The Last Time We Met has a good basic plot but unfortunately falls short of being a good novel as it is propped up by awful clichés and insanely overdone, obvious 'telling'. From the therapist who's obsessed with one of the main character's parents, (despite the fact that she's seeing the therapist to deal with ptsd after attending the aftermath of a devastating landslide as part of Doctors Without Borders.) On a personal note there's a dreadful Irish character whose only real contribution is to get drunk and give advice on whiskey (he's also called Mick and is described as having a "brogue" - as an Irish person and an Irish speaker let me tell you that a brogue is the word for a shoe. Refer to my accent as such and we have a problem). All of this aside, there are just too many coincidences and convenient break-ups, half heard conversations etc. I only finished this book as I got an ARC in return for an honest review, which required reading the whole thing.

Womanizing rock star and the caring doctor. Both looking for a change yet unsure how the change will occur. I enjoyed how the story unfolded. What happens in college can follow you to life after college and for Merritt medical school.

Dr. Merritt Harrington, works for Doctors without Borders and is looking for a less harrowing workplace. She is also holding onto a spark love experience she had in college. Austen Farleigh, magnetic, sexy, rock star with a propensity for one night stands and no regrets until, she decides that enough is enough. Merritt has issues with her family, especially her politician father. Austen cares about her family but is more interested in not having to deal with financial shortfalls ever again. I liked Merritt's mother and how she evolved throughout the read. We all need a support person and if that person is a parent, all the better.

As the ladder part of the read unfolded, I thought it was different, unexpected, and entertaining. This is a read that could have benefited from an epilogue.

Overall, I liked the writing style of this book and the concept of the famous rocker and politician's daughter/doctor getting together. I thought that their relationship was different from other books and their run ins had some merit (more so than I thought they would from the description).

I did have some issues with this book, however, that put it from 5 stars down to 4 stars. The main issue was it just wasn't as fleshed out as it should/could have been. And I thought at 250+ pages it would be.

For example, Mick (Austen's best friend and band member) was in one scene the whole book. She's basically falling in love for the first time, and he talks to her once about it? What about Rose? She started off as such a strong character and then basically disappeared. No phone calls or text messages, even after the big event at the end of the book? I thought she'd at least make a reappearance then.

Also, there is an affair in the book (I won't say who) but it seemed like a big stretch to me who it was with. It didn't even seem like they would ever be in the same circles. I wish I could say more, but again, don't want to give it away. I just thought it was a reach...

Overall, it was a good book but it went about 75% the way there for me in terms of being an excellent book.

This story has been good enough, but at one point it seemed to me that the author did not know how to finish it and she made a somewhat unbelievable mess. And then the mess has been too hastily resolved. This has been a bit disappointing.

Of the two main protagonists, Merritt is the one who is less well defined, because throughout the story she goes through phases of a lot of self-confidence, others where she seems too yielding, in short, inconsistent as a character. The other woman, Austen, is consistent from start to finish, consistent with her celebrity attitude. No, she’s really not that bad, Merritt hasn’t been bad either. But the way it ends has put a damper on the rest.

In the relationship between the two, Merritt has been more involved from the beginning, Austen has always seemed accommodating and taking advantage of Merritt's predisposition. In the end things change a bit. But my feeling has been like this.

In short, it has been an irregular romance, wasted and without too much to highlight.

Entertaining and fun, this book was a nice break from the chaos of our world. Mixed in was a bit of unexpected danger and action, given Merritt’s occupation with Doctors Without Borders that proved even the rich and famous musician has a soft spot for love

Sometimes we all need to sit back and enjoy a book that is fun, easy to read, and satisfying in an “aww” kind of way. That is exactly what I found when I read The Last Time We Met by Maggie Brown and Leni Hanson.

This is the love story of two women who briefly met about eleven years before the time of the novel. For pre-med student Merritt Harrington, it was a life altering moment in more ways than one. For Australian rock star Austen Farleigh, it was one more forgettable one night stand attempt that she soon forgot. Fast forward eleven years, and the two meet again when both head to Australia for a holiday. Merritt is just back from a devastating assignment for Doctors Without Borders when she runs into Austen. Sparks fly, and the chemistry begins to build, but can Merritt overcome the humiliation she has felt for years because of Austen? And can she trust this seemingly new and more mature woman she is getting to know?

I’m glad that I read this story. It is a romance with well-developed characters, and several stunningly beautiful settings. I admit that at the beginning of the book, I couldn’t see how Merritt and Austen would have a happily ever after. They are so very different, but the authors did a great job with forming the chemistry between the two and proving to me that they are a match for each other. Once or twice I felt the plot became a little unrealistic, but hey, this is a fictional romance, so I didn’t let it bother me. Overall I thoroughly enjoyed the book. If you are looking for an easy to read, sweet romance, then try The Last Time We Met.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and Bella Books for an honest review.

