One of my favorite themes is psychic heroines and Forgotten Vows has that one.Joey is a psychic, she calls it intuition but she knows things and can sometimes even tell what one is feeling, so to save her sister and another "Slasher" victim she goes to the hospital to claim that she is the wife of amnesiac investigative reporter Ash. She tells him they had a whirlwind romance but what she doesn't know is that Ash is pretending that he has lost his memory. He goes along with the charade to find out what Joey is playing at and if she is the killer.Ash is someone who is a womanizer and he seems to be on the quest for a perfect woman, someone who is not promiscuous or puts out on a first date, someone traditional but Joey is the complete opposite of conservative. She drives a Harley, loves adventure. He was raised by a sex-crazy mother and he wants a normal life and wife, he is also curious to know how far would Joey go. She refuses to sleep with him, he finds that she has a gun in the house and a sister and nieces she loves and she seems to act weird sometimes.His editor tells him that she is a psychic which he doesn't really believe at first, then he sees how she knows when he is having nightmares and more, he also finds himself sticking out for her and lying for her. Their marriage kind of turns real, they are there for each other, laugh and more.I enjoyed the book a lot, especially seeing both of these struggle in their fake marriage as it turned more and more real.
I was looking for some fluff, fun, romantic suspense. And it was free on Amazon. Best kind of free fluff. But the characters just did me in. Couldn't finish. Misogynist hero who sleeps around but doesn't respect his partners? Check. Said hero also has mommy issues? Check. Heroine who is "independent" yet has a drawer full of lingerie with the tags still on because she is sexy, but not TOO sexy? Check. Heroine has every color hair? Check. Seriously "Her hair was a mixture of pale brown and honey gold and strawberry blonde." It's ok to pick one. Not a deal breaker for me. Heroine has daddy issues? Check. Both have bad dreams, except when in each other's arms? Check. Flimsy amnesia plot? Check. Flimsy murder plot? Check. Neither H/h can use their words? Check. And all of that would be ok. But our independent heroine, aka paragon of purity, just turns into a dependent barnacle. The hero's journey is a bit better but his outmoded views of sex and femininity and marriage and just honestly everything is a bit much for me. And the plot, I couldn't suspend disbelief any more. I kept thinking "wait... why didn't she just explain...", "wait, why didn't they just ask....", "wait... ". I can only do that so many times in a story before I start losing any kind of respect for the integrity of the story and characters. So anyway. It was ok. I just gave up.
What do You think about Forgotten (2012)?
This was very good! Reading the plot on the back cover of the book did not excite me to read this. I was just getting around to finally reading one of Maggie Shyane’s books that have been on my “to be read” shelf for the past several years. I’m glad I finally read it! The hero and heroine are both keeping secrets from the other. Mainly that she isn’t really married to him, and he is hiding that his amnesia isn’t genuine. Throw in a little paranormal stuff- that the heroine is also psychic makes this book a real page turner!
—Megan
Way to take a really interesting heroine, ditch her personality, have her fall in love with a complete and utter hypocritical chauvinist pig - who has no problem sleeping around and having sex on the first date, but considers the women he's having sex with to be easy whores; FUCK YOU ASH etc etc - and abandon any hope for what started out as an entertaining read. Oh, and whodunnit was obvious. And believe me, if I say it's obvious, then it's obvious because I can normally never tell. In fact, it was obvious all the way back on page four (ish, depending on how you're reading it) of chapter eight, when (view spoiler)[ "Use your brain, Ash. Why would she be afraid of the Slasher? All five victims have been men.""Four, Rad.""What?""Four victims. You said five, but there's only been—" (hide spoiler)]
—Amelia
A sexy sweet tangle, this romantic suspense kept me guessing till the very end. I was rooting for Joey (NOT Josephine) to figure out a way untangle herself from the web of lies she had woven around Ash in order to protect him and her beloved sister Caro. The dynamic between the two just made my spine tingle. Way to go Maggie-another 5 heart read! Joey has always had the extra little gift of premonition and suddenly she is seeing her beloved sister’s death along with a mysterious man whom she finds out is Ashville Coye star reporter. When Joey heard about Ash’s car accident that wiped out his memory she just couldn’t pass up the chance to insert herself into his life in hopes that she would be able to prevent his death and in turn her sisters. Her plan instantly goes awry, because little did she know that Ash’s supposed amnesia is a cover story he is using in hopes of luring the murderer to him. Well, that, and the fact that she is completely helpless to stop herself from falling in love with him.
—BBL Reviews
