One Last Gift

I love Emily Stone. I love her characters and the way they deal with loss and grief. I also love that the cover artist captured a scene from the book accurately. I loved Tom and I knew early on that he would be the one to bounce. I wish I didn't have to spend the first half of the book hating Sam, but I accept it for the story. Cassie was wonderful and so was Linda, Hazel, and Josh. All of Emily Stone's books center around letters, loss, and Christmas, and yet they are completely different. I loved Always, in December so much and have recommended it as my favorite Christmas book to everyone I know. I definitely felt stronger about Josie and Max than Cassie and Sam, but I loved this book. Thankfully I didn't weep while reading this one. I'm going to go straight into Love, Holly so wish me luck.

One Last Gift is a holiday read about grief, loss, and healing. It's also about embracing life, and not being scared to take chances. Among all of this, there is also a romance, but they won't be able to embrace their love until they go through their emotional journey, and a treasure hunt spanning almost a whole year.

It's impossible not to compare Emily Stone's latest book to her previous one. I found Always, in December to be more heart wrenching, more tear jerky, and also more filled with twists. This one, in comparison, was more straightforward. But she is fantastic at emotional authenticity, at handling grief, and the journey to healing.