Helpful Score: 10
I consider myself a pretty bright person - at least not stupid, but I did NOT understand the ending of the book. If what it was implying is true, then the rest of the book makes absolutely no sense to me AT ALL. So, do I believe 1 page or the previous 312 pages? ARGGGHHHH!
I also struggled with this book. The prose irritated me and her overuse of italics (I mean really, if someone says something, use quotes!).
Sigh... I dunno. I wanted to like this book, but I just didn't overall. Some of it was really good, but by and large, I found it irritating me. :( I think it had to do with the cross-over of the character of Thomas from Weight of Water... I didn't like him in that book and didn't like him here either.
Worth a read if you are smarter than me - and if someone reads this that understand the ending, enlighten me!
I also struggled with this book. The prose irritated me and her overuse of italics (I mean really, if someone says something, use quotes!).
Sigh... I dunno. I wanted to like this book, but I just didn't overall. Some of it was really good, but by and large, I found it irritating me. :( I think it had to do with the cross-over of the character of Thomas from Weight of Water... I didn't like him in that book and didn't like him here either.
Worth a read if you are smarter than me - and if someone reads this that understand the ending, enlighten me!
Helpful Score: 10
After I finished this book I had to go on-line and read reviews and comments on this book to make sure I understood the ending. I did. This book is very unconventional. It starts out with Linda and Thomas meeting at a writers convention when they are in their 50s. The reader discovers Linda and Thomas have a passionate history. Very little of the history is revealed. What is revealed is the obvious attraction and deep love these two people feel for each other. The next section takes you back 26 years to the last time they met in Africa. Shreve spent some time in Africa and did some work there. You can tell the familiarity of the landscape and culture from the writing. It seems fate has brought Linda and Thomas together after almost 10 years apart. I did find it too much of coincidence that you would run into someone you once loved in highschool in the middle of Africa. Shreve did a good job making it believable. The final section of the book is really the beginning of the love story when Thomas and Linda are seniors in highschool. The rest of the mystery is revealed in this section; From Lindas life with her aunt and how she ended up there to the tragic accident that initiated their first separation. And then, the surprise ending. I had to read it 3 times to make sure I understood it. I appreciate Shreves talent as a writer even more after reading this book, reinforcing her place on my favorite author list.
Helpful Score: 5
This is my favorite Shreve book. There was a lot of back and forth and at times hard to follow, but a great story. I am in such awe of this author. I could not put this down. DO NOT be tempted to read the ending ahead of time. The ending will blow your mind as others have said, but I enjoyed the ending which, to me, totally set this author apart from the others. She went where no one else would dare to. I read this quite a few years ago and this was one of those books that just stayed with me. This is the #1 Shreve book with Eden Close a very close second.
Helpful Score: 4
What an amazing book. The ending will leave you wanting to reread the book again! This is my first by this author and I definitely will read more of her novels.
Helpful Score: 4
I've read a number of Anita Shreve's novels, and this one is quite different. That's not to say that it's not good... It definitely is a wonderful story and an interesting read, it's just different from her other books.
This one starts off slowly. I almost gave up after the first few chapters, but because I'm an Anita Shreve fan I stuck with it, and it got much better. I'm glad I stayed with it.
Give it a try. It's unconventional, but I think it's worthwhile!
This one starts off slowly. I almost gave up after the first few chapters, but because I'm an Anita Shreve fan I stuck with it, and it got much better. I'm glad I stayed with it.
Give it a try. It's unconventional, but I think it's worthwhile!
Helpful Score: 3
This book started a little slow for me. But as I began to get farther into the book, the characters began to come alive for me. The two main characters, Thomas and Linda, are basically soul mates, having first met in their teens. The book begins in the present in their 50's when they "bump" into each other at a writer's convention and progresses, or maybe I should say regresses, backwards from their 50's to their teens when they met. I fell in love with the two characters, cheering them on all during the book that something would help them to finally get together. The ending I never saw coming. In a way, I felt betrayed by th author. Still, overall, a great book and an author that I will definitely be looking for more of.
Helpful Score: 2
A very good book wich is actually a prequel and a sequel to \"The Weight of Water\".
