This wasn't my first read by these ladies, I have loved their books and this is no exception. These 2 make an amazing team for writing books together. This was a twisty, propulsive surprise of a read and I loved it.

This book is heart warming and a battle (lol)
This book will have you crying laughing and all the other emotions throughout the book. The tale of 2 Friends turned enemies back to Allie’s is an amazing story of friendship, devotion to our children, our love conquering our past :)
Forever Hold Your Peace is perfect for readers who love messy, complicated family novels like All Adults Here and stories that bring the past and present together like One Italian Summer.

This sounded like a funny, yet emotional read but I found myself a bit bored by it, unfortunately. I wanted to love it and I had high hopes, but it wasn't for me

2.5 stars, rounded up to 3.*

I've read three other titles by Liz Fenton & Lisa Steinke and have enjoyed their style. I was expecting a similar mystery/thriller mixed with contemporary subject matter and characters.

But what I got was pretty standard issue chick-lit.

Forever Hold Your Peace is a complicated love story. Not my typical genre and in this case definitely not that engaging.

Olivia & Zach have a meet-cute in Positano, a whirlwind Lifetime-movie style whirlwind romance, and wind up engaged (conveniently they are both from the LA area). They both avoid telling their parents while in Italy and wait until they are home. Both have divorced Gen X parents and throw caution to the wind by bringing all of the parents together for a fancy brunch to begin the hasty wedding planning. Cue the drama. It turns out Olivia's mom knows Zach's parents...because their college affair/betrayal was the trauma of her life.

The story proceeds with parental drama and cumulates with everybody making nice and it wraps with an ending only Lifetime could applaud. For me-too cute.

There were bits and pieces of this story that I could see coming, but others, holy moly, I did not see that at all! This is an adorable romantic story of young love, mixed with the trials and tribulations of adulthood!

Expected publication July 11, 2023


Love. Drama. Marriage. Divorce. Drama. Lies. Secrets. The Past. Drama.

Imagine for one moment your daughter has met a man. A stranger while on vacation. They are heads over heels in love and six weeks after meeting get engaged. Now, imagine the same situation but this time it's your son. The families come together to plan a wedding but chaos, drama and the past rears its ugly head.
Oliva and Zack are desperately in love and that want nothing more than to have the support of their family. Some support it. Some don't. When the parents met they discover they were once a part of each other's past. Will this past break or make the wedding day?

Fenton & Steinken's characters are well developed, fun and quirky. They are people you can imagine or even people you know. The story is written in different points of views giving you a lot of insight and understanding to each character. Making you see both points of views and rooting for everyone.

Sit back, relax and enjoy this fun, charming read. Be prepared to be entertained and maybe reivist parts of your past.

This book was easy to binge and had a unique, interesting storyline. I disliked a few of the characters and couldn’t really agree with a lot of their actions, but I still enjoyed the book!

First and foremost I want to Thank Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke as well as Alcove Press and Netgalley for this fab ARC that blew me away.
If there's anything better on a rainy day than Women's Fiction read - I've not yet found it.
These two women are master's in their domain of writing for everyone with a taste of excellence left firm on the tip of your tongue.
I couldn't put this juicy piece down for many reasons but the biggest was the emotions were ripe and off the chart. The consequences of each characters actions left me wanting to join in and arguably slap a few back to reality.
Four divorced parents are finding their way through the harrowing maze of grown children while dealing with past repercussions followed by heartbreak.
As you read you'll be swept into these multiple facets of life from two former besties who were once close some 25 years earlier.
Folks, grab a cup of tea and settle in because this one will have your menopausal emotions off the chart (for those of us in that age group) and for the men it'll have you wondering about that long lost love, 2nd chances, and chasing what you may have lost.
Life is simply - One big complicated and glorious mess. Highs and lows with plenty of grays.
In this case Zach and Olivia are engaged after a whirlwind romance. They are 24 and 26 respectively with a whole life ahead of them.
However, their parents are divorced and must find a way to work together for the sake of their engagement and pending marriage.
The mud slinging that ensues is quite appropriate but not overly alarming. It's the kind of surprise that you might yet might not be a deal breaker for all.
The pace of it all was splendid. If you keep a gal with ADHD (aka Energizer Bunny) happy than you know the work achieved its mission.
Everytime Liz and Lisa write a new novel I always slobber all over myself to get an ARC because they are my go to ladies for all things fun and exciting.
This was set in California with some Rose Bowl Parade action and it fit perfectly with my fav team (WE ARE) going to such a game. I've never been to the parade but my family has and it's gorgeous.
Look, I digress...
This book always has that ripe out of the box feel. It's about expression of feelings, love and loss, and making sure that we do better with our own.
Tiding up the rough edges is never easy and we all make mistakes but we must learn from those mistakes.
Planning a wedding is difficult enough without such emotional turmoil and I hope when you read this you understand that they'll be trying times but finding that central zone to come together is best for all parties involved.
I highly recommend you pre-order this gem.
Forever Hold Your Peace is due out July 11th!
Run don't walk to get your copy ordered.
Thank you again for this beautifully written novel!

Forever Hold Your Peace is a mix of rom-com, humor and women’s fiction. Fun and witty! Such a great combination that you will laugh, gasp and whaaaaat all at the same time. A fun, heartfelt story that will be hard to put down. This is a must read for 2023.

Thank you NetGalley, Liz Fenton, Lisa Steinke and Alcove Press for the ARCin exchange for an honest review.

