Renée Carlino is, and always will be, one of my favorite authors. I happened by her writing by chance, and I’ve never looked back, eating up her words like they were a gift. While not every story evokes the same feelings for me, I have always enjoyed the feelings that she creates with her characters and the true emotions that she puts into her writing.

The Last Post tells the story of Laya, a young woman who has just lost her daredevil husband in a tragic accident. She’s drowning in grief, and her life feels like it is spiraling down the drain. In order to cope with all her emotions, she finds herself leaving Facebook messages for her late husband, worrying all of those around her. These messages catch the attention of Micah, a young architect that works for Laya’s father. He instantly feels a need to help Laya and soon their two lives begin to weave together.

This story centers around Laya’s grief and the walls that she’s built up around herself. She’s scared to move, and scared to feel happiness and life outside of her relationship with Cameron, her deceased husband. Micah tries desperately to break through those walls, but as soon as he starts to break through Laya’s armor, she builds it back up again. It’s a maddening cycle, that was a bit frustrating, but also true to life. Carlino is not afraid to put true life emotions into her writing, and I felt the gut wrenching pain that Laya was experiencing. However, despite this, I did have a hard time connecting to Laya and Micah for the better part of the book. I still enjoyed it, but it wasn’t until the last 20 to 30 percent of the book that I really felt the connection with these two characters.

As with all Renée Carlino books, she blew me away with the ending of the last post, and left me breathless and full of hope. It’s the reason why I read her books, and the reason why she’s one of my absolute favorite authors of all times. While I can understand that The Last Post may not be for every reader, if you are a long time fan of Renée, do not miss this latest edition to her repertoire, as it just reinforces why we fell in love with her writing in the first place.

I am not the least surprised at how great this book is. This author has the ability to make me feel so much, and I cant get enough of it. Like all of her books, this one is highly recommended! Enjoy the ride.

I seriously loved this book!

Both Laya and Micah were such unique characters and as usual,  Renee Carlino's words sucked me right in. 
A heartbreaking beginning with reading what Laya went through, losing her husband Cameron tragically.  Her struggle to accept his death was completely understandable. 

And then there's Micah.  He was almost like a lost soul trying to find his way in life, and figure out what was important to him. He had quite an interesting personality. And I absolutely LOVED his twin sister, Melissa! Their relationship made me laugh!

A lot happens in this book, and it just flowed so easily for me.  

Highly recommend!!!

Three, two, one.....see ya!

This book was excellent but intense, given the subject of grief. The book deals with not only the loss of a spouse but also the loss of a parent. I appreciated how the author so vividly detailed the grieving process. While I liked the characters, they were at times difficult to relate to- instead of feeling like the characters I felt more like I was watching a slightly blurry film of a close friend. The book was also heavy on length prose, which I found myself skimming past for the last quarter of the book. It was a book I could not put down though, staying up till 4am to finish which is not something I do regularly. This was a very solid 3 star read that I would recommend to the right person under the right circumstances given the intense themes of the book.

Trigger warnings: death, mental health/depression themes, mild sexual content, recreational drug use, coarse language, car accidents

This book could have been brilliant but instead it was a missed opportunity. Ms Carlino is a talented author but this one failed in its execution and delivery for me. I wanted to love it and I wanted it to make me feel like I did in Before We Were Strangers but it didn’t.

The synopsis sounded great and the opening chapter with Cameron and their whirlwind romance, was so promising but unfortunately it went downhill from there (no pun intnded). By chapter 3 I was loosing interest and by 40% I was ready to call it a DNF.

I was bored and I didn’t particularly like either Laya or Micha. For her loss I should have felt Laya’s sadness and grief but I didn’t, instead all I felt was her anger. I get anger is one of the stages of grief but I didn’t like that she was cranky with everyone, especially with the family who reached out to her with good intentions and only wanted to help her through her grief.

One way of dealing with her grief was making public posts on Cameron’s Facebook page for everyone to see. I thought this was strange because for all her push back that she was ok and coping this was an obvious cry for help and a sign she wasn’t ok.........

We are introduced to Micah, and discover he has his own mental health issues that he is working through.....but it’s a thread that never goes anywhere. He works for Laya’s dad and when they meet, he falls for her instantly. He starts to stalk her via her public Facebook posts and when he owns up to it she get cranky with him. Really? They’re public posts!!

