This was a typical cute romance book. Nothing about it made it stand out, but I enjoyed myself reading this. It was fun and fairly light. I'm not the biggest fan of second chance romances, but this one was better than some I've read before.

Forget Me is a second chance romance that is a bit light on the romance and higher on the angst. I think this is a case where expectations can affect the perception of the book. I went in expecting more out of the romance so it didn't quite hit the mark for me.

I have chosen not to read/review this title as I was not able to connect with it or recommend it to the readers of our blog page or those who follow my reviews on Goodreads.

I apologize for the delay in this, as sending the negative reviews is something I (clearly) avoid doing for an embarrassingly long time.

Thank you, as always, for the review title.

Laura

I really tried to finish this book so I could give it an accurate review however I did not find it capturing enough to keep me entertained to finish.

This book has recipes. Not just any recipes but two that made my mouth water when I read about the, in the story and then made me drool when I found them at the end. Forget Me, by Kimberley Ash is set in Tanner, Albany. This contemporary romance is a second chance at love story for chef Laurel Moore, who’s left her career in New York City to drag Sullivan’s, her family bar, from the brink of bankruptcy after the death of her alcoholic father. Jonah Gardiner, the man Laurel fell in love with then broke up with because he was also an alcoholic, has cleaned up his act, got himself a PhD in psychology and moved into an apartment across the road from the pub.
The attraction these two feel for each other is palpable but with their history, family issues that both have to face, and Laurel’s need to balance the old ways of the pub and her long standing customers with her efforts to broaden its appeal there is plenty to keep them apart.
I loved watching these two dance around each other. I liked the sensitive way that author Kimberley Ash dealt with alcoholism and it’s effects on not only the afflicted person but also their family and friends. This book had plenty to keep me interested and enough twists to keep me guessing. A great read!

This story was such an interesting yet overwhelming depiction of the mind games that we can be placed in by our parents to the point that we can’t see straight.

Well, Laurel’s father Frank passes away leaving her the family bar and restaurant. What no one knows at the time is that he has left her severely in debt to numerous creditors. So, she needs to not only take care of her mom alcoholic brother, and the business but the debt too.

But being that she went to school to be a chef it has piqued her interest and given her a challenge, a goal if you will. But when she meets up with HIM the old flame that she left behind it is felt in the middle of her chest. When she gives him a taste of her baked goods watching him is almost orgasmic.

So, as she continues to cook, she continues to bring samples to him to try. He tries to stop her saying things were different that he is a recovering alcoholic now he doesn’t drink, doesn’t do relationships or emotional upheaval.

Basically, any relationship with her that works for a few days. But then like magnets there back sneaking around like in high school. Neither mom likes the other child. When Laurel tries to change the restaurant too fast the town folk start pushing back.

Although, Jonah’s timings bad when he tells them what he says is correct and valuable. But cause a wedge. About this same time, he finds out some crazy information about his family that causes a mental meltdown. Laurel, of course, is there for him.

I enjoyed the tub and pull of this book the characters had real things in their lives that truly affect a lot of households. The only thing that bothered me was the dry drunk and no healthy support system in place to shore him up. A lot of unanswered questions. I hope in the next book it will shore them up.

In this book the author has given us an insight into alcoholism and it's battles, It is full of drama and emotion. It is an enjoyable read because by the end everything and everyone are happy. I recommend it .

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I enjoyed book 2 of the Van Allen Brothers series. I had read book one but didn’t how the two were connected initially. Book 2 is the story of Laurel and Jonah. It is a second Chance Romance. No one knows they had a romance back when they were younger though. Laurel’s father has recently passed away and she returns to try and save the family bar and grill. We learn he was a long time alcoholic. She is a chef in NYC and gave it all up to come home. Jonah had a drinking problem and it is why he broke up with her years ago. Laurel has tried to save money and began to deliver all the groceries to the bar herself. She nearly got hit by a bus when unloading and Jonah saw her and ran to assist. This was their initial contact when she returned. She reaches out to Jonah with food she makes. She wants to change the food served in the bar, bringing in less frozen deep fried standbys they only served before. She starts trying to get staff and customers on board.

Laurel’s brother Brett has become an alcoholic and she asks Jonah to talk to him. Jonah had told her he was a psychologist. Her mother is grief stricken and Laurel tries to get to to leave the family home above the bar for even a meal downstairs. Her mother is very angry to learn she and Jonah are dating. Jonah’s mother also is not happy as she fears Jonah will hurt Laurel.
Jonah goes to a lecture at the college he works and sees his long estranged father and learns he has a half brother, Lucas( from book one). There is some interaction between Jonah and Lucas. We also learn there is another half brother that Jonah knows and was jealous of.

