Thank you to NetGalley and Julie Soto for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I absolutely DEVOURED this book! What an amazing story. I was so drawn to Elliot and Ama. They’re ere both beautifully human, flawed and funny and resilient. There were times I wanted to shake Ama and times I wanted to shake Elliot, but mostly I just loved them. I love the duel timeline (and how it exactly marked out the days😭). The way it lined up really impacted the story. This book was also way spicier than I anticipated, but it worked with the book. The ending was just perfect.

Ama Torres is a wedding planner with substantial expertise from her own mother’s sixteen (!!) weddings. When she books the biggest wedding of her career for ultra famous influencer Hazel Rose, Ama has to come face to face with her former lover, Elliott Bloom. Elliott is the only florist talented enough to pull off Hazel, Jackie and Ama’s complicated vision but the animosity between them after their bad breakup threatens to derail the whole thing.

This book absolutely smashed any and all of my expectations. What a phenomenal debut that stands to be one of my favorite reads of the entire year. The tension building in both the now (Ama’s pov) and in the past (Elliott’s pov) is masterful. I was on the edge of my seat waiting for someone to make a move in both timelines.

Ama and Elliott drove each other bananas but also made each other better in all ways. Their back and forth banter was like watching a professional tennis match. I could not look away. I loved how much Elliott saw Ama, and knew what she needed even when she didn’t or when she was too stubborn to admit it. The meaning behind Elliott’s tattoos hit me so hard in the feels, especially the tattoo he gets in the two years, nine months, one week and three days they’re apart.

Everyone who loves a love story needs to read this, you won’t regret it! You must read this especially if you enjoy: 💒 impossibly fabulous weddings 💐 hot, broody florists 💍 sweetness and sunshine wedding planners 🍩 donuts 🥀 endangered and extinct flower tattoos ❤️‍🩹 second chance romance 🌲 Sacramento, the City of Trees 🌱 seeing the potential in people and places that most people miss

The hype is real, ya'll!

I loved this one!

Still sitting in my post book reading haze swoon after finishing this one with my morning coffee this morning.

Sometimes you just know, within the first few chapters, that a book is going to work for you. The writing style clicks, the storyline is on point (wedding planners are a win for me, whether it's books or movies, I just always jive with it) and the characters are just speaking to me like we are friends. This book is one of those and it's so refreshing because I haven't found that connection with a lot of romance books so far this year.

Second chance, grumpy vs sunshine, with an added social media/reality TV show mix in with a heavy emphasis on career and being a girl boss. Really liked Sadie as she's a hustler with her work, a realist about love (if not a little traumatized by her serial bride mother) and don't forget a lover of donuts, lol. Elliot is mysterious and broody, a man of few words, but creative as heck and loyal to a fault. I loved them together, even though they have some communication issues clouded by all their lust, and was rooting for them the whole way through. Highly recommend and look forward to more by this author!

Tropes: Second Chance, Grumpy x Sunshine, Forced Proximity

TW: Mention of Lung Cancer, Mention of Death, Mention of Sexual Harassment

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever Publishing for providing me with an E-ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!!

Ama (Wedding Planner) and Elliot (Florist) are forced to work together on a high-profile celebrity wedding, despite the past that they had together (they use to date). Ama is not one for dating or relationships in general, and Elliot has his guard up because his heart has been broken plenty of times. That's until Elliot can't control his feelings for Ama....

