Thanks too Forever Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Julie Soto’s debut novel is guaranteed to give you all the feels.

“Forget Me Not” is a second chance romance starring Ama Torres, a wedding planner, and Elliot Bloom, a grumpy florist. When Ama is hired to plan the largest wedding of her career, she quickly discovers that it won’t be all sunshine and roses. Elliot Bloom, her ex, has been contracted as the wedding floral designer and there is no working around him. Left with no choice but to put their complicated pasts behind them, the pair attempt to plan the perfect wedding. With love in the air, however, it’s hard for both Ama and Elliot to deny the chemistry between them.  

From the very beginning I was rooting for Ama and Elliot to rekindle their romance and live out their happily ever after! Their alternating viewpoints allow the reader to piece together how they first met, the moment their workplace relationship turned into something more, and what ultimately led to their separation. Despite the rift between them, Soto makes it clear that the two still feel deeply for one another no matter how hard they try to limit their interactions during  the planning of the wedding. I appreciated how Soto naturally intensified these feelings over the months they spent in proximity to each other. Though I was an emotional wreck while they slowly learned to love each other again, it was worth it just to read the epilogue! 

Aside from Ama and Elliot’s romance, I enjoyed exploring Ama’s complex feelings about marriage. Soto adds depth to her character by slowly revealing that Ama, a wedding planer, believes that love does not last. Through Ama’s point-of-view, the reader traces this belief back to her mother, who has been married sixteen different times and views love the same way. This detail adds intrigue and gives much needed insight into the thought behind Ama’s every decision. I appreciate Soto taking her time with Ama’s character development as she changes her perceptions of love. Even more so I appreciate Elliot for telling Ama that she did not need to change everything about herself just to be with him.

I cannot wait to read Soto’s next book in 2024!