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Return to Me

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A fatal accident. A parallel world. Second chances don’t come often.

Death has never been far from Lana. In a previous life, her husband Frank died from a heart condition at thirty. In this new world where she’s known as Alannah Walker, it’s Tristan by her side as husband, and he had a heart operation as a child. But that’s where the similarities end between them.

Born Frank Walters, Tristan hides his past under a new name. His relationship with his wife, Alannah, fraught with anger. Alannah has seemed like a different person since the car accident, and lessons of the past have taught him not to trust too easily.

Will Tristan and Lana learn enough from past mistakes to give them a second chance at love?

Be transported to another world on a breathtaking ride into the unknown, where two lovers will come to find the true meaning of forever. Return to Me is a heart wrenching tale of love, loss, and rediscovery that will draw you in from the very first page.

Buy Return to Me now and lose yourself in a world where second chances make anything possible.

'Return to Me was a compelling fast read with an interesting likeable heroine. ...the “what if� story line had a fascinating Twilight Zone type feel to it that will appeal to a wide variety of readers.' Four star review byPennydreadfulbooks

Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2013

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About the author

Mae Archer

6books219followers
Mae Archer knew she wanted to be a writer since she was a child. She loved listening to her grandmother’s war stories about English maidens falling in love with handsome Yankees while England burnt under the Luftwaffe’s blitz.

When she discovered romance novels as a teenager she soon realised that her dream job was to be a romance writer. After many career twists and turns she’s making her dreams come true.

Her real life is like one of her grandmother’s stories. She met a foreigner who travelled through Australia and it was love at first sight. She married him six months after they met and every day since has been an adventure.

She lives in Australia with her husband and daughter.

Mae Archer is the pen name that author Amra Pajalic uses for her romance fiction. Amra writes young adult under her own name and dark fiction as A.P. Pajalic.

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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
Profile Image for Jay.
532 reviews29 followers
August 2, 2015
**ARC kindly provide by NetGalley on behalf of the publishers

An interesting take on life after death & parallel dimensions.

Lana & Tristan are both trying to move on after her car accident, but they're stuck in a rut. They think they know each other, when in reality they're simply judging the other based on the past they each know - she still sees Frank, & he only sees Alannah. Only when Lana finally reveals the truth are they able to move forward without hurting each other & themselves.

This wasn't a happy reunion story. It's full of hurt, heartache, mistrust, lies, & all kinds of abuse (substance, physical, emotional...). without spoiling the end, I can say it also had some happy, loving, hot, & sexy moments too. in saying that though, the emotions didn't come through as strong & gripping as they maybe could have. If they did, this book could've got 5 stars from me.

Please note this has not been taken into account when rating this book: This copy had a few minor editing issues, especially later in the book, that I hope are cleaned up before publishing. Nothing too major that will affect readability, but would just be nice to polish it up properly first.
Profile Image for Andrea.
309 reviews28 followers
August 27, 2013
Mae Archer's Return to Me explores redemption and the possibility of second chances not only between lovers but between families as well. Ms Archer has taken a unique approach to the classic ghost/reincarnation story. Lana's beloved husband Frank had succumbed to the damage his heart sustained as a child from a bout with rheumatic fever. After his funeral Lana's brooch falls into the street and when she steps into the street to retrieve it she is struck down by a passing bus. She awakens in the hospital surrounded by people she knows but who do not know her and the man they tell her is her husband is hostile and aloof.

Return to Me was a compelling fast read with an interesting likable heroine. I found Tristan's character was harder to emphasize with, his cruelty at times made me question why Lana would even want to be with someone so very closed off. But overall the "what if" story line had a fascinating Twilight Zone type feel to it that will appeal to a wide variety of readers. To read the entire review and more please see .

