Book Review: The Last Letter
Hey, book fam! Are you wishing there was a book that could make you ugly cry in the kitchen, you’re in the right place. Today we’re talking about The Last Letter by Rebecca Yarros—a story packed with love, loss, and emotional destruction. Grab your coziest blanket and maybe a tissue or five, because this one doesn’t mess around.
Quick Info
Title: The Last Letter
Author: Rebecca Yarros
Genre: Contemporary Romance / Military Fiction
Published: 26 February 2019
Initial Thoughts
I’d heard so much buzz about The Last Letter from other military spouses, and honestly, I thought people were exaggerating. I’d read Rebecca Yarros’s fantasy novels before, but none hit me quite like this one supposedly would. This was actually my first time diving into her contemporary romance work. Since she’s a military spouse herself, I felt confident she’d portray that life authentically. Still, I went in a bit skeptical about just how much this story would hit me emotionally. Spoiler alert: I was wrong. This book delivered a powerful gut punch I didn’t see coming—and it stuck with me long after I finished reading.
The Plot (Spoiler-Free)
Ella is a single mom struggling to raise her six-year-old twins, Maisie and Colt. One of the twins is battling cancer, and between medical bills, emotional strain, and running her family’s luxury cabin business in the Colorado mountains, she’s barely keeping her head above water. Her brother Ryan, deployed overseas, is her anchor—even from thousands of miles away. Then she starts sending letters to “Chaos”, a soldier serving with Ryan, and something shifts.
Chaos—just a call sign, no real name attached—is stationed in Afghanistan with his military dog, Havoc. He has no family, but when Ryan suggests he respond to Ella’s letter, he agrees. What starts as simple correspondence turns into something deeper. The letters become a lifeline for both of them.
Then everything changes. Chaos shows up in Ella’s world with a promise to keep and a seabag full of secrets. And as the lines between duty, grief, and love blur, nothing stays simple for long.
Themes & Emotion
This book hits in ways I wasn’t ready for. The Last Letter is about grief, but also about resilience, love, and the emotional weight of trying to hold everything together on your own. As a military spouse, I felt seen in the way Rebecca Yarros wrote about deployment—the waiting, the distance, the fear you learn to live with. It’s not dramatized; it’s just real.
There’s also a deep exploration of what it means to show up for someone, even while carrying your own pain. The letters between Ella and Chaos become something sacred—a connection that builds slowly but with so much feeling. And while there are heartbreaking moments, the book also leaves space for softness, healing, and hope—even if it’s messy.
The grief in this story is sharp and honest. It doesn’t sugarcoat what it means to carry deep, personal loss. There were moments that took my breath away—literally. I was hyperventilating in the kitchen, trying to stay quiet so I wouldn’t wake my toddlers. Yarros writes heartbreak—the kind that changes your world forever—with such precision and truth. One line in particular stuck with me:
“I wanted to scream that the world should have stopped. That traffic should halt, the birds should silence, and the Earth should stand still because he wasn’t in it anymore.”
Without giving anything away, I’ll just say this: The Last Letter doesn’t flinch from pain, but it also doesn’t let you sit in it alone. It gives you space to feel, to cry, and eventually, to heal.
Characters
Ella felt so real to me. I admired how fiercely she loved her kids—even when she was exhausted and overwhelmed. She’s not just strong—she’s the kind of strong that keeps snacks in her purse and worry tucked behind her smile, which is something I think a lot of moms will relate to. She’s doing her best, even when she’s falling apart, and that kind of love just radiates from the page.
My favorite character was Beckett, aka Chaos, broke my heart in ways I wasn’t expecting. There’s a quiet depth to him—he’s grieving, carrying guilt, and trying to be what someone else needs, even when he doesn’t know how to be that for himself. His restraint, his loyalty, and his conflict felt real. I understood his struggle of wanting to complete his friend’s final wish while also not wanting to face the possibility of rejection coming from Ella. I wanted to shake him and hug him at the same time.
And then there’s Ryan—Ella’s brother and Beckett’s best friend. Even from afar, his presence looms large. He’s the glue between them, and the promise that ties everything together. You feel how much he matters to both of them, and the weight of his absence is a character in itself.
Maisie and Colt stole my heart, and showed me how fast kids can grow into little adults when the stressor of life can’t be kept from them. Heck, even Havoc—yes, the dog—pulled on my heartstrings. His loyalty and quiet comfort made me hug my own pup more than once.
The emotional weight these characters carry is huge, but it’s never overdone. They felt human, flawed, and unforgettable.
Writing Style & Structure
Rebecca Yarros doesn’t just tell a story—she pulls you into it. Her writing in The Last Letter is raw, emotional, and surprisingly gentle when it needs to be. It never feels overly flowery or dramatic, but it still hits like a punch to the gut when the emotions peak. It’s the kind of writing that sneaks up on you—one minute you’re reading about a mundane task, and the next, your heart’s shattered on the floor.
The structure really adds to the emotional weight. It’s written in dual POV, switching between Ella and Beckett, with letters woven throughout that feel deeply personal and intimate. Those letters carry so much weight—not just in what’s said, but in what’s left unsaid. They slow the pacing just enough to make you sit with the characters’ feelings.
Yarros doesn’t rush the story. She lets it breathe, which makes the emotional turns feel earned. You’re not just reading about love and loss—you’re living it with them. The pacing is steady but deliberate, and the emotional layering through the structure is what makes this story land the way it does.
Personal Takeaways
Going into The Last Letter, I thought I was prepared. I knew it was going to be emotional—I mean, there’s a child with cancer and two deployed soldiers involved. My brain had already braced for those kinds of losses. I expected to cry, expected the heartbreak. But I wasn’t ready for that loss—the one that actually happened. It completely sidelined me.
It wasn’t just unexpected; it felt personal. Like the rug had been pulled out from under me in a way that made me gasp out loud. I had to stop reading and sit with it. I kept thinking, “No, she didn’t just do that.” But she did—and somehow, it made the story hit even harder.
As a mom, and especially as someone who’s lived the military life, this book scraped something raw in me. The fear, the waiting, the sense of helplessness when the people you love are in danger or pain—it’s all so real. Rebecca Yarros captured it with honesty but also with so much tenderness.
This isn’t just a romance—it’s a story about what it means to survive things you didn’t think you could. It reminded me that grief doesn’t always come from the places you expect, and healing doesn’t always look like closure. Sometimes it looks like just continuing to love.
Final Thoughts & Rating
The Last Letter snuck up on me. I went in thinking, “I’m ready for this,” but nope—Rebecca Yarros hit me right in the chest. The characters felt so real, and the story stuck with me way longer than I expected. It’s not some fluff romance—there’s real heart and a whole lot of messy emotions. Nothing could have prepared me for the emotional devastation The Last Letter by Rebecca Yarros unleashed on my heart. Weeks have passed and I still get tears in my eyes thinking about the last twist.
If you want a love story that’s more “life with all its messiness” than “perfect fairytale,” this one’s a winner. Just keep some tissues handy—you’ll need them. Honestly, it’s worth every ugly cry. Grab your copy on Kindle today!
Rating: ★★★★☆
Join the Conversation
Have you read The Last Letter? What did you think? Did it hit you as hard as it hit me? Drop your thoughts, favorite moments, or even your own emotional reactions in the comments—I’d love to hear from my book fam.
Let’s chat about the moments that broke us, the characters who stayed with us, and everything in between!
