I thought this was gonna be one of those clichés and clingy romance book (I mean it kinda was but that’s not really my point here) cause there’s more to it than just sex and romance. The book is basically very gay, horny sexually oppressed gay dudes, trying to make up for ancestors’ mistakes through redemption of some sort and dark & tragic family history being unearthed.

Georgios Manolas and Max Bergmann have been friends their whole lives. Honestly, they are slightly related, with their mother’s being cousins, but pretty much everyone on the tiny Grecian island of Aegina is slightly related. Despite being mainly raised on Aegina, Max is not considered a welcome person. There is a lot of tension that he does not understand, which stems all the way back to World War II and the German occupation of Aegina. His great-grandfather was stationed on the island and was party to a lot of bad stuff involving Georgios’ great-grandmother’s family. Memories are long-lived for such atrocities, and Max’s own parentage brought scorn he inherited, without knowing.

See, though Max grew up on Aegina, he was educated in England, per his kind and wealthy step-father, and his mother hardly ever visits Aegina anymore, having lived a traumatic life of her own. Max’s blonde and fair, with bright blue eyes like he German father he never knew, as he’d died two months before Max was born. His mom was a teen girl who’d gotten pregnant by his teen father while on holiday in Aegina. Her folks disowned their pregnant daughter, and the Bergmanns likely paid her a ton of money to just go back home. The Greek kids of Aegina, including Georgios, all know the horrible history of Max’s great-grandfather because it was part of the required reading in grade school. Max is now an adult, jet-setting around to DJ the hottest clubs around Europe. He’s used to amazing, swanky hotels, and keeps a posh flat in London. When he is on Aegina, Max lives in his mother’s expansive, gated villa, while three generations of Manolas’s crowd into a dilapidated stone home–everyone sharing a room. Max has never really considered his privilege, but he’s reminded of it when he comes back from a bender that was scary enough to send him a rehab. Max wants to pursue a relationship with Georgios, but he’s held back by the mystery of the historical rift between their families.

Georgios may love Max, but he can’t build a life with him. He’s been running his uncle’s restaurant for ten years now, and is sure the old man will leave him the property, soon. Papa Marcos hates Max, however, and wouldn’t be pleased to have a gay nephew either. That said, Max is pretty sure Papa Marcos has not real plans to give Georgios anything more than a hard time. Aegina’s economy is flailing, and they don’t get the tourists year-round like Santorini or Crete. Georgios points out the disparity between their lives, and Max sees an opportunity. If his great-grandfather’s family could wreak 80 years of unintended havoc, surely he can use his power and connections to right some of those wrongs.

This is such a powerful story, with an intimate and chilling backstory of greed, lust and destruction sowed in the winds of WWII, and repeated over and over by generations of unwitting “takers” as Georgios and his family see them. People who come to the islands and take and take without understanding the repercussions of their actions. The casual brutality was revealed through the lens of a young girl’s diary, a counterpoint to the present day situation that Max and Georgios experience, with Max’s excesses and Georgios’ poverty. At the heart of the story is love: love denied, love stolen, love abused and love redeemed. Both Max and Georgios are good men, but Max had a lot of perspective to gain, for such an otherwise educated and worldly man. He’s stunned, shocked and appalled by his forebears. But, more importantly, he’s determined to leave a lasting mark on Aegina that will wash away the stains of the past. I loved his ideas, and his creativity in seeking not only redemption with Georgios and the Manolas family, but the larger Aegina community. It’s sweet and compassionate, and all that hard-working and stubborn Georgios deserves. The happily ever after is so beautiful, with so much happiness that it’s hard to imagine such dark fortunes had ever been a part of their experiences. I loved the setting. I loved the friends-to-lover progression. I loved the culture-clash and the backstory that really set up the conflict in stark and unflinching terms. Creative and thoughtful, with a bit of steam as Max and Georgios embark on a life together.

I love discovering new MM romances and this is one I’ll definitely remember!

I loved the fact that the love between the characters was prominent right form the beginning of the book, it made it so much more enjoyable to see what will happen through out the story. Plus the main characters were absolutely amazing and so well thought out.

This is such a beautiful story of forgiveness and love and family, while learning about Greek culture and cuisine. Perhaps the most important aspect of this story is about staying true to yourself and who you are. How love will always win at the end.

This will definitely be a recommendation from me if you love romance as much as I do!

Thank you to NetGalley and NineStar Press for the ears in return for an honest review.

Four and a half stars. I loved this book. It does help that this book is by a British author and so for me, far easier to relate to. Having said that, nearly all of this story is set in Greece with two main Greek characters.
Our heroes are Max and Georgios. Georgios has grown up and always lived on his small Greek island. He's also always been in love with best friend Max but hasn't been able to admit that to himself, let alone anyone else. Max has been in love with Georgios for as long, but he knows that Max hasn't been willing to take things farther, he's also spent a great deal of time travelling the world. This book tells their story as they find their way to each other.
Alongside, this romance is another story that took place during the second world war. We learn about what happened through the diary of a ten-year-old girl who lived through it. These events relate to both Max and Georgios' families and explain why there is some dislike of Max in the town now.
I loved this story and really enjoyed the way that both the romance and the events of the past unfolded and wove together. I didn't want to put this down and was gripped right up until the end.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I was drawn into The Last of the Moussakas quite quickly. At points I couldn't put it down. It kept pulling at me, and I kept wanting to know where the tale was going. What was going to happen next? And I certainly wasn't disappointed. The characters are likable and believable. Two storylines, one past (WWII) and one present twist together with beauty. Although I was more interested in the present story of Greece and two men falling in love, the historical diary of World War II and German ancestry didn't lack. Subjects of opening a hotel and a musician's life roll in bed together with serene motion, which seem odd, but work out quite well. In fact, the two subjects make the book most interesting. London and Greece come together just as lovers do. If you want something fun and weekend-worthy this is the book for you. I wasn't at all disappointed and finished it in a few sittings; all of which were pleasant thanks to Hill's talents.

This was a fun and quick-paced book. It was definitely a bit dramatic, but with all the craziness in the world at this point, it was fun to read a book where the drama does not affect me.

I would recommend this book, especially as a quick and distracting read.

"That bloody book. I even dreamt about it last night."

I felt like I was reading two different stories in this one and I really love how it all came together as a whole story!

The war time story background is clever and the best part. It's heartbreaking however.

The characters are so well written. The writing got my heart!

I just couldn't appreciate some lame comparisons and references made in the writing. Because it wasn't at all necessary. Stereotypes for attractiveness or not. It's just that I don't believe in such stereotypes.

I liked how homophobia is being handled and how supportive are the mothers while the fathers are being busy with being jerks. For a change, let the fathers or the male characters support LGBTQIAP in fiction please. Not saying there weren't male characters who aren't supporting the characters.

The characters are developed well and the plot progressed good till the end.

*Warnings for sexual assault, violence, homophobic comments, loss of a family member

The chemistry between Max and Georgios burnt me!

Damn. And the characters in my head are much more hotter than the one on the cover. Dang!

Enjoyed this book so much!

Thank you, author and Publisher, for the advance reading copy.

Max Bergmann is Europe’s hottest drum and bass DJ. From the outside, his life is a whirl of glamorous vodka-fueled parties and casual hook-ups, whilst inside he craves the one thing he can’t have – his Greek childhood friend, Georgios Manolas.

Following a disastrous PR stunt and one drunken hook-up too many, Max realises the time has come to reassess his life choices. Returning to his childhood home on the Greek island of Aegina, if he wants any chance of having Georgios permanently in his life, he has to delve into the mystery of the longstanding hatred of the Bergmann’s by Georgios’s family.

Georgios is a chef and has spent his whole life on the tiny Greek island of Aegina. He has held the family restaurant together since he left school, with very little reward, and dreams of one day running a restaurant of his own on the island. Yet if he acknowledges his feelings for Max, he runs the risk of losing not just his traditional Greek family but also his livelihood.

The Last of the Moussakas is a story following Max and Georgios on a Greek island as they grapple with their dreams not quite panning out the way they had planned.

I liked the concept of this book a lot, and I found their relationship interesting. Some of the dialogue could have been stronger, but overall the love story and setting made it good! The cast of characters was also delightful to get to know.

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3 stars

A sweet, slightly melodramatic romance with a touching family drama storyline intertwined.

[What I liked:]

•The setting is wonderful! A gorgeous, undeveloped Greek island is really romantic sounding. I’ve never been to Greece, but I felt like I could picture the setting as described in the book so clearly. And now I want to visit Aegina!

•There are some great side characters (Guy, Charlie, Simone, Henry, Kostas, etc.) who add humor & warmth & charm to the story.

•This is a nice coming of age story—both Georgios & Maxi follow their dreams for their careers, & both have their first serious romantic relationship with one another. I enjoyed watching them grow as people & grow in their relationship together.


[What I didn’t like as much:]

•A character being beaten, so horribly brutally, in front of family members, & the family does nothing to help...& the victim just accepts it nobly because they think they deserve it as punishment for an ancestor’s sins? The whole scenario seemed really unrealistic & a bit over the top.

•Some of the dialogue is really, really cheesy. I mean it is a romance story, but I just don’t know 25-year-olds who talk that way in real life. It didn’t ruin the story for me, but at points I was slightly cringing.

CW: r*pe, homophobia, substance abuse, physical violence/assault

[I received an ARC ebook copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Thank you for the book!]