As soon as I saw this cover, I knew I was going to love this book. This story is told in a Dual POV, and the author does an amazing job with capturing the perspectives of both characters -- going from the past to the present. What I really loved about this book is how realistic the author made these characters -- how Ama doesn't do relationships and how Elliot goes from protecting his heart to expressing his feelings to Ama and Ama running away. There were some tense and tearful moments, but everything came together so seamlessly. I read this book fairly quickly. Also, this was the author's DEBUT novel, and it blew me away! Highly recommend this book! I can't wait to see what the author writes next!!

this was so cute!!!! Ama, a wedding planner, gets her first opportunity at a high profile wedding on her own and has to work with her grumpy, tattooed, handsome, ex-boyfriend… who is the florist.

i loved how we get their past story through Elliot’s POV and their current situation through Ama’s POV until we meet up to the big wedding. they both worked around each other for years before finally colliding together and unable to deny their connection. but Ama was against relationships, commitment, and ultimately… Marriage. her mother has been married 16 different times, she has quite a handful of step-siblings and although she loves weddings, she only sees them as a party, nothing that should embody everlasting love.

i really loved this book, it was fast paced and to the point which was just what i needed for my book hangover! i need to add Julie Soto to my list of authors to check out because now i’m hooked.

I had very high hopes for this book. I had seen in floating around on Instagram, and it sounded perfect for me: a grumpy, florist MMC, and a sunshine, wedding planner FMC? YES PLEASE. I hate to say it, but this book didn't do it for me.

Here's the thing: Soto is an excellent writer. She writes sexual chemistry well, and her characters aren't stock. Had the book been written in a straightforward manner, this could easily be an excellent romance. The problem, for me, was the flashbacks. It's a second-chance romance (which I'm normally not fond of, but this one sounded promising), but the unusual method of storytelling in this book was confusing, and made me dislike the story. The story switches between past and present CONSTANTLY. I'd just begin to understand something, and then we'd be flung in the past. Over and over again. By the time we get caught up, the book is practically over. Listen, I'd like to think of myself as an educated person. I enjoy a little bit of a challenge to my romances, but this was just hard to read. Hell, even if we'd only been thrown back in time once or twice, I might could've handled it. However, this made the story impossible to get in to. I kept trying to catch up with the story and the characters and what they said and did--reading a romance should not be this strenuous, but it was.

Once again, had this book been written in a straightforward manner--and there weren't tons of flashbacks to understand the story--I think I would've really enjoyed it. The characters seemed fleshed out and interesting; I just wish I'd got to read their story in a more cohesive way. That's honestly a big part of the reason I hate second-chance romances. I don't get to be present for the first touch, kiss, etc. And doing that with this many flashbacks caused it to be clunkier than it needed to be. Julie Soto seems like a great writer, and as long as it isn't another second-chance romance with unnecessary plot set-ups, I will definitely read whatever else she writes.

Forget Me Not caught my interest with its alluring cover featuring the two main characters sharing an intimate caress. Elliot's tattooed arm also added to my curiosity. The synopsis also sounded promising, therefore I was hooked.

Unfortunately, the story of Ama and Elliot is ... disappointing. Their personalities do not shine through in a way that makes them feel like real individuals. They both are simply characters on paper. They fit in very stereotypical book character traits; Ama is hard-working but doubtful and fears commitment, while Elliott is the introverted, grumpy, secretly hopeless romantic guy. The lack of individuality in the characters makes it harder to feel the chemistry when they do eventually come together as lovers. Why do you they even love each other? When did they ever get to know each other outside of work? (except that one lousy date...) Why did Ama, after 5 years of being away from Elliot, all of a sudden decides that she does in fact want to get married to him and proposes out of the blue?

Forget Me Not lacked the magic, the butterflies, that a second chance romance would give a reader (me).

Kind regards to NetGalley for providing me with an advanced reader copy! All opinions and thoughts are my own.

I absolutely loved this book! Easily a 5/5 star read that I couldn’t put down. This book is released July 11, 2023. Thank you Julie Soto, Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and Netgalley for an opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.

This book had some really fun and cute moments! It wasn't overwhelmingly enjoyable and there were times where I was ready for it to be over, but I had fun watching this chemistry develop.

This book was a bit of a mess. I enjoyed Elliot, and the wedding setup was interesting, but the whole thing fell apart quick.