Helpful Score: 2
The Last Time They Met opens with two old lovers, both poets, running into each other at a writer's conference. Well, Linda Fallon and Thomas Janes aren't old, actually--just middle-aged, with a lifetime's worth of history between them. In the first section, Anita Shreve only suggests what that history contains: there was adultery, we gather, and a car accident, plus some illicit encounters under a pitiless Kenyan sun. Presumably the rest of the book will lead back to the beginnings of this grand passion, right? We think we know where this is going--but that's the tricky part, because we don't.
The novel does get off to a slow start, with an unnecessarily drawn-out description of a luxury hotel. But it picks up speed as it moves backward in time, from the lovers' vividly evoked interlude in Africa, to their adolescent years in the Massachusetts village of Hull, and finally to Linda's deepest, darkest secret. Only then does the author unveil her final revelation, which should leave most readers somewhat out of breath, and possibly even obliged to turn back to the first page and read the book over again.
The novel does get off to a slow start, with an unnecessarily drawn-out description of a luxury hotel. But it picks up speed as it moves backward in time, from the lovers' vividly evoked interlude in Africa, to their adolescent years in the Massachusetts village of Hull, and finally to Linda's deepest, darkest secret. Only then does the author unveil her final revelation, which should leave most readers somewhat out of breath, and possibly even obliged to turn back to the first page and read the book over again.
Helpful Score: 2
Extremely well written as is typical of Shreve. Has characters you care about, but resolution is disappointing.
Helpful Score: 2
A wonderful love story from the author of "The Pilots Wife" and "Sea Glass".
A story about an undying love affair, sometimes sweet and sometimes tragic with a secret that keeps you guessing.
A story about an undying love affair, sometimes sweet and sometimes tragic with a secret that keeps you guessing.
Helpful Score: 2
This is my favorite Shreve book. There was a lot of back and forth and at times hard to follow, but a great story. I am in such awe of this author. I could not put this down. DO NOT be tempted to read the ending ahead of time. The ending will blow your mind as others have said, but I enjoyed the ending which, to me, totally set this author apart from the others. She went where no one else would dare to. I read this quite a few years ago and this was one of those books that just stayed with me. This is the #1 Shreve book with Eden Close a very close second.
Helpful Score: 1
This is the first book I've read by Shreve and am an instant fan. This story was amazing! I could not put it down. I actually finished it in less than 24 hrs!
The story is about a life-long love between two people told in reverse order. You first meet the main characters Linda and Thomas at age 52, then again at age 26, and finally at age 17. It is a beautiful, heartbreaking love affair. A must read.
The story is about a life-long love between two people told in reverse order. You first meet the main characters Linda and Thomas at age 52, then again at age 26, and finally at age 17. It is a beautiful, heartbreaking love affair. A must read.
Helpful Score: 1
Im a huge fan of Anita Shreve, and The LAst Time They Met did not disappoint! I did read Weight of Water 1st and I think that helped
The Story is told in 3 parts, going backwards in time. I found the 1st part slow, but the second was my favorite and the end... WOW .. I had to read the last page a few times to make sure I wasnt mistaken.
The Story is told in 3 parts, going backwards in time. I found the 1st part slow, but the second was my favorite and the end... WOW .. I had to read the last page a few times to make sure I wasnt mistaken.
Helpful Score: 1
Stunning novel of love. They love, seperate and then meet again. Only until the final pages will you understand this beautiful story. I loved it!
Helpful Score: 1
A love story...and then some! As I read this book, I enjoyed it. The story line was captivating. At first, I thought Anita Shreve's writing style was a little different and kept me wondering why she chose to chronologically regress as she told this tale. However, you MUST read this novel all the way to the very last line. It leaves you with an "Oh, my gosh!" reaction. I loved it!
Helpful Score: 1
Good read - quite a surprise at the end!
Helpful Score: 1
I loved this book. The beginning was a little difficult to get into, but once it got going, I found it remarkable. Plenty of thought provoking material and an ending to make you rethink all of what you had just read.
Helpful Score: 1
A good book. A lot of emotions explored here. It was a book that you wanted to complete.
Helpful Score: 1
It took me a bit to get started but once I did I didn't want to stop. This book tugs at your heart as you take a backwards look throught the relationship of two people drawn together over and over through the years. With a twist that hits you like a brick wall. This book left me with a feeling I couldn't describe but I was glad to have read it. It is powerful and sexy. The writer has a way of creating images that easily transcend you to this time and place. You can feel the cold of the ocean spray and the dust in between yor toes as the sweat drips down your spine. Its a good thing.
