From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Julie Ann Walker comes an epic story about sacrifice, friendship, and the awe-inspiring power of love.Maggie: Ten years ago, Cash Armstrong stole my heart. Then he promptly joined the army—dragging my best friend with him—and left me crying on the front porch in a red sequined prom dress. Now he’s back. They’re both back. Cash, the one who … he’s back. They’re both back. Cash, the one who still has my heart. And Luc, the one who saved my life.
Cash: How do you know if you’re at the end of the beginning or the beginning of the end? That’s what I’ve been trying to figure out since a traumatic brain injury made me “unfit to serve.” I’m back in New Orleans, and picking up the shattered pieces of my past means I must confront where my life’s journey began… and where it all might end.
Luc: Long ago, Maggie May was mine. Not mine in the way you might think. She was mine because she was my only friend. Then Cash came along and we became brothers by something stronger than blood. We became brothers by choice. When tragedy struck, I was forced to make a decision that changed all our lives. I thought, after ten years, it was safe to come back home. I was wrong…
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It’s not the whole book
This is the middle of our story of three friends and the secrets of the past. In the first book one secret was answered but there are still more and Cash, Luc and Maggie are living in the present and struggling with the here and now. When you love someone, you want to them to see the best in you but if you really love someone you want them to see the real you and love you for it. That is a big part of this saga. These three people loved each other with everything their teenaged selves had but now they are adults with different wants and needs. Cash has a plan that he is keeping close to the vest. Luc has a dream that he fears that he will never realize. Maggie needs to come to terms with what her heart needs now and live in the present. My review is intentionally vague because you need to read this story to understand how wonderful it is. As with the first book it is told from all three characters points of view and should not be read without reading book one.
Maggie May , bar owner in the historic district of New Orleans, deals almost daily with the void of not having her best two friends Luc and Cash in her life. Its been 10 years since life separated them but suddenly they’re back in town, all grown up and it is like time hasn’t gone by. She does have questions, like why did they left? Was she not enough for her high school sweetheart? Will their friendship ever be the same? Will dreams come true in magic NOLA?
In Moonlight and Memories volume 1,2 and 3, we met an unlikely trio New Orleans’ native who happen to be Harry Potter’s fans, Katrina’s survivors and complicated Army heroes. Simply put, it is a true love story. There are no small characters, some are “teachers” others bring much needed comic relief, but the city itself may play the central one and like a magnet will draw you in and will come alive with each word and evocative description. Although there are 3 books, they read as one. They must be read in order and pace yourself to laugh, cry, think but above all, feel.
To Julie Ann Walker, I know you pour your soul in these volumes. Its been a long time since I have cried both in joy and in sadness reading a book. Ma’am, you wrecked me (in a good way) and I agree…”You only live once. But if you do it right, one is enough”. Five shinning stars!
I received an ARC and these are my sincere thoughts.
This book is full of feelings. Lots of ups and downs. Breaks your heart but also fills it with hope. It grips you in the story wondering which direction it will go.
In Moonlight and Memories: Volume Two, by Julie Ann Walker
In book two, it picks up from where book one left off. It is an amazing story of sacrifice, friendship and of course love. Laughed and cried as I read and the different points of view make it very gripping.
Volume 2 picks up where Volume 1 left off. Maggie gives the guys all the letters she wrote them each day for the first year after they left. These three’s relationship picks up where it left off ten years prior but its like they are stuck in the past.
Cash is out of control, he has let Maggie down time and again and is pushing her towards Luc but Maggie is still failing to see what is right in front of her. The sheriff has threatened Maggie and Luc with arrest in getting justice for his son’s death who died on prom night. No one knows the full story to what happened, except Luc. With the threat of the sheriff hanging over their head they try to continue with a normal life as much as they can. While Cash keeps drifting and staying in the back of the story with his major pain and drinking.
I am enjoying this trilogy so far. It is such a different approach for Julie than the BKI series and for me it took a little time to get used to but the further I get the more I like it.
