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A review by chulaisreadingromance
The Last Letter by Rebecca Yarros
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I'm not the type of reviewer who demands authors to write their stories in a specific way. As an aspiring author myself I know how difficult it is to connect dots and close the plot of a story as neatly and tight as possible, but I am so very conflicted about this book.
Let me star with this, I really loved the story. I loved the couple and I loved their journey towards each other. I think it was as splendid premise and the emotional roller coaster for 80% of the book was just right up my alley. I fell in love with Beckett and Ella at the same time they fell in love with each other. My heart broke for Maisie and her battle. That little girl made me feel so much hope and the way she and Colt bonded with Beckett made my heart soar and flutter in so many ways. Ella was such a strong woman, I really loved reading her and I understood her 100%. I didn't really love how Beckett kept her in the dark for so long but at the end I understood why he did it. He was after all, a veteran who had never had a sense of normalcy in his life and had never really had a family. As the story continued I was able to empathize with him and my reader heart forgave him for the lie. Especially because his relationship with Ella and the kids felt so natural on page. They were the perfect family.
Now, my biggest issue with this book. For starters, this book should come with a trigger warning (which I couldn't find anywhere the author's website). That takes one of my stars down. There are so many heavy topics in this book that are not suitable for everyone. Not everyone can handle it no matter how much they love an author and no matter how much they love the genre. Second, (and this is what I was talking about me not being a reviewer who demands books to be written a certain way) I wholeheartedly agree with all the reviewers that think that Colt's death was unnecessary. It didn't feel right. It didn't make sense to me at all. While the scene was incredibly touching and Colt's final moments had a lot of meaning and a heavy weight for Beckett's character growth, I think the book could've been emotional enough without them having to lose a child. I get that the purpose was to highlight the existence of fait and how everything that happens has a connection with it, but in my opinion it was tragedy for the sake of tragedy. It served no purpose. If the issue was the book being shorter, 350 pages are not that short for a romance novel. I'm so glad a friend spoiled it for me, warning me about it before I got to that part, otherwise it would've caught me off guard because it happened all of the sudden and again, with absolutely no purpose. There goes the other star.
I'm going to say though, the very ending was touching and very romantic. The epilogue made me sob my eyes out. In general it would've been such a beautiful book if it wasn't for that. I really loved this couple and the family they formed. They went through enough together, they didn't need more. That said, I'll keep reading Rebecca's books because I think she's a brilliant author and her stories are right the emotional roller coaster I usually go for, but this book disappointed me a lot.
Let me star with this, I really loved the story. I loved the couple and I loved their journey towards each other. I think it was as splendid premise and the emotional roller coaster for 80% of the book was just right up my alley. I fell in love with Beckett and Ella at the same time they fell in love with each other. My heart broke for Maisie and her battle. That little girl made me feel so much hope and the way she and Colt bonded with Beckett made my heart soar and flutter in so many ways. Ella was such a strong woman, I really loved reading her and I understood her 100%. I didn't really love how Beckett kept her in the dark for so long but at the end I understood why he did it. He was after all, a veteran who had never had a sense of normalcy in his life and had never really had a family. As the story continued I was able to empathize with him and my reader heart forgave him for the lie. Especially because his relationship with Ella and the kids felt so natural on page. They were the perfect family.
Now, my biggest issue with this book. For starters, this book should come with a trigger warning (which I couldn't find anywhere the author's website). That takes one of my stars down. There are so many heavy topics in this book that are not suitable for everyone. Not everyone can handle it no matter how much they love an author and no matter how much they love the genre. Second, (and this is what I was talking about me not being a reviewer who demands books to be written a certain way) I wholeheartedly agree with all the reviewers that think that Colt's death was unnecessary. It didn't feel right. It didn't make sense to me at all. While the scene was incredibly touching and Colt's final moments had a lot of meaning and a heavy weight for Beckett's character growth, I think the book could've been emotional enough without them having to lose a child. I get that the purpose was to highlight the existence of fait and how everything that happens has a connection with it, but in my opinion it was tragedy for the sake of tragedy. It served no purpose. If the issue was the book being shorter, 350 pages are not that short for a romance novel. I'm so glad a friend spoiled it for me, warning me about it before I got to that part, otherwise it would've caught me off guard because it happened all of the sudden and again, with absolutely no purpose. There goes the other star.
I'm going to say though, the very ending was touching and very romantic. The epilogue made me sob my eyes out. In general it would've been such a beautiful book if it wasn't for that. I really loved this couple and the family they formed. They went through enough together, they didn't need more. That said, I'll keep reading Rebecca's books because I think she's a brilliant author and her stories are right the emotional roller coaster I usually go for, but this book disappointed me a lot.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, War, Medical content, Terminal illness, and Cancer