Thank you to Netgalley and Avon for the eARC! This romance has an intriguing premise: the FMC develops an app that sends someone's last words after they die. From the outset, Sara's displeasure with her job is evident as she confronts the pervasive racism and sexism in her field and her workplace. Later on, after her character growth, she uses her newfound confidence to advocate for herself when speaking with her parents and not just standing up to her colleagues (she quit to develop the app on her own once they passed on it). Despite her shortcomings as a character, the reader can't help but be drawn to her tenacity. Although Harry (love interest) seems like a great guy who is there for Sara, there were for sure some red flags, and I wasn't completely sold on the romance between the two characters.

I was so interested in the storyline when selecting to read this book. This story follows sara and she created an App that would allow users to be able to write letters to loved ones that were no longer there. She ended up sending a letter to her parents after a drunken night. her old crush and others.

I found myself getting bored. I wasn’t drawn to the technical aspect of the book and found myself skimming over pages.

This was just not in for me.

Hands down - funniest author ever. She should so be a stand up comedian - love all of Suzanne Park's books and am always 100% entertained and recommend them to all of my friends.

Another great read by an author who understands how dynamic women can be, and how much they deserve to love, grow and thrive.

I've read other books by Suzanne Park, but this might just be my favorite one. Sara Chae developed an app called One Last Word that automates a pre-written message to whoever you would like, after you die. Through an error, her test emails to her circle gets sent when she's very much alive. It sends her on a journey to rectify and confront those people in her life and her message to them. Through it all, she encounters a second-change love, a lapsed friendship, repairing her relationship with her parents and getting real with her sister. For some reason, I kept picturing Harry Shum Jr as the second chance love (her HS crush who comes back into her world). You can choose your own adventure.

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

One Last Word was SO good. Definitely a 5 star read for me. The storyline so was rich and deep. Love, friendship, family ties, making amends, and taking chances. All around, this was an excellent read about a woman living life on her terms and no one else's. So, so good!

📖🔎ARC review
“It was almost impressive how the odds were so stacked against me during such a pivotal career inflection point of my life.”

📚One Last Word
⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3/5
✍️ Suzanne Park
🗓️ Pub Date 16 April 2024

You can look forward to
💖 Fake Dating
🏡 Tech / Startup World
🌊 Immigrant Parents
🧘‍♀️ Miscommunication
👩‍❤️‍👩 Second Chance Friendships

The plot of One Last Word follows Sara Chae, a product manager working for a company that she’s lost faith in, and leaders that don’t value her perspective. We follow her as she quits her safe job, starts her own company and then gets mentored by a VC firm while also competing in a SharkTank-eque show. Through this journey we see how Sara comes to believe in her self, finds love and mends some important relationships and friendships in her life.

I really did like the plot of the book a lot. The character and story was super relatable to me as I am a Product Manager myself and the situations that Sara finds herself in seemed very plausible. Where the book faltered for me was in the writing style and execution. The writing is heaving focused on telling the reader what is happening and how to feel, rather than showing the situation and letting them come to their own conclusion. It reads very preachy and the inner monologue of the main character reads very theatrical and over the top. You can see this in the quote I’ve highlighted for this review.

Overall, I would recommend this if you’re looking for a romance based in the VC world and you’ve already read a Suzanne Park book before and are comfortable with her writing style.. If not, maybe give this one a pass.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon Harper Voyager for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
.

This was such a fun enjoyable book to read! I went in expecting romance which I did really enjoy from Sara and Harry but what I wasn’t expecting to love so much was the tech plot! It was so interesting and the struggles and growth Sara went through were so relatable and made her so easy to connect with! The book was just charming with a nice side of girlboss vibes! Would highly recommend.

Suzanne Park does it again!! Her writing itself is always 10/10, drawing me into the stories right from the first page. This is the fourth book I've read by Park and it might be my favorite yet! I liked Sara and Harry's love story - but I loved Sara as a character. She wasn't perfect by any means, but she was honest and relatable. Can't wait to read what Park writes next!

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for this DRC.
One Sara Chae has had enough. She has invested plenty of time developing an app that her current company sees no future in, mostly because the don’t see her as creative. She quits her job, moves into her sister’s closet and begins a journey to change the way she sees herself. A drunken app accident sends a string of emails that help her redefine her relationships with her high school crush, her parents and a former best friend.
This book did make me laugh and cheer for Sara. She was a great realistic woman caught in the throws of working at home alone too much. I never felt her character was overdone or ridiculously clutzy. I liked it when she would get lost in her own mind staring at Harry Shim (who I kept imagining as Harry Shum, Jr.). I did wish the author would have given a little more information about Harry’s failed marriage and that very weird gala at the Natural History Museum.

#OneLastWord #NetGalley

ugh my heart 🥹

the last thing i expected was to not like the romance plot and like the tech start up plot more.

stem isn’t easy! being a woman in stem is even harder, especially because the industries are so male dominated. but sara doesn’t let men step all over her. she speaks up against the misogynistic men she encounters. the odds were stacked against her and i rooted for her from the start. sara believed in herself and surrounded herself with the people who believed in her and her vision. she’s 100% the type of girl to say watch me and go above and beyond.

i think suzanne park did a beautiful job capturing the overbearing nagging helicopter parents and the kids who try their best but are always compared to someone else in the family for no reason. i think i related a little too much to that but down to the language barrier, i don’t even know how to describe the way i feel.

