The Last Resort

Jenny Walker accompanies her terminally ill husband Wilkie to Key West, Florida, where he hopes to work on his final academic book. The couple settles into The Reefs, a guest house populated by an eclectic group of residents seeking refuge from their respective lives up north. As winter progresses in this sun-drenched setting, Jenny finds herself navigating complex relationships with the other inhabitants of The Reefs. Her role as caretaker to Wilkie becomes complicated by new connections and revelations that emerge within the close quarters of the guest house. The story traces the transformation of its characters against the backdrop of Key West's distinct culture and weather patterns. Marriages, friendships, and long-held beliefs shift like the tides as each resident confronts personal truths in this isolated setting. The Last Resort examines how physical and emotional displacement can catalyze change, even in lives that seem fixed in their trajectories. Through its focus on end-of-life care and marital dynamics, the novel considers how people adapt when facing mortality and upheaval.

Readers describe this book as a slow-paced character study with undertones of dark humor. Many note the sharp observations about aging, family dynamics, and the shifting relationships between parents and adult children. Likes: - Nuanced portrayal of marriage and aging - Authenticity of Key West setting - Complex female characters, especially Jenny - Subtle humor throughout Dislikes: - Lack of plot momentum - Too many secondary characters - Several found the ending unsatisfying - Some characters come across as unlikeable A common critique mentions the story takes too long to develop, with one reader noting "the first 100 pages drag considerably." Ratings: Goodreads: 3.4/5 (241 ratings) Amazon: 3.7/5 (17 ratings) Multiple readers compared it unfavorably to Lurie's other works, particularly "Foreign Affairs." One Amazon reviewer wrote: "Not her best - the characters never quite come alive like they do in her earlier novels."

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🌟 Author Alison Lurie won the 1985 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for her novel "Foreign Affairs," establishing her reputation for witty social commentary. 🏖️ "The Last Resort" was published in 1998 and explores themes of aging, sexuality, and renewal against the backdrop of Key West, Florida. 🎨 The book's setting was inspired by Lurie's own experiences in Key West, where she spent many winters and became familiar with its artistic community. 📚 Throughout her career, Lurie balanced fiction writing with academic work, serving as a professor at Cornell University where she taught children's literature. 🌴 Key West, the novel's setting, has been a creative haven for numerous famous writers including Ernest Hemingway, Tennessee Williams, and Elizabeth Bishop - a tradition that "The Last Resort" acknowledges and builds upon.