Absolutely loved this novel! Excellent character development, and totally keeps you wanting to find out what happens next. Highly recommended!

Amazing characters & a very enjoyable quick read. First I have read by this author but look forward to reading more. I would recommend this to anyone.

A very observant and quite touching novel about three women, their lives, families and friendships.

Charlie is a single mother doing her best to get by - and not managing it at all. Suzie is desperate for children, but she and her husband have fertility issues. Dawn is fast approaching the big 5-0 and desperately wants to bring some zing back into her marriage; so far she's not reaching that goal. Three women who all need a fairy godmother .. or are there other answers to their problems out there?

This is an all-encompassing novel; the kind of book - and I may just be talking from experience here - that you take to bed assuming you'll just read a little bit and before you know it you're hooked! Beautifully written, and completely engrossing; a lovely story about hopes and dreams and the different ways to accomplish them. Three completely different women whose lives become entangled and we are privy to their thoughts and fears. Cleverly structured, I felt like a fourth invisible friend - in on all the secrets! There are a few unexpected events along the way, adding to the story and keeping the reader on their toes. A thoroughly entertaining and worthwhile read, and definitely worth a full five stars.

My thanks to Aria fiction for my copy via NetGalley, and in particular to Victoria Joss for my place on this Blog Tour. All opinions given are entirely my own.

Life is hard......let's be honest about it! Nothing is ever straight forward, with bumps and U-turns throwing the journey into turmoil. But as the saying goes, there's safety in numbers, and friends and family are there to buffer the ride with endless love and support. This book threw in everything but the kitchen sink about love and life. It was honest and filled with raw emotion.....a triumph on every level.

The writing was warm and engaging with witty retorts at the turn of each page. I was pulled into the narration from the opening paragraph and read like a woman possessed, trying to soak up the story as fast as I could, which really says it all in respect to the intrigue and entertainment value of this book.

Each and every character came alive, in vivid fashion, before my eyes and created a wonderful and real depiction of life, in all its ugly glory. Hitting certain milestones, where age is concerned, can trigger warning signals that encourage erratic behaviour. Whether that be frustrating and daring attempts to spice up a love life, a suspected midlife crisis or a desperate attempt for a baby before biology shuts up shop. This book had it all! What wild, wonderful and heartbreaking stories wove together to create such a successful story that had me hooked, heart and soul.

A Year of Second Chances is an outstanding success......filled with heart, emotion and unapologetic honesty. This is certainly one book to read this summer make no mistake about it. So don't delay.....add it to your tbr pile immediately so as to not miss out on this stunning story.

If you like an entertaining story that has plenty of fun while also dealing with sensitive topics, A YEAR OF SECOND CHANCES by Kendra Smith is the right book for you.

Three strangers with three very different lifestyles and very different problems, suddenly find their lives converging at the strangest of times which results in an adventure that just might change their lives.

Charlie is struggling to keep things together for herself and her teenage son and, with debt collectors at the door, she knows that things can only get worse. So when an opportunity arises, she has to take it, right?

All Suzie wants is to be a mother and she is angry, so angry, that this has been denied to her. With time running out, she knows that she has to do something drastic and fast.

And then there is Dawn who seems to have a lovely settled life with her relaxed husband and her children. But she feels a little lost and with her 'perfect' mother-in-law always there to tell her how she could do things better, Dawn feels like she needs to broaden her horizons before she explodes.

With plenty of drama, laughs, and emotion, A YEAR OF SECOND CHANCES by Kendra Smith is a gentle story that is sure to charm you, and while the characters and their antics are not always realistic, they are engaging and I enjoyed this story.

Second chance romances are my favorite and Ms. Smith's book does not disappoint. Loved it.
Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

Very slow to start and although it did improve by the end I just couldn’t connect with the characters or the story, unfortunately not for me.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

3.5 stars
Probab;y i had a bit of too many expectations from this book but i did finish it and by the end, i don't regret it.
A fun at times, sad as well at times and a lot of different emotions and feelings overall, this book talks about three women at different stages of their lives are coming together as friends by a chance encounter.
Each one has her life and things to overcome as well as her dreams to fulfil. I liked that they are supporting each other in this and are feeling comfortable enough to talk about it even if they aren't friends for a long time and don't know each other's secrets or life very well.
the book treats some very important issues like infertility and how much some couples are struggling to become parents.
There are some inaccuracies that unfortunately i couldn't pass over as well as some sketchy things that the characters are doing but at the end, i thought is normal because nobody is perfect and we read or see this in the news every day.
It's a fast read for sure, i would've wanted to read more about each character, to be developed more as of their growth after all the action that occurs in the story but this won't deter me to read another book from the author.

