The stunning conclusion to this epic love story that began with Forgetting You, Forgetting Me from International Bestselling author, Monica James.
The truth sets you free...but what happens when everything you believe in changes in the blink of an eye?
All
I ever wanted was for my fiancé, Samuel Stone, to remember me. And now
that he does...all I want is for him to forget. Through tragedy, I found
myself and who I was destined to become. But more importantly, I found
who I was destined to be with.
With a single word, Saxon Stone
changed my life forever. He taught me how to live again. But now that
Samuel remembers and all secrets have been revealed, I’m left to wonder
which life I’m meant to lead.
Divided by my head and my heart,
I’m torn between duty and desire. Samuel is my past while Saxon is my
forever. The choice should be easy.
But love never is…
2018 seems to be the year of books that make me cry.
This one made me cry. Happy tears, sad tears, relieved tears. All. The. Tears.
And,
this one sneaks up on you. It picks up right where the first one left
off (here is where I mention this is not a standalone, so if you haven't
read the first one, you need to start there) and I liked that there was
no time gap. A lot happened to Sam, Saxon and Lucy at the end of the
first book, and knowing where they go from here, and how they make their
choices, matters. A lot.
What do I mean by sneaking up on you?
Well, I know going into this one, I had a pretty good idea how I thought
it was going to play out. Nope. I also thought I knew how and why Lucy
was going to make her choice. Nope. I was, however, right about the
relationships and how they were going to work out...until Ms. James
threw a bit of a wrench into that.
There's not much that is more
fun, as a reader, than going on a ride through a story that is, and
also isn't what you expected. There were some things I was right about.
Others that I was not even close. And, I loved that the author managed
to keep me on my toes while still staying true to the characters.
The
character development in this title is perfect. The people Sam, Saxon
and Lucy are at the beginning are not the same as they are at the end.
Well, at their core they are, but the situations they go through, and
the things they experience, change who they are. Profoundly. And, by the
end, there are stories that are finished and there are also characters
who you feel so differently about that you find yourself wanting their
entire story to be told.
Sam is a tough character to get to like.
The Sam in this book starts out pretty much as the guy he was in the
first one, minus the amnesia. Yes, you like him a little more when he
remembers Lucy.
But, not much as, here't the thing...he is still
the guy you find out about at the end of the first book, so there is a
little bit of the shiny great guy finish missing from the Sam in this
title.
Saxon is a lot more developed in this title, as he is the
one Lucy gravitates to, as you see in the end of book one...so there is a
draw there and it is something that needs to be explored. In order for
them to all find their happily ever after, there is a lot of work that
needs to happen as they sort out what is real and what isn't. As they
learn what is a lie and what is the truth.
Lucy is the heart, and
the strength of the book. She is the woman Sam and Saxon both want, and
both love. And, she is the woman in love, in different ways, with each
of them. But, she figures it out...and in a way that never makes her
seem wishy-washy or like she can't make up her own mind. No, she is a
strong and human character in a tough situation with compelling reasons
to make more than one choice. And, none of her choices are simple.
This
book, at it's core, is about life. It;s about how you know when it is,
and isn't, time to move on from a relationship. It's about the choices
you make to allow people to matter, and how much you allow them to
matter. It's about the past, the present and the future. It's about how
much you allow the past to color the present and shape the future. It's
about learning how to tell the things that matter from those things you
cling to because you are afraid of letting them go.
And, most of all, it's about figuring out who you are, in the past, the present, and who you will be in the future.
Make sure you have tissues, wine, and plenty of time to read. You are not going to be able to put this one down.
I recommend this title.
About
Monica:
Monica James spent her youth
devouring the works of Anne Rice, William Shakespeare, and Emily Dickinson.
When she is not writing, Monica is busy running her own
business, but she always finds a balance between the two. She enjoys writing
honest, heartfelt, and turbulent stories, hoping to leave an imprint on her
readers. Her inspiration comes from every day life.
She is a bestselling author in the US, Australia, Canada,
and the UK.
Monica James resides in Melbourne, Australia, with her
wonderful family, and menagerie of animals. She is slightly obsessed with cats,
chucks and lip gloss, and secretly wishes she was a ninja on the weekends.
Connect With Monica:
“I’m going to take off the
blindfold,” he whispers into my ear. I pause in my tracks, eagerly awaiting the
view.
No surprise as Saxon draws out
the reveal, torturing me further. I bounce from foot to foot. His husky chuckle
tickles me from the inside out. “I thought you didn’t like surprises.”
“I don’t, but maybe you’ll change
my mind.”
“Maybe,” he covertly replies
before removing the soft fabric over my eyes.
It takes me a moment to adjust to
the dim lighting, but after blinking a few times, what I see takes my breath
away. “Saxon…oh my god. It’s beautiful.” And it really is.
“You like it?”
“Like it? I love it.” My feet act
of their own accord as I float down the
steps and spread my arms out wide. My fingertips brush over hundreds of
sunflowers arranged in endless tall glass vases as I walk my yard. “When did
you do this?”
