I love finding new-to-me romance authors, especially when they’re Canadian. I hadn’t read Kelly Siskind’s novels before but I jumped at the chance to read 50 Ways to Win Back Your Lover – and not only because the title was so ridiculously intriguing! The novel was just as ridiculous but in the BEST possible way. I devoured this romance and had so much fun reading it.

Here’s the book’s description:
Growing up, I had it all—my art, close friends, a gorgeous girlfriend who owned my heart—but then my life exploded.
Turns out my father was laundering money, and my whole family got shoved into witness protection. No notice. No chance to explain. I was ripped away from beautiful, blue-eyed Delilah Moon, shattering both our worlds.
A decade later, fate has given us a second chance.
The cartel my father worked for has been wiped out. I’ve returned to my hometown, determined to win back the love of my life. But Delilah is engaged.
Or . . . is she?
I’m almost positive she’s lying about her fiancé to protect her heart. Which means I need to up my game.
I’ve made a list of fifty ways to prove we’re meant to be. Except Delilah’s barely looking at me, never mind swooning. I have a feeling my disappearance scarred her more than she’s admitting, and no one in town will tell me what happened . . .
One unexpected thing about this novel was that it was written entirely from E’s point of view. It’s not often you read romances written by women that are told solely from the male’s perspective. It totally worked though! At least, I thought so…I wonder what any straight males would think but, hey, this is a romance novel – not everything has to be realistic. Remember that: the leads in romance novels are not real life! I loved E so very much though and hearing the story from his POV made me love him even more.

Of course, E was a total bonehead sometimes. How he thought a ridiculous list of 50 things would help him win back Delilah, I don’t know. It was like he was trying to be all suave and pretending to be someone he wasn’t. No wonder it wasn’t working! Thankfully, he realizes the list is SO not going to work and he relies on what he remembers about Delilah and what he’s learning about her as he gets to know her again as adults.

There’s a lot of missing information in Delilah’s story and the suspense drawing it out was pretty well done. I do think it should have been revealed sooner because by the time I learned the full story, I was thinking, “OK, OK, just tell me what happened to her after E left already!” I had a lot of theories though I wasn’t quite expecting what ended up being the truth. I won’t give anything away but if you have issues with anything surrounding pregnancy or the inability to become pregnant, be prepared. And my DMs are open (kaleys23) if you want to know the full extent of the storyline.

I loved the small-town setting and the second chance romance trope. I’m getting a bit tired of the “we were SO IN LOVE when we were 18 and then we were torn apart and no one has managed to capture my heart since” because, who knows themselves at 18? And I say this having had the same partner since 18 – but we’ve grown and changed together, and I didn’t roll back into town expecting everything to be the same. I think I kind of gave E a pass on this one because the way he and Delilah were torn apart gave them zero closure so they really had to work that out before they could even begin to contemplate being together again as adults. It took time for them to realize that, of course, but the journey getting there was an angst-filled delight of a time.

If you’re a fan of dramatic and angsty romances, you really need to read 50 Ways to Win Back Your Lover. I thoroughly enjoyed Kelly Siskind’s novel, and I cannot wait for the second book in the Bower Boys series, which comes out in January. I’ll definitely be checking out her back list in the future as well!

*A copy of this novel was provided by the Canadian distributor, Thomas Allen & Son, in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.*

Heartbreak and Make Up

Siskind has outdone herself. 50 Ways is everything a second chance needs and then some. E is without a doubt swoony. This madly in love man is the Hero in his story and a few dreams, I'm sure. Their love was cosmic and other worldly. And despite the villian's attempts- they get their happily ever after anyway. To Mars and Back.

I am so happy that this story is told through Edgar's (E's point of view. Not many stories are told from the guys perspective. 10 years later E is given the opportunity for a second chance with Delilah and goes down in flames spectacularly.

Although this story deals with many emotions, both highs and lows, and some tough situations, together, Delilah and E deal with them together. Relearning the person they are now and not the memories of yesterday is hard for anyone. The Boyer boys are a close-knit unit and Edgar seems to be the glue.

This story is about accepting what you can't change and forging forward to achieve the life you dreamed of

Wow! This one was really cute ;) I was convinced to read this book from a TikTok I have seen but was devastated when I saw it wasn’t released yet. Huge thank you to NetGalley for providing me with this ARC.