Note - ARC kindly provided by NetGalley on behalf of the publisher.
Profile Image for Terri.
139 reviews10 followers
October 26, 2022
Interesting plot

I don't know what to say about this book. It is a romance, but it's so much more. Lana dies and is transported to the body of Alannah. She doesn't know what's going on in Alannah's life. It takes a while but Lana finally discovers that Alannah's husband wants a divorce. Then Lana & Tristan have to find their way to each other. Recommend to romance readers. Needs a bit of editing, but not distracting.
Profile Image for Susan Liberty.
Author17 books31 followers
March 3, 2023
I just finished the audio book 𝑹𝒆𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝑴𝒆 by Mae Archer. Interestingly, it was read by AI. The story was fabulous! But the narration lacked human emotion. Still, it's a🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟novel! I'd listen to it again.
Profile Image for Lee.
382 reviews32 followers
September 26, 2013
I was really intrigued by the storyline of this book and once I started reading I really didn't want to put it down.

Lana and Tristan meet in a parallel world, both after a traumatic event which has left them hurt and confused. When Lana dies in her world and wakes up in Tristan's, she is understandably feeling less than enthusiastic towards the people around her. She sees her husband Frank but is told his name is Tristan. As she begins to meet familiar people she realises that while they may look the same and have the same names, they are living different lives. They each have ties to the other world but after certain events, their lives have taken different paths.

When Tristan goes to see his wife at the hospital after her car accident he is shocked to be told she has amnesia and can't remember him. He is wary though as he and his wife Allanah have had a strained relationship and he is not quite sure he believes her.

As Lana struggles to understand what has happened to her and assimilate to her new world, she discovers that while the people around her seem to have taken different paths in their lives, the lessons to be learned are the same. She doesn't immediately come clean with Tristan as she fears how he will take the news that she really isn't his Allanah, when she doesn't fully understand it herself and what follows is a heartbreaking story of forgiveness and redemption, of lies and deception on both sides, of learning to love and trust someone completely, of living for today.
"Each day was precious and to be savored because tomorrow was not a certainty........to love and embrace that love knowing what pain would follow, or to walk away and feel the pain of an unfulfilled love as it withered?"

This story wasn't only about Lana's growth as a character it was also about Tristan and I loved how Tristan grew and learned how to trust and love another unconditionally. He had some pretty serious secrets and the way their relationship dealt with those secrets, illustrated that trust and love.

Although mostly written from Lana's point of view, at times we are given Tristan's point of view and I really appreciated that. I felt that the story flowed well and once I was familiar with the names and the relationship connections, I followed the storyline easily. I loved seeing the growth and strength emerge in Lana's character. For a while she kept looking at Tristan trying to find Frank in him but she realised that while they had their similarities Tristan was his own man. Lana decides to embrace the world she is now living in and take her destiny into her own hands.
"She realised it was up to her. Was she going to wait around for something to happen or was she going to decide on a destination?"

Overall I really enjoyed this book and will be looking forward to reading more from Mae Archer.

copy kindly provided by publisher

Profile Image for  Mummy Cat Claire.
835 reviews15 followers
January 22, 2019
I was intrigued by the cover more so than the description of this book. The summary sounds interesting, too. But after reading this book, all I can say is, it is very strange.

Alannah Walker has changed. She has been in a serious accident and finds herself lost in two worlds. There is Frank and there is Tristan.

"She looked at herself in the mirror and saw a stranger with the same pale blond hair and blue eyes, but where her own face was round and rosy-cheeked, making her look younger than her twenty-five years, this face was angular and had a sickly pallor."


Lana experiences deja vu when Tristan comes to pick her up from the hospital. She feels like she knows him but, ultimately, doesn't know him. Lana does her best to try and remember and build her life back to what it was, but the road is long and hard. Not just for her, but Tristan too. He feels like he needs to care for his wife, more so than before the accident. At first it is her basic needs but then it changes into her mental needs. She does and says strange things. Her actions have changed, almost to the point of not being herself.

"She believed that she'd lived a past life. Did that mean she was crazy? He laughed at the absurdity. So why did she believe she'd lived a past life?"


