The title of this book really grabbed me, nothing I love better than a second chance romance, however, it fell short of my expectations. I started reading the book and kept putting it aside to read others but I wasn't going to give up, I had high hopes. I decided to give the audio book a try instead. The narrator was great! But I still wasn't into the book. It really dragged on and the writing style was hard to follow. Thanks NetGalley for the ARC of the book and audio.

Rules for Second Chances by Maggie North is a fabulous debut! As the title implies, it's a second chance romance between a husband and wife who have drifted apart. Nothing tragic or traumatic has happened, but Liz just feels lost. She feels like she's been stuck playing a supporting role in her own life, and she's been content to let her husband stand in the spotlight. But after her thirtieth birthday party, something snaps, and she moves out, needing time and space to figure things out.

The focus on improv comedy took me by surprise, but my cousin-in-law (who is a therapist) is a huge fan of improv as a way to process emotions and heal, so seeing that play out in Liz and Tobin's relationship was fun to watch. The couple uses a book called, you guessed it, Rules for Second Chances, to try to reopen communication and save their relationship. This book encourages them to engage in improv--"Yes and"--engaging in various scenarios that push and stretch them in different ways.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book. At first I thought the reason she moved out was a little flimsy, and a bit dramatic and unnecessary, until I remembered that as someone who is not autistic, I couldn't impose my own ways of thinking and processing the world on Liz. She would experience life differently than me, and when I saw things through that lens, her actions made more sense to me. I also loved the cast of supportive side characters that she meets through her improv classes. And Tobin--I loved how he wasn't just a one-dimensional character. As Liz grew and changed, so did he, and I loved that ultimately they chose to continue to grow and change together.

I listened to the audiobook from Macmillan Audio, narrated by Gail Shalan, and she delivers a fabulous performance. I'd highly recommend the audiobook for any and all romance readers who enjoy listening to books (like me).

An emotional romance, introspective, honest, and peppered with humor, Rules for Second Chances comes out in late June, and it's one you definitely need to add it to your summer romance TBR!

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for an advanced audio-copy of Rules for Second Chances, in exchange for an honest review.

Liz finds herself fading into the background, her vibrant spirit dulled by a sense of invisibility. At home with Tobin, her husband, an impromptu birthday celebration left her disheartened when a guest mistook her for hired help. Extroverted and successful, Tobin seemed oblivious to Liz's quiet yearning for recognition. Their shared workplace at West by North, a mountain and river guide service, mirrored the imbalance at home. Liz's aspirations to lead tours and develop innovative ideas were dismissed by her boss, who confined her to the mundane realm of spreadsheets. Desperation propelled her to seek change, both within the marriage and professionally. She separated from Tobin and sought solace with her sister and niece, longing for a life that truly reflected her worth.

Meanwhile, Tobin is determined to win Liz back. He buys her a relationship repair manual called Rules for Rebooting Your Relationship with Improv and asks her to try it with him. Liz is reluctant at first, but she eventually agrees. The improv class is a turning point for Liz and Tobin. They learn to communicate in a new way, and they start to rediscover the connection they once had. With the help of improv, they find happiness and their way back to each other.
If you love Second Chance Romance books, this is the one for you. I gave this one a solid 4 Star rating!

I loved this story. It was refreshing and original writing. How often do we read romances with the third act breakup? Well this contemporary fiction centers around our lead character Liz Lewis who has only ever wanted people to like her and want to engage with her and her excellent ideas, but for some reason, she just can't connect. Everything comes to a head when she decides to leave her husband before the big pitch competition at work. But Tobin, her sexy Norse-god of a husband who is equally sexy and gentle, refuses to give up. He asks he to work through his friend's new book "The Second Chance handbook," a guide to using improv to heal relationships. What ensues is hilarious, awkward, heartwarming, and sad. I love the realistic family dynamics, the ND and LGBTQIA+ representation, and of course my favorite character, the lovable tom cat.

I reviewed the audio version on this book and the voice actress was a phenomenal narrator who could easily transform into various characters all while making me feel like I was listening to my best friend.

I wanted to love this one. I liked the use of improv to help them with their marriage. I think I didn't quite understand the real conflict for them. And because we weren't getting Tobin's POV he just seems perfect. The audiobook narrator was great!

Liz decides that she needs to change her life. Unfortunately, change is one of the things she dreads. But with the help of an improv class and her husband--who she's on a break. from--she might learn who she can really be.

This book grew on me more and more as I read it! Here's what I loved:

The neurodiversity rep. I adored Liz. I honestly saw a lot of myself in her. Her journey to embrace herself while also realizing that it's okay to be different really resonated. The first person POV was a great choice with this, allowing the readers to get inside of her head, to hear her inner dialogue.

The improv. This was one of the best aspects of this book. Liz and her fellow classmates made me laugh and made me love them as they put themselves out there.

