The Last Romantics

By Tara Conklin

One fateful summer. Four lives changed, forever.

‘A modern epic … The Last Romantics is a sweeping look at what binds families together’ Glamour

We thought we’d always be there for each other.

We were wrong.

For the Skinners, their lives divide into two parts: before that heady summer – of unsupervised youth, family crisis and unavoidable tragedy – and after. But mainly after.

The events of that childhood summer bound the Skinner siblings together fiercely, but the consequences would never be erased.

After what happened, they thought they could never be pulled apart, but it’s the million little betrayals echoing through the years that threaten to fray their last fragile ties . . .

Spanning five decades and following four unforgettable siblings, The Last Romantics is a sweeping, intimate and compelling portrait of one family – and every family. It is about the responsibilities we bear, how we grow together and apart, but how love will always guide us home.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins UK
• Release date: Feb 5, 2019
• ISBN: 9780008323356

Tara Conklin

Tara Conklin was born on St. Croix in the US Virgin Islands and raised in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. She is the author of the New York Times bestsellers The Last Romantics and The House Girl.  

Reviews for The Last Romantics

[clp412 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The character development in this book was fantastic! I felt like I knew all of the siblings. After I received this book it started to have so much buzz and such high ratings! I think this book would be an ideal Book Club book because there is so much to discuss. The siblings make life choices, good and bad, as well as the family dynamic, childhood expectations, etc.

[carmenere_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Thank you William Morrow Books and author Tara Conklin for the opportunity to read and review The Last Romantics prior to its February 19, 2019 release. "In a sense stories are all we have to tell us about the future.""In poetry's stripped-down urgency, in its openness, the space between lines, the repetition and essentialism-poets can speak in ways that transcend culture and gender and time."This novel of family dynamics and dysfunction begins in the year 2079. Fiona Skinner the youngest of the Skinner clan at the age of 102 is a renowned poet. As she addresses the audience who has assembled to discuss her poetry, a young woman with a name from Fiona's past questions her about a line contained in one of her most famous poems, "The Love Poem". To explain, Fiona must return and recount the days of her childhood and life with her sisters, brother and mother. This portion of the book brought to mind the elderly woman in the movie Titanic reminiscing about Jack. The technique works well here too. The reader learns of the three events which shaped the lives of the Skinner children, "The Pause", "The Unraveling" and "After". The reader discovers that each family member grieves in a different manner and each moves on when reconciliation moves in.Ms. Conklin throws in a few Easter eggs to keep the reader anticipating and surmising. A couple which I would have enjoyed seeing more fully developed were just dropped but in actuality were not essential to the story.Very readable and fast paced despite the lack of a lot of action. At it's heart, The Last Romantics is a family drama sharing in the ups and downs which occur in the lives of every reader.

[bonnie.franks · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book owned me. Plain and simple.From the first page, I felt that I was being told an intimate story by a unique storyteller. I felt like no one else would or could hear this story, only me. It was so rich, and so loving, and so happy/sad, and so complete/incomplete. I want to read it again already. There is no way to completely describe the writing alone, let alone the combination of the perfect words and the perfect story. It is so touching. As Fiona told the story, sometimes I was her, and sometimes I was her sisters, and always I was feeling for all of them. I still am.Read this book if you are human. You owe it to yourself.Thank you to librarything.com and the publisher for my copy of this book.

[msnick_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Even though the story frame was a bit clunky, I truly enjoyed this book. The Last Romantics is a well written look at the bonds between family members, warts and all. The characters, all realistically flawed, were very believable/relatable. As for the end of the novel - WOW. Just WOW. I highly recommend Tara Conklin's latest work.

[kimkimkim-7 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A parent dies, a parent retreats and the children are left to fend for themselves. Damaged psyches are left to fester and it gets uglier and more uncomfortable.The book captured my intention and held it until it didn’t. I thought the writing was masterful and while the storyline was weak and somewhat confusing it all unraveled for me when the main character starts and explains her blog. Game over for me. At that point I lost interest but I plowed through to the end.There could have been so much to care about but the real and the abstract and the emotions and justifications were all over the place. Thank you LibraryThing and William Morrow for a copy.