Although this book is uplifting and with a definite heart-warming, feel-good factor, it's not as light-hearted as the cover might suggest. In fact, the opening chapter was a delightful surprise - I wasn't expecting the story to be as intense as it was. It deals with the complex issue of surrogacy as the main topic and one woman's overwhelming drive to become a mother - serious stuff indeed.

 I thought the author handled it well within the confines of the genre.

The plot is well developed and complex enough to keep me guessing for most of it, and the HEA is multiplied by 3 (more if you count the subsidiary characters). 

Definitely one I recommend.

A light novel about three women- Charlie, Dawn, and Suzie- who are at different stages in life. They meet at a gym and share their pain and challenges. And their happiness- never forget that there will be happy moments too. Charlie's a single mom, Suzie's dealing with infertility, and Dawn's feeling, well old. You'll probably recognize yourself in at least one of them. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. It's a pleasant read for an afternoon on the patio.

I recieved an early preview copy of this book from Netgalley in return for an honest review.
I have not read any books by this author before, but the cover appealed to me, so I decided to read it.
The book has short chapters, each one about one of the three different characters, Dawn, who is turning 50, and struggling with getting older. Charlie, who is a struggling single mother. Suzie is struggling with infertility.
I found it hard going at the beginning of the book to remember who each character was. I also thought that the book was difficult to get into at first. I persevered, and the book picked up pace. From the middle of the book onwards, I found it more interesting and started to get into the storyline.
In the end I enjoyed reading this book, and was pleased that I finished it. I will look out for more books by this author.

Loved this book! Hearing about the highs and lows of the lives of Charlie, Dawn and Suzie kept me hooked. Reading this you could cry and laugh with the characters as they go about their lives, sometimes with disastrous results. And the twist at the end was totally unexpected! Brilliant, can’t wait to read my next Kendra Smith novel!

Three different women with one thing in common.... they all feel like their lives are missing something.  Charlie is a single mother of seventeen year old Tyler.  She has multiple part time jobs, but never enough money and some of the people she owes are coming to collect.  She needs money... so much money.

      Dawn has a husband she adores and two great kids... along with an interfering mother in law and a fiftieth birthday coming far too quickly. There's so much she hasn't done (and she found a list on line to prove it)!  How can she be this old and never shoplifted?  Never had sex in the shower?  Her husband is far from supportive of her new adventures... in fact he stays out later and seems far more preoccupied lately.  Could it be another woman?!?

          Suzie loves her life as a business woman... she really does.  And she loves her husband.  All her life, though, she's wanted a baby.  And her body betrays her.  Now they have one last chance- a final frozen embryo.  Oh, she knows she and Rex said they'd stop after last time... but this time will be different.  This time a third person- a surrogate- will be carrying her baby.  It should all be easy.  She finds a woman, Rex is on board, they pay the surrogate.... what could go wrong?  Just... everything.

          As the three go through these adventures together, they learn to lean on one another, and to grow.  So much can happen in a year...

          This book is broken into three narratives- one for each of the above women.  I immediately felt for Charlie and Dawn- even though both were doing things I couldn't agree with.  I felt their pain, and I easily began rooting for them.  Suzie was a bit harder for me.  Our first scene with her sets us up to be big supporters, but she's such a harsh and controlling character through most of the book that it's hard to love her.  None of these characters are "perfect" and I loved their flaws- I also loved that you could really see character growth.

           Romance wise, we mostly stayed with Charlie and Daniel, and old friend of Dawn's who had left the country ages ago after his wife died.  Both are a little nervous about letting people in, and both have huge secrets.... but I loved watching them together.  Even with all the misunderstandings, their chemistry seemed very natural and sweet.  

