I absolutely love alternate timeline/universe stories, I feel like it's such a relatable and common day dream, whether it's because you made a mistake or you want a do-over or you just wish something went different for you. Everyone has had the thought "what if" you could have a do-over? Readers meet Sadie, a pastry chef who has had a bad string of luck, she lost her job, her apartment and her boyfriend and is struggling to see what is next for her. She meets a fortune teller at a New Year's party and is offered one wish...she wishes that she can re-do her horrible year. Unfortunately for Sadie, she learns the phrase "be careful what you wish for" and realizes that the grass isn't always greener on the other side. Through new (and old but newly re-discovered) friends, Sadie learns what she truly wants in life and also what is truly important to her.

I love Melissa Wiesner's take on harassment and sexism in the workplace as a women, because again it is so relatable, every women has had a moment where she is scared to speak up or be "the loud one" out of fear of repercussions of their actions, even if what they are standing up to is wrong.

The romance between Sadie and Jacob is adorable and as sweet as all of the baking puns sprinkled throughout the book (couldn't help myself). The scene with the CD had me tearing up! You do not want to miss this relatable, quirky rom-com!

A follow-up to The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen, A Nobleman's Guide to Seducing a Scoundrel *is* a standalone, but reads better having read the first book. There were times I felt like the author was info-dumping and I was glad I had background knowledge as to what was going on already. But it's still a great read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for providing an advanced copy of this title for review.

The Second Chance Year follows Sadie Thatcher as she awakes on January 1st to find that her New Year's Eve wish for a do-over of the previous year, in which she lost her boyfriend and her job, has come true. Now given the chance to relive the year in which her life fell apart, Sadie must figure out which future she really wants.

Thoughts: I would definitely say this book is much more focused on Sadie's interior journey of figuring out how to achieve the life she wants and less focused on romance, but this is a nice, gentle read that appeals to readers with engaging characters and a relatable journey of finding yourself. Recommended for fans of With Love from London by Sarah Jio and This Time Next Year by Sophie Cousens.

I love second chance stories and I love reliving and time travel too so this one was meant for me and it did not disappoint. I woke up this morning and I was at only 2% and read it all the way through before getting out of bed. I loved the characters and I loved the romance.

I loved the women standing up for themselves and each other. I loved the slow-burn romance even as you know it's coming. Can't wait to read of Wiesner's novels.

with gratitude to netgalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars, rated up

The Second Chance Year is a smart rom/dramedy combined with real and serious issues. There's a great adult brother-sister relationship. I loved Sadie's character development over the course of this, and I absolutely loved Jacob.

This made me pause and think, reminisce, and be reminded of just how much society needs to change its collective mindset about women.

Despite this and some triggers, I found this one to be a very enjoyable and quick paced read. I did personally feel that the ending was a bit rushed and clean cut, but I still quite liked this one.



Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for the DRC

Are there any years in your life where you wish you had a do-over? Maybe not even a year, but a specific conversation and situation that you’d adjust because of the resulting outcome? In The Second Chance Year, Sadie Thatcher gets to do exactly that.

After living through a particularly terrible year, Sadie gets the chance to do it all over again. In doing so, she learns a lot about herself, her values, and what truly matters.

As Sadie navigates her do-over, she loses a bit of herself and her spunk. I appreciated her self awareness and enjoyed seeing her growth throughout the book. This story made me laugh, cry, and crave delicious pastries.

I value how author Melissa Wiesner approached some difficult topics like sexism and harassment in the workplace. As discussed in the book, this can manifest in various industries (and generations) in different ways.

The romance in the book was very sweet. The CD and the song brought me immense joy. I also loved the wholesome friendships and cast of characters at Higher Grounds. And there was a cat!

Overall, I loved this book and devoured it in a day.

I was skeptical on this at first, a time travely romance? Overdone. But I was wrong! I loved every part of this book.

I really loved that the MC came to appreciate her own strong personality and see it for the gift that it is and not shove it down.

And can we just say how swoony Jacob is? I wish he was real, I want one 😂

This was a cute and funny read. In this book, Sadie has had a truly awful year. She lost her boyfriend, her job, and her apartment. So when she’s given a wish by a fortune teller, why wouldn’t she wish she could redo her year? It just so happens that her wish comes true. However, soon Sadie learns to be careful what you wish for. She starts seeing signs that things weren’t as perfect in her life as she believed. Sadie soon has to choose between keeping everything the way she thought she wanted or to take a leap of faith and go down a new path.
This was a fun read. All of the characters were really likable and relatable, especially Sadie. I really like the personal growth she goes through throughout the story. She learns from and owns up to her mistakes. I also love the slow burn romance throughout the book, although I could have done with a little more romance.
I definitely recommend this book to anyone who’s looking for a fun read.

Unusual but good. My first book from the author and it did not disappoint me.

I liked the writing style. The story had a good flow and language was easy.

The characters were good. I loved Jacob and Owen’s friendship.

I think the moral of the story was super good. It made me think all the time waste lamenting about the past when future is right in front of me. And whatever happened happens for the best.

I LOVED this one! Fun, swoon-worthy and felt like I was watching a movie. Filled with hope and humor. I want to re-read this during that slump between Christmas and New Years. An easy 5 stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for an advanced reader copy of The Second Chance Year. I went into this having never read this author before but am now planning on reading all of her books! The overall premise, a do-over, is a well trodden trope, however it is done so well and the characters so well developed that is feels fresh. I particular love how the author not only wrote a slow burn romance but very realistically showed how women are sexually harassed in both the workplace and in social situations. I felt seen and heard. I highly recommend this novel!

