I was very intrigued by the title of the book as well as the blurb. A dying wish..... I really thought he would not die but then life is never fair. The three friends, their stories, their lives and how they mingle to make a perfect circle with three people. They support and love each other as only childhood friends can. Even the trauma and troubles they face cannot dim their support. and love.

I found the book very emotional and sad but peppered with the good times and fun things the trio did. A blend of love, friendship and life. This is a bittersweet story and I eagerly turned the pages to see if it had a happy ending.......it somewhat justifies the story and life is never straightforward so it was all good.

It was the first book I read by the author and I would like to read more of her work. Her writing is expressive, evocative and kept me hooked to the story.

My recommendation this month leans more in the territory of not quite fitting in the romance box, per say. If you have to give this read a category, it leans more in the realm of literary romance or women’s fiction. MY LAST LOVE STORY by Falguni Kothari explores the dynamic love triangle relationship between childhood friends. Ms. Kotahri embeds a unique perspective around the calamities of dealing with illness, respecting a loved ones dying wishes and learning to love from three different angles. Stepping into this world is not as clear-cut as most love triangles – no one is left behind as the perspective of love is equal across all plains. I enjoyed this story mostly for its balance of dealing with complex issues while easing in humor to relieve tense realistic moments. Ms. Kothari is a stunningly prolific writer and fearless in her approach to creating a tale that explores a variety of emotions. We had the pleasure of chatting with her in Episode 189. For further insight into MY LAST LOVE STORY, take listen to our discussion.

Flaguni Kothari will break your heart with this book just as she makes you feel that if your heart's desires are pure enough, you will get what you wish.

It doesn't seem that way for Simi, at least not until she meets Nirvaan and Zayaan, two boys whose friendship rescues her. Simi falls in love with one of them and, for various reasons, marries the other. But now her husband is ill with cancer, and he comes to her with a bucket list of sorts. Included on that list is reigniting the friendship with that boy she first loved. Also included? Having Nirvaan's baby.

There are some heartbreaking scenes in this book. When you're dealing with a terminal illness, that's to be expected. Some of those scenes, though, have to do with people and the choices they make. Falguni Kothari makes you wonder if Nirvaan can find the peaceful end he seeks and if his wishes can alter his wife's and best friend's trajectories.

I loved the setting. Kothari takes you into India, and at times her locations are characters themselves. One thing I really appreciate about books set in foreign (to me) lands is the chance to understand their cultures.

The ending intrigued me. Kothari makes a rather bold choice, and I liked it. She didn't go with the predictable, and I liked that even more.

Book clubs looking to discuss marriage, friendship, and relationships will love this one.

This was quite the riveting read, an incredibly refreshing story rich with history and heartache and impending loss. It's unpredictable and complex and the writing was truly stunning. There's nothing cliche about this storyline, nothing is sugar coated, nothing is simple. There's no forced drama, no contrived HEAs, just a very organic progression amidst some seriously complicated circumstances. It's a profoundly intense story of friendship and love and I devoured it in one sitting. While I like a bit more blatant romance in my romance, there's a lot to be said about an understated love story of longing and difficult choices and I really appreciated it. This is one story I won't soon forget.

We enjoyed this one so much, and found it so unique we did a podcast about it. I think it's safe to say this book doesn't fit nicely into any box, which is always a welcome change for a reader like me! Also, Kothari is a fabulous podcast guest, take a listen!

Great, would recommend

My Last Love Story is an unconventional and a poignant tale of love, friendship , loss , survival & healing. It’s a heartbreaking emotional journey like no other I have read. This book was in my to read list since forever and it was totally different from what I was expecting it to be . The story was an emotional roller coaster and there is no way a reader couldn’t have left effected by all the emotions. It’s a story of three friends Simi, Nivraan & Ziyaan. Falguni has beautifully weaved her story and pulls the readers in from the first page . As the story proceeds things about these characters are unveiled in bits and pieces in beautiful way ; Falguni has done it just makes it so much more interesting and enjoyable reading experience. Falguni sucked me in with her writing style from the get go , She created characters who were both strong and flawed making me love them even more.
The characters were extremely believable and there was amazing chemistry between the three main characters. A deeply emotional story, My Last Love Story has touched on heavy and bold topics. It was extremely well-written and tastefully written book . I felt for Nivraan for dying too young and for Simi for all she went through. Ziyaan was an enigma for me , His friendship & bond with Nivraan was just beautiful . I felt for all three characters for what they went through . This is one of those stories that would leave a lasting impression in a reader’s mind and the characters stay with you for a long time even after the story ends. A must read! Take a bow Falguni for writing this beautiful story. Hats off to you.

2.75 Stars

This book was depressing and uncomfortable. That’s not always a bad thing, but I think it was a little too much for me here.

This was well written and I’d easily pick up another book by Kothari. But, the story line and the little twists and nuances just made me so..well, uncomfortable. Not in a cringe-worthy way, more like a “this shouldn’t be happening” type way.

There’s a man with terminal cancer and his wife who he’s blackmailing to have a baby via IVF. Then there’s the old best friend who’s there to create more tension it seems. There’s this love triangle that kind of is and isn’t a triangle. Constant hints at it almost being a ménage without it actually ever being one. And an elephant in the room in regards to Simi’s past that only she seems privy to.