Helpful Score: 1
At a literary festival in Toronto, poet Linda Fallon encounters a face from her past: Thomas Janes, the famous poet, had once been at the center of Linda's life. Since last seeing him, she has married, given birth, and been widowed. Thomas' appearance rocks Linda, raising questions she had long since abandoned and inspiring new dreams.
The Last Time They Met: A Novel moves backward in time to explore Linda's life years earlier. To age twenty-six, when an affair with Thomas shattered her life. And to age seventeen, thirty-five years earlier, when a chance first meeting on a rocky beach binds them fatefully together.
In my opinion, this was an absolutely excellent book. It did take several pages for me to get into the plot, but once I did, I thoroughly enjoyed the book. It may be because I had read The Weight of Water before this book - several characters from The Weight of Water were also in this book, although it can be read as a standalone - so the characters truly came alive for me and I became invested in their lives. I enjoyed The Weight of Water just as much as I did this book, and I will give The Last Time They Met: A Novel a definite A+!
The Last Time They Met: A Novel moves backward in time to explore Linda's life years earlier. To age twenty-six, when an affair with Thomas shattered her life. And to age seventeen, thirty-five years earlier, when a chance first meeting on a rocky beach binds them fatefully together.
In my opinion, this was an absolutely excellent book. It did take several pages for me to get into the plot, but once I did, I thoroughly enjoyed the book. It may be because I had read The Weight of Water before this book - several characters from The Weight of Water were also in this book, although it can be read as a standalone - so the characters truly came alive for me and I became invested in their lives. I enjoyed The Weight of Water just as much as I did this book, and I will give The Last Time They Met: A Novel a definite A+!
Helpful Score: 1
I absolutely loved this book!! It kept me completely interested up 'till the last page. The last page completely left me in awe wanting to call someone and let them know how this book had ended even though they may have not read it!! She is a really enjoyable writer!!
Helpful Score: 1
This is the first book by Ms. Shreve that I have read. So I don't know what the influence of the previous use of the Thomas Janes character may or may not have (meant).
I found this story to be haunting, as commercial reviews have said, and to contain several bits of prose that crystalized things in amazing ways. The book is worth reading for these sentences alone.
This is a love story that is hard to take on many levels. It is a true love, which pains those of us who have been disappointed in our quest for the same. It is a story of the potential of redemption through love, which upsets those who have been unable to wrest this from our own sufferings related to love. It is an honest story, which insistently hints to us to face the boring and irremediable facts of our own lives. It is a scary story, which subtly suggests that the meaning of our lives is inextricably linked to the mark we have made or have not made on others.
While this novel made quite an impression on me, I was never fully sure of the sincerety of the author in offering it. I would also caution that it is not for those who have recently been hurt. Whether through skill or sincerity, this book will find weak places.
I found this story to be haunting, as commercial reviews have said, and to contain several bits of prose that crystalized things in amazing ways. The book is worth reading for these sentences alone.
This is a love story that is hard to take on many levels. It is a true love, which pains those of us who have been disappointed in our quest for the same. It is a story of the potential of redemption through love, which upsets those who have been unable to wrest this from our own sufferings related to love. It is an honest story, which insistently hints to us to face the boring and irremediable facts of our own lives. It is a scary story, which subtly suggests that the meaning of our lives is inextricably linked to the mark we have made or have not made on others.
While this novel made quite an impression on me, I was never fully sure of the sincerety of the author in offering it. I would also caution that it is not for those who have recently been hurt. Whether through skill or sincerity, this book will find weak places.
Anita Shreve's books are always thought provoking and her style is not like any other. The Last Time They Met is one of her best works in my opinion. I will admit that I found the first part of the book a bit slow and sometimes confusing but I read on and I am so glad that I did. Once I got to the second section (the book is written in 3 sections) I couldn't put it down. The ending is a complete surprise. I didn't see it coming until it was there! This is one of those books that has you thinking back about what you have just read and wondering... "where were the signs"? Thomas, one of the key characters first appears in Shreve's earlier novel, The Weight of Water. Another one of my favorites. You don't have to have read The Weight of Water in order to read The Last Time They Met but I think it gives you a bit of
insight into the soul of Thomas.
insight into the soul of Thomas.