“Today. You looked like you could
do with some color in your day.”
I pause in the middle of my backyard,
needing a moment to take it all in. A red and white picnic blanket lays just a
few feet away, and to the left is a wicker basket. Bouquets of sunflowers are
dotted as far as the eye can see, adding bursts of vibrancy and instantly
lightening my mood.
When I turn over my shoulder, the
fairy lights fashioned as stars dangle from the porch railings and rafters.
They add to this most picturesque scene. However, when I focus on Saxon leaning
against a wooden pillar with a lopsided smirk tugging at his full lips, I know
he is the picture of perfection.
“I can’t believe you did this. Is
this why you’ve been scarce all day? I was starting to think I smelled.”
He laughs, pushing off the post.
“You smell amazing. Hungry?” My growling stomach answers for me.
I watch as Saxon saunters down
the stairs, takes my hand, and leads us to the blanket. The gentle hue of the lights wraps
us in our own private romantic bubble. I fold my legs beneath me as I sit,
running my fingers along the sunflower petals next to me. I can’t help but
reminisce about the first time I saw these flowers with Saxon—I was on the back
of his bike as he saved me from yet another bad day.
Saxon kneels, reaching into the
basket. It’s not until now that I realize how hungry I am. Glued to the
computer all day, I’ve forgotten to eat or move. This is so thoughtful. So
Saxon. “I hope you didn’t go to too much trouble. Well, clearly you did—” I
sweep my hand toward the beauty in front of me “—but I hope you weren’t slaving
over a hot stove all day.”
He gives me a playful grin, and I
discover why when he exposes what’s inside the basket. “Oh my god.” I laugh.
“Just when I thought I couldn’t love you any more, you go and do this.” And by this, I mean when he produces an
enormous paper bag filled with only the best Mexican in all of Montana.
However, the crème de la crème is
when he adds a bottle of Dr. Pepper to the mix. “You know the way to my heart.”
“Or stomach,” he quips, passing
me the bottle. “Here is your seven-layer burrito, extra onions.” He hands over
my mountain of goodness with a grin.
“What did I do to deserve this?”
And I’m not only talking about the food.
“Just being you,” he replies,
kissing the end of my nose. My heart swells. He spreads his long legs out in
front of him, sipping a beer. “How’s work?”
I sigh, unwrapping my burrito.
“Not great. I know there will always be conflict in the world, but it just
seems that lately no one is getting along.”
Saxon moves his lips from side to side,
appearing to be in thought. “I’m glad we are, though.”
Afraid of choking, I chew slowly,
needing a minute to process what he just said. “Me too.” Something is bugging
him. It’s written all over his face. “About this morning—”
He cuts me off. “It’s okay, Lucy.
I just…need to get over this irrational jealousy when it comes to you. I know
you love me, but it’s just difficult sometimes.”
“I completely understand.” I
reach for his hand, intertwining our fingers. “I’m glad you know that I love
you. Because I do. We’re all trying our best to deal with this pretty messed-up
situation. Personally, I think we’re doing great.”
He nods, my words appearing to
appease him. But something is still stirring behind his eyes. Just when I’m
about to ask what’s going on, his phone rings—again. He digs into his pocket,
the ‘something’ amplifying tenfold.
“I won’t be a minute.” He stands
quickly and walks briskly away, out of earshot.
Sighing, my appetite gets shot to
hell, and I place my barely touched burrito back into the paper bag. I watch
for any signs of what the secret
conversation Saxon is having entails. But
he turns his back as if sensing my inquisitive stare.
I hate this unsettled feeling in
the pit of my stomach. The light at the end of the tunnel with Sam is shining
dimly, but it’s suddenly overshadowed with whatever Saxon is hiding. He turns
over his shoulder, meeting my eyes, before heading toward the house, which just
makes me feel worse.
Unable to sit still, I stand,
feeling constraints tug at my heart. Needing to escape, I take flight to the stables. Memories of when I felt
similar to how I do now cloud my mind, and I do the only thing that has cleared
my head since I learned to ride.
Potter,
my horse, neighs when he sees me, sensing my desperation. Without thought, I put on his bridle, then I mount him, bareback, and
squeeze my calves around his muscular barrel. I cluck my tongue twice, sending
him into a gallop. He knows what I need. We both relish in the need to be free.
Clutching
the reins, I lean forward and take a deep breath when he tears out of the
stables, nothing but the open vastness greeting us. I work on autopilot as I
lead him toward the mountains. We have been here before, and the memories
linger on my tongue just as if they were crafted yesterday.
The
wind whips through my hair, instantly easing some of the tension within. The
terrain is bumpy, but we’ve both learned from experience to navigate this
ground with caution. “Easy, boy,” I coo, tugging lightly to slow him down. He
does.
I
examine my surroundings, the untouched openness giving me the peace I need. We
settle to a trot, and although I’ve lived here for years, I still am in awe of how
picturesque everything is. But the prettiest thing of all is when my gaze
alights on where Saxon and I shared our first kiss. This spot has been
imprinted on my mind.
