Second chances with nostalgia!

Karen Grey has caught my heart with this fun, second chance romance. The second in her Boston Classics series and features Ben and Lucy as they meet again years after the death of her brother. Now years later, Ben returns, a successful model to,his quiet hometown and the sparks still fly. But is that enough to again? Grey weaves in 80's music which I love, realistic life issues of grief, guilt and loss as well as falling in love again. The secondary characters bring matchmaking and sage advice, and Puck the dog is a joy. Laugh, cry, and love all bring this story to life and made for a fantastic listen.

Brian Pallino and Emma Wilder are a wonderful team and truly enhance the story. Pallino's portrayal of Ben gives us all the feelings this man has. His inflections and nuances create his personality perfectly. Wilder comes through as Lucy. She is amazing with her voice as she gives us each emotion. She easily fills into her character. These two were incredible together.

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A Captivating, Heartfelt Delight~Outstanding🎧📚🎧

Karen Grey pens another wonderful novel in her “Boston Classic” series. She takes us back in to the 80’s in her fabulous second chance romance. I loved that she included a song title and artist from the 80’s before each chapter’s title it was like a blast in the past. She also did a great job capturing how life was back in those days, how we lacked simple conveniences back then like cell phones. The characters are nicely developed, we get glimpses into their past, sound effects in place sounding like a rewind. Lucy Minola once dreamed of becoming a Veterinarian, that changed when her older brother, Tony, was killed by a drunk driver on his way to pick her up from college. She felt it was her fault he died. Ben Porter returns to his childhood home to help his father out, he has not been back since his best friend was killed in that car accident. He was in the car with him when it was struck by a drunk driver, he blames himself because he just told him he had feelings for his younger sister. Ben could not deal with his guilt and decided to leave home, he moved to the west coast, his acting career turned to a modeling one. Currently he is working for his Dad’s business and took an acting role with a Boston Shakespeare Theatre company. His one regret is Lucy, when he finds an injured dog he brings him to the Veterinarian to get checked and finds her there. Can he make things right with her, will she even want to give him the chance? This book contains a whole lot of heart, the story is beautifully plotted and it is a perfect balance of serious subject matter and humorous comedy. There is never a dull moment in this book, it gives you all the feels, best of all it will make you smile. Karen Grey, thank you for another fabulous story, the emotional rollercoaster ride and the trip back to the 80’s.

🎧📚🎧 And for the fabulous narration, Emma Wilder and the late Brian Pallino were the perfect cast to bring these characters and their story to life. They did an awesome job portraying them, giving each character their own voice and personality. Emma Wilder’s take on Lucy was spot on, as was Brian Pallino’s Ben, they sounded just as I pictured them to sound, captured all of their emotions and projected them into their performance. Both are mega talented voice artists and entertaining storytellers, always a pleasure to listen to. Brian Pallino will truly be missed, may he rest in peace.

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Wonderful romance, so many smiles

This was my first book by this author and it was a wonderful one. I requested and received the audiobook but upon finishing, I went and borrowed the first book from KU. I absolutely adored references to some of the songs I loved in the past and it was a really cute idea to highlight the contribution of mixtapes and music to memories. There is definitely a strong feeling of nostalgia with this book.

The couple was fantastic. I loved Lucy and Ben both and my heart broke for them as they were separated due to tragedy. I wish that Ben was a little more open about what happened in the past instead of disappearing but then This is a second chance romance. The book was well paced and entertaining and the parts with Puck made me heart happy, as a dog lover myself.

The audiobook was amazing and enhanced the book. The late Brian Pallino was fantastic and it makes me so sad that he can’t bring his creative genius to the world anymore. Emma Wilder also played her many roles flawlessly and in total, this was a book I couldn’t stop listening to. Thanks to Karen Grey for such a beautiful author’s note at the end as well. You brought tears to my eyes.

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A sweet Captivating romance!

This was such a sweet captivating heartfelt romance!
I dived right into this after book 1 and absolutely adored this.
The characters were likeable, relatable and well fleshed out. The humor was enjoyable and the timing was perfect.
The writing style was engaging and the setting of the story appealed to me.
Overall an enjoyable listen.

The narrators performed quite the audio delivery!

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2 people found this helpful

Wonderful second chance love story

I loved this look into Lucy and Ben’s past and how these two find one another again. The book deals with some serious real life emotions and how each of us always have our own perspective of events in our past. A lost puppy Puck, beings Ben and Lucy back together again seven years into the future. I did enjoy the flashbacks for both Ben and Lucy and how it forms who they become in the future.

I had a hard time with the sound of the tape recorder rewinding at first because it sounded louder and scared me, until I got used to it, lol.

I’m a huge sucker for second chance romance and loved how Karen dealt with this genre. I’m new to her writing and will definitely check out her books based on this audiobook.

The narration was awesome and Emma Wilder and Brian Pallino are amazing artists. They bring this audiobook to life. I was a huge fan of the late Brian Pallino and now love to hear all of his work. Rest In Peace Brian thank you for being amazing. I received this audiobook from either the author, narrator or publisher and this is my honest opinion.

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Ben and Lucy

I loved this audiobook, it's my first book by this author but it definitely won't be my last! Lucy and Ben's story was one which had no difficulty holding my attention, the story hit all the right notes for me and I thought it one of the best second chance stories I have listened to. Ben was a lonely youth when he and his father moved to a new home. On Ben's first day at his new school, he met Tony and they became fast friends. But it wasn't just Tony who welcomed Ben into their lives it was his whole family, especially his younger sister, Lucy.

When Lucy was 18 and Ben was 21 they took their friendship to the next level but kept it a secret from everyone. When Lucy went away to College they agreed to date other people, something she embraced but not Ben, and he's looking forward to telling Lucy how he really feels when she comes home for Thanksgiving. But before the two get a chance to meet again tragedy strikes, her brother Tony is killed and their lives will never be the same again.

Fast forward seven years and Ben, who moved to California straight after Tony's funeral, is back home because his dad has had some health issues and he's decided to stay as long as he can to make sure his dad's ok. He's managed to get a part in Romeo and Juliet with the local Shakespeare Theatre Group, as well as helping out his dad as much as he can. Acting was his dream when he was in college but in California, he's made a very good living as a male model. It's a career which may have been good to him but it's not something he finds fulfilling so he's enjoying the change of pace and scene. One morning Ben finds a dog on his doorstep, it has an injured paw so he takes him to the local vet to get him checked over. Imagine his shock when the person who comes into the exam room to treat the dog is Lucy. She works as a vet technician and is still living at home and taking care of her family.

I loved both Lucy and Ben, but Tony's death is something each of them feels responsible for and they are both still dealing with their feelings of guilt. The chemistry between them is still there but it's thanks to the dog that they get to spend time together. They both have issues to work through if they are going to have a chance at a future, I loved the chemistry and connection between them as well as the growth both characters are able to accomplish as their story progresses.

The story has lots of flashbacks to their time together in the 80s, which help you get to know the characters, each chapter starts with the name of a song from one of many mixtapes Lucy made back then and each song evoked memories for me as well as the characters.

The narration by the very talented Emma Wilder and the late Brian Pallino was phenomenal both of them were able to bring the characters to life and really brought out their individual personalities. I should mention that there was a sound of a tape fast-forwarding to signal the beginning or end of a flashback which the first time it happened made me think that my download was faulty so I redid it, I only mention this so you don't make the same mistake!

There is so much more to this story, which I highly recommend but to say more would involve too many spoilers. what I will say is that I loved both Ben and Lucy, I felt for them, for what they had lost and for what they found. All the characters in the story were well-drawn and likeable, well apart from Tony, the more I learned about him as the story progressed the less I liked him. I will definitely be keeping an eye out for further books Karen Grey going forward.

I was given this audiobook as a gift and am voluntarily writing my review.

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Beautiful Story!

Ben and Lucy's second chance to love is beautifully written, emotional, and engaging, filled with drama, and miscommunication. The characters are well developed, and interesting. The back and forth back to present is well done and easy to follow (I liked the sound effects!). This is a beautiful and heartfelt romance. Excellent narration from Brian Pallino and Emma Wilder. I enjoyed it. Looking forward to more in the series.

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Fantastic from start to finish

This is the first piece of work I have experienced by this author. As a young adult of the 80’s, this second book in the Boston Classic series (standalone) was very appealing. Mixtapes-and songs I know all the words to as well! I love the brother's best friend/second chance tropes and the author has written this so well. A stray dog puts Lucy back in Ben's path after a hard seven year absence. The story has current day Ben & Lucy interspersed with chapters of their life, starting from when Ben became best friends with Lucy's brother Tony. Both of them have confessions to make, and issues to work through. There were such fun parts in the story (Puck the dog, the mix tape songs) and some intensely heart breaking parts. There's lots going on in the story with work, love, and family so never a boring moment. The narrators were brilliant, so kudos to Emma Wilder and the late Brian Pallino for bringing the characters to life. The book was absolute perfection, from the plot, to the characters, to the presentation.

I received an audiobook from the author. My honest opinion is voluntarily provided.

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Enjoyable

I was completely entranced by this book, the story swept me right in and held my attention the entire time. This is my first book written by Karen Grey and it will not be my last, I enjoyed her writing style, I am not typically a fan of flashbacks in a story, but I think this time they were a nice touch to Ben & Lucy’s story. Ben And Lucy have amazing chemistry and laugh out loud banter. All in all I enjoyed this read and there was nothing too steamy and I felt like the characters were written to be very reflective of their ages and of the time period. I can't wait to read more books by this author. This story was definitely one of those that you won't be able to put down.

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Stand alone 1980s fun

This is a stand alone novel, but if you haven't already read What I'm Looking For you should pick the audio version of that up too. There's just a little overlap between characters, but I think part of the reason I liked Forget About Me so much is because I really liked the first in the series. I'm not a big fan of 2nd Chance or flashbacks, so if you are a fan of those you'd like this as a stand alone.

I loved the puppy and the references that people who remember the 80s will recognize (like Benji). I listened to the audio version and the performances by Emma Wilder and Brian Pallino are fabulous. I highly recommend this series to people who remember the 80s.

I received a copy of this audiobook at my request, and the opinions here are my own.

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