Ama was intolerable in both flashbacks and present. She steamrolls everyone and was absolutely insufferable. I hated her the entire book and didn't want her to end up with Elliot.

The wedding plot was also relatively poorly planned out. It was okay at the beginning and I was interested to see the conflict with Whitney, even though Ama was too obtuse to see it coming, but the whole wedding fell to shambles plot wise and it just seemed like everything came out of nowhere. It was a bit of a ridiculous ending.

The steamy scenes also made me cringe very very hard. I hated every moment of them, it was so unrealistic and just full of weird word choices and terrible dialogue.

I enjoyed Julie's fanfiction and I still like her writing in general, but this book was a hot mess. I'm super disappointed by it.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my eARC!

This was really damn good. “Forget Me Not” is emotional and thoughtful with a sprinkle of angst thrown in for extra emotional damage. Plus it actually made me laugh aloud several times which most books don’t make me do. A thing about this book that I really enjoyed that surprised me was the dual perspective. Personally I’m not a fan of dual perspectives in romance novels as I think it kills the tension. But what Julie Soto does here which the dual perspective is clever! it actually helped build tension, and I felt like I got to know both Ama and Elliot really well by the end of this book. They felt like real people. Also the spice? Very nice 👀

I haven’t read Julie’s Dramione fanfic but I’m a huge fan of her Reylo fanfic and I’m thrilled to see another talented writer get their art out there for the world to enjoy.

Side note—who is gonna play Elliot in the television adaption?? !!!!

Thanks so much to Netgally for a advanced copy of this in exchange for an honest review!

Hands down, this book is easily one of my fave romances of the year & will continue to be so long after 2023 has ended. Just like Ama’s event planning skills & Elliot’s floral arrangements, 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘔𝘦 𝘕𝘰𝘵 is a win for me across the board & is nothing short of beautiful.

One of my favorite parts about this book is how the characters are written. Even in moments where their feelings are obviously complicated or uncertain (whether it be about each other or regarding other factors), Ama & Elliot are both such strong leads, each carrying themselves with a natural, quiet confidence— because they know who they are at their core. Elliot may not be an “Alpha Male” – or even fall under your “standard” MMC mold, tbh – but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t or won’t go after what he wants. Ama may be straight-forward in both work & play, yes, but she is also still a dreamer; she is kind and hardworking and warm. Their personalities really do shine here imo, and it made their love story & individual arcs all the more believable to get behind/root for.

The duel POVs/sliding-doors chapter structure is also utilized really well here, w most of Ama’s POV being set in the present & Elliot’s in the past, and did a great job of keeping the slow-burn tension/intrigue alive regarding the reason for their past fallout.

Lastly, I appreciate the underlying discussion here of what it means to be in a marriage. To be in love. Because everyone is different. Not everyone wants marriage or kids or a house in the suburbs.... but that doesn't mean they aren’t open to love, to commitment, or even to change. Which is why I loved how & where the story ended. Because I really do believe that, so long as two people continue to choose one another & are willing to meet each other halfway, we all can find our own little piece of forever.
——— •

🔖 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐲 𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 (𝟏/𝟐): Big shoutout to @thatswhatnatread for featuring this book on her page some months ago— your review inspired me to apply for the ARC and I was so excited when I got approved!!! • bc fr, this is the ✨EXACT✨ type of 𝑮𝒓𝒖𝒎𝒑𝒚 𝑺𝒐𝒇𝒕-𝑩𝒐𝒚 x 𝑮𝒓𝒖𝒎𝒑𝒚-𝑺𝒖𝒏𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝑮𝒊𝒓𝒍 romance I never knew I needed but have been waiting for deep down 🥹 like PLEASE *𝘪𝘯𝘫𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘩!𝘵 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘺 𝘷𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘴* 🫡 • similar to when I read the ARC of “The Bodyguard” last year, I’m honestly so upset w myself for waiting so long to read this • the truth behind the extinct flowers 😭😭 stop, my heart • 💌 also, I now want a man to make me a personalized bouquet bc just… wow 💐 • the “horse girl encountering real horses” scene/meme took me tf out omg lmao 🤡💀 (#IYKYK) • finding out Ama is a Taurus makes so much sense narratively lol (and I say this as someone who is a Taurus Moon, so) • does it really count as a “third-act breakup” if it happened in the past? lol I think not! • the side characters were fun & all unique in their own ways; out of all of them though, I loved Jackie & feel like we def got to know her more as a person than we did Hazel (though she was great too!)