As with every single word that Anita Shreve has published, her writing is flawless and lovely, haunting and realistic. I loved this story. The ending was unexpected and I had to reread it a few times to make sure I was understanding what my mind would not see! It was an excellent book. I would not recommend this to someone as your first by this author. Try Fortune's Rocks or The Weight of Water before this one, and you'll be a fan of hers forever! :)
Excellent story, captivating, imaginative
Well written, typical of Shreve's style.
Great book...especially if you like Shreve's previous titles...
From the time Linda and Thomas meet, at a charmless hotel in a distant city. to the moment, thrity-five earlier, when a chance encounter on a rocky beach bins them fatefully together, this hypnotically compelling novel unfolds a tale of intense passion, drama, and suspense.
This story of a man and woman who fall in love as teenagers but go on to marry others and who meet twice as adults, seemed like a story of people who just weren't quite brave enough to kick over the traces and do what it would take for them to be together. Then I got to the last page, and had the props kicked out from under me. Shreve loses points here bigtime for not playing fair with the reader.
This was difficult to get into, and I am confused by the ending.
instanly captivating book..a chance encounter of two people that had not been together in 35 years..same author as "the Pilot's Wife"
A wonderfully written book that captures your attention from start to finish. Never know what may happen next and even if you do wonder, you're probably wrong!
Passion, drama and suspense
Slow moving. Does get better towards the end.
As with all Anita Shreve novels, this one is extremely well written. It moves back and forth in time telling the tale of 2 poeple who met 35 years earlier, who meet again by chance with entire lifetimes behind them.
I don't know about this book I could not get into it at all.
The Last Time They Met opens with two old lovers, both poets, running into each other at a writer's conference. Well, Linda Fallon and Thomas Janes aren't old, actually--just middle-aged, with a lifetime's worth of history between them. In the first section, Anita Shreve only suggests what that history contains: there was adultery, we gather, and a car accident, plus some illicit encounters under a pitiless Kenyan sun. Presumably the rest of the book will lead back to the beginnings of this grand passion, right? We think we know where this is going--but that's the tricky part, because we don't.
Linda fallon encounters her former lover, Thomas Janes, at a literary festival where both have been invited to give readings from their work. The book tells the story of their love and lives from teh present back through time.
Intens passion, drama and suspense.
"One of my favorite books. This is haunting, beautiful, magical and shocking. This is one of those books that is best appreciated by those who are past their 20s. You look back on your life and wonder about the what might have been, what ifs, if onlys. You know that one moment or one event can change the whole course of your entire life.
This tells the story of intense love between Linda and Thomas who first meet as high school teenagers then as young adults and much later as adults just past their prime when both have established themselves in similar careers. He's nationally known poet and she too is a poet, but more moderately successful. The story goes backward from the present to the past. It starts when they meet again in their 50s at a literary conference where both are speakers. They meet only about three times in their adult lives, but they have a deep, believable connection to each other. Their respective spouses, the children they love, and other events keep them apart though they never lose their love for each other. I enjoyed the love story. It's not overly sweet or cloying. I've read a lot of love stories over the years, but this one has stayed with me because it's so surprising and so haunting in its longing. I don't know if I believe in soulmates, but this story makes me want to believe in it. Thomas and Linda are truly two halves of a whole.
Shreve writes with clarity and sparse prose. This isn't some predictable mass market romance novel. The story comes together at the last page and boy, what a stunner it is.
You'll be amazed. What other story ties everything together in the last page and a half. You're either going to love or hate the ending. There's no middle ground.
Now I like the ending. I can take a sad ending, after all stories can't all have happy endings, but the ending of this book comes isn't sad. It's a complete shocker. You'll say to yourself, "Wait! Did I read that right?" You go and read the book again to make sense of it. You realize why the book was written in reverse because that's the only way to make sense of the ending. I loved the ending, but it's painful. At first I was shocked then angry then ultimately I realized the beauty of it. That's all I can say without giving it away. I have to give Shreve credit for the ending. Not many writers can pull off such a surprise. You DO NOT SEE the ending coming AT ALL. You think it might end one of two ways, but no..there's a third option you never saw although it's hinted at here and there. Whether you love the ending or hate it, not many authors can surprise you at the very last page of the story. It's the hallmark of a great writer
I don't want to go on and on about the ending for I fear I might turn away someone from an otherwise great love story. Please read the book, but don't be tempted to read the ending first no matter how tempted you are. Allow yourself to be transported to the very end the way Shreve intended."
