Stunning and sophisticated, art dealer Samantha King is the only person who knows she doesn’t have it all (unless you count her mother and sister, which Sam doesn’t). When it comes to men, Sam won’t make time for anything more than a one night stand. No commitments, no connections.
The night her life changes forever is a night Sam actually can’t remember. Even so, the indelible mark a woman named Mia Rossi leaves on Sam's heart is something she can't ignore.
Elle Spencer takes us on a heartwarming, humorous, journey with Sam and Mia as they navigate life, love and a surprising shared history that complicates things, to say the least.
“Forget Her Not” is the second book by Elle Spencer I’ve listened to. I used Voice Dream for “Casting Lacey”, and “Forget Her Not” is an Audible.com book narrated by Stephanie Murphy. The common theme for both books is, “I love, therefore I run”.
“Forget Her Not” starts out very interestingly as 38yo MC Samantha (Sam) awakens after a night of drunken sex to find that (1) she doesn’t remember a single thing about the previous night, and (2) her adventure was with a woman! The rest of the book explores Sam’s growing realization that she has it bad for the woman (32yo MC Mia) but she’s a bad communicator and is terrified of exploring the relationship. The only clue to Sam’s instalove for Mia is when one of Sam’s former lovers tells her
”The One” is never the person you think it should be.
Sam spends much of the book being a pretty unlikable person, overthinking everything and doing pretty unlikable things to people around her, and remembering when she’d done unlikable things to people over the last many years. Mia, however, is just a delight - gorgeous, sexy, super smart, professionally accomplished, and she doesn’t sleep around. It’s not clear why a catch like Mia would still be single at 32, although she’s dreamed of being with Sam for two decades.
Things finally seem to be progressing well between them (emotionally and sexually), and then more miscommunications fired by a wacko brother/ex-boyfriend and his pregnant wife. More running away. More reconciliation. An out-of-left-field revelation by Sam to Mia to further describe her selfishness, and HEA. Say what? Yeah…kind of an abrupt ending.
This could have been a much better book. After recently reading “Clean Slate” I was intrigued by another book featuring a character inescapably drawn to another despite having no memory of their transformational night together. At 38yo, Sam’s repeated failures to act like an adult just became tiresome as she finds ways to constantly mess up being with “The One”. The narrator did an excellent job, but I wish there had been less angst. 3* for “Forget Her Not”, and I hope characters in Spencer’s other books also don’t spend lots of time using their running shoes.
Loved this story from the very beginning. Samantha King likes her own company and finds one night stands with men whenever she needs the release. That is until she wakes up with a gorgeous woman in her bed and doesn’t remember a thing about it. She brushes it off as a one-time thing but when she can’t move on or stop thinking about the woman, she decides she needs to find out more about this woman and her feelings.
Wow! Fantastic novella that left nothing hanging at the end. Loved the Epilogues and a glimpse into Samantha and Mia's life. Solid story, one I have read time and time again. This is still my favourite Lesbian Fiction Novella to date.
Elle Spencer is an amazing writer. She really knows how to create characters. This novella is the perfect length for reading in one evening. The story will grab you from the first page. Exceptionally well executed.
I'm surprised I liked this quite as much as I did. It's soul-matey, insta-lovey with tons of angst and dramatic miscommunication but it had me completely hooked and invested. Samantha King wakes up in some man's hotel room after a night of what she hopes was good sex to find that the legs she sees stepping out of the shower are a woman's.
I really enjoyed this read. So much back and forth and running it was entertaining and sad and happy and just a nice quick read. The book starts right off with a one nite stand with a woman that straight Sam can't remember...the kicker its with her first love's little sister. The book is fast paced and doesn't really waste time with anything outside of Sam and Mia. I recommend it and being a kU book you can't go that wrong with it.
Amazing love story! The only complaint is that the book was over too soon. The author knows how to get you to fall in love with the story and the characters. Five stars!
So many times I read books and wonder why certain scenes and even entire story lines haven't been shortened. This little gem that gets a 4.5* rating however had the opposite effect on me. Why oh why is this a novella and not a full length novel? It certainly had all the ingredients to make a fantastic read; great chemistry between the main characters, tons of emotional baggage, family issues and of course (re)defining one's sexual orientation.
There are some very emotional scenes throughout the book that felt rushed. One of the main ones being the relationship buildup between Mia and Sam. It really is a shame because even though the book has an epilogue that essentially completes the story, it still feels incomplete because of its condensed timeline.
Part of me wanted to label this book as instalove or instalust but then I remembered the following quote from a lil ole book called Sense and Sensibility that changed my mind. “It is not time or opportunity that is to determine intimacy; it is disposition alone. Seven years would be insufficient to make some people acquainted with each other, and seven days are more than enough for others.”
I actually liked this book. It's a good short summer read which had me laughing and tearing up in places. I'm just a little conflicted by the opinions expressed by the characters - does the author mean to say that a career woman who isn't married and who doesn't want kids is living an incomplete life?