🔖 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐲 𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 (𝟐/𝟐): The sense of humor & heart woven throughout this entire book is right up my alley honestly, I laughed out loud so many times & obviously I can’t share any quotes until after pub day but just— trust me, it’s f*cking funny 💥💥 • And if you enjoy romcom films, I really do think you’ll love this book; the whole story really is a vibe, all the classic romcom tropes are featured here center stage & it all just comes together so fluidly/effortlessly— the workbench scene in Ch. 15 *alone* is pure GOLD (and no, it’s probably not what you’re thinking either lol 🍩 that’s what makes it so great)

Tears. In my eyes. I can’t stop crying help me something is wrong.

Forget Me Not was excellent. A beautiful story with a hot, intense, passionate, and incredibly moving romance. The prose swept me away from the first paragraphs, and the characters kept me hooked. Ama is so relatable, driven, and stubborn. Elliot is grumpy and reserved and, my god, the most loyal man ever. I ship. I ship it so hard.

This book also had my favorite third act. Ever. Of all the romance books I’ve devoured over the years. Exciting. Nerve wracking. Probably the reason I’ll need therapy asap. I LOVED IT. There really is so much to be said for the beautiful relationship, both past and present, that fills these pages. Julie Soto’s craft is impeccable. The voices of Elliot and Ama were so distinct. The pacing was incredibly tight. And Ama’s job was one of the most interesting I’ve ever read.

Also the sex was hella hot and I’m not ashamed to say that. 🥵 Five standing ovation stars to a romance that should be on everyone’s TBR. Now please someone pass me a tissue and give me the sequel or a spin off or anything!!!!

While overall I did love this story, it was a little difficult for me to get into and to start to really like the characters. Elliott gives Ama flowers that mean immaturity and resentment the first time they actually meet. I didn't understand this and found it incredibly rude when he didn't even know her at that point. I'm assuming it was to tie on with Whitney constantly insisting Ama be professional, but it immediately made me dislike him. Thankfully, I was able to get past it, but I still don't see the point of him doing that. Ama also drove me pretty crazy. I've never liked nor understood when a character has a particular hang up because of their parent, especially someone as strong and smart as Ama. It didn't make sense and if that was what the author wanted Ama's flaw to overcome then it would have been better for it to stem from a previous relationship, not from her crazy mother's experiences. Other than those two things, I liked the story enough to still rate it 4 stars, which is very rare for me. Usually, if I don't like the characters, I can't enjoy the story very well. I loved their careers, how creative Ama and Elliott were, and how they came together as a team. There were some good steamy bits too. I really think most romance readers would enjoy this one!

Smh @ me forgetting that one of my most anticipated summer releases has been tucked away on my Kindle this whole time! ANYWAYS:

Forget Me Not (FMN) follows Ama, an up-and-coming wedding planner that’s hired to plan a wedding of a famous influencer, which can either make or break her career. The only caveat: working with Elliot, a florist with whom she’s worked a lot with in the past and also her ex-boyfriend(ish).

