"Last Chance Hero" by Cathleen Armstrong is the fourth book of the "A Place to Call Home" series.  I have not read any of the previous three books, and without knowing that it was a series, I started "Last Chance Hero".  I was intrigued by the series title of "A Place to Call Home" and I was drawn to it.  After finish reading the book, I can assure you it can act as a standalone novel.

We have Andy, an ex-NFL star from Last Chance, New Mexico returning to his home town as the local high school's football coach/athletics director.  Then a new city girl, Dr. Jess McLeod who's always dreamt of becoming a small town doctor, decided to become the only doctor in Last Chance.  With Last Chance being a high school "football" town, and Jess not having any interest in football, will she be able to fit in an call Last Chance home? And what about Andy? Will Jess and Andy find enough common ground towards a new start for both of them in a small town?

"Last Chance Hero" is what I call an easy read. It's easy because you get wrapped up in it, the story line, the town and the people.  Does this book excite me? No. Does it keep me reading along? Yes. There's no major adventure, and this is not one of those books. It keeps me reading because it feels "real". It's an enjoyable read because one can easily pick it up, and read and read and didn't realize it was the end already. I finished the book in one afternoon, and didn't even know that was it. The characters kept it going, and I'm assuming (now that I know there are 3 books prior to this one), these other couples in the books are main leads in Ms. Armstrong's other "A Place to Call Home" novels.

"A Place to Call Home" speaks to me because I was looking forward to some underlying faith/inspirational message, which unfortunately was more like a whisper than a focus. And when there was a dialogue on it, it felt forced and unnatural.  Then there's the issue I have with the ending. It felt rushed and unfinished. I wished there was more, and maybe there will be and my questions will be answered. It just didn't seem like a complete ending.  Even for that, I did enjoy reading "A Last Chance Hero", and may continue on with the next one or go backwards.  For those who are interested, book 1, "Welcome to Last Chance" is currently free on Amazon Kindle.

For your own copy, check out the Goodreads giveaway:  https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/150306-last-chance-hero

Paperback Release date: September 15, 2015 
Digital Released date: September 8, 2015 
NOTE: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher, Revell Books for an honest review.

TO PURCHASE A COPY: Amazon, ChristianBook

Last Chance Hero: A Novel By Cathleen Armstrong / Revell