Received ARC from Julie Ann Walker in exchange for a voluntary honest review.
Now we get the history of Cash, Luc and Maggie. This is what I needed. I needed to know what happened all those years ago.
I’m going to leave it at that; just know, you need this story! So many questions answered!!!
Reviewed by: Dana D.
The second in this series continues the story of Luc, Maggie, and Cash. In this one, you get more of the complex relationships between the three, as well as Cash’s father, Luc’s mother, and Maggie’s sister and aunts.
You also start to understand that these three have some secrets that have been haunting them, and have impacted their relationships with each other, and their families
I have to start by saying that I LOVE Julie Ann Walker’s writing. I’ve devoured her Black Knights & Deep Six series & anxiously awaited each new installment. That being said, “In Moonlight and Memories” is nothing like those action-packed books but because of what an amazing writer she is, I was going through Walker withdrawals & I was anxious to get my hands on these books. They did not disappoint.
Though in three volumes, “In Moonlight and Memories” is really one continuous story of the love & friendship and highs & lows, between three friends, Maggie May, Cash & Luc. Though they are the main characters, you can’t dismiss the fact the Ms. Walker has introduced a fourth character — New Orleans. She vividly captures the idiosyncrasies of that most unique of all American cities. It’s New Orleans that sets the gentle, unhurried pace of the story, a story where the details matter. Unlike most books, the setting is important. The characters were shaped by the culture & geographic location of New Orleans so their actions & reactions are not so much predictable but understandable in that context.
I won’t share the details of this epic story because you honestly need to read it for yourself. Knowing what will happen will make some readers impatient with the story‘s pace but the pace is important. It allows you to really feel what the characters are experiencing. The emotions you’ll experience are the highs & lows of a roller coaster but a slow-moving one with beautiful scenery along the way. Carve out plenty of time to enjoy the ride. This is one you don’t want to rush.
WOW! Just WOW! I binge read all 3 volumes of Julie Ann Walker’s In Moonlight and Memories, and all I can say is WOW! This is an epic story of first loves, second chances, friendship and all the messy bits in between.
Walker continues her epic story in Volume 2. She draws you in deeper to each character individually, and how they interact with each other. The conflict she provides adds tension, as the characters navigate who they are today and try to reconcile with who they were 10 years before.
Walker manages to elicit every emotion in the spectrum, and by turns I was mad at each of the characters, then just wanted to fold them into a hug and tell them it’s going to be OK. That’s the magic of a masterful storyteller, to pull you in and make these characters come to life.
Walker also continues to bring to life the city of New Orleans. Walker’s descriptions make the city an active character in the story. It’s the most beautiful love letter I’ve read a unique city with it’s own culture and beauty.
I was given all three volumes in exchange for an honest review. This review is for all three volumes because there is no way you can read Volume 1 and stop. This book pulls at your heart strings and then kicks you in the gut. Its been a long time since I’ve read a book that made me cry with tears rolling down my cheeks but this one definitely did it. This is the story of a love triangle….that isn’t.
The story itself takes place in New Orleans which truly becomes a fourth character in the story (and if you know anything about NoLa you know that is not unusual). Julie Ann Walker’s previous stories have been full of tough military men and the suspense/mystery of who is the bad guy. Although this story doesn’t fit into that mold on first glance, it still contains a great deal of suspense – trying to figure out what is going on from multiple aspects of the story.
The story centers around Cash, Maggie and Luc. The three met as teenagers and seemed to form an unbreakable bond. But for reasons unclear to Maggie Cash and Luc effectively disappear, running off to join the military. And then all of a sudden they are back. We are brought into the stories of the tragedies of each life (that we all experience in one way or another) and the mystery of what did really did happen. Then there is the mystery of what is happening now. You are trying to tie everything up in a pretty bow and instead there are a bunch of knots. You are easily wrapped up in the story that there is only one choice – to finish all three volumes. The emotions (and crying) I felt as Walker wrapped up this story were rough, raw and yet oh so beautiful. And right….and complete. Don’t miss out on this epic saga of love, loss and life!
