Review: The Last Boyfriend by Nora Roberts

First line: A fat winter moon poured light over the old stone and brick of the inn on The Square.

Summary from Goodreads: Owen is the organizer
of the Montgomery clan, running the family’s construction business with
an iron fist – and an even less flexible spreadsheet. And though his
brothers bust on his compulsive list-making, the Inn BoonsBoro is about
to open right on schedule. The only thing Owen didn’t plan for was Avery
McTavish… 

Avery’s popular pizza place is right across the street from
the inn, giving her a first-hand look at its amazing renovation – and a
newfound appreciation for Owen. Since he was her first boyfriend when
they were kids, Owen has never been far from Avery’s thoughts. But the
attraction she’s feeling for him now is far from innocent. 

As Avery and
Owen cautiously take their relationship to another level, the opening of
the inn gives the whole town of Boonsboro a reason to celebrate. But
Owen’s hard work has only begun. Getting Avery to let down her guard is
going to take longer than he expected – and so will getting her to
realize that her first boyfriend is going to be her last…

My thoughts: This is the second in Nora Roberts’ Inn Boonsboro Trilogy and I couldn’t wait to read it. I had read the first one, The Next Always, and fell in love with the Montgomery men, where we found out Beckett and Claire’s story, and so I was very anxious to find out Owen and Avery’s story.

In The Last Boyfriend, the Montgomery brothers are very close to opening the inn they started working on in the first book. Owen is the detail guy – a man after my own heart. He works off of list after list after list. Anytime something new pops up, he starts a new list. Avery, on the other hand, is a disorganized work-aholic who is full of energy and
good will. These two have known each other forever and even found themselves engaged when they were young children, but then Owen left Avery for another girl. Now, they find themselves spending more time together and those sparks start flying once again. Can they get past their own hangups to let the relationship progress?

We also see the inn’s resident ghost Lizzy up to her tricks again. This time she presents Owen and Avery with a little mystery – to find her long lost love. I loved this part of the story and I am not usually a fan of ghost stories, but here I feel it adds a little character to both the inn and the story in whole. As far as the inn – this is definitely a place I wish existed in real life. Rooms named after literary couples is a dream come true for this avid reader. Even this town seems like a fun place to visit – a charming new inn, a pizza place, a great bookstore – sounds like heaven to me!

I’m looking forward to the release of the third book, The Perfect Hope, which is due out in November, but at the same time, I’m dreading reading it because I don’t want to see this series end. Do you ever find yourself in that predicament? Have you read a series you loved but didn’t want to see it end?

(I borrowed this book from the library.)

Books in this series:

1. The Next Always
2. The Last Boyfriend
3. The Perfect Hope