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The Last Letter From Your Lover

3.95 of 5 stars 3.95 · rating details · 6,006 ratings · 1,095 reviews

A sophisticated, page-turning double love story spanning forty years-an unforgettable "Brief Encounter" for our times.
It is 1960. When Jennifer Stirling wakes up in the hospital, she can remember nothing-not the tragic car accident that put her there, not her husband, not even who she is. She feels like a stranger in her own life until she stumbles upon an impassioned le...more

Hardcover, 489 pages

Published July 8th 2010 by Hodder & Stoughton (first published January 1st 2010)

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Jan 28, 2013 Lisa Christen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is another of Jojo Moyes wonderful stories, this one centering on Jennifer Stirling who wakes up in a hospital in 1960 not knowing who she is or where she is. Having been in a horrible car accident, she has no knowledge of what got her there. Coming home, she discovers that she lives a life of privilege and is living a life with a husband who is cold and unloving. Searching around the house in hopes of discovering who she is, she discovers letters secreted in hiding places, love letters wri...more

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Aug 23, 2012 Claudia rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Esta foi uma estreia, apesar de ter outros 2 livros da autora nas minhas estantes, acabei por ler este em 1º lugar por ser um empréstimo. Um livro diferente, que nos faz recuar num tempo em que a vida das mulheres, pelo menos as de classe alta, servia apenas para estas serem autênticos bibelôs... sem opiniões próprias, cuidando apenas das aparências, partindo da sua para passar pela casa e pela do próprio marido. No decorrer da leitura podemos acompanhar o desabrochar da protagonista que no fund...more

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Oct 06, 2011 Danielle rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

3.5/5

Quite enjoyed this. I was afraid it would be overly sentimental, and while this was very much a love story it all felt just right. Things were helped along by a story that had more to it than just couples getting together--interesting observations about relationships in both the 1960s and 2000s.

The cover illustration of The Last Letter from Your Lover by Jojo Moyes both drew me in and made me wary of the story. That intense bluish tone, the longing gaze between lovers against the vivid Lon...more 3.5/5

Quite enjoyed this. I was afraid it would be overly sentimental, and while this was very much a love story it all felt just right. Things were helped along by a story that had more to it than just couples getting together--interesting observations about relationships in both the 1960s and 2000s.

The cover illustration of The Last Letter from Your Lover by Jojo Moyes both drew me in and made me wary of the story. That intense bluish tone, the longing gaze between lovers against the vivid London skyline caught my eye. I admit I'm a sucker for those old-fashioned sepia-tone (or tinted in this case) photos, because they make me curious to know who those people were. I will at least look twice and then a story about separated lovers and lost letters is something of a hook for me. However, I don't do well lately with mushy love stories. I like happy endings as much as the next person but there has to be a dash of reality there as well (preferably reality with a dash of romance). So I was pleasantly surprised by this story. Okay, it is a love story, actually two as there are parallel/intertwined stories going on, but it also had a little something extra which made it feel weightier than your garden variety romance.

Moyes juxtaposes two love affairs that take place forty years apart with interesting and satisfying results. In 1960 Jennifer Stirling wakes in a hospital room battered and confused. Her short term memory is hazy, so she doesn't recall the circumstances that put her there, but her husband assures her she'll be okay. It's better not to talk about the car accident and simply put it behind her and move on. She's a society wife with an elegant home, a closet full of beautiful clothes, a housekeeper and a tight knit circle of friends with whom they often socialize with. Laurence is a successful businessman who has a string of productive mining companies and certain expectations from a wife to keep up appearances. When Jennifer returns home, she feels almost as though she is starting from scratch, so foreign does Laurence and her life feel to her. As she explores her house to try and reorient herself she discovers a number of letters, passionate love letters, addressed to her but signed simply B. But she has no memory of this B. and what he meant to her.