Suzanne Park is a popular, award-winning author, so I was excited to see that she was releasing a new book. "One Last Word" is centered around Sara, who is attempting to create a new app that will send your last words to a loved one/enemy/etc. upon your death. While trying to get this app off the ground, Sara has to ward off sexist and misogynistic comments at work and eventually has to look for a new job and move back in with her sister. At her new job, she discovers a former flame and the two begin dating.

I liked the original storyline of this book, and I also liked how Sara didn't put up with bad behavior from those she worked with. However, she was hard to root for and the relationship progression didn't feel realistic. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

It may be time for me to accept the possibility that Park's books are simply not for me. As much as the romance is purported to be a major aspect based on the premise, it doesn't really end up being that way in terms of actual execution — and it could be that the author is just more interested in exploring her FMC's individual journey of self-realization and reflection over developing her romance in a way that proves to be a central piece of the story, rather than an accompanying ingredient. Most of the titles I've read so far have felt like they've landed squarely in the vein of women's fiction with a romance element, but the HEA just isn't the cornerstone of the plot — and no judgment if that's your thing, but I think I've just always been hoping to see more along those lines. When it came time to delve into Sara's story I really just wanted more from her dynamic with Harry, especially pertaining to their professional dynamic and the obstacles that could've been woven in with them trying to navigate rekindling feelings. Instead, this was more about Sara's road to becoming a more upfront person with all of her important relationships — her best friend, her parents, an estranged bestie, etc. — and I almost wonder if the book would have benefitted from being a bit longer, especially given the ultimate resolution of Sara and Harry's relationship.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this edition from the publisher via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an early copy of this book! Here is my honest review:

I used to be a huge fan of romcoms and this book reminded me why.

I was drawn to this book's premise since the app's idea, "One Last Word", was so interesting to me, and I ended up really enjoying every aspect of the story. I appreciated our flawed protagonist, Sara, and related so much to her relationship with her Korean parents. I loved the rekindling of her friendship with the dreamboat, Harry Shim, who is equally flawed and extremely charming. I don't know much about the world of technology and apps so this was a fun way to peek in as we follow Sara's journey to make her idea a reality.

Many parts of this reminded me of one of my favorites, "To All the Boys I Loved Before" with messages being sent out accidentally and the fake dating aspect but this definitely stood its own! I love seeing Asian-American representation, especially in romance, I really enjoyed the Shark Tank-esque show idea, and overall, I loved seeing healthy relationships develop between the protagonist and everyone important around her. I had a good time with this one.

It was ok. I wanted to love it but found myself rather bored and skimming a lot. It just wasn’t my cup of tea. Thank you for the ARC!

“may we all be showered with shards from Sara breaking more glass ceilings"

•

One Last Word opens with Sara pitching her app, Upon My Death, to her misogynistic bosses. after a matter-of-fact dismissal of her project, Sara quits on the spot and decides to strike out on her own.

fast forward, and Sara has been accepted into a venture capitalist program, which could lead to the funding of her app. she also quickly discovers her mentor happens to be her high school crush, Harry.

an app rebranding plus an unintentional soft launch later, Sara is chasing her dream while dealing with difficult relationships and following in love at the same time.

•

One Last Word is ultimately the story about a woman with an idea navigating how to bring her vision to life while projecting her voice.

the romance was lackluster for me, but it didn’t take away from my interest in Sara. her journey was enough to keep me reading and cheering for her.

•

<b>read if you like:</b>
♡ app development
♡ asian female mc
♡ closed door romance
♡ entrepreneurial boss women
♡ fake boyfriends / fake dating
♡ family birthday parties
♡ friends to lovers
♡ friendship reconciliation
♡ galas
♡ kettle bells
♡ reality competition shows
♡ single pov
♡ taylor swift references
♡ tech startup culture
♡ women in stem

trigger warnings:
☞ racism
☞ toxic parental relationships
☞ misogyny
☞ divorce

•
thank you to the publisher, Avon Books, for sending me an early copy of the book!

This was a nice story! The main character, Sara, is funny, infuriating at times, and dynamic. I appreciate how much character development this book has involving mostly her but also some of the side characters. (Side note I felt like Sara was so disrespectful about her parents though). The One Last Word app was interesting and I loved the concept of many of Sara's deepest, darkest thoughts being sent out to the exact people she wouldn't want to see them.

There were quite a few plot twists toward the end which made for a chaotic ending, but overall this was a fun story that I flew through!

Thank you netgalley and Avon and Harper Voyager, Avon for allowing me to read this book. Overall this book was just meh

This is my third book by this author I think and it's time to admit the writing is just not for me. Unfortunately this wasn't my thing for completely subjective reasons.

This was a classic Suzanne Park book, and I mean that in the best way! The characters are easy to root for, and the story was a fun and fresh take. I enjoyed the romance elements, but the focus really felt like it was on Sara's growth. I feel like I've read a few books about women in tech where I walk away just feeling so frustrated, but I love that Sara's character encounters *difficult* people in positions of power with a confidence in who she is and what she has to offer. This was a read I walked away from with a smile on my face.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review!