I didn’t like the numerous conversation threads that lead nowhere and felt like they were just fillers.
For example, Micha spoke to his twin sister a lot, most of their conversations lacked substance and ended up with them bickering.

I’m sad this book didn’t work for me but look forward to see what Ms Carlino has coming out next because she is definitely a very talented author and whose previous books I really enjoyed reading.

A big thank you to Netgalley and Author Renee Carlino for the ARC and an opportunity to review this copy.

Thanks to NetGalley for the Read Now opportunity. I adore most books Renee Carlino and this was no exception. It was a painful and powerful story of self-recovery, forgiveness, love, passion, and moving on.

This was an odd romance. This was a sad romance.

I’m not really sure how I feel about it. I never had that awe moment. The romance was just weird. Good, in the sense that it ended with a HEA but it’s like they did things backwards and then sideways. But it definitely made me have feelings.

The grief was throughout this entire book. It felt like it never lifted till the last page or so, which is way too long to be reading.

The characters were all strange. I don’t even know if I could say that I could like anyone.

It was an okay story but nothing I’d shout about.

4.5 Stars!

In full disclosure, I went into this book with lowered expectations based on some low ratings. As I was reading, I found myself trying to predict where the story was going, because there had to be a major jump-the-shark moment where this story derailed. I'm thrilled to report that it never happened. After some big smiles and a few tears, I ended up loving this story.

This is only the third book I've read by this author, but I enjoy this author's writing style with a passion. Personally, I found the story highly compelling, heartbreaking, witty, and for the most part, realistic. Although told in dual POV, I found that Laya had a more developed characterization. It was largely her story of dealing with self-isolated grief and healing. I did love Micah, though, and his own steady transformation after meeting Laya. He also had a very fun relationship with his sister that stood out in moments of witty banter and sibling tenderness.

I think Carlino did a fantastic job with Laya's character and her process through grief. Micah might not have been as developed as Laya's character, but I understood his existential crisis explanations and his draw to her, as well as his use by the author to give Laya an even stronger reason to recover. Their slow-burn romance was pretty swoon-worthy, too.

In the end, I simply enjoy Carlino's writing. I really believe she has a pulse on authentic emotions and behavior.

Renee and I have a complicated relationship when it comes to her books. So I kind of put off starting THE LAST POST, not knowing if this one was going to be a hit or a miss for me. I decided to start it when I went to bed one night and the next thing I knew, I was 40% into the book. I literally could not stop reading it. I have not been this consumed with reading a book in MONTHS!

This story was heartfelt and moving. It had my heart racing with both anxiety and anticipation. I knew in the beginning that the main character was going to lose her husband and I "called it" right before it happened. The way that Renee wrote about grief touch me in such a profound way, especially after experiencing my own unexpected loss this year. Watching Laya come out of her deep despair to find both love and simply the ability to enjoy life again, gave me hope. The romance was not super unexpected but it was nice to see the slow burn romance evolve.

If you're a fan of Renee's books then you'll definitely want to pick this one up. If you're like me a slightly on the fence, I say give it a try! THE LAST POST was the perfect break from some pretty heavy fantasy books I've been reading this summer. I'm excited to see what she writes next.

Sadly I just couldn't get into this book. The characters were very unlikable and the plot line dragged. I DNF'd at 25%.

The Last Post is a tricky one for me to review. I loved the beginning. I immediately connected emotionally with the characters and the writing was quick and easy to read. Not only was it incredibly moving, but some of the dialogue was laugh-out-loud funny. I also was deeply touched by the ending. It was thoughtful and heartfelt.

It was the middle of the book that I struggled with. It became very repetitive in nature. Laya’s back-and-forth with Micah, the flirting and the pushing away, the incessant guilt and conversations with Cameron became a bit much. I do understand how that emotional conflict would be an ever-present battle in recovering from such an event, but as a reader, it became somewhat monotonous and I needed more plot. I also can’t say that I entirely bought into their rather insta-lovey relationship. I found Micah to be a bit of an oddball, and Laya was rather abrasive.

Ultimately, while being poignant and thought-provoking at times, I think I needed a bit more substance, more believability, and more forward action from this story.