As the book goes on, Laurel and Jonah fall n love but he pushes her away. As it goes on they do get back together. I was very happy there is a HEA.

Forget Me is a story about second chances at a love lost.
Laurel and Jonah shared a secret romance 10 years ago, but addiction breaks them apart. Now they are brought back together, can they risk everything for a second chance at their relationship. The way Kimberly Ash tackles the problems with addiction are very realistically, and heartfelt. I feel like not many can touch on all aspects of addiction. This book did that.
This is my first book by Kimberly Ash even though it was #2 in the series it was very much a stand-alone. It’s not a bad read I feel like the second half of the book didn’t hold my interest as the first half.

Thank you netgalley and Kimberly Ash for my Advanced copy

This was a complimentary copy from netgalley - many thanks

This is the 2nd in a series but I read this as a standalone and feel it does work as a standalone novel

This is a romance that is more than a romance. It deals with some very heavy threads - alcoholism and physical abuse so feel this would work as a book club book very well - lots to pick up on and discuss

A good, second chance romance - more real life than the usual girl meets boy, girl loses boy with a misunderstanding, misunderstanding sorted, happily every after - if this is what floats your boat this might not be for you.

Personally, I liked the premise - it works for me - real life romance does not necessarily end with a happy ever after but is sometimes a bit messily ever after!

.I liked this - well written rounded characters

Would recommend as a book club or holiday read

Forget Me is a small-town romance with real, human difficulties and a sprinkling of steam. It's easy to read, and the type of book that you can breeze through quickly or actually savor a few chapters at a time.

I enjoyed getting inside both Laurel and Jonah's heads, and felt like I really got to know them over the course of the story, and became invested in their growth.

My one complaint is that it just kinda "ends", without any real resolution. Perhaps that makes it more life-like, but I'd have loved an epilogue.

This is a voluntary review of an advanced copy.

I have not read the first book in this series and after meeting Lucas and Piper in this book, I want to know their whole story! But, it is not necessary and this is easily read as a stand alone. Although, it did take me awhile to figure out that this series is the Van Allen Brothers so even though it is Jonah Gardiner, he is a Van Allen, and so is Lucas.

Lots of emotional parts in this book as these are flawed people and their lives are not perfect and they come with lots of baggage. At times, Jonah seemed so locked away emotionally that it was hard to realize that he was once the town bad boy!

Jonah and Laurel worked well together, as he needed her to realize that he did need his emotions, and she needed a reality check when her dreams get too much for what the "ordinary" people need vs. the newcomers at the bar.

And what a unique combination - the former bad boy, reformed alcoholic and the owner of a bar - you would think that they would be the worst pairing and yet they are so good together.

Now, I have to patiently wait for Matt's story and what is going on in his life, and hope that we see more of Brett and that he gets his life straightened out.

Thank you netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This was a decent romance. Laurel is head chef at her father's bar. She's a strong, independent woman determined to make the restaurant a success.jonah is an ex boyfriend determined to forget his past as a newly reformed psychologist. Both cannot resist their attraction and the sexual tension between them is strong. Good thing Laurel pushes him to acknowledge and accept their love despite their parentage and painful past. Enjoyed it.

I really enjoyed Forget Me. I thought the heroine was super interesting and well drawn.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

FORGET ME by Kimberley Ash is the second in a series but could certainly be read on its own.

Former high school sweethearts Jonah and Laurel are thrown together again 10 years later when Laurel returns to her hometown to try to save the family bar. Her alcoholic father has recently died from that disease and her mother is too depressed to help Laurel or her younger brother, who may be headed down the same path as their father.

Jonah is a recovering alcoholic who sobered up after his behavior while drinking cost him his relationship with Laurel. Though now sober, he still holds on to unresolved family issues that make him leery of a close relationship. He is a successful psychologist but seems unable to apply any insights into his own thinking. The fact that Laurel’s life revolves around a bar adds more tension to their rekindled relationship.

Ash’s handling of alcoholism and its effects on a wide range of people is insightful and provides a satisfying and emotional read that left me rooting for this couple. I’m eager to read the other two books in the series.

Thanks to Net Galley for providing me a chance to give my honest opinion of this book.

The romance portion, for a romance book, concluded too fast (at 41%, so I stopped reading around 42-43%). I don't feel as if I have anything else to anticipate for anymore. Yes, it would be great to see everything working out for Laurel, but... the plot and characters couldn't keep my interest up. But thank you for giving me this chance to read the ARC, Tule Publishing. I appreciate it.

