Lost love, secret work romance, strong female characters, I was a fan of this. Bea was stuck in an impossible situation of having to travel constantly while also being a single parent going through a messy divorce but she didn’t give up and figured a way out which I loved. The writing in this was strong and hooked me from the beginning. It was a bit slower paced than I would have liked, but Jack and Bea felt worth it.

Ali Rosen delivers yet another enjoyable novel! I was rooting for Bea and Jack from the start, and I love a happy ending. In this case, a second chance happy ending!

I liked this quick and light hearted read! It was a great summer beach bag pick, and also worked for our new adult readers, which is fantastic.

This was a cozy second-chance love story. It felt a bit slow in the middle with all the repetitive travel back and forth from NYC to Ireland for Bea’s work. I did like the characters, but the chemistry was lacking a bit between Bea and Jack. Jack was really sweet and seemed into Bea, but Bea seemed a bit scattered with everything so it was hard to tell if she had feelings for him. At least Bash is adorable, Bea’s son. The ending was predictable and cozy.

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

I found the plot and characters in this romance intriguing, though the pacing was slower than I prefer. Beatrice and Jack’s relationship pulled me in, and Bash’s humor really added a spark. The author did a great job tackling important themes, and the friendships in the story were beautifully done. While the ending was predictable, it left me feeling content, and I’d recommend this to anyone seeking a heartwarming read.

However, the story’s repetitive nature—Beatrice traveling between New York and Ireland, reconnecting with Jack, and then returning home—felt drawn out. The emotional depth and longing of a second-chance romance weren’t fully there for me. It’s a solid read with strong characters, but it didn’t completely capture that magic I was hoping for.

#AlternateEndings #NetGalley

A cute second chance love story. The setting in Ireland is dreamy. Bea is a likable main character. Jack is charming.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary ARC. All opinions are my own. As much as I wanted to love this book based on the premise, the plot was incredibly slow and I felt like I never connected with the characters.

From the bestselling author of Recipe for Second Chances comes a smart, sexy, heartfelt romance about a single mother juggling home life and career who finds unexpected complications while in Ireland for work.

Beatrice Leal’s personal life is complicated between her divorce and her precocious six-year-old. But the job she loves is the one thing she counts on to be straightforward—that is, until her boss’s own divorce prompts a move from NYC back to Ireland.

Now Bea’s in Ireland twice a month for work. It’s wreaking havoc on the custody agreement she and her moody ex are sorting out while he lives downstairs in the brownstone they co-own. And to top it off, her company’s new CTO turns out to be the boy who once broke her heart Jack Sander.

It’s been twenty years since Bea and Jack saw each other. Their lives are both messy. So when they hook up one night in Ireland, they plan to just keep it a work fling that stays there. But the more time they spend together, the more Bea wonders if happiness might not always mean needing to have your life in order.

Bea and Jack brought happiness and light into my life when I needed it the most. I look forward to reading more of Ali Rosen in the future.

DNF. I love a slow burn romance novel but when the main character gets hot and bothered by a love interest handing them a scone, I feel like you’re short changing women. Why is the bar so low? It put me off and made me put it down.

This was an interesting take on the well-loved second chance romance trope. The premise had great promise, however I feel that the plot missed the mark. I found it difficult to continue with as the romance between Bea and Jack felt lacklustre at best.

Not an amazing story/book but not horrible either. FMC was kind of cringey and never knew what she wanted (ugh). MMC was always there to help her grow and have faith in herself again after her divorce. Not a super memorable story but it did give me Emily Henry vibes at first which kept me going to see what came next, unfortunately it was just okay but I’ll be looking forward to her next books!

3.5 - This was such a cute romance and I really enjoyed the characters!! Beatrice was someone I could really connect to and I loved how the author really created such an expansive and developed lead character. I kind of love the single mother trope right now, and I loved seeing how strong Beatrice was, in juggling being a single mom and all of the responsibilities she had, with also navigating her personal life. Beatrice is getting a divorce and is trying to navigate becoming a single mom while also making a big change of having to travel often to Ireland for her job, while fighting for custody over her son. I thought that the way the author wrote about marriage, divorce, children, family, second loves, and careers was really authentic and gave me similar vibes to the way that Annabel Monaghan writes her single mothers, who is one of my favorite authors!!

I thought the romance between Beatrice and Jack was lacking at times and the pace also lagged in certain parts. I really did like how Beatrice and Jack were brought together after their failed romance in high school, but I wish we had gotten more background and flashbacks to their time spent together before to get a fuller picture. Most of all, I liked how this book was so focused on Beatrice as a character and her growth as a woman, mom, and person. It gave me really similar vibes to Summer Romance by Annabel Monaghan.

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for the free book in exchange for my honest review!

I really enjoyed this! I thought it was a little bit slow at times but I loved the message it had about women. I think I would have preferred some more flashbacks but as a whole I thought this was a wonderful romance and is one that I will be recommending.

Beatrice is newly divorced and struggling to juggle her life between her work and her home life as a single mom. Her work takes her back and forth to Ireland, where she reconnects with an old love from high school, Jack. Her life is too hectic for a relationship right now and Jack has his own messy life to deal with. What start out as just a friends with benefits situation turns into so much more as they both realize you can't always control what goes on and life can be a little messy but when a second chance at happiness comes along, you need to grab it with both hands, mess and all.
Although this was a romance, I really enjoyed seeing Bea's growth throughout the story. I also liked that there was good communication between the characters. The characters were interesting and relatable and they had a great connection. I enjoyed the book and look forward to reading more by this author.
I received a complimentary copy from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.

This is such a beautiful and heartbreaking novel. I love the way Bea grows throughout the book and her relationship with herself changes. I love the way she lets Jack get to know Bash, something that is so special. The writing is great and I love reading a second chance romance with high school sweethearts. I also loved the way infertility is discussed and Bea's whole relationship with wanting children. I didn't like Rika.

This book was so refreshing! I was just as invested in the FMCs life outside of her romance. The emphasis on how important communication is to all types of relationships was a nice change from the ever popular miscommunication troupe!

this was an interesting take on the second chance trope and i really appreciated it. i could not out this down and i was actually invested in the storyline after outside the romance. the ending was perfect

I loved that this workplace, second chance romance portrayed a woman good at her job and unapologetic that she loves her work. She also loves her child and is 100% present with him. Bea had heal from her divorce and step back to look at what really happened so she can move forward. Ironically, her relationship with her first love, now coworker, helps open her eyes to look within.

Absolutely loved this book! The story was very well written, evoked all sorts of emotions from me, and the NY/Irish background was everything i could want in a book. A beautiful second chance romance, with characters that evolve and develop together and alone. Could not recommend this book enough. Also, it has some great Irish recipes in the end, which is always a plus!

Bea is a newly single mom who is doing her best balancing a her home life and work life when suddenly her work is taking her to and from Ireland, and away from her son constantly! Besides her ex husband giving her trouble about it… her new co worker is also her high school ex of sorts! Instantly things pick back up and the sweetest second chance romances starts. Their banter, while some might call boring, fits them as characters perfectly. I am very thankful I got to read this in advance thanks to NetGalley!