The real reason that I picked this book up is because I loved Ms Calino's last book that I read. Like really loved it. I wish I can say the same about this one. While this one was not that bad and the whole aspect of struggling architect called out to me (I kinda work at and architect firm albeit I'm an interior designer) the story did not go well with me. During the whole time although my heart gave an occasional awwww my head was screaming STALKER all the time. The behavior of Micah borderlined stalkerish and was begging for a restraining order. Yes our author tried to pass it off as romantic but believe me if someone left me a metro card at my doorstop I won't be using it to travel the city the whole day, I would be calling the police on him.

If not for that little hijink I really liked the story. In my opinion despite Cameron loving Laya their marriage would not have survived in the long run. Yes opposite attracts but only for such a time. This may have to do with my personal preferences but a more quiet ad stable man seemed suitable for a person like Laya and Micah seemed like the best option despite the stalker attributes.

So this is my first time reading Renee Carlino before. I know that everyone love her works so much that I was willing to read The Last Post. And I kinda expected more. It was a good book but I want more out of it.
It was too long slow for my pace. And trust and believe I love slow-burning romance. But I do not like when it drags on. And The Last Post kinda did. I felt it could have been more fast-paced between the characters.
These two characters have problems going on in their life that life is becoming slow motion for them. It's expects. Life is never perfect, it's always changing and we just got to adapt to it. And that's what Laya and Micha need to realize. It will take some time for them but they do.
The Last Post will bring two old souls together as they discover what life really is.
Three Star.

REVIEW: DNF at 66%
"Scars are a testament to life."

My thoughts upon immediately starting this book: I feel like the voice in this book was one of ease, but with a quiet power behind it. You and Me, we are chatting. We are having a conversation and the prose is lighthearted, even though the subject matter has some heavy moments.

My thoughts just barely in the book: I feel like something is missing. The things that should have broken me - subject matter alone, read like I was removed from the pain and the turmoil that I should have felt while I was reading the book. Their interactions felt very clipped and robotic. There wasn't any emotion, any inflection in the voice, and there wasn't any feeling in their reactions.

My thoughts towards the end of the book: I liked it enough to try and finish it - but that clearly failed. I don't think I am hating on it - but the writing style seriously lacked in this one for me. Not exactly well written, grammatically or perfectly spelled out, but Renee's voice kinda worked for me....until it didn't. The execution lacked terribly.

This book should have been a lesson in living and letting go of a past that cannot be changed, putting a lot into perspective - love those you love, and love them often for you don't know when that will be the last time you kiss them....love them.....hug them....say goodbye to them. Or even hear their voice. But, the sad reality is who really wants to let go of their one true love? Their soulmate? The one they married, in sickness and in health, until death do they part? I did get teary-eyed a time or two, because I put myself in Laya's shoes, but it took me putting myself in her shoes, not because I was gathering that from the writing itself. I thought about what it meant to lose a love that meant everything to me. It could have been eye-opening and heartbreaking in some points, but for some reason, that wasn't expressed very well and it fell short.

Micah was a different.....breed. Sure, I can joke, but he had his hangups and his own set of issues to contend with. His overall personality made me smile, though, and that gave me pause for a few chapters. He had a heart of gold, wanted 'real' things, and made for a character that had me rooting for him in all the ways possible, but he certainly came across as if he had "problems." I'm not a huge fan of softer men in general. I like a man that is confident and strong, one that goes with purpose and determination. Micah was so different from my norm that I had to ask myself how I truly felt. Honestly, the farther I got in, it got more difficult. I was trying to reconcile his issues with the way he was written, and it came across that he was slow - but he wasn't. A Harvard educated architect should have had more depth, more gumption, more meat to his thought processes. I'm going to blame the writing style on that. He was very one-dimensional when it was all said and done.

But, then again, maybe that's why the attraction to Laya was there because she, too, was very one dimensional. No real inflection in her voice or her character's actions, yet she had this broken heart to contend with. I wish I felt the pain that she was going through. The heartbreak that she supposedly felt. The grieving she did was very out of the ordinary, and I am not entirely sure I was able to go along with it or understand it. Believe me when I say I like different, something to make me think - something out of the box. But, it was just....awkward.