From there the story moves forward and backward in time between what happened before and after the accident. While vacationing on the French Riviera with their friends, Laurence agrees to be interviewed by a reporter from a British newspaper. Anthony O'Hare is a hardened reporter, more comfortable covering a bloody anticolonial uprising in Africa than dealing with rich businessmen and their selfish wives. He calls Jennifer a spoiled tai tai, not realizing she's overheard him. When she calls him on it later he at least has the grace to apologize and begins to realize that behind her perfect facade there is an unexpected Last letter depth to her. She's graceful and dignified but perhaps a little unhappy, too, in her life--a life so smooth and perfect on the surface but not at all lovely underneath. So begins their ill-fated romance filled with misunderstandings, crossed letters and missed opportunities. The story moves rapidly to a climactic denouement, where the reader discovers just what happened during Jennifer's accident, but that's not the end.

Moving forward to 2003 thirtyish Ellie Haworth is involved with a married man and her affair is engulfing her life. Her friends know it's not good for her, and maybe in the back of her mind she knows it, too, but she can't and doesn't want to untangle herself from it. But it affects her work as a journalist. Her work suffers due to her preoccupations with her love life putting her job in jeopardy. When she finds a love letter in a file she's working from, which has sat hidden away in the paper's library for four decades she's drawn into this secret affair--compelled to find out whether the woman left her husband and met her lover to run away with him.

This is a story that sounds like it could easily have fallen into a trap of sentimentality, doesn't it? Moyes, however, places her characters in difficult positions without always letting them take the easy way out. She convincingly creates a world of claustrophobia for Jennifer. As little more than a trophy wife, and raised to be so, there are few opportunities for her. She finds she must choose passion or practicality, but following her heart will come at a steep price. And Ellie's life is filled with complications, mostly of her own import. She, too, learns that matters of the heart come at a cost. Moyes is adept at portraying life in the 1960s very vividly. The story is wrapped up in the events of the day with its restrictive attitudes and double standards for women as well she touches on the tragic events of the Congo and bad business practices which caused illnesses that were subsequently covered up.

I was interested to read that the UK edition of this book includes actual love letters--the US edition does not. As well the format was slightly changed. Ellie's story is not introduced until after Jennifer's and Anthony's is told, though the two plotlines do eventually come together at end. The UK edition also has quite a different feel with a very different cover illustration.

This was a very enjoyable read for me. It makes me all the more anxious to pull out my copy of Foreign Fruit, which I bought years ago.(less)

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Oct 03, 2011 Summer rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: first-reads, 2011

I won The Last Letter From Your Lover in a GoodReads First Reads giveaway.

This novel depicts a young woman's struggle with her marriage during the 1960s when divorce was taboo and society rules dictated that women be seen and not heard. This novel also depicts a young woman in the present day who struggles with her relationship with a married man and her job at a newspaper, which she is at risk of losing.

I got a little lost in this novel, not because it was confusing, but because the voice chang...more

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May 16, 2013 Carol rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: chick-lit, historical-fiction

I really enjoyed the book, but at the same time disliked that it had me wanting a wife to leave her husband and pursue an affair. Despite that, I really enjoyed it. The story switches times frequently so you have to get used to that. I also though that the "current day" side story was much weaker and did not enjoy it as much as the primary plot.

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Aug 26, 2012 Paula Margulies rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book deserves a better title. Wonderful writing and an intriguing storyline (with a kick-ass twist at the end!).

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May 11, 2013 Bookworm rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'll say it plainly and simply. I loved The Last Letter from Your Lover. This novel has love letters, a London backdrop and star crossed lovers all woven beautifully into a plot that takes hold of you and does not let you go. My heart ached as I read.

Author Jojo Moyes does an excellent job at giving this novel a mysterious atmosphere as well as unexpected twists and turns. I felt like I was discovering clues alongside Jennifer, the answers were right on the periphery of her vision, yet far from...more I'll say it plainly and simply. I loved The Last Letter from Your Lover. This novel has love letters, a London backdrop and star crossed lovers all woven beautifully into a plot that takes hold of you and does not let you go. My heart ached as I read.