           The flow of the writing was good, even with multiple points of view it never seemed choppy, and it would have been easy to tell which voice belonged to which character even without the chapter headers.   I loved the premise here, and how the author wove the lives together.  This was a sweet, fast read for me.  I couldn't put it down!  Five stars for sure!!

           On the adult content scale, there's drinking, language and some sexual content.  Nothing over the top, but still... I give it a five.

          I was lucky enough to receive and eARC of this book from Netgalley and Aria publishing in exchange for an honest review.  My thanks!

I was not a fan at the beginning of the book and nearly gave it reading but I didn’t and the book did improve towards the end.
The more I read the more I enjoyed the characters.
This is a fun book which addresses some emotional issues.

Three women come together during gym sessions. There's single mum Charlie who works multiple jobs, Dawn who is the oldest of the group at 50 and Susie who is trying fight for her wish to be a mum.

The chapters were very short but I felt the author did not give me time to get to know the characters as there was not enough atmosphere and backstory to make me really love the novel.

I felt like the characters could have been fleshed out a lot more as the small bits of information about each of them were interesting but then I wanted to know more about them and really feel for them and feel like I was taken on their journeys, living their lives and feeling what they felt. but that did not happen for me.

There were a few funny parts but I felt the synopsis sounded better than the book itself turned out to be.

This is the second title by Kendra Smith that I have reviewed.

Thanks to Kendra Smith and Aria for my ARC in exchange for an honest and voluntary review. 3 stars.

A Year of Second Chances was sent to me via NetGalley and the publisher. Quickly I realized I was not connecting to this book nor the characters. I had a really tough time following the story. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this book.

A Year of Second Chances is the story of three women who come together to support one another through the challenges that life sometimes brings us. Charlie is a single mother who has given her son all that she can, despite financial difficulties. Suzie has achieved success in the business world, but would trade it all for the chance to have a baby of her own. After years of trying, she determines it's time to take responsibility to ensure this dream will come true. Dawn is about to turn 50 and feels that all the joy in her life has been taken away. She needs to make her life more exciting. The year to come is sure to bring about a lot of changes to each of these women.

I enjoyed the humour in this book and the relationships which developed between the women. Despite these beneficial relationships, Kendra Smith also shows a negative, competitive nature to female relationships which I'm sure that most women have experienced at some point in their lives. . I loved the character of Ramone (and his special brownies) and wish that everyone could have a Ramone in their life when needed.

This is a fun, easy read. I'd rate it 4/5 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley and Aria publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A Year of Second Chances by Kendra Smith nearly lost me at the very start. So many things annoyed me, so even I am surprised that by the end of the book, that everything had picked up sufficiently for to reverse my initial doubts.

FIRST LINE

My heart is hammering in my chest as if a small marsupial is trying to escape.
MY THOUGHTS ON A YEAR OF SECOND CHANCES BY KENDRA SMITH

Like I said, my early impressions weren’t good. Some of the things that annoyed me were:

– Two characters were shoplifters. One because she was trying to spice up turning 50. I was staring at the page thinking WHAT!
– Then there was inaccuracy about how long an IVF procedure would be.
– A child knew how to pronounce cleavage cos “she heard mummy use the word when she was on-line shopping”. HOW do you hear online shopping. Urrggh.

So I very nearly put down the book and moved on. But something stopped me, I still felt the book had potential.

And the more I read, the more I enjoyed the characters, their various journeys and the laughs, cries and screaming matches they had together. I could relate to the themes about infertility and getting older and wanting more. The mix of characters added balance as they all were at such different stages in life, but united in their yearning to achieve their dreams.

I thought the author made me feel emotional as I read. And I had a few laughs

Second Chances has the potential of a strong story and well developed characters. I found the characters a little flat and one dimensional and that a lot of the details were repeated versus further development and connecting the storyline. There are some fun, great moments and humor as well as heartwarming experiences. It just fell below expectations and took me longer to read than normal and I found myself struggling a little bit to finish. This would fall into a decent beach/summer read category and is between 2-3 stars.
Thank you Netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Lovely easy to read feel good read. Gorgeous cover that drew me in. Nicely put story. Lovely sounding location. Lose yourself in this lovely book