Two people were best friends as kids. Life takes them apart and then they make their own way. Family issues bring them back together after fifteen years when all the unresolved issues pop their heads up. They both can't work out their past problems. You just want to shake them both!

Childhood besties Fin and Eleanor haven’t seen each other in 15 years. Fin comes back to town to see his ailing mom and reconnect with Eleanor. There were triggers of death, alcoholism, and controlling partners. Definitely keep tissues handy. The romance between the two leads wasn’t very convincing. They didn’t have much chemistry and I thought they were better off as friends. I also was hoping for a light romance and this wasn’t it. Too many death elements in this, which made it more of a sad book. The ending was okay. Overall, it was an okay book, that I wished I knew more about before reading it.
I received this ARC from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

This childhood-friends-to-lovers slow contemporary romance was sweet and cosy, as well as full of the slightly more negative sides to life - acceptance, grief and overall discovering how to live again.
Eleanor is a really well written strong willed, stubborn, creative character and I enjoyed her growth throughout the plot. At the beginning, I wasn’t sure how much I would enjoy this novel and Eleanor’s character specifically but as the plot slowly developed, I began to become more involved in her character and overall really liked her. The flick from past to present was also interesting and revealed each characters past slowly and added to their characters.

Despite the somewhat obvious ending, the plot was well played out and the slow build worked well, exploring all the characters and mixed POVs from both Fin and Eleanor. I liked the mix of experiences and own challenges/journeys they each faced.
Overall, it covered a broad range of topics which resulted in a lovely slightly chaotic romance.

Torn apart by difficult family relationships and misunderstandings, two best friends are torn apart and brought back together. Full of emotion all the way through to the HEA. I liked this book. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review this book.

I whizzed through this book in two days. I absolutely loved the premise of childhood friends drifting apart and rediscovering each other. This does not have a linear timeline (which enhanced the telling for me) which means that information is dripped through to the reader in short snippets to add context and depth.
I gasped, and cried a tear or two.
Brilliant. Realistic and compelling.
Thanks to #NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book ahead of publication in exchange for an honest review

Eleanor and Fin were childhood best friends and were inseparable, when they were thirteen they made a pact to always be there for each other and if they were both still single at thirty five they would marry, but things don't always work out how you want them to and Eleanor hasn't seen or spoken to him since he left the country when he was eighteen, until now. Fast forward fifteen years, they are now thirty four, both recently single and Fin, in tragic circumstances, is back home, but can they rekindle the close friendship they had?

Last Time We Met is a dual narrative told by Eleanor and Fin and a dual timeline spanning their teenage years and leading up to the present time. It's a tale of friendship, lost love and regret for what might have been. Both of them are dealing with recent romantic breakups and Fin also has the estranged relationship with his mum to contend with and she's the reason he's returned home. There are some difficult topics covered in this book; infidelity, anger management, alcoholism and terminal illness and the author writes them with compassion and integrity, creating characters that are authentic and believable. The main characters touched my heart and I shed quite a few tears throughout this book, frustrated at times that they needed a nudge to sort out their lives and communicate with each other! The sub-characters were also very likeable; Eileen, Sal, Freya, Ben, Reggie and even the overpowering Angela at times, Sunday lunch at her house sounds like a blast! I loved Before I Saw You by this author and was excited to read Last Time We Met, I'm a sucker for a happy ending and was hoping to get one here, but that's as much as I will say on that subject, you'll just have to read it for yourself.

I'd like to thank Transworld Publishers and Netgalley for inviting me to read this beautiful book, I will post my review on Goodreads now and Amazon on publication day.

I really enjoyed this book, great characters and an intensely absorbing story. So much more than your usual type of will they/won’t they fiction. Very believable references to adultery, abandonment and alcoholism. Loved the main female character’s mother by the way; mine is very similar. The two protagonists here are flawed, but realistic. Especially enjoyed the depiction of older people, not usually covered very well in fiction, but beautifully drawn here, the good and the bad. This is, by turns, enchanting and heartbreaking. An absolute joy of a read.

Last Time We Met is the first book I have read from the author and I loved it. The plot takes us into the life of the main characters who are best friends but have drifted and grown apart. Life brings back them to each other’s life but will they stay together or go back in their lives? The writing style flows and it maintains the interest. The characters are relatable and that makes the emotions feel real. Though it’s a romance genre, you might feel like being on an emotional roller coaster.