Author Jojo Moyes does an excellent job at giving this novel a mysterious atmosphere as well as unexpected twists and turns. I felt like I was discovering clues alongside Jennifer, the answers were right on the periphery of her vision, yet far from her grasp. She longs to remember her life before the accident. I could not help but wonder what happened to her mystery lover. I won't say much about her love, except "wow". He blew me away and their courtship had me on the edge of my seat.

Oh my gosh, the love letters. They are simply signed with the initial "B" so Jennifer cannot remember who he is. "B" by the way is the initial of the first name of a character in a novel who Jennifer nicknamed her love after.

These love letters are the kind that make you sigh and hug the book when you read them.
Jennifer is a well developed character, she is unhappy with her life and her four year marriage seems to be one of convenience. Her character grows throughout the story and heartbreak changes her in a realistic way.

I found that everything came together beautifully, from the different characters to the turns of events that occurred. Just when I thought I knew what would happen next, I found myself stunned, I couldn't turn the pages fast enough.

The storyline goes back and forth from Jennifer waking up with amnesia and trying to remember her life, to how she met her mystery man and fell into a torrid affair with him. Towards the end, the story jumps forward to 2003 where a journalist named Ellie Haworth discovers one of the long lost love letters and want to find out whatever happened to these people. At first this jump in time upset me because I was so immersed in Jennifer and B's love story but I found myself involved in Ellie's storyline as well.

There's a quote by William Styron that goes, "A good book should leave you slightly exhausted at the end. You live several lives while reading it". That about sums how I felt about The Last Letter from Your Lover. This book will make my top reads of 2013 and is officially one of my all time favorites.

read my full review here
http://thebookworm07.blogspot.com/201...

Disclaimer:
This review is my honest opinion. I did not receive any type of compensation for reading and reviewing this book. I purchased my copy of this book.(less)

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Apr 21, 2013 William rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'm expecting that I am one of very few readers who did not absolutely love this book. As far as I can tell, I am the only male who has read it, which may explain my minority view. For the first half, I kept fighting not to abandon it entirely. But as it turns out, this is really two novels: a fairly pedestrian one about a love affair in 1960 and a more engaging sequel forty years later. I wonder if the 400-page book could have simply started in the middle and been a lot better.

Why did the first...more

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Apr 19, 2013 Aimee rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Last Letter From Your Lover isn't just a love story. It's a story that will make you think things through.

It really is a triumph for an author to have her readers aching for more. Ending the book the way Moyes did it in this one made me all weepy, in a positive way. I wanted to hug everyone I could find. Yes, that's how ridiculously overwhelmed I am right now.

This story may not be exactly distinct, but the way it was written will make you want to think otherwise. The story's progression is what...more

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Feb 13, 2013 Radhika rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A love story set in England spanning 45 years. Jennifer Stirling lived in a rigid society. She married Laurence Stirling who was controlling and rich and she had a comfortable life as long as she did not have opinions. Until she meets Anthony,a reporter and they both fall in love. They live a lie, Jennifer knows that she lives in a society which will not accept an extramarital affair and she feels gulity for cheating on her husband. Both of them just exchange letters. The story goes on about how...more

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Oct 03, 2012 Sandy M rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: historical

What an emotional, lovely story this is. It’s my first JoJo Moyes book, and after turning the last page, I’m wondering about all the beautiful stories I’ve missed by this very talented author.

Awaking with no memory after a car accident, Jennifer Stirling is forced to live a life she feels very uncomfortable with. Though she tries to please her impatient and unfeeling husband and get to know friends with whom she has only wealth and being a decorative wife in common, something feels missing to he...more What an emotional, lovely story this is. It’s my first JoJo Moyes book, and after turning the last page, I’m wondering about all the beautiful stories I’ve missed by this very talented author.

Awaking with no memory after a car accident, Jennifer Stirling is forced to live a life she feels very uncomfortable with. Though she tries to please her impatient and unfeeling husband and get to know friends with whom she has only wealth and being a decorative wife in common, something feels missing to her. The one day all of her distressing awkwardness slowly beings to make sense. Jennifer discovers a letter – a love letter – to her from “B.” While one or two of her questions are now answered, this letter and its author give her so many more to figure out.