Memories can be a good thing, but along with the good memories we seem to bring along the bad ones as well. The past of their childhood is starting to unravel as Maggie, Cash, and Luc, deal with the love for each other and the secrets of what happened all those years ago. Others see the past differently than they do and are out to prove it. With the emotions and their past unraveling and waiting to be dealt with, the three of them will have their lives changed forever. Their story is one that will break your heart at times, but it is a story of genuine love between three friends growing up. Volumes must be read in order to understand the true meaning of the lives of Maggie, Cash, and Luc. I was gifted “In Moonlight and Memories:Volume Two”. My opinion is voluntary and my own. 4.5 Stars!
In Moonlight and Memories: Volume two by Julie Ann picks right up where volume one left off. We get to continue to learn more about the three main characters. This story will take all three books to tell. You will laugh, you will cry and you will become frustrated. It is a very emotion and enjoyable story full of love, friendship and wonderful characters. I must go read volume three now since volume two left me some cliffhangers.
Let me start out by saying I have loved the characters and worlds created by Julie Ann Walker ever since I read the first entry in her Black Knights Inc. series and through to her most recent Deep Six series. Those books were full of alpha males (and females) who are covert black-ops operators who ask questions, shoot, then ask more questions. That is the Julie Ann Walker novel that I am used to. So when I was given the opportunity by her to review a new “trilogy” , needless to say that I jumped at the chance!
Little did I know what I was getting into with the three volumes of In Moonlight and Memories. Because the three books are so intertwined, I am reviewing them as one complete work.
Against the haunting backdrop of New Orleans, the story focuses on Maggie, Cash, and Luc – childhood friends who met at school and bonded with each other through feelings of loneliness, loss, abandonment, and a devoted friendship to one another. Flash forward (or backwards as the case may be) ten years. Cash and Luc, who “disappeared” from Maggie’s life, return to New Orleans to pick up the pieces of the lives they left behind. The story is told from the perspective of each of the three protagonists which gives the reader a glimpse into the hopes, fears, and minds of each of them.
Adding to the drama of attempting to renew the close bond the three friends shared, is a looming mystery of the disappearance of a classmate ten years earlier whose father happens to be the chief of police and the hatred that Cash’s father feels towards his own son. I
The books start slowly, setting the backstories of the characters and the city that they inhabit. New Orleans, itself, often feels like one of the main characters as the atmosphere, both exciting and oppressive, adds to the emotional impact of the books. The peripheral charters are compelling, as well.
I can’t remember a series that put me on such an emotional roller-coaster. One minute I was sharing laugh-out-loud passages with my husband and a few chapters later I was grabbing for the tissues. The conclusion of the trilogy left me both ecstatic and “ugly-crying” at the same time.
If you want your characters real, believable, and people you genuinely want to be happy, then I highly recommend this trilogy. Kudos to Julie Ann Walker for taking a giant leap into the unknown with this style of writing, character development, and emotional impact.
I received ARCs of all three novels from the author in exchange for a fair and honest review.
This is a trilogy of books that takes us on a journey with the 3 main characters. What starts off seeming to be a love triangle, in reality it truly isn’t. Part 1 gives us a lot of the back story and shows us where the characters are in their lives currently. Part 2 expands on that and starts laying the groundwork for how their future relationships may become. But it also highlights how much people can hurt along with the lengths they will go to in order to deal with them. Part 3…oh part 3. It may have broken my heart. But it also shows just how much someone can love other people and want to do what they know is right for them. I really don’t want to go into a lot of details with the way this all plays out because I honestly feel like that will ruin the journey that these books take you on. Let me just say, be prepared with tissues in part 3. Because not only do events happen that will break your heart-they just show the depths that someone people feel and what they are willing to do for those people. I definitely recommend reading all 3 but just remember that this is a trilogy so the first 2 are left on cliff hangers although they are full length novels. Well worth the reads though!
