I loved this book! I pretty much read it in one sitting, no surprise. I actually almost missed my stop on the train because I was so tuned in to the last 3 chapters.

Read forget me not if you love: angst, dual timelines, and a fast paced plot.

I found myself acutely engaged the entire time, I was equally swooning at the previous timeline and holding tension in my jaw with the current one as the two MC deal with the consequences of their fallout (this is a good thing for me)

I'm a big romance girlie, and I had seen some buzz about Forget Me Not, the debut by Julie Soto so I was THRILLED to get an ARC from NetGalley and Forever Publishing. And what a gift it was, because I LOVED it and it is out TODAY!

Not gonna lie - I have been going THROUGH it, between work and home renovation drama, and this book was the PERFECT escape. It even managed to keep my migraine at bay - not an easy feat!!

It's the story of wedding planner Ama, who comes to the industry with a VERY interesting path - her mother has been married sixteen(!!!!!!!!!!) times. So while she may not believe in marriage, she believes in the event and the party of a wedding. She worked under the Queen Wedding Planner of Sacramento for years before starting her own shop, specializing in lower budget weddings where she can really be creative. She gets the opportunity of a lifetime when she nabs a high profile client - and she is escatic until she realizes the one vendor they have locked in his florist Elliot Bloom - who she has a long, and painful history with.

The story is told with dual timelines and perspectives, which I enjoy whe done well - and it is here. I loved Ama and Elliot. I am a sucker for a brooding but sensitive leading man - and Elliot hit all the right notes for me. Using the wedding that forces them to work together for the first time in years was the perfect device.

And the chemistry!!!! All the fire emojis.

I finished it this morning and have already texted several group chats that they need to pick it up. Happy Publishig Day, Julie!!! Can't wait to read your next one!

Will post this review on goodreads, my bookstagram @scottonreads, retail sites, twitter @sarahncotton.

An absolute slump-buster and debut all in one delightful book! I seriously could not put this one down. Ama and Elliot dated for around 6 months but broke up a few years ago (Elliot could tell you the exact amount of time since Ama broke his heart). They are now reconnecting through their businesses as Ama lands a dream wedding featuring a internet celebrity and her fiancé. As a wedding planner trying to hit it big, Ama knows she cannot turn this opportunity down but is not looking forward to working with Elliot again even though she knows he is the top florist in Sacramento.

So there's a bit of forced proximity here mixed with second chance romance, but what I really loved is that Elliot is the grumpiest of grumps and Ama is pure sunshine. I love me a grumpy-sunshine trope and Soto understands that assignment better than most. Elliot grunts more than speaks and yet you can tell exactly how much he cares for her. His actions speak louder than any words. In addition, Soto takes us back in time at points throughout the book to see inside how these two initially connected and where it all went wrong. I laughed throughout this whole book and smiled at all the sweet moments. The characters are truly loveable. You cannot help but hope that it all works out in the end for all involved.

If you are a lover of romance, this is a quintessential contemporary done right. You need to read this one now! I have no idea how Soto got it right her first time at bat but I am here for it. I cannot wait to see what this author brings us in the future!

This book was the perfect blend of so many romance troupes, the grumpy sunshine and second chance romance. I loved how the author provided us with both Ama and Elliot's points of view and I did like that we got to see their relationship now contrasted to how it started. It was almost un-put-down-able because I could not wait to figure out how they ended up at the end of the book. It was swoon worthy at times. It was also very romantic, which was probably helped by the wedding planning aspect of the story. I felt like I knew the characters of Ama and Elliot so completely that they played out in my mind like a movie. Overall, simply a fun and steamy romance that I will be recommending to all my friends!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy of this book. All opinions within this review are my own.

You need to read this book. Forget about book buying bans and incredibly long TBRs, this book is so, so, SO good.

I absolutely adored how Soto wrote these characters. We have Ama, a ray of sunshine and positivity who does incredible work but struggles to acknowledge just how good she is. And Elliot is grumpy on the outside, but an absolute sweetheart who cares deeply about those closest to him. His emotional depth too? I can’t. The story about his tattoos had me in tears.

The plot was brilliant, I loved being a part of all the wedding plans, whether they were going well or not. And the dual timeline that told the romance of their past alongside the angst of the rekindling of their new relationship had me hooked.

I could seriously go on forever about this book. Go pick it up now!!

Now that I've had a few days to think about this book I can safely say it's going to be my favorite romance of 2023. This was the perfect amount of smut and plot. It wasn't overly done, which I appreciate, but it still gave me exactlyyy what I was looking for.