This tells the story of intense love between Linda and Thomas who first meet as high school teenagers then as young adults and much later as adults just past their prime when both have established themselves in similar careers. He's nationally known poet and she too is a poet, but more moderately successful. The story goes backward from the present to the past. It starts when they meet again in their 50s at a literary conference where both are speakers. They meet only about three times in their adult lives, but they have a deep, believable connection to each other. Their respective spouses, the children they love, and other events keep them apart though they never lose their love for each other. I enjoyed the love story. It's not overly sweet or cloying. I've read a lot of love stories over the years, but this one has stayed with me because it's so surprising and so haunting in its longing. I don't know if I believe in soulmates, but this story makes me want to believe in it. Thomas and Linda are truly two halves of a whole.
Shreve writes with clarity and sparse prose. This isn't some predictable mass market romance novel. The story comes together at the last page and boy, what a stunner it is.
You'll be amazed. What other story ties everything together in the last page and a half. You're either going to love or hate the ending. There's no middle ground.
Now I like the ending. I can take a sad ending, after all stories can't all have happy endings, but the ending of this book comes isn't sad. It's a complete shocker. You'll say to yourself, "Wait! Did I read that right?" You go and read the book again to make sense of it. You realize why the book was written in reverse because that's the only way to make sense of the ending. I loved the ending, but it's painful. At first I was shocked then angry then ultimately I realized the beauty of it. That's all I can say without giving it away. I have to give Shreve credit for the ending. Not many writers can pull off such a surprise. You DO NOT SEE the ending coming AT ALL. You think it might end one of two ways, but no..there's a third option you never saw although it's hinted at here and there. Whether you love the ending or hate it, not many authors can surprise you at the very last page of the story. It's the hallmark of a great writer
I don't want to go on and on about the ending for I fear I might turn away someone from an otherwise great love story. Please read the book, but don't be tempted to read the ending first no matter how tempted you are. Allow yourself to be transported to the very end the way Shreve intended."
Please see my review here for Woman Scope News Magazine of this book: http://www.womanscopenewsmagazine.com/book-reviews/2013/01/16/smashed-to-smithereens/
Interesting plot. Easy to read. suspenseful
A woman runs into a man she knew 35 years earlier and their stories unfold. Passion, drama and suspense. Thought provoking and enjoyable.
This book had so many twists and the ending was unexpected
I don't think that this is her best book, but it's interesting and has an amazing ending.
I'm a big fan of Anita Shreve and have been reading her books ever since "The Pilot's Wife" was an Oprah Book Club pick. This book was not like Anita Shreve's other books and I was not prepared for the ending. It was a beautiful book and well written. Who doesn't enjoy a good love story? I wanted so badly for the two main characters to get together. I'll never tell if they did or not. This wasn't my favorite Anita Shreve book, but it was quite enjoyable.
A chance meeting of 2 old lovers brings both of them more than they bargained for.
4 stars !! I really enjoyed this one! Another great read by Anita Shreve!! It moves back in time from the end to the start of a love affair... poignant!!
a page turner that takes you back in time from the end to the start of a love affair
3 parts of a story told backwards. Interesting way to tell a story and had me wanting to reread parts again when i was done. A twisting ending!
I think I missed something. The book started slow and then picked up. Yet, when I finished it I really felt as though I missed something. I passed it on to a few friends and they felt the same. Not her best work.
Yet another Anita Shreve with a plot turn that you didn't see coming. Very intriguing angle by going backwards in time. Loved it!
Awesome read!
Pretty good book. It was a little slow in the beginning, but it started to really pick up in the 2nd half. I liked Sea Glass a little better, but this is a good and quick read.
one of anita shreve's best.
A truely wonderful novel! I loved the ending...it shocked me!
One of my favorite books. This is haunting, beautiful, magical and shocking. This is one of those books that is best appreciated by those who are past their 20s. You look back on your life and wonder about the what might have been, what ifs, if onlys. You know that one moment or one event can change the whole course of your entire life.
This tells the story of intense love between Linda and Thomas who first meet as high school teenagers then as young adults and much later as adults just past their prime when both have established themselves in similar careers. He's nationally known poet and she too is a poet, but more moderately successful. The story goes backward from the present to the past. It starts when they meet again in their 50s at a literary conference where both are speakers. They meet only about three times in their adult lives, but they have a deep, believable connection to each other. Their respective spouses, the children they love, and other events keep them apart though they never lose their love for each other. I enjoyed the love story. It's not overly sweet or cloying. I've read a lot of love stories over the years, but this one has stayed with me because it's so surprising and so haunting in its longing. I don't know if I believe in soulmates, but this story makes me want to believe in it. Thomas and Linda are truly two halves of a whole.
