I have always had a fondness for charm bracelets, so I was immediately drawn to the book. I really enjoyed reading it. The way it was set out from the different points of view of Leila & Jake. I liked that it spanned so many years of their lives too. A sweet, tender, read.

One of my favourite books of the year, full of likeable characters and the right amount of love, loss and everything in between.

The story recounts Leila’s charm lost charm bracelet and the story behind every charm it holds. I found myself laughing, loving and crying in equal measures and would love this book to be made into a film. It would be perfect for cold nights where all you want is a cosy blanket, cup of tea and a good film to love and cry at.

I would highly recommend this book.

Like the author said, this book is about Love, Loss and hope. Will you cry? Yes, most likely. But I still loved it.

9 ⭐️

What I loved ❤️: I love many things about this story, I love how the story spans 15 years, seeing them and their love grow slowly was wonderful. ❤️ Leila has a charm bracelet and she fills it with charms that mark an important event in her life, I enjoyed seeing her fill it throughout the years. ❤️ The writing was really good. The characters were developed right. ❤️ This is a story I won’t forget. ❤️

What I liked 👍🏼: My favorite characters were Jake, grandpa and her dad. I know some people found Leila, the main character annoying, but I didn’t mind her. Because the story starts when she is 11, we witness a lot of her young years and immature reactions. Then with time, and as the story progresses, you see her changing, maturing and getting over her traumas. 👍🏼 I also liked that the story was low steam.

What I didn’t like 👎🏼: The ending was bittersweet, I wish it would have been just sweet, and no bitter parts in it 😆 👎🏼 There were a few tragic events too many in my opinion, mostly because I read light happy reads usually. But for someone who doesn’t mind that, then it’ll be ok.

Gems 💎: “‘I met you before I met you, and what I saw, I liked. I knew you were a good person.”
She says: “I don’t have Supergirl’s x-ray vision.” He says: “That’s a shame, because if you did, it might improve your driving skills.”
“I know I’ve let time, and parts of my life, slip through my fingers and it’s like I never realised before that time is finite. There will never be enough of it, and our lives are limited. Seneca said that nothing is ours except time. Not possessions, not money, not love. Just time. It’s the one thing we have control over, that we can choose to use wisely and well, or fritter away on unimportant things.”

There was a lot about the book I did like, including the narrative structure of using the charms from a bracelet to tell about the significant events in Leila's life. The romance definitely took a backseat to Leila's maturing and learning to be a better person.

Ultimately, though, this book wasn't for me. I struggled to like Leila and to understand why Jake kept giving her more chances. However, I was in a buddy read with lots of people who did love this book. They appreciated how Leila grew throughout and all the emotions brought in at the end.

Thanks to NetGalley and One More Chapter for a copy of this book!

Thank you to NetGalley, One More Chapter, & HarperCollins UK for the opportunity to read and review this book before it's publication date! This in no way affected my review, opinions are my own.

DNF @ 25%

Woof. I was really not expecting how heavy this one was (content warnings galore, y'all) and I was nowhere near in a head space to keep going.

I think The Last Charm would appeal to older YA or New Adult readers. I really liked the premise of the story, but the back and forth bickering and Leila's immaturity did not land with me. I am happy to see that Goodreads disagrees! :-) I set this book down at 25% and hope to pick it up again one day when I am in the right headspace. Thank you so much for the advanced reader copy!

This book contains so much warmth it's positively glowing.
Oh my goodness, the main characters were beautifully written about, I felt as though I knew them.
The story has been written so beautifully.
This is a book that I will definitely recommend to my girlfriends.

I finished the book almost three weeks ago, and it has stayed with me. It's not the kin dof story you forget easily. The Last Charm is warm, funny and also heart-breaking. It's full of unexpected twists, and shows how unpredictable life can be when bad things happen to good people. It also reminds the reader of the importance of enjoying the moments of joy and bliss. The writer tells Jake and Leilas story with so much love and understanding. I loved the charms, and how that's the red thread binding everything together.

DNF. Thank you NetGalley and Publisher for this early copy! I decided to not keep reading this one, it was not for me. Thanks!

*gifted*

I really enjoyed this one, I was pleasantly surprised by all of the levels to the plot.

My warning to anyone picking it up would be that you need to be prepared to fall in love with a fictional character. Jake is a sweetheart, and I adored him. Leila on the other hand, I found a little annoying. She seemed very entitled and a little immature for her age, which made me less warm towards her. But she was able to be reflective and note when she was wrong eventually.

The concept of the charms was heartwarming.

I completely forgot about how the beginning was an email, and this could have altered my views on the book if I remembered it 🙈 but I think it’s a great plot idea.

Overall, loved the story, and Jake especially! But Leila’s immaturity just drove me a little crazy 😂

If you enjoy One Day by David Nicholls, then you’ll love this one!

