Cover Image: One Last Gift

One Last Gift

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Member Reviews

This was pretty lovely, I wasn't sure if the romance would hold me throughout but there's enough interaction with both characters that I was invested. The treasure hunt was great fun and a good balance to the grief of the main characters.

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If you are in the mood for a sweet, emotional, feel-good romance, then this is the book for you. Cassie and Tom lost their parents at a young age, and Tom always wants to be there for Cassie and protect her. He started a tradition of a Christmas scavenger hunt for her, leaving little clues that will eventually lead her to her Christmas present. Only this last scavenger hunt is the hardest, as Tom unexpectedly dies and leaves Cassie alone. In the picture is also Sam, Tom's best friend, and Cassie's long-time crush. Due to several misunderstandings, the timing was never right between Sam and Cassie, but since this is a romance, you know they will eventually find themselves together.

I loved the scavenger hunt and little clues that Tom left for Cassie. I loved Cassie becoming bolder and braver throughout the story and realizing that she was going to be ok. I loved the Sam and Cassie relationship and the back and forth that played out till the end. And while this is a romance, it had all the feels for friendship as well. Definitely would recommend checking this one out.

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A cute story, but too sad for me. It was a bit slow at times and I think maybe I would have enjoyed it more if I read it around the holidays. I enjoyed the ending of the story as Cassie and Sam find their way to each other and the pace picks up a bit more.

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Cassie and Tom are siblings brought closer by the tragic death of their parents and a Christmas scavenger hunt tradition that Tom puts together for Cassie each year. When Tom passes suddenly as well, she finds that he had put together one last scavenger hunt for her. As Cassie grieves, she also finds the strength to complete the hunt, finding renewed relationships, confidence, and love along the way.

A beautiful coming to age story that highlights the importance of embracing the ones that you love and taking chances on yourself. A sweet Christmas time story for anyone looking for a little hope.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the ARC in exchange for a fair review.

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This was such a cute read and reminded me of a Christmas movie. I really enjoyed reading it. Thank you so much for the arc!

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Cassie and her brother Tom lost their parents when they were young and were raised by their aunt. It wasn’t a warm fuzzy hone and they relied on each other greatly. Tom and his best pal Sam never left Cassie out of anything. As they grow up, things change, harsh words are spoken and she has kicked Sam out of her life and then tragedy strikes and Tom is lost to her as well. As Cassie is mired in grief, she finds an envelope from Tom containing the very last scavenger hunt he created. While along the path following the clues, she learns so much about herself, her brother, friends, relationships, love, loss, anger, grief and how to move forward with a happy fulfilled life. An emotional well written story that. Enjoyed this so much I've already preordered her next release due in September, Love, Holly

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It was a slow start for me and the book continued to move along at the same speed. However, dealing with grief and finding our strength/resilience after won't be a brisk task. Ok to good enough story overall.

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I swear, she always makes me cry. Every time without fail.

I loved this slow burn story of a beautiful friendship. The Christmas spirit was high in this one which I was here for. I loved the characters, as well. All around a great holiday read!

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Not my usual choice but this book was perfect for the day when I was at loose ends and drifting. Love, loss, major screw ups, misunderstandings that go unresolved - just life in all its messy, unpredictable laugh one minute, cry a bucketful the next. It pretty much moved from high to low to high to low and back again. There are few surprises and you pretty much know how it is all going to go but it is all about the in between and there is a lot of that.

So, if your are adrift and need an easy read this works. If you don’t mind the obvious and the flawed, which we all are, this works. Thank you Dell and NetGalley for a copy.

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Cassie and Tom have had a very close sibling relationship after losing their parents at a young age and rely heavily on one another and their incredible family of friends. When tragedy strikes and Cassie needs it most, a gift from her brother leads her on a path she never dared to dream of.

One Last Gift made me laugh and cry and wish and hope! This book is more than a cute cover and one that should not be confined to the holiday season as its story is one that captures the heart and encourages the soul no matter the timing. Full of hope and healing, this sweet story is one that will leave an imprint on you long after the last page is turned.

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One Last Gift by Emily Stone was an entertaining read that I started over the Christmas break and finished in January. I initially thought this would be a Christmas story but was pleasantly surprised that Christmas only provides the backdrop for several time periods during the story. The characters are very interesting but I became a little frustrated with finding out more of their backstory. It sometimes seemed to drag and I was wishing for more details to get the story moving along. The details came in the end but by then it seemed it was an information dump and rushed. I would recommend this book as a good read but with the precaution that there is a lot of grief and little comedy so the reader should not go in thinking they're getting a rom-com or light read. The grief part of the storyline could have been addressed a little better too . As I have experience with this myself, it frustrated me that the characters did not talk about their grief and it wasn't explored at all. Books (and tv/movies) do a disservice by not addressing how people deal/cope with grief. They sugarcoat things and give people the impression it's not a big deal to be sad/lost for more than a month or two. after losing someone. I wish more writers were realistic with their characters dealing with death. Overall, yes it's a good story as long as you go in with an awareness of it's just fiction, not 100% realistic.