Thank you Netgalley, Random House UK and Transworld Publishers for the DRC in exchange for an honest review!

Before I Saw You was a five star read for me last year, so i was thrilled to be able to read Emily's new book before publication.

I will be sharing a full review on the blog tour later this month, but I'm pleased to say I enjoyed this book too. A great mix of humour, sadness, missed chances and friendships.

A poignant, emotionally charged, and well written story of two persons, their friendship, and how they met again after years.
It's a story that moved me to tears, made me smile, and kept me reading.
Finley and Eleanor are two interesting characters, well written and relatable. The plot flows and it kept me reading.
The end was not the predictable one and I liked it.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

'Last Time We Met' by Emily Houghton is the story of childhood best friends Eleanor and Finn. They were thick as thieves until circumstances intervened and they spent fifteen years apart. Fast forward to the present day and Eleanor is reeling from a long-term relationship break up and Finn has to return to the country for his dying mother.

At times the book is a painful read when the chapters revert to flashbacks. Only because of the lost time the two main characters spent apart. I found myself bracing myself for the chapters where we learn why they stopped contact with each other. Ultimately it is touching, relatable and beautifully bittersweet. But be prepared to go through a bit of a ringer.

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for a copy of this read.
This is the first title I've read by this author and I loved it. I will look out for this author in the future
This read like an emotional rollercoaster and I loved every minute. There was so much emotion packed into this one book.
I loved the writing style and would definitely recommend this book.

Talk about friends to lovers. This book was so incredibly bittersweet, touching on grief, first love, friendship and the hardships that come when you grow apart from your childhood best friend. I loved the flashbacks, that followed Eleanor and Fin throughout their childhood, and into adulthood.

I haven't previously read any books by this author, but I will definitely be ensuring I look out for any more books, as I really enjoyed the writing style.

Thank you to Random House UK & Netgalley for the opportunity to review this ARC.

I was expecting a fun little rom-com, instead I get all the feels! Although some topics featured are a little tough, everything has been handled with thought & compassion.

This book has a good pacing, fantastically written plot & most importantly great characters that you really root for!

Usually childhood friends-to-lovers isn’t my favourite trope, but this book may have converted me…

A great read full of twists and turns. I laughed and cried so many times!

Eleanor and Fin are best friends and plan to be forever. Then life happens and they lose touch. Fin comes back from America to be with his mum and slowly starts to reconnect with his best friend. Such a moving story beautifully told from both characters perspectives.

I absolutely loved the honesty of this book and relatable characters. There was also depth and variety in the characters and sub plots. A great read!

Just utterly adorable. Old friends and their love journey. I laughed, almost cried and just felt so warm after reading this. I loved the little snippets into Fin and Eleanors lives, and the pacing and back and forth was delightful. I loved this

4.5
This book was such a quick and easy read that just swept me along with the story, I love how it was written.
Eleanor and fin were childhood best friends who went their separate ways as they entered their 20s. Fast forward 15 years and they end up back in the same space. I loved how real this book was, I cried multiple times as the characters faced the challenges of life. They have a second chance at friendship, love and life and get closure from the past.
I just wish the ending had been slightly drawn out to give it a fuller conclusion.

Thank you Netgalley and Publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

20 years ago, Fin & Eleanor were best friends. Then life happened and with it came hindrances, problems & heartbreaks. Now tragic a circumstance for Fin made him come back into Eleanor's life, but everything has changed since the last time they met. Is it too late to mend their friendship?

Emily's writing allows the readers to both grieve & root for the characters.

This was an emotionally gripping friends-to-lovers romance. Through 2 decades, Eleanor & Fin's lives have gone through so much that it's beyond imagination.
In the present day, Eleanor goes through a tragic breakup that left her devastated. And Fin returns back to England after hearing his mom has few days to live.

Through a rollercoaster of emotions, these 2 are thrown into the same vicinity while they figure out what caused them apart. The lack of communication broke my heart.
But fear not, the ending was delightful & of course filled with HEA.

I love second chance romances and this friends to lovers romance was so cute! It was a quick, predictable romance that was fun to read never the less.

(will post longer review closer to publication date)

A friendship that was lost over decades. Eleanor and Fin were inseparable for there formable years until Fin disappears into the night, never really to be heard from again, until a family circumstance takes him back to London.
Told in opposite POV of Fin and Eleanor. We learn the reason why Fin disappeared into the night so many years ago.

I enjoyed the heartwarming and engaging story between the two individuals!