Last Will and Testament by Dahlia Adler
Series: Radleigh University #1
on December 9, 2014
Genres: Contemporary
Pages: 414
Format: eARC
Source: Author
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Lizzie Brandt was valedictorian of her high school class, but at Radleigh University, all she's acing are partying and hooking up with the wrong guys. But all that changes when her parents are killed in a tragic accident, making her guardian to her two younger brothers. To keep them out of foster care, she'll have to fix up her image, her life, and her GPA—fast. Too bad the only person on campus she can go to for help is her humorless, pedantic Byzantine History TA, Connor Lawson, who isn't exactly Lizzie's biggest fan.

But Connor surprises her. Not only is he a great tutor, but he’s also a pretty great babysitter. And chauffeur. And listener. And he understands exactly what it’s like to be on your own before you're ready. Before long, Lizzie realizes having a responsible-adult type around has its perks... and that she'd like to do some rather irresponsible (but considerably adult) things with him as well. Good thing he's not the kind of guy who'd ever reciprocate.

Until he does.

Until they turn into far more than teacher and student.

Until the relationship that helped put their lives back together threatens everything they both have left.

Last Will and Testament has been on my TBR for a while.  Y’all know me, I’m a sucker for new adult novels.  This one was no exception.  I was hooked from the start.  In fact, I was so hooked I actually missed my train because I was paying no attention to anything but the book.

One thing that always gets me hooked is humor and Last Will and Testament was definitely not lacking in that department.  While it starts off on a more somber note, it definitely contains humor to balance the sadness.  Lizzie’s sense of humor is perfect.  She is snarky and witty and so easy to like.  There were times when I just wanted to applaud her for her ability to stay so humorous even after everything.  The banter between her and Connor was also perfect.  Connor did seem like a bit of a stick in the mud at first but once he opened up a bit more to Lizzie I started to like him.  Who could possibly go wrong with a sexy history nerd?

Lizzie and Connor definitely had their problems though.  They had a lot of back and forth going on for a while.  This was mainly on Connor’s part but Lizzie definitely helped it along.  One day Connor would be all over Lizzie and the next day he’d tell her they could never have a relationship.  The next day he’d be all over her again.  I understand where he was coming from but it was a little annoying.  Like I said, Lizzie didn’t help matters though because she was always showing up at his office or texting him.  I could see why he might be confused.

The romance was beyond steamy.  I had just gotten to a really good part when I missed my train and once you read the book you’ll understand why I might have been a little distracted.  Connor and Lizzie have some serious chemistry between them.  They  might not always like each other but they can’t deny that.  They also built up a pretty great friendship after everything they went through.  There was some serious drama with the two of them but they made it work.

The custody situation was an interesting aspect of the story.  I wasn’t all that impressed with how Lizzie handled taking care of her brothers but she was young and not equipped for a situation like that.  Tyler was 13 and Max was 7 and they both had issues that they needed adults to help with.  I was a bit disappointed with how much Lizzie left them alone.  I get that she had a lot going on in her life and Tyler was capable of babysitting but she left him in charge quite often, even when she was home with them.  I wanted to see her mature to a point where she was really there for both of her brothers and I don’t think she ever reached that point.

Overall, Last Will and Testament kept me hooked from beginning to end and definitely left me wanting more.  I’m eager to continue this new adult series.  I would highly recommend this one.

What others are saying about Last Will and Testament:

Emilie’s Book World’s review: “The latest in the string of awesome New Adult I’ve read is Dahlia Adler’s Last Will and Testament.”

A Reader of Fictions’ review: “Finally, since I forgot to mention it above, Dahlia’s NA some fabulous sassy humor, so if you’re into crude jokes and her Twitter feed, you’ll get some chuckles.”

SleepsOnTables’ review: “It goes so much deeper than the typical NAs we’ve seen before and I can’t wait for Radleigh University #2!”