I want to be Thea. Well, I don't want to lose my job and find out my husband is cheating on me. But I want to move to the highlands of Scotland, inherit a cute little home, and work in a used book store. All she needs is a dog! She probably doesn't need her grumpy boss Edward, but he is needed for the story that Ms. Fraser wants to tell us. Personally, I didn't feel that the two of them should have been anything more than friends. The resulting ending was a bit too pretty for me. But, I was too enthralled with thinking about escaping away to the Shed for a little beach time to worry myself with details of the story. This book is the perfect fluff read for a holiday or if you wish you were on a holiday!

When Thea finds her husband of 15 years is cheating on her she is lost and devastated. When she finds out her Uncle (that she hasn't seen in years) left her his house in the Scottish countryside she is shocked, but that seems to be the perfect place to get away as she starts over. Once there, she starts to work in a bookshop with Edward, who is grumpy and rude. But as the title suggests, Thea is able to find her second chance at love in that bookshop.

This was a light read, but it went on a little longer than I felt it needed to. I wanted to love this one, and based on the premise I thought I would, but it fell a little flat for me. I didn't feel strong chemistry between Thea and Edward, which made it challenging to keep my attention at times. I did love the depictions of the Scottish countryside and would be interested in reading future books from Jackie Fraser.

I love this book- it charming, warm and cozy, and just what you need to give you a lift or Spring! Thea is a wonderful older character- full of charm and wit, who has a lot of bad circumstances thrown at her. Is it any wonder she jumped at a chance to run to Scotland? We'd do exactly the same! And that is the charm of this novel- it is so easy for the reader to picture themselves in Thea s place and understand why she makes the decisions she does, and to root for her to make a place for HERSELF in the yonder woods of Scotland, to forgo everything she thought she wanted, for something unexpected and comforting none the less. You'll want to run away to Scotland too after reading this book!

This was a quick, fairly light book to read. Thea, after discovering her husband of 15 years is having a affair with her best friend and she has recently lost her job has a chance to start over again in rural Scotland. Her great uncle has left her his home and a wonderful library full of classic books. On the plus side I really enjoyed the author's description of the Scottish countryside, the small town and, of course, the bookshop. The premise sounded like something I would love. I wanted to love this book but...didn't. I didn’t feel any chemistry between the love interests and I couldn’t get excited about the story line. I will certainly read the next book by Jackie Fraser and while I can see this book appealing to many readers it just didn’t work for me.

I love romances, but a lot of times they are young twentysomethings finding love. This story from the beginning had me with Thea being older. And the bookshop being featured added to my love instantly. This story was easy to read and the setting was amazing! I hope there is a sequel.

Bookshop ☑️ 40 + romance ☑️ Atmospheric setting (rural Scotland) ☑️ This book was perfect for me! One of the main characters is pretty gruff, which can put some readers off, but I fell in love with him too. I also loved that the bookshop was a HUGE part of the story, not just a side thing that allowed the author to use “Bookshop” in the title to trick people like me (ahem, Bookshop of the Broken Hearted 😡). I adored the Scottish town and cast of locals as well!

Thanks to Random House, NetGalley & Jackie Fraser for the chance to preread "The Bookshop of Second Chances" in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed the story very much. Poor Thea--having a horrible time of it being let go from her job & finding out her husband has been cheating on her with her friend. She is notified that a distant uncle has passed, leaving her his house in Scotland. Off she goes & starts her new life. The story moves along, characters are introduced & it's a story that is an easy read & ends well. Hoping that there may possibly be a sequel!

Thea Mottram is having a bad month. She’s been laid off (made redundant) at work for no reason; and at home… well, she’s been made redundant there too. Chris, her husband of nearly twenty years, has decided to separate so he can live in their house with his new lover (her old pal) and her family. She can’t sit in her new flat and cry all day (though that did work for a bit), so when she gets a notice of inheritance she decides it’s time to turn a new page in Scotland. Great Uncle Andrew left a house and what sounds like some interesting books for her. At least it’ll be a distraction.

