Rival bookstores, an enemies-to-lovers relationship, lots of banter and lots of feels? I got it all in Last Chance Books and I loved it. Check out my full review below!
Last Chance Books by Kelsey Rodkey Published by HarperTeen on May 18, 2021
Genres: contemporary, romance, young adult
Format: ARC
Source: Harper360UK
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Don’t you just love the smell of old books in the morning?
Madeline Moore does. Books & Moore, the musty bookstore her family has owned for generations, is where she feels most herself. Nothing is going to stop her from coming back after college to take over the store from her beloved aunt.
Nothing, that is—until a chain bookstore called Prologue opens across the street and threatens to shut them down.
Madeline sets out to demolish the competition, but Jasper, the guy who works over at Prologue, seems intent on ruining her life. Not only is he taking her customers, he has the unbelievable audacity to be… extremely cute.
But that doesn’t matter. Jasper is the enemy and he will be destroyed. After all—all’s fair in love and (book) wars.
I received this book for free from Harper360UK in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
☂️ TRIGGER WARNINGS:
child abandonment by deadbeat parent, gentrification, car accident, blood/injury related to car accident, alcohol/underage drinking, internalized and challenged fatphobia.☂️ DIVERSITY:BIPOC and mixed race main characters.
There are no spoilers in this review.
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I ENJOYED…
☂️
- I love books you just start reading and find yourself unable to stop. Books that bring a smile on your face, make you swoon, laugh, give you emotions. Last Chance Books was all of that and more and I’m SO happy to say, it met all of my expectations.
- The story’s about Madeline. She’s been working at her family’s bookstore for ages and her biggest dream is, once she graduates, to manage it. Enters Prologue, the new bookstore across the street with cheaper prices…and Jasper, the annoying son of its owners. Madeline’s determined to take Prologue down…and starts a little competition / war / sometimes filled with feelings with Jasper.
- Madeline, the main character, was endearing to me. She’s impulsive, a little dramatic, she’s going over the edge sometimes, but deep down she is so deeply passionate about the bookstore that I ended up loving her. Her love for books warmed my heart so much and I really liked following her journey and seeing her grow as the book goes on.
- Obviously, romance takes a big place in this book… and let me tell you: that one made me REALLY happy. This is an enemies-to-lovers relationship and it was so lovely to follow. The banter between the characters was ON POINT from page one, I smiled, I laughed, I swooned, I rooted for them so much. I had such a great time seeing their challenging, growing relationship on the page.
- Last Chance Books is not only a romance: it’s also about family. The one you grow up with and the one you share blood with. The story heavily deals with abandonment issues and I appreciated how Madeline’s journey with her own issues regarding her mother wasn’t linear, nor was it perfect, from the beginning to the very end of the book. It felt realistic to me.
- I was really taken with the story as a whole, right from the start. It was such a fast-paced, entertaining read, I found myself quickly turning the pages and wanting to know what happens next.
I HARD A HARD TIME WITH…
☂️
- If I had one tiny little frustration with this book, it’s this: I wish we could have seen Jasper’s family a little more. Prologue is also a family business and I really liked the couple of interactions we got to see with his brothers, as well as his parents. I just wish we got to know them a little better, too.
OVERALL
☂️
If you’re looking for a fast-paced, entertaining read filled with bookish feels, enemies-to-lovers relationship and amazing banter, I encourage you to pick up Last Chance Books. It was such a fun read, I can’t wait to read more from the author!
FINAL RATING : 4 drops!
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📚 Books similar to Last Chance Books that I’d recommend:
- For rivals in a bookstore kind of situation: Recommended For You, Laura Silverman
- For more bookstore settings, check out my blog post: 10 YA books with writing and bookish settings
Did you read Last Chance Books or do you want to? Do you have any recommendations of books with a scavenger-hunt? Let me know in comments!
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I liked this book. I have seen other people say they had issues with Madeline, but like you pointed out, she was passionate. I think I also identified with her worries about her future. She thought she had a solid plan, and now, it was all blown to pieces. I had compassion for her while she worked through that.
I’m so happy you enjoyed this book as well! I agree, she was so passionate and I really liked that about her.
Thank you so much, Sam! <3
Great Review, Marie!! ❤ You made me so excited for Last Chance Books, so I added it to my TBR! It sounds exactly like the kind of book I would love, as I’m a big fan of enemies to lovers romance and books that are set at a bookshop 🥰
Ahhhh yay! I hope you’ll love it, Caro! 😀
This sounds great! I enjoy books set in book store and enemies to lovers trope.
Yay! I hope you’ll pick it up and will enjoy it <3
Terrific review! Sounds like a lovely book. I’ll put it on my TBR. Thanks.
Yay! I hope you’ll love it, thank you! <3
This actually sounds so adorable! I can’t wait to read it!
Ah yay! I can’t wait for you to read it 😀
Can’t wait to get to this! Love enemies to lovers/rival businesses as a trope
It’s such a good trope! I hope you’ll enjoy it 🙂
Since I don’t read contemporaries, it’s very rare when I read the blurb or review of one and think, “oh my gosh, I actually really want to read that ~right now~” This is one of those rare moments!! I love this concept, the characters sound great, and enemies-to-lovers hardly ever goes wrong. I enjoyed reading this review! x
Ohh yay! I’m so glad to hear that! I really hope you’ll give this book a try and will love it. Thank you! <3