One Last Gift is another holiday themed tear-jerker by Emily Stone. Orphaned at a young age, siblings Cassie and Tom were raised by their emotionally distant aunt. Every year for Christmas, since they were children, Tom has done a scavenger hunt for Cassie. When a tragic accident occurs, Cassie is given the first clue for Tom's last scavenger hunt. Broken-hearted, Cassie has to decide whether she can complete the scavenger hunt and discover Tom's last gift. Told with festive feels and a lot of emotion, Stone's latest holiday novel is a winner.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

This was such a touching read. I was expecting a little bit more of a light read, but this one was very emotional and definitely not light! I still loved it, just felt like it was a little slow in some parts. All in all it was a great holiday read!

This is the Christmas book to beat for me this year! I loved it. Made me feel all of the feels and felt like more than just a Christmas read

This book is so tragic but also so beautiful. It’s a second chance romance mixed with some friends to lovers scenarios. I could have done without the last misunderstanding but other then that I found that it was really cute and sometimes funny.

🌀Synopsis
Cassie is in love with her brother’s best friend Sam. They’ve been friends forever and, because Cassie’s parents passed away leaving them with minimal supervision, they spend a lot of time together. They grow up together and as time passes Cassie could swear he has feelings for her too. On a skiing trip one night he kisses her, but he’s too scared to commit and breaks her heart by kissing someone else the next day.
Then, Tom dies. Cassie blames Sam for not being there and Sam is grieving so much that he runs out on his own wedding. The two don’t speak until Sam makes an anonymous donation to save a local business close to both of them.
Cassie starts her very last Christmas treasure hunt that her late brother had set up before he passed. As she’s going about the blues she comes across a business she wants to buy and consults the “anonymous” donor, only to find out it’s Sam. She’s immediately upset but with his help she’s off to her next clue and he’s coming too. She’s about to face the biggest fears she’s had yet and her life is going to change dramatically- for the better.

What a beautiful, emotional book about a sister and best friend grieving their loss. Holidays are hard to get through when you are missing a loved one and this book expands beyond that to include moving on and forgiveness.

Beware this is not a light, Christmas romance comedy. You will not be laughing throughout this book. It leans more towards women's fiction with heavier topics, so you may want tissues close by instead.

I absolutely loved the idea of an annual Christmas scavenger hunt, even if it did take much longer to solve. The time and thought put into her gift was priceless and one of the best gifts a person can give to another. The measures he took for Cassie definitely wins him the best brother award in my mind. (Note, I do not have a brother, so I realistically do not know what brothers do and do not do.)

READ 𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝗟𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗚𝗶𝗳𝘁 IF YOU:
• want a holiday read that is not overly holiday-ish
• love a heartfelt read about loss and the journey to move on
• enjoy the "brother's best friend" troupe

I loved how unique this story was and focused more so on the bond between siblings with a mix of romantic involvement as well. The heavy focus on grief made me feel deeper connected to this book and less 'fluff' of a holiday book like this. Recommend!

I enjoyed this one despite the very, very slow pace. I would have liked a little more detail at the end, and maybe less detail in the middle. But overall enjoyed!

Such a good read! I really enjoyed this book and the story line. Thank you for the opportunity to read and review!

After losing their parents so young, Cassie and Tom remained inseparable. Tom always tried to look out for Cassie which often meant including her on outings with his best friend Sam. One of the big things Tom did for Cassie every year was a Christmas scavenger hunt.
With Christmas upcoming, Tom and Sam were to take a trip skiing together leaving Cassie behind this time due to her work. Tom promised that he’d be back in time for Christmas and that this scavenger hunt would be the biggest one yet. However, Sam missed his flight and then a few days later Cassie received a call that Tom had been in a fatal accident.
Life for Cassie and Sam was torn apart. Unfortunately, lost in grief they regrettably pushed each other away with harsh words. Now alone, Cassie will slowly complete her last scavenger hunt from Tom. Along the journey she is forced to face her past, her future, and even love.

Read if you like : scavenger hunts, sweet family dynamics, brother’s best friend romance, inspiring character growth
Warning: death of parent and sibling

This book was incredibly touching. I really enjoyed how the relationship of Cassie, Tom, and Sam was set up. It allowed you to feel like you grew up with them. The description of the travels they embarked on sounded beautiful - adding Wales to my bucket list now. Toward the end the time jumps surprised me and/or felt like the book was dragging along though. I found myself thinking it took them this long to work this out??
Having an older brother that I’m close to, this book will always hold a special place in my heart and on my shelf. Well done Emily Stone!
P.S. You may cry, but in a good way.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for my copy in exchange for my honest review.

ONE LAST GIFT - EMILY STONE

4.5⭐

PLOT-
Cassie and Tom loose their parents at an early age and are each other's biggest support system. Along with Tom's best friend Sam the trio inspite of the loss have made some sort of life filled with love together.
20 yrs later Tom dies in an unfortunate accident leaving Cassie alone again.
But one last gift from her brother gives her a chance to never feel alone again .

