A woman taking a second chance at a relationship ten years after she a family tragedy, but still lives in fear that her past will catch up to her. Very well done--real characters, hard choices, page-turning story.

This book is a definite roller coaster. The character of Milo is an adorable little boy and honestly, he was probably my favorite out of anyone. I couldn’t relate to Claire and honestly she frustrated me a great deal. The story is somewhat dark and emotional. Second chance Romance is one of my favorite genres, but this one is definitely not your average Romance

Claire had an unspeakable tragedy in her past, one that she’s hidden for ten long years. Living a quiet life, it’s suddenly turned upside down when she meets Erik. Claire quickly becomes part of Erik’s life a life that scares her and one she never dreamed of having again. Erik’s ex wife becomes her new bestie and Claire has the family she’s always wanted. Living out her dream, everything is picture perfect until her past catches up with her and changes her future. A story of friendship, betrayal and family this book covered some heavy emotional material. Written beautifully, this book relies on foreshadowing which helps the pages turn at a fast pace. Thank you to Penguin and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

Second change marriage troupe is my FAVORITE but this was hard to read. At the 44% mark, I was literally done with Claire. Although she had experienced so much trauma, she was not a likable person for me.
Her reason for leaving her husband were ridiculous and selfish, especially since he was like that when you met and you battled the symptoms from the beginning. Also, making tally marks for the hours you're unhappy seems childish. No wonder you're unhappy, you're keeping track of it so that's what you're focused on. Being married I 100% get how little things a spouse does seems so big at times and can drive you insane but she seems super controlling and makes a HUGE deal out of things that don't even matter. I sympathized with her with what happened with her daughter but I just couldn't make myself like her and she honestly made me lose interest in the whole story.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin group for the opportunity to read and review this advanced copy.

Delicious! I couldn't put this book down. The oh-so-nice protagonist, Claire, had a truly awful secret in her past. The author does an outstanding job of throwing out hints and foreshadowing before finally realizing what "it" is about a third of the way into the novel. Then, you're left handing onto the edge of your seat wondering what's going to happen when her boyfriend and brand new BFFs find out. You KNOW there's a massive blow-up ahead, and the author cleverly keeps you guessing when the big reveal to the friends will happen and how.

This would be a great choice for bookclubs; it will get discussions going for sure. Personally, I have very mixed feelings about what the main character did and whether she should be cut some slack or be forgiven at all.

The ending, for all this buildup, was a bit "meh." I expected another bombshell coming around the corner and had an idea what it might entail. But no. For this reason, I'm giving this a 4.8 rounded up to a solid five. Bravo.

Beautifully written, with a complex web of relationships; I loved how expertly all the threads were woven and came together at the end. Really a total pleasure to read, despite the sometimes heavy subject matter. There was perhaps a bit too much foreshadowing and it was sometimes a tad repetitive and slow-moving, but the good qualities definitely outweighed these small negatives. Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton for an e-ARC of this book. 4 1/2 stars rounded up to 5.

THE GOOD:
Beautiful. Heart-wrenching. Hopeful. Devastating. Growth, and longing, and love, and betrayal. Healing. Forgiveness. New beginnings. A future bright as a cracked mirror.

THE BAD:
- The cover. While I get how it illustrates our leading lady Claire’s own Season of Perfect Happiness, it’s doesn’t represent the tone of the novel. The story is very serious, melancholy, and more akin to a domestic suspense tale.
- Oh, the prolific double negatives! 😩

CONCLUSION:
Absolutely absorbing. Highly recommended.

A Season of Perfect Happiness was a book I went into devouring quickly. It sucked me in from the beginning with writing that speaks of tragedy and difficult life topics. Complicated relationships, family estrangement, loss and secrets. If you want a book that will bring you to tears, this is one of those stories I would recommend.

A very slow and depressing daily life suburban-drama romance novel. It was a struggle for me to read probably because nothing was relatable and the ending was very predictable once I got there. None of the characters are likable, which I usually like because they are interesting, however in this case they are just boring and not great people with all of their hurtful secrets about each other.