Her little corner of Scotland includes a very small town where everyone knows everyone else’s business. There’s the honest-to-God- lord down the road from her who wants to buy the house; and the grumpy bookshop owner who wants to buy her books. As she begins a battle of wits with the bookseller, life gets more and more interesting. The more time she spends here, the more she can see herself starting a new life… maybe with a new leading man. But the past is never really laid to rest in small towns, and she finds herself caught in the middle of a brotherly feud. Can she find a way to claim the life she wants here, or will she be moving on to reinvent herself once again?


I loved Thea. She was pretty real with her feelings, honest but really funny. It was easy to ease into her narrative, like talking to an old friend. I liked that, while she was obviously hurt she wasn’t vengeful or bitter. I didn’t like how she saw herself, but then losing her husband to another woman might make someone feel a bit insecure. I like that she was honest with everyone about how she felt or thought about them even if she tried to hide her private life for a bit. As far as the men around her… I hated Chris. He just seemed so weak, not wanting to “be the bad guy”, wanting to wait on the divorce so they don’t have to go to court, having her wait for her half of the house and furniture…. not a super mature way of going about this. Edward, the grumpy bookseller, was one that I loved and hated. There were moments of redemption, where I thought he was sweet and charming but his background is a mess. He has systematically slept with all of his brother’s wives/girlfriends as a weird act of vengeance. So, his take on relationships is obviously screwed. It made for an interesting plot device, but not exactly what I would call bookish-crush material. Once he does decide to go for Thea, he moves very quickly- maybe too quickly? It’s like he’s a completely different person. Long story short… I felt the chemistry there, but I have to say that I didn’t feel like any of these men deserved her. Still, it was a great story, fast paced with a great deal of humor to round out the sad bits. I really enjoyed it. For me, this was a four star book.

⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
On the adult content page, well there’s a lot. Language, more than anything, but also sexual content and drinking. It’s definitely geared toward a more mature audience- 18+.

The Bookshop of Second Chances was exactly what it advertised. That's actually refreshing, lately. When Thea's husband is found out as a cheater, she fairly calmly just gives her home to her former husband and former friend and plops herself down in a tiny flat. In the way of all such romances, she inherits a place just when she needs it most. Unemployed and unattached, she heads to the tiny town in order to go through her inheritance and decide what to do. So, like the title says, there is a bookshop and a bookshop owner. Really, the plot is in the title.

Thea and Edwards relationship follows a predictable arc but the surrounding characters in town make the story well worth it. I wish we had more of them and a little less of the minutia of Thea's thoughts.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley.

This was a simple, predictable read. A bit too slow and choppy for me.

I am guilty of judging books by their cover and I went into this book thinking it was going to be a cute, light, palate cleanser. I read it electronically and was shocked it was over 400 pages, oddly long for the type of book I thought this was going to be. Instead of light and sweet, I found it dry and dull. The premise was promising: a down on her luck adult (40ish!) woman was recently fired from her job and discovered her husband was having an affair with her friend. But don’t despair, a long lost uncle has bequeathed her his Scottish estate, filled with rare books. Enter squabbling brothers, a rare bookshop and romance! However, it just never really pans out. Most of the characters were flat, bordering on unlikeable. Overall, this book didn’t deliver

I want to thank the author and Netgalley for gifting me the ebook. I was very excited to read this book. The book cover is cute and the synopsis sounded like it would be a cute book. I have issues with this book due to the language.. this is suppose to be a romance and the language is just terrible. Is it really necessary to use the Lord's name in vain that much? I felt like I was reading a college students diary. The characters are just not likeable and immature for the age they are suppose to be. There was unnecessary liberal propaganda put in here like her friend being african american, so the locals have probably never seen a women of color before and that they are probably racist. The male bookstore owner saying he won't hire "women" due to they "always fall in love with him and him vis versa". I really wanted to like this book so much. I don't think I would read another book by this author again.

