One Last Shot

Yesterday, Betty Cayouette released her debut novel, One Last Shot. The stunning cover and the fact that it’s set in Italy are the first things that made me want to read this. It’s a second-chance romance between two former best friends, with a marriage pact bringing them back together for a one-week photo shoot in Cinque Terre.

Special thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book!

Summary

It’s been 10 years since Emerson saw her high school best friend Theo. But they made a marriage pact as teenagers, promising to marry each other if they’re still single at 28, and the reminder has just gone off on Emerson’s phone. Is there a chance to finally find love with the one that got away? She’s a supermodel now, and Theo is a photographer, so it’s not too hard to arrange a chance to work on the same shoot. Emerson will have just one week to rekindle her relationship with Theo… if they can overcome all that’s happened between them since high school.

Review

One Last Shot has two of my favorite things in a book: a heartfelt love story and a vacation-worthy setting. I’ll admit, the Italian backdrop is what initially made me get the book, but the romance is what kept me reading.

This is a friends-to-lovers, second-chance, marriage pact romance between a supermodel, Emerson, and a photographer, Theo. Her career success has skyrocketed since they last saw each other a decade ago, while his success has been fine, but not staggering. What happened to drive these former best friends apart? The story follows two timelines, now and 10+ years ago when Emerson and Theo were in high school, and we get the perspectives of both. Bit by bit, we learn how these two became such close friends, what went wrong, and how they’ve both secretly wanted to rekindle their relationship ever since it fell apart. But will one week together in Italy be enough to rebuild that trust?

I loved getting to know Emerson and Theo here, both their younger selves and their adult selves. They’re complex characters, but likable and easy to root for. Theo in particular seems like a wonderful book boyfriend… he actually reminds me of my husband, at least personality-wise! They have only a week to bridge the 10-year gap between them, but I appreciate that Em and Theo take their time in first regaining their friendship before escalating to a potential romance.

We get a great insider’s look at the world of modeling and photography. I know nothing about either, but it was fun spending some time in this industry. And with Em’s celebrity status, there are some bigger workings at play here: a meddling manager, a fake relationship with another superstar, and more of life in the spotlight. Even so, Em has some good friends in her life. Theo also has a good support group, especially in his family.

The Italian setting is beautiful, though not as prominent as I’d hoped it would be. We get to see scenic hikes and gelato, but most of the story takes place on a photo shoot and with non-Italian characters.

A caution for some readers: There is one difficult theme that’s central to the story, and the author includes a note about it at the beginning of One Last Shot. An instance of sexual assault happens to a character, though not on page and without too much detail. This is handled with utmost sensitivity, but it could be hard to read about.

Final Thoughts

One Last Shot is a splendid romance, with important themes, well-rounded characters, and a love story that you can’t help but want to work out. And kudos for that title—I love the double meaning of it! This is a strong debut, and I will happily read whatever is next from Betty Cayouette.

Get the Book

You can buy One Last Shot here – it’s available as a paperback, ebook, and audiobook.

One Last Shot by Betty Cayouette
Audience	Adult
Genre	Romance
Setting	Italy; Massachusetts; California
Number of Pages	352
Format I Read	Ebook (NetGalley ARC)
Original Publication Date	May 7, 2024
Publisher	St. Martin’s Griffin

Official Summary

From the creator of viral TikTok account Betty’s Book List, a debut romance about a supermodel and a photographer with a past marriage pact who meet again ten years later on a photoshoot in Cinque Terre, Italy.

From the moment Emerson and Theo met as teenagers, they were inseparable. But just when they finally expressed their feelings to one another, they were torn apart.

Now, supermodel Emerson is nearing her twenty-eighth birthday, and she’s tired of looking for love in all the wrong places. When the calendar reminder for the marriage pact she and Theo made as teens goes off on her phone, she realizes this is it—her chance to rekindle the only romance that ever really made sense. Emerson convinces her grumpy agent to book her as the face of the fashion campaign that Theo, now a fashion photographer, is shooting. The good news: the campaign is being shot in ridiculously romantic Cinque Terre, Italy. The bad news? Theo might not be as happy to see her as she’d hoped.

The two embark on a four-day campaign that tests not only their feelings, but their ability to keep their hands off one another. But as roadblock after roadblock keeps them apart, Emerson starts to wonder: will this photoshoot be the key to getting one last shot at love, or will it be a final goodbye?