This book broke my heart. The feeling of being isolated and left behind is horribly relatable. I followed every moment of Sammy overthinking things, of imagining the worst case scenario. It hit home in ways I can't even begin to think about. And the loss, my god the loss Sammy experiences in so many ways. I want to wrap Sammy in a hug and tell her she's not alone, perhaps because that's what it feels like will be the solution to this. This is brilliantly crafted and overwhelming and heart breaking and it will be sticking with me for a long long while.

I did enjoyed this book and it kept me engaged to the end. It had some interesting aspects, but nothing that blew me away. It was a quick read, and as others have said Sammy felt younger than 29. I liked Sammy's story, and how she learned to begin to become herself. I didn't really like Max and I didn't like Sammy and Max together.

Overall, a quick enjoyable read.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine for providing me with an eARC of Sammy Espinoza's Last Review in exchange for my honest thoughts!

I've been aware of Tehlor Kay Mejia's YA work for a while, but diving into the eARC of her adult debut novel was the first time that I've read anything of hers (on a side note, the cover design has a YA feel to it that made me think I was following teenagers or early-20s characters, but nope, they're full-grown adults, so I had to adjust my reading lens for that). As much as this is being marketed as a romance novel, I actually found Sammy's personal baggage with her irresponsible mom Dina Rae and her estranged grandma Paloma to be more riveting than the romance itself. Even when there were bits and pieces of the family dynamic that came off as cliched, I still found myself getting invested in it.

As for the second chance romance (a trope that I can be pretty soft for) between Sammy and Max, it involves far too much miscommunication and lying for me to completely root for it. Sure, the two of them could be cute together and I liked their chemistry, but honestly, I wasn't seeing them as the kind of couple that could genuinely make things work in the end. That being said, I did appreciate how easy it was to read this book, the breezy prose helping to keep the pages turning. Sammy's close friendship with married couple Brooke and Willa is charming, and the positive queer representation is a big plus, too.

Overall, I'm giving Sammy Espinoza's Last Review an official rating of 3.5 out of 5 stars. Even though I couldn't fully get into the central love story, there's other likable elements of this book to consume.

I loved every second of this book. Sammy and her chosen family were so easy to love. I laughed and cringed and cried. There is something powerful about a book so well written that the reader can feel the emotions of the characters. It had some Hallmark qualities to it, though it was more real and raw. Sammy’s life shows how complicated love, trust, and family can be, but she also learns how much better life is with them.

3.75/5 stars! The cover of this book was so bright and happy that I was excited to read the story before even reading the premise. When I read that this was a queer romance, I was even more hyped. I liked Sammy's character, but she didn't feel 3-dimensional enough for her age. I liked Max more. I found the backstory around her family to be enveloping and that was when I really connected with the story. Overall, I enjoyed this story and would just love further character development in future stories.

I received an advance review copy for free through NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to review this ARC!

The book was a quick read, and for a romance it read a little like YA in my opinion. Sammy was a little underdeveloped as a character for me as a person of 29, I expected a little more conviction. There was a lack of character connection that was hard to ignore, and muddled relationships that made things difficult to follow. It’s a cute quick read, congratulations on the first novel. I look forward to work to come.

Sammy Espinoza is a music critic who, after attempting to win back her girlfriend, is walking a thin line at work. So, she comes up with a plan to get exclusive access to a rockstar rumored to be making a comeback, whom she has a history with. In addition to that, Sammy has to deal with her family history/issues as she finds herself back in the same town as her family. This is such a well written and heartfelt story and I highly recommend it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the digital ARC that I received in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book was full of lies and terrible choices and refusals to communicate, and also characters who you want really good things for (i would like a prequel with her best friends, please!). If you, like me, read quickly and thought this would be a queer relationship at the center of the book, know that there is plenty of queerness but the LI is a heterosexual.

