Another enjoyable visit to Last Chance, South Carolina. I really like this series and the stories of ordinary people falling in love and working through various trauma, dramas, issues and just the stuff life throws at you. I also enjoyed seeing characters from previous books make brief appearances without clogging up the current story. I did have an issue with the heroine, Molly being a doormat, especially with her dysfunctional family. Then again, it could be the author's believable writing that made me frustrated with the way Molly's parents seemed to blame her for everything that went wrong in their lives and how her parents tried to control her as far as who she dated and what career she had. She was 28, living with her parents and stuck in an infantilized role in many ways. It was just weird and annoying and I, for one, would have felt better if someone did a few highly directive family therapy sessions with them, Dr Phil style. Molly, move out and grow a spine!! Mom and Dad, get a grip, stop assigning crazy blame and live your own darn lives!!Hey, that does make me feel better, LOL. The hero, Simon had it even worse with decades of estrangement from his own parents who had also tried to control and force their ambitions on him. At 40 and having moved across the country away from his parents, Simon had a better sense of himself and could see his parent's dysfunction for what it was. But while he refused to be controlled by his parents, he remained wounded by their rejection and past trauma. I really liked Simon and how kind, patient and decent he was underneath his at times remote self-containment. He and Molly not only fell in love, but brought out in each other strength, courage and a willingness to be vulnerable. So this was a good, believable and interesting installment with lots of great secondary characters and subplots. Once again I am looking forward to the next book about Last Chance. I have read and loved all the other books in this series, but I really found this one not nearly as good as the others. The author had the makings of a great story. The main characters were also quite interesting and pretty well developed. I had two major problems with the book. I think the author tried to put too many major storylines in this book. It was enough for Molly and Simon to discover their attraction after all the years that had passed. However, the author also inserted two other major storylines into the mix. Molly’s mother disappears “to see the world”, leaving Molly to run things at home, with no warning and though, it was obvious, Molly really did not want that. Later, Molly’s brother is diagnosed with a serious illness. There are only so many things an author can develop well in a book, and having these major storylines competing for the reader became too much, I think. The author could easily have made three books out of this one, devoting one to each major storyline. The other thing I did not like about the book was the way Molly, though well into her 20’s as far as I can tell, still lived at home and was totally unable to assert her independence from her family, especially her father. Likewise, I am not an athlete and have never been one, but Simon could also not assert himself with Molly’s father, his former high school coach, despite all the years he had been gone. I would have thought he could at least politely stand up to the coach in important situations when he returned. In addition, Simon also could not assert himself with his mother. Yes, she was suffering from the early stages of dementia, but he allowed her to continue to refuse to acknowledge he was her son and to continue to treat him like some unwanted, lowly paid servant someone had forced on her. Even when people in the town acknowledged he was her son to her, Simon kept quiet about it. He did have an assistant, Angel, who was assertive in every way possible, and this only underscored how much of a wimp Simon really was. The story plot, though quite good and pretty well done, could have been much better if the author had infused some gumption into either of these two main characters. Finally, I found the last part of the book to be a total shocker, with little or no lead up to it. In addition, the way Molly handled this only further emphasized her inability and immaturity to accept life as it comes. I think anyone who enjoys this series will enjoy reading one more part of it. I also think anyone looking for a new romance author to read and explore would enjoy reading this book. I received this from NetGalley to read and review.
Do You like book Last Chance Knit & Stitch (2013)?
Cute. Wish I had read some of the other Last Chance books but I can!
—maddy
Another good story for Last Chance. I really need to learn to knit.
—Kay
Liked returning to Last Chance, but hated the parents.
—mel
I read this in one day and absolutely LOVED it
—yaso