Ama is a wedding planner who doesn't believe in love (classic). Elliot is a florist who hates arranging flowers (who could've foreseen this coming?!?!?). When these two meet it is fireworks! The only issue is that Ama has never had a serious relationship in her entire life and Elliot is into forever. What could've been the best relationship either has ever had ends in complete and utter disarray. Nowadays they're both into avoiding each other at all costs and pretending the other doesn't exist, until the wedding of the century arrives where they're forced to work together again. Will they keep this professional or will they give love a second-chance?

I really liked this book. I liked the dual POV and the timeline changes. I’m usually not a fan of second chance romances, but I did lie this one. I think because of the way the past was told at the same time current events were unfolding it didn’t really seem like a true second chance romance. I do think the characters could have used a little more development. Sometimes the conflict between Ama and Elliot seemed like it came from nowhere and was just happening as a plot device. I felt like parts were rushed and then the plot would slow down and nothing would happen for a while. The “twist” at the end was somewhat predictable, but I didn’t hate it. Overall solid book.

REVIEW FOR FORGET ME NOT

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars

Thank you to @netgalley and @readforeverpub for the gifted copy!

WOW. Just WOW. I loved this book so much. I finished it in a day- I couldn’t put it down. The emotion, the love…just everything about it was incredible.

𝕊𝕐ℕ𝕆ℙ𝕊𝕀𝕊:
Ama Torres believes in weddings, not marriages. As a wedding planner her focus is giving her clients budget friendly parties that they will remember forever. When an opportunity to work on the wedding of her career appears, she is ecstatic…until she learns that her former favorite florist, collaborator, and ex is contracted to do the flowers. Elliott Bloom is the opposite of Ama- brooding, direct, and knows what he wants. This event could make or break both their careers- can they put aside their differences enough to work together? Or will they find that sometimes love is about second chances.

𝕎ℍ𝔸𝕋 𝕀 𝕃𝕀𝕂𝔼𝔻:
• Ama. I really resonated with her. Until my husband, I was not sold on the idea of marriage. As a kid of divorce, I was convinced that it wasn’t in my future. I related to Ama so much
• grumpy/sunshine dynamic of Ama and Elliot
• I dream of being a wedding planner so living vicariously through this story was amazing
• loved how Ama maintained her relationship with her former step siblings
• I don’t usually like second chance romances, but this was almost a lovers to enemies to lovers that was done really well
• I liked the alternating chapter POVs and timelines

𝕎ℍ𝔸𝕋 𝕎𝔸𝕊ℕ’𝕋 𝕄𝕐 ℂ𝕌ℙ 𝕆𝔽 𝕋𝔼𝔸:
• honestly there wasn’t much I disliked- a few side characters here and there but I understood their purpose

𝕆𝕍𝔼ℝ𝔸𝕃𝕃 𝕋ℍ𝕆𝕌𝔾ℍ𝕋𝕊:
I’ve been thinking about this book since I finished it Sunday. Genuinely it was so beautifully told and written and I cannot wait to see what else Julie Soto writes.

Did I want to read this for the cover? Yes, yes I did, and I’m so glad I did because it’s one of the best books I’ve read so far this year.

Grumpy/Sunshine is my catnip and it’s so good in this one. Ama is a ray of sunshine and donuts (as long as they aren’t peanut butter) and Elliot is one moody, broody, swoony, broken boy, but they HAVE to work together for a celebrity wedding that will benefit both of them.

Because it’s a second chance, and things didn’t end well between them in the past, any time they had to be together in the present, there was banter, there was tension, there was chemistry, and it was all off. The. Charts. It was sweet, spicy, and slightly more angsty than I normally like, but I was here for it.

Ama’s chapters are all in the present and Elliot’s chapters are all in the past, gradually catching up with the present, so we’re simultaneously watching them get back together as we watch how they fell in and out of love in the past. It’s really well done.

I absolutely LOVED this book! It also has me second guessing my disdain for second chance romance, it’s that good! Such a great debut from Julie Soto and I cannot wait to read more from her.

Thank you to Forever Publishing and NetGalley. I voluntarily read an early copy of this book.

Happy Pub Day!!
Forget Me Not by Julie Soto

Thank you @readforeverpub for the early review copy.

This one is probably one of my favorite books this year. It’s a great summer read - the floral and wedding vibes are perfection.