[3bythesea · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wow, I really enjoyed this book. It's beautifully written and the characters and wonderfully drawn. It was compelling and when I put it down I found myself trying to squeeze moments out of my day to read more of it. The book focuses on the different responses siblings have to the loss of a parent and another loss later in their lives. It captures how even loving families can struggle in the face of life's hardships.

[silversi_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This story takes you through the life of a poet and her family. I found myself both bored and intrigued at any given minute while reading it. There were parts that I felt it really slogged through the mud, so to speak, then other parts that were insightful and interesting. Overall, I'm happy to have read this story, it was a good one.

[lynnedjb · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I loved this book. Could relate to the characters. I thought the descriptions of "The Pause" were excellent. A couple jaw-dropping moments mixed into very believable, interesting, real life. Up-to-date & modern and yet down to earth. Good storytelling. A very good read. Well done, Tara Conklin.

[reb922 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The story of 4 siblings whose lives were shaped by a period of time called "the pause" after their father's death and another tragedy once they are adults. I liked the story and I felt the pacing and revealing of their lives was told in an engaging manner. This was mostly told via the youngest sister Fiona. One complaint was that I felt like I would have liked to know her better as a character.

[jonri-4 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed this book. The characters were believable. It's well-written. There were a few problems. One was the way it is framed as if it's being told from a vantage point many years from now when all sorts of things are going wrong in civilization but we are never told exactly what those things are and people seem to do most things exactly the same way they do things now.That's a minor quibble though, as the story is mostly set in the past.Another was I found it hard to believe that some things that the author says were kept secret could have been--for example. that Fiona's husband doesn't know anything about her search for Luna, which is portrayed as very time consuming. Overall, though I found this a compellingly good read. I received this book as part of the Early Reviewers program.

[susan.h.schofield · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was an amazing family saga - beautifully written, realistic, touching and engaging. It spans almost 100 years in the lives of the Skinner siblings - Renee, Caroline, Joe and Fiona. It follows them from the death of their father as young children into adolescence and adulthood. It is about the relationships between the siblings as well as their relationship with their mother and as they grow into adulthood, their significant others as well. I highly recommend this book.

[katybee_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I received an advance reader copy from the Goodreads giveaway program in exchange for this review. The Last Romantics was a novel that was easy to fall into, well written and nicely paced. The four siblings at the center of the story provide realistic depictions of family dynamics, the good and the bad. There are some serious messages here about the challenges of parenthood, about career building, and about dealing with grief. It was an interesting twist to set parts of the narrative in 2079 with ominous overtones of future climate issues. A good book for readers who enjoy family sagas.

[gwnfkt12 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The thing about The Last Romantics that hooked me from the beginning was the name Luna. The mysterious Luna had something to do with Fiona's brother's "incident" and I couldn't stop turning pages to find out how. But this isn't a mystery or even a suspense novel; it's a family history, starting from Fiona's childhood, through the Pause when her mother's depression left Fiona and her siblings to fend for themselves and develop bonds between them that would prove tenuous in later years, to the distant future when an elderly Fiona is recounting the whole story through her poetry. I enjoyed reading this book through it's meandering beginnings to its sweeping ending.

[nancyadair-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The Last Romantics by Tara Conklin is the moving story of the family bonds that both save us and tear us asunder. ''...this is a story about the failures of love, and the Pause was the first." from The Last Romantics by Tara ConklinFiona Skinner, 102 years old and a renowned poet, returns to the podium for the first time in twenty-five years. A girl arises from the audience with a question: Who was Luna?The Luna of Fiona's most famous poetry inspired women to name their daughters Luna. And this girl, named Luna, asks for her mother the question--who was Luna?Fiona wrote the poem "a lifetime ago," "back when I was a romantic," she responds. The girl presses. And for the first time ever Fiona reveals the story of her family and the secret she has held in her heart for so long."Once upon a time," she begins, "there was a father and a mother and four children...and for a time they were happy."And like Fiona's audience, enrapt, I was carried away by her story of the ways love carries us and fails us and how we turn from each other and how we carry each other. Her story of love's truth, it's bitterness and how it is the only thing that makes life endurable, and our deeply held illogical hope, which experience tells us is fantasy, that love can and will save us.And that is all I am going to tell you. I still feel the warm heartache, the fullness and pressure in my chest, the awful truth I encountered in this fiction. Look around at your beloved family, the people you have given yourselves to, the people who cut the deepest and brought the fullest healing, who made you strong and brought you to your knees. The people you endeavor to protect and save, the people you have lost and haunt you. And tell me--what is love? I received an ARC from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