Things are not improving and the relationship between Lana and Tristan is strained. Lana has a lot of issues she needs to work through but she can only do that with his help. This book weaves the past and the present into a mystery the reader follows to unravel. All is revealed in the end.

I didn't care for this book. I think the author had intended this story to touch the reader and get us to think about our decisions and how they affect others, but it didn't quite hit me like that. The idea behind a parallel universe and Lana being stuck in the middle is interesting but the execution wasn't there for me.

I found the story moved a bit slowly. I was a bit tired of reading about their arguments and her getting things wrong. There became a pattern to the characters woes. The ending was satisfying but I can't say I totally understood what happened to Lana. Or maybe I just don't remember.

Overall, I wasn't as touched by this book to remember all the details. I just remember it being strange and confusing to read and get through. The ending does hold the meaning behind everything but getting there was a long haul. The story isn't too long, just over 200 pages but I just plowed through instead of really enjoying what I was reading. If you like mystery with the hope of a bit of romance then try and read this book. If not, skip it.

Content: mild language, sexual situations and discussion.


I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Profile Image for Nicola L.
431 reviews13 followers
August 28, 2013
This novel started off very promisingly and had such an appealing premise. It explores life after death, parallel dimensions and is ultimately a novel about forgiveness and second chances.

Following the death of her young husband Frank, Lana is hit by a bus (I know, talk about bad luck�) and when she awakens in the hospital, EVERYTHING is different. She is surrounded by people she knows, only they aren’t quite the same- and her husband is also alive in this dimension- only he doesn’t go by the name Frank any more, he calls himself Tristan and he is decidedly hostile to her�

As Lana struggles to comprehend the new world that she has found herself in and is blamed for having amnesia by the doctors, she is horrified to discover that she and Tristan are on the verge of divorcing and that there has been a lot of lies and mistrust between them. Lana finds it hard to distinguish between the Frank in her old world and the Tristan in this one but knows that something has to be done if any of them can move forwards.

As I say, I really enjoyed this novel at the start. Though I was a bit confused as to who was who and by the parallel dimensions generally, the writing flowed well and was nicely paced. There was something of a ‘Sliding Doors� predicament going on and I wanted to learn more about why the Lana in this new world would even choose to be with a man like Tristan who seemed to be a bit of a pig, to be honest! We didn’t learn a whole lot about Frank though the distinctions between the two men seemed very evident from the outset.

The storyline is filled with lies, secrets and arguments, which were fine, though it got a bit heavy going after a while as more and more subplots were introduced and then not really concluded adequately. When there was actually a resolution to the plot, it seemed to happen very quickly and not a whole lot was made of it. Also- Lana and Tristan seemed to spend most of their time fighting or having sex- lots of oral sex as a matter of fact. Repetitive, much? I just think more could have been made of the plot than it actually was. I didn’t particularly invest in the romance between them and emotions-wise, I didn’t feel much depth was there.

Whilst I liked the author’s writing style, I don’t think this book quite delivered what it promised. It’s certainly a solid 3.5 out of five stars read though and I would consider reading more by Mae Archer in future.
Profile Image for Alex.
663 reviews80 followers
November 4, 2013
The Plot: Lana Walters was walking home after the burial of her beloved husband Frank when she was involved in a fatal car accident. Still reeling from it - and not sure of what's going on - Lana finds herself transported somewhere else, into the body of Alana Walker.

Soon it becomes apparent that Alana is a some sort of parallel dimension version of Lana and her life; Alana has a similar background to Lana's, even the same mother, and many of the people she loved as Lana populate her Alana's life in one way or another, even Frank.

Only that in this reality, Frank is Tristan, he's healthy and strong - something Frank wasn't due to a birth defect in his heart - and he seems to have a lot of resentment against Alana.

Confused and hurt, is up to Lana to make the best out of the situation.

First Date: All right, this is a little strange and I'm a tiny bit confused, I feel like I missed something somehow or that there is something I need to know so things made sense.

