Unforgotten

Captivating and subtle, humorus and heart-breaking. The settings and characters in this book and Secrets before it were so real I felt I was there. The ending left me spellbound. I cannot wait to see what happens next for Rese and Lance and the other characters.

Kristen's newest book, the sequel to the Christy Award winner "Secrets" was a fabulous well-written story full of emotion and unforgettable characters. Her character-driven plot kept me turning the pages to find out what happens next to Lance and Rese. I think these books "Secrets" and "Unforgotten" are the best-developed characters she has ever created. I had to stop a couple of time and look around to make sure that the characters hadn't come to life. Wow... I also love the way she did Antonia's story back when she was fleeing her home in Sonoma, California with a man whom she knew little about other than he had sworn to protect her from her father's killers. Lance had discovered the secrets that were hidden in Antonia's old home which is now owned by Rese Barrett. At the conclusion of "Secrets" Rese and Lance decided to head to the Bronx in New York City to speak to Antonia about the villa and what she wants to do with the property even though legally she still owns it even though Rese had paid for the property. Lance finds himself caught between the two women he loves and must sacrifice more than he has to give. An awesome, riveting story filled with romance, angst and the ever-lasting love and forgiveness of God.

I knew this would be a great sequel. Afterall, I loved Rese and Lance and Antonia in Secrets and couldn't wait to hear how their story progressed in Unforgotten. What I hadn't expected was the journey I would make into my soul; the questions I would have to answer about myself. While I read I had to analyze my response to the characters actions. When vengeance seems to be God's Will, is it ever? Lance's fervent yearning to be right with God leads him down paths I didn't expect. But ultimatly God's love clarifies those labyrinthine paths. The harder hurdle for me were the threads of healing weaving through the storyline. Physical healing. Miraculous healing. This made me stop and wonder: how much faith did I really have? Did I believe that God could do ANYTHING? Even heal today as Jesus did 2000 years ago? When I prayed, Lord heal my friend, did I ever have any expectation that such a healing could really take place? This novel was a great novel and so much more. It will entertain you, challenge you, have you yelling at and laughing with the characters, and hopefully inspire you, as it did me, to walk an even deeper walk with the One who holds all mysteries of life in His hand.

I am an avid fan of Ms Heitzmann, she's amazing! This was in my opinion her most complex book yet. Rese and Lance were very different people but because Lance was so warm and caring, and because of his need to stay at the villa in book one he took the time to look beyond Rese's tough guy exterior (she did grow up raised by a schizophrenic Mom and then solely raised by a nondemonstrative Father in a construction world after all!!). I don't care for a tough almost masculine female lead character as a rule but Ms Heitzmann tells a compelling tale, similiar to The Rose Legacy, only in that it has an old tale woven through this contemporary book. What Lance finds as he gets to know Rese is that she has totally learned to bottle evrything up and of course to never show weakness and vulnerability in the very harsh world she has known. I loathe books where the perfect guy loves the totally cold woman with no foundation for it, but this book develops characters so well, it is a very believable and satisfying book even if it my not be to your liking! There were so many challlenges to live the faith also, I was wondering where she was going with the vendetta -the conclusion of that was Perfect! What can our God due if we surrender all to Him.This book is not for the fainthearted(content little Christians who do not want their faith challenged). When you read this book you really feel enveloped by Lance's Italian family, it's incedible! There are so many complex characters in the book . And though Chaz is barely mentioned, he contributes a lot. I don't believe it is my favorite book of the author but I definitely recommend it and will have to read it again to absorb all I missed the firt time through!

Wanting to discover more about the secrets his Nonna Antonia has kept hidden for so long, Lance Michelli goes back to his home in New York. Coming back with him is Rese Barrett, the woman he had met in Sonoma, where he began his pursuit for the truth of his family's past. Rese has agreed to go with him, to give Lance a second chance to prove he is worthy of her trust. In New York, Rese meets Lance's family, whose way of life- so different from her own- is slightly overwhelming, although friendly and welcoming. With Nonna Antonia's health so fragile, the unraveling of the past is slow. In her mind, Antonia relives her life in Sonoma and the reason she left her beloved home with her husband, Marco Michelli. Unforgotten by Kristen Heitzmann is an excellent sequel to `Secrets'. I love the characters of Rese and Lance, who are complete opposites. Lance is unreserved with his affections and undaunted by the difficulties life throws him. Rese tries to always stay cool under pressure and keeps all her emotions bottled up inside until they explode. I've enjoyed all of Heitzmann's books, but I would say that Secret and Unforgotten are my favorites.