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Okay, this was a hella slow burn. To the point where I’d get bored, put it down for days/weeks, take a break, and then force myself to jump back in. It’s also a closed door romance - so for my smutty friends, ehhh. But when I tell you that this book had me ugly sobbing, I meant full snot, tears rolling down my face and my neck. AND, you know it’s gonna happen because it’s the premise of the book.

Cassie’s parents died when she was young, so her and her other brother, Tom, move in with their aunt. Tom’s best friend, Sam, has always been in their life and it surrounds that friendship. Well, Tom does in an accidental fall while exploring Argentina. And for Christmas, he’s always given her a scavenger hunt with clues to her main present. WELL, even after he passes, his final one comes to be and it’s really fucking sad. But you get to watch Cassie grow, grieve, and even Sam - the book is written in third person and kinda has that dual POV we love.

This one didn’t wow me. It didn’t hook me. It was just okay. It did break my heart a million times, which is why I contemplated giving it 4 stars since it was able to pull such emotion from me. But at the end of the day, it took me over a month to read and the only reason I finished it was because I absolutely HATE DNF’ing books.

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I originally shared this as a Christmas book, and it is a Christmas book at it’s heart. But it takes place over the course of a year and is really a love story between a brother and sister. Cassie and her brother Tom lost their parents when they were very young. They stuck together and included a small group of friends and people from the community in their homemade family. Every Christmas, Tom made a scavenger hunt for Cassie. He’s continued it into their adulthood. Unexpectedly, Tom passed away and left one last Christmas scavenger hunt for Cassie. Cassie has to make big decisions and Tom is with her the whole way through the scavenger hunt. I absolutely loved it! You can read it anytime in the year, but it was a great book to read right after Christmas.

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This book is far less sadder than her first one, and believe me, by the end of the first book I was bawling my eyes out. I enjoy the little treasure hunt and how our main character grows and develops a new sense of herself.

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You may not have read this particular book but you know how this story will go. It is comforting in that sense. It does not feel like a Christmas read even though pivotal plot lines take place at Christmas. I can't get over the love interest being named Sam Malone.

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Unsurprisingly, this book was super fucking sad. It was also hopeful and uplifting, and a lovely story about friendships and found family. Cassie's treasure hunt was fun to follow despite the grief, and I enjoyed following her as she figured out the clues. Of course, readers can see Tom's plan way before Cassie figures it out herself. While both Cassie and Sam were frustrating at times, I enjoyed watching them find each other again.

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This book started off so strong and goes on a very short list of books that actually made me cry, but unfortunately that strong start did not last through the whole book and it ultimately was a bit of a disappointment. I did really liked how the time jumps were handled and thought that the deceptions of grief were really well done. Around the 50% mark the story just started to drag and became a much slower story to read. I had to push myself to keep reading it because the story was no longer holding my attention. I cannot put my finger on if this was because of the flow of the plot which dragged on at parts or because of the slow character development, which was understandable considering what the characters were overcoming but something made the story drag on. This was really disappointing considering the strong start the book had and the really interesting premise that the story was built around.

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This one ended up being a little heavier than I could handle right now. I will return to it at another time.

Cassie and Tom lost their parents at a young age and relied on each other—as well as a community of friends—to cope. They were especially close with Tom’s best friend, Sam, who always made sure that Tom and Cassie were surrounded with love. But, twenty years later, Cassie has lost Tom as well. And in a way, she’s also lost Sam; over the years they’d drifted apart, and now the man she always had a crush on is someone she doesn’t even recognize anymore.

She’s never felt more alone.

Then Cassie finds an envelope with her name on it, written in Tom’s terrible handwriting, and she knows immediately what it is. It’s the first clue in the Christmas scavenger hunt that Tom made for her every year; he’d promised her for months that this year’s would be the grandest one yet. At first, she’s too scared to open the envelope—what if she can’t figure out the clues without his help? Or what if she does figure them all out and her last connection to Tom is gone?

Tom’s present sets Cassie on a heart-wrenching and beautiful journey that will change her life—if she lets it. And as she travels from London to the Welsh mountains to the French countryside, she reconnects with old friends, rekindles a lost love, and, most important, rediscovers herself. But once she’s solved the final clue, will she be brave enough to accept the gift her brother has given her—and the love it’s led her to?

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One Last Gift by Emily Stone grabbed me by the heartstrings and didn't let go. A bighearted Christmas scavenger hunt, travel, romance, and a final gift from her brother. So sweet.

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Cassie and Tom lost their parents at a young age and always relied on each other and their friends to get through life. Tom's best friend Sam always made sure they both knew they were loved. Twenty years later Cassie has lost her beloved brother too. She's also somewhat lost Sam too, as they drifted apart, and she feels completely alone now. She finds an envelope addressed to her from Tom and knows that it is the first clue in the Christmas scavenger hunt he did for her every year. The scavenger hunt takes her on a journey that reconnects her with old friends, rekindles an old love, and finds herself again.
This was a great book and was easy to read. I liked Cassie's journey throughout the book and the ending was great too. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy.

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