That warm feeling. I've never smiled so much while reading a book. Liz falling in love with her own life and stepping up to be the main character was so much fun to watch.

The narration. This was perfect. The narrator really embodied Liz.

All in all, this was a great, heart-warming romcom

Thank you to the publisher and author for the gifted copy!

This book wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t good either. I sort of just felt indifference after finishing. The book was all over the place and the dialogue felt very stilted to me.

Marriage in conflict can be a great trope when done well. The conflict between Tobin and Liz felt very contrived and unrealistic to me. Plus all the references to Liz’s vagina were just odd. I did enjoy Tobin and thought he was a sweet MMC. Liz was a mess and I just couldn’t connect to her.

Overall, this just wasn’t the book for me. I couldn’t get behind this marriage and the FMC.

𝗥𝗨𝗟𝗘𝗦 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗦𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗗 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗖𝗘𝗦 𝗯𝘆 𝗠𝗮𝗴𝗴𝗶𝗲 𝗡𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 offers a heartfelt and relatable journey of self-discovery and rekindled love. Liz Lewis, always labeled as different in her world of wilderness expeditions, hits a breaking point when she's mistaken for a server at her own thirtieth birthday party. Determined to stop playing a minor character in her own life, she enrolls in an improv comedy class to boost her confidence. The catch? She's terrible at it, and the only person willing to help her is her estranged husband, Tobin. As they practice together, Liz confronts the reasons their marriage failed and her growing suspicion that her social awkwardness might mean something deeper. The dynamic between Liz and Tobin is compelling, especially when they communicate honestly about their relationship. While the improv storyline felt a bit awkward, the book is a solid and engaging second-chance romance with depth and heart.

I love a journey of rekindling married love and I wanted so desperately to fall in love with these characters -- their self discoveries and how to better love one another -- but I couldn't quite get there. There was a lot that was covered but I was never invested in the characters or their relationship and it felt a little like an aimless, long trudge to the finish line. Their passion for one another didn't seem to be there and as a result, I spent the book almost as bored with them as I felt they were with one another. I would try another book by this narrator and appreciated some of the quieter moments that seem to be lacking in a lot of contemporary romance, I just hope to have more to cling onto, follow, and root for in future books.

I did really enjoy the narrator on this one -- so much so that I went to look up other books she's recorded in the past.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an opportunity to review this audio ARC.

Thank you so much NetGalley and the publisher for a chance to listen to an ARC of this book.

The things I found relatable in this book were Liz's feelings of discomfort in groups of people and having to make small talk. I've learned how to do that throughout the years but it's taken a long time and I still hate going into unfamiliar social situations. I also found it relatable that Liz's ideas get overshadowed by her male coworkers, who appear to be taken more seriously. This is certainly something that many women have experienced.

What stood out as...bizarre (the only word I can use for this) were the scenarios that Liz and Tobin were getting themselves into in order to try to rekindle their relationship. The merman scene alone was awkward as heck. If that's what it takes to get your marriage back on track, more power to you. Despite the weird activities the two found themselves, it was a pretty sweet love story, and definitely embodied the second chances aspect.

This was different from just about any romance book I’ve ever read, and there is a lot to love about it!

This is a second chance romance about a marriage that is on the rocks, and it gets pretty intense and sad at times. Liz feels like she is perpetually living in the shadow of her charming, outgoing husband Tobin. And not only that, she feels like no one at all, including Tobin actually sees her. She sets out on a mission to find the “magic” Tobin has by changing her whole social persona, and doing it via improv.

This book covers a lot of ground, and Id even argue that it’s covering too much. We’ve got a rocky marriage, a suffering MC (who is learning about her own neurodivergence), extremely difficult family dynamics on both sides, deep dives into Improv as a self-help and almost therapy-like practice, a toxic workplace, a diverse and charming cast of side characters, honestly I could probably go on. For what it’s worth, this story does tackle a lot of these with grace, but I felt that because of the sheer number of topics within it was hard for any of them to feel terribly fleshed out.

I did really enjoy the improv bits, and I found the re-kindling of Liz & Tobin’s relationship to be really beautiful and touching, and full of lessons that are so important to relationships. I wished I got to know Tobin more, as he felt a bit one dimensional despite us learning from afar about his childhood family dynamics and how they are effecting him now. The humor did make me laugh out loud a few times, and I did really especially adore the side characters in Liz’s improv class. There is just still the feeling that things fell flat come the end, only because there wasn’t always enough space to flesh things out.

I did really love the audiobook narrator, and I loved how distinct each characters voice felt, as well as how beautifully emotion was captured by the voice acting.

I will likely give this author another try, and I did still enjoy it overall. I’m ultimately giving this 3.5/5 stars, and I hope Maggie North’s voice continues to grow as I see a lot of potential. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press & Netgalley for this audio arc!

