“How can you move on if you can’t let go?”⁣
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The Last Goodbye was a beautifully written story about Anna who’s grieving over the sudden loss of her husband Spencer. Anna calls Spencer’s phone to hear his voice on his voicemail as she grieves, until one night, someone answers. ⁣
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Brody, a man also grieving the loss of someone he loves and suffering from anxiety and agoraphobia now has her husbands’ old phone number. He talks to Anna any time she calls. Over the course of a year these two grow closer. They support each other through their grief and help each other to see the light again. ⁣
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This was a slow burn but it was heartbreaking and heartwarming. She beautifully depicted Brody’s character. You could just feel his fears and anxiety. Your heart broke for Anna and Brody both. It was wonderful watching their relationship blossom, even never meeting. ⁣
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Abby’s best friend Gabby was also an amazing friend and co-heroine in this story. This was a really emotional, beautiful story.⁣

I loved the narration. I loved the different accents to fit each character. Well done.
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Thank you @harpercollins and @netgalley for an ARC for my honest review. ⁣
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫⁣
#bookstagram #books #netgalley #thelastgoodbye

My nomination for Romance GoodReads for 2021.

I was doing some testing with the NetGalley app and needed to download and play three audiobooks and listen to each for at least 1/2 hour; this is the book the book that I came back to ... to finish first. This is the best rom-com that I've read/listened to in quite a long time.

There are few other books that discuss the grief of a loved one and agoraphobia. I like how the author/Fiona Lucas slipped in different ways for tackling agoraphobia (counting, baby steps) and how the therapist discussed trigger points with Brody. Fiona Lucas really did a great job of providing significant detail without it me noticing; I noticed but it didn't detract from the story ... and I'm really noticing more now (as I'm writing the review) than I did at the time of reading.

The main character is Anna, whose husband was hit by a drunk driver when walking up to the corner store. Anna's best friend is Gabi. I like how their relationship waxed and waned a bit, it really seemed (to me) to be more realistic than a lot of relationships portrayed in novels.

I really liked how all the characters were developed. This one is really worth reading and (I know its only January) but I'm pretty sure that it will be getting my Romance vote in the GoodReads year end voting process.

Also ... the narrator/Antonia Beamish does a fabulous job!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher/Harper Audio and the author/Fiona Lucas for the opportunity to review The Last Goodbye advance read copy.

In The Last Goodbye Lucas has penned a stirring tale of deep love, grief, loss, friendship, and the power to overcome even the darkest of times.

I sincerely enjoyed Lucas’s writing style and getting to know the characters she’s created. While the novel had a slower start then I generally like it rang true to the storyline and I soon found myself completely immersed in the book. I loved eaves dropping on Anna and Brody‘s phone conversations and slowly uncovering the secrets from their pasts that continue to haunt them years later.

While there’s no surprise ending, or curious twists of fait, I found myself feeling overwhelmingly happy for the reminder that we can find peace and comfort in our dearest friends or a complete stranger.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4 stars with a PG rating for mature themes.

Thank you to NetGalley, Harper Audio, & Fiona Lucas for the free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This was a nice enough story, but way too slow and long. There were parts I found entertaining, the mother-in-law scenes, but for the most part it was a lot of talk and not much doing. I didn’t really feel the connection between Anna and Brody. I think more emphasis should have been put on their conversations since that was the basis of their relationship. Then maybe I would have felt their chemistry.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Audio for the opportunity to listen to this book.

Anna, who has been grieving the love of her life Spencer for almost three years, was not ready to love again, actually she didn’t even think she was capable of it. That is until she is taught that it is okay to love again after loss by an unlikely friend.

Anna, a young woman living in London, is grieving her husband Spencer who died tragically less than three years ago, and is still swept up in her grief. As a result of this, she seeks to find comfort in this loss and continues to call Spencer’s old number just to hear his voice. However, one night someone unexpectedly picks up. This mysterious new voice is Brody, who also knows a lot about grief and loss. Anna and Brody end up talking every night, sharing their upsets and insecurities and a wholesome friendship blossoms. After endless phone calls, feelings develop as Brody encourages Anna to learn to love again.

The characters in this novel are relatable and well written and I couldn’t help but root for their happiness. I think many people could relate to elements of either character in this novel, I know I myself could relate to elements of both characters at times.

The Last Goodbye is a beautiful story. It is filled with themes of grief, loss, love, and hope with undertones of mental health, unconditional love and true friendships. There are a lot of themes present but this story is written well enough so that it’s easy to follow along.

I genuinely enjoyed reading this novel, however, it did start out slow for me but managed to catch my attention half way through and kept it until the end despite a few redundant sections of the novel. I definitely think some areas of the novel could have been omitted as I felt myself wanting to skip over a few chapters to get back to the interesting parts of this story.

Story: 3 ⭐️
Steam: 1 🔥
Audio: 5 🎧


This book was okay. I think I was expecting more romance and maybe that is why it fell short for me. The writing was great. The first half of the book felt like it dragged. I think if I hadn’t received an arc, I would not have finished it.

This book is really emotional and is centered on grief. If that is something that interests you, this book would be perfect. For me it was just too sad and I couldn’t get into it. I would have liked to see more about how the romance moved past the beginning of their love story.

I received an audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley.

I really enjoyed the narrator on this audio. She did great with the different characters and really added a lot to their personalities with the way she read the story. And the story itself was fabulous as well. Love after death is always a little heartwarming and this author approached it in a unique and different way with the way the two main characters meet.

Overall I really liked The Last Goodbye, it was well written and just an all around good book/audio. And I would definitely recommend it to romance/fiction.

This book is fantastic. It is an amazing perspective on grief and how people handle loss differently and that there is no wrong way to go about it. Going through a loss myself, this book really hit me hard and I could relate to what Anna was going through. The need to call Spencer's phone just to hear his voicemail really made me cry since that is something I have done before. Many people have felt the same feelings as Anna and I thought those were beautifully portrayed in the book. I think Brody was the best thing that could have happened to Anna to help her get through this difficult time. Sometimes it takes time and just one person that helps you see that you are capable of living through it and you will come out at the end of the tunnel.

Even Spencer's mom shows that all people handle grief differently and the same goes for Brody. It was refreshing to read a book that took on so many levels and perspectives of loss and grief. Reading about characters who have similar thoughts and feelings just makes it even more meaningful. Listening to the audiobook made it more real and made you connect more with the two characters but I would have loved it on paper as well. It was just a beautiful story of how love and loss can intermingle and how it is ok to grieve in your own way.