Fans of Josie Silver and Lia Louis will love this romance that manages to be romantic, witty, and oh so sad all at once. As a fan of the above authors, I can attest to this. Whenever I pick up a British-based romance with an illustrated cover lately, I am prepared with tissues at the ready. But I also know that the humor will be top notch and the love story will be beautiful. This book was no exception. Settle on the couch under a blanket with a cup of coffee or tea and be prepared to be taken away.

Give me a second while I search for the right words. I mean this book was 400 pages of perfection. You know how when you finish a great book you feel a little lost as to what you should do or read next. That’s how this book made me feel. It was such a beautiful and heart-breaking story of loss, grief, and second chances. The character development was truly flawless. There were times I was yelling at the characters and other times I was crying with them. And I always love a dual POV. I just don’t think I can put into words how much I loved this book. 5 ⭐️

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and the author for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Cassie, her brother Tom, best friend Hazel, and Tom’s best friend Sam have always gotten along. When Cassie lets Sam know how she feels however, he makes it clear it will never happen. After that she pulls as far away from Sam as she can. Now as Cassie faces unfathomable grief after losing Tom, she has just one last gift from her brother. A final scavenger hunt to find her Christmas gift. This gift could change her life forever, but will she let it? And will she allow Sam to share in her grief, or continue to turn him away?

Damn. Emily Stone can really write grief. She can also write men you hate. I started this book and was pretty quickly hating Sam and Robert. They were both so awful in the beginning of the book! This book was just such an absolute gem though. I loved following Cassie along the sweetest scavenger hunt that Tom had left for her. This book was light, but also heavy, sad, but a little happy too, it was just so wonderful. If you enjoyed Aleqways, In December, you will love this one too!

"One Last Gift" by Emily Stone is a touching story. I adored this book and have been telling my friends about it before I even finished it. It is the story of Cassie, her brother Tom, his best friend Sam. They have all been connected together since childhood and the story is one of love & redemption.

Grab the tissues! Emily Stone new book will make you cry! Just when I think she could not out do "Always in December" she does with this book.

This story is beautifully written about family, love, loss and how we get back up again, finally doing something for yourself.
This story is about Cassie and Sam, both suffering the loss of that one person Tom they both could always count on. To Cassie he is more than a brother he is her best friend and always there after the loss of their parents. For Sam, Tom is his best friend, the one person in his life that loves him without judgement. When Tom dies unexpectedly both Cassie and Sam are reeling in grief that they don't know who they are without Tom. Until Cassie receives a letter, the first clue to their yearly Christmas scavenger hunt. This year he said it would be epic, when she starts to follow the clues, it is like she has Tom again one more time.

Can Cassie be brave, Tom and Sam always believed she could be? Can she find love along the way?

Make this your Holiday book, I promise you will love it!
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for copy of this book for my honest review.

Yup, my face is swollen! I cried because I was sad, I cried because I was nervous, I cried because I was happy hahahahaha. Emily does it again with this beautiful book about loss, rebuilding a life, being brave and overall about love in all its forms. I just didn't want it to end, I really stretched those last chapters. Add this one to your TBR, you'll love it.

This is a super cute story about family, grief and love. It really tugged at my heartstrings - a great christmas story!

Thanks to NetGalley and publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

What if you received the ultimate gift at Christmas from someone you dearly loved but lost? I love a good England Christmas novel, and this was a great read! The epic scavenger hunt that Tom sends Cassie on every year is so much fun to follow (and sad, since he passed.) I love when a character can identify their flaws and surprise the reader at the end. I can't say too much without giving it all away, but I think this should be a pick on your holiday reading shelf. Thank you Random Penguin & Netgalley for the free review ecopy!

ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was the first book I’ve read by Emily Stone and I really enjoyed it. It takes you down a winding trail through the lives of a brother and sister, Cassie and Tom, and their closest friends. While there is a romantic component to the book, I would say it’s more about loss and learning to cope with it.

Cassie and Tom lost their parents when they were very young and relied on each other growing up. Tom started doing Christmas scavenger hunts for Cassie and it became a tradition. Years later, when Tom unexpectedly dies before Christmas, the first clue to the annual scavenger hunt is found in his things. Cassie realizes he set everything up in advance and this was one last gift from her brother. The book follows her through her grieving process, the scavenger hunt, and her relationships with those closest to her. It’s an emotional ride with a satisfying ending.

Cassie's brother Tom has made her a scavenger hunt every single Christmas for her whole life. The hunt help get her through their parents' death, continued through college... and now, one final hunt will help her connect with her recently deceased brother. It was his most complex scavenger hunt yet, so all the pieces were already in place when he went on a climbing trip and died.
When she discovers the first clue for this year's scavenger hunt a few weeks after Tom's death, Cassie decides to do it. With the help of her best friend, her coworker, and Tom's best friend Sam, Cassie follows the hunt that'll take her closer to Tom. The only problem? She and Sam have a history-- not a happy one-- and she wants him as far away from her as possible. But at the same time, she can't stop the feeling that have always been there, even if he infuriates her and reminds her of her brother in painful ways.

I love how this story follows Cassie (and her relationship with Sam) over the years. There are a lot of time skips-- most of them months long, a couple of them years long-- and they really worked to give us a snapshot of the moments when Cassie and Sam come together and fall apart.

