Anna lost her husband to a car accident three years ago and she cannot move on. She calls him on her phone sometimes just to hear his voice. One night she is pouring out her soul to his number only to find out the number was given out to someone new. Anna calls Brody often because she believes he has suffered as well and can understand how she feels. This is a great book about loss and how to overcome feelings of anger, regret, and love for something that will never be again. Brody has secrets and problems of his own but through his talks with Anna he is progressing. Facing true feelings will go a long way to healing. Loved the characters and the story.

This book broke my heart, repaired it, and then broke it again. Anna lost her husband in a freak accident, several years later she is still grieving over it. In times of weakness, she would call her husband’s old phone number… only this time… someone answers…. And it wasn’t Spencer. How could that be? He’s gone. Brody though, is grieving himself and over time, him and Anna develop a friendship through phone calls.

I love stories like this… two people developing a relationship without photos and interactions. All through phone conversations. I like the characters in this story a lot! The grief was far beyond any I have ever felt, but my heart broke with them and their struggles. The audiobook had a nice narrator. She captured all the characters voices well with accents and scruffiness. I couldn’t stop listening to it. The story and narrator were captivating. I will say though, the last few chapters really frustrated me. After all each of them went through… grrr…

Overall though, great story! Great narrator! Would gladly add the book to my library.

Thanks HarperAudio and Netgalley for giving the opportunity to access this advance access to this audiobook. I really enjoyed it!

I heard so many terrific things about this book so was so excited to have the chance with the advanced Audio to The Last Goodbye. I had no idea what the story was about as I began listening. I found the reader to be annoying as I do prefer to read books myself, since the story dragged on in some parts and words were so difficult to understand that on two occasions I heard Anna ask Brodie “Are you gay?” “when it was, “Are you okay?”
I honestly think I would have enjoyed the story more if I read it myself without the distractions of how the reader read it and creating a different image in my mind. I also had difficulty picking up the transition from one scene to the next. I liked the storyline as it was unique although unbelievable that it took so long for her to get over her spouse but the fact that she can relate to another individual who also suffered a loss was interesting. My imagination took me places as to her spouse coming back from the dead and discovered some technological way to communicate with her since there were some similarities between Brodie and spouse. The scenes with the mother-in-law were real and heartfelt that I cannot imagine in real life having honest dialogue and rebuilding a relationship in the way they did. I don’t know if it was listening to the audio, but felt there were some missing components that could have been explored more and that was what Anna was going to be doing with her helping others. I wish they delved into it more. All in all the characters are like able and the storyline is excellent.

Lucas is a great author and the writing is great. However, I just could not get into this book. The narrator couldn’t hold my attention as it was a little slow in my opinion. But this is also out of my typical genres I read, so that plays a factor too.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to borrow this audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review .

A heart warming story of grief, love, friendship, and time, The Last Goodbye sucked me in and held me tight. Fiona Lucas captivated the main characters and with so much depth and realism I felt as though I truly knew these people. The story over all was a beautifully written, though it was more character driven than plot driven as not much ever “happens”, but the beauty of the writing is it doesn’t need a thick plot to hold it up.

The narrator was very good and I appreciated her change in tone for different characters. Flowed well even at 1.5x speed.

Thank you to NetGalley and publishers for an ARC in return for my honest review.

This book is a captivating and beautifully written piece of literature. It deals with loss, grief, and even delves into mental health in a way that really clearly illustrates the problems one might go through when experiencing life-altering and traumatizing events. I was hooked on reading this from the very first chapter and had such difficulty putting it down that I finished the book in two days. There were parts that made me laugh, parts that made me cry, and parts that made me really think. If a book can make you do all three while being thoroughly entertaining and attention-grabbing, then it is surely a recipe for success. I haven't read any book like this recently and would definitely recommend picking up a copy once it comes out.

Nearly three years ago Anna’s life was shattered when her husband Spencer was killed in a tragic accident. Anna has spent every day since then wrapped in the numb embrace of her grief. On New Years Eve while in the depths of despair, Anna dials Spencer’s phone number, desperate to hear his voice on his message. Instead, as Anna sobs and proclaims “I love you,” she hears another voice. “I beg your pardon?”
Brody has a new number, Spencer’s, and is surprised by the voice on the other end of the line. But these two strangers discover they have more in common than they would have imagined.
Soon, they are talking regularly, supporting each other as they deal with their own losses and their aftermath.

The Last Goodbye is an achingly poignant story about love, loss, and finding your way back when everything in you refuses to go on.
Fiona Lucas has done a stellar job in balancing the grief and growth of both Anna and Brody. The storyline is engaging and the resolution completely satisfying.

