Amelia's two weeks from going back to the US to face things and get a new job when she arrives at the Ria Hotel, site of her parents' honeymoon. It's not what she expected but it is charming, if basic. And then James, also taking time out in Europe, turns up and things change for everyone. A wedding, too much wine, and what they think is a blessing turns out to be their wedding-and they've inherited the hotel. Yikes. Some might have gone their separate ways and let the hotel be sold but these two feel an obligation of sorts to the people on the island and to those who have booked rooms. And then-Amelia gets the opportunity to get back in the game in San Francisco. What will she do? No spoilers. Godfrey does a great job with the atmospherics from the first tea mug throwing scene through, especially, a trip on the ferry and life on the island. And the characters- the characters are terrific (even her mother). This is less complex than Godfrey's debut but that didn't make it any less enjoyable. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. A very good read that became a page turner for me.

If you can suspend belief in reality for an afternoon… (Let's be real. Those of us who love romcoms, especially fake dating / accidental marriage type tropes do it all the time!)

Amelia's life is falling apart, and she decides to run away from it and go backpacking through Europe. She ends her trip at a small island resort in Greece and ends up drunk-marrying one of the other guests, another American. Through some (hard to believe, but just go with it!) interesting circumstances, the newlywed couple is gifted ownership of the hotel. They agree to keep it open for the busy summer season, but then she's going back to her old life. Right?

This is a delightful story with some of my favorite tropes (marriage / forced proximity), plus it's set on a beautiful little island in Greece, which is enough for me on its own. I liked the slow build relationship between Amelia and James, their working together in a way that gave Amelia something positive to focus on, and the setting was beautiful. Well-written, interesting characters, fun story!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced digital reader's copy (ARC) in exchange for an honest review!

PUB Date September 12, 2023

Thank you, @netgalley and @sourcebooks, for an advanced reader copy of The Second Chance Hotel.

This is in the lead for the best book of the year for me. I ADORED THIS BOOK!

This story had so many layers, and I was enraptured to peel them all back.

Here are a few of those layers:

🫒 Getting away for self-discovery

🫒 Losing an old life to find a new one

🫒 Finding new friends and new love

🫒 Dealing with family trauma/drama

🫒 Greece!

🫒 Marriage on convenience

🫒 Forced proximity

🫒 Only one bed

🫒 New endeavors and adventures

This author has a new number one fan and spoiler alert, its me. Both books by this author have been unputdownable, amazing, and introspective. I loved, loved, loved this book. Please check this book out or her other book, A Very Typical Family, as well. I will just be over her wishing I could start this book over from scratch and read it again for the first time again.

First of all thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley to give me the opportunity to read and rate the book before the official publication. It's the first time I am reading books from NetGalley and I was super excited when I read the synopsis of this book in particular.

For starters I liked the two main characters, James definitely is book boyfriend material! I liked that he was kind of nerdy and was actually sad when Amelia kind of "dismissed" him in the beginning because of this and thought he was boring. I felt like she was judging the man too fast.
They are both multidimensional and their flaws are right in the surface and I always like when characters are like that, because that makes them relatable. Amelia's character was indeed relatable and I understood her need to run, even tho it was really bad that she abandoned her friend before her wedding. In the end that ended being for the best of both.
Sometimes Amelia was a bit harsh to James and took it as a joke and I didn't like that. At some point she told him "That’s it? Did you drive most of your friends away because you’re super weird?" I thought that was an unnecessarily hurtful comment to make.

In general I liked the chaotic, silly energy of the plot! Getting married and inheriting a hotel when drunk, the aftermath of dealing with that and the feelings that they didn't want to admit - all that was super entertaining and funny and their tension was crazy good.

The only things that didn't sit right with me were first why the fuck did they leave Takis body in the church alone with the priest and went home? I thought the whole scene was gruesomely.
Then I was wondering why the author decided to place the setting on a Greek island that... doesn't exist. But then in the acknowledgments she explains why which makes it a bit better.

Also, as an European I hated this comment: "She had not expected a welcoming committee with a fruity cocktail pressed into her hands—this was Greece, not the Caribbean, but the port was desolate." It sounded so American to be honest ahah and it made me mad that she diminished Greece in a way. It is the reality, specially in small island but comparing it to the Caribbean was unnecessary in my opinion. I love that then she grows to love the quaint island life, but the beginning was turbulent for me as a reader.