It’s 1960, a time when women stayed home, kept a nice house, had dinner on the table when the husband returned from work, and looked pretty on the arm of her spouse when situations required it. At least that’s Jennifer life at the time. But after she awakens in the hospital, after she realizes the state of her marriage and can’t figure out how it got that way. After she finds even more letters hidden around her home, Jennifer wants more. She just doesn’t know what that more is or who it should be with.

The love affair that begins to take shape for Jennifer is truly a love affair. Not one of those waiting to see if one or the other will leave their spouse. Jennifer does finally decide to take her life into her own hands, control her own destiny to be with the man she knows is the right one for her. That’s when fate deals a tragic blow. The way the book is written, you’re transported several times a space of just a few months in 1960, pre and post accident, to find out how this story unfolds. You also get those lovely letters to garner the feelings B has for Jennifer. It’s those letters that will bring them together time and again. But it’s not until forty years later, when they’re unearthed in a musty newspaper library that the words B wrote finally do what they’re meant to.

The book is written in three parts – their initial meeting in 1960, their reunion in 1964, and the future in 2003. It’s in 2003 when Ellie Haworth, a journalist, finds the folder of documents and letters Jennifer left for B in ’64 when she made her momentous decision. Ellie is fascinated with the letters she reads and wants to know more about what happened to their love that, no matter how deep it was, never seemed to be. Herself mired in an adulterous relationship, Ellie has to come to her own realizations as she digs into the past and finally meets Jennifer to learn what truly happened. You go along on this ride with them throughout the book, always hoping against hope that this time things will work out for them. Just when you think all will be well, Ms. Moyes expertly throws a curve ball over the home plate, and you have to wait once again with your heart racing and a lump in your throat to discover their fate. One of those curve balls at the end of the book really caught me by surprise.

This is a book you don’t want to miss. Trust me on that. Well into the story, the song and video of Little Texas‘ What Might Have Been kept playing in the back of my mind. You just never know how life will turn out.

See my complete review at http://www.goodbadandunread.com (less)

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Sep 17, 2012 Josee rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I liked this book. I liked reading Jennifer and Anthony's story. I think the author did a great job setting the 1960s scenes - Jennifer's feelings of not fitting in, of not understanding what's going on, of confusion, of being lost. I liked reading of their affair, there was a lot of emotion there and it didn't feel too cliched.

Another favorite character was Moira - Larry's secretary. She represented the other type of woman of the 1960s - and I felt like I learned just as much from her short sce...more

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Sep 05, 2012 Brittany rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Sep 04, 2012 Becky rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I picked this book up from Costco a couple of weeks ago and just started it this week. Soooo glad I picked this up!! I'd not heard anything about it or even looked it up and read reviews (like I usually do) so I took a chance, and it definitely worked out.

Jennifer Stirling is a beautiful, likeable woman who is the envy of all her friends (and her friend's husbands). After a car accident, Jennifer has temporary amnesia and can't remember anything about her life except what she's told or can deduc...more I picked this book up from Costco a couple of weeks ago and just started it this week. Soooo glad I picked this up!! I'd not heard anything about it or even looked it up and read reviews (like I usually do) so I took a chance, and it definitely worked out.

Jennifer Stirling is a beautiful, likeable woman who is the envy of all her friends (and her friend's husbands). After a car accident, Jennifer has temporary amnesia and can't remember anything about her life except what she's told or can deduct from conversations. She tries to be a good wife to her husband and can't understand his coldness to her. While sorting through her closet to try to make everything hers again, she comes across a hidden love letter - and realizes her life is not what she thinks. Over time, Jennifer is able to uncover the truth behind the love letters - and her secret life - but a series of misunderstandings and misguided help prove disastrous.