FMN is told in dual POVs (Ama in the present, Elliot in the past), which I always love because but I felt that something was missing when I was reading Elliot’s chapters of how he and Ama initially got together. I thought it happened out of nowhere? I also thought one of them came off as a bit selfish, so I didn’t really feel emotionally invested in their overall relationship. I think this is the first book where I was interested in the characters jobs more than their relationship? The wedding planning role seems incredibly high stress, but to see such creative plans come to life must make it worthwhile. It reminded me of one of my favourite rom-coms, The Wedding Planner (one of Jennifer Lopez’s best, don’t @ me). I understood Ama’s need to want to handle everything on herself; to prove that she can make it as a wedding planner on her own and step out of the shadows of her former employer. I love that the MMC had such a non traditional job as a florist and that he’s such a grump. I’m always in awe of people who can create such beautiful floral displays and bouquets (I was very inspired to sign up for a floral arrangement class for beginners; it’s been on my bucket list for a while now so nothing like some fictional inspiration to get ya going!). I also learned a lot about flowers from this book! Had to Google every new flower that was mentioned to get a strong visual for all of the bouquets and floral structures that were made for the wedding.

Thanks @ netgalley for the eARC. Sorry I’m a million years late

This is another case of don’t judge a book by its cover. I wasn’t going to pick this book up because this is a really terrible cover, but after hearing good things on Twitter and finding out this debut author already has a television series deal in the works for it, I decided to see what the fuss was all about. And I’m really glad I did.

This is a grumpy/sunshine, second-chance romance with dual POVs and timelines. The FMC narrates in the present day with the MMC’s POV mainly in the past from when they first meet right up until the big break up before the beginning of the book. Not only does it help the reader get to know each of them, but it also builds the tension between the two so, so well.

Ama Torres is a wedding planner, who doesn’t believe in marriage. This is mainly due to her mother’s relationship history and 16 marriages. But she does have a great relationship with all of her ex-step-siblings and even hires them to work for her. Her best friend is another ex-step-sibling and their relationship is pretty fabulous. Ama doesn’t have a degree but realized where her gifts and passion lay and got a job right out of high school working for the premier wedding planner in Sacramento. She moved up the ranks pretty quickly, before going out on her own to find success. Her only issue, which really isn’t an issue per se, but is pounced on repeatedly by her former boss, is that she gets too close to her clients and vendors.

Elliot Bloom is the owner of Blooming, a florist who met Ama when he is just a man taking care of his ill father and taking over the family business. He’s the grumpy in this grumpy/sunshine relationship. His “flowers are better than people” resonated with me and even though he’s grouchy, irritated, and crude at times, I liked him immediately. I’m glad readers were able to get his perspective as their relationship was developing, mainly because during the present-day scenes he’s so quiet and standoffish. I don’t think this love story would have worked any other way.

Ama and Elliot are brought together again when a popular social media influencer and her fiancee choose Ama as their wedding planner, with Elliot already being contracted as their florist. The two haven’t worked together since their break-up, which as you can imagine, creates lots and lots of angst. I kind of liked being thrown into their established relationship, only getting glimpses into what happened years prior in interspersed chapters and watching them slowly but surely figure out a way to work together. There aren’t a whole lot of lovey-dovey scenes between them in the present day, the big heart-to-heart and reconciliation comes at the very end after something BIG happens at the wedding. But it worked for me.

This is 100% an open-door romance, and the scenes between the two are hot, hot, hot. Ama is the aggressor and I don’t think Elliot knew what to do with her at first. Don’t worry though, he figures it out. The main issue in their conflict arises from fear- fear of falling in love and defining the future. Elliot wants more, and Ama runs when he asks for it. I really loved the ending and HEA. I thought it was a perfect fit for this couple.

I am impressed by this debut author, highly impressed. I’m already looking forward to her next release. But for now, I recommend everyone who enjoys these tropes to put this one on your TBR.

4.5

I'm obsessed!!!!

Okay, lots of things came together to make me love this book so so much. First of all, it is a grumpy/sunshine second chance romance. Two of my very favorite tropes pulled together to create the perfect amount of angst.