To conclude I sometimes really didn't like the way she talked with her mother. I know the mother was playing the victim and was a bit overbearing, but once again I thought she was super harsh and not very empathetic towards her own mother and the hard situation she was living - either they had a good marriage or not, divorce is not easy on anyone. Her mother was gaslighting her at times but she totally did the same thing!

Towards the end of the book she said "Instead of pushing herself to see past her mother’s clinginess, Amelia had slid back into resistance and dislike. Shame washed over her. For the way she treated her mother and James and good friends like Birgitte and Ella." This admission made me change my opinion on her. I would give this read a review closer to the 3 stars than the 4 if not for the character development.

Overall it's a good book, with fluid writing, exciting plot and some place for introspection. And has the right vibe for exactly this late summer time of the year!

I so wanted to love this book. In theory, it has everything I love in a romance--forced proximity, marriage of convenience, and a stunning setting on a Greek Island. Unfortunately, it missed the mark for me.

Amelia was not a likeable character. I was shocked she decided to bail on her best friend's wedding, and then later discovered her friend called off her wedding. I didn't see many redeeming features for Ella in that friendship, all Amelia wanted to talk about were her problems when clearly Ella had some shit going on too.

I also felt really bad for her mother. She complains about her constantly, and I wasn't quite sure what the problem was. She said at one point she had a hard time seeing her mother "as human" which I thought was a bit much for a woman who had just been divorced, was struggling to pick up the pieces, and her two kids never want to see her. For someone who wants to run away, Amelia didn't seem very empathetic to her mother's very real problems, and took every chance to cut her down (oh no, she made me food and wants me to eat it!)

I loved the setting of the island of Asteri--it was really beautifully described and it made me yearn for a vacation on the Greek isles.

The chemistry between James and Amelia baffled me. I couldn't tell if she liked him or not. She went hot and cold in a way that wasn't believable to me. .

James was also very meh. He didn't know that you should always clean a bathroom between hotel guests? What the heck?? I'm supposed to believe this man can run a hotel? He also made Amelia do the stereotypically "female" chores at the hotel. Nope.

I did love a lot of the side characters--honestly, I wanted Amelia to end up with Kostos more than James! And Brigette was a great addition to the story. She was funny and added a lot of good context.

I wish I'd liked this one more, but there were too many things that rubbed me the wrong way, unfortunately.

Wonderful book, but I feel like the pacing was a little different from what I’m used to. Things I wanted to know more about were sometimes brief, and inconsequential details were abundant but it didn’t quite matter because it was such a lovely love story between Amelia and James!

I received an ARC from NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark. All opinions are my own, and I'm voluntarily leaving a review.

Genre: Contemporary Romance, Romance
Spice Level: High (sex on page)
Place: GREECE!

I've always wanted to go to Greece. THE SECOND CHANCE HOTEL is the perfect place—a bit shabby, isolated, and full of characters. It sounded like the perfect place to go on vacation.

Amelia is fed up with her former boyfriend and the way she's treated at work. So, she's off to the European vacation. The story really gets started once she hits Greece. I was instantly drawn to the food and atmosphere. And James, with his love of trees, was so charming. I guess I particularly love odd men who are handsome.

This was such a fun romance. I loved the premise and couldn't wait to see how it worked out. And I thought it was great to see the angst between the characters.

I recommend this book.

Happy reading!

The Second Chance Hotel by Sierra Godfrey is an excellent, engaging read. What stood out to me the most was the character development. Amelia’s changes throughout made me love her and I felt like I was growing along with her. Her actions that didn’t make sense at first became her origin story and how she grew into the best version of herself. The Ria Hotel and Asteria became characters of their own and what I wouldn’t pay to get to stay there! I’ve never been to Greece but now I feel that I have through Godfrey’s words. This is truly a love letter to Greece. The Second Chance Hotel is perfectly crafted and a pure delight.

Amelia finds herself living at home, single, and suddenly jobless...so she does what she does best: runs. After some time traveling Europe she finds herself in Greece, accidentally married and unexpectedly owning a hotel!

