Cassie and Sam survived so much loss throughout their lives. With each loss they became stronger and continued to grow into the adults they where always meant to be. The love they shared for each other and how the devastation they shared made them into the the people they become. This story is full of bittersweet moments and hope!

One Last Gift is the perfect mixture of tear-jerker and heart-warming Hallmark Christmas movie vibes. Out of the entire book I think I only predicted one thing, so this book will definitely take you for a ride with all of its twists and turns.

Overall, the story was beautiful and I adored every.single.relationship between Cassie and her loved ones. These are some of my favorite contemporary characters that I've read.

I would say the only things that I didn't like were sometimes the transitions between years felt abrupt/out of place and I also do wish we had gotten Sam's perspective a bit earlier on in the story.

However, this is definitely a beautiful story about grief/loss, second chances, and always going on the hunt for one last gift.

Cassie loses her parents at a young age and relies on her older brother, Tom. Twenty years later, she loses Tom. Tom had always done a Christmas scavenger hunt for Cassie and she was left with this last one from him. It shows how Cassie moved forward during difficult times and her growth as she does. It also had her dealing with her feelings for Tom’s best friend, Sam. Although this book dealt with death and grief, I did not find it overall a sad novel but liked seeing how Cassie dealt with everything. Thank you NetGalley for this ARC.

For fans of One Day in December and Pack Up the Moon...

Cassie and her brother Tom are incredibly close -- they're all they have left after losing their parents at a young age. Tom has made it a Christmas tradition to send Cassie on elaborate (and sometimes for her, frustrating) scavenger hunts, in which rhyming is not optional. But after losing Tom, too, all Cassie has left is her memories and her friends to help her through. When she finds an envelope leading her on one last Christmas hunt, Cassie will need her friends -- and Tom's best friend, Sam, whom Cassie once lost her heart to -- in order to find the special gift Tom had planned for her. But is she ready to let go of her pain and truly live again?

Thoughts: The premise makes for a wonderful Hallmark-movie-esque Christmas story, complete with funny best friends, holiday shenanigans, and small-town traditions. Heck, Cassie is even an event planner -- if that doesn't scream "Hallmark", then I don't know what does. Emily Stone knows how to pull the heart strings with Cassie's and Sam's grief over losing Tom, and spends a significant portion of the story exploring their grief as they process their loss on their own terms. Sam also has a lot of baggage thanks to an absentee father, which Stone allows him to work through, as well. Overall, I think readers will appreciate the time and care Stone takes in allowing Cassie and Sam to figure out their lives and what they want for their futures. My only issue was the last quarter of the book where Cassie and Sam flip-flop between who has their act together, with several months going by as they go back-and-forth; this felt a little drawn out to me even though I'm sure the point was to give both characters the time and space needed to feel comfortable with their own life choices before the HEA. There was a very satisfying resolution for all characters involved, including one nagging issue with Tom. Overall, this was a sweet yet sad read that I would recommend to romance readers who are looking for a heartfelt non-rom-com holiday read.

**Thank you, NetGalley and publishers, for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.**

I started with One Last Gift which probably wasn’t the best to read on a plane because it is a sobber. It is the story of Cassie and Tom, siblings who lost their parents at a young age. Each year at Christmas, Tom creates a scavenger hunt for Cassie to get find her gift and the book tells the story of their lives and these scavenger hunts. I do not want to give any spoilers, lest you lose your chance for a good cathartic cry. All the emotions are here - grief, loss, love, resilience, friendship, finding one self. It hits you and it hits you hard but there are humorous bits peppered throughout to add some much needed levity. It was heartbreaking and charming and I loved it.

Last year, Always in December ripped my heart out and stomped it into tiny pieces - I half expected the same from One Last Gift, but this one didn't hit (me) quite so hard. That said, it was still a beautiful book, full of loss, heartache, learning and discovery. Cassie's journey is lovely, but Sam's holds a special place in my heart on this one. So many sweet feels, I loved it!

This is my second book by this author and I think it’ll likely be my last. We just aren’t compatible, and that’s okay!