I am not a fan of second chance romance but this one was super cute! I loved that it was in E’s point of view, therefore, the reader really got the glimpse into his mind and how he really felt about Delilah. Spoiler alert, he loves her so much and is willing to do anything to get her back. I especially LOVE the flashbacks to E’s and Delilah’s high school romance, I thought it was the purest form of love ever. I just love it!! Such an adorable book and a hit for second chance romance lovers!!

Well this definitely looks like it’s going to be an interesting series! Delilah and E were madly in love teenagers planning a future. When all of a sudden his whole family gets ripped from the small quaint town they lived in. Why? What really happened. This series will not only tell that story but each family member has their own story. We start with E…what happens when 10 years goes by and he can finally go back for the girl. Is it to late? What will her reaction be? This was a emotional journey that was intense and a extremely interesting read. I enjoyed the back and forth banter between not only the main characters but the family members. I’m looking forward to seeing where this series goes with each family member. I’m already looking forward to reading the next book.

Loved this book! Kelly brings us the first book in a new series that is freaking fantastic! This book has endless laughs, funny moments and is wonderfully creative. As a reader (person) you are reminded that things are not always as they seem…we need to give each other grace. These main characters are fantastic and so is most of the supporting cast. :) Delilah and E’s world was ripped apart unexpectedly, they are surprisingly reunited and are trying to figure out how to move forward. This second chance romance is filled with hope, forgiveness and understanding. The entire book is told from E’s point of view…it has to be…and it is wonderful.

Months ago I participated in a Zoom chat with Amy Lea and we asked her what book she was currently reading and she mentioned this book and Kelly Siskind. I was immediately intrigued and I will forever be indebted to Amy for introducing me to this book because it was fantastic and one of my fav romance this year!

This is book one in a series and is single POV from the POV of the male main character, E...I have never read a romance novel solely from the male MC's POV and I loved it. E was just the best guy, so self aware and empathetic. Also loved Delilah and the small town cast.

It was the most epic and unique second chance romance. I loved Kelly's writing and the way she casually included references to some of my fav things like Schitts Creek.

If you love dogs in your romance you are in luck and one of the sweetest scenes happened in an animal shelter...swoon

Kelly is now a fav and I have since binged a bunch of her books and can't wait to book 2 in this series.

Thanks to Montlake for an ARC. I will definitely be getting a copy for my forever shelf.

If you know me, you know that my absolute favourite thing in books is a good second chance romance with a lot of pining and groveling. Those make my heart melt and that just work for me, any time. And this book just worked so well for me. This book just seemed like it was made for me and I couldn't have asked for a better book for my personal reading style. This was just everything I wanted.

Oh how I loved this book! Edgar and Delilah gave me all the feels in this one. I cried more than once and for me this was second chance romance done right. It's packed with great dialogue, characters you'll feel connected to and just the right amount of pain/angst. Definitely recommend.

Wow! I was totally blown away by this book. I wasn't expecting it. I haven't read this author before, but this amazing cover kept coming up in my timelines and I just couldn't resist it. That smile. That face. I just couldn't resist. I was expecting a rom-com, but this book is so much more than that.

Edgar Bower, otherwise known to family and friends as "E" is yanked from his home and put into witness protection with the rest of his family, leaving behind his best friend and girl friend Delilah. Ten years later, he sees her at the airport and even though he shouldn't talk to her, he does, opening up all sorts of emotions for E. She runs from him.

He makes the decision to return to his hometown to pursue Delilah, coming up with a list of things he would do to win her back. Only there are many things he doesn't know about Delilah's last ten years either, including an engagement and a different career than they had talked about before he left. Oh, and the people in the town seem to hate him for what he did to Delilah. He's got a lot of work to do.

I was expecting a cute rom-com, and there were some very cute moments, especially Candy Cane, which was such a lovely way to bring E and Delilah together. What I hadn't expected, but absolutely loved about this story is E's soulful examination into his own motivations and actions and how they impact others. His yearning for Delilah is masterfully written, and I felt it all when I was reading this book. The story is told from E's point of view and I thought that worked very well in understanding the toll paid by the Bower family for their years in witness protection.

