I really enjoyed the characters and setting of this book. I also related to the main character Liz and her struggles with feeling as if she always has to do the hard stuff/be the bad guy in her relationships at work etc.

The story begins with Liz and Tobin, a married couple working for a luxury outdoor tour company. Tobin is a tour guide who is popular and charismatic. Liz is on the quiet side working on spreadsheets and the bottom line. Liz finally snaps and takes space from Tobin as she is hell bent on finding herself and getting the world to see her. As a result, she starts taking improv classes and chasing her dreams.

For me this was not a typical second chance romance. It felt more real to me with both main characters making mistakes and learning that even if you love someone there is so much more that goes into a marriage. This book showed the messy side to family and marriage and I appreciated that.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Maggie North and St. Martins publishing for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I love second chance romance books, so I was very excited to read Rules for Second Chances, but this fell a bit flat for me. The tone of the book was sad, but I’m not sure if that was on purpose or not or if it was just me projecting. Liz decides to leave her husband Tobin when she feels she has no shine or magic compared to him. I guess they have marital problems but I don’t know, to me it felt more like it was about her. I don’t care for the improv. Just wasn’t my cup of tea, but I would read Maggie North again and give her another shot.

I received an advanced copy from netgalley in exchange for a review and opinions are my own.

I wanted to read RULES FOR SECOND CHANCES because I a m a big fan of second chance romances and one doesn’t often find one worth reading about couples that are trying to give a marriage a second chance.

The story is told entirely from Liz’s POV leaving me thinking quite often what was going on in Tobin’s mind. It puts the spotlight on the hard work it takes for a marriage to succeed much less be revived.

The writer made me feel the range of emotions in the story and hope for their happy ending.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and offer my opinion on this book.

I love marriage in crisis plot lines, but this didn’t 100% work for me. It was told entirely through Liz’s POV and I was missing Tobin’s. I wasn’t really a fan of all the improv scenarios to “save” their marriage.

**Thank you to the publisher via NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Liz and Tobin really show what it means to put in the work. I loved the idea of a second chance romance for a couple already married. I’ve never really found a book so clearly defined and super cute! While some of the improve content was a little cheesy and not my usual interest, it served its purpose and added to the plot rather than take away from it! I would definitely read more from Maggie!

Rules for Second Chances follows the story of Liz who is struggling to find herself and find acceptance and love that she feels is missing in her marriage, career, and family relationships. The journey takes her on a self discovery mission through an improv class where she meets new friends who show her true acceptance and guide her to accept herself as well.

This story would resonate with anyone feeling out of place in their own world, like no one understands them or truly knows their true self. In discovering herself, Liz realizes true communication with those she loves and how to fully live her life and her truth.

Rules for Second Chances combined several topics within the story. Marriage is hard and so is family. Tobin and Liz have to fight to the end to refocus their marriage towards the future. How do you become the main character of your life story? Improv at it's best. Well done.

There was a lot I really liked about this book and some scenes gave me all the tingly feelings (mermaids!). Our heroine Liz was really going through it in this book and I couldn't help but root for her. I smiled with every step forward and was sad when momentum felt stagnant. Liz's relationship with Tobin had me feeling had their ups and downs deeply; I do wish we'd gotten his POV because he was such an interesting character and I would have loved seeing the relationship through his eyes. All of this to say that though the romance (and chemistry) between Liz and Tobin was really strong, this book was equally about Liz's personal growth and learning new things about herself. I appreciated seeing Liz get to the point where she would stand up for herself, especially with her sister. In the end I have more positive feelings than not and will definitely try another book from this author in the future.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

Thanks to @netgalley @smpromance and @mnorthauthor for the early peak at Maggie North's debut, Rules for Second Chances. It releases on June 25, 2024.

This was an unbelievably tender, hilarious, and heartwarming story about a neurodivergent woman who decides she needs to be the main character in her own life. Her marriage has become the shadow of what it once was and she's tired of being passed over for promotions, yet expected to do all the operational work at her outdoor adventure company.