[iudita_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is the story of a family, primarily of the four siblings from when they are very young right through to the end of their lives. This is a very softly spoken story and moves at a relaxed pace. No page turning action here, but what you get instead is highly developed characters with complex relationships. You really bond with these siblings, worrying about them in times of trouble and rejoicing with them in times of joy. You become part of the family. I found it to be a really comforting reading experience with themes of the nurturing individual personalities within a family and accepting that life is an ever changing experience that is rarely all good or all bad. The end is fully wrapped up - not necessarily with a bow but very complete and satisfying anyway.

[shazjhb · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Excellent book. Loved the relationships of the siblings.

[claudiaannett · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The book opens with a 102 year old poetess giving a reading in 2079, so I was expecting some kind of science fiction, which I wouldn’t have wanted to read. A few pages in though the author starts answering questions about her life, and most of the book is about the relationship among the four siblings, the roles they played in a difficult childhood with an absentee mother and how they reacted against those roles once they left home, but eventually came together again as best friends in middle age. The four main characters are very believable, but also the plot, loosely based on finding a missing woman, keeps moving forward so it’s hard to put down.

[scotlass66 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A family saga that spans a century. A story of sibling relationships, how they grow close due to a family situation, come apart, and finally come together again, albeit not the same. Conklin does an excellent job looking into her characters lives with a keen insight and a generosity towards the flaws each holds within. Fiona, the youngest sister is our narrator, and her experiences as the youngest in a family of four seems authentic and real. Ultimately, this is a novel about love, what we survive, what we forgive and what we pretend not to know to spare another. It is about growing and reacting to the situations we experience. There is happiness, sadness, challenges, all the things of which life and family are made."We believe in love because we want to believe in it. Because really, what else is there?Because when the lights go out and we sit waiting in the dark, what do our fingers seek? What do we reach for?"

[kayanelson · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was a very interesting book. In a way the plot is straightforward but the characters are so well done that it makes the plot all the more interesting. I'm not so sure that it needed the chapters that covered the year 2079 but there weren't that many of them so it wasn't that distracting.

[linda.marsheells · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I suppose i should apologize ahead of time for being in the minority of the miniscule minority here. Blame it on my mood lately, the rain, not enough coffee, whatever you like.... I give 2 stars. Disappointed-yes. I read the rave reviews and thought WOW i lucked out with this win from Goodreads! But it was not for me. Lots of potential being a generational family book but...just not up my alley. This must be one of those 'read it for yourself' and see what YOU think books.

[indygo88 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a family saga about four siblings. They lose their father at a relatively young age and during the period immediately afterward, where their mother tunes out for a while (a period they refer to as "The Pause"), they form a special sibling bond which, unbeknownst to them at the time, affects their relationship with each other throughout the years. Joe, the only male sibling, pulls them together in a special way which none of them really realize or appreciate at the time. As they advance through adulthood and each make their own life choices, they diverge and are brought back together by an unexpected tragedy. I've had Tara Conklin's previous book, The House Girl, on my to-be-read pile for quite some time, though haven't yet read that one, despite its acclaim. The Last Romantics became available to me as an advanced reader copy, and knowing the popularity of her previous book, I was more than happy to dive into this one. For the most part, this was well written, and as with most family sagas, I enjoyed following the siblings from their youth into adulthood, and further still into their advanced years. The story is told primarily from the point of view of Fiona, the youngest sibling, and while the majority of the book follows along in chronological order, there are several interludes that fast forward into the future, where Fiona is 102 years old, an established poet, and is at a gathering explaining the background for her most well-known book of poetry, which is based on her family. In these sections, there are references to some sort of past and ongoing climate change, and regular safety drills which seem to occur on a regular basis. While a small aspect of these forward flashes in time relates to the story, it mostly served as a distraction and it just didn't quite seem to mesh with the rest of the story. Based on other reviews I've read of this book, other readers have had the same reaction. While the book was good on the whole, I think I would have rated it higher, had this aspect been fleshed out better and not seemed so distracting and disjointed.

