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The Last Love Note

A Novel

ebook
1 of 7 copies available
1 of 7 copies available

A December 2023 Indie Next Pick
A December 2023 Book of the Month Selection and Book of the Year Nominee
A Washington Post Noteworthy Book
A National Bestseller

You may never stop loving the one you lost. But you can still find love again.

Kate is a bit of a mess. Two years after losing her young husband Cameron, she's grieving, solo parenting, working like mad at her university fundraising job, always dropping the ball—and yet clinging to her sense of humor.

Lurching from one comedic crisis to the next, she also navigates an overbearing mom and a Tinder-obsessed best friend who's determined to matchmake Kate with her hot new neighbor.

When an in-flight problem leaves Kate and her boss, Hugh, stranded for a weekend on the east coast of Australia, she finally has a chance, away from her son, to really process her grief and see what's right in front of her. Can she let go of the love of her life and risk her heart a second time? When it becomes clear that Hugh is hiding a secret, Kate turns to the trail of scribbled notes she once used to hold her life together.

The first note captured her heart. Will the last note set it free?

The Last Love Note will make readers laugh, cry, and renew their faith in the resilience of the human heart—and in love itself.

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  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      September 18, 2023
      Australian writer Grey makes her U.S. debut with a clever if underwhelming story about a young widow who considers a new love. Aspiring novelist Kate Whittaker, 40, juggles her responsibilities as a single mother with her fund-raising job at a university. She attempts to handle her burdens with humor (her phone’s ringtone for her intrusive mother is the “Imperial March” from Star Wars), and receives support from her bachelor boss, Hugh, a family friend (Kate’s young son calls him “Uncle Hugh”) who has accommodated her rocky performance since her husband, Cam, died two years earlier from early-onset Alzheimer’s. She begins to develop romantic feelings for Hugh, but wonders if she can have a future with him after discovering he kept a secret from her about Cam’s wishes for Kate after his death. Grey, who writes in an author’s note about losing her husband to a heart attack at a similar age, convincingly portrays a sense of loss. After a while, however, Kate’s grief begins to feel disharmonious with the otherwise fast-paced rom-com plot, and it’s obvious from the get-go where her relationship with Hugh is headed. The writing is crisp, though, and there’s a smart metafictional element involving Kate deciding to give up her lofty literary ambitions and write what matters most to her. This has its charms.

    • Booklist

      October 1, 2023
      Grey's debut adult novel will break readers' hearts, taking them on an emotional ride but leaving them feeling hopeful. The love story of Kate and Cam unfolds in an alternating series of flashbacks, through to the present day. Kate and Cam are soulmates and have loved each other forever, but they are exhausted with raising their young child. Just as Kate decides to get back into the workforce, she finds out that she is pregnant again. Kate thought this unplanned pregnancy would derail their lives, but instead, Cam is diagnosed with early, rapid Alzheimer's disease. With all of the stress of Cam's diagnosis, Kate loses the baby. While their lives are thrown up in the air, Kate's new boss, Hugh, provides a level of understanding and friendship that Kate and Cam did not expect. He becomes Cam's best friend and is Kate's support system through it all. While readers may expect the twist, the delivery of the romance is extremely satisfying. Grey's eloquent writing about the loss of a partner will create an ache in readers' hearts. This tearjerker will make readers cheer for the joyful ending. Anyone who has enjoyed Cecilia Ahern's novels will love The Last Love Note.

      COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

    • Books+Publishing

      October 19, 2022
      Recently widowed, Kate Whittaker is trying her hardest to navigate the grief of losing her husband, Cam, while also being a single mother to their young son. That’s not to mention trying to balance her overbearing mother, university fundraising job, imposter syndrome as a writer and a best friend who is eager for Kate to finally move on. When bad weather lands Kate and her boss, Hugh, on an impromptu coastal weekend away from everything, past and future begin to collide as she ponders whether she can open her heart again. With several young adult romance novels under her belt, Emma Grey’s first venture into writing for adults is a brilliant start. Grey delivers engaging prose along with unexpected twists and turns, set against a backdrop of beautiful Australian towns and featuring a cast of believable characters you just want to fight for. Although the end of the story feels a bit rushed, which is jarring, at its core The Last Love Note is as heartwarming as it is heartbreaking. With vulnerability and honesty, Grey takes us through the entire spectrum of love. The novel is passionate and soulful, terrifying and devastating. The Last Love Note serves as a reminder that it really is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. Bohdi Byles is a freelance reviewer with a background in bookselling, publishing and writing.

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Languages

  • English

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