Enter improv classes. She takes them on the advice of her boss but learns so much more about applying the philosophy of "yes, and" to her life. When her husband Tobin offers to be her partner for improv exercises as they try to work through their issues, the story becomes heart-wrenching and hilarious. (I am still chuckling over the mermaid scene!)

It isn't easy to pull off the marriage-in-trouble trope, but Maggie made it look effortless. Her voice was sparkling, and I can't wait to gobble up her future books.

Add this one to your TBR!

Steam: 🔥🔥🔥
Tropes: marriage in trouble, armchair travel, small town

Rules for Second Chances is a breathtaking, deeply romantic story about the second chances we give to love, each other, and most importantly, ourselves. Maggie North has the singular ability to hit you with truths that are at once hilarious and aching, stark and soft, painful and necessary, and she writes Liz and Tobin’s journey with an obliterating tenderness I felt in every corner of my heart. This book and its author land effortlessly among my all-time favorites.

Cute book on second chances and finding yourself. It was a slow start, but once it picks up, I loved the different improv scenarios that the characters played through. Highly relatable and definitely recommend.

This was a cute second chances romance where a married couple try and work out what went wrong in their marriage.There was a lot of self discovery, the marriage issue coming second in the story, and that made it a little more heavy than I wanted. It was a slower paced story with the last bit of the book making up for it.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and St. Martins Press for the arc via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed the book “ Rules for Second chances “ by Maggie North . This story followed the journey of Liz and Tobin to save their marriage . They hit many bumps along the way but after putting in work to save the marriage , they let love win .

Hello Book friends!

Today I’m reviewing Rules for Second Chances by Maggie North. In this second chances romance, a married couple try and work out what went wrong in their marriage.

Now, let’s chat about the book itself.

This one wasn’t for me book friends. 😔

I love second chance romances, where the characters get one more chance to figure out what went wrong and make it right. But for me, in Rules for Second Chances, the first three quarters dragged on with a back-and-forth between the two main characters that felt cringe as it did flat. I struggled reading this one, often times, setting the book down, thinking if I was going to DNF this one, but hoping, that at some point, the book would turn around.

And it did! 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

But it was the last three chapters that I was screaming YES, this is what I signed up for and want to read!!!

I’d give the last thee chapters 3.5 stars as the characters and story blossomed and has a conclusion romance readers will absolutely love.💓

Even though this one didn’t work for me, there was neurodiversity representation, tropes like opposites attract and a second chance worth fighting for. My suggestion would be keep reading book friends to make it to the end.

Rules for Second Chances tells the story of Liz who is struggling while living in the shadows of all aspects of her life-her marriage, career, and even socially. When her boss suggests improv to help bring her out of her shell and prepare for a chance at a promotion-she steps outside her comfort zone and gives it her all.

When I seen this was 'read now' on NetGalley I jumped at it. It sounded like a marriage in crisis storyline and I love them. But this was very much secondary to the plot. What I found instead was more of a women's fiction story, a rediscovery of one's self. And to be honest, it felt heavy to me. I felt a little bad for her husband. It all felt tedious. And I just really adored him.

It took me some time to get into this one. It's quite slow moving. But I did enjoy some aspects and the last little bit. There is even some steamy scenes that to be honest I wasn't expecting but liked. There is definitely an audience for this book. It's a good debut. I think those that enjoy women's fiction will likely enjoy this- but for me, a romance reader, it was just okay.

*Thank you to St. Martins Press for the arc via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own and given freely.

3 stars!

I do love a good second chance romance, it's one of my favourite tropes. I found myself laughing along at times, but I must admit that I struggled with how unlikeable some of the characters were.

I did enjoy the story overall and will be keeping my eyes peeled for more Maggie North books in the future.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC!

