The Last to Let Go: 5 reasons this February release is a must-read

2. The story spans an entire year — and an entire grieving process

Structurally, The Last to Let Go is broken up into the four seasons of Brooke’s junior year of high school. This format enhances the novel, both by allowing it to encompass the entirety of Brooke’s mother’s trial and by using the weather changes to reflect Brooke’s grief. On the topic of dividing the novel into these four sections, Smith writes:

"One of my favorite things about writing The Last to Let Go was playing with the weather and seasons. The book takes place over the course of one year, so it’s told in four parts: Summer, Fall, Winter, and Spring. I really wanted the seasons to be something greater than just a device to divide the time, so I tried to delve into thematic and metaphorical elements in relation to the weather. I wanted the evolution that takes place with the changing of the seasons to reflect the emotional journey of the characters, but after a while, the seasons began to feel like characters themselves."

It’s always satisfying to see authors experiment with formatting and structure, and it’s especially great when it works to improve the story. That’s definitely the case with this novel. The seasons affect the mood of the story tremendously, sometimes in ways we don’t notice until after putting the book down.