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Once We Were Lovers
A heartwarming and heartbreaking story of lost love, regrets, and the chance to put things right.
When Georgie walks into a London café quiz night, Peter turns away without a word. Fifty years earlier she betrayed him on the eve of graduation, and he’s never forgiven her for breaking his heart.
Their lives since have gone in opposite directions. Georgie soared briefly to fame in a punk band before falling into addiction, while Peter built a quiet, steady career in academia. Now fate has thrown them back together, and two determined young women are convinced they belong with each other.
But to have any hope of a second chance, Georgie and Peter must confront the night that tore them apart. The clock is ticking.
Once We Were Lovers is the fifth book in the At the Dream Café series—perfect for readers who love witty, character-driven fiction about second chances, messy families, and rediscovering love when you least expect it.
When Georgie walks into a London café quiz night, Peter turns away without a word. Fifty years earlier she betrayed him on the eve of graduation, and he’s never forgiven her for breaking his heart.
Their lives since have gone in opposite directions. Georgie soared briefly to fame in a punk band before falling into addiction, while Peter built a quiet, steady career in academia. Now fate has thrown them back together, and two determined young women are convinced they belong with each other.
But to have any hope of a second chance, Georgie and Peter must confront the night that tore them apart. The clock is ticking.
Once We Were Lovers is the fifth book in the At the Dream Café series—perfect for readers who love witty, character-driven fiction about second chances, messy families, and rediscovering love when you least expect it.
350 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 5, 2025
About the author
R.J. Gould
14 books27 followersThank you for wanting to find out about my fiction.
I write contemporary novels about relationships, using a mix of wry humour and pathos to describe the life journeys of my characters. Second chances and fresh starts are recurring themes. I am published by Vinci Books and also self-publish.
Before becoming a full-time author, I worked in the education and charity sectors and am currently trustee of Feeding Britain, a food poverty charity.
In addition to an addiction to telling stories, I have milder addictions to playing tennis, watching film noir, completing Wordle and eating dried mango slices.
I live in Cambridge, England.
Visit www.rjgould.info to find out more.
I write contemporary novels about relationships, using a mix of wry humour and pathos to describe the life journeys of my characters. Second chances and fresh starts are recurring themes. I am published by Vinci Books and also self-publish.
Before becoming a full-time author, I worked in the education and charity sectors and am currently trustee of Feeding Britain, a food poverty charity.
In addition to an addiction to telling stories, I have milder addictions to playing tennis, watching film noir, completing Wordle and eating dried mango slices.
I live in Cambridge, England.
Visit www.rjgould.info to find out more.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
November 16, 2025
Once We Were Lovers tells Georgie's story. After fifty years she tries to rekindle her relationship with Peter, her first love, but it won't be easy because the past scars festered and took them on two different life paths.
Georgie really made a disaster of her life, but as long as she is alive she still has the chance to fix it. I liked her strength, courage and perseverance. I appreciated Peter a little less, but I understand why he felt hurt. I was really into the tale, even if the main characters are oldies I cared for them and wished they had their happily after.
I loved this book at first sight, from the title and the bright cover. R.J. Gould wrote a powerful, gripping, emotional, heartwarming novel and I will definitely be looking forward to reading more from this author.
Copy kindly provided by the Publisher/Author.
November 5, 2025
Once We Were Lovers is the latest book in Richard Gould’s Dream Cafe series. Georgie and Peter were lovers back in the 1970s in their university days. A catastrophic mistake was made which tore them apart, until now, in the present day, when Georgie has a reason for trying to reconcile with Peter.
There are many obstacles along Georgie’s way and it does seem as if she and Peter are never going to reconnect in any meaningful way. They have both been through some difficult, to say the least, times over the past fifty years and Peter doesn’t want to try again. The two of them could have done with some mystical sliding doors way back then.
While I sympathised with Georgie I found it hard to like her; I’m allowed to say that because I was around in her day and I’m probably judging her from my twenty-something perspective. Both she and Peter had been self-absorbed (as was I!) and Peter was a male chauvinist pig before anyone realised that that’s what they were. None of this makes them any less interesting though and RJ Gould examines their lives and their motives very well.
The Dream Cafe is a pivotal feature again with David, the owner, and his daughter, Rachel, both playing important roles. This is probably the grittiest story yet in the Dream Cafe series.
There are many obstacles along Georgie’s way and it does seem as if she and Peter are never going to reconnect in any meaningful way. They have both been through some difficult, to say the least, times over the past fifty years and Peter doesn’t want to try again. The two of them could have done with some mystical sliding doors way back then.
While I sympathised with Georgie I found it hard to like her; I’m allowed to say that because I was around in her day and I’m probably judging her from my twenty-something perspective. Both she and Peter had been self-absorbed (as was I!) and Peter was a male chauvinist pig before anyone realised that that’s what they were. None of this makes them any less interesting though and RJ Gould examines their lives and their motives very well.
The Dream Cafe is a pivotal feature again with David, the owner, and his daughter, Rachel, both playing important roles. This is probably the grittiest story yet in the Dream Cafe series.