This was such a beautifully written book. Maggie North has a way with words that had me reading, rereading, feeling, and highlighting so many lines. The story of a woman taking a stand and doing what needed to be done, no matter how hard it was, to find herself really resonated with me. And the backdrop if the improve classes/workbook was so clever. I adored the insights at the beginning of each chapter, and really felt like I learned something from each one. Highly recommend this beauty for a thoughtful, deeply moving read. Thank you so much to Maggie North and NetGalley for this ARC.

I had really high expectations for RULES FOR SECOND CHANCES by Maggie North when I grabbed it off NetGalley. I can now safely say Maggie’s debut FAR exceeded them!

After nearly a decade of being dismissed, ignored, and labeled “different” by the good-old-boys club of the wilderness expedition industry, Liz Lewis is done being overlooked. She decides to overhaul her life, starting with her marriage of toxic positivity to her husband and coworker, Tobin Renner-Lewis.

Her plan: Find that ✨magic✨ that’ll make her popular at work and score her that big promotion. To do it, she joins an improv class. But when she needs a partner to practice with, her only option is Tobin, who’s still determined to save their marriage. As each new, wild improv scenario forces them to confront their past mistakes and attraction that still burns brilliantly between them, Liz will have to decide if she wants to give Tobin the “yes, and” improv encourages, or keep her eye on the new life she’s seeking.

Let me just start, before getting into how much I love these two, by saying that Maggie’s prose is some of the best I’ve ever read! She fills this book with such gorgeous imagery, both in the way she paints the breathtaking area they live in, and in the clever ways she describes feelings and interactions. There were so many times I stopped, looked up from the book, and just said “Wow.”

Then there’s Liz and Tobin. Oh. My. God. 😭😭😭 I felt so much for these two. I normally shy away from marriage in trouble, but she so clearly paints from the beginning how good they are together. That these are kind, generous souls who have gotten so caught up in the pressures of the world around them that they lost their connection to, but never their love for, each other. Seeing them find their way back to each other was so satisfying. The character growth in both was amazing, and especially impressive to see when we only get Liz’ POV.

As expected, I’m obsessed and Maggie will forever and always be an auto buy!

3.5 stars

I had a lot of problems with this book until about 60%, but it did redeem itself.

First, why would Tobin throw a birthday party for Liz when they've been together 8 years and he knows she has social anxiety and hates parties? I severely disliked Amber and Mrs. Renner - they were unnecessarily cruel and hurtful and showing their redemption in the last bit of the story did not make me forgive them.

I loved how hard Liz fought for herself and for To n, however misguided or however many mistakes she made. She had no one in her corner and was fighting blind.

The story had a few too many scenarios - Liz and her sister, Liz at work, Liz at improv and Liz and Tobin. If her sister was painted as a supportive, loving sister that would have been a bit better for the story. It was hard to watch Liz fight for so much simultaneously.

Overall, I loved that this was set in Canada with true "Canadian" players and speech. I loved the neurodivergent representation, and loved the development of Liz and the healing of Liz and Tobin.

All in all, a great romance, a great story.

Many thanks to Net Galley for the ARC.

A delightful chick-lit Maggie North's "Rules for Second Chances," made me laugh and swoon as I read this one in a day. As Liz Lewis turns 30 she starts to question why she is taking a backseat to her own life. She works at a company with her husband, Tobin, the guy every guy wants to be and every girl wants to be with, but all she is seen as is his wife. If she's even seen at all. She decides she's done with mediocre and on a quest to figure out her why she tells Tobin she wants a break so she can find herself. She decides to go for a promotion at work, and at one of her superior's suggestions, she takes an improv comedy class, where she learns she's not good at it, but more importantly learns the power of "yes, and." To add to the drama, Liz is competing with Tobin for said promotion, and is forced to work with him to have a chance. This is an easy read, comes out in June and will be a great beach read! 

Thank you to Netgalley and St Martin's Griffin for the early read!