I am giving this 3.5 stars rounded up mostly bc i would really have liked more emotional growth between age 18 and the adulthood in the book--therapy! relationships that changed the characters! personal reflection!--rather than all happening in the course of the story, but it was a fun read with some emotional parts.

I really liked this. It had a lot of things I really enjoy - actual friendships, rebuilding family trust, not allowing other family to topple your spirit, found family - and I really liked the relationship in it. Was it a bit contrite? Sure but I don't read romance so I can read about a woman who swiped on social media and it didn't work.

But GOD I'm knocking a half a star off for the fucking conflict.

We all know it's going to be a problem throughout the book. The characters know - they have discussions about it. And then she still decides that it's going to be ~fine. And so when it happens, we, the characters, everyone is pissed about the conflict because it's obvious it's going to happen. I almost wish that aspect had just gotten over with quickly because for the book I felt like it was hanging over mine head and it was just like GET IT OVER WITH ALREADY.

Ah well. Lovely book otherwise. So I'm rating it a 3.5 for that, but I'll bump it to 4 because overall, I did enjoy the book. It had lovely vibes.

Thank you to Random House//Dell and Netgalley for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

I received an email from Penguin Random House with the ARC of Sammy Espinoza's Last Review. I did enjoy the book. This is Tehlor Kay Meja's debut adult novel. It was a great venture.

Sammy has taken a risk with her job while trying to get her ex-girlfriend back. She has a plan to get in good standing with her job. It will just take exclusive access to the new music of Max Ryan who has not recorded anything in years. Sammy has an in with him as she hooked up with him years ago before he became famous. A major downside is returning to the hometown she does not like.

I did not mind the characters. I did find Sammy to be sort of immature for the age of 29. I felt like the other characters were not as interesting as some do not really stick out in my mind.

I enjoy romance but was not rooting for the main couple in the book to end up together. This was not my favorite book but it was enjoyable. I really liked the found family that Sammy had which helped build her up. It was nice to see more emphasis on the fact that you do not always need to be with your family if they do not support you.

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin, and Tehlor Kay Mejia for the ARC of this book. This review is my own opinion.

This was so fun, some plot points like her former relationship or Max’s former band. I could’ve used some more explanation on, but I loved found family, a really cute relationship, the music element of it, and a beautiful friendship and grandmother throughout at all.

Thanks to Net Galley. the publisher, and the author for the ARC!
4.75stars

A very charming adult debut from YA author Tehlor Key Mejia. I really enjoyed the characterization for the main character and her friends and family, and joining then on her journey of self-discovery as she returns to the only home she knows. I appreciated the dimension that Mejia tries to add to her main character's love interest, but his arc felt a bit forced and an afterthought. The relationships between the main character, her best friend, and her grandmother were the strongest in the book — I really enjoyed the themes of both found family and finding connections with the family you're born into.

Thank you so much to Penguin Random House for providing me an ARC of this book for review!

I enjoyed this so so so much.

I'm so excited for this to officially release later in the year, but I'll also be bracing a bit - part of what makes Tehlor Kay Mejia's adult debut (!!!) so impressive is the depth of the characters' struggles and trauma, including a myriad of unhealthy coping mechanisms and incredibly frustrating reactions to obstacles.

Our lead, Sammy, was raised by a single mother who frequently left her with friends for weeks, or even months, at a time. We have Max Ryan, our love interest, who also has a host of his own baggage after reaching fame as a musician at a young age. They're extremely imperfect characters who will frustrate you, but Tehlor Kay Mejia keeps them remarkably likable, in my opinion. Even at my most exasperated, I never stopped rooting for Sammy to heal and be happy no matter what happened in a way that I don't think you typically see in a book marketed as a romance. That depth made the final act of the book feel like such a triumph, when you really got to see character growth. Also, without giving anything away (I promise!) I really love how the end isn't completely and fully tied up neatly with a bow. It ends on a note of promise, without necessarily making everything perfect.