Second chances, new beginnings. I like them. So Forget Me was very promising. And indeed, it was a nice story about Laurel and Jonah. She was the good girl, he was the bad boy. When she decided to cut him loose, because he drank too much, very like her own father, it broke her heart.
So she left town and build herself a future somewhere else. And then her father died and Laurel came back to pick up the pieces. She hadn't counted on Jonah, who is a psychologist now. Their break up was his wake-up call and he has cleaned up his act since then. Seeing Laurel back after all this years, reminds him of why he never set foot in her father's bar again. But now it is Laurel's bar and she needs help. Can Jonah overcome his fears and issues and help her out? And will Laurel be accepting of his help?
A nice read, four out of five stars and a special thank you to Netgalley for providing the arc.

Forget Me is an extremely touching story involving a man, Jonah Gardiner, struggling against himself and his insecurities while falling in love all over with his one true other. Struggling, also, is Laurel Moor, who is desperately striving to bring her family’s bar out of deep debt after her father’s death. Undercurrents of a deep love run through the novel wanting to surface and take over.
This, the second in the Van Allen Brothers series is just as great as the first, Forgive Me. I cannot wait for the final book, Free Me, to come out.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A short and sweet read touching on topics that can be hard to chat about, with a strong heroine and hero to boot.
Laurel has just returned to her hometown after a stint away from home working as a chef in New York, so she can take over her late father's bar. This presents all sorts of problems for her to overcome, but none that compare to running into an ex-flame, and 'reformed bad boy' Jonah Gardiner. He's had his own demons to overcome, and now, he's a psychologist. Laurel and Jonah should stay away from each other - there's a lot on the line and a lot of history, but they just can't... and so begins the story.

Overall: Did I enjoy this novel? Sure I did. Would I count it as one of my all time favourites? Probably not. It was sweet and although I'm not exactly qualified to speak on the way in which the issues of alcoholism and family trauma were handled, to my mind, it seemed as if it was well-written and seriously considered. Jonah and Laurel were sweet together and I enjoyed seeing them both grow through the course of the book.

Characters: I have to say that Laurel was a very lovely heroine to get behind. Even though she herself was quite blind at a few points, you just wanted to see her succeed and it was a satisfying conclusion in the end to her journey with her father's bar. As for Jonah - I liked him well enough, and I enjoyed seeing his care and compassion for Laurel, willing to confront certain aspects of his past for her, because of his love for her. Did I see him as one of the ultimate swoon-worthy male leads? no, not really - but that's up to the individual to decide. he was great for Laurel, although I'm sure that they would have a fair few issues to deal with - but what couple doesn't?

Storyline: at some points, I have to admit that I had to take a break and dive back into the storyline - and I'm not entirely convinced that it's because of the pacing or the storyline itself. It was lovely to read, but at points I did feel that it moved a little too slowly. The storyline itself manages to set itself apart from the typical trope of ex flames running into one another again fairly decently as well.

Look, overall, this was an enjoyable story to read - and I do have to admit that I am interested to see what happens in what I am assuming will be Matt's story - perhaps with a certain squad captain? Now that, I admit, I am very excited to read (if it happens)

Note: I was very generously gifted an ARC of this novel by the publisher and the author via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

Much thanks to NetGalley and Tule Publishing for this complimentary copy. This review is voluntary and opinions are fully my own.

📚 Series: Yes. 2nd, but can be read as a standalone.
📚 Genre: New Adult Romance
📚 POV: Third person
📚 Cliffhanger: No

⚠ Content Warnings: Alcoholism. Emotional and Physical Abuse.
⚠ Read if: you want a romance read that's not just about romance.

Forgot Me is a good story about a second chance romance. Laurel moves back to manage their family bar after her father's death. She plans on making it a better 'gastropub' to everyone's disagreement. She meets Jonah, her ex, her father's ex friend and an alcoholic, like her father, too.

This is a story about forgiveness and family. This is really not just about the romance. The romance parts will inserted here and there, and are actually quite sweet. What made me like this book is it showed how people handled grief as well as how people rise up from all the extreme unfortunes that just happens in life sometimes.

☁ THE CRITERIA ☁

🌻 Blurb:⭐⭐⭐⭐
🌻 Hero:⭐⭐⭐
🌻 Heroine:⭐⭐⭐⭐
🌻 Support Characters:⭐⭐⭐⭐
🌻 Writing Style:⭐⭐⭐
🌻 Character Development:⭐⭐⭐
🌻 Romance:⭐⭐⭐
🌻 Pacing:⭐⭐⭐⭐
🌻 Ending:⭐⭐⭐
🌻 Page Turner:⭐⭐⭐
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☁FINAL VERDICT: 3.45/5 ☁