I only read the Anne Gracie story, but I loved it! I might circle back for the rest at some point. ( )

A sweet Christmas anthology. (And there actually wasn't a terrible one in the bunch, which is quite a feat!) I rate them thusly-

Prologue by Jo Beverley - This basically just lists the main players, with some tiny snippets as introduction. 3 stars.

My True Love Hath My Heart by Joanna Bourne - This was a fun little spy story. What was really great about it though, was that the couple's history together felt so genuine. I'm a little amazed at how well it worked actually. Often when past events are referenced they don't carry much weight, because the reader wasn't "there" for any of it. But somehow Bourne was able to create a feeling of their history together just from little reminices between them and in their thoughts. So this story really felt like it was building on a previous solid foundation of their history and feelings. And in at least one of the references I thought 'I would definitely like to read that story!' lol. I hadn't gotten around to reading anything by Bourne before this, but I'm looking forward to doing so now. 5 stars.

A Scottish Carol by Susan King - The first scene started off with a bit of a preposterous premise, which really wasn't even entirely necessary to be included, but it was at least acknowledged as very unlikely, and the rest of the story was grounded and made sense. A new to me author, and I would read more. This was quite sweet and enjoyable, so I'm still giving it 5 stars.

Christmas Larks by Patricia Rice - This felt like it might have been a bit hindered by the short length. I felt like I didn't quite have enough of the story for everything to work together as it should. If more of the details and side stories could have been filled out it might have been a 4, but overall it was 3 stars.

In the Bleak Midwinter by Mary Jo Putney - It felt like there wasn't a whole lot to this one really, but it still had some sweet moments and the characters were likable, so 4 stars.

Old Flames Dance by Cara Elliott - I liked both of the characters fine in this, but I just wasn't particularly grabbed by it. 3 stars.

A Season for Marriage by Nicola Cornick - The hurdle to their relationship felt a little flimsy, and the characters were just 'fine', so 3 stars.

Miss Finch and the Angel by Jo Beverley - This was sweet and felt like it would end in sort of a flirtatious marriage of convenience with plenty of potential for more in the future, which I would have been plenty happy with, but at the last moment it seemed like they were suddenly already deeply in love, and I just didn't feel that the story had supported that level of feeling at that point. It had been a nice building to their relationship and then felt like a sudden leap at the end. 3 stars.

Mistletoe Kisses by Anne Gracie - This one was very sweet and a lovely note for the book to end on. It caught me up in the story and was quite enjoyable, and I felt pleased at the end of it. 5 stars. ( )

I can usually power through an anthology, but stopped reading this at 25 percent. The first story was boring beyond belief and then I skipped around and realized that none of the other stories looked interesting either. It didn't help that I had to keep going back to the intro in the book to look up people that were appearing in the other stories. I tried really hard to get into them, but just said forget it, and moved on at 25 percent.

The only thing I thought was a smart idea is that all of the stories are occurring at an annual Christmas ball being thrown by at a character's home in this one. So technically the stories should all be connected, but I think the first one wasn't that interesting that it just didn't bode well for the other stories.

The only story I started and finished was My True Love Hath My Heart by Joanna Bourne. Sorry, but this was tedious. The two main characters are Claire and Nick. Sorry, but not rooting for people stealing. The whole storyline is that Claire and Nick are on the outs because of reasons and then Nick shows up to this ball/house party because he knows Claire will be there to steal a necklace. The backstory into this two barely hangs together and the dialogue was tedious.

I did start A Scottish Carol by Susan King but just gave up partially through the story. ( )

Liked the Putney and Beverley stories best. I didn't really care for the Joanna Bourne story. Very long and more than slightly ridiculous. The Susan King story was OK. The Patricia Rice story was silly and sentimental but I liked it. The Cara Elliott story was nice. The Cornick story was kind of an old trope and nothing fresh about it. The Ann Gracie story was very nice. ( )

Anthology reads are my favorites. For a person who reads a lot these collections give a chance to try out new authors, read great stories and experience a variety of emotions and scenarios. The Last Chance Christmas Ball allows you to experience the glitz, glamour and anxious anticipation of the holiday season. One event, five authors, five well written stories of hope, second chances, surprises and enchanting adventures. The round robin concept is a great idea because it gives each writer the chance to put their own spin or voice to the read. Loved and would recommend this charming collection. I received an ARC of The last Chance Ball in exchange for an honest review. ( )