Book Review and Giveaway for The Last Letter by Rebecca Yarros

THE LAST LETTER
by REBECCA YARROS

Beckett,

If you’re reading this, well, you know the last-letter drill. You made it. I didn’t. Get off the guilt train, because I know if there was any chance you could have saved me, you would have.

I need one thing from you: get out of the army and get to Telluride.

My little sister Ella’s raising the twins alone. She’s too independent and won’t accept help easily, but she has lost our grandmother, our parents, and now me. It’s too much for anyone to endure. It’s not fair.

And here’s the kicker: there’s something else you don’t know that’s tearing her family apart. She’s going to need help.

So if I’m gone, that means I can’t be there for Ella. I can’t help them through this. But you can. So I’m begging you, as my best friend, go take care of my sister, my family.

Please don’t make her go through it alone.

Ryan

ADD TO GOODREADS

REVIEW: How do you rate heartbreak on a scale of 1-5?
"Funny thing about broken hearts - only the living have them."

I feel like I need to preface this review by saying that even though the teasers show romance, and the romance community spread this book around and embraced it, this is not a romance. This will not read that way either. There is a romance element, and it is beautifully romantic in hindsight, and in truth, and in reality.....but it's a very painful, sorrowful read. 

I just finished this book and I will never be the same. This is a spoiler free review straight from my emotionally broken and torn heart, but it's going to be jumbled and raw and honest. For that, I apologize in advance. Only two other times have I audibly cried like I did with this one. It's rare, but I'm exhausted now...

I can honestly say I feel depressed.
I'm staring out the window.
The snow is falling.
I'm sitting on the couch, letting the tears fall down my cheeks untouched. Why stop them when more will come?
Staring off....not focused.....not even sure where to begin.

I know I always say I'm not a crier. I don't cry and I am usually strong enough to get through most subjects. But as cold-hearted as I pretend to be and as strong as I try to be while reading, this one broke me. The one recommendation I got for this book was to FEEL. And FEEL I did. I am pretty sure I swore I'd never read a book with this subject matter, and I'm confident it was because I was too afraid to FEEL this heartfelt pain. But the way Rebecca wrote this journey, the way her words invited me along to FEEL, I had no other choice but to cry it out. To suffer through the agonizing emotions. To FEEL. But I'll never willingly read a book with this subject matter ever again, though. Ever. She either set the bar really high, or scarred me very deeply....either way, never ever again.

I had to take a few breathers while I was reading this. Heartache, pain, and crazily enough: fear. Those are just some of the emotions I felt in spades, and they were accompanied by more, you guessed it - tears. The notes I took while reading this one now seem so inconsequential in comparison, after it's all said and done. But while I was reading it, I was sad, then happy. Angry at Ella and sad for Beckett. I was fuming because her rationale was way off. Yet, if I sat back and thought about it, I could understand where she was coming from because I am just as stubborn as she is. Her courage was beyond anything I have ever read and could imagine dealing with. Beckett's strength was probably the best book boyfriend material I've ever read. His allegiance and his honor, his truth in his understanding of love and loyalty. He was perfection, but he had a very selfishly-stubborn, or stubbornly-selfish, side to him that was admirable and I loved it. Moving. Painful. Heartbreaking. Compelling. The emotions I felt ran the gamut, of that I can't lie. I fell in love with their love. I cried when they hurt. I was angry at the universe and shocked at 'fate'. I have no words.

I can't recall the last time I wanted to DNF a book so late in the game, but I couldn't put it down because I was too freaking invested. There was a sad reality to the guilt, the regret, and the requirement to push through. I'm not sure I was willing or even ready to face the guaranteed heartbreak I was sure to receive. But I can't lie and say that the place that Rebecca came from, and the story that she gave me? That is why I read the heavy stuff. That is why I like the deep reads. The intricacies in the story, the love that is unwavering, the pain that is indiscriminate....it was all dished up with a healthy dose of reality.

But if I could emote the beauty in her words, and how well she flowed, I'd be proud to have been able to share that much. With a fractured soul and a broken heart, I can tell you I won't recover from this one anytime soon. It's almost a hollow, sad feeling in my chest - resigned....as if I went through this entire ordeal myself, and I have no recourse. I'm tired and I feel like I could sleep for a week straight. But again, the power in Rebecca's words are written with the tears falling down my face.

I want to be mad, but I'm sad.
I want to be sad, but I'm angry.
I want to be angry, but I can't stop crying.
I can't.stop.crying.....
This is NOT a romance, but that love story was so beautiful.
This is NOT for the faint of heart, and I'm not sure I'm going to ever be the same.

I'm not sure I can recommend this book to many people in the romance community without a heavy warning. Again, it's not a romance and it's not something I would willingly spring on anyone without a warning, but I can't ruin the journey for someone who understands that this is Contemporary Fiction. I likened it to Contemporary Depression.

These aren't the kind of emotions I enjoy from a book. These aren't the kind of tears I enjoy from reading a book. But, having said that, I am glad I weathered through it. I'm glad I felt it. And if I'm honest with myself, I loved the journey. But again, never will I ever read this subject again.

This story was a lesson on living in the now. This was a lesson on seeing the truth in a love destined to withstand life's curveballs. But most of all, this was a lesson to never take anything for granted. Hindsight is always 2/20.

To borrow your words, Rebecca: You don't know me, but you touched me. 

"You can't reason with the universe, no matter how sound your logic is. 
~BEE

PURCHASE LINKS:

AMAZON     APPLE BOOKS     KOBO     B&N

The first thing I ever read of Rebecca's was this blog post she posted on Twitter recently. I came across it and after reading it, I knew that not only was this story going to be an emotional one, but it was going to be told with intimate knowledge of many of the scenarios and circumstances that came into play in this book. My hats off to her. Much respect to her. My thankfulness knows no end.

ENTER HERE TO WIN AN ECOPY

~MEET REBECCA YARROS~

Rebecca Yarros is a hopeless romantic and lover of all things chocolate, coffee, and Paleo. In addition to being a mom, military wife, and blogger, she can never choose between Young Adult and New Adult fiction, so she writes both. She's a graduate of Troy University, where she studied European history and English, but still holds out hope for an acceptance letter to Hogwarts. Her blog, The Only Girl Among Boys, has been voted the Top Military Mom Blog the last two years, and celebrates the complex issues surrounding the military life she adores. When she's not writing, she's tying on hockey skates for her kids, or sneaking in some guitar time. She is madly in love with her army-aviator husband of eleven years, and they're currently stationed in Upstate NY with their gaggle of rambunctious kiddos and snoring English Bulldog, but she would always rather be home in Colorado.

~CONNECT WITH REBECCA~

FACEBOOK     AMAZON     GOODREADS     TWITTER

BLOG

AFFILIATE LINKS USED

ARC REVIEW

COPY PURCHASED FOR GIVEAWAY