Second Date: Well, things get more confusing then less then more again. I like Lana, but Alana - before Lana body-jumped her, sounds pretty bad, though the more I find out about the two of them, the more things make sense, like things aren't always what they seem.

Third Date: I think I'm down with the ending, actually, but I kind of wish things would be explained more.

Relationship Status: I think we can be friends, maybe

See the thing about Return to Me is that things are never fully explained, so a lot of things were just left in the air, and you kind of had to either take them at face value or suspend a little too much belief. I do like the plot - it was original, at least - and the writing was good, but I do think it could have been polished a little bit more.
Profile Image for Tabby.
156 reviews6 followers
October 13, 2014
This caught my attention immediately and held it, despite some problems with the plot, and in the end still ended up being a very enjoyable short read.

To start with, I was so confused with what was going on. Lana dies only to come back at the scene of a car accident in the body of Alannah, this parallel world version of herself. It's written in such an odd way to start with and I guess it was just the transition from Lana to Alannah/Lana that was hard to adjust to. Once I understood where the author was going with the story, I was totally onboard. I like weird and offbeat stories, and this book is definitely unique. Maybe I'm a ditz too, but the part about Tristan being Frank threw me at first. Somehow I wasn't connecting that they were the same person at first. And even after she realized it, I honestly still didn't trust it for awhile.

But once they started connecting again, I really enjoyed it. The only downside being that they were so hot and cold with one another it was frustrating. It was either fighting or sex, not much in between. The plot of the story was a little weak, as not much is really revealed for how or why this shift with Lana/Alannah happens, but the focus is pretty much solely on the romance. Even though I was frustrated a lot, I was also fully invested in them as a couple and as characters. I wish it would have been a little more polished with more clarity on certain parts of the story. It's just one of those stories that you kind of have to accept that you will not get all the answers, or hardly any at all, but you just enjoy the ride.

*I received an eARC from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*
Profile Image for Janet.
1,543 reviews14 followers
September 8, 2013
This novel had such an intriguing premise I jumped in eagerly. This story of love, loss and parallel universes was a bit confusing at times, but fairly evenly paced overall. How often do we see a character actually "hit by a bus" as a plot driver?
There are lies, secrets, and deceptions galore. There is a lot of sex. Did I mention there was a lot of sex? Well, it bears repeating. The romance was satisfying, but not particularly compelling. The story wrapped up more quickly than I would have liked, and though it reached resolution, I wanted more.
*I received my copy from NetGalley.com in exchange for an honest review.
Profile Image for Cindy Williams.
123 reviews8 followers
August 14, 2016
I had a difficult time keeping up with this book. The concept was clear enough but the frequency of the time change/ parallel universe kept confusing me. It got to the point where I found myself no longer enjoying the book because I had to keep re-reading areas just to keep my thoughts focused.

I feel really bad putting out this kind of review. Just because I didnt enjoy the book doesnt mean that you wont.

If you like time travel or parallel universe, then you would probably enjoy this book.
Profile Image for Mae Archer.
Author6 books219 followers
Read
March 19, 2023
Listen to chapter 1 of Return to Me by Mae Archer, a pen name for author Amra Pajalic, of AI narrated audiobook by Madelyn from Google.


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Profile Image for Ann.
5,790 reviews76 followers
September 24, 2013
A wonderful romance where death separates a husband and wife. Lana dies in an accident the day she buries her husband frank. She Awakens in a hospital in a parallel world married to her husband frank who is using his middle name Tristan. She recognizes friends and family but none of the relationships are the same. A fantastic read. Can't wait for more from Mae.
Profile Image for Laura.
556 reviews2 followers
September 2, 2013
Arc copy via netgalley
What a great story, at times it's confusing a little sci-fi romance but if u believe, this is a truly great love story!
Profile Image for Nikki Barrett.
Author85 books1,238 followers
September 8, 2013
Really good book with and interesting premise! Review to follow soon :)
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews

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