Struggling alcoholic Cal is the last Kane brother to tackle the terms of his grandfather’s will and receive his inheritance. He is tasked with spending the summer at his grandfather’s house in Lake Wisteria before selling it, but when Cal arrives in Lake Wisteria after spending six years away, he is shocked to discover that Lana, his childhood best friend and only love, lives in his grandfather’s house with her young daughter. Cal’s chances of obtaining his inheritance are put in jeopardy when he discovers that Lana, who hates Cal for breaking her heart, co-owns the house and doesn’t plan on selling.
Final Offer is a new adult romance featuring the forced proximity, second chance romance, enemies to lovers, friends to lovers, and single parent tropes. This is the third and final installment in Lauren Asher’s Dreamland Billionaires trilogy, so if you’re new to this series, you should start with book one, The Fine Print, to avoid spoilers. This would be perfect for fans of romance novels like Twisted Love by Ana Huang, Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score, Hook, Line, and Sinker by Tessa Bailey, Every Summer After by Carley Fortune, Lizzie Blake’s Best Mistake by Mazey Eddings, and In the Weeds by B.K. Borison. Some themes present in Final Offer include loneliness and isolation, growing up, family, wealth, desire to escape, love and heartbreak, death, mental health, and addiction, but be aware of the following trigger warnings for absentee parents, alcoholism and addiction, and death of a family member (prior to story).
Cal is totally swoonworthy; not only is he a committed cat dad, but he is also so sweet to Lana’s daughter, Cami, and it was very cute to see Cal develop an almost instant dad-like connection with Cami. Seeing how Cal learned to use books as a healthier way of coping with some of his mental health struggles was great to see and I think that other readers will connect with this as well. My favourite part of Final Offer was the epic trip to Dreamland (the Kane family’s Disney-esque theme park), which included a princess makeover and fireworks! Asher included some comedic elements in this novel that were brilliant; for example, Cal unknowingly volunteers to dress-up in an embarrassing costume for the community Strawberry festival. It was great having the other Kane brothers (and their significant others) still part of the plot in Final Offer and made regular appearances throughout the novel. Without spoiling anything, I felt like the ending, both of this story and the series, was very fitting.
On the downside, this book seemed somewhat long as it was over 100 pages longer than the other two books and Final Offer was slow to start too. This made the book hard for me to get into since Cal and Lana have a history before the events of Final Offer, the beginning of the book required a lot of preamble and background information.
Overall, Final Offer was enjoyable and would recommend it to fellow contemporary romance readers, especially those who love second chance romances!
Final Offer is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers, like your local bookstore.
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Synopsis | Goodreads
Callahan
I’m the Kane brother everyone gossips about behind closed doors.
Trust fund brat. Washed-up athlete. High-functioning alcoholic.
No one knows the real me but her.
Lana Castillo—my childhood best friend and the only woman I ever loved.
When I broke her heart six years ago, I promised to never return to Lake Wisteria.
I kept my word until my grandfather’s will changed everything.
To receive my inheritance, I was tasked with spending a summer at the family lake house before selling it.
The request was simple in theory until my entire plan blew up on the very first day.
Turns out Lana doesn’t just live at the house, but she claims to own it, too.
Alana
Falling in love with Callahan Kane was a mistake.
He told me so before destroying my heart and our friendship six summers ago.
When he promised never to come back, I foolishly believed him.
But then Cal showed up again, intending to sell his grandfather’s lake house.
The biggest flaw in his plan?
My name is on the deed.
