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Lance Michelli and Rese Barrett go to Lance’s hometown in New York to tell Antonia, Lance’s beloved Nonna, everything they have learned about her life in Sonoma, California, the murder of her father, and the burial of her Nonno. But Nonna doesn’t seem to want to hear it. When Lance tries to tell her what he learned, Nonna is so disturbed she has another stroke.
Rese is overwhelmed by the close-knit family who seem to mistrust her. She wants to return home to her recently refurbished inn, with Lance, because without him, her business venture is sure to fail. But Lance seems to be near his Nonna, sitting by her side. And when Nonna has one more mission she needs him to accomplish for her, Lance is prepared to give up his dreams to do the impossible.
When the truth is revealed, the results are more devastating than they are helpful. Will Lance ever be able to go back to Sonoma again? Or is the vendetta, the family curse, going to demand attention?
UNFORGOTTEN is the sequel to Secrets. At first, I wasn’t real sure how good the book would be, there is a lot of back story interwoven in, and the stroke-inflicted Grandma hit too close to my own family for comfortable reading. But the story quickly drew me in, I cared more deeply for Rese than I ever did in Secrets and Lance was brought more deeply to life. He is truly a fascinating character. I wanted to know what happened in the past that had hurt Nonna so, but at the same time I feared to find out.
The book does not end to my satisfaction, and I strongly suspect another sequel to follow, but I couldn’t find any information on Ms. Heitzmann’s
web-page to validate that claim. However, UNFORGOTTEN packs a wallop on
its own. I was left completely overwhelmed at the unexpected turn of
events. This story is unforgettable . . . truly. If you haven’t read
Secrets, you must read that book first, as this is a continuation of the
story. This is a series for the keepers shelf, one that I will likely
read over and over.
Reviewed by Laura V. Hilton
for The Road to Romance
July 27, 2005
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