This was a fun book! It's the perfect book to wrap up your summer reading. I loved the premise of this story and can really see it being adapted to film. It's fun, witty, sweet, and heartwarming. Most of the book is set in Greece and the imagery of the island she is on makes me want to book a ticket yesterday. The townspeople are truly fun characters and reminds me a bit of the quirky ensemble from shows like Gilmore Girls. Amelia is the main female character and she has some great growth throughout the story. At times she is immature but that's part of her arc. James feels like the strong silent type, but sweet. While written in third person, the POV is mostly Amelia so we don't get a lot of his thoughts here. He hints at things but when we get an explanation, it feels very light. The angst is well done and while the romance is a slow burn, the rest of the story surrounding it keeps you engaged the whole time. I'd definitely say this is more plot driven than character driven.

Some of the dialogue towards the end gets a little cringe though, making me second guess the timeframe this story is set in. Most of the time it feels very present day, but sometimes I wonder if it's meant to be set in the early 2000's-which would make some of the slang fit. I can't believe we talked like that-haha! While I enjoyed the characters I did think they were a but superficially written but the plot was fun. It's definitely a page turner and makes me want to learn more about Greek culture.

The synopsis of this novel had me hooked. Who wouldn’t want to dive deep into a Greek vacation? But the execution of the story was a disappointment. Lots of repetition, two main characters who are quite immature for being in their 30s. DNF at 27%.

I found this book while poking around on NetGalley. The cover caught my attention with the bright yellow and an open window is a favorite art history trope of mine. From the blurb, I was hoping for something along the lines of Mama Mia meets the “someone inherits a b&b” trope from Hallmark movies. So, you know I was super happy to receive an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Unfortunately, it was nearly impossible to read.

Amelia is not an unlikable heroine. She’s a bad friend, an awful daughter, and an all around terrible person. The premise of a 32 year old woman leaving a bad relationship and work situation to spend three months sleeping and drinking her way around Europe had promise. But, leaving her best friend in the lurch because you don’t want to get married is just horrible. Then her parents decide to divorce two weeks into her trip, and she complains that her mother is selfish for wishing her daughter could help support her emotionally during a major life transition. The back and forth petty jealousy and lack of communications with James, however were beyond the pale. You know about decision fatigue, but her yo-yo attitudes towards everyone and everything in the story gave me reader fatigue.

From a craft point of view, I’m shocked this book isn’t a debut. I constantly felt pulled from the story by repetitive sentence structure, paragraphs explaining the same backstory multiple times, an over use of dialogue tags, and the author’s choice to use a very distant 3rd person that leans heavily towards an omniscient narrator. The use of both italics and parenthesis for her internal thoughts and the formatting of the text messages were also problematic.

Speaking of problematic content, the Borat-esque use of broken sentence structures, both English and Greek, made me cringe. This is another sign of a writer tackling a setting and premise without the skill to carry the language and perhaps the use of an ESL sensitivity reader should have been used.

In general, this book works for someone wanting a story set in Greece with a dreamy vacation setting, but like the book’s hotel, once you look inside, you’ll be surprised by what you find.

A delightfully chaotic rom-com! This one contains a cast of characters, each one more unique than the first. Including a complete series of mishaps that were witty and fun! The setting descriptions are phenomenal! I thoroughly enjoyed my time with this one.

Particularly I love reading books like The Second Chance Hotel these days! I loved seeing the protagonist find herself and decide some paths in life, it's a book that in the first chapters I knew how it would end, but it was still a delicious experience, perfect for the weekend. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review!

*I received a copy of this book on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this opportunity.*

Perfect for fans of the feel of Mamma Mia (if you know, you know), THE SECOND CHANCE HOTEL is a fun story about an accidental marriage, a beautiful Greek hotel on a remote island, and lots of wine. It was the perfect escapist book for people who crave adventure (and the ultimate slow-burn romance) and want to feel like they're in an early 2000s rom-com-- and I absolutely devoured it.

I adored the quirky locals of Asteri, the lush descriptions of Greek food and culture, and the opportunity to work out a little bit of my own travel fever. THE SECOND CHANCE HOTEL absolute perfect end-of-the-summer read for me!!