In a way it almost slides into creepy on the uncomfortable scale. But then the writing is so good and I stayed just curious enough to want to keep reading to find out what would happen.

My Last Love Story is a romance novel about love triangles. Our main character is Simi who is married to Nirvaan, husband. They both live an idyllic life in California. While they may look happy on the outside they are dealing with a lot. Nirvaan has cancer and only has about a year left to live so he wants to make up for lost time with a bucket list in order to make the most of it.

The couple has made a pact so while Nirvaan is going through radiation treatments, Simi is going through IVF treatments in order to have their child. Zayaan, a close friend of the couple also lives with them in order to help out with Nirvaan. Since their teenage years in Surat they’ve been known as the three musketeers. But they have a complicated history as Simi dated Zayaan before marrying Nirvaan. She has suppressed her feelings for Zayaan since long ago, but living together in close proximity has brought them up again.

The novel is fast paced and the story has a solid flow. I felt invested in the characters and their stories as their backgrounds are revealed through flashbacks. Seeing their stories helped me empathize and see where they were coming from. I did enjoy reading the from Simi’s pov, but i felt like there was a bit narration and there needed to be a better balance of dialogue. This made it seem as if Simi was talking at the reader rather than too them.

At times I was really frustrated with Simi’s character. I understood that she had been married for years and didn’t want to burden her husband as his illness got worse, she kept bottling her feelings up inside and not sharing them which led to a lot of arguments that could have been avoided. She kept holding onto the past (which is explained why) but she kept living in it.

I enjoyed that the novel is also enriched in culture. It’s a somewhat lighthearted novel about love and relationships, but also delves into deeper topics such as IVF and terminal illnesses. It’s also a story about how we grieve. Nirvaan’s diagnosis not only affects him but everyone surrounds him as losing a loved one is never easy.

Though the story was centered on love triangle it felt more like contemporary fiction than romance.

Grab the tissues and prepare to fall in love.... and break your heart!

I thought I knew what I was getting into when I started this book, but as it turned out… I really wasn’t. This really is a beautiful love story that cannot be considered a love triangle, they truly are a threesome and there is no denying it.

I’ll give it a try to summarizing this story with all its complexity glory, here we go; It tells the story of Simi, Nirvaan & Zayaan, aka the Awesome Threesome, they have been friends since their teens and at that time Simi and Zayaan had been in love and planned a future together. Until the night of their 18th birthday where a series of awful events took place and it changed the course of their lives forever.

Fast forward more than a decade later and we have Simi and Nirvaan married and Zayaan living with them. Nirvaan has terminal cancer and is making his life mission to bring his wife and best friend back together. A lot has happened in those years, some were spent a part from each other and for a group who always valued their friendship and “Everything we do, we do together” there’s been a lot of secrets between them that needs uncovering.

The story picks up with Nirvaan forcing Simi to have a baby with him before he dies, this is something I didn’t particularly enjoy and couldn’t get behind it. I tried to understand both sides but no one should never feel pressured to have a child if they’re not ready. As the story progressed, I could somehow overlook that and see the bigger picture of tangled circumstances, and that made me enjoy the book more.

Nirvaan was the center of the group at this point, where in their teens it felt like Simi was the center. But that’s not neither here nor there. Nirvaan knew Simi and Zayaan would do anything for him, he also knew that Simi and Zayaan loved each other more than they loved him and he was fine with that because he loved them so very much.

The writing was beautifully eloquent, but it took me a while to really get into the story because I’m not a fan of monologues, and the first 25% or so of the story was Simi taking us back throughout their lives and how they came to be who they are now, not only in the beginning but in the story in general there was a lot of background story that was only told us, where I would have preferred it to be shown. I believe that if the story went back and forth with flashbacks and real time, it would make it more interesting to read, or maybe start with the past and then flash-forward to where the story began. That’s just a personal opinion, of course.

Other than the writing style, my biggest problem with the story was how it ended, it built up the whole story to have Simi and Zayaan hash out what happened all those years ago and move on from it, yet we didn’t get to see that happening, we know it did, but we didn’t see Simi open up to Zai and how he’d take this new information. Plus, the fact that they completely ignored Nirvaan’s wishes didn’t sit well with me either.

With that I close the reasons I couldn’t bump up the rating for this book, it wasn’t a bad book on any account, it was a great story and I devoured in less than 3 hours, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t have some troubles with it.

Quirky but beautifully-written, literary love story of Simi, Nirvaan & Zayaan, the Awesome Threesome who have been inseparable friends since they were teenagers. They have always shared mutual love and admiration throughout their lives. Now we find the threesome at thirty, together again in a strange situation. Simi and Nirvaan are married and Nirvaan is dying of cancer. He has decided to have Zayaan come to live with them so that they can enjoy the time that he has left. Nirvaan has definite plans and one of them is to get Simi and Zayaan together after he is gone. This is a well-written, heart-wrenching novel that is emotionally charged from beginning to end. Highly recommended !

My Last Love Story by Falguni Kothari will be available January 23, 2018 from Graydon House, an imprint of Harlequin-Graydon House Books. An egalley of this book was made available by the publisher in exchange for a honest review.