I love a good second chance romance especially if the couple has grown between chances and this fit that perfectly. This was a story about a women who is trying to find herself for the first time in her life instead of being what every wanted her to be or what she thought they wanted.
The growth of these characters throughout the book was my favorite part of the story. You can't help but root for both of them and hope that together they can both become what they want & need.

I did feel like this story was missing the chemistry I wanted between the couple and they had more chemistry I think I would have loved this book.

Thank you NetGalley and St Martins Press for this ALC!

This book follows a woman named Liz who struggles with knowing who she is both as a person and as a spouse. She basically breaks down one day and ends up separating from her husband then taking time to work on herself and then see if they can make their way back to each other. To do this, she enrolls in an improv class, and this is where the premise gets interesting. Some of the principles from improv applied to relationships are actually pretty creative, but the author just tried to make things way too awkward or quirky sometimes and it lost me. The MCs were also just not at all relatable or connected as a couple. It’s hard to root for characters to get a second chance when you aren’t invested in them. Good idea, but fell short on execution for me. Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for the ALC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Liz walks out of her birthday party and tells her husband that she wants a divorce. Cue the rest of the book where Liz & Tobin made me question how they got married in the first place. Secret admission— I felt more chemistry between Liz and her improv instructor!! 🤷‍♀️
Usually the audiobook is better than the print/ebook for me, but this narrator made the male characters sound like they’re talking with cotton in their mouths.
*Thanks to MacMillan Audio and NetGalley for the audiobook review copy

Second chances....

Liz is neurodivergent, quiet, and likes to keep to herself while her husband, Tobin is gregarious and sociable. At her thirteenth birthday party, she decides it is time to make a change in her life after being mistaken for a server and not the birthday girl. Her solution is to move out of their home and in with her sister, work on herself, and take an improv class. She wants to work on her confidence which is a worthy thing to do but I did find some of her actions to be a little abrupt and dramatic. What happened to communication? Okay, okay, that is one of the things Liz needs to address.

The tips on improv were fantastic and applied to relationships as well. I loved these tips and the messages that were shared. While I appreciated the emphasis on Liz's desire to make changes and her bravery in doing so, the conflict at work and home didn't work for me. It is obvious that Liz and Tobin have things they need to work on in their marriage, but I just had a hard time connecting with them.

I enjoy second chance romances, but this one didn't work for me that way that I had hoped. What worked for me was Liz's journey, her courage to make changes, her acceptance and realization of her own issues, and learning to speak up for herself was the best part of the book (besides the improv tips).

I had both the book and the audiobook and though the narrator of the audiobook did a fine job of bringing this book to life.

This was cute and sweet and overall an enjoyable read/listen. However, I did think the female MC was a bit whiny? Not sure this was just me, but it was a bit difficult.

This book worked for me in parts, but mostly... didn't. I was rooting for Tobin in this story, however the main character was not great for me. While I understand her being neurodivergent was supposed to convey through her quirks, I found her selfish and whiny. I wasn't invested in anyone - there was just too much jumping around to focus. 
The narrator did a good job. 
Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ARC.

Rules for Second Chance by Maggie North and narrated by Gail Shalan was a good listen. The narrator did a good job telling the story.

Liz Lewis is a people-pleaser and a wallflower. Always doing everything everyone else expects her to do.

Until now.

Liz's mother-in-law throws her a 30th birthday party (which she did not want, but agreed to), and she is mistaken as one of the servers. If the guests did not know better, they would have thought that the party was for Tobin, Liz's adventurous, out-going husband.

Liz is pissed. She has had it. She packs a bag and heads to her sister's house.

Liz wants something different. She wants to have friends. She wants to be social. She doesn't want t0 settle for what everyone else thinks she can wants/needs.

Tobin tries really hard to get Liz back, but she keeps pushing him away. Does Liz go too far? She realizes how much Tobin does love her and care for her, but she has pushed too hard. Tobin's world is falling apart.

This is an entertaining story. I enjoyed the story and was rooting for Tobin, as he seemed to really love Liz.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillian Audio for this advanced listen in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Rules for Second Chances is a second chance romance following married couple Liz and Tobin as they try to fix their complacent marriage while working for the same company with drastically different experiences. Liz is highly introverted whereas Tobin is the life of the party. I was skeptical in the beginning if I would enjoy the romance due to Tobin seeming too sunshiney and Liz not communicating, but there is immense growth for both characters as the story develops. Narration was performed by Gail Shalan, and I highly enjoyed her performance.

Perfect for introverted romance readers or readers who have ever had a moment thinking, "Is this what my life is supposed to look like?"

I received an ALC from Macmillan Audio via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Publisher for this audio.

I did not like this. I really tried to push myself to finish this book but I DNFed at at about 45%.