So sweet and verrra steamy, with lots of creative swearing and threats thrown in for your edification…

I really liked the characters in this book. I even liked the plot and side characters. There was some part of the book that I couldn't just connect to, but this is a good book for those who are grumpy cats that secretly want their own love story. Also, the fact that both of the MCs are plus size is a another perk.

Everyone’s favorite grumpy Harlot’s Bay baker is back with his own book. Karl has been thinking about the almost-one who got away for two decades, but it takes his death being reported erroneously in the local paper to bring Molly back to town. Now all he has to do is convince her to stay.

This was an enjoyable read but it was too long. Which was my issue with the first one in this series, too.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for the ARC to review. All opinions are my own.

A truly enjoyable and humorous read! The plot moves at a great pace, keeping you hooked from start to finish. The dialogue between the characters is lively and engaging, adding to the overall charm of the story.

Molly and Karl are two very human people who fall in love and while their feelings are very intense, they still have to work at having a good relationship, and I appreciated them showing the struggle of overcoming individual biases and problems to come together and make their love work. They put in the work to communicate and to know each other better, and their journey made the whole book well worth the read!

I was SO excited to find out that there was another installment of the Harlot's Bay series! I've read most if not all of Olivia Dade's published novels, and imo she keeps getting better and better. Her characters are smart, emotionally complex and grounded, and their problems are all realistic. Yes, there's plenty of fluff, but never a conflict predicated on a silly miscommunication.
I am so looking forward to the next installment in the series!
Many thanks to NetGalley and Avon for the opportunity to read an advance e-copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Reports of Karl Dearborn's death are greatly exaggerated in this tale of high school friends who were close but never did it. Romance/erotica writer and audiobook narrator Molly Dean hightails it from Los Angeles CA back to Harlot's Bay, MD upon reading an erroneous news report that the one that got away has passed. Shocked at the blasé demeanor of the staff at his bakery, she is stunned to see the man in the flesh, alive and well. They reconnect, it turns out he's a fan of her work, and he convinces her to stay a month and give him a chance to win her over, after apologizing for his immaturity and miscommunication. Molly, betrayed by her father and her ex-husband, is slow to agree and slower to commit. Baked goods, dirty stories, and trust-building activities ensue.

This second book dovetails nicely with the recurring characters from At First Spite--Molly takes up residence in the Spite House next door to Matthew and Athena. While you don't have to read the first book to enjoy this one, readers who are familiar with the town will delight in the world-building, from Karl's motley crew to the well-intended octogenarian journalist to the wild place names and the erotica book club. Karl and Molly are more blue-collar relatable, and she's plus-size and he's big and tall, and their appreciation for one another's physical attributes is refreshing. Molly is a pendant, and Karl loves to set her up to nitpick his word choices. It's cute, but gets a little repetitive; although, if Molly is being cast as (undiagnosed) on the spectrum, it rings true.

A few things were hard to take: watching both Molly and Karl talk themselves out of having a frank conversations and putting their hearts on their sleeves and confessing their love and their desire to make a relationship work even though one of them would have to move. Equally painful: Karl's affected way of speaking without the "I" pronoun, except in rare or extreme circumstances, giving his patter a caveman-like grunting cadence. As a survivor of an emotionally abusive relationship, it's difficult to read characters who make death threats at one another or at their friends and family as terms of endearment, and Karl, portrayed as a grumpy softie, threatens his friends for teasing him on more than one occasion, and it's a jest I can't get get behind.

I received a free advance reader's review copy of #SecondChanceRomance via #NetGalley, courtesy of #Avon, in exchange for a fair and honest review. This review will post to HLBB on 11/25/2025.

This was the perfect second chance romance book. The story lived up to it's name. Loved the friends to lover angle and Carl and Molly were the prefect pairing. There was just enough to keep me wanting more!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

In this absurd and hilarious second chance romance (truth in advertising) Molly is a romance audiobook voice actor living in LA and Karl is a bakery owner in, get this, Harlot’s Bay in Maryland. In fact that’s where they met in high school and Karl has maintained a serious crush on Molly. He’s even bought every single one of her audiobook CD’s, including “Honk of Desire”- the hero’s a duck shifter, because, of course! He plays them before the bakery opens every day just to hear her voice.

Molly has had a crush on Karl too but thought he was two timing her so cut off all communication. Twenty years later an obituary comes out detailing Karl’s bizarre death- involving violent camping and suspicious muffin ingredients. Molly travels back to Harlot’s Bay to attend his funeral but finds him alive and kicking. Now Karl has a final chance to win her and though he goes about it with the help of trust building exercises found in discarded dental office magazines, the winning, the town, and the characters are just plain hysterical and oh so endearing!

This is part of a series but it can quite easily be read alone. The secondary characters are well drawn and one hopes some of them get their own books. I can’t wait! There are some quite hot sex scenes to further brighten the read. I love a good second chance romance and also love characters who are older, like me. And in the end, I loved this book.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I love the good second Chance romance trope and this book, conveniently called by exactly that name, did not disappoint. As I read Out of Spite, I wanted to know more about the mysterious grouchy baker with a penchant for monster erotica audiobooks! And everything about bringing Molly back to Harlot’s Bay filled in the gaps.
Really pleased to have this story. Now can’t wait for Charlotte’s. Hope her story is next!

Second Chance Romance completely captivated me from page one. Olivia Dade once again delivers a witty, heartfelt, and unapologetically body-positive love story that had me hooked and happily devouring it in just a few sittings.