Shreve writes with clarity and sparse prose. This isn't some predictable mass market romance novel. The story comes together at the last page and boy, what a stunner it is.
You'll be amazed. What other story ties everything together in the last page and a half. You're either going to love or hate the ending. There's no middle ground.
Now I like the ending. I can take a sad ending, after all stories can't all have happy endings, but the ending of this book comes isn't sad. It's a complete shocker. You'll say to yourself, "Wait! Did I read that right?" You go and read the book again to make sense of it. You realize why the book was written in reverse because that's the only way to make sense of the ending. I loved the ending, but it's painful. At first I was shocked then angry then ultimately I realized the beauty of it. That's all I can say without giving it away. I have to give Shreve credit for the ending. Not many writers can pull off such a surprise. You DO NOT SEE the ending coming AT ALL. You think it might end one of two ways, but no..there's a third option you never saw although it's hinted at here and there. Whether you love the ending or hate it, not many authors can surprise you at the very last page of the story. It's the hallmark of a great writer
I don't want to go on and on about the ending for I fear I might turn away someone from an otherwise great love story. Please read the book, but don't be tempted to read the ending first no matter how tempted you are. Allow yourself to be transported to the very end the way Shreve intended.
This tells the story of intense love between Linda and Thomas who first meet as high school teenagers then as young adults and much later as adults just past their prime when both have established themselves in similar careers. He's nationally known poet and she too is a poet, but more moderately successful. The story goes backward from the present to the past. It starts when they meet again in their 50s at a literary conference where both are speakers. They meet only about three times in their adult lives, but they have a deep, believable connection to each other. Their respective spouses, the children they love, and other events keep them apart though they never lose their love for each other. I enjoyed the love story. It's not overly sweet or cloying. I've read a lot of love stories over the years, but this one has stayed with me because it's so surprising and so haunting in its longing. I don't know if I believe in soulmates, but this story makes me want to believe in it. Thomas and Linda are truly two halves of a whole.
Shreve writes with clarity and sparse prose. This isn't some predictable mass market romance novel. The story comes together at the last page and boy, what a stunner it is.
You'll be amazed. What other story ties everything together in the last page and a half. You're either going to love or hate the ending. There's no middle ground.
Now I like the ending. I can take a sad ending, after all stories can't all have happy endings, but the ending of this book comes isn't sad. It's a complete shocker. You'll say to yourself, "Wait! Did I read that right?" You go and read the book again to make sense of it. You realize why the book was written in reverse because that's the only way to make sense of the ending. I loved the ending, but it's painful. At first I was shocked then angry then ultimately I realized the beauty of it. That's all I can say without giving it away. I have to give Shreve credit for the ending. Not many writers can pull off such a surprise. You DO NOT SEE the ending coming AT ALL. You think it might end one of two ways, but no..there's a third option you never saw although it's hinted at here and there. Whether you love the ending or hate it, not many authors can surprise you at the very last page of the story. It's the hallmark of a great writer
I don't want to go on and on about the ending for I fear I might turn away someone from an otherwise great love story. Please read the book, but don't be tempted to read the ending first no matter how tempted you are. Allow yourself to be transported to the very end the way Shreve intended.
This book confused the hell out of me, since as I read I discovered it involved the main characters from The Weight of Water. Working backward, forward, and back and forth...the story bogs down, picks up and flies, and slams to the earth again, with a whopper of an ending...but I don't know if it was worth sticking it out.
Anita Shreve is an amazing author. I love all of her books, and this is no different.
The Last Time They Met" is a flat-out can't-put-it-down page turner. A ri9veting story that teases and confounds as it moves back in time from the end to the start of a love affair. Chicago Tribune
Didn't get far into this one. Too depressing.
Beautifully sad book, I would reccomend any fan of real life love stories to read it. Anita Shreve has a writing style that takes you captive from the minute you pick up the book to the last word you read. You live through the characters and the choices they make are just as devistating to you as they are to them.
Tried twice to get into this book, just couldn't get into it. The lead character, Linda. She annoyed me. Not one of Shreve's best....have really enjoyed her other books though.