I DNF this book at the 30% mark. The description sounded absolutely delightfully but the book did not deliver. The writing style was very abrupt. Short little sections, skipping segues, preferring to cut and mark a new scene with lines. Sort of like an outline, rather than finished novel.
It started ok, but then the whole thing with Edward was odd. I know he's meant to be the new love interest, but I gave up the book while they're sitting on the beach together talking about their deepest secrets and I realized, had they even had a proper conversation the page yet? Not really. Just a few impersonal lines traded back and forth. He's built up as this gruff, selfish, man who doesn't like people so I couldn't see a reason why he'd invite Thea to go to his beach house with him in the first place, let alone to talk about his past sexual indiscretions out of the blue. It was just an odd set up and I realized I didn't want to read about the two of them becoming a couple. It also seemed odd considering she was only just separated from her husband. Didn't seem like she would be over that betrayal and ready to move into a new relationship a couple months later anyway.
Overall, it just didn't work for me, despite the allure of a inheritance from a Scottish uncle with an incredible library of antiquarian books.

This book was a fun read and a fairly fast read. We follow Thea on a journey to Scotland after her marriage of nearly twenty years falls apart. She inherits a house in a small town, goes to check it out and ends up staying and getting a job in a used bookstore owned by a cranky, yet handsome, local. The two become friends and then more. I enjoyed this book and recommend it to fans of Jenny Colgan.

Thank you Ballantine Books and Netgalley for the gifted copy.

Ugh, I wanted to love this book so much. I mean, how cute is this cover? And a story that takes place in a bookstore in Scotland? It sounds perfect for me!

We have Thea - a 40 something year old woman, who found out her husband was sleeping with one of her friends. Then Thea finds out that she inherited a house in Scotland (and a library of first edition books) from her great uncle. So she moves up there for a while and meets Edward - the owner of the local bookshop. Edward is supposedly grumpy (but hilarious and super nice to Thea??) and has some really bad past behavior towards his brothers girlfriends/wives. Thea gets a job at the bookshop, becomes friends with Edward, and guess what happens next.

And that's pretty much the book.

It was predictable and slow, and the dialogue got tiring. But the plot was cute, and it might be a good book for a day at the beach.

A premise and plot I wanted to be enthralled with yet is was just an okay read for me. The chemistry was lacking and the story was slow.

This book has everything that I love. Books, a book store, sarcasm, love, and a little bit of tension. Thea's life has been thrown upside down when she learns that she has inherited her great uncle's home in Scotland. What a better way to run away and start over than to up and leave her destroyed life and move into the house in Scottland. Thea finds everything wonderful other than the cantankerous bookseller Edward. What follows is the ups and downs of a new life. I really enjoyed following Thea on her adventure into a new life that at times is no easier than her old life she is trying to escape. Thank you, NetGalley for the eARC. 4 stars.

lovely romance novel. Fast read and likeable characters. A bit easy to guess the plot and I'm not sure the chemistry really was there for the couple that ended up together. I did enjoy the descriptions of the scenery and beautiful landscape. I mean who wouldn't want a relative to leave a beautiful home full of antiques and collectible books. Sign me up.

I chose to read this book because it had "Bookshop"in the title and I couldn't resist. Also, it had a cute cover. I enjoyed this debut novel by Jackie Fraser. This novel was a quick read. It's set in a small town in Scotland.

Thea, after splitting up with her husband, receives a letter saying she has inherited a large house in Scotland from an elderly uncle. Thea travels to Scotland with the intent of staying awhile and sorting out this house, but ends up liking the town and the people. The house contains a library filled with some very rare books, that Thea could possibly sell. Thea needs a fresh start and thinks that maybe she could live there. She gets a part-time job at a bookshop owned by a really grumpy guy. The romance in the book is atypical, and the characters are interesting. The book focuses on relationships.

Thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine through Netgalley for an advance copy.

I honestly wanted more from this book. I felt that there was not enough character development and parts of the story were slow and awkward. It was a cute idea, just fell flat for me.

Thea Mattram discovers that she is let go at work and that her husband of almost 20 years is leaving her for one of her friends. She is lost, until she learns that her great uncle in Scotland passed away and left her his home and antique book collection, allowing her to escape to a small coastal town which she falls in love with. Deciding not to leave, she gets a job at a bookshop, with cranky Edward Matravers. They test one another - and eventually their feelings turn. Thea is unsure how to move forward - she is afraid to feel for others and still running from the past.

I wish we saw more growth in the characters - they went from childish towards one another to a full-fledged relationship very quickly. It just felt forced to me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Ballantine Books for my advanced reader copy