The clues for the scavenger hunt were mostly very obvious, and at first I was a bit annoyed that Cassie wasn't figuring them out faster. But she's so deep in her grief, especially at the beginning of the scavenger hunt, that I think it actually made perfect sense that she wouldn't necessarily be thinking clearly enough to figure them out easily.

I do wish there were more time spent on Cassie and Sam's relationship once they were together. They don't get together until the very end, and I wish we could have seen more of them together sooner (though we do get a little moment of them together at one point)-- I just wanted a bit more payoff after so much pining.

I loved how the scavenger hunt resolved, and the ways in which both Cassie and Sam processed their grief. The ways they found to honor Tom and figure out who they were and who they wanted to be in the process.

One Last Gift is a story about bravery and honoring yourself, and shows just how painful-- and rewarding-- that journey can be.

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

"One Last Gift" is kind of like if "P.S. I Love You" and literally any Hallmark movie had a baby, so you know the plot was cheesy. Now, cheesy can be fun if it's done well, but the writing of this was also really repetitive, and I think a few more rounds of editing would've helped a lot.

This was a heartwarming, feel-good British romance/women's fiction story about a young woman dealing with her grief over her brother's unexpected death. With help from her friends she goes on an adventure thanks to letters and clues her brother left for her. Perfect for fans of Lia Louis or P.S. I love you and great on audio. Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed this latest holiday, feel-good romantic novel from Emily Stone, One Last Gift, even though my feelings changed the further I got into the book. While the beginning held my attention, offering surprises along the way (some good and some bad), the further I got into the story, the more predictable it became. Halfway through the book, I was able to determine what the last gift would be and by whom it would be given. Nevertheless, the story has a nice rhythm and is a beautiful escape from the heat of September.

I really loved this sweet story. I got very attached to the characters- especially Sam and Cassie and was rooting for them the whole time. Emily Stone does a beautiful job of fleshing out the characters and getting you immersed in the story. At some points of the story I got frustrated with each of them but always wanted to keep reading.

One of the main themes in this book is grief and I think it is down really well. I know I felt my heart break at several times during this story. You know a book is good when it can make you feel so deeply.

This book gave me all the holiday feels- it is the perfect book for fall or winter! I love a book like that at this time of year. So definitely recommend grabbing this one when released next month and reading while under a blanket.

Dealing with grief is difficult at best and everyone does it differently but this story takes takes you on a journey that I think everyone can relate to. I really enjoyed the fun parts that were added to lighten things up.

Wow! This book was not what I was expecting in every good way possible. Emily Stone told a fresh story that left me excited to turn each page.

Cassie lost her parents at a young age. She and her brother, Tom, were raised by Aunt Claire who was more emotionally distant than loving. Cassie and Tom were each other’s lifelines and Tom’s best friend Sam was a constant tag along. Looking for and following their passions, One Last Gift follows the siblings and friends through life’s ups and downs and reminds us all that we are stronger than we know.

Posted to Goodreads 9/15/2022

Ahhhh this book is beautiful and heartbreaking. So make sure you have a box of tissues close by. Emily’s first novel was a hit for me and I’m looking forward to reading more books from her. I’m definitely getting a hard copy of this book to read again.

One Last Gift
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: Romance
Format: Kindle eBook
Date Published: 10/11/22
Author: Emily Stobne
Publisher: Random House Publishing
Pages: 400
GR: 4.28

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Random House Publishing and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: Cassie and Tom lost their parents at a young age and relied on each other. 20 years later, Cassie has lost Tom as well. She's never felt more alone. Then she finds an envelope with her name on it, it's the first clue in the Christmas scavenger hunt Tom made for her every year. Tom's clues set Cassie on a heart-wrenching and beautiful journey that will change her life--if she lets them. And as she travels from London to the Welsh mountains to the French countryside, she reconnects with old friends, rekindles a lost love, and most importantly, rediscovers herself. But once she's solved the final clue, will she be brave enough to accept the gift her brother has given her--and the love it's led her to?

My Thoughts: With the author’s first name the same as mine, I knew I would love this book! The tropes follow a second chance romance and friends to lovers, which is right up my ally. The story reminds me of a classic Hallmark Christmas movie, one of the reasons I requested the title. Even with the loss of Tom, it is still a lighthearted read as the character’s emotions were not deeply dived into. The characters were well developed, flawed, emotional, chemistry, and creatively written. Cassie’s character was written very immature in the beginning of the book, however, she and Sam grew tremendously through the book, even if I did not care for Sam at first, he does redeem himself. The author’s writing style is heartwarming, romantic, sweet, and just written so well. If you love Hallmark Christmas movies like me, you will like this book. It is just heartwarming and puts a cozy blanket over you. I will be adding her first book to my TBR. It hits the shelves next month on the 11th!

This book was so good. It made me so sad to see how Cassie and Tom lost their parents at a young age and then Cassie lost Tom. I don't think that Sam realized that he contributed to that loss for Cassie, but I was glad that he realized his mistake and tried to get her back. Him keeping the treasure hunt gift thing going was cute even if it really only was one clue that pointed to him.

I just finished One Last Gift. Tears are streaming down my face, but I am smiling. One Last Gift is all about emotion - hope, longing, despair, grief, confusion, and love all play huge roles in this story. Cassie, Sam, and Tom are memorable characters, fully developed and so real. I feel like I would know them if I met them on the street. I thoroughly enjoyed One Last Gift. Well done, Emily Stone!