Both characters were grumpy in the best way possible, and their banter was sharp, hilarious, and full of tension. Dade’s writing is effortlessly engaging, and the pacing was spot-on—the story never dragged, yet gave enough time to explore the emotional depth behind each interaction. I especially appreciated how the book didn’t shy away from vulnerability and trust, showcasing real growth for both Molly and Karl.

This was a warm, spicy, and utterly charming read that I’d recommend to anyone who loves second chances, curmudgeonly love interests, and stories where the heart leads the way home.

I loved Karl and Molly! I always love a second chance or friends-to-lovers romance and this one delivered well on both counts! The story was well-paced, dealt with real-life issues and had great representation in the characters. Recommend!

I LOVED this book. Olivia Dade's character work is unparalleled, and Second Chance Romance is no exception. Pick for the hero? Excellent. Pick for the heroine? Familiar in her vulnerability, but aspirational in her resilience. Reading Second Chance Romance felt like going to a restaurant I know I'll love (Harlot's Bay), then getting not the dish I ordered, but dish I actually WANTED. Can't wait for the audio book to come out so random strangers can see me crying in my car on the 134 and drive away with recommendations...

I’m so happy to be back in Harlot’s Bay and for Karl’s story at that. Olivia absolutely hooked me with At First Spite and I was thrilled to dive in Second Chance Romance. I really liked Karl and Molly, I loved their love. This story deals with a lot of misunderstandings and it’s not one of my favorite things in romance so for a second I thought “Mh, maybe this isn’t for me” but I powered through because I was so hooked to these characters and loved it. This was a beautiful romance full of passion and an incredible cast of characters!

Thanks to Avon and NetGalley for this eARC!

This was one of my most anticipated fall romances. I love Olivia Dade, and loved the first Harlot's Bay book, but unfortunately this wasn't my favorite of her books. I still liked Karl for the most part, but he and the FMC Molly had this thing where Karl (a bark worse than his bite guy) would make a very specific threat and then Molly would nitpick it. I didn't enjoy this repeated character detail (repeated like A LOT). In fact, I felt there were a lot of repetitive things that grated a bit. There were still some really shiny moments and big hearts in this book, but for me it didn't rise to the heights of Olivia's other titles.

Though this one didn't quite work for me, I still LOVE Olivia and am in for her future books!

I really enjoyed seeing the characters progress in this story. The story was well paced and well written. I was hooked from the beginning and devoured it in just a few sittings.

I love a romance where not everyone is rail thin!! Tell me about round bellies and thighs!! Thank you Olivia Dade for giving the people what we need. I love Karl and Molly. I love how sweet he is but also how grumpy. I love that this isn't a grumpy/sunshine but kind of grumpy/grumpy. I'm happy to be back in Harlot's Bay (I wish I remembered more from the first book). I regularly recommend Dade's books, and am excited to start recommending this one in the fall. Thank you NetGalley and Avon for this ARC!

Thanks to NetGalley, Avon, and Olivia Dade for the eARC!!

I LOVED this book! It's everything I didn't know I needed in a romance story. I loved that both Karl and Molly tend to be more closed off and isolated; watching them fall in love was just so beautiful.
I loved seeing Matthew and Athena again, and I loved meeting Sadie Brazen. I loved watching the Harlot's Bay community rise up around Karl and support them both. I also loved how many more names of places in and around harlot's Bay we got!!! Olivia is hilarious and was obviously having so much fun!

I honestly think this might be my new favorite book!!

Once again we get another zwaftig heroine from Olivia Dade. This time, the romance is that of Karl, the baker that was introduced in the first book in the Harlot’s Bay series. It is not necessary to read the first book.

In this novel, Molly, who is the one who narrates the audio books that Karl listens to non-stop, while he bakes, has come back to Harlot’s Bay because she thinks that Karl has died. Karl had been sick, and being the gruff sort of man that he is, didn’t want to talk about it. Didn’t want any sympathy, and was hiding out from the public. Because of this, what was supposed to be a joke about where he really was, gets mistaken as truth, that he had died.

When Molly discovers that this man who she had always loved, but went after is alive, she figures she can just go back to L.A. But Karl doesn’t want her to go back. He wants that woman, as he always has.
And that is the set up. Molly says she has to trust him. Karl who swears like a drunken sailor doesn’t know how he can show her that he would give his life for her.


Again, as in the first book in the series, the spice level is rather high here. Although they don’t finally fall into bed together until about half way through the book, from their first meeting, she notices that he has a been aroused, and asks him if he would like help with that.
I like this book just fine. I had to suspend my belief a little that Molly would fall for a gruff, swearing baker who doesn’t like to talk much, and certainly not about feelings, but to each their own. I still enjoyed the altering points of view, how he saw her large body as being very enticing. We need more of that. 🙂

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review. This book is coming out on the 25th of November 2025.

Olivia Dade has simply outdone herself. I did not think it possible for her to up-end Rose and Martin (Teach Me) as my favorite Olivia Dade couple yet she's managed to do just that with Molly & Karl in Second Chance Romance. This book has Dade's signature wit and is full of heart. Set against a quirky Harlot's Bay backdrop, we get two characters that are beyond smitten, but so emotionally dammed up and scared to be vulnerable they risk losing something real. If you like, "let's just get it out of our system", 'grumpy/sunshine(ish?), and ALL THE BANTER - please read this one. Also, there is a recurring nod the monster-romances will enjoy.