I did love how two souls were blindly feeling their way through new pathways and trying to be respectful of each other, but also pursuing what they felt in their hearts to be something that needed exploring. I enjoyed the tip-toeing around the obvious emotions, but also the calming nature of Micah holding Laya and rubbing her back. This book, it was all about the little things making up the big picture and that was my favorite part. That was all very sweet and relatable, and that was nice to read. As weird as it sounds, I think it's safe to say that I got caught up in the weirdness. The awkwardness between the characters was really endearing, if I can say that as an outsider looking in.

But, when Laya started to turn down a dark road, I didn't much care for the 'demonization' of a certain character. It felt out of place given what I had already read....how I had already fallen in love with them, and now I'm feeling like it was all a ruse. I just didn't care for it and the book took a very downhill turn after this, and it continued down a very slippery slope. That kind of took me out of the book and I started to skim after that. I knew I needed to call it at that point. I don't like skimming and I don't generally finished a skimmed book.

I honestly feel like there were some transitional issues, but the storyline was great. I think Carlino missed out on the ability to embellish with feelings/adjectives because some of her points just.....stop. But having said that, I also know this is how Carlino writes - or maybe it's how she's edited, I don't know. Some parts of it leave me wanting more well-rounded, better thought out phrasing, while other parts made me really feel the storyline and the characters' actions and feelings. The staccato rhythm that came with her storytelling could really go either way. The story itself could have been a 4 for me, easily and happily - but the writing could have been cleaned up quite a bit, expounded upon, so that sits at a 2, barely. I just feel like there are missed opportunities with her ability to flesh out scenes. Instead of cluing us in on some of the characters' feelings - she let them hang and I wanted to see that play out - to give it a more rounded reading experience. She had so many opportunities to build around some scenes that could have been 'felt' more, but they kind of went stagnant and fell flat.

Overall, the writing left something to be desired, but knowing she can write a story that moves me (Before We Were Strangers, Blind Kiss) I may have given it more time, resulting in a relaxed rating in my expectations, because I knew what she was trying to say, and how she was trying to articulate it. But, I was looking for more emotion and feeling being written in and shown throughout some of the scenes. I loved and appreciated what little of Laya's pain I read, and her fear of starting over. I felt some of Micah's desires and worries about stepping on toes, or saying the wrong thing - but it really was over the top and unnecessary. I struggled more with the fact that he talked about seeing a therapist about his "thoughts" and yet, none of that was really discussed or explained through 2/3 of the book so I question if it was really necessary. It added more of an annoyance than a story arc.

Was some of it predictable? Ehh...maybe. I could see things a mile away, but they played out easily and timeline appropriate, and I was thankful for that. Overall, I liked the story, but the writing lacked emotional connectivity and embellishment. I think this was a lesson for me, knowing some of her books work for me and others just have not - I need to read before I get excited about her books from now on. I feel like this was yet another letdown for a book that commanded emotions and feelings and didn't give me any of it.

~BEE

Seeing the blurb I was looking forward to this, the plot seemed different. So I figured this would be an emotional book and it got me sobbing a few times. The whole losing a loved one suddenly is so familiar. I can understand Laya and some of her grief not all of them. She's very down and sad, moody and uncertain at most of the book. I get the the guilt part, I'm sure her thoughts have crossed our minds at one time.

While I felt something she started with Micah was a good distraction but she wasn't at all ready to embrace it. Hence the push and pull, it was a bit fast. Though there's a time jump in between the accident and them meeting. Micah is in a rut and in a way seeing Laya was a wake up for him. He's a nice guy but Laya can be confusing. Her grief and feelings aren't sure still it's consumingher to move on and let go. When Micah confesses that he stalked her Facebook entries to her late husband they hit a roadblock.

Micah is over the moon for her while Laya is mixed up and uncertain but likes him. It got a bit tangled up, while I get grief is different for everyone, for Laya hung on so tightly to past. Her stages of grief still not done. That is pretty sad really, she gets up and falls so many times. Micah and Laya's whole relationship is shaky, ao many minefields that could disrupt the good parts It has poignant moments that are relatable but i didn't quite connect with Laya and Micah together as a couple. I did like them like at the last few percent but a little late. It's not an overly happy romance it's more about finding yourself after loss and overcoming it. The second half was tad harder for me to get through cause of all the mixed things going on. It ended up well in the end after the tumultuous journey.