I just adore Anita Shreve; but her obvious attempt to over use "big" words and her heavy- handed use of descriptives, prevented me from really getting to know the characters and the story; I gave up half way through the book. I was very disappointed; sorry Anita!
I really enjoyed this book love story of couple who were involved when they were young, they seperated and met years later at a festival, good story
So incredibly done. From start to finish this is an amazing love story that you don't fully understand till the very last page. You become so intertwined with the characters I was just holding my breath from what I thought would be the inevitable outcome. I truly celebrated with them and felt their pain. Even though their relationship is never right I couldn't help feel the unfairness for them both as they struggle to move on in lives without each other. Brilliant!! The story is very well done.
This picks up some years after the end of _The Weight of Water_
From Amazon.com:
The Last Time They Met opens with two old lovers, both poets, running into each other at a writer's conference. Well, Linda Fallon and Thomas Janes aren't old, actually--just middle-aged, with a lifetime's worth of history between them. In the first section, Anita Shreve only suggests what that history contains: there was adultery, we gather, and a car accident, plus some illicit encounters under a pitiless Kenyan sun. Presumably the rest of the book will lead back to the beginnings of this grand passion, right? We think we know where this is going--but that's the tricky part, because we don't.
The novel does get off to a slow start, with an unnecessarily drawn-out description of a luxury hotel. But it picks up speed as it moves backward in time, from the lovers' vividly evoked interlude in Africa, to their adolescent years in the Massachusetts village of Hull, and finally to Linda's deepest, darkest secret. Only then does the author unveil her final revelation, which should leave most readers somewhat out of breath, and possibly even obliged to turn back to the first page and read the book over again. Shreve is a canny storyteller, and she knows her characters inside and out. (As well she might: Thomas is the husband of Jean, the photographer in The Weight of Water.) And The Last Time They Met is yet another example of the kind of book she does best--one that's as skillfully plotted as a thriller, but with writing that lingers long after the last plot twist is unfurled. No matter whether people actually have affairs like these. Reading this book only makes you wish that they did.
From Amazon.com:
The Last Time They Met opens with two old lovers, both poets, running into each other at a writer's conference. Well, Linda Fallon and Thomas Janes aren't old, actually--just middle-aged, with a lifetime's worth of history between them. In the first section, Anita Shreve only suggests what that history contains: there was adultery, we gather, and a car accident, plus some illicit encounters under a pitiless Kenyan sun. Presumably the rest of the book will lead back to the beginnings of this grand passion, right? We think we know where this is going--but that's the tricky part, because we don't.
The novel does get off to a slow start, with an unnecessarily drawn-out description of a luxury hotel. But it picks up speed as it moves backward in time, from the lovers' vividly evoked interlude in Africa, to their adolescent years in the Massachusetts village of Hull, and finally to Linda's deepest, darkest secret. Only then does the author unveil her final revelation, which should leave most readers somewhat out of breath, and possibly even obliged to turn back to the first page and read the book over again. Shreve is a canny storyteller, and she knows her characters inside and out. (As well she might: Thomas is the husband of Jean, the photographer in The Weight of Water.) And The Last Time They Met is yet another example of the kind of book she does best--one that's as skillfully plotted as a thriller, but with writing that lingers long after the last plot twist is unfurled. No matter whether people actually have affairs like these. Reading this book only makes you wish that they did.
This is a flat-out, can't-put-it-down page-turner. Hypnotically compelling novel unfolds in a tale of intense passion, drama, and suspense.
A suspense filled drama with interesting dark characters
i like her writing style and this is one of her better ones.
Beautiful (albeit depressing) back- and front-story to Thomas Janes' experiences in The Weight of Water, and the story of what really happened to Linda. The whole thing is lovely, but the last part is the fastest, which it should be, because it brings the stories to two very sudden conclusions.
This was a page turner with a twist!
Amazing twist at the end!
Very well-written, an interesting story... but I HATED the ending.
Page turner - passion, drama, suspense
Most in my book club loved this. I am a fan of Shreve's other novels The Pilot's Wife and Weight of Water, but I did not like this as well as the others. Still, a good, involving read with a whopper of an ending.
From the last time Linda and thomas meet, at a charmless hotel in a distant city, to the moment, thirty five years earlier, when a chance encounter on a rocky beach binds then fatefully together, this compelling novel unfolds a tale of intense passion, drama and suspence.