Scoot forty years ahead and meet Ellie - single, 30ish, and a feature writer for a newspaper. Ellie has gotten involved in a year-long affair with a married author she was sent to cover for her paper, and her life has become a shadow of it's former vicariousness as she puts everything in her life on hold for the few moments or hours her lover can spare for her. All of her friends try to be supportive but she knows they don't approve, plus her work life is suffering as she becomes obsessed with checking her phone and email to see if her lover has contacted her. Due to her excessive lateness, Ellie is given the unenviable job of pulling old articles from the newspaper library archives and comparing them to modern day life. In the process, she comes upon one of Jennifer's love letters and sets out to find the owner of the letter.

Moyes does a great job of pulling both stories together and making them feasible. Also, it's pretty rare to read an author who is able to create characters who are honest and real. I felt that Moyes did that with all of her characters, but mostly especially Jennifer and Ellie. I connected more with Ellie simply because she's the "our time" female lead whereas Jennifer is from the 60's (a weeeeee bit before my time!). Ellie knows she deserves more - and that she's settling because she's scared of not even having the little bit of her lover that she has. You end up admiring her and rooting for her despite her situation.

I couldn't put the book down - the ending brought me to tears (happy ones) and I really felt the whole book just flowed; it is a beautifully written love story. Also - the love letters Jennifer received - amazing :) Highly recommend!(less)

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Aug 18, 2012 Laura rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Oh my goodness! Big sigh! A delicious read!
Started this book yesterday & couldn't put it down until I finished today.
Tragic & so sad, and yet hopeful...

One of my favourite parts was in a letter where Anthony writes, "...to have someone out there who understands you, who desires you, who sees you as a better version of yourself, is the most astonishing gift. Even if we are not together, to know that, for you, I am that man is a source of sustenance for me. I'm not sure how I earned the ri...more

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Aug 01, 2012 Melissa rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A heartbreaking love story of two people having chose different paths in life prior to meeting , who unintentionally fall in love with one another albeit in an adulterous manner. This story is one that brings up the question: What do you do when you realize you’ve gone down the wrong path in life? How far do you go when you truly love someone?

Overall, I loved the story. I had my issues with the plot because it was a love story rooted in an affair, which is never good. However, understanding the...more

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Jun 10, 2012 Annalynn rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was one of those books that sounds like an incredible story, but the execution of that story is lacking. Spoilers follow, since there is no way to discuss it otherwise. It was a confusing story that could have been great, but, alas, it was presented poorly. The first half of the book is set in either 1960 or 1964. It alternates back and forth between the two time frames. Adding to the confusion is that every time it would switch between the years, the chapter would often start out featuring...more

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May 10, 2012 Chanpreet rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

It's 1960 and we start the book to find Jennifer Stirling waking up in the hospital and not being able to remember anything. Who is she, why is she in the hospital, and what exactly is she missing? While she's trying to figure out the answers, she comes across a love letter, signed "B." asking her to run away with him. Who is he? And what happened to them? That's the question bothering Ellie Haworth, a young journalist in 2003, when she stumbles onto one of the letters signed by "B." Maybe she'l...more

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Mar 02, 2012 Jackie Morrison rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Original review published in TheCelebrityCafe.com: http://thecelebritycafe.com/reviews/l...

A new classic that makes you appreciate the art of writing instead of email

The Last Letter From Your Lover is a double love story set four decades apart in London that promises to be an instant classic. The first part of the story begins in the early 1960s when a 26-year-old English society wife named Jennifer Stirling falls into a coma after a car accident. After she awakens in a London hospital with amne...more

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Feb 13, 2012 Barbara Elsborg rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Three and a half stars. I bought this because I'd read Jojo Moyes book about the quadraplegic guy - gulp. I really like the premise for Last Letter - I thought the writing was great, the story swept me along and I liked the characters - BUT. There is an absolutely pivotal point in the story that influences - well drives - everything that follows. And it doesn't work. I read lots of reviews wondering what others thought and couldn't find any reference to it, so maybe it's only me who's bothered.
...more

