Thank you to LibraryThing, the authors and the publisher for this ebook.

The plot is a little bit too coincidental if you ask me but it happens. From best friends, like sisters almost, to practically enemies, and I understood why after the past story came out. One of my favorite scenes was when the two mothers (June [mother of bride] and Amy [mother of groom]) saw each other for the first time in over 25 years. You could basically hear the screech of a record as if a record was playing in the restaurant.

It's hard to believe that June and Amy were friends in college since they are total opposites now. June was bitter about everything from the past that happened between her and Amy, and now she's bitter that Amy is practically taking over the wedding arrangements.

No one seems to want to bury the hatchet but can they? Can these once best friends become friends again and more importantly, mothers-in-laws that can get along? There's much more with their exes too but I'll leave it like it is.

I liked the second half of the book more. It was more interesting I guess. ( )

Olivia and Zach meet in Italy and instantly fall in love. After a whirlwind romance, they become engaged. Both sets of parents are divorced, so the mothers are wary about their children's rapid engagement.
Now, it is time for all the parents to meet each other. But, there is a big surprise-Olivia's mother, June, and Zach's mother, Amy, were best friends in college-but are no longer talking. Why? Because Amy betrayed June.
The women's emotions get in the way of their children's happiness. Are they able to put the past behind them?
Easy read, awkward situation, but love prevails. ( )

Cute story of a newly engaged young couple and the baggage their respective families inadvertently bring to the mix. I enjoyed the ending with everyone coming together. I found it to be a light, easy read and enjoyed the different relationships and how they changed from the beginning to the end. ( )

Olivia and Zach meet while vacationing in Italy. It’s a very romantic setting and they both happen to be from California. They fall in love quickly and decide to get married, but when they get back home, their parents have strong opinions about them getting hitched so fast. Turns out the parents have their own motivations. This is a light romance that was a redemption story about how young love affects us for the rest of our lives. ( )

Whoever came up with the Father of the Bride/Bride Wars description for Forever Hold Your Peace absolutely nailed it. I admit I didn't read the blurb much further than that before requesting my review copy so the rest was all a surprise to me.

Olivia and Zach meet and fall in love while on holiday in Italy. Wasting no time, they're engaged before they head back to the States and their families who are a little less enthusiastic about the surprising news than the happy couple bargained for initially. Still, the families soldier on and set up brunch (nothing good happens at brunch) only to realize most of the parents have already met. Chaos ensues when we find out that Zach's father (Troy) was engaged to Olivia's mother (June) prior to a drunken hookup with June's best friend (Amy). The relationships never fully recovered, including Amy/Troy, and now both sets of parents are divorced and all bets are off.

We spend a small amount of time with Olivia, but most of our time is spent back and forth between Amy and June and I suspect your enjoyment of the book will rely heavily on how much you like/feel for them. Fenton and Steinke do a great job of balancing the storyline and just when things seem like someone really should be saying something, they do! There's some general cringe worthy moments when Olivia or Zach do/say something that feels like it's going to immediately be dated but mostly this lives up to the promise of a Father of the Bride/Bride War vibe.

My only real issue here is Troy. I think I'm supposed to feel bad for him that he's spent the last however long missing June and regretting his actions but he never actually seems to fully grasp how badly he fucked up, only that it cost him something/someone he wanted. He's directly at fault for another bit of fuckery later in the book and STILL doesn't seem to get what he's done wrong and yet he's later rewarded for his actions. Amy and June both seem torn up about their parts in the mess but Troy's regret never really seems to fully come through and I spent the whole book waiting for everyone to just admit he's the weak link and maybe not leave him behind (he is Zach's father) but just... realize he's not worth the hassle?

My other problem is that in reality, drunken hookups not fueled by anything other than crossed wires (wanting to comfort someone) and massive amounts of alcohol are probably far more likely than media has taught me, but in fiction I need MORE. I need a better underlying reason for why Amy would stab her best friend in the back and then seem to think best friend would be understanding about it. It never makes sense and fiction requires that more than reality. As it is, I don't feel bad for younger!Amy showing up at June's door with baby Zach in tow and then not making it past the door. Ma'am, the fuck is wrong with you? Oof.

I did find it very interesting that of the trio, June is NOT the one to stop trusting people even though she was the odd one out once her best friend and fiancé hooked up behind her back. Basically everyone deserved better than Troy and I spent the whole book hating his "redemption arc" because no, this cliched POS didn't deserve it and yes, apparently I have strong feelings about it. ( )