The Last Romantics

A Novel

By: Tara Conklin

Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell

From the New York Times best-selling author of The House Girl comes a novel about our most precious and dangerous attachment: family.

In the spring of 1981, the young Skinner siblings - fierce Renee, dreamy Caroline, golden-boy Joe, and watchful Fiona - lose their father to a heart attack and their mother to a paralyzing depression, events that thrust them into a period they will later call “the Pause”. Caught between the predictable life they once led and an uncertain future that stretches before them, the siblings navigate the dangers and resentments of the Pause to emerge fiercely loyal and deeply connected.

Two decades later, the Skinners find themselves again confronted with a family crisis that tests the strength of these bonds and forces them to question the life choices they’ve made and what, exactly, they will do for love.

Narrated nearly a century later by the youngest sibling, the renowned poet Fiona Skinner, The Last Romantics spans a lifetime. It’s a story of sex and affection, sacrifice and selfishness, deeply held principles and dashed expectations, a lost engagement ring, a squandered baseball scholarship, unsupervised summers at the neighborhood pond, and an iconic book of love poems. But most of all, it is the story of Renee, Caroline, Joe, and Fiona: the ways they support each other, the ways they betray each other, and the ways they knit back together bonds they have fractured.

In the vein of Commonwealth, Little Fires Everywhere, and The Nest, this is a panoramic, tenderly insightful novel about one devoted, imperfect family. The Last Romantics is an unforgettable exploration of the responsibilities we bear both gracefully and unwillingly and the all-important, ever-complex definition of love.

©2019 Tara Conklin (P)2019 HarperCollins Publishers

This had the same "feel" as...

...We Are Not Ourselves by Matthew Thomas, which I also gave a rare 4 stars to as well. Most contemporary fiction seems to get a 1 or a 2 from me, with the occasional 3.

The only thing that bored me was halfway through when the reader learns why the book is called what it is. I almost stopped listening there. It's such an "in your twenties" thing. I'm long past that age and as stated, found that part deadly dull. But there wasn't too too much of it, and enough else was going on--what with four siblings--that I was interested and entertained.

I have to say though, I'm burnt out on Cassandra Campbell as a narrator. As the years have gone by I am starting to dislike how affected and precise she is in her performance.

Great Book!

I loved this book, it started a bit slow but was so lovely, families all have their issues and when you can come together as they did; it's a wonderful tribute to their family.

Tragic but good

I struggled to follow with the time line going all over the place but it was over all good. you very much need to come up with the finer points on somethings as it's not spelled out there is a lot of speculation. but it's a good book over all.

Beautiful!

Thorough and heartbreaking, these characters will stay with you long after. For those who loved The Immortalists and A Place for Us, this family will become your own.

Maybe the best book I ever read

I am not a reader of romance novels Please do not mistake this book for a genetic love story. This book is an autobiography of every family headed by a strong woman. In reading this book you are a visitor that's allowed to share their story as they grow & change and negotiate their lives thru the struggles any family goes thru lifetimes of experiences.

Your next favorite book!

Very good story, engaging characters, very well written-- a rare combination. highly recommend this book

Great story...even better narrator

I always will look at at a book that Cassandra Campbell has narrated, she is one of my favorites, and I think does such a great job with any story. The same was true here. The story caught my attention from the beginning, the story of the 4 siblings and their unusual upbringing, and how it affected them throughout their lives. I really enjoyed the story, with one caveat I felt as though it really floundered a little bit after "the accident" (don't want to give away spoilers). It was almost metaphorical..the siblings floundered after the accident, and so did the book. However, it did recover nicely, and I thought wrapped things up overall by the end. The setting of the older Fiona giving a lecture in the future I thought was a bit irrelevant. It brought nothing to the story, but always giving the expectation that some big "reveal" was going to happen, but never did. I think telling the story as a memoir point of view would have been fine. Overall, the story was very good, and the narrator was superb, definitely give this one a try!

But disappointed

This just did not fulfill my expectation
Jenna - you can do better with your suggestions

This should be required reading

This book is almost beyond words for me. Narration was perfection as it always is with Cassandra Campbell. The story tears your heart apart and binds it back together—just like love. I have listened to the last three minutes of the book over and over and I’m sure will continue to revisit it for a long time to come. Everyone should read this to begin to understand REAL love.

Family Saga to the Year 2079

It feels like almost every novel my book groups read these days jumps around in time which is sometimes challenging to follow in an audiobook. This audiobook makes it easier to track as chapter titles announce the year, taking us as far as 2079 with a character who is 102 years old. Flashbacks reveal the challenges faced by her and her three siblings as their mother falls into a deep depression following the sudden death of her young husband. We follow their struggles in finding themselves over their life spans after this tragedy as their needs and self-awareness change. Each character is developed in depth.