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Dec 01, 2011 Book Sp(l)ot rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010-release

It's 1960 when Jennifer Stirling wakes up in the hospital with no memory. She cannot remember anything about her life, not her husband and not the accident that put her in the hospital. Later, back home and trying to decipher her life, Jennifer discovers a letter. The missive, urging her leave her husband is something else Jennifer doesn't remember. While she doesn't remember the man who wrote to her - it is signed only 'B,' either - it does let her know that her marriage is not everything she h...more

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Sep 30, 2011 C rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

"Men find it easier to work than to deal with anything else." "Anything else?" "The messiness of everyday life. People not behaving as you'd like and feeling things you'd rather they didn't feel. At work you can achieve results, be the master of your domain. People do as you say." At one point in the story, the main female character, Jennifer, has this exchange with Anthony [soon to become her love interest], and for some reason, though it seemed a rather simplistic generalization about men and...more

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Sep 28, 2011 Diane rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'm going to be honest and say that until I finished this novel, I wasn't sure I was going to like it. The Last Letter From Your Lover by JoJo Moyes is the kind of book that you think, OK, this book is all right, and since I read it everyday on my Kindle on the treadmill, I just stuck with it.

I'm glad I did, because the manner in which Moyes ties everything together in the end is so rewarding and there is one moment that is so jawdropping, I almost fell off the treadmill; I did not see that one...more I'm going to be honest and say that until I finished this novel, I wasn't sure I was going to like it. The Last Letter From Your Lover by JoJo Moyes is the kind of book that you think, OK, this book is all right, and since I read it everyday on my Kindle on the treadmill, I just stuck with it.

I'm glad I did, because the manner in which Moyes ties everything together in the end is so rewarding and there is one moment that is so jawdropping, I almost fell off the treadmill; I did not see that one coming. (And I like to think that I have read so many novels, there is not much that could surprise me.)

Moyes begins her story in London in 1964, where Jennifer is in a hospital recovering from a horrible car accident. She has no memory of her life and doesn't know her own husband. When her memory doesn't return, she lives in a kind of nowhere-land, only knowing what her husband and friends tell her about her life.

Until the day she finds a love letter to her from a man named B. Apparently she was in love with him, and they were planning to run away together. She has no memory of him or this letter, but she feels something inside that tells her it is true.

This story is intercut with Ellie, a young writer for a London newspaper, unhappily involved with a married man. She is on the verge of losing her job when she finds B's love letter to Jennifer and believes that there is a story there.

Even though almost 50 years has passed, Ellie tries to track down Jennifer and B, and her hope is that they have been together all this time, thereby proving that true love is possible.

There are so many writers who use the conceit of two different stories in two different times, sometimes it can be, "oh, no, not again", but Moyes uses it to tie her novel together in a meaningful way that serves the story well.

B and Jennifer's love story is star-crossed to say the least, and the mystery of will they get together or not propels the plot forward, and I couldn't wait to find out the answer.

The characters are well-rounded, the writing seductive and the style of dress and copious drinking from 1964 is very Mad Men-like and trendy now. Moyes took awhile to entrance me with her love story, but when the book ended, I wanted to stand up and applaud. Well done, indeed!
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Sep 16, 2011 Karen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I just loved this book! I admit it. I loved it. It's kind of an old fashioned love story. But not really. There, how much more confused can I make you? I don't ever want to mislead you all. This is really a modern love story, but it takes place in two time periods.

At first we meet Jennifer in her hospital bed, after a car wreck and she's having to step into a life that's completely foreign to her. Her husband, her house, her friends, her own way of living...are all alien to her. She even has to...more

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Aug 28, 2011 Sam rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: those who like a well written book

Recommended to Sam by: Net Galley

This book came out in Australia around Christmas time last year and to be honest, it really didn’t appeal to me. It looked very chick lit and soppy. However, the American cover enticed me more and I had heard good things about this book, so I successfully applied to receive a Net Galley of this book. Boy, I’m so glad that I did. This is a highly emotional love story that keeps you reading well into the night without being over the top. I was really pleased with this book, and highly recommend it...more This book came out in Australia around Christmas time last year and to be honest, it really didn’t appeal to me. It looked very chick lit and soppy. However, the American cover enticed me more and I had heard good things about this book, so I successfully applied to receive a Net Galley of this book. Boy, I’m so glad that I did. This is a highly emotional love story that keeps you reading well into the night without being over the top. I was really pleased with this book, and highly recommend it to those that like a well written story with detailed characters, drama and plenty of obstacles. I also think that this would make a great movie.