A genuinely breathtaking read that will take you on an emotional journey. I couldn’t put this down and actually listened to the audiobook as well to get through it even faster. Gorgeous characters whose stories are woven into an enchanting read.

Synopsis 📖⠀
A moving and heartwarming love story...Leila’s charm bracelet tells a story of love, a story of loss, a story of hope. This is the story of her and Jake. When Leila loses her charm bracelet and a stranger finds it, she has to prove she’s the owner. Each and every charm is a precious memory of her life with Jake, and how they brought her to the present moment of a life she never expected.
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Review✨
Ah, I loved this book. It was so sweet and captivating. At first I thought it was going to be lame, I mean, who writes a book about a charm bracelet?! 😆 But how wrong I was! I was so invested in the story, Leila and Jake, and by the end I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. I’m not a crier when I read books (I’ve cried maybe twice ever reading a book) but this book had me sobbing at the end. I was so engaged with the characters that the end really hit me in all my feels. Like cried so hard, I was glad my family was still sleeping 😂.
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It’s beautiful, touching, emotional, and 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒎ing. See what I did there? The story is told through the span of twenty years so it was hard not to be invested. This book took me by surprise and far exceeded my expectations.

I received a free digital copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review.
The Last Charm tells the story of Leila and Jake through references to charms on Leila's bracelet. She received the bracelet and charm on her birthday, the same day that her mother left their family. Due to her mother's abandonment, Leila and her father move away and Jake and his mother and abusive father move in to the house. Jake is immediately amazed by the art pieces that Leila has created in her bedroom, and when she returns, at times, to visit her grandfather, the two meet and interact. Over the years, the two connect in different ways, their relationship growing and evolving as they navigate their teens and young adult years.
The premise of the book-story telling through charms-is sweet and is what pulled me to the book. Yet, as I read, I was let down by the transparency of the charm giving/giver and many characters' behavior.

This was a lovely read. I really enjoyed watching the relationship between Leila and Jake progress and blossom. Definitely recommended.

Leila loses her treasured charm bracelet and goes on to tell the finder about every single charm and what it meant to her. It’s a fantastic book and I thoroughly enjoyed it, apart from one thing - Leila, always whinging and permanently full of self pity and she definitely did not deserve the lovely Jake who was far too good for her. The other niggle is the many (too many) mentions of Jake’s “thick black hair” and the colour of his eyes. We were told all this at the start, so no need to keep being reminded. Great descriptions of Dorset, the county I’m happy to call home. And as for the ending, make sure there are tissues handy!

I loved this book.
It was a rollercoaster of emotions one minute angry next happy then crying.
The way the story follows Leila and Jakes journey is brilliantly written.
I just wanted to keep reading.

Oh my gosh where do I start with this book?

Firstly let me say I got both the ebook and the audiobook from netgalley and read them alongside eachother so thank you for that!

The story was heartbreaking but beautiful, we follow Leila, who has been raised by her dad and grandad since her mum left at the age of 11, upon leaving she leaves her a charm bracelet which is the crux of the story. - the book opens with an advert for a missing charm bracelet, you can feel the sentimental value through the advert but obviously at the point we have no context.

The story also follows Jake, who moves into Leila’s old house, he discovers beautiful paintings on the walls and floor of her old bedroom and is determined to know more about the person who left them - he’s having a hard time at home and the paintings help him to realise that there is hope and light in the world.

I can’t tell you anything else because it would spoil the reading experience, but I do highly recommend the audiobook, it helped pull me into the story and experience it in a way that felt so real and left me totally invested

*same for audiobook review published*

A really great read, that I’ll want to pick up again! Thoroughly enjoyed the readalong which was a really fun event and got to meet new people.

Would highly recommend!

Leila is moving house when Jake comes up and talks to her. Jake is moving into Leila's house which she doesn't want to leave but as her mom has run out on her and her father, they have no choice. Her dad must move for work to survive. However a few months later Leila and her dad are back and move in with her Grandads … 3 doors down from her old house.

This is where the story really starts and the reader is treated to the story of Jake and Leila. Liela receives charms throughout her life and believes it is her mom making sure Leila knows she has not forgotten her. Every life event a charm comes through the door, for birthdays, graduation, first painting, nothing is missed. Also alongside is Jake's story of his hard life with a father who regularly beats him and his mom. This doesn't deter Jake when he needs to step in to cover for Leila and gets sent away by his dad. Their relationship is on off friendship depending where they are in life and when.

This is a beautiful written story which keeps the reader hooked on every page. The descriptions are breathtaking in themselves and total transport you to the place. I could never predict the next thing to happen and i honestly loved every single page

This book is simply beautiful. By charting the charms on Leila’s bracelet, we follow the progress of her relationship with Jake as well as their development from children into adults. Ell Allbright has created characters you can’t help but fall in love with and root for as you travel their path with them - I laughed, cried, and loved with them, sometimes all at the same time!