Review: Forget Me Not - Shawn Martin

A copy was provided by the author
in exchange for
an honest review

Forget Me Not by Shawn Martin
Series: Shadowflesh #2
Genre: YA, paranormal, romance
Published on March 31, 2014
Published by Vinspire Publishing
Pages: 307
Read From: 8.15.14 - 8.22.14













SYNOPSIS

Fortune has smiled on seventeen-year-old Aileen McCormick ever since Addison came back into her life, giving her the love she has so desperately longed for. That is, until a mysterious man slithers across her path and slips a spellbinding cameo around her neck. The cameo holds more than just the image of an enchantress who hungers for souls. It possesses a curse that strangles away every memory Aileen has of Addison. 

Addison, a three-hundred-year-old fugitive from the netherworld, recognizes the wretched woman inside the cameo and the curse she has cast on his unsuspecting love. The enchanted cameo has but one purpose: to torment Aileen with hints of love she can no longer recall. 

Aileen cannot escape the deadly cameo. She runs for her life with the curse only a breath away. If she truly wants her memory back, the enchantress is all too willing to restore it. It will cost her, though. Cost her everything.

Review

Cover Blurb: Yes or No? I do like the cover art pretty well. Still not a fan of the character impersonator, but at least she isn't a photo of a real person that's been photoshopped in. :-)

Characters: Having not read the first book in this series, I can't say anything about the characters in terms of development. I have to base my opinion of them solely on their actions in this second book (I had no idea this was a sequel when I requested it for review; bad me). Aileen took a little while for me to warm up to. Her sense of humor was a little too cliche - the sort of bubbly sarcasm that I don't normally like - and I was frustrated with her for not understanding what was going on (even though it wasn't her fault). But as the story wore on, I got used to her and didn't mind her so much. I did very much like Addison. I don't know if he's really supposed to be a bad boy, but if he is I didn't think he came across as one. Just because he wears a leather jacket doesn't make him one. Addison was decent and classy - my only major gripe with him was his dating Missy when Aileen forgot about him. Seriously - why did he date Missy, of all people?! He had to have known she was a jerk; it made no sense. Aileen's friends I really have no idea what I thought of them. Again, this is the second book in a series. I don't know the whole story behind their relationship with Aileen and all of that. The same kind of goes for Geoff, though from what I saw of him in this book, I didn't like him much. Or Missy.

The Romance: This is a paranormal romance, so Aileen and Addison's relationship does take center stage. Of course, for over half of Forget Me Not, Aileen doesn't remember Addison - which surprisingly doesn't cause as much romantic tension as you might think. Addison knows exactly what's going on from the moment he sees the cameo. He doesn't blame Aileen for what's happened, and he immediately sets about trying to fix it. . . .while dating Missy, the resident mean girl, which, again, I totally didn't get. And Aileen gives Geoff a chance, though she knows he's a jerk and isn't going to change. Overall, though, the romance wasn't that bad. I didn't become terribly emotionally invested in Aileen and Addison's struggles - mostly because I haven't read the first book!

Plot: The summary above does an excellent job of, well, summing it up. I'm not usually a fan of romance stories where one party forgets about the other. It creates unnecessary romantic tension and I hate unnecessary misunderstandings. Especially when you want to blame someone for it, but you really can't. It's not Aileen's fault that she forgets Addison; she's under a curse. And Addison, thank goodness, understands this. For the most part, Aileen doesn't make an ass of herself in getting involved with other guys. I did get frustrated with her for thinking everyone was pranking her. Seriously, Aileen - you think your best friends and your grandmother are going to team up with Missy and play a prank on you? The one plot device that made absolutely no sense to me was Addison dating Missy (as I think I've already said). Addison isn't trying to make Aileen jealous, and therefore jog her memory. He just . . . . is. And from what I understand, Missy has a reputation of being horrible to Aileen and her family. Doesn't seem logical that a nice boy like Addison who still cares a great deal for Aileen would date her, and put up with her behavior. The plot itself moves along pretty well. Not at a super duper fast pace, but it's not slow, either.

Believability: Not applicable.

Writing Style: First person, past tense. Aileen wasn't a bad narrator; like I said, it took me a little while to warm up to her sense of humor because it was kind of cliche. But after a while, I actually enjoyed her as a narrator.

Content: None.

Conclusion: I have to say that the Author had me guessing about how it would end. Aileen was in a tight spot, and there didn't seem to be too many options for her to escape Stonecypher and his cursed cameo. If I had been more invested in Aileen and Addison's romance, it would have been an extremely emotional ending. But for me, at least, it wasn't - but I think it will be for people who have read the first book and enjoyed it.

Recommended Audience: Girl-read, seventeen-and-up, fans of paranormal romance.

Others in This Series:

1)Shadowflesh

2)Forget Me Not