{"id":32336,"date":"2026-10-16T09:59:29","date_gmt":"2026-10-16T13:59:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/?p=32336"},"modified":"2026-10-16T09:59:31","modified_gmt":"2026-10-16T13:59:31","slug":"review-once-again-always-by-amanda-gayle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/2026\/10\/16\/review-once-again-always-by-amanda-gayle\/","title":{"rendered":"Review \u2764\ufe0f Once, Again, Always by Amanda Gayle"},"content":{"rendered":"<!--themify_builder_content-->\n<div id=\"themify_builder_content-32336\" data-postid=\"32336\" class=\"themify_builder_content themify_builder_content-32336 themify_builder tf_clear\">\n    \t\t\t<!-- module_row -->\n\t<div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_row themify_builder_row tb_6twq757 tb_first tf_w tf_clearfix\">\n\t    \t\t\t<div class=\"row_inner col_align_top gutter-narrow tb_col_count_2 tf_box tf_rel\">\n\t\t            <div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_column tb-column col3-1 tb_lnwn757 first\">\n                                                        <div class=\"tb-column-inner tf_box tf_w\">\n                        <!-- module image -->\n<div  class=\"module module-image tb_gw27757 rounded drop-shadow customBorderRad_top image-center auto_fullwidth tf_mw\" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div class=\"image-wrap tf_rel tf_mw\">\n\t\t    <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"960\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/once-again-always-amanda-gayle.jpg?resize=640%2C960&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"wp-post-image wp-image-32337\" title=\"once-again-always-amanda-gayle\" alt=\"once-again-always-amanda-gayle\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/once-again-always-amanda-gayle.jpg?w=1000&amp;ssl=1 1000w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/once-again-always-amanda-gayle.jpg?resize=200%2C300&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/once-again-always-amanda-gayle.jpg?resize=683%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 683w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/once-again-always-amanda-gayle.jpg?resize=768%2C1152&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/once-again-always-amanda-gayle.jpg?resize=400%2C600&amp;ssl=1 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/>\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<!-- \/image-wrap -->\n    \n    \t<\/div>\n<!-- \/module image --><!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_0e7o757 customBorderRad_bottom repeat \" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n    <p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">Molly Graham\u2019s day can\u2019t possibly get any worse after she wakes up in a hospital bed with a head injury and amnesia. But then Aster Bishop\u2014<span class=\"a-text-italic\">the <\/span>Aster Bishop who made her life hell at boarding school\u2014storms into her room calling her his wife.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">To Molly\u2019s shock, in the six years she no longer recalls, she somehow fell in love with a man she once despised. Persuaded by her lifelong friends to give her new reality a chance, she reluctantly returns to the home she and Aster share to try and piece together her life.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">So much has changed, not least the considerate and devastatingly handsome man who spends every night sleeping on the sofa to avoid making her uncomfortable. This Aster is nothing like the entitled boy she once knew. Their chemistry is undeniable-but he\u2019s distant with her, infuriatingly so. It\u2019s clear he has secrets, and Molly can\u2019t stand it. Especially knowing that she might never regain her memories.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">That she fell in love with Aster Bishop once is hard enough to believe. But to fall in love again? To promise a future, always, when she can\u2019t remember her past? It feels impossible when faced with a man she hardly knows and isn\u2019t sure she can trust.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">And yet\u2026<\/span><\/p>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text -->                    <\/div>\n                            <\/div>\n                        <div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_column tb-column col3-2 tb_1osy757 last\">\n                                                        <div class=\"tb-column-inner tf_box tf_w\">\n                        <!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_hlqm757  repeat \" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n    <p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25880 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/smitten-diamond-banner-1-2.png?resize=296%2C72&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"296\" height=\"72\"><\/p>\n<hr>\n<p><strong>Release Date:<\/strong> Oct 6, 2026<br><strong>Series:<\/strong>\u00a0<em>Love on Cue<br><\/em><strong>Book:\u00a0<\/strong>2<br><strong>Heat Level:<\/strong> Hot<br><strong>Publisher:<\/strong>\u00a0HarperCollins<br><strong>Imprint:<\/strong>\u00a0Avon<br><strong>Price:<\/strong> $11.99<br><strong>Debut<\/strong><\/p>\n<hr>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong><em>A new-to-me author with a fresh take on enemies-to-lovers &amp; second-chance romance.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">What if you woke up next to your sworn enemy, but discovered you\u2019re married to him? Not only that, but you\u2019ve been married for over six years, and you\u2019ve forgotten every memory that brought you together. It\u2019s the second chance romance I didn\u2019t see coming. Bonus for readers who enjoy a solid amnesia trope, this one has it in spades.