Unusually for something of this genre, it’s stated with me a couple of days post read. The author really worked overtime so the characters are much more well rounded than they usually are in novellas.
I didn’t always 100% the root of the characters angst but I was happy to go with it.
Definitely worth a read and will definitely pick up the next book by this author
Man. This book pushes the limits with the tempo of the story. They have sex, they part, they say I love you, they have family trauma, they part, they say I love you, they get back together, they part, will you marry me? all in what felt like ten pages! A good book for a busy day, reading in snippets.
I really loved the story! Samantha and Mia were so wonderfully and beautifully in love with each other it was most certainly of cringe-worthy status :).
But Samantha's fear of commitment and her doubts whether she's someone who's truly good and worthy of love fuelled by external factors provides for some dramatic high-angst worthy situations that stresses the reader over her lack of resolve.
You'll fall in love with them and you just can't help rooting for the pair!
First person narrator and I just didn't like the character. So the more she talked and struggled, the more annoyed I got. So back to square one, what to read next ?
I really want to love this book, but it just has some minor stuff that frustrates me.
The setting of this story is promising and exciting - having f-ed someone so good but yet you could not remember who or what happened. It is abit unbelievable but i went on the ride anyway. And it was fun.
I guess my frustration was that the character that the MC had a big conflict with, did not build up to what actually happened. It is complicated but i imagined a cute tame kitty cat but instead met with a hostile tiger? Wished the conflict was something else..
A nice read. I'm not a fan of novellas but once in a while I try to read especially if the ratings are good. Actually, The first 1/4 of the book I was actually thinking of giving up. But I'm glad I didn't. This is angsty. Samantha's character is not very likable. I did not warmed up her until 1/2 of book. With Novella everything is fast paced. I like Mia, I kind of fell in love with her actually. ;)) She's the main reason why I rated this 4 instead of 3.
Nice story, too bad is so short, I love the characters and I wanted to know so much more about them. I guess is Insta-Love, but the way that the writer presents the Love to us, is kinda believable. It was a light read, great for any day. Her book Casting Lacey is great, so you if you can take the time and read that, I'm sure you'll have a good time.
I really liked this book, the opening scene was quite fun but I would have liked a bit from Mia's perspective. Not to sure how I feel about the proposal but I guess it fits Samantha personality.
It's was an alright read. The book is quite short and felt rushed with many issues touched upon and barely explored. And most of it came off as superficial, ie they talk about being in love so much but it's not really clear why besides the fact they they both are hot and the very vague "you make me feel so much" that reads like a cop out.
And please don't marry in honey moon phase, just wait a few months and see if it works out for you long term.
This is a nice quick read book that you can enjoy about family and love. I enjoy this book. I can see how th characters feel. To be honest i can see myself in Sam. Self doubt, the i’m-not-good-enough thing, dont have enough confident and run away. Sigh.. oh i’m not sleeping around btw thats the different >_>
No sé per què quan no tinc motivació per llegir sempre començo algun llibre super simple i previsible perquè acostumen a ser mediocres, però és que aquest ha estat especialment dolent. Així que escric això per recordar-me a mi mateixa que em mereixo llegir llibres ben escrits i que valguin la pena.
Samantha King, the free spirited forty year old straight woman, is Princess Charming. Mia Rossi, younger sister of Samantha's high school boyfriend, is hardly Cinderella. Mia was twelve when she took a shine to eighteen year old Samantha. She prayed that Samantha would pick her, not her brother, to wed.
They find each other in a bar in Chicago. Samantha lives in New York and Mia works in Atlanta. Waking up in a stranger's hotel room isn't new for Samantha, but never with a woman. Too drunk and hungover to remember the night before, Samantha tries to run from Mia. Some force, that is unfamiliar to her, keeps dragging her thoughts back to Mia. Since she failed so miserably after their night together, Samantha begs Mia for a second chance at a first date.
This short novel is chock full of heart. The path toward HEA is anything but smooth. Family plays a big part in things falling apart and being put back together. Forget Her Not is pure romance between two women who share a past and want a future.
What a sweet story! The main characters Samantha and Mia are very endearing, flawed (particularly Sam), and very well developed. Overall, a very well done with a lot of angst and a happily ever after.
Well, the entire story is a wishful-thinking kind of idea on perfect partner (good-looking, wealthy and smart), social acceptance including family. I wish everything in life was as easy as it was in here. Although there are struggles and fights (sad moments), they quickly come and go. As shallow as it is, I enjoyed reading this book because of feel-good emotions that I had from witnessing the story of the two main characters unfolds. I love the last sex scene although I know it's practical unlikely. :)
Elle Spencer's debut (novella) packs a whole lot of punch...A hilarious, drama/angst filled read about finding "the one" in the most unexpected of ways AND facing down societal/heteronormative expectations and preconceived notions not only about oneself but those who don't think we quite measure up.
I'm not sure why I decided to read this book but i am so glad that I did. Even though that it's so short it was really worth it, it was a bit funny at times, with a nice amount of angst and so sweet at the end. Lovely story, do yourself a favor and give it a go.