The ending is heart-wrenching in an ultimately good way, although there are tears to be shed before things can be resolved. I just loved this story from page one until the end.

I'm totally hooked on this series now after reading this story and I can't wait for Desmond's story up next, which is set up quite nicely in this book. It's always wonderful to find a new author in this manner and I'm really excited to read more from Kelly Siskind.

Edgar was a happy seventeen-year-old in love with his best friend when his world was turned upside down without warning. His life changed in an instant when his family was spirited away into witness protection because his father was a criminal and a cartel put a bounty on the family. Every day of the last decade has been torture for him. He lives with crushing regret that he was forced to walk away from his friends and his home and especially Delilah but the lives of his entire family depend on that clean break so there’s no going back.

The cartel threat is neutralized after ten long years and he’s determined to win back his one true love. He races to his hometown to explain but Delilah wants nothing to do with him. The entire town appears to be angry with him, which really didn’t make sense. The entire family vanished overnight so obviously something major happened and he was just a kid so surely had no control over it. Eventually his story gets out and people are more sympathetic so it’s all good. In the meantime, he puts all of his energy into winning Delilah over.

I really loved Edgar. The entire book is from his POV and he’s hilarious. He’s a little bit tortured and understandably so, but it doesn’t hold him back. He’s sweet and determined and I was rooting for him from the start. I probably would have loved Delilah too, but I couldn’t really connect with her since we never get her POV. This is a clever premise for a series and Edgar's story was fun to read. It’s a good book but I think Edgar and Delilah's story would have been a great book with dual-POV and more insight into her. This is my first book by the author and I'm looking forward to the next book in the series. I received an ARC from Grey’s Promotions in exchange for an honest review.

A very enjoyable book with a unique storyline. I liked everything about it from start to finish, can’t wait for the next book in this series!

10 years ago, Edgar and his brothers and mother had to flee, without a word to their friends, and in a few of their cases, their significant others. In those 10 years, Edgar has started a career, but has mostly spent his time missing Delilah Moon, his first and only love. But he obviously has a huge secret, one he's not supposed to blurt out to her when he runs into her by chance at the airport. But now that the reason that caused them to flee is gone, he can go back to town and win back his Delilah, win her forgiveness, her friendship, and even her love, if she can admit how she still feels for him.

Delilah has spent the 10 years since she last saw Edgar in ways different, and similar, to him. But now he's back in town, and seems adamant on winning her back. She's not sure she can ever let him back in, his ghosting her set a ripple effect that will be with her forever. There's no way she can forgive him, and definitely cannot fall back in love with him. Or can't she?

Oh Edgar...such a sweet, sensitive guy! I absolutely love him. He's a bit nerdy, has this big, tender heart, and is so desperately in love with Delilah. I felt for him and what his life had done to him. And to Delilah, because she suffered just as much as he, if not more. I loved reading as these two worked at forgiveness, healing, and falling back in love.

I felt like this was the 90s romcom in book form I didn’t know I needed. Absolutely perfection. So fun and something I didn’t want to end.

This was the first Kelly Siskind book that I've read, and I'm already eager to continue reading the rest of the series, as well as any back list books she may have.

50 Ways to Win Back Your Lover is a second chance romance that pulls on your heart strings and makes you wonder about those you have had had to leave behind unexpectedly. It follows E, whose entire family had to leave their life in a small town behind when he was 16 years old, and go into WTSEC thanks to some shady business his father was a part of. E left behind his love of his life girlfriend, Delilah, and was left wondering for the last 10 years, what happened to her, is she okay? On a trip back home under assumed names, he winds up sitting behind Delilah on his flight, all his feelings for her come rushing back and he can't help but want to fight to win her back.

It's been a while since I've read a book that felt so fulfilled by the end of it and wanting more would just be a cherry on top. You get to see all the family and small town dynamics, weave in with one another to show how much community there really was. The romance? Well that just filled your heart with hope and joy when you watch the journey of E and Delilah find their way back to one another. Seeing them grow from who they were as a couple, but also who they've become as adults. Throughout the book I was always rooting for E's goal of winning back Delilah, and for Delilah to get to that place of healing she needs as well. Truly enjoyed Kelly Siskind's writing style which was captivating, funny, provoking, and I eagerly await the next book in this series.