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">We have <strong>Molly Graham<\/strong> and her husband Aster Bishop. They\u2019ve been enemies since boarding school, constantly competing for the top spot in class and beyond. He\u2019s the rich prick, and she was the one from a poor family on a scholarship. Only something changed six years ago, and Molly can\u2019t remember due to a brain bleed and a couple of strokes. Everything is tip-top but her memory and the fact she\u2019s not sure how to live with a stranger. One that is intent on taking the doctor&#8217;s recommendations as gospel and moving at a glacial speed to re-integrate with her life.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The history between Molly and Aster plays out amid a series of flashbacks and current events where Molly interacts with the people and elements from her life that were part of the past and present. Aster is ever the tortured soul, wanting his wife back and also trying not to give into the fear he may lose her, though we never get to experience this from his POV. The story is solely in Molly\u2019s.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Why is this five stars? My heart ached. The challenge of regaining your life, your love, and figuring out who you are and if you want to be this person you\u2019ve become was so personal and touching. Molly\u2019s journey had me turning page after page, gobbling up more and more. I couldn\u2019t put this down. I inhaled this book at a speed I haven\u2019t read in a while. The story itself\u2014Aster and Molly figuring out who they are as a couple and the painstaking slow burn also played a role. I do love how Molly learns about her life, even though there were some moments where I wanted the pacing to move faster. I came to appreciate the snail\u2019s pace. In the end, there were elements I didn\u2019t predict, and others I was happy to confirm I figured out. The biggest win for me is that this book has stayed with me almost a week after I finished it. I keep thinking about the story, and books like those are definite 5 stars.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">I recommend this for those who enjoy <em><strong>Kate Clayborn<\/strong><\/em>. This was a fresh take on old tropes, and I won\u2019t deny I\u2019ll be on the lookout for Gayle\u2019s next. <em>Excellent debut!<\/em><\/p>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text --><!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_aydh757 customBorderRad repeat \" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n    <p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><span class=\"s1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/link.amazon\/B03BqJ2JI\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Amazon<\/a><\/span><span class=\"s2\">\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/apple.co\/47mZu7q\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"s3\">iBooks<\/span><\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.barnesandnoble.com\/w\/once-again-always-amanda-gayle\/1149128020?ean=9780063488328\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"s3\">B&amp;N<\/span><\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kobo.com\/us\/en\/ebook\/once-again-always\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"s3\">Kobo<\/span><\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/books\/details\/Amanda_Gayle_Once_Again_Always?id=25KqEQAAQBAJ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"s3\">Google Play<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text -->                    <\/div>\n                            <\/div>\n            \t    <\/div>\n\t    <!-- \/row_inner -->\n\t<\/div>\n\t<!-- \/module_row -->\n\t<\/div>\n<!--\/themify_builder_content-->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Molly Graham\u2019s day can\u2019t possibly get any worse after she wakes up in a hospital bed with a head injury and amnesia. But then Aster [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":32337,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[79,106,112,48],"tags":[155,183,216,217,404,405,483],"class_list":["post-32336","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-avon-books","category-harpercollins","category-landra","category-reviews","tag-5-stars","tag-avon","tag-contemporary","tag-contemporary-romance","tag-recommend","tag-recommended-reads","tag-top-pick"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Review \u2764\ufe0f Once, Again, Always by Amanda Gayle - Smitten by Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/2026\/10\/16\/review-once-again-always-by-amanda-gayle\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Review \u2764\ufe0f Once, Again, Always by Amanda Gayle - Smitten by Books\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Molly Graham\u2019s day can\u2019t possibly get any worse after she wakes up in a hospital bed with a head injury and amnesia. 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But then Aster Bishop\u2014the Aster Bishop who made her life hell at boarding school\u2014storms into her room calling her his wife.<\/p> <p style=\"text-align: justify;\">To Molly\u2019s shock, in the six years she no longer recalls, she somehow fell in love with a man she once despised. Persuaded by her lifelong friends to give her new reality a chance, she reluctantly returns to the home she and Aster share to try and piece together her life.