Read Your Writes Book Reviews: ⚔️ Book Review ~ THE LAST BEST QUEST EVER by F.T. Lukens ⚔️

The Last Best Quest Ever
by: F.T. Luken
Genre: Teen/YA LGBTQ+ Fantasy
Release Date: May 26, 2026
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books/Simon Teen

A fraudulent teen quester must team up with a brooding, royal rival on a perilous adventure to save her brother’s life in this cozy young adult romantasy full of mythical creatures by the NewYork Times bestselling author of Spell Bound and So This is Ever After.

Seventeen-year-old Ellinore has the best questing record in the kingdom. Not even Aven—the infuriatingly charming royal who’s become her fiercest rival—can compete. But every one of Ellinore’s triumphs is a lie. The monsters she’s slain? Staged. The treasures she’s claimed? Planted. Tired of the charade, she shocks the realm by retiring during a royal feast.

Her hopes for a quiet life vanish when her reckless twin brother, Zig, bets his life on her ability to retrieve the horn of the mythical Elder Beast—a creature no one believes is real. To save him, Ellinore must return to the spotlight for one final quest. She’s joined by Zig, eager to prove himself; Aven, determined to finally outshine her; and a ragtag crew of unlikely questers with big dreams, questionable skills, and a knack for trouble.

As the stakes rise, Ellinore must decide who she really wants to be: the fraud the kingdom celebrates, the hero it needs, or someone entirely new.

Ellinore is considered to be the BEST quester in the kingdom of Avoury. The bards have written songs of her epic adventures and triumphant quests. The problem is, all those adventures and quests didn't happen the way she said they did. She isn't the brave quester everyone thinks she is, and before anyone can figure it out, at the ripe old age of seventeen, Ellinore has decided to retire from questing. Unfortunately, the day she announces her retirement, her twin brother, Zig, decides to make a bet with a duo of mages that she can obtain the horn of the mythical Elder Beast or lose his heart (literally from his body). Ellinore has sixteen days to truly pull off a quest of a lifetime and save her brother’s life, without anyone figuring out that she’s a fake.

Determined to figure out a way to obtain the horn, Ellinore sets out on the impossible quest. To her surprise, Zig and Princet Aven of Avoury (her questing rival) join her. Along the way, they pick up a few other people, who each want something from the great Ellinore the Brave. This group of misfits proves that there is always more than one way to accomplish a task.

F.T. Lukens’ The Last Best Quest Ever is a young adult fantasy where the main theme is believing in yourself, and knowing that you’re you and that’s enough. There's friendship, found family, a dragon who is literally the best, and a sweet little romance. I loved every moment of this story, and I’m looking forward to reading more books from F.T. in the future.

~ Favorite Quotes ~

“It’s not weakness to rely on others, to take advice, to trust people.”

“You shouldn’t diminish yourself for anyone else.”

**Received a copy of the book from the publisher and voluntarily reviewed it.**

Rating: 5

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F.T. Lukens is a New York Times bestselling author of YA speculative fiction, including the novels Spell Bound, So This Is Ever After, Love at Second Sight, Otherworldly, and In Deeper Waters (2022 ALA RainbowBooklist; Junior Library Guild Selection), as well as other science fiction and fantasy works. Their contemporary fantasy novel The Rules and Regulations for Mediating Myths & Magic was a 2017 Cybils Award finalist in YA Speculative Fiction and won the Bisexual Book Award for Speculative Fiction. F.T. resides in North Carolina with their spouse, three kids, three dogs, and three cats.

Places to find F.T. Lukens:

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