Renee Carlino is good at story telling and writing is always on par. This wasn't one of my favorites of hers because while I could relate to Laya at times I had disconnection with both of them together. I enjoyed some parts and the ease of writing. I felt this book should be a bit longer to explore Micah and Laya without all the other stuff hanging over their heads since most of the book is pretty melancholy at times. The last post is about grieving, overcoming loss, on and second chances at love.

4.5 Stars!

Renee Carlino has held my interest since the first book I read of hers 6 years ago. I still remember Will and Mia like it was last month, rather than meeting the new characters of Layah, Micah and Cameron. Ms. Carlino always introduces us to a new storyline in each of her books, and with the exceptional story comes a depth of character.

Layah became a widow 5 years ago by losing her husband, Cameron, to one of his daredevil stunts. It hits her hard as they were only married for one year and she was the complete opposite of Cameron – kept to herself, stayed focused on her orthopedic medical career – and didn’t have a lot of friends. She has no one to lean on during this difficult time as her mother died when she was young and her only family is her father who lives on the other side of the United States. Layah has reached bottom…she no longer has her job and is now living in an apartment owned by her father in the same town as his. She passes the time by drinking, wallowing, leaving voice mails on Cameron’s phone and posting messages to Cameron’s Facebook account as if he were still alive.

Micah is an architect in Layah’s father’s company. He is undergoing a change in his life…going from a sexy partying one-night-stand bachelor to a bearded recluse. (Side note: He has a twin sister, Melissa, that is a hoot and I want a novella of her!) He meets Layah and his ability to think as a level-headed male goes out the window! He goes into creepy stalker mode…seriously..creepy! He reads the posts Layah leaves to Cameron and makes them happen like it was a coincidence. His brain had to have gone out the window with his shaver! But somehow Ms. Carlino makes these creepy stalker coincidences seem cute and quirky. After immersing himself into Layah’s path on so many occasions, they eventually begin to spend a considerable amount of time together, getting used to each other’s nuances.

Neither one of us knew exactly how to navigate what was forming between us.

There’s something in the road to happiness that blocks their way on the path to giving in to love. Something big and powerful even though it can’t be seen… Cameron.

“I’m scared to let him go. And…I’m scared to fall in love.”

Cameron was a huge presence in Layah’s life. He was so powerful in his personality and it’s very difficult for Layah to have that gone from her life. She has tried to keep his memory alive, but with time everything seems to be seen in a different light. Layah begins a path self discovery regarding her time with Cameron. Layah needs her time alone to heal. Time—it’s uncontrollable—and may prove to be Micah’s enemy. Or it may it work in his favor…

There are times in life when the pendulum swinging between happiness and sadness begins to slow.

Once again Ms. Carlino has worded a complete emotionally-riveting novel.

This is a sad story about Layla who loses her husband suddenly and is stricken by grief. The author conveyed her grief stricken state very well.

Micah works for layla’s Dad as a designer , draftsman and instantly has a crush on Layla. But as Layla is grieving so deeply in is very hard to move on.

The story is deeply moving and concentrates on grief and it’s stages. I kept waiting for more to happen. It was well written. I just felt the plot needed to thicken more. It was an enjoyable read. Micah is terribly attracted to Layla. You will have to read to find find out if she can reciprocate.

The concept behind the story was good. But the writing was too disjointed to keep my attention. I also had trouble connecting with the characters, though that's more of a personal thing.

Laya never thought that she would be able to move on after the death of her husband, but maybe Micah can change her mind and get her to see there is love after loss.

I found the premise of this story to be good, the emotions Laya went through after losing her husband was gut wrenching. There’s not much to say about Micah. I just did not connect with him at all and I think that’s where I struggled with the story. I did find his and his sister’s relationship to be hilarious, more so her to be hilarious.

There were things I liked about the book and things that bothered me. I’ve read this author before and absolutely loved the books I have read, but this one was not my favorite.

3.5 Stars!

This is a sweet love story about dealing with grief and how to let go. Wow! It was emotional. I enjoyed the story, pitied the female lead, and laughed at the male lead. Of course they end up together, but like all good love stories it took a few extra steps to get there! Highly recommended!