This was a well written book with some interesting characters. Merritt's work with Doctors Without Borders and the issues around that were my favourite parts of the book, especially the last couple of chapters. This sort of work is often portrayed as more glamourous and safer than it is, with those involved often painted as 'heroes' who always put duty before their own lives - it was refreshing that Merritt had a more complex relationship with her work with DWB. I also enjoyed the storyline involving Merritt's family. I really disliked Austen as a character - she came across as very shallow in the beginning and hadn't really grown much as a person when she and Merritt met 11 years later, so I struggled to see the appeal. But it was a very well written and engaging book, I enjoyed the Australian setting, and liked that the authors hadn't gone overboard with flashbacks as is sometimes the case with second chance romances.

3.5 stars. This is sort of a second chance romance, I’m not sure you can call it a full-on second chance when the characters don’t really get together the first time they meet, but they do have some history so I’ll classify it that way for ease.

Merritt is the daughter of a US senator. She works for Doctors Without Borders in the trauma team, visiting some of the worst tragedies to provide emergency medical care.

Austen is an Australian rock star. She has a reputation for bedding whomever she wants whenever she wants.

The two first meet when Merritt is in College. They meet when Merritt goes to a signing for Austen and Merritt is one of those that catches Austen’s eye. They have a nice night together but for reasons I won’t get into it, it doesn’t go any further than that. This forms a brief flashback in the book, but it’s the only one, so those that aren’t flashback fans don’t need to worry.

The two meet again in Australia. Austen has returned home for a vacation, but not before she performs an important show for some diplomats. Merritt has decided to vacation in Australia after a particularly difficult spell at work, as her parents are in Australia for her fathers work.

I liked how the authors approached the two meeting again and especially liked how they interwove both MCs friends and acquaintances into this part of the book. The side characters are interesting and provide a little bit of will they, won’t they intrigue, as well as allowing us to get to know the MCs better away from each other. It also serves to help build up chemistry between the two again - something we don’t always see in second chance romances.

I liked the Doctors Without Borders aspects to the storyline. I liked that Merritt was open about how her assignments had made her feel and that she dealt with them in a communicative manner.

There’s a couple of twists in the last quarter of the book that I actually really enjoyed.

I can’t comment as to how the authors styles have combined as this is my first time reading either author, but I wasn’t able to identify any clashing styles or weird jumps on the page, so I’d say they were successful.

All in all this was an interesting read that I think wlw romance fans will enjoy.

I received an e-ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Last Time We Met was an entertaining read about Australian rock star, Austen Farleigh, who now lives in the United States, and Dr. Merritt Harrington who works for Doctors Without Borders and has just finished a very physically and emotionally difficult assignment in the Andes Mountains in Peru. Both are in Australia for vacation. Merritt to visit family and Austen for some work followed by relaxation. They meet at the airport and again at a political dinner where Austen is the entertainment and Merritt is in attendance with her senator father and her mother. What Austen doesn't realize is they have met in the past in the United States ten years prior when Austen was an aspiring rock star and Merritt was at the University of Virginia. They met at the college and Austen, a player at the time, did not treat Merritt well.

The book goes on to describe a relationship that develops between Merritt and Austen. Beyond the story and what happens with the characters, I enjoyed learning more about Australia and Doctors Without Borders. The ending, with the events in Papa New Guinea, added a thrill to the conclusion of the book. I'll also mention that the book was seamless and I could not tell that there were two authors. 4 stars

I received an ARC from Bold Strokes Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘂𝗯 𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘁𝘀 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗜 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻'𝘁 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵.

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘛𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘞𝘦 𝘔𝘦𝘵 has some interesting sub plots involving one of the main characters Merritt's deployment with Médecins Sans Frontières and her father, Senator Harrington, a character quite dislikable. These sub plots are a good thing because they kept it going for me.

This book is predominantly about a medical student who was humiliated after hooking up with a rock star but even then she never quite forgot this rock star. And they meet again by chance eleven years later.

My problem is that I wasn't able to connect with the main characters. My feelings towards Austen, the rock star, are straightforward. She was an outrageous flirt, a womaniser and so full of herself eleven years ago and continued to be eleven years later, except that she's a little less of a player. But I suppose having a truckload of women is a perk of being a rock star. So I'm ambivalent.

I'm more concerned about Merritt because I'm puzzled how a one-time sexual encounter could have been so memorable that it ruined everyone else for her for eleven years. And it was a night that didn't even end well. So either Austen was an extremely good lay or Merritt had some serious issues. And as if one humiliating encounter wasn't enough, Austen failed to recognise Merritt eleven years later. But instead of walking away to save her dignity, she found herself seduced by Austen all over again.

I also found Merritt a tad presumptious for using pet names and fantisising about being Austen's exclusive girlfriend even before their relationship was properly defined and for making weird comments like how she wanted to make love to Austen to make her forget those other women (what?!).

All in all, I wasn't able to get into the story until much later into the book but I've seen the other reviews that just loved it. So give it a go and you may find yourself liking it too.

3.5 stars. I’ve read a couple of Brown’s books by now and I always enjoy them. This new book is co-authored with Leni Hanson and I’m happy to see that this collaboration worked very well. It is set for the largest part in Australia (which I always like), has good secondary characters and has some smaller storylines that keep things interesting until the end, but there were also a few bumps.