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to review this!
I am a newbie to Melissa Weisner, and I think I'm going to have to go back and read through her backlog.
This story was excellent, from beginning to end. The 'sliding door' style trope is one of my favorite lately, and this does it so well: Sadie has just finished her "Very Bad Year" and takes an opportunity to go back and do it over, but not before having a once-in-a-lifetime kiss with her brother's best friend, Jacob. In the secondary timeline, we watch as fate intervenes in every aspect of Sadie's Very Bad Year: what things happened to her because they were destined to happen to her, and what things were choices? What impact do we have on our fate?
What I loved about this is how genuine and natural the romance built between Sadie and Jacob in the alternative timeline, despite her pre-disposed knowledge of what could come in the future. It never once felt forced or rushed. Instead it was eye opening. I also really loved all of the B story lines on micro-aggressions to women in the workplace: I thought these were done very thoughtfully, and the multiple facets of standing up for oneself (or others) was very interesting.
Overall, I REALLY enjoyed this. I thought it was SO well done

Thank you Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and NetGalley for the ARC!

The Second Chance Year was such a lovely read! Sadie is a heroine that I can get behind, and I would also like to try her desserts IRL. I’ve read books with this type of plot before (main character gets a chance at a redo in life), and this is one of my favorite renditions!

I highly recommend this novel for fans of rom/coms, suspending reality, 13 Going On 30, foodies, and happy endings!

Thank you again for the ARC!

Such a wonderful book. I really enjoyed the lesson, how Sadie found herself again and the love story along the way. I really love the relationship between Sadie and her brother, Owen and 100% need more Owen stories.

It is New Year's Eve and Sadie has had a really bad year. She is living on a friends couch after being out of work and black balled by her boss in the restaurant industry. Her finance boyfriend dumped her because she is a bit too mouthy in the midst of his coworkers. At the New Year's Eve party there is a fortune teller, after a couple buttered popcorn martinis she wishes for a "do over year".

Sadie is a pastry chef and hoping to be promoted to executive pastry chef. OMG. I may have gained 5 lbs reading The Second Chance Year, Sadie's pastry creations sound amazing. Yum.

Definitely worth reading.

Once again I thank NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central) Publishing for introducing me to a (new to me) author! I am looking forward to reading additional novels by Melissa Wiesner. The review of the advance review copy/ARC of The Second Chance Year is in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and Forever Publishing for approving my request to review the ARC copy. Publication date is 05 Dec 2023.

If you've had the worst year ever and are given one wish, would it be to do that year over? Be careful what you wish for. This quirky novel was a fast-paced and fun-to-read novel about choices and their possible outcomes. The Second Chance Year, by Melissa Wiesner, is worth the read. Thanks, NetGalley and the publisher, for providing me with the ARC ebook to review.

Sadie has had an awful year. Like the worst year of her life. After her perfect life fell apart she finds herself living with her brother’s best friend. After Sadie’s best friend convinces her to go out for New Years Eve, Sadie finds herself waking up on New Years Day. Except it’s her second chance at the worst year of her life.

I love the found family trope in this book. As well as the journey of self discovery that Sadie goes on. It’s the perfect amount of heart and food network vibes.

When Sadie Thatcher is presented with the opportunity to redo her Very Bad Year, she goes for it. Hoping to rewrite history so she doesn’t lose her boyfriend, job, and apartment, Sadie learns to be careful what you wish for and the value of being true to yourself.

I absolutely loved this book! Sadie was a relatable MC and her issues were realistic, well minus the time travel. I enjoyed watching her struggle with staying true to herself while wanting to right all her previous “wrongs” as she navigated her do over year. Watching her come into her own was a joy and I was rooting for her from start to finish.

The supporting characters were wonderful too. Jacob was swoon worthy, Kasumi didn’t let Sadie get away with too much, Owen definitely felt like a little brother, and the Higher Grounds crew were so welcoming and funny.

The relationship with her parents was a bit over the top for me and the resolution felt a bit too tidy.

As the disclaimer states, there is discussion of sexual harassment in the workplace but I thought it was done tactfully and without dismissing or diminishing the impact it has.

I’m so happy I found this book and will definitely be recommending the heck out of The Second Chance Year.

"If you need to be anything other than exactly who you are - for anyone - then the problem is with them, and not with you."

The Second Chance Year follows Sadie who has been having a very bad year. She lost her job, her boyfriend, and has been living at her brother's best friend's apartment. Convinced that because others have called her "abrasive and outspoken", she makes a wish at a New Year's Eve party to re-do the last year. Unbeknownst to her, the wish comes true and she uses the opportunity to fix everything that went wrong: keeping her job and boyfriend.

I really enjoyed this book. What is a very foreseeable "go back in time and change things but things go badly" plot line had a refreshing take. The story had great pacing and I adored all of the side characters we met along the way. The characters felt fully-developed and added depth to the story.

I think my favorite aspect of this book was the personal growth that Sadie experienced. We could feel her internal struggle with wanting to be the "loud, outspoken" woman that she truly is, but feeling that she can't be that woman because she had already dealt with those consequences and wanted to avoid said consequences. The slow-burn, friends-to-lovers romance unfolds in a very natural progression that is believable. Jacob, our MMC, is sweet and someone we can easily fall in love with.

Additionally, it is important to mention that this story deals with workplace sexual harassment. Wiesner does an amazing job of dealing with this very difficult topic sensitively.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and I would recommend it to anyone who is looking for quick, fun read!

Star Rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️.75 / ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Spice Rating:
0 / 🌶🌶🌶🌶🌶 (All fade-to-black)

Thanks to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved this book. I devoured it in a day because I could not put it down!! I adored the characters and got swept up in the storyline of going back and trying to fix mistakes in hopes of a better outcome. A perfect New Year’s Eve read!

Thanks to NetGalley and Melissa Wiesner for this eARC in exchange for an honest review!