The cast of additional characters was truly so well done, I have to mention it. Sammy's grandma, Paloma, her best friend Willa and her wife, Willa's parents, and basically everyone else we come into contact with has their own, distinct personality. I felt so invested in every side character, I would happily read a spinoff in any way, shape, or form just to visit them all again.

My only real complaint, honestly is that I think Max Ryan should've had to grovel more. Take that with a grain of salt, since I notoriously want every man in every book to be forced to grovel, but in this scenario, I don't think I ever reached a point where I felt he'd adequately apologized in proportion to his side of things. I still really liked him when it came down to it, but throwing that out there for my fellow middle children who need complete fairness in all things at all times.

Regardless, this is such an impressive adult debut, I hope people are willing to empathize with Sammy and show her some patience, the story makes it so worth it. I love a slightly problematic female lead and I always will!!!!

If ever there was a romance book where I did not want the traditional HEA, it was this one.

The story, itself, was decently written, and there were times when I really enjoyed it...but there were also times when I wanted to throw this book across the room.

Sammy and Max, as individuals, were decent characters, but they were the epitome of dysfunction as a pair. I really wanted to root for them, but their interactions and communication did not make me believe either was ready for a serious relationship, and definitely not with each other. Normally I love a good second chance romance, but this was not it for me. It doesn't help that the miscommunication trope runs rampant in this book, and it's one of my least favorite romance tropes.

Honestly, the best part of this book was Sammy's self-discovery through her journey back to the only town that ever felt like home to her. I loved the storyline of finding herself by uncovering things from her family and her past.

Overall, I'd give this one three stars since I had a love/hate relationship with it. I loved Sammy finding herself but hated her finding Max.

Read if you enjoy:
✔️ Second chance romance
✔️ Overcoming miscommunication
✔️ Stories of self-discovery
✔️ LGBTQ representation
✔️ Musical references

3.5 ⭐ Fans of romance with a little bit of family dysfunction will love this new title from Tehlor Kay Mejia. (I would definitely read her next book!)

For a debut adult novel, I felt like it had some YA tendencies, but I enjoyed the characters and the plot. It definitely reads more fiction with some romance, and I think I would have liked it even more with less romance!

Sammy is a writer and a music critic, and after dating a musician who she also wrote beefed up reviews about, her career is on edge. She has one last chance to keep her job, and writing a review on Max is her last hope.

Max is a musician that has been out of the spotlight for a while, he had a huge career and just disappeared. Rumor has it, he's working on a solo album. The last time he saw Sammy, he promised her he would bring her on tour and then never called her again.

When Sammy runs into Max and he doesn't recognize her, she decides to just see where things go. Maybe try to get close to him and then come clean about her true intentions. When things start to heat up between them, she knows it's too late and can't make herself tell him.

At the same time, Sammy has also come back to town to confront her estranged grandmother. Her dad died before she was born and her grandparents have never been in her life. She has always wondered why they didn't want to know.her and has finally decided to confront her.

Sammy's mom had her when she was 16 and Sammy has always felt a little alone in the world. There is always "a man" in her mom's life and if Sammy doesn't fit, her mom has left her with friends or just completely ignored her. Their relationship is sad and her mom seems like she never progressed past 16.

I loved meeting Sammy's grandmother, Willa, Larry, and Maeve. I wish we could have focused more on those relationships and less on the romance.

I gave it 3.5 ⭐ because I didn't think there was really a HEA. The characters weren't convincingly good for each other and I didn't love either of their actions.

Thanks to netgalley for an eARC to review.

There were times I really enjoyed this book and times I didn't. I think having Sammy lie about her intentions was a big roadblock in me liking her character when it came to her relationship with Max. I thoroughly enjoyed Paloma and her taking charge of teaching Sammy and helping Sammy while knowing she had little time left. I am a sucker for a band boy story, so that was fun for me

I requested to read “Sammy Espinoza's Last Review” as I was intrigued by both the title and the novel’s premise.