Ama Torres is a wedding planner with amazing artistic talent. She doesn’t actually believe in marriage, but she loves creating the perfect day for her clients. She gets her first high end celebrity client and she is determined to make their wedding one for the ages. One problem? Her ex is the florist that her client has already decided to work with. Elliot is broody but also insanely talented. Ama broke his heart two years ago and they haven’t worked together since. Will they be able to now? Forget Me Not is angsty, romantic and funny - I couldn’t put it down.

POV: Dual
Spice: 🌶️ 🌶️ 🌶️

I devoured this book like Ama (FMC) devours donuts every morning because it really was such a treat to read! I mean, based on that gorgeous cover alone I was going to read the book regardless, but what was inside was just as beautiful. It's been about a week since I finished Ama and Elliott's story and I'm still thinking about them!

Elliott is such a lovable character; he is broody but so sweet, which goes perfectly with how he looks like a tattooed bad boy who is also a florist. While I admired Ama and her drive, and how she really had no fear except in love, I just couldn't get past how she could stay away from Elliott for two years after breaking his heart! This book spends a lot of time in the past, showing how they met and how they started their relationship, but the present day timeline is really more about the wedding planning Ama is doing and less about romance. I would have loved to see more of them together in the present, and more of Elliott's POV then as well.

As a romcom lover, I was going into this one expecting it to be a little more angsty, but I was actually pleasantly surprised that it wasn't, although I still felt all the emotions and shed some tears, both happy and sad. Beautifully written, it is also funny and steamy, and I loved the entire wedding planning aspect and how we get to see both of the characters really succeed both professionally and personally as well when they get their hard earned HEA.

Forget Me Not is as funny as it is heartbreaking. The grumpy-sunshine trope hides two people irrevocably changed by their past relationship. Ama, once cynical about relationships, remains hesitant to be in one but maybe not for the same reasons anymore. When a high-profile wedding forces her to work with Elliot, a florist in the area who also happens to be her ex, she has to set aside her lingering feelings for him. Being the untalkative grump that he is, it is slightly more difficult to discern if Elliot still feels anything for her. What is clear is that he was in love with her before it all fell apart.

Julie Soto strategically alternates between the past and present through Ama, whose point of view is usually in the present, and Elliot, whose point of view is usually in the past. It allowed me to connect better with both characters. Giving Elliot a voice in the past helped me understand why Ama was not quite over him, no matter what she claimed in her chapters, and it gave me a chance to fall for him. His adoration of and patience with Ama showcased a man more vulnerable than he portrayed himself to be. Furthermore it hinted at what his grumpy nature was hiding from everyone in the present.

The cause of their breakup is hinted at early on. It does not take away from the story but helps create a fair amount of speculation and foreboding leading up to that pivotal moment. Soto wrote it so well that Elliot breaking broke me--it hit me so hard.

Read this if you're a fan of
⭐️ grumpy sunshine
⭐️ second chance romance
⭐️ weddings/wedding planning

I had heard so many great things about this author and I'm happy to say that their debut published novel did not disappoint in the slightest! This contemporary romance was hot, charming and fascinating in equal parts.

I've never read a romance that was not only dual pov and multiple timeline AND second chance, but the split povs were in different timelines. It was such a unique way to tell the story and really got me turning the pages as I desperately wanted to know what happened to this couple in the past and how they would reunite in the present storyline.

Amma is a wedding planner and although I've read plenty of wedding planner romances this was the first one that really felt like the character had a real job. The glimpse of what her life is like and what the job entails was fascinating and I loved how deep the author went into all the moving pieces.

The chemistry between the characters was incredibly hot and I was rooting SO hard for them to get together (it's also somewhat hotter for the characters to not only have amazing chemistry but also work so well together?)

Thank you SO much to Forever Publishing and Netgalley for the opportunity to read an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was a sexy slump-buster! Definitely grab this one if you need a quick read with what I would say was mid-level spice and some very sweet moments. This is grumpy-sunshine at its core with a second chance angle. What really worked for me about this book was the dual timeline and dual POV. I thought overall it could have had a bit more depth to it, but if you’re looking for a sexy male florist, this is the one!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

We were super excited to receive an ARC for this book! It’s been on our list to read since we first heard about it (and it should be on yours too 😉).

When Ama lands a high profile celebrity wedding, she's elated until she learns that, they've also hired the ex who's heart she broke. Forget Me Not was everything we wanted and more. It has all the second chance romance angst mixed in with some grumpy/sunshine set within a celebrity wedding you're dying to get an invite to. 