This book opens with Jennifer, the protagonist, recovering in hospital after a nasty car accident where the driver was killed. Her problem is that she has amnesia of the events prior and must get to know her husband, friends and home all over again. As time goes on, Jennifer starts to feel that something isn’t quite right, but no-one will tell her anything. She then finds letters hidden in her house addressed to her, love letters signed by B. Who is B?

The story then moves back to the time before Jennifer’s accident and how she and B fell in love and planned to leave her dreary suburban life for him. Unfortunately, a number of unfortunate instances occur and things don’t happen as planned…

In the present day, Ellie is a journalist at the same newspaper as B, stuck in a dead end relationship with a novelist. She discovers the love letters as the newspaper plans to move buildings and decides to make it a feature. During this time, she learns from Jennifer the strength of relationships and what it is to really be in love.

I thought Ellie’s character was a little less engaging than Jennifer, but they are products of different times – Ellie seems much looser and flippant in comparison. Ellie is also instrumental in the ending of the book and the third section provides some lighter relief from the tortured relationship of Jennifer and B. This book was excellently written and produced a great feeling of raw emotion, especially when it wasn’t done to do so (1960’s upper middle class London). It’s more than chick lit, it’s a fine, classy story that you shouldn’t pass by. I couldn’t put this book down, not even when wandering about the house!
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Jul 27, 2011 Lydia Presley rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, fiction, romance

The Last Letter from Your Lover is an old-fashioned, classy type of romance book that had even me (who is thoroughly tired out when it comes to romances) swooning and feeling the romance love.

With quiet, unassuming writing, Moyes tells a dual story, one a little more focused than the other, but both with characters that are loveable. Jenny Stirling wakes up in November 1960 in a hospital. She suffers from amnesia due to a head wound and is slowly introduced into her high society life - but finds...more

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Jul 23, 2011 Emily Crowe rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I don't usually identify myself as a reader of romance novels. Every now and again I feel the urge to read a little smut, which my Harry Potter fanfiction provides in spades, but romance? Not really. I don't mind it as a by-product in my novels, but it's rarely what I look for as the driving force in my fiction. Thus, I was a little surprised how swept up I was with this forthcoming book from Jojo Moyes (NB: this title has already been published in the UK and quite probably Australia, but it goe...more

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Jul 22, 2011 Nancy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I am trying to decide why I liked this book. I don't think it was necessarily the story although I appreciated the way the author put a face with the players in the marriage and the other woman. I'm going to have to go with the writing style was simply very enjoyable and I really liked many of the characters. Actually, I was particularly drawn to the characters of the earlier story and then their later story; Jennifer, Anthony and even the peripheral players like Jennifer's social circles. I nev...more I am trying to decide why I liked this book. I don't think it was necessarily the story although I appreciated the way the author put a face with the players in the marriage and the other woman. I'm going to have to go with the writing style was simply very enjoyable and I really liked many of the characters. Actually, I was particularly drawn to the characters of the earlier story and then their later story; Jennifer, Anthony and even the peripheral players like Jennifer's social circles. I never particularly took to Ellie or her conflict. I did like Rory and I definitely liked the librarian.

There are a number of different time periods that need to be watched with this book. The first part toggles between pre and post accident. Watch that one or you might be confused. It's only a matter of a couple of months but the accident is a game changer.