Sammy’s personal and professional lives are in competition for “hot mess of the year.” But if she returns to her hometown and scores an interview with a rock star (Max) she knew from her younger days, she might get the break she needs. Naturally, the main focus of the story is on Sammy and Max—their past and what their future might entail, but the author takes the time to share Sammy’s struggles to find out more about where she came from. You have to appreciate Sammy’s growth as she reconnects with her mother and paternal grandmother. I probably liked the family stuff a lot more than the relationship arc, which was maybe why I wasn’t too sold on the ending. But if you’re looking for a new writer who can shape a protagonist into someone you want to care about, give this novel a try.

Three and a half stars

Many thanks to Tehlor Kay Mejia, NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Tehlor Kay Mejia may be new to the adult fiction scene but they are coming in SWINGING! This book had so many of my favorite elements, found family, rock stars, second chances, and feisty women. I enjoyed that this was a love story which focused just as much on our main character falling in love with herself as it did with her main love interest.

Sammie’s journey in this book was not easy, she makes petty mistakes and caves into her personal demons but ultimately chooses to fight for herself and her own happiness. Her story wasn’t perfect but it’s hers.

Special shout-out to Paloma, Willa and Brook for being the REALEST of the real, holding Sammie accountable throughout this novel and for forcing her to become the best iteration of herself.

I really enjoyed this novel and will 100% pick up another of Tehlor’s books the millisecond it drops. Verdad.

Rating: 🤘🏽🤘🏽🤘🏽🤘🏽

Thank you Netgalley and Penguin Random House for the ARC 🖤

When I read the final sentence of this book I gratefully received as an ARC, my first thought was “late bloomer comes of age”. At first, I was slightly annoyed with Sammy Espinoza– in her thirties, learning lessons she should have learned in her earlier years– and as the story progressed, I realized I couldn’t be more wrong about her.

Sammy, raised by a young and immature woman whose narcissism kept her from being the mother Sammy needed, spent her childhood putting on layers of tough skin to take the punches life threw at her. Consistently made to play second fiddle in her mother’s life, she bounced around her mother’s friend’s homes and elsewhere while her mom prioritized the men of the moment. She hardened and fell into her safe space, which was music.

As an adult, Sammy makes a number of excuses for her mother’s absences that come to a head towards the end of the book. Before we get to that particular moment, however, there are plenty of gooey, romantic scenes between her and old flame Max, a familial reconciliation with her birth father’s mother Paloma, and growth with her closest friend, Willa. That’s all to say that this is a book that’s as full of life being lived with a soundtrack attached to it that screams coming-of-age.

Ultimately, this story is really for the people who spent their childhood having to be the adults in their own lives while the adults who were supposed to be raising them spent their time growing up. What I loved most about it was that it was masked as this cute romance book, but it ended up being so much more than that. Tehlor Kay Mejia knocked it out of the park with her creation of Sammy and giving a voice to people like her. I hope that Sammy’s story resonates with late bloomers everywhere when they read this fresh and moving book.

Honestly, for a lot of this book I was just really frustrated by the main character's decisions, and how long she let the lies go on. I knew it would all get resolved at the end, and I understood why she was doing it, but I just couldn't fall for the romance or enjoy the book until she came clean. I didn't see how what she was doing was forgivable, and I knew she'd be forgiven, so I was just frustrated.

In the end I do think it all made sense and the ending was satisfying, but I can't say I loved the book or anything because it didn't really feel that way until the very end. I did like a lot of the other plot lines, with her family and friends, and I think it all turned out better than expected for everyone involved. But--yeah, I can't wholeheartedly recommend a book that was so frustrating for so much of it. Maybe someone who empathizes more with the bad decisions wouldn't have an issue with it, but I found myself yelling at her more often than siding with her, even if I could see where she was coming from.

Thank you to Netgalley and Ballantine Books for the chance to read and review this ARC.