Rating: 
Summary: Not My Favorite
Review: I have read most of Anita Shreve's books and this was the least engaging. I loved the fact that she used a character introduced in another book, but I wanted a strongly plot. Rather than the flashbacks to the time they first met becoming context for the current story, the flashbacks were the only part of the book with any depth. Anita typically gives the reader such interesting stories with twists and turns that keep you quickly turning pages, this book was much gentlier, far less engaging.
Rating:
Summary: confusing, sometimes boring
Review: Having read THE PILOTS WIFE, I was so anxious to read this book,but I will probably never read another Anita shreve book again. I was disappointed, and confused, going back over, reading and re-reading page after page. Perhaps, if she had dated the beginning of each chapter, when she changed times and locations, it would, at the least, helped the flow of the book.There are very few book that I would say"I wish I had never read" but I wish I had never started THE LAST TIME THEY MET.
Rating: 
Summary: Kudos to Shreve!!
Review: Anita Shreve must be glowing!!She is the author of an excellently written story. That it has caused such passionate and contrasting reviews only confirms that she wrote a thought provoking novel. Dime-store novels do not engage readers in this manner. In my humble opinion, the story and its ending were wonderful.
Rating: 
Summary: intelligent and thought provoking
Review: Yes, you do need to "think" as you read this book. And what a treat that is! Anita Shreve has crafted an excellent story. I did not know that the male character was from a previous novel and now look forward to reading that book.
Rating:
Summary: wow!
Review: A very good read- I'd recommend it without reservation. Beautifully and intelligently written, a compelling story, exotic locales, and an ending that makes you think and think... What more could you want?
Rating:
Summary: Confused in Auburn
Review: I enjoyed the book, however the ending left me confused..Should I read the book over to understand the ending?....to understand the book?....I really don't want to read it again but would rather have someone explain it to me....(wish it had been in paperback) PS I started "The Weight of Water"...is this the same Thomas as in the book I just finished?
Rating:
Summary: First Impressions Mean Everything
Review: I have undoubtedly become an Anita Shreve addict, having read THE PILOT'S WIFE, THE WEIGHT OF WATER, and most recently THE LAST TIME THEY MET. Even though I don't consider Shreve's stories as powerful testaments of life's difficulties, I still enjoy her exploration of the language of love, of how it can motivate and how it can change one forever. In her newest novel -THE LAST TIME THEY MET - Shreve explores love once again, demonstrating the damaging effects of an all too potent love affair.Upon introduction, Linda Fallon is a woman who likes the simplicity of things. She takes comfort in an outfit that is accessible to any situation: a white blouse, a navy skirt; doesn't mind that her bed is used for slumber and nothing else. She is a widower who revels in the happier moments of her marriage, a mother with two grown children who have dismissed her guidance. Alone, Linda Fallon considers herself destined to live her remaining years without any romantic complexity. But - to the enjoyment of the reader - the past does makes its way to the surface and ultimately, Linda finds herself carried upon great waves of emotion that she has kept stilled for years. A writer, Linda Fallon spends her time promoting her poems. This is how she is introduced, in preparation for a function in which she must speak about her published work. It is there that she is reacquainted with an old love, another poet whose own works are immeasurably popular. She is in the company of Mr. Thomas Janes (a character first introduced in THE WEIGHT OF WATER), and in the resurfacing of old desires, Linda discovers there is much more to life than comfort in that which is simple. THE LAST TIME THEY MET does just that, going back furthur and further into the past to each time Linda and Thomas have met, to a torrid time in Africa, to their very first introduction in a New England schoolroom. This is how Shreve grabs one, knowing that there will be a curiousity to how such a powerful attraction came to be denied. I have to admit, the ending was not too surprising. If one has read THE WEIGHT OF WATER, there is a clue to the resolve of THE LAST TIME THEY MET. But I still give kudos to Anita Shreve, who decided to put a romantic twist on things, for in the brevity of love, there is a lifetime of devotion. This is a beautiful book.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best books I've ever read
Review: I finished this book 10 days ago, and I can't stop thinking about it. At first I was confused by the ending, but then I figured it out, and it was oh so powerful!! I don't want to pick up another book yet because I still want to think about this one. No other book has ever left me feeling this way. I am a fan of Shreve's and couldn't put down The Weight of Water, Fortune's Rocks and Eden Close. I did not have the same feeling while reading The Last Time they Met, but the ending rocked me. I urge you to delve into the psyche of Thomas Janes, one of the main characters. Comparitively speaking, The Pilot's Wife did nothing for me.
Rating:
Summary: Last Page
Review: I've never read a book where it was so necessary to read all the way to the last page to understand the whole novel! For anyone who hasn't read it but intends to, don't read the end until you really get to it (my suggestion). Pretty interesting. I recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: complex, involved characters make for a intriguing read
Review: Anita Shreve has done it again. A master of detail, Ms. Shreve sets the stage for readers to plunge into this book with its first page. Like the wind from the revolving door in the first scene, her reader audience is pulled into the lives of Linda and Thomas, two people who meet again after many years and who share a past. Set against the dreay streets of Boston and the brilliance of Africa, the reader is swept into the lives of two very complex characters' lives (Thomas, again, makes a appearance from Shreve's The Weight of Water) and the choices they make, not to be satified until the last page of the novel. Rich in detail, fascinating in dialogue, with unique plot twists, this is a book you will want your book club to read and you will want to have in your library. An excellent read. I highly recommend it.
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