<blockquote><b>"You’re my muse. My artistic inspiration, even when you drive me nuts. I love you times infinity, Delilah Mars."</b></blockquote>

I went into this book blindly, having never read anything by Siskind, and I wasn't sure if I'd like it because it's written entirely in the hero's point of view, but oh my, was I wrong. With all of its whirlwind of emotions, I absolutely like this book. Also, second chances aren't one of my favorite tropes, but this? He still loved the same girl who might have grown into a different woman after ten freaking years, no call, no text, nothing.

E, aka Edgar, has such a cinnamon roll personality; he's a a softie with a big heart. He's a wonderful character, and I adored how much he cared about Delilah and the effort he put to reclaim her heart. I pity him for what he's gone through and what he has lost because of his father and the witness protection thing (honestly, I still don't really understand what E's father problem actually is and the witness protection situation, but fuck his dad and I hope he dies in the next book). It was difficult enough for him to leave Delilah in the first place 10 years ago; now he has to return to her, despite the town's presumptions about him.

The story is beautifully written and full of hilarious banter between E and Delilah, who are simply adorable together. The small town setting was well-described and the reality of how fast the news travel (think about Babette in Stars Hollow). Every secondary character was well-developed, and each relationship dynamic was distinct and well-defined, including the bond between Delilah and the people that supported her. The characters are well-developed, and I don't just mean E and Delilah; I mean the entire cast of people, including E's family and old friends.

This definitely won't be the last book I read by the author but I hate that I have to wait probably a year for Desmond's book, but I'll be patiently waiting to read more about the Bower brothers!

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and the author herself for the ARC in exchange of an honest review.

Adored this realistic and engaging couple! An edge of your seat, heart racing, action packed and emotionally thrilling roller-coaster journey about life, love and second chances. Loved this adventure from beginning to end.

From Kelly Siskind comes a slow-burn romantic comedy about one man’s creative attempt to win back his high school sweetheart after a change in fortune gives them a second chance at love.

Growing up, I had it all—my art, close friends, a gorgeous girlfriend who owned my heart—but then my life exploded.

Turns out my father was laundering money, and my whole family got shoved into witness protection. No notice. No chance to explain. I was ripped away from beautiful, blue-eyed Delilah Moon, shattering both our worlds.

A decade later, fate has given us a second chance.

The cartel my father worked for has been wiped out. I’ve returned to my hometown, determined to win back the love of my life. But Delilah is engaged.

Or…is she?

I’m almost positive she’s lying about her fiancé to protect her heart. Which means I need to up my game.

I’ve made a list of fifty ways to prove we’re meant to be. Except Delilah’s barely looking at me, never mind swooning. I have a feeling my disappearance scarred her more than she’s admitting, and no one in town will tell me what happened…

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book, I love me a slowburn and this delivered perfectly.

This was a somewhat heavier second chance romance told refreshingly from the POV of the male lead, Edgar. Highschool sweethearts, Edgar Bower and Delilah Moon were inseparable, that is until Edgar's money-laundering father caused the whole family to be torn away and put into the Witness Protection program for their own safety. Edgar never got a chance to say goodbye or explain his disappearance and has yearned to reconnect with Delilah ever since.

Ten years later his father is no longer an issue and Edgar is free to return to his hometown only to find that Delilah is now engaged and has no interest in hearing his explanations. I loved how hard Edgar works to win Delilah over and their undeniable chemistry. Told through flashbacks to their past we get to see how they first fell in love and the ways their deep connections still exist.

Great on audio narrated by John Lane, I'm excited to see what's next in this series that feature Edgar's other brothers. Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review. This was my first book by Canadian romance author Kelly Siskind and definitely won't be my last!

50 Ways to Win Back Your Lover Bower Boys by Kelly Siskind

A second chance romance when ten years later Edgar, whilst waiting in an airport departure lounge, sees Delila on their connection flight home. They were childhood sweethearts but it ended by his families overnight departure from the town with no explanations. A slow burn story with a few twists along the way.

There are a variety of interesting characters and storylines. Although during this book some parts at times are a bit slow.

Overall an enjoyable lazy afternoon read. A slow burn story with a few twists along the way. 3.5/5