, the competition when they all take part in the games they used to compete in years ago, it all had me chuckling. This is a perfect summer read, with great messages about taking the time to be with your loved ones, while looking up and enjoying the world around us.

Absolutely loved this one. So cute with the friends to lovers and the life crisis. I couldn’t put it down!!!

A breezy and often too cheesy summer read. Carla is 35, recently single and in denial about being burned out at work. Her boss forces her to take a break which allows her to finally attend a reunion of her camp friends at their old camp in New Hampshire. Friendship repairing and nostalgia-induced activities ensue. And sparks fly between Clara and her longtime crush Mack, who has worked at the camp for years.

This was a fun and cute summer read. I think this will especially resonate with anyone who has summer camp experience, though I may be biased (I met my now-husband at summer camp!). I found the camp friendships very relatable. It took me a bit to get into it, but I did enjoy it overall. A light, easy read with a delightful full-circle ending.

this is a sweet and heartwarming story. I feel if you are an Emily Henry fan, you'll like this story!

I loved seeing Clara find her priorities, happiness, dedications, etc. back at her old stomping grounds/ the place she grew up all those years ago and is growing up in now. Clara and Mack have a lovely childhood rivals to adult lovers type of story here, finding their happily ever afters with each other while trying to find their places in life. I loved the character development and come-to-heart moments throughout this story. there is so much growth, honesty, tenderness, and friendship that makes it the loveliest summer read :)

thank you for the arc :)

I loved this book! It was a really fun little rom-com with pretty excellent banter, amazing chemistry between Clara and Mack & quick-witted humor. This is a fast and easy read that will definitely hold your attention- plus there's some spice as a nice little bonus.

I hereby proclaim One Last Summer by Kate Spencer as one of my top romcom books of all time. ALL TIME.

The amount of times I burrowed my head into my hands, yelled out expletives, and banged my head on my kindle… oh, dear sweet lord. This book had EVERYTHING I wanted in a romcom. EVERYTHING.

If you’re a big fan of Emily Henry & Jessica Joyce and have a penchant for romcom books that feel like women’s fiction BUT with the best tension and banter woven in, then this is for you!!!

I’ve been the biggest advocate for friends to lovers romance, but this one takes it up a notch by making it friends who torture each other relentlessly to lovers. Add in the fact that these are childhood friends and this is set in SUMMER CAMP, with the best, most close knit group of friends, AND the whole I-don’t-know-what-I’m-doing-with-my-life twenties aspect, and you have a novel that I felt was written for me, specifically. Everything about this book was absolute perfection for me—and honestly, I have no notes. READ IT!! Add it to your tbr!!! The wait for June is going to be torturous but so WORTH IT for this title 😭

Great summer read! Loved the dynamics between the main characters and how quickly the story developed. Clara was brave and such a fun character! Loved the Sam's loyalty and friendship.
Overall, the book had me smiling in all the right parts.

Maybe this just Isn't For Me, but I did not find this enjoyable at all. An easy, breezy read, this felt like it was trying really hard to be Emily Henry's Happy Place mixed with a lecture towards millennials to not work so hard. It felt overly cheesy, I didn't get the sense of depth of friendship that similar books have within the friend group (like Happy Place), and I had a hard time believing these characters were actually 35. I know that we tend to act similar to the age we meet friends at, but I think this would have been much more believable if the characters were 23. I could easily see this being someone's beachy, summer read, but it's not mine.

One Last Summer

3.75 ⭐️

This book is for anyone looks for summer camp nostalgia vibes!

Clara is burnt out at her job but in denial of it when she’s forced to take a leave. Sheri heads back to summer camp with the friends she made originally there. While she tries to remember what her 15 year old self dreamed of doing as an adult, she learns to let go of her plans and be there for her friends.

This book definitely brought me back to summer camp with all the activities. I felt like Clara was a little cliche with her denial of burnout and her list making, so she wasn’t my favorite main character. I did love Sam, the best friend!

Thanks to @netgalley for this ARC!

As someone who never attended summer camp, this book was everything that I imagined camp to be. I loved this story so much and now I have to go read other books by Kate!

As someone who had one her best summers ever working at a sleep away camp; I always get excited when a book takes adults back to their favourite place in the world.

However, this one was very lacklustre. The two main characters were way too stuck in the past and came off as extremely immature. I found things to be very repetitive the female main character to be way too negative for my liking.

The only saving grace was the nostalgia that all of the summer camp activities brought back to me.
If you never went to camp I wouldn’t recommend this one

Such a cute, fun women’s fiction with a hint of romance. Our FMC is a workaholic and is forced to take time off from work. This really hit at my heart strings, I’m a sucker for nostalgia, I’m always looking for books that make my inner child happy and this was perfect.

A perfect summer read! I loved summer camp and it was fun to read about a chance to revisit that experience again as an adult. I loved Clara and Mack’s story and how fast it progresses over the week. Their group of friends are wonderful as well.

This had so much of what I like -
*second hand romance
*forced proximity
*reunion

Clara is 35 years old - I’m writing this out because she comes across as much much younger and immature. The characters in this were more caricatures than realistic characters I was able to find any depth in.

Other readers may adore this one but, unfortunately, I was never able to find a connection to this story.


Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for the DRC

This is the absolute perfect read for the summer! If you've ever attended summer camp, this will have you feeling all the nostalgia! Clara is burned out from her corporate job and finds herself questioning what she thinks she wants in her future. Clara is taking a mini sabbatical and in perfect timing for Pine Lake Camp reunion of sorts. Her childhood camp is about to be sold, so this is her last shot at revisiting with her past summertime friends. Not surprisingly, Clara has a romantic interest from her past at the reunion too.
Mack is adorably flawed, and just as confused as Clara.
Their banter was adorable, and if you love friends-to-lovers tropes, then this one is for you! A sweet summer romance that encapsulates all the childhood camp feels! I thoroughly enjoyed this!

What to do if your life is no where near what you expected it to be? Being forced to take a vacation against her wishes by her boss, Clara joins her childhood friends on a trip to the sleep away camp they all attended. Unfortunately when she gets there she learns that the owners are planning on selling the property and retiring. Not only that but her old nemesis Mack is there and he is looking better than ever. When they have a heart to heart around the campfire, the campfire is not the only thing that has a kindling of sparks. The magic behind the camp is returning and suddenly one amazing night together turns into more. Just as Clara thinks she and Mack can make this work her boss decides to give her everything she actually wanted before. What will she choose now that she has everything? A perfect enemies to lovers, close proximity, contemporary romance that is perfect for readers who enjoy this genre

Clara's life is truly out of balance. She's put everything into her job and is hoping for a big promotion. As the book begins, her new-agey boss tells her to go on a mandatory sabbatical. At least now Clara can join her oldest friends for an annual trip to the summer camp they went to when they were younger. Once there, her perspective starts to shift, and she reconnects with Mack. As things progress there, her old life doesn't stand still, and she finds herself facing some unexpected decisions. A fun, heartfelt romance!