In this book Cassie and her brother Tom lose their parents at a young age and are raised by a rather gruff aunt. They form their own family with friends, Hazel and Sam, and some locals in their town. Tom has given Cassie scavenger hunts for years around Christmas that can last well past new years, but one year he tragically dies and Cassie is left with a broken heart and a scavenger hunt she can’t bring herself to start.

This book takes place over a year as Cassie’s learns to be brave in the face of grief and move on.

For me this book was very surface level. The emotions never dug as deep as I wanted them to, it didn’t feel light or hopeful enough, and the romance was very much something that was being told to me but I just couldn’t believe it. Cassie’s character felt very immature and in the end I just really wanted to wrap up the story and move on.

3⭐️ because I did finish it and I enjoyed the premise, but I think I’ll be parting ways with this author from here!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC!

SYNOPSIS: 
Cassie and Tom are siblings who lost their parents at a young age. Living with their aunt, they found family in the friends they grew up with. Tom would always send his little sister on a scavenger hunt to find her yearly Christmas gift and this year is no exception. One Last Gift is Cassie’s journey to find the gift Tom left. On this journey we watch Cassie grieve and navigate life. What will this gift be? And will Cassie be able to find it?

Thought:
-Family oriented which I loved
-Frustrating characters that you want to just scream at, but it is their journey not yours so leave them alone!
-Christmasy vibes but the story takes place over a few months and not all during Christmas
-I definitely felt more for this book. While for it was not tissue worthy for me, it did pull on my stone heart strings.

Four solid stars for One Last Gift by Emily Stone.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Dell for this copy in exchange for an honest review.

Firstly, if you are looking for a warm and fuzzy holiday romance read, I don't recommend this one for you.

While there was a romance between Cassie and Sam, I think this story was meant to focus on Cassie and Tom. And Emily did a fantastic job with helping the readers feel Tom all throughout the story.

It was a beautiful and healing story.

3.5⭐ rounded to 4.

The most beautiful story about the unbreakable bond between a brother and sister and a journey to find love and happiness along the way. Although a bit heartbreaking, this story has so many moments of joy. Highly recommended!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.
Cassie and Tom lost their parents at a young age and Tom the older brother ensured every Christmas would be a great Christmas. Cassie follows clues to find her Christmas present. As adults Tom goes on a climbing holiday and does not return, but he already set the clues for what would be the last Christmas hunt. Cassie follows the clues and it’s as if her brother is still here, she finds herself and grows and mourns along the way.
I enjoyed seeing Cassie grow and develop and find herself in the time since Toms death. I loved “Always in December” and enjoyed this book as well.

I haven’t read a book like this in a long time. It’s more than a romance, I’d say at the core it’s a book dissecting various types of grief. I’ve avoided books like this for awhile as I’ve trudged through my own grief journey but I’m so grateful I decided to give this book a try. The pacing and story progression felt so real and authentic. I’ve never read a book where I saw grief so beautifully depicted - there’s sorrow, but it isn’t sad. I should add, you don’t need to be grieving to enjoy the story, it just hit differently because of where I am in life. I’m curious to read other reviews to see if others had similar experiences. All in all, I loved it and am already looking forward to rereading it!

What a beautiful, emotional book about a sister and best friend grieving their loss. Holidays are hard to get through when you are missing a loved one and this book expands beyond that to include moving on and forgiveness.

Beware this is not a light, Christmas romance comedy. You will not be laughing throughout this book. It leans more towards women's fiction with heavier topics, so you may want tissues close by instead.

I absolutely loved the idea of an annual Christmas scavenger hunt, even if it did take much longer to solve. The time and thought put into her gift was priceless and one of the best gifts a person can give to another. The measures he took for Cassie definitely wins him the best brother award in my mind. (Note, I do not have a brother, so I realistically do not know what brothers do and do not do.)

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Randomhouse Publishing Group Ballantine for my copy of One Last Gift by Emily Stone in exchange for an honest review. It published October 11, 2022.
Can I just say, I love Emily Stone's Christmas books? I loved Always In December, and now I love One Last Gift! I love how this novel breaks out of the very common Hallmark-style, no real issue formula, and deals with truly hard topics. It makes this book so much more real.
I also love that it's Christmas adjacent, and takes place throughout the years as well, so you don't have to read at Christmastime, although it definitely is a perk!
The only downside to this book, in my opinion, is a lot of R-rated language that is personally offensive to me, but I know for others it isn't a problem. That does not affect my overall rating.

One Last Gift by Emily Stone 🎁💌❄️☃️

🎁 genre: women’s fiction & romance
💌 fav tropes: xmas vibes, travel, quest

🎧 song pairing: Christmas Song by Phoebe Bridget’s
🤩 star rating: ⭐️⭐️💫

Beware: This is not your classic Christmas romance! Your heart will be broken and many tears will be shed. 😢

Unfortunately, this was not my favorite read. Although I was so captivated by the premise — a childhood best friends to lovers/enemies to lovers romance brought together by a mutual connection and love of a recently deceased character — I really didn’t find the book delivered! 😬

For me, I think that the biggest failures of the book were its many, often confusing timelines. With another edit and a refresh of POV or perspective, I think that this would bump up to a three or four star read! ⭐️

I was also really taken back by the romance. They got back together in one chapter after being enemies for the whole book. It was one of those ~fated from the start~ types of romances. Major eye roll there. 🙄

Would I recommend this book? Not really…

[Thank you to @netgalley for sending me an eBook ARC in exchange for an honest review!]

Another gem by Emily Stone. & another reason she’s becoming an auto buy author for me. This was such a sweet and emotional story. I enjoyed it from beginning to end. Reading her books can always be an emotional journey, but there are also small life lessons intertwined into her writing which I love. One Last Gift is no exception as we read about these character’s lives and the difficult life moments they go through. Some decisions made by these characters were frustrating for me, but I think that’s just a part of their past life experiences. Overall, I think this is a sweet read for the season. Bring tissues!

This was a great holiday read. Though it didn’t quite have the magic of AID it’s still well written and thoughtful.

One Last Gift by Emily Stone is a heartwarming tale about grief and surviving the holidays. It's a romance, but not a romcom...so more serious than I typically read. Still really liked it. Perfect for those who love watching those Hallmark channel shows.

Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 stars!!

This story had so many elements that I liked. Although it was sad that Cassie and Tom grew up without their parents, they had each other and a relative as well as family friends that made their life fuller. I really adored how Tom was there for Cassie, his friendship with Sam and how he always followed his dreams as well as pushing others to do the same. I couldn't
I liked how Cassie knew what she loved but like many people in reality, she stayed at a job that she enjoyed but in the end realized she was holding herself back and Tom helped her pursue what she always wished for as well as gifting her. I have mixed feelings about Sam, he pursued a career he didn't want for money and ended up miserable and lost. His choice of career was surprising but I did love that he worked with kids.

I know the story had to be over a course of time, I love the build ups, however I didn't like the time jumps that were made and I felt like if it wasn't for this or that happening the characters were too stubborn or set in their ways to at least be there for one another. I have mixed feelings about Cassie, Sam, Claire and Linda. I love the other side characters, Cassie's best friend and co-worker but I don't know why I couldn't connect to certain things.

Overall I enjoyed the story and the character development of all the characters. It was deeply moving, hopeful and sweet. Look forward to reading more of Emily's work.

You would think the biggest literary crime this book commits is yet another Christmas death, especially one that happens in the middle of the narrative when the blurb makes it seem like it's a before book events kind of death. Or maybe it's the surprise secret baby fathered by the dead guy! Or wait maybe the crime is neither main character being willing to listen or talk to the other one and instead choosing to be angry at each other all the time (very romantic).

While all of those are bad, the real crime is that at the end of the book the dead guy - who was into sustainability and the environment - is celebrated by his sister and his best friend (the two main characters) with littering. These two British people climb a mountain in Argentina where the dude died and put photos on the ground and leave them there. Litter! For the environmentalist!! What ever happened to leave no trace. The dead guy would NOT approve of this nonsense.

Anyway, if you ignore all the many book crimes and know going in there will be very little Christmas fluff, yet another Christmas death, a prolonged funeral, and the subsequent grieving process on page, it's a competenly written and bittersweet book.