"The Second Chance Hotel" was exactly the type of book I was looking for to get me out of a reading slump! It had such a fun setting, premise, and storytelling. I flew through it, feeling like I was traveling alongside the protagonist. I loved the author's previous book, "A Very Typical Family", checking it out as part of Libby's Big Library Read. It had such wonderful dark humor and felt like a realistic but still interesting series of events. I think Godfrey has done it again with this lighthearted contemporary fiction. I think books with existential millennial women are having a moment right now and readers of beach read giants like Emily Henry or Jasmine Guillory will love Sierra Godfrey and this newest title.

I really enjoyed this one. Loved the island life and found family vibes! The setting an people felt eclectic in the BEST way. Great character development and arc for the two main characters. The love story was good, but maybe not great. Definitely very readable, and this felt very vacationy and summery. Plus the cover art is gorgeous! This will be a beautiful book to have on a bookshelf!!

Thanks to Netgalley for the free copy to read.

3.5 stars, rounded up!

When 32 years old Amelia gets fired after throwing a mug at her ex coz he sabotaged her work and got away with it, she gets frustrated and angry and just wants to run away from everything. So when she remembers that she has tickets to Paris she decides to hop on the plane and take a break from her life in San Francisco. What started as a few days turned into a three months touring around Europe and her last stop was at The Ria Hotel located in a small island in Greece called Asteri.
What was supposed to be a calming end to her travels ended in accidental marriage after a drunken night with the other guest at the hotel (James) and also inheriting the same hotel they are staying in.
Confused, angry, and overwhelmed Amelia and James agrees at last to run it until the end of season then end their marriage and go on their separate ways but of course fate had other plans for them.
Its a grumpy X sunshine, opposite attracts kind of story which I usually like and enjoy but this one didn't make the cut I reached 45% and I wasn't feeling anything and felt bored.
However, if you enjoy these stories make sure to pick it up coz you might like it
Thanks to @netgalley and the publisher for granting me an ARC #TheSecondChanceHotel in exchange for my honest review.

Xoxo💋

I thoroughly enjoyed this book set on a small island in Greece.

After Amelia leaves her job and boyfriend behind, she travels to Europe and arrives on a small island in Greece where her parents stayed on their honeymoon, a run down hotel. Amelia is the only guest until an other guest arrives, James and after a drunken night together at the owner niece's wedding, they find themselves married and owners of the hotel after the owner dies.

Follow along as their relationship develops, the hotel has paying guests and offers are made for the sale of this hotel in paradise.

A fun and uplifting book, very enjoyable!

I loooved my time in Greece while reading The Second Chance Hotel! Amelia leaves her life in the Bay Area after throwing a mug at her ex and getting fired. She heads off to Europe to escape her troubles and wraps up her trip on a tiny island off Greece. The laugh out loud moments were so so good as Amelia faces twists and turns during her remaining time in Greece. I really enjoyed how this story played out and loved all of the characters. Looking forward to more by Sierra Godfrey in the future!

The Second Chance Hotel is out September 12th! Thank you Netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for my e-arc!

The Second Chance Hotel
Sierra Godfrey
Pub Date: September 12, 2023

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I will start off by saying that marriage of convenience is one of my least favorite tropes. However, I thought this book was so fun and I really enjoyed it! The Second Chance Hotel was heavy at times, but laugh out loud funny at others, and was just a delight!

After Amelia’s life has essentially fallen apart, she decides to escape by traveling to Europe for three months. Eventually settling on a small Greek Island to reset and figure out her life after all the recent changes. More changes are in store for Amelia, as she is tricked into marrying James, another resident at the hotel she is staying at. James is anything like Amelia, and while he is nice, he is just not her type, and she finds him to be pretty boring. As if the marriage wasn’t enough, James and Amelia are also gifted the same hotel they are staying in, which is in need for major renovations. Committed to keeping the hotel open for the remainder of the summer, Amelia plans to return home once the busy season for the island concludes. As her time on the Greek Island continues, Amelia starts to feel more of a connection to James. Will Amelia be able to return home at the end of the summer, or will she find a second chance when she least expects it?

Read If You Like:
💛Marriage of Convenience
💛Set in Greece
💛Slow Burn Romance
💛Second Chances

Thank you Sourcebooks Landmark, Sierra Godfrey and NetGalley for a #gifted copy of The Second Chance Hotel!

Posted on Goodreads on September 2, 2023: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
**Posted on Instagram - Full Review- September 12, 2023: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Amazon on September 12, 2023
**-will post on designated date