Austen is a young rock star when she meets Merritt for the first time during a music tour. Merritt is still studying at the University at the time and is quite unexperienced where it comes to dating. Austen seduces and discards Merritt, who is left humiliated and hurt. Eleven years later, Merritt is a successful doctor working for Doctors Without Borders (DWB) and she and Austen meet again in Australia when Merritt is visiting her family.

To me, some of the highlights of this book were in fact some of the smaller storylines and secondary characters. The book has wonderful sections describing Merritt’s work at DWB together with her best friend Terry. The work is exciting, full of exotic locations and different cultures, all while helping people. However, besides the ‘adventure’ there is also the hard work and stressful and often dangerous situations. Like so many things, I never really gave this much thought and found that I really enjoyed reading about this. Another interesting storyline concerns Merritt’s family. Her father is a powerful senator and not and easy man to interact with, he’s a homophobe and continuously disapproves of Merritt’s life choices, which leads to some family drama along the way.

The story is written in the third person from the POV of Merritt and Austen, but I think you get to know more about Merritt than Austen, which brings me to the bumps I was speaking about. Merritt is a wonderful person, intelligent and caring, but I found Austen difficult to connect to. Young Austen was a super shallow rock star, partying hard and not caring a whole lot about other people. Now, 11 years later she is supposed to be more mature and done with this lifestyle (she’s still a famous rock star though) and she wants to approach Merritt carefully and respectfully. However, in my view, she was still quite superficial and pushy. During the first half of the book they actually don’t have a decent conversation and all connection between them is lust driven. This improves during the second half, but I couldn’t help missing a deeper emotional connection between them. The chemistry was of the charts though.

While the romance in this book had some bumps for me, the book as a whole is very well written and entertaining. The last part of the book was absolute the best part, due of some clever twists I was on the edge of my seat and the ‘standard’ 80-90% dark moment is avoided, which was refreshing. Recommended.

I absolutely adored The Last Time We Met.
Austen is your hot rocker and Merritt the doctor with less experience in love and yet to flower, and when they meet up after 10 years the spark is still there.
A lovely sweet romance which keeps you entertained until the end
Would I recommend: Yes, a well written romance

I love when books are told from both points of view because I get to see each characters perspective. In this book, Austen was a stereotypical celebrity who was out to party and have one night stands. She and Merritt met over 10 years ago and it was not a pleasant experience for Merritt. The book starts off 10 years later and has some flashbacks on the beginning. I am thankful that the flashbacks were short and sweet and the book moved along to the present. I really identified with Merritt, she was smart, strong, caring, sensitive and a good person. I also enjoyed her friend Terry who was lighthearted and fun. The dialogue was good and the story was entertaining.

I really enjoyed this light lesbian romance. Merritt works for Doctors Without Borders and takes her friend Terry for a break after a particularly harrowing experience in Andes of Peru. They visit Merritt's parents in Australia where her father, a homophobic senator, is working on diplomatic trade. Playing at a gala hosted by the senator is Austen. She left her Australia home at 16 and has become an international singing superstar. Austen and Merritt met once a decade before when she was in medical school. Austen was a rising singer then and Merritt was treated poorly. But she has never gotten over the attraction she felt.

For me several things took this book to a higher level that most f/f romances. Often side characters are props and one dimensional and the romance is between the only two available women. In this book there are other romantic potentials, a lawyer, a photographer, military medical people. Merritt actually goes on outings with another woman. I enjoyed learning about the work and stresses of DWB. Austen's character was more a stereotypical singer. But she acknowledged her past and was willing to date to see where things would go. At one point a bar bet allows Merritt to show her trust and confidence in the new relationship. Another author might have turned it into a dramatic misunderstanding. I also loved Australia as the setting. When the author mentions a print of a painting I didn't know I instantly looked it up and found the original is in a bar in Melbourne. Little touches like that enhance the story and romance.

The story is told from both MC/s POV. They are both sexy and smart. They also have both been through a lot in their lives and work which makes them appreciate the importance of a relationship. I would like to know what happens to some of the side characters but the main story is full and complete. (4.5 stars rounding up). Thank you to NetGalley and Bella Books for an ARC ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Merritt and Austen met and had a connection but it hurt Merritt when she realize Austen was just using her and she vow to not let anyone do it to her again. Austen regrets what she did but at that time she had feelings for someone else who never really return it so she been known to do one night stands.

Merritt is a doctor who works for Doctors Without Borders her and her friend Terry are taking a break for work after a devastating accidents that killed a lot of people.

Austen is famous musician who is having some downtime when she and Merritt see each other Austen doesn’t remember her but feel they met before Merritt gives her the cold shoulder despite still being attracted to Austen.

Merritt is trying to keep Austen at arms length but it’s hard to do when they both feel the pull to each other but Merritt is afraid to let herself trust Austen who hurt her years ago and Austen wants to prove to Merritt she not that person anymore.

This was a enjoyable read I like the other characters as they were supporting but had their own moments.

I received an ARC copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley and voluntarily leaving my review.