Word to the wise: do NOT finish volume two just before it’s time to go to work unless you want to be good for nothing for 8+ hours.
You’re killing me, Ms. Walker.
Volume two of In Moonlight and Memories pulls the reader even further into Maggie, Luc, and Cash’s world. It answers a (very few) questions that lingered from the first volume, but leaves you with even more–plus, a big ol’ OMG I MUST FIND OUT WHAT HAPPENS NEXT, LIKE, YESTERDAY.
Seriously, it’s so very fortunate that Ms. Walker released these all at the same time. Well, except where my productivity is concerned…
The relationship between Maggie, Cash, and Luc is even more triangle-y here–or is it?–and even though one of the three of them is causing more disappointment than anything else in this volume, I’m still finding myself torn over what I want to happen in the end. Though the events of the final chapters of volume two might make the question somewhat moot…
Gah! Why must I work???
Rating: 4 stars / B+
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.
Wowza! This is something different for this author and just let me say Julie Ann Walker. nailed it!
This is a 3 part series that follows the lives of 3 people who are tied together by more than friendship.
Young love is always something that shapes a part of our souls. And that first love, though not anything close to being lasting is something most of us hang onto, remember and appreciate.
Cash, Luc, and Maggie are just finding out who they really are and what they really want.
This book is written about one of the best cities in the world. New Orleans is full of history and magical stories. All of which this Author included in every page. It’s so very obvious that Julie spent a lot of time with research.
Please don’t miss this sweeping saga of love, reconnections and loss
Moonlight and Memories made me sigh, laugh and cry.
Thank you Julie Ann Walker for writing this book!
Okay so volume 2 of M&M picks up with them as teenagers. Maggie is head over heels in love with Cash and he just broke her heart when he left. Poor Luc. (cue the tears) I was like, can’t you see,it? He is right there in front of you! I was shouting at Maggie. It is so damn obvious who she should be with! Gah. My heart damn near broke into pieces for the guy. Such a good male. This is definitely getting so good, just like a slow burn with secrets and emotions all over the place. Lol. Just so freaking good! Onto the last and final volume. Yesssssss!!!! 4.5 stars****
****I voluntarily reviewed this book, provided by the author, in exchange for an honest review.****
Volume Two picks right up from where Volume One leaves off.
Every chapter in Cash or Luc’s point-of-view starts off with a letter from Maggie May. I thought that was a sweet touch of the authors. It gives insight to how Maggie was as a teenager, missing her two friends.
The past is quickly catching up with the trio. Even though the three have some dissension between them, they manage to band together to protect each other. They refuses to sacrifice the other. I admire that about the three.
Pretty much the story is unfolding how I predicted it would. I am still not invested in the story or the characters.
I never really did like love triangles. They are just not my cup of tea, especially in stories.
As I stated in my review of In Moonlight and Memories Volume One I LOVE the covers of this series. Absolutely beautiful.
After struggling with the first book, I was hoping this one would be better…..but it was about the same for me.
The pace still dragged for me, and I kept waiting and WAITING for something to actually happen and draw me in.
Cash hasn’t done anything to redeem himself in my eyes. Again, I realize he is suffering many things, but I can’t recall any truly redeeming moments in his friendship and interactions with Maggie and Luc.
Maggie was even more exasperating in this book than the first. Her stubbornness and then indecision about Cash and Luc was driving me crazy.
Luc truly was the best of all of them. We all could use a friend like him.
FINALLY at the end of the book, we got somewhere with the storyline and the story began moving in some kind of direction.
In my opinion, these first two books had a lot of unnecessary filler to get to the ultimate destination. I think the final volume is actually going to bring what I’ve been looking for the whole time.
***I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advance Reader Copy generously provided by the author.***