November 5, 2025
Having enjoyed the previous outings in the Dream Café series, I devoured Once We Were Lovers in just over a day — a real treat from start to finish.
This book is beautifully engrossing, the kind of read that holds you close and pulls you deep into “what ifs” and “could haves”. It centres around regret — those small decisions or betrayals that quietly linger in the background of our lives until fate forces a confrontation.
Georgie and Peter are our central pair and what a story they have. They were together when young, Georgie’s betrayal sent Peter walking away, and they each tried to get on with life.
Until fifty years later when their paths cross again. Can a betrayal that old ever truly be forgiven? Can two lives that have lived separate journeys still find common ground?
What I adored was the way their separate lives were portrayed — the triumphs, the quiet compromises, the joyful times, the bad — and how they both tried hard simply to forget the past.
Watching them talk through the past and reveal their interpretations of each other’s actions made you feel for them. If only they’d been honest back then, things might have been very different for both of them.
And the setting — the Dream Café itself — plays such a lovely, subtle role.
That sense of community, the monthly quiz bringing people together, the gentle background hum of everyday life: it works so well.
It reminds you that sometimes the place we gather offers more than just a cup of coffee — it offers connection, perspective, invitation. It’s so easy to give advice to others but much harder to take the same advice ourselves, and the café scenes reflect that.
I was particularly pleased to see older characters taking centre-stage.
It’s refreshing to read about second chances, reflection in later life, the slower pace of hearts learning and healing.
I also enjoyed getting to see a different side to Rachel who has been a background character who has popped up throughout the series.
This book has a very human feel — full of emotion, longing, hope, the subtle ache of “if only”.
An absolutely enjoyable story with real warmth, depth and that gentle reassurance that it’s never too late to face the past and perhaps find a future.
A huge thank you as always to Richard for writing such wonderful books and inviting us readers into this brilliant little slice of London that he’s created and for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This book is beautifully engrossing, the kind of read that holds you close and pulls you deep into “what ifs” and “could haves”. It centres around regret — those small decisions or betrayals that quietly linger in the background of our lives until fate forces a confrontation.
Georgie and Peter are our central pair and what a story they have. They were together when young, Georgie’s betrayal sent Peter walking away, and they each tried to get on with life.
Until fifty years later when their paths cross again. Can a betrayal that old ever truly be forgiven? Can two lives that have lived separate journeys still find common ground?
What I adored was the way their separate lives were portrayed — the triumphs, the quiet compromises, the joyful times, the bad — and how they both tried hard simply to forget the past.
Watching them talk through the past and reveal their interpretations of each other’s actions made you feel for them. If only they’d been honest back then, things might have been very different for both of them.
And the setting — the Dream Café itself — plays such a lovely, subtle role.
That sense of community, the monthly quiz bringing people together, the gentle background hum of everyday life: it works so well.
It reminds you that sometimes the place we gather offers more than just a cup of coffee — it offers connection, perspective, invitation. It’s so easy to give advice to others but much harder to take the same advice ourselves, and the café scenes reflect that.
I was particularly pleased to see older characters taking centre-stage.
It’s refreshing to read about second chances, reflection in later life, the slower pace of hearts learning and healing.
I also enjoyed getting to see a different side to Rachel who has been a background character who has popped up throughout the series.
This book has a very human feel — full of emotion, longing, hope, the subtle ache of “if only”.
An absolutely enjoyable story with real warmth, depth and that gentle reassurance that it’s never too late to face the past and perhaps find a future.
A huge thank you as always to Richard for writing such wonderful books and inviting us readers into this brilliant little slice of London that he’s created and for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
November 5, 2025
R.J. Gould has once again worked his signature magic in Once We Were Lovers, the fifth installment in the At the Dream Café series. While each book can stand alone, longtime readers will appreciate the familiar comfort of the café—a haven where people from every generation and walk of life find connection, laughter, and sometimes, love.
Read the full review at https://ginaraemitchell.com/once-we-w...
This time, the focus turns to Georgie and Peter, a couple in their seventies who once shared a young love shattered by betrayal and silence. When fate reunites them fifty years later during a trivia night at the Dream Café, the emotional weight of their unfinished story hits like a slow-burning ache. Gould handles this reunion with grace and honesty, exploring how time, regret, and forgiveness shape who we become.
I especially loved the choice to center an older couple. It’s rare and refreshing to see mature love portrayed with such authenticity—equal parts humor, vulnerability, and second chances. The misunderstandings of youth are revisited through the lens of experience, showing that even after decades, it’s possible to face the ghosts of “what if I had” and “maybe, I should have” with courage.
As always, the supporting cast adds warmth and color. Seeing familiar faces from earlier books was like meeting up with old friends, and young Rachel continues to be a favorite. Her perspective bridges generations, offering hope that empathy and connection are timeless.
Gould captures both the free-spirited energy of Georgie’s punk-era past and the quiet steadiness of Peter’s life in academia, weaving their contrasting paths into a beautifully balanced story of rediscovery. This isn’t just a romance—it’s a meditation on aging, memory, and the power of closure.