I've got to be honest in that I didn't love the story itself. I loved the way the story was told. It's not one I would recommend to a book club from my congregation but there are greater truths to be gleaned from the book. It's a story of a woman who married within her station in life. She is to be arm candy to a successful career man. She's beautiful and intelligent which she is not allowed to be in this time period. She meets Anthony, a foreign affairs correspondent who had a nervous breakdown in Africa. They begin a torrid affair and love letters are exchanged. Bad timing and poor communication (some intercepted) put the affair on the back burner.

2003 brings us to Ellie, a journalist currently having a torrid affair with John, a married man with two children. She wants the dream. John wants the affair. Ellie finds the letters and does investigative work. She's in trouble with her boss because she's so distracted thanks to her boyfriend, John. Ultimately, I loved the ending. I loved the face attached to John's wife, providing Ellie with a person to see when she slept with her this woman's husband. I loved her act of redemption.

Solid 3.75 stars.
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Jul 10, 2011 Cheryl rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Jennifer Stirling awakes to find herself in a hospital. She was involved in a terrible accident that left her with amnesia. Now, Jennifer is being released form the hospital and going home with her husband. Though, the doctor told Jennifer that she will regain her memories, Jennifer hates the feeling of being lost. Jennifer goes on pretending that she remembers. The problem is that Jennifer is not the same person that she was before the accident. She feels nothing for her husband. This explains...more Jennifer Stirling awakes to find herself in a hospital. She was involved in a terrible accident that left her with amnesia. Now, Jennifer is being released form the hospital and going home with her husband. Though, the doctor told Jennifer that she will regain her memories, Jennifer hates the feeling of being lost. Jennifer goes on pretending that she remembers. The problem is that Jennifer is not the same person that she was before the accident. She feels nothing for her husband. This explains why, when a mysterious man comes into Jennifer’s life, she starts a love affair with him. Things get really serious when Jennifer’s lover writes and asks Jennifer to meet him at Platform 4, Paddington, at 7:15 on Friday evening.

Years later, Ellie works at a newspaper. The paper is moving to a new location. While sorting through old papers, Ellie stumbles across a series of letters between Jennifer and her lover. Ellie becomes intrigued. At first Ellie thinks this will be the perfect thing to boost her career but as she digs deeper into Jennifer and her lover’s story, Ellie can not help but wonder if Jennifer and her lover ever found their happy ending.

I had reservations about this book. I was not sure if I would like it. Just from some of the other reader’s comments I read about this book were not that great. This book was better than what I had read of the other people’s thoughts. While, the book was not perfect it was still one that I would share with my other reader friends. I preferred Jennifer and her lover’s story to the present. Even though I did want to know like Ellie if Jennifer and her lover did go off into the sunset together, I just did not become connected with the Ellie as much. Luckily the present story is only the last third of the book. It did not really feel like a lover affair between Jennifer and her lover as her husband was mean and there was no love lost between them. It was like Jennifer and her lover were meant to be together. The Last Letter from Your Lover is signed, sealed and delivered!
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Jul 01, 2011 Miss GP rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I cannot believe how much I disliked this book. I tried to like it -- I really tried -- but honestly, it's got to be the least satisfying book I've read this year.

The first section occurs in 1960, and it's dreadful. The plot is thin and predictable, the characters melodramatic, one-dimensional and stereotypical. The writing is terrible; not only is it over-the-top, but several times I had to re-read sentences to try to figure out what the author was trying to say (never a good sign). Even the se...more

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About Jojo Moyes

Jojo Moyes (born 1969) is a British novelist.

Moyes studied at Royal Holloway, University of London. She won a bursary financed by The Independent newspaper to study journalism at City University and subsequently worked for The Independent for 10 years. In 2001 she became a full time novelist.

Moyes' novel Foreign Fruit won the Romantic Novelists' Association (RNA) Romantic Novel of the Year in 200...more

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“I was once told by someone wise that writing is perilous as you cannot always guarantee your words will be read in the spirit in which they were written.” — 16 people liked it

“Know that you hold my heart, my hopes, in your hands.” — 12 people liked it

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