Fingering my lips, I recall the
tenderness and uncertainty of his touch. I was so naïve to think that kiss
wouldn’t change my life as I knew it. It not only changed my life, but it
changed me too. Saxon has shaken up my world, but I would happily dance in the
chaos because when I’m with him, I’ve never felt more alive.
Dismounting Potter, I tie him to
a tree where he happily munches on the grass. So different from when we were
here last. My bare feet sink into the terrain, and I savor the feel of being in
touch with mother nature in the purest form.
Wrapping my arms around my
middle, I close my eyes and return to the past. I can remember his words as if
spoken only yesterday.
“Let’s
pretend tomorrow doesn’t exist. Whatever happens now, it’ll just be memories
from yesterday.” I could
feel the tremble rumble throughout his entire body.
A quiver bubbles to the surface,
and I hum. Saxon’s love for me has never wavered. I was just too blind to see.
But my eyes, figuratively speaking, are opened now, and I’ll be damned if
anything stands in the way of our happily ever after.
“What are you doing out here?”
His voice is silk, encasing me in a velvety sphere.
“You kissed me here. Right in
this spot. Do you remember?”
“Of course, I do,” he whispers,
the nostalgia tethering us together.
With eyes still closed, I tip my
face toward the heavens and take a deep breath. “We were fated from that moment
forward.”
“We were fated a long time before
then.” And he’s right. The first moment we met, touched, my world changed
forever. “Is everything all right? You just took off.”
Sighing, I decide no more second-guessing. “Who were you
talking to?”
“Just…”
“And don’t tell me just work.”
Silence.
“You’re not telling me something,
and I can’t help but feel you’re not telling me this because your secret will change everything.”
I’m hoping he will brush away my
insecurities and tell me I’m overreacting, but when he does neither, a sense of
dread settles low within my stomach. Unable to stand this a second longer, I
open my eyes and turn to face him. The cloud of guilt hangs over his head as he
peers down at his scuffed motorcycle boots.
“Just tell me what it is. This is
your free pass. Whatever it is, I will deal with it. But please, don’t lie to
me or hide the truth because we’ve had enough deceit to last us a lifetime.”
He mulls over my proposition,
which has me wondering what exactly he’s done. A cold sweat suddenly coats my
skin, and I swallow. “Oh god, Saxon, what’s going on?”
“Nothing, Lucy, nothing. I
promise.” I’m in his arms a moment later as he hugs me with all his might.
“Everything is all right. Everything will be fine.” I didn’t realize things
weren’t already fine.
Breaking our embrace, I shake my
head, adamant to find out the truth. “I
don’t believe you.” Nothing but regret rolls off him as his shoulders drop. I
can’t stand this. I don’t know why, but my gut tells me this involves Cleo. I
knew she was trouble from the first moment we met, but I never thought she’d
have the power to drive a wedge between us. “Does this have anything to do
with… Cleo?” His jaw clenches.
I’m waiting for him to put my
mind at ease, but he doesn’t. He simply stands mute, hands dug deep into his
pockets. I feel sick. “Saxon, answer me. What…what did you do?”
He hisses, taking a step back. “I
didn’t do anything.”
“Then tell me what the hell is
going on.”
“Why would you automatically
assume Cleo is involved?”
“Because whoever you’re speaking
to, you clearly don’t want me to know who it is. So unless you have another
girl on the side…”
“Another girl?” he spits, angered. “I don’t have any girls but you, Lucy.”
“Then tell me what’s going on!”
An exasperated breath leaves him
as he begins to pace. This place once filled with happy memories is now tainted
with secrets and doubt. I give him the time he clearly needs because he’ll just
clam up if I continue to push.
“Yes, I need to tell you
something, but…” He comes to a stop, running both hands through his snarled
hair. “But I know when I do, you’ll…” The sentence remains unfinished because
the ringing of Saxon’s cell cements my fate for good.
**SIGNED PAPERBACK GIVEAWAY**
*Monica James is Responsible for This Giveaway*
10 paperbacks, 1 winner!
To celebrate the release of my new book, FORGETTING YOU, REMEMBERING ME, I’m giving away 10 signed paperbacks! These amazing authors are coming to the party!
Look at this Rockstar Line-up!!
Signed Paperbacks from:
Colleen Hoover, Title TBA
Anna Todd, Title TBA
Vi Keeland- Sex, Not Love
Mia Sheridan- Winner’s choice (Except the Indie of Archer’s Choice)
Christina Lauren- Roomies
Lexi Ryan- The Wrong Kind of Love
S.C. Stephens- Furious Rush & Dangerous Rush
Sylvain Reynard – Gabriel’s Inferno
Monica James- Forgetting You, Remembering Me
To Enter:
Instagram: @authormonicajames
Tag some friends who’d be interested in this awesome giveaway.
The giveaway will run from February 15th - March 5th
Giveaway open internationally.
Make sure to check out the authors who are helping me to celebrate this new release. They are my favourite people!
*Monica James is responsible for this giveaway*