MY THOUGHTS -
This is such a beautiful story. It was definitely heartbreaking and heavy in grief and I did shed a few years reading about it but how Cassie and Sam overcome the loss and turn their lives around is just beautiful
The bond between Tom and Cassie is wonderful their bond is something which everyone should have...they both lost their parents yet they had each other and looked after..their childhood flashback stories were so endearing. Inspite of him not being there he still helped Cassie to let her fly!!
Highly recommended this one.

Emily Stone gives me all of the feels. In One Last Gift she tells a story of love, rejection, grief, healing, self-discovery, and redemption over a decades-long timeline. I couldn't put it down.

Cassie and Tom lost their parents at an early age. Tom, as the older brother, took care of Cassie and always made her Christmas magical with a yearly treasure hunt. Cassie has always had a crush on her brother’s best friend Sam, but over the years they drifted apart. After Tom dies in a tragic accident, Cassie is shocked to find he already had her treasure hunt planned out. She’s afraid to go through with it, afraid of losing her last connection to her brother. But the journey the clues take her on show her that she is still surrounded by love.

I read this author’s Christmas story “Every December” last year and ugly cried at the end. With this story, it was a good mix of sad and happy tears, with some humor thrown in as well. I loved how Cassie’s friends were ultimately her family, how these people chose to take care of one another. It wasn’t just typical holiday rom-com, but also touched on finding yourself and dealing with grief. Emily Stone is incredible at evoking emotion through her writing and I hope she keeps it up for many Christmases to come!

Thank you to Netgalley, Dell and Emily Stone for the ARC! This review will be shared to my Instagram blog (books_by_the_bottle) shortly 😊

From the start of this novel, I knew this wasn't going to be a "jolly" Christmas novel, although the word "gift" did make me think so at first. Overall, I enjoyed this one. It was a quick read, easily binge worthy. However, I wasn’t able to connect to the characters and I think the time jumping had something to do with that. I love the story, the lesson, the HEA but struggled really liking anyone. In regards the romantic storyline, it felt like we were told they had feelings, not shown. One thing I did love was the scavenger hunts Tom was able to put together each holiday.

Always, in December is one of my favorite holiday reads so I was so excited to read One Last Gift by Emma Stone. This is not your typical Christmas romance and reads more like women’s fiction to me. The main character Cassie is struggling with loss and learning how to forgive and also find herself. Many times I laughed and cried! I loved her relationship with her brother, Tom, and found myself thinking a lot about my own siblings and how much they mean to me. If you love scavenger hunts and character driven stories, I think you’ll like this one too.

4 stars

Thank you @netgalley and @randomhouse for the early copy

Out now!

Tom and Cassie lost their parents at young ages. Tom and Cassie went to live with their aunt Claire after the death of their parents. She was their guardian but it was Tom that protected Cassie and took care of her. They had each other and that was all they needed. When Tom went to Argentina all that changed. Cassie got a phone call from a man Tom had met while exploring Argentina. Tom had an accident while climbing and fell to his death.

Cassie and hazel went home to have toms funeral because she thought that it would be best if he were buried near their parents. Right after the funeral she saw Sam at the pub with his fiancee drinking, Sam went up to Cassie to try and say sorry for her loss but she was so angry at him for not being there with Tom.

She blamed him for toms death because he was so irresponsible and missed his flight. I felt so bad for Cassie. She deserved so much better. She needed her brother.

I really enjoyed this book. Parts of it was really sad. I’ll admit I cried a little. Because I felt so bad for Cassie. It was an amazing story from beginning to end. I couldn’t put it down. I read it all in one day. That’s how much I loved it!!! I highly recommend this book!!!

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to read an ARC of One Last Gift" written by Emily Stone.

Overall, I rated this novel 5/5 stars!

It told the story of Cassie, who is sent on a scavenger hunt by her brother Tom. The two of them have lost their parents earlier in life. Before Tom passed on, he created this activity so that she would be better able to cope with loss, grief, and forgiveness.

This was so much heavier than I was expecting. When I read holiday books I expect them to be a little more feel-good. But that’s just me so if you want a heavy book this time of you, maybe this will be for you!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy

Cassie and Sam survived so much loss throughout their lives. With each loss they became stronger and continued to grow into the adults they where always meant to be. The love they shared for each other and how the devastation they shared made them into the the people they become. This story is full of bittersweet moments and hope!

One Last Gift is the perfect mixture of tear-jerker and heart-warming Hallmark Christmas movie vibes. Out of the entire book I think I only predicted one thing, so this book will definitely take you for a ride with all of its twists and turns.

Overall, the story was beautiful and I adored every.single.relationship between Cassie and her loved ones. These are some of my favorite contemporary characters that I've read.

I would say the only things that I didn't like were sometimes the transitions between years felt abrupt/out of place and I also do wish we had gotten Sam's perspective a bit earlier on in the story.

However, this is definitely a beautiful story about grief/loss, second chances, and always going on the hunt for one last gift.

Cassie loses her parents at a young age and relies on her older brother, Tom. Twenty years later, she loses Tom. Tom had always done a Christmas scavenger hunt for Cassie and she was left with this last one from him. It shows how Cassie moved forward during difficult times and her growth as she does. It also had her dealing with her feelings for Tom’s best friend, Sam. Although this book dealt with death and grief, I did not find it overall a sad novel but liked seeing how Cassie dealt with everything. Thank you NetGalley for this ARC.