Forever Hold Your Peace was about two ex-best friends who find themselves thrown back together after decades of no contact and endless hurt feelings. They find their children have found each other on an Italian vacation and are engaged to be married. As a result, much drama and misunderstandings ensue. The story goes back and forth between the past and present and different points of view as they try to figure things out for the sake of their kids. There are ups and downs in the story. I really enjoyed this heartwarming book and recommend it! Thank you to NetGalley and Alcove Press for the ARC!

Olivia and Zach meet while on separate vacations in Italy, fall in love and get engaged. When they return to the States, they plan a “meet the parents” lunch, and they discover the parents have already met with a shocking backstory. Forever Hold Your Peace is the aptly named new novel from authors Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke, and it’s a delightful romp that explores new love and old relationships, with engaging, likable characters that will have you flipping the pages. The story unfolds effortlessly, with plenty of laughs, witty dialogue and a “feel good” plot, ripe for a movie adaptation. Loved every minute of this one, another 5 star read from this duo that won’t disappoint. I received an arc of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

My first read of 2023! Forever Hold Your Peace by Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke begins with a whirlwind romance between two Americans that meet abroad and fall in love. An engagement quickly follows and that when the story really starts to take off. Do your kids ever really know their parents? Do parents ever talk about themselves growing up and all the tragedy that occurred, forever changing their young life and the path they were on? What happens when your young adult life is suddenly revealed in front of everyone?
Zach and Olivia can not wait for their families to finally meet and to get the wedding planning started. Of course, June is running late. Olivia is on edge, Where could her mother be? And then June walks into the room and she can't believe who she is looking at. Is that really Amy and Troy? Is this some kind of terrible joke?! How did her ex-fiancé and her ex-best friend arrive at the same engagement dinner for her daughter? What is happening?
Forever Hold Your Peace follows the life of June and her family. You learn of June's life through a series of flashbacks and story telling. This just proves you really never really know your parents and the life they lived before you ever came along. I loved this story! I felt for June and everything she went through. Life really can throw curveballs at you. And if someone is really meant for you, they really do find there way back. Sometimes in the most unusual ways. I always enjoy Fenton and Steinke's storytelling and I always look for works by them. I will definitely be recommending Forever Hold Your Peace to others and will continue to look for future works by these two amazing authors! Special thanks to NetGalley, Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke, and Alcove Press for the advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review. 4.5 stars for me!!

#ForeverHoldYourPeace #NetGalley

I enjoyed this book. A few times I thought I knew what was going to happen and was pleasantly surprised to find out I was wrong. While there were a few predictable moments, it didn't take away from the book. I really appreciated the characters and often found myself wondering how I might react if I were in either of their places. This was my first book by Liz Fenton and I look forward to reading some of her other titles.

Love the authors and this book was pretty entertaining! I only gave it three stars because it did seem to drag in parts and was a bit implausible but still a really fun read!

Great premise and engaging tale with relatable characters… a little slower-places but this is definitely worth the read, y’all. Pick it up!
Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for this ARC opportunity

This was such a fun book. It starts with a whirlwind romance and goes on to be tragic and wonderful. When Olivia and Zach come home from a vacation in the Amalfi Coast engaged, their parents are a little concerned. These kids have only know each other for several weeks. So Zach's mom, Amy, while loving Olivia, decides that she must get the kids to propone that wedding. June, having had an engagement her mother thought was too quick, chose to be supportive. The new couple introduce their parents at a bunch, imagine the surprise when June shows up late and already knows Zach's parents. From here chaos ensues.

June trying to move on from the past and her hurt and anger agrees to work with Amy to plan Olivia and Zach's wedding. This is where the fun and hijinks come into plan. These two women are trying to out do the other. It makes for comedy and anger. Finally they both realize what they are doing to their children and start to behave. However, Troy, Zach's father makes a confession that has Olivia calling off the wedding. Now all the parents who were trying to delay the wedding, want to fix their kids broken hearts.

This was such a fun book to read. It gave you hope and showed that even after heartbreak and betrayal you can find love, friendship and forgiveness.


Thank you to NetGalley and Alcove Press for the ARC of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

Loved this different type of book from these authors! June a bookish, introverted woman with Mommy issues impact her relationships. She suffered a heartbreak years ago that changed her life. She supports her daughters decision to marry. And then there is Amy who is a perfectionist who has carrer on her mind all the time. She has issues with taking control of her sons life. Amy was defintiely a character that it was hard to like. Uptight , workaholic was more likeable than Troy who goes out with much younger women. Olivia and Zach are a couple who meet when they each take a trip to Postiano. Shortly after they get engaged. Their parents are both divorced and each having their own issues and angers and bitterness. Zach's parents are a realtor who has a secret and Amy who loves her son but is alot overbearing!

If you’re looking for a cute and fun read. This book is for you!
It was an easy beach read that I enjoyed. However, it took me awhile to get into the book and I felt I wanted a little bit more.
Thank you!

Thank you to NetGalley, Liz Fenton, Lisa Steinke, and Alcove Press for providing this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a very enjoyable, well-paced romance read. I am currently planning my wedding and found this book very relatable as we are mixing families and the craziness that comes with that. I did find this read to be very predictable, but overall enjoyed it.

This review will be posted to my Goodreads and Amazon accounts immediately and also to my instagram account (@ginganinja333), and to my newly created bookstagram (@paulas.book.nook).

Thanks NetGalley + publisher for the ARC!

As someone planning a wedding this was a really fun (and topical!) read. Family is complicated and when your family mixes with future inlaws things can get even more wacky/wild. This was enjoyable from top to bottom, if not somewhat cheesy at times which truly I enjoy in a romance.

Really liked it - recommend!