This was a passionate read. We fell in love with grumpy Elliott from the jump. His POV really sealed the deal there. He might be gruff and rude on the outside but he has a heart of gold on the inside and was a secret cinnamon roll hero especially when it came to Ama. Ama has commitment issues and ten foot walls up around her heart because of her mother's relationship history (and her infinite amount of ex-husbands!). She's just looking for a good time and Elliott was able to provide that for a bit until his feelings took over. 

Our favourite part was probably the way the story was told using two timelines: when they first got together and the present. What was so interesting about it though was that Julie used Ama’s voice in the present chapters and Elliott’s voice in the past. That just enhanced the love story for us. 

Read if you like: 
▪️Second chance romance with lots of angst
▪️Dual POVs & timelines
▪️Grumpy tattooed hero
▪️Commitment phobe heroine
▪️Wedding planning setting 
▪️Lots of steamy spice

I heard so many good thing about this book so I was happy to hear that I received an ARC of it from NetGalley! This was fun and angsty! A second chance romance done right! Ama is a wedding planner and has zero desire to get married because her mother has been married sixteen times already! Elliot is a tattooed hottie who wears his heart on his sleeve and this is Ama and Elliot's romance.

Tropes:
- Second chance romance
-Workplace romance
-Dual timelines
-Guy falls first


Spice Level 3
Overall 4/5 Stars ! Will be ordering the physical copy!

Thank you Forever (Grand Central Publishing), Julie Soto, and NetGalley for my ARC!

Wow! What an absolutely spectacular debut novel! Julie Soto hits it out of the park so effortlessly, and each word had me completely hooked and enchanted. If I didn’t know, I never would have guessed that she was a debut author!

This storyline was absolutely beautiful - a wedding planner who doesn’t believe in love and lasting relationships because her mom has been married 16 times now, and weddings are just a party… who had her heart broken the one time she tried to put it out there. Told with many flashbacks, which is normally something I can’t stand, she does it in such a way that it’s necessary to the plot and works without the relying on it aspect that normally bothers me. Well done.

A very unique spin on a second chance romance between the wedding planner and florist and a definite must-read for everybody out there. A stunning read!

I received an advance copy from NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing), and this is my honest feedback.

It is hard to put into words my feelings on Forget Me Not. I just want to scream to everyone how amazing this book is and how you all need it in your life. Gathering my words after that feels nearly impossible. Ama and Elliott are the epitome of opposites attract and wow did they attract. Their chemistry was so good and spicy. They were drawn to each other like magnets when they were forced to be close and there was like zero chance they could fight that attraction. And how Soto wove their past and their present was a pure chef’s kiss. Have I mentioned how much I loved this book? Did I make that clear with my nonsensical rambling? As long as you understand that I’m not always a huge fan os second chance romance books but I am a HUGE fan of Forget Me Not (and you will be too) my work here is done. Go and get a copy today!

What a fun summer romance! Set in Sacramento, FORGET ME NOT is a romance imance full of weddings, drama, spice, and second chances. The story follows Ama, a wedding planner, as she is forced into close proximity with the one who got away, Eliot, a flower designer, after bagging the celebrity wedding of her dreams.

I loved the Sacramento setting and the Soto's love for the city rang through. I loved the inclusion of a state senator and a dash of politics. I loved the influencer bride client and watching a woman level up her own skills and trust in herself while also doling out a dash of much needed revenge (see Whitney Harrison).

Soto delivered all the tropes:
- forced proximity
- second chance
- grumpy-sunshine
- a wedding planner who is afraid of love and doesn't want to get married
-celebrity influencer client

But she also weaves in unique details: Eliot's love of flowers he'll never have and the way he permanently adorns himself with them. Ama's obsession with donuts. Ama's ever increasing Cadre of step siblings.

This is a fun romance full of sweet and spicy moments! I highly recommend reading.

Thanks to Forever Pub and NetGalley for the e-ARC.

Thank you, Netgalley, the author, and Forever Books for the gifted e-book! ❤️ #gifted. My review is comprised of my honest thoughts.

Read this book if you like: Dual POV, enemies to lovers, grumpy sunshine, steamy 🔥

Wow. Just wow. I'm absolutely blown away by this book. First of all, this is the sexiest cover I've ever seen on a book. Secondly, I love Elliot so much. He is the best character. Perfect book boyfriend material. I loved Ama too. The character development is so well done. This is funny, sweet, and so spicy. 🔥 I am recommending this to anyone and everyone who will listen.