*Provided a DRC (digital review copy) from the publisher for review. All opinions are my own.

A solid 3.5 star read for me. I enjoyed the complex characters and the storyline. It’s filled with family, friendship, second chances, love and loss.

I think some points dragged and bit for me, and I found it hard to relate to the characters, but I still recommend - especially for fans of women’s fiction!

Takes you on a rollercoaster of emotions, so get some tissues ready.

Thank you to NetGalley, Dutton Publishing, and Maribeth Fischer for providing me with a gifted copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

Such a fun read! Highly recommend.

Many thanks to Netgalley, the author, and the publisher for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

This book is the story of Claire as she starts her life over again in a new town after a traumatic psychosis experience.

Claire doesn’t believe that she deserves happiness because of what has occurred and we join her on a path through dealing with grief and what it could look like to heal.

The story has super complex characters, Erik a divorced father of three, Annabelle, Erik’s ex wife, their friends Gabe and Eva. The stories are complex and very interesting.

The whole theme of the book is about complicated relationships, parenthood, loss, mental illness, complex grief, and in-depth thoughts around motherhood.

I found it super interesting, and definitely had to keep my tissues handy.

Life is often complicated by decisions we make and the resulting consequences of those decisions. This was a thoughtful story about friendship, family and all of the challenges and struggles. Thanks #NetGalley

What is your perfect happiness?
There are no perfect lives….
There are no perfect solutions….
A very complex and complicated story that will have you feeling many different emotions.
With that said, as the story went on, I did begin to understand where the author was taking us.
What will you get with reading A Season of Perfect Happiness?
Secrets
Friendships
Relationships
Broken bonds
Sacrifice
This was not an easy book for me to read. I read it very slowly in order to fully digest my feelings and emotions.
Beautifully written story by author Maribeth Fischer.
Thank you NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

This story is so emotionally charged and is beautifully written, it had me enthralled from the first page. It is the story of family, second chances, love, forgiveness, regret and so much more. Can one ever truly forgive oneself for an unspeakable act? This story explores this question and in the process helps it's characters heal deep, deep wounds. The writing is gorgeous and takes the reader on a long winding journey which fully satisfies at the end. A beautiful piece of work. The cover art is perfect. Highly recommended. 5 stars.
Many thanks to Net Galley and PENGUIN GROUP Dutton | Dutton for chance to read and critique an ARC version of this novel. All opinions are my own.

Claire ran away from her home and everything and everyone one she knew after a terrible accident and has been living a small quiet life. Under the radar is her mantra. The smaller the better and yet things change when she meets Erik. Her simple black and white life changes to technicolor, but her past life is still a secret she holds close. It's about family, love, loss, forgiveness, friendship, motherhood, parenting, relationships, betrayal, second chances, emotional growth and so much more. It was an emotional well written road they all traveled. I must admit, a few tissues were needed. Well worth going along for the ride.

Without having much connection to any of the characters, I thought this was well written. The pacing was set up well and the flow was easy to follow along with.

The mysteries behind A Season of Perfect Happiness just kept coming! At first, I had to know what Claire did. Then as the book went on, I had to know how things would affect Erik and then Annabelle! I enjoyed the whole thing and read it in a day. I enjoyed the themes of second chances and forgiveness while also tacking big issues around postpartum depression and infidelity. A few of the characters actions felt inauthentic to me, but was a great read with characters I will remember.

Thoroughly enjoyed this book of second chances. Claire had made a choice to start her life over after a devastating emotional time in her life. But will her secret of her past life inhibit her from moving forward in happiness. A beautiful written story of finding love, friendship and family. I had a hard time putting down this book, I did not want to see it end. I wish there was an epilogue though.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I only made it 30% through this book and just couldn't carry on. The pace was slow. The characters were not interesting, and the writing was fine but not captivating enough to carry on. If you like books dealing with a main character grappling with grief, maybe this would be for you? I also felt like the main character read more like a 40-something than a 34 year old. Just not my jam.