I received an audiobook copy of The Last Goodbye for my review. The performance was well-done and sustained the voice of the characters while perfectly reflecting the mood of the story throughout.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Audio for the chance to review this book.

*I received an ARC of The Last Goodbye from NetGalley and Harper Audio in exchange for an honest review.*

I'll be honest that when I started this book, it felt familiar - like a book I'd read before. It's reminiscent of books like P.S. I Love You with the theme of grieving widow, but Lucas's writing drew me in.

This is a book about what happens after the "happily ever after." Anna and Spencer were soul mates, but after he dies in an accident, Anna is left to pick up the pieces. It's a book about loss and moving on. The character development keep me engaged and wanting to read more from Lucas.
Antonia Beamish narrates the audiobook, and the run time is 11 hours and 28 minutes.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book. All thoughts are my own.

The Last Goodbye by Fiona Luca is an emotional story about overcoming grief.

Three years after Anna’s husband and the love of her life died she is finally trying to move on. Anna’s mother in law is making things difficult for her. Anna feels guilty about dating but doesn’t want to be alone all forever. Anna doesn’t have anyone she can talk to that understands until one day she calls her late husband’s cell to listen to his voicemail and Brody answers. An unlikely friendship develops. How will this friendship change Anna and Brody and impact their lives? Will Anna move on with her life and find happiness?

I really enjoyed The Last Goodbye. The story is very interesting and kept me invested the whole time. I was invested in Anna’s life from the beginning. It is tragic that Anna lost her husband, but I enjoyed how she is working to figure out how to move on and be happy without forgetting him. She is trying not to hurt anyone’s feelings or lose anyone in her life. Anna is struggling with what to do and doesn’t feel like her friends and family understands. When Brody answers Spencer’s old number, Anna now has someone that understands her. Brody has experienced a loss in his life but also has secrets. I enjoyed Anna and Brody’s friendship developing even when they didn’t know each other’s last names or what they looked like. Brody is a very interesting character, so I enjoyed learning about his life too. The Last Goodbye is emotional and a great story.

I listened to the audiobook narrated by Antonia Beamish and thought she did a great job. The narration added fit well with the story, and I’m glad I listened to the audiobook.

I recommend The Last Goodbye for fans of Jojo Moyes and Josie Silver.

Thank you Harper Audio, William Morrow and NetGalley for The Last Goodbye.

“How can you move on if you can’t let go?”⁣
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The Last Goodbye was a beautifully written story about Anna who’s grieving over the sudden loss of her husband Spencer. Anna calls Spencer’s phone to hear his voice on his voicemail as she grieves, until one night, someone answers. ⁣
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Brody, a man also grieving the loss of someone he loves and suffering from anxiety and agoraphobia now has her husbands’ old phone number. He talks to Anna any time she calls. Over the course of a year these two grow closer. They support each other through their grief and help each other to see the light again. ⁣
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This was a slow burn but it was heartbreaking and heartwarming. She beautifully depicted Brody’s character. You could just feel his fears and anxiety. Your heart broke for Anna and Brody both. It was wonderful watching their relationship blossom, even never meeting. ⁣
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Abby’s best friend Gabby was also an amazing friend and co-heroine in this story. This was a really emotional, beautiful story.⁣

I loved the narration. I loved the different accents to fit each character. Well done.
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Thank you @harpercollins and @netgalley for an ARC for my honest review. ⁣
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫⁣
#bookstagram #books #netgalley #thelastgoodbye

My nomination for Romance GoodReads for 2021.

I was doing some testing with the NetGalley app and needed to download and play three audiobooks and listen to each for at least 1/2 hour; this is the book the book that I came back to ... to finish first. This is the best rom-com that I've read/listened to in quite a long time.

There are few other books that discuss the grief of a loved one and agoraphobia. I like how the author/Fiona Lucas slipped in different ways for tackling agoraphobia (counting, baby steps) and how the therapist discussed trigger points with Brody. Fiona Lucas really did a great job of providing significant detail without it me noticing; I noticed but it didn't detract from the story ... and I'm really noticing more now (as I'm writing the review) than I did at the time of reading.

The main character is Anna, whose husband was hit by a drunk driver when walking up to the corner store. Anna's best friend is Gabi. I like how their relationship waxed and waned a bit, it really seemed (to me) to be more realistic than a lot of relationships portrayed in novels.