The Last Time They Met opens with two old lovers, both poets, running into each other at a writer's conference. Well, Linda Fallon and Thomas Janes aren't old, actually--just middle-aged, with a lifetime's worth of history between them. In the first section, Anita Shreve only suggests what that history contains: there was adultery, we gather, and a car accident, plus some illicit encounters under a pitiless Kenyan sun. Presumably the rest of the book will lead back to the beginnings of this grand passion, right?
This book delves deeply into the emotions of 2 people who meet after many years & look back to their high school years.
Very good book with a surprise ending!
From the moment they speak,unfolds the story of Linda and Thomas in an extraordinary way;it travels back into their past,bypassing layers of memoryand interpretation topresent their earier encounterswith unshakable immediacy.
Book was slow moving and sometimes disjointed
Wow! such a surprising ending - never saw it coming! Great novel by a wonderful author who can put feelings into words so well. Just shows that love lasts forever........
A Writer who is good at capturing the delicate relationships we have
This book is about an enduring love relationship between Linda Fallon and Thomas James. It should be read with "The Weight of Water". It continues the life story of Thomas, how he first met Linda, then lost her,found her in Kenya and lost her again.
Very interesting-pay attention.
Slow, interesting snippets of the lives of two people with a major shocker at the end that changes everything you read before.
I have enjoyed all the authors books that I have read.
this book, and all books by Anita Shreve are absolutely fabulous!!!
I would highly recommend it!!!
I would highly recommend it!!!
Linda Fallon encounters her former lover, Thomas Janes, at a literary festival where both have been invited to give readings from their work. It has been years since their paths crossed, and in that time Thomas has become a kind of literary legend. His renown is enhanced by his elusiveness; for most of the past decade, he has remained in seclusion following a devastating loss.
This is no chance meeting. Thomas learned that Linda was reading at the festival and chose this moment to reestablish contact with a woman he passionately pursued years earlier. Their affair was disastrous, and a turning point in both their lives. Neither the intensity of their relationships nor the damage it did has even been far from his memory.
From the moment they speak, The Last Time They Met unfolds the story of Linda and Thomas in an extraordinary way: it travels back into their past, bypassing layers of memory and interpretation to present their earlier encounters with unshakable immediacy. In Africa, when Linda and Thomas were twenty-seven, and in Massachusetts, when they were in high school, the novel re-creates love at its exhilarating pinnaclethe kind of intense connection that becomes the true north against which all relationships are measured.
Moving backwards through time, The Last Time They Met traces the shocking resonance a single choice, even a single word, can have over the course of a lifetime. At the same time, the novel creates almost unbearable mystery, and mystery that can be understood fully only in the novels final pages, in the eyes of a young Linda Fallon and the young man who loves her.
This is no chance meeting. Thomas learned that Linda was reading at the festival and chose this moment to reestablish contact with a woman he passionately pursued years earlier. Their affair was disastrous, and a turning point in both their lives. Neither the intensity of their relationships nor the damage it did has even been far from his memory.
From the moment they speak, The Last Time They Met unfolds the story of Linda and Thomas in an extraordinary way: it travels back into their past, bypassing layers of memory and interpretation to present their earlier encounters with unshakable immediacy. In Africa, when Linda and Thomas were twenty-seven, and in Massachusetts, when they were in high school, the novel re-creates love at its exhilarating pinnaclethe kind of intense connection that becomes the true north against which all relationships are measured.
Moving backwards through time, The Last Time They Met traces the shocking resonance a single choice, even a single word, can have over the course of a lifetime. At the same time, the novel creates almost unbearable mystery, and mystery that can be understood fully only in the novels final pages, in the eyes of a young Linda Fallon and the young man who loves her.
Great book
Linda Fallon encounters her former lover at a literary festival and is not a chance meeting.The story travels back into their past and traces the shocking resonance a single choice or word can have over the course of a lifetime.
Couldn't get into it, but it got good reviews from others.
Another great Shreve book with a twist at the end!!
It has been a very long time since I read this book, but I recall liking it!
Fascinating story.
From the last time Linda and Thomas meet, at a charmless hotel in a distant city,to the moment ,thirty-five years earlier,when a chance encounter on a rocky beach binds them fatefully together,.
Compelling reading as only Shreve does.
I stayed up unti 3AM some nights reading this one...
A popular novel!
some water marks on the dust jacket...none on the book.