Our MCs, Ama and Elliot, are a wedding planner and a florist, respectively. So.... They can't really get away from each other. They have done their very past for the past three years since their breakup, until a high-profile wedding shoves them back together.

Though Ama loves weddings, her mom has been married so many times that she knows marriage or even a real relationship is not for her. Enter grumpy, broody, secretly sappily romantic Elliot and all bets are off. Kind of.

This book is not only dual POV (which I love), but it also uses flashbacks to help tell the story of Ama and Elliot's past (which I LOVE). I was hooked by the angst we get in both POVs, the past build up and breakdown of a relationship, and the current awkward tension and longing both the characters are feeling. Most of the past is Elliot's POV where we get to see him quietly pining for Ama and being soft for her but also very confused by her. In the present, we see more of Ama as she grows into herself and figures out how to let herself want what she wants in romance and in life.

This book is steamy and fun and there are a ton of moments of caretaking by Elliot that made me soft and gooey inside.

My only critique is that I think Ama turns herself around too quickly in regard to her romantic ideals. I think it would have been great if we found out she had done therapy in the years they were apart and that she didn't just up and switch things to get her man. I know it was a long time coming and she had lots of time to think but it all felt like it happened in the last ten percent of the book.

I ADORED the ending though oh my god.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC!! I would recommend this to all the romance lovers and all the fanfic loverssss!!! I can't wait for more from Julie Soto!

This book was funny, had a good supporting cast, was fairly romantic and definitely spicy. I think it should've gone a little deeper with Ama's relationship issues. I liked the dual first person perspectives and thought that both Ama and Elliot's narrative voices felt distinct and tailored to their characterizations. It's dual timeline as well (Ama tells the present and Elliot tells the past), which I usually wouldn't enjoy. But it was a unique and engaging way to flesh out the second chance romance without having to get too expository.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5
Spice: 🌶️🌶️ 2.5/5


Tropes:
Boy falls first✔️
Second chance romance✔️
Forced proximity✔️
Dual POVS/ Dual Timelines✔️
Grumpy/Sunshine✔️


Honestly… when it came to Forget Me Not, I TOTALLY judged the book by its cover. It’s what reeled me in (besides a Latino Author last name) &. I’m so glad I did.
Pretty early on, I knew that this book was going to HURT so good & that their reconnection was gonna be AMA-ZING, AND. I. WAS. NOT. LET. DOWN! I cried, I ACHED, I fxckn LAUGHED at their inner thoughts..

I loved the DEEPER, hidden meanings sprinkled throughout the book; from Elliot's floral tattoos to Ama's namesake, etc.. It was like little surprises & pieces of that fictional character in where I said "stoppppp! omg that's too fxckn cute!!! 🥹" or "gahhh that's why?!!!! 😩"

The way the story was broken in Before and Present? PERFECTION. CHEF'S KISS! 💋
I didn't want their story to end, I fell for Ama & Elliot. I DEVOURED it & could've gladly kept on going.

I'm hoping this isn't the last of Ama & Elliot!

I'm never that person who declares a book as the 'best book/read of the year', but damn I'm about to do that.

Forget Me Not had me hooked from the very first chapter & not for a single minute was my attention diverted to anything else; I finished it in one go.

This was such a fresh take on second chance, grumpy×sunshine romance that will leave you in awe. I especially loved the fact that the present chapters were from Ama's POV & and the past were from Elliot's.

I think it's rare when books make you feel like you, yourself, are experiencing all the emotions like the MCs. I loved the intensity of the romance; the beginning, the middle & the end.

Elliot & Ama were perfect together. I adored Ama's ambition, confidence, & her sugar-loving sunshine personality. Elliot was a stern grump who, when opened up to someone, gave his everything. Along with the romance, this story had some amazing sub-plots & wedding shenanigans that a cherry on top.

Can't get over this for days to come. A MUST READ.

<i>Thank you Netgalley & Publisher for the arc in exchange for an honest review.<i>