I really liked how all the characters were developed. This one is really worth reading and (I know its only January) but I'm pretty sure that it will be getting my Romance vote in the GoodReads year end voting process.

Also ... the narrator/Antonia Beamish does a fabulous job!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher/Harper Audio and the author/Fiona Lucas for the opportunity to review The Last Goodbye advance read copy.

In The Last Goodbye Lucas has penned a stirring tale of deep love, grief, loss, friendship, and the power to overcome even the darkest of times.

I sincerely enjoyed Lucas’s writing style and getting to know the characters she’s created. While the novel had a slower start then I generally like it rang true to the storyline and I soon found myself completely immersed in the book. I loved eaves dropping on Anna and Brody‘s phone conversations and slowly uncovering the secrets from their pasts that continue to haunt them years later.

While there’s no surprise ending, or curious twists of fait, I found myself feeling overwhelmingly happy for the reminder that we can find peace and comfort in our dearest friends or a complete stranger.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4 stars with a PG rating for mature themes.

Thank you to NetGalley, Harper Audio, & Fiona Lucas for the free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This was a nice enough story, but way too slow and long. There were parts I found entertaining, the mother-in-law scenes, but for the most part it was a lot of talk and not much doing. I didn’t really feel the connection between Anna and Brody. I think more emphasis should have been put on their conversations since that was the basis of their relationship. Then maybe I would have felt their chemistry.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Audio for the opportunity to listen to this book.

Anna, who has been grieving the love of her life Spencer for almost three years, was not ready to love again, actually she didn’t even think she was capable of it. That is until she is taught that it is okay to love again after loss by an unlikely friend.

Anna, a young woman living in London, is grieving her husband Spencer who died tragically less than three years ago, and is still swept up in her grief. As a result of this, she seeks to find comfort in this loss and continues to call Spencer’s old number just to hear his voice. However, one night someone unexpectedly picks up. This mysterious new voice is Brody, who also knows a lot about grief and loss. Anna and Brody end up talking every night, sharing their upsets and insecurities and a wholesome friendship blossoms. After endless phone calls, feelings develop as Brody encourages Anna to learn to love again.

The characters in this novel are relatable and well written and I couldn’t help but root for their happiness. I think many people could relate to elements of either character in this novel, I know I myself could relate to elements of both characters at times.

The Last Goodbye is a beautiful story. It is filled with themes of grief, loss, love, and hope with undertones of mental health, unconditional love and true friendships. There are a lot of themes present but this story is written well enough so that it’s easy to follow along.

I genuinely enjoyed reading this novel, however, it did start out slow for me but managed to catch my attention half way through and kept it until the end despite a few redundant sections of the novel. I definitely think some areas of the novel could have been omitted as I felt myself wanting to skip over a few chapters to get back to the interesting parts of this story.

Story: 3 ⭐️
Steam: 1 🔥
Audio: 5 🎧


This book was okay. I think I was expecting more romance and maybe that is why it fell short for me. The writing was great. The first half of the book felt like it dragged. I think if I hadn’t received an arc, I would not have finished it.

This book is really emotional and is centered on grief. If that is something that interests you, this book would be perfect. For me it was just too sad and I couldn’t get into it. I would have liked to see more about how the romance moved past the beginning of their love story.

I received an audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley.

I really enjoyed the narrator on this audio. She did great with the different characters and really added a lot to their personalities with the way she read the story. And the story itself was fabulous as well. Love after death is always a little heartwarming and this author approached it in a unique and different way with the way the two main characters meet.

Overall I really liked The Last Goodbye, it was well written and just an all around good book/audio. And I would definitely recommend it to romance/fiction.

This book is fantastic. It is an amazing perspective on grief and how people handle loss differently and that there is no wrong way to go about it. Going through a loss myself, this book really hit me hard and I could relate to what Anna was going through. The need to call Spencer's phone just to hear his voicemail really made me cry since that is something I have done before. Many people have felt the same feelings as Anna and I thought those were beautifully portrayed in the book. I think Brody was the best thing that could have happened to Anna to help her get through this difficult time. Sometimes it takes time and just one person that helps you see that you are capable of living through it and you will come out at the end of the tunnel.

Even Spencer's mom shows that all people handle grief differently and the same goes for Brody. It was refreshing to read a book that took on so many levels and perspectives of loss and grief. Reading about characters who have similar thoughts and feelings just makes it even more meaningful. Listening to the audiobook made it more real and made you connect more with the two characters but I would have loved it on paper as well. It was just a beautiful story of how love and loss can intermingle and how it is ok to grieve in your own way.