<\/p> <p style=\"text-align: justify;\">So much has changed, not least the considerate and devastatingly handsome man who spends every night sleeping on the sofa to avoid making her uncomfortable. This Aster is nothing like the entitled boy she once knew. Their chemistry is undeniable-but he\u2019s distant with her, infuriatingly so. It\u2019s clear he has secrets, and Molly can\u2019t stand it. Especially knowing that she might never regain her memories.<\/p> <p style=\"text-align: justify;\">That she fell in love with Aster Bishop once is hard enough to believe. But to fall in love again? To promise a future, always, when she can\u2019t remember her past? It feels impossible when faced with a man she hardly knows and isn\u2019t sure she can trust.<\/p> <p style=\"text-align: justify;\">And yet\u2026<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/smitten-diamond-banner-1-2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"296\" height=\"72\"><\/p> <hr> <p><strong>Release Date:<\/strong> Oct 6, 2026<br><strong>Series:<\/strong>\u00a0<em>Love on Cue<br><\/em><strong>Book:\u00a0<\/strong>2<br><strong>Heat Level:<\/strong> Hot<br><strong>Publisher:<\/strong>\u00a0HarperCollins<br><strong>Imprint:<\/strong>\u00a0Avon<br><strong>Price:<\/strong> $11.99<br><strong>Debut<\/strong><\/p> <hr> <p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong><em>A new-to-me author with a fresh take on enemies-to-lovers &amp; second-chance romance.<\/em><\/strong><\/p> <p style=\"text-align: justify;\">What if you woke up next to your sworn enemy, but discovered you\u2019re married to him? Not only that, but you\u2019ve been married for over six years, and you\u2019ve forgotten every memory that brought you together. It\u2019s the second chance romance I didn\u2019t see coming. Bonus for readers who enjoy a solid amnesia trope, this one has it in spades.<\/p> <p style=\"text-align: justify;\">We have <strong>Molly Graham<\/strong> and her husband Aster Bishop. They\u2019ve been enemies since boarding school, constantly competing for the top spot in class and beyond. He\u2019s the rich prick, and she was the one from a poor family on a scholarship. Only something changed six years ago, and Molly can\u2019t remember due to a brain bleed and a couple of strokes. Everything is tip-top but her memory and the fact she\u2019s not sure how to live with a stranger. One that is intent on taking the doctor's recommendations as gospel and moving at a glacial speed to re-integrate with her life.<\/p> <p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The history between Molly and Aster plays out amid a series of flashbacks and current events where Molly interacts with the people and elements from her life that were part of the past and present. Aster is ever the tortured soul, wanting his wife back and also trying not to give into the fear he may lose her, though we never get to experience this from his POV. The story is solely in Molly\u2019s.<\/p> <p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Why is this five stars? My heart ached. The challenge of regaining your life, your love, and figuring out who you are and if you want to be this person you\u2019ve become was so personal and touching. Molly\u2019s journey had me turning page after page, gobbling up more and more. I couldn\u2019t put this down. I inhaled this book at a speed I haven\u2019t read in a while. The story itself\u2014Aster and Molly figuring out who they are as a couple and the painstaking slow burn also played a role. I do love how Molly learns about her life, even though there were some moments where I wanted the pacing to move faster. I came to appreciate the snail\u2019s pace. In the end, there were elements I didn\u2019t predict, and others I was happy to confirm I figured out. The biggest win for me is that this book has stayed with me almost a week after I finished it. I keep thinking about the story, and books like those are definite 5 stars.<\/p> <p style=\"text-align: justify;\">I recommend this for those who enjoy <em><strong>Kate Clayborn<\/strong><\/em>. This was a fresh take on old tropes, and I won\u2019t deny I\u2019ll be on the lookout for Gayle\u2019s next. <em>Excellent debut!<\/em><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/link.amazon\/B03BqJ2JI\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Amazon<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/apple.co\/47mZu7q\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">iBooks<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.barnesandnoble.com\/w\/once-again-always-amanda-gayle\/1149128020?ean=9780063488328\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">B&amp;N<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kobo.com\/us\/en\/ebook\/once-again-always\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Kobo<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/books\/details\/Amanda_Gayle_Once_Again_Always?id=25KqEQAAQBAJ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Google Play<\/a><\/strong><\/p>","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/once-again-always-amanda-gayle.jpg?fit=1000%2C1500&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32336","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32336"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32336\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":32343,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32336\/revisions\/32343"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32337"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32336"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32336"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32336"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}