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annemariecunningham 's review for:
The Last Letter
by Rebecca Yarros
emotional
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Absolutely not. How is this work from same the author who wrote Fourth Wing!?
I immediately disliked The Last Letter for its subpar writing and half-cracked plot, but rage-read and later rage finished it, simply because I haven’t DNF’ed a book in years and I don’t want to start now.
It’s FULL of stereotypical characters: a stoic man with abandonment issues and a strong moral code who does things out of obligation and guilt, an outwardly tough but inwardly lonely and fiercely protective single mom, an overprotective big brother, an observant and wise younger sister. The writing reads like a “how not to write” workshop, packed with cringey clichés and a weak storyline.
The premise is that the main characters (Ella and Beckett) are introduced via letters they write to one another while Beckett is deployed with Ella’s brother. They fall in love writing these letters and meet in real life after Beckett’s deployment ends in tragedy. A bunch more tragedy happens, but *spoiler alert* they make it through.
In addition to the plot being pretty damn predictable (until the ridiculous and unnecessary last tragedy) and the writing being cringey, the story wasn’t believable in the slightest. The amount of tragedy Yarros piled into the book was laughable. It’s like she recognized that there wasn’t any substance, so kept giving the characters increasingly tragic back stories and throwing ridiculous issues into the plot.
The speed at which Beckett - closed-off, nomadic, unattached - fell in love with Ella and her kids through some LETTERS was not only unrealistic, but read as kind of creepy. How badly he wanted her from their first meeting, how they both knew the perfect things to say/do (despite their tragic lives), and how quickly Ella lets him start spending time alone with her kids did not sit well with me.
The Last Letter made me question if I actually enjoy the romance genre. If this is what a “good” romance novel is (see: 4+ star rating on this app), count me out. If you told me this was turned into a Lifetime movie, I’d have no trouble believing you.
The one thing I will give Yarros credit for is that she writes sexual tension and scintillating sexy scenes VERY well. With nothing else going for it, those were my favorite parts of this disappointing book.
I don’t recommend this. Give it a shot if you don’t mind cliché and irritatingly unrealistic “romance” novels.
I immediately disliked The Last Letter for its subpar writing and half-cracked plot, but rage-read and later rage finished it, simply because I haven’t DNF’ed a book in years and I don’t want to start now.
It’s FULL of stereotypical characters: a stoic man with abandonment issues and a strong moral code who does things out of obligation and guilt, an outwardly tough but inwardly lonely and fiercely protective single mom, an overprotective big brother, an observant and wise younger sister. The writing reads like a “how not to write” workshop, packed with cringey clichés and a weak storyline.
The premise is that the main characters (Ella and Beckett) are introduced via letters they write to one another while Beckett is deployed with Ella’s brother. They fall in love writing these letters and meet in real life after Beckett’s deployment ends in tragedy. A bunch more tragedy happens, but *spoiler alert* they make it through.
In addition to the plot being pretty damn predictable (until the ridiculous and unnecessary last tragedy) and the writing being cringey, the story wasn’t believable in the slightest. The amount of tragedy Yarros piled into the book was laughable. It’s like she recognized that there wasn’t any substance, so kept giving the characters increasingly tragic back stories and throwing ridiculous issues into the plot.
The speed at which Beckett - closed-off, nomadic, unattached - fell in love with Ella and her kids through some LETTERS was not only unrealistic, but read as kind of creepy. How badly he wanted her from their first meeting, how they both knew the perfect things to say/do (despite their tragic lives), and how quickly Ella lets him start spending time alone with her kids did not sit well with me.
The Last Letter made me question if I actually enjoy the romance genre. If this is what a “good” romance novel is (see: 4+ star rating on this app), count me out. If you told me this was turned into a Lifetime movie, I’d have no trouble believing you.
The one thing I will give Yarros credit for is that she writes sexual tension and scintillating sexy scenes VERY well. With nothing else going for it, those were my favorite parts of this disappointing book.
I don’t recommend this. Give it a shot if you don’t mind cliché and irritatingly unrealistic “romance” novels.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Child death, Death, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Medical content, Grief, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: War
Minor: Cursing, Abandonment