If you’ve ever wondered whether it’s too late to rewrite your story, Once We Were Lovers will gently remind you that it never is.
Find more R.J. Gould reviews at https://ginaraemitchell.com/once-we-w...
Read the full review at https://ginaraemitchell.com/once-we-w...
This time, the focus turns to Georgie and Peter, a couple in their seventies who once shared a young love shattered by betrayal and silence. When fate reunites them fifty years later during a trivia night at the Dream Café, the emotional weight of their unfinished story hits like a slow-burning ache. Gould handles this reunion with grace and honesty, exploring how time, regret, and forgiveness shape who we become.
I especially loved the choice to center an older couple. It’s rare and refreshing to see mature love portrayed with such authenticity—equal parts humor, vulnerability, and second chances. The misunderstandings of youth are revisited through the lens of experience, showing that even after decades, it’s possible to face the ghosts of “what if I had” and “maybe, I should have” with courage.
As always, the supporting cast adds warmth and color. Seeing familiar faces from earlier books was like meeting up with old friends, and young Rachel continues to be a favorite. Her perspective bridges generations, offering hope that empathy and connection are timeless.
Gould captures both the free-spirited energy of Georgie’s punk-era past and the quiet steadiness of Peter’s life in academia, weaving their contrasting paths into a beautifully balanced story of rediscovery. This isn’t just a romance—it’s a meditation on aging, memory, and the power of closure.
If you’ve ever wondered whether it’s too late to rewrite your story, Once We Were Lovers will gently remind you that it never is.
Find more R.J. Gould reviews at https://ginaraemitchell.com/once-we-w...
October 29, 2025
This was a really engrossing read that centres around those regrets that eat away at us, and then try and turn away from when confronted with the past. It's my first introduction too to the author and the Dream Cafe series, and I'm looking forward to catching up with their previous work after enjoying this book!
It features older characters which I really enjoy reading about, and Georgie and Peter have quite the story to tell! They were together when younger, until Georgie betrayed Peter and he walked away wanting no contact with her so they both got on with their lives. Until 50 years later when they find their paths crossing - can you ever forgive and forget a betrayal??
I loved looking back at these two characters lives, how they'd had good times and bad, but just got on with things trying to forget the past. The setting of the Dream Cafe also plays a part and i love the community feel with the monthly quiz bringing people together. It also gives the chance for them to open up to others and get different perspectives on things. Sometimes it's very easy to give advice to others but not so easy to take that advice yourself!
They both had such different lives and watching them talk over the past and how they both interpreted each others actions made you feel empathy for them -if only they'd been honest with one another then things could have been very different for them both! It has a real human feel and was an enjoyable story.
It features older characters which I really enjoy reading about, and Georgie and Peter have quite the story to tell! They were together when younger, until Georgie betrayed Peter and he walked away wanting no contact with her so they both got on with their lives. Until 50 years later when they find their paths crossing - can you ever forgive and forget a betrayal??
I loved looking back at these two characters lives, how they'd had good times and bad, but just got on with things trying to forget the past. The setting of the Dream Cafe also plays a part and i love the community feel with the monthly quiz bringing people together. It also gives the chance for them to open up to others and get different perspectives on things. Sometimes it's very easy to give advice to others but not so easy to take that advice yourself!
They both had such different lives and watching them talk over the past and how they both interpreted each others actions made you feel empathy for them -if only they'd been honest with one another then things could have been very different for them both! It has a real human feel and was an enjoyable story.
November 10, 2025
Fifty years ago Georgie betrayed Peter and he has kept a grudge since then. He refuses to accept her apology leading to a journey of self discovery, new beginnings, friendship and love.
This is a book of what if and how a singular action can change the trajectory of one’s life and others around you.
It focuses on regrets, self reflection, second chances and sobriety with older characters who have seen and experienced their fair share of life.
The storytelling was excellent and immersive and you can’t help but feel with the characters and their choices.
If you’re looking for a second chance romance with older characters then you will enjoy this.
This is a book of what if and how a singular action can change the trajectory of one’s life and others around you.
It focuses on regrets, self reflection, second chances and sobriety with older characters who have seen and experienced their fair share of life.
The storytelling was excellent and immersive and you can’t help but feel with the characters and their choices.
If you’re looking for a second chance romance with older characters then you will enjoy this.
December 22, 2025
This is the 5th book in the dream cafe series and as always this author has created another relatable read full of engaging characters and a storyline that gets to the heart of human emotion.
This instalment brings us Georgias story and focuses on regrets and second chances and makes you reflect on the if only moments that have happened in your own life.
Looking forward to more trips to the dream cafe in the future.
This instalment brings us Georgias story and focuses on regrets and second chances and makes you reflect on the if only moments that have happened in your own life.
Looking forward to more trips to the dream cafe in the future.
January 12, 2026
Very good
I have read all the books in this series, this was one of the best. Set like the others around The dream cafe, a few mentions of previous characters, but this is about Georgie, and peter, very sweet story.
I have read all the books in this series, this was one of the best. Set like the others around The dream cafe, a few mentions of previous characters, but this is about Georgie, and peter, very sweet story.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews