The Last Love Song by Kalie Holford is about a girl named Mia who just graduated high school and is forced to face the challenges of moving on from what she has ever known in Sunset Cove. Upon graduating her grandmothers gave her the gift she had been waiting to receive for most of her life: letters from her late country star mother, Tori Rose. As the summer goes on Mia is on the scavenger hunt her mother left for her with help from her (girl-ish)friend Britt who plans on leaving for Nashville at the end of the summer. Themes of grief, romance, and uncertainty are well displayed all throughout this book in dual timeline POV between present day Mia and letters from her late mom.

Mia was such a complex character as she was navigating grief and challenges with the inevitableness of change. I felt it was pretty realistic how she was dealing with yearning and introspection in her own way. I thought this was a cute story, however, I didn’t love the writing and found it pretty hard to get through. The pacing of the story felt off, and I couldn’t really get past a lot of the main character’s insecurity in her dialogue; although it’s understandable and raw.

Overall I thought this is a great book for YA readers who love finding a deeper meaning in everything (Swifties I’m looking at you). Breaking the fourth wall, I couldn’t really wrap my mind around how Mia lived in the town that loved her mother so fondly, yet she knew nothing about her. Does Google not exist? How was her mother able to keep these clues from being uncovered for all these years leading up to Mia’s graduation?

I think the premise of this book is good for a YA coming-of-age, queer story, but I just didn't vibe with it and it just didn't have that spunk that I was hoping for based on that "mamma mia" inspired pitch. I think there's an audience for this book, evidenced by the many positive reviews, but it just wasn't for me and I thought it would be.

When they said a ya mamma mia, they weren't kidding!

It has what every book that tells two stories at once wishes for- balance. Perfectly mixing the story of Tori and Mia, it makes it hard to know just who to love more, the mother or the daughter. Personally, my favorite parts were Tori's, but the story wasn't complete without Mia's, which made it easier to transition from one POV to the other. All that, plus the perfectly atmospheric writing, and it makes for the perfect "just one more chapter" book.

If you rewatched Mamma Mia religiously and thought it needed a little more heartbreak, or read Daisy Jones & The Six and thought it should be 90% more queer, then this is the book for you.

A very sweet coming of age story for fans of Mamma Mia. I loved how the story successfully incorporated the daughter’s and the mother’s storyline separately. I’m a big fan of the friends-to-lovers-trope and was very happy with how Kalie Holford included the queer representation! I can’t wait for her to write more YA stuff like this.

A sweet YA about discovering who you are through exploring where you came from. The book parallels a mother-daughter duo Mia and Tori. Mia has just graduated high school when she receives a letter setting her off on a scavenger hunt of her small town centered around her late mother and country music star, Tori. The young love story between Mia and Britt is also beautifully depicted. Great and quick summer read that will be sure to tug at your heart strings.


Thanks to Net Galley and Blackstone for the ARC.

Mia Peters is about to graduate high school and with it she knows she's going to have to goodbye to many, included her best friend Britt. Mia turns to songwriting for comfort, as she faces these goodbyes and pressure from her best friend to leave with her and follow her dreams. Unfortunately, Mia is scared to leave Sunset Cove and follow in the footsteps of her late mother, country music star Tori Rose. Tori left her daughter with her two mothers, to pursue her dream and never came back.

Then Mia finds a graduation gift from her mother in the form of a letter she left behind. It turns out that her mother left her a scavenger hunt through Sunset Cove, causing her to see the town in a new light. As Mia goes on the hunt she finally gets to learn more about her mother and what happened to her over the years. However, as the summer goes on she is in a race against time. She needs to finish the scavenger hunt, confront her growing feelings for Britt, and decide if she's ready to follow her dream.

For the most part I really enjoyed The Last Love Song. The relationship between Mia and Britt was endearing, as was the relationship Mia had with her grandmothers.

Ultimately, this book is about a girl who has fallen for her best friend and wants to leave with her to follow her dreams, but she's scared. She doesn't want to hurt her grandmothers and doesn't want to make the same mistakes her mom did. MIa is also still dealing with the grief of losing her mom and not really knowing her. Her grandmothers and the town are extremely tight lipped about who she was and what happened to her. This makes the scavenger hunt all that more important, because she's finally learning the truth and feeling closer to her mother.

The Last Love Song is a book that deals with extreme grief through most of it. Your heartbreaks for Mia over her confusion and sadness about her mom, not to mention her heartbreak over preparing to lose Britt. You can't help but cheer her on as starts to grow and learn throughout the book. All in all I really enjoyed the journey.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. All of the opinions are my own. Thank you Blackstone Publishing and NetGalley!

I’m all about things music, and this books is interesting. Some mystery and clues are going on, which I continue reading to see what happens next. I like that there are dual timelines in the story. Overall, I like the book about finding clues, music, and moving on from some people. If you are into the ones I mention in the previous sentence, then you can check out this book. I would say you will like it. For me, I enjoy it!

Going into this book I honesty didn’t know what to expect. Sometimes I like to go into a book without reading the synopsis and it usually works out for the best. I loved the cover and how it reflected the part of the story tells two interconnected stories of this book. I for sure fell in love with the way music lyrics were woven into this emotional journey.
When we meet Mia, she is at a crossroads. Chase after her dreams or live in fear and let them slip between her fingers. Not knowing her country star mother before she pass away, she is haunted by her legacy.
When she gets the opportunity to learn who her mother was as a person and how they may have been more a like than she could have ever imagined.
This book for sure was a trip. Following Mia’s journey of self discovery had my heart smiling, breaking and being mended all in one sitting. I love a book that can make me feel so many emotions. I could feel tears in my eyes yall! Which has happened like less than 10 times in my life with books.
Overall I adored this book and it will hold a special place in my bookish heart. I would recommend to anyone needing a book to make you feel.

Thanks to the folks at NetGalley for a copy of this book. My review is a honest reflection of my feelings towards this book.

This book was so much fun! I loved the way it was inspired by Mamma Mia but still felt like it's own unique story, and really loved the dual timeline between Mia and her mom.

I read the audiobook thanks to Libro.fm's ALC program and thought it was the perfect way to consume the book. Hearing the two different narrators felt like they were telling me a story, and I really loved that.

The concept of a Mamma Mia + scavenger hunt sapphic YA novel really intrigued me but the execution of it fell a little flat for me.

The most interesting part was Mia learning more about her mom’s life. I would have loved to see more of the past timeline. The romance felt like such a small side plot that I didn’t have enough time with the characters exploring their relationship to make me care about them being together.

It also slightly enrages me that for 18 years of this girl’s life, out of all the family and friends that loved her mom and love her, not one person thought to open up more to Mia about her mom’s life.

Though I felt a little underwhelmed, this was overall still a good read and I would try another by the author in the future.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the arc!

Content warnings: death of a parent (central plot point), absentee father.

Mia is participating in a scavenger hunt designed just for her from her dead mum. That sounds morbid, but it isn’t.

Growing up, Mia took any scrap of information about her mum that she could – from any source. And on the day of her graduation, her grandmothers gift her something her mum had left for her before she passed away.

There’s a letter to Mia, and instructions on where to find her first clue. This is what Mia has been waiting for – getting to know her mother like everyone else did.

Along the way, she discovers so much more.

This wonderful book has amazing depictions of family and friendship and getting to know yourself, too.

Plus, the music side of things is wonderful, rounding out those wonderful Mamma Mia vibes that are present throughout the book.

Thank you to Kalie and her publisher for letting me read this one – it was incredible.

net galley review what do you get when you mix country music with a gay teenage romance plot? the last love song cute story about chasing your dreams and finding yourself through music loved the scavenger hunt storyline but the pacing felt really slow ultimately appeals to anyone who likes queer ya romance and summer vibes

THE LAST LOVE SONG by Kalie Holford is a moving atmospheric novel about a young girl searching for the last few pieces of her mom that she left before her untimely death, in the midst of her hometown consistently paying homage to the country star her mom was. This novel is already a top read for the year for me; I was absolutely gripped by the audiobook, as well as each and every one of the characters. This novel delicately handles the confusion that can come with parental grief, and the fear of hurting others through the process, but how desperately important it is to feel those emotions alongside others.

Mia Peters’ story is so full of hope and pain and love and dreams, and I loved every moment I spent in it. A truly brilliant read, one I also think would make a fantastic film. I sincerely cannot wait to read what Kalie Holford writes next.

Thank you to Blackstone Publishing for providing a review copy.

I would like to thank Blackstone Publishing and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

Brief Summary: Mia Peters is stuck. She can feel the pull of a bigger life as she writes songs in secret, but she is also the daughter of Tori Rose, a famous country singer tragically taken at the height of her fame. As Mia prepares to start her life after graduation she looks around the town that has raised her and immortalized her mother wondering what her next move should be. Luckily she has a rainbow of clues pointing her in the right direction.

Thoughts: This book is a slow burn. It took at least five chapters before this book really hooked me.

How Holford was able to not only write a book, but all of the songs included in this book is impressive. Although it was a bit of a slow start, the way that Holford was able to integrate two coming-of-age stories, two love stories, and two musical worlds ended up bringing me to tears.

This is a love story, but I would not call it a romance novel. Mia and Britt do have friends to maybe lovers vibe throughout the endearing book, but the real focus of this book is Mia and Tori and their relationship as mother and daughter. The way that Holford writes Mia as a confused teenager trying to grapple with her grief is breathtaking. So many times throughout the book I just wanted to hug Mia and tell her it would be okay and I felt joy at her every success and sadness at every failure.

Tori was a little more difficult to read throughout the book. We only catch glimpses of her from the stories people share with Mia and letters, but I could never really say I understood her...at least the younger version of her. Tori chases her dreams and finds herself in a love triangle. The mystery surrounding her drives the narrative of the story. I did wish that there was a little more explanation of Tori's relationships with the women she was friends with throughout her life. I feel like with her bandmates and classmates we just see snippets of Tori's relationships with her friends. The love triangle had me hooked and I had a favourite, but her friends made such big sacrifices for her and it was a little hard to understand why.

Holford's writing made me feel and I truly did cry at the end of the book. I found Mia to be such a dynamic character even though she was a teenager. I read somewhere that this book is similar to Mamma Mia. In many ways, I agree with that description, but it feels more like the sequel rather than the original because Mia is just surrounded by a shrine of her mother. I do wish that we had been able to see any part of the town that was not some roadside attraction to draw fans of Tori Rose. It felt a little weird that this was all the town offered, but maybe that is supposed to make us feel the oppressive weight that Mia must feel having grown up there.

I would recommend this book, but I do think that you should go into it understanding two things. First, this is a book about a mother-daughter relationship. Other relationships are described in its pages, but this is the central focus of the book. Second, the music is going to guide you through the book. If you are a fan of puzzles and how song lyrics help you answer those puzzles this is the perfect book for you. I would also recommend having a tissue handy for the tears at the end.

Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Death of a parent, Toxic relationship, Terminal illness, and Grief
Moderate: Gaslighting and Cursing
Minor: Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Sexual content

'The Last Love Song' is a beautifully written story full of music, love, and hope. Told by a fresh voice in the YA scene, this story is one that you just know will become important to people and resonate with audiences across the globe. I cried, laughed, smiled, and squealed while reading - this is one emotional rollercoaster. I loved these characters so much, and I can't wait to see what the author does next!

DNF @46%

This book had potential but unfortunately had so many things that could have been better.

Firstly, the entire plot was just so contrived. The town is basically a memorial to Mia’s mother and yet nobody can, or will, tell her anything of substance about her mother. Instead her mother leaves her a scavenger hunt to find pages of her old diary when she graduates high school. Why her grandmothers would refuse to tell her anything about her mother, who knows.

The emotional turmoil of Mia’s relationship to music and performing also felt very artificial. At almost halfway through the book, I still have no idea what was holding her back aside from some mysterious incident the last time she performed.

The entire book just lacked emotional depth. I couldn’t connect to any of the characters because everything was just so overdramatic and unrealistic. The plot of discovering who her mother was on a personal level should have been really heartfelt and instead I was just frustrated the entire time by how little sense anything made. Oh, she also doesn’t know who her dad is for some reason.

Aside from the plot, the writing was just bad. Repetitive descriptions, overly dramatic dialogue and purple prose really pulled me out of the story. And if I have to read about ‘the music’ one more time…

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I've had my eye on this one since it was announced, and it didn't disappoint. I love a good romance, and this sapphic story that combines friends-to-maybe-lovers with a girl's yearning to know and also divorce herself from her late mother was amazingly done.

Bi Mamma Mia?!?! Say less. I've been eating up queer YA recently. Some favorites are Imogen, Obviously and Cool for the Summer. I knew I was in for a treat just reading the brief synopsis. Full review to come.

We are all about the dual timelines right now, and I am for it! Yes there is a romance aspect, but I was much more interested in Mia learning more about her mother's past. This is the kind of "mystery" for me, since I'm not really a "whodunnit" gal. But it was so entertaining to follow Mia on her journey.

While I could see where some plot points were going chapters ahead, I don't think most readers will! I'm just the odd one in the bunch.

If you're always trying to be ahead of the curve by reading A+ debut authors first, be sure to grab "The Last Love Song" today!

Thank you to Blackstone for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

The story sucked me in from the very beginning. It was a really touchy and beautiful story about finding who you are and what you want from your life. Mia's mom ghost is following her everywhere , she wants some answers which no one is willing to give her, so when she gets her gift from her late mother for her 18th birthday in scavenger hunt form, she finally can get some answers.

I enjoyed 2 storylines aspect where we get daughter and mother narrative and don't get me started about every part's playlist. I wish someone get to sing those songs, the lyrics were so beautiful.

The writting was so quick pace and really enjoyable. Only negative I have is overdramatical elements at some parts, which it could be me to little by little outgrowing YA stories or not...
Overall it was enjoyable debut, I had a good time.

It has the vibes of Mamma mia and Daisy Jones & The Six, so if you enjoyed those and you like young adult stories you should give it a try.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.