[mrsgrits · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

4.5 stars This book was SO GOOD. I love a good family history/family drama and this one did not disappoint. I didn't agree with all of the choices the siblings made and really found myself disliking Noni for a while. In the end, they all look out for each other and love each other the best they know how. I found myself relating to Caroline the most, especially her struggles. I especially loved the way Conklin described how everyone ended. It reminded me of the series finale of 'Six Feet Under'. I wanted to know all the details and how they were all connected. Such a beautiful ending!If you enjoyed Commonwealth by Ann Patchet, you might like The Last Romantics.

[sheila1957 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This follows the Skinner family from childhood to adulthood and how they deal with death, love, and life. I liked this story. I liked Fiona's first person point-of-view. I liked the Skinner children. I was ambivalent about Noni. The character development is fantastic. I came to know each one and could figure out what they would do in a particular situation. I liked how the story starts in the future then flashes back to the present day times as Fiona tells her story. There is a lot to think about in the story and relate it to today's happenings. I wanted to know Fiona's story as much as Luna did. I was riveted.

[christinegrabowski · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I love a good family saga and The Last Romantics was one of the best I have read it a long time. It seems most sagas are historical, but this one was more contemporary because it was told by Fiona from 2079 looking back on her life, so most of the story took place in the late 70s through about 2010. It helps that those were memorable years for me as well. The story is primarily about three sisters and a brother, all with different personalities, so I believe most readers will be able to identify with one of the characters. This was one book I didn't want to end.

[ghneumann · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

There are four Skinner siblings in Tara Conklin's The Last Romantics. Renee is the oldest, the responsible one. Caroline, the next oldest, is soft-hearted and traditional. Then Joe, the only boy, the gifted athlete, the apple of everyone's eye. And finally Fiona, the baby. The Skinners are a happy family until they're not: when their father dies in an accident, their mother Noni finds out that they're not as well off as she thought, and the loss of not only her husband but the life she thought she had achieved pitches her into a deep depression. They downsize, and Noni takes to her bed. For a couple years. The Skinner children are more or less left to raise themselves during what they come to call The Pause.The seeds of what will become of them are planted during The Pause. Renee takes her responsibilities to take care of the others seriously, and becomes dedicated to achieving at a level that will keep anyone from guessing what's going on at home, setting her down a path towards becoming a doctor. Caroline falls in with a neighbor family, forming a bond with one of their boys that will deepen into romance and marriage. Joe's talent and good looks ensure that his outward needs are met, even if he struggles to process his trauma. And Fiona learns to observe, a skill that comes in handy as she becomes a writer and poet. Noni does recover, and the family seems more or less intact, but the damage that's been done can't be undone.I was biased towards this one from the start: this kind of following-a-group-of-characters-over-time thing is something I absolutely love in a book. I tend to find that the books that stay with me the most are ones where character is first and foremost, and this book is all about character. The siblings and their relationships feel complicated and real. Though they all had moments of being their worst selves, their behaviors felt rooted in how their experiences, particularly during their childhoods, interacted with their innate personalities. I also appreciated that the book never felt the need to have there be a dramatic confrontation between the children and their mother...it generally leaned away from melodrama rather than leaning into it, and I think there are plenty of families that do just try their best to forget the bad moments and move on.As much as I loved this book for the most part, there were some plot elements that kept me from considering it truly great. First was the idea that The Pause could go on for multiple years without anyone really noticing. As much as Renee was able to serve in loco parentis to her younger siblings, there are things like doctor's visits and parent-teacher conferences and signing up for extracurriculars that seem like they could have been patched over for a while but not for as long as Conklin asked us to believe. And then there was the framing device, which featured a very elderly Fiona (in a world where global climate change has changed things for the worse) interacting with a young woman who might have a connection to the Skinners. This did strike me as a little too convenient and neat. On the whole, though, this is a lovely book about the bonds between siblings and would be perfect for a reader who loves well-realized characters. I very much enjoyed it and highly recommend it!

[wagner5sarah35 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

*I received a copy of this book from the publisher.*I loved Tara Conklin's The House Girl, so I think I had unreasonably high hopes for this book. It is a good book, but not (in my opinion) as good as the author's previous novel. This is the story of four siblings, beginning after the death of their father during their childhood and stretching into the future. Narrated by Fiona, the youngest daughter who eventually becomes a famous poet, this book explores each sibling's life, but also at times, mediates on family, love, secrets, politics, and climate change. Overall, I liked the book and it did offer a compelling story that kept the pages turning.

[plumcover3 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The aging Poet, Fiona, begins to answer questions about her milestone work, The Love Poem, to students both reverent and aggressive in their need to draw the truth from her as an author. Each story has its truth, its context, none quickly shared or understood, and while the inquisitors may get restless with the delivery of interconnecting pieces, the reader will not. The Last Romantics delves into a cluster of siblings whose life threads and memories are tangled together in ways that can be revealed in careful unraveling. Engaging, set later in our century with memories in our present, Conklin keeps us with her through the ride.

[m.belljackson · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The Last Romantics opens with a sequence that inspires reading on to solve the mystery of women named Luna.Unfortunately, despite my love for poetry, romance, and baseball, interest flags because none of the main characters resonate.Unsavory Noni. Joe, the addict. Lying, sex driven Fiona. Boring Carolyn. Good and loyal Nathan. Underdeveloped Will and Jonathan. Uneven Renee.Meanwhile, the plot gets overwhelmed with both family secrets and an abundance of fatalistic foreshadowing.By the time something actually happens, many readers simply will not care.Many practical matters also go unexplained, like where did the money come from to support the family during the three year "Pause?"

[jhoaglin-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

3.4 Stars, rounded to 4.This book tells the story of four siblings and the closeness they develop as children while their mother is mostly unavailable to them, for about three years. After the death of her husband, Noni Skinner sinks into a deep depression, a period her children later deem “the pause”. The Skinner children learn to depend only on each other. Fiona, the youngest, is the one who’s POV is given most often as she narrates this story, although the lives of each of the four are explored in some depth. Despite their closeness and interdependence, there are cracks that develop in the relationships of all the four siblings in their early adulthood.While I loved the earlier book I read by this author, House Girl, I can only say I mostly enjoyed this book, largely due to the author’s writing style and skills. I did not feel deeply engaged with any of the characters here, or to the story.At the opening of this book, which is set in 2079, when Fiona is 102 years ago and telling the story of her family, it sounded as if it might be a dystopian type story, due to several vague references to what is happening in that 2079 world. But those were never explored any further as the story unfolded, just left hanging.My thanks to Library Thing, the author, and the William Morrow/Harper Collins Publishing Company for the ARC of this book which I was provided.

[beamis12 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A family saga that spans a century. A story of sibling relationships, how they grow close due to a family situation, come apart, and finally come together again, albeit not the same. Conklin does an excellent job looking into her characters lives with a keen insight and a generosity towards the flaws each holds within. The pacing is terrific, despite the time period it covers it never feels rushed. Fiona, the youngest sister is our narrator, and her experiences as the youngest in a family of four seems authentic and real. Although I'm not quite sure that she should have the knowledge she has towards what the others are thinking and seeing. That is the only minor quibble I have, though it is effective.There are a few unexpected twists, roadblocks thrown in here and there, the things many of us have to deal with a times. Ultimately, this is a novel about love, what we survive, what we forgive and what we pretend not to know to spare another. It is about growing and reacting to the situations we experience. There is happiness, sadness, challenges, all the things of which life and family are made. I enjoyed this, though the ending was a little more emotional that I would have liked. But like life, perfection is not always possible and I enjoyed these characters very much."For many years loved seemed to me not something that enriched or emboldened but a blind hole into which you fell, and in the falling you forgot what it was to live in your own light."ARC from Edelweiss.