This book was super good. It was super original and I flew through it. It didn't feel like anything I've read in the past. Can't wait to read more from the author!!

Thea, the British heroine of "The Bookshop of Second Chances," doesn't pretend to be something she's not. She's a 40-something woman who just lost her job and her marriage within a week. When a distant relative leaves her a small house in Scotland, there's nothing to stop her from moving in and trying to start over. The book unfolds pleasantly enough from there, as Thea discovers her great-uncle also left behind a valuable book collection and as she meets the inhabitants of the small town nearby. Sometimes you go out to eat to try something exotic; other times you are really in the mood for a big bowl of mac and cheese. This is a mac and cheese kind of novel. Somewhat predictable, but also satisfying and homey.

Note: I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Ballantine Books for giving me a free digital galley in exchange for feedback.

Here it is, readers. The perfect escape.

Thea recently lost her job. Also, she recently found out that her husband was having an affair with her friend. While Thea is at her old house, moving out her most important possessions so that her husband’s new girlfriend can move in, she gets a letter. A great-uncle she didn’t know well has passed away, and left her his beautiful old home full of antiquarian books, in a small town in Scotland full of quirky secondary characters.

Everything about this story was just what I wanted it to be, and of COURSE there are two brothers, the wealthy lord and the cantankerous bookshop proprietor, both handsome, both appealing and difficult in their own unique ways, and each hating the other. Will Thea find a second chance for a better life? Is a second, better love possible for Thea? You can probably make a really good guess at the answers to both of those questions, but read the novel anyway, because the writing, characters, and plot are well executed and the whole thing is just a delightful escape.. It’s like good comfort food, a big pan of macaroni and cheese made by your favorite aunt.

I liked it so much that I decided to read everything else Jackie Fraser has written - frustratingly, it turns out that this is her first novel. Well, I’ll read everything else starting now.

I want to first thank Random House Publishing Group/Ballantine Books for the opportunity to read an eARC of The Bookshop of Second Chances by Jackie Fraser.

This story gave me instant Evvie Drake Starts Over Feels and is impossible not to adore!

Thea, an overly direct, intelligent and extremely relatable 44-year-old woman is extremely down on her luck. She starts her year by losing her job, to then only find out her husband has been cheating on her with one of her friends. Just as her world is being turned upside down, she inherits a house with an amazing book collection and a large sum of money from her great uncle who has passed. Thea uses this opportunity to see what else life might have to offer. She travels to Baldochrie, Scotland to see the house and falls in love with the small Scottish town instantly. But what is a cute Scottish town without a Scottish boy, or should I say man. Edward.

Edward is best described as a lovable grump, and maybe not even so lovable at first and more of just a grump. No longer believing in love and relationships, with a dysfunctional sex life to say the least, between family drama and a bleak outlook on life, he spends his day hidden away in his secondhand bookshop. That is until Thea wonders in and a friendship begins to slowly blossom.

Together, Thea and Edward slowly realize they are both deserving of happiness and second chances, even if at times their fears and self-doubts get in the way.

Fraser is such a talented writer and has created two extremely lovable and relatable characters in Thea and Edward. My only complaint is I would have loved to see more chemistry between the two with some witty banter, a few sparks and some elements that made their growing love more believable.

This book hits stores on 5/4/2021 and should absolutely be on your TBR.

This is not your typical "meet cute". These are more mature characters with a lot of baggage! The story is complex but the setting is a book lovers dream. I would read more books by this author.

At first, THE BOOKSHOP OF SECOND CHANCES just seems like a charming tale of a down-on-her-luck, 44-year-old woman finding a new life in a small Scottish town. But in a neat trick of smart plotting deft characterization, Fraser turns the narrative into so much more.

Thea is a refreshingly direct, introspective, infinitely relatable woman who's been dealt two very different hands at once: she's been laid off from her job right around the time she discovered her husband of 20 years has been having an affair, but she's also inherited a house -- complete with rare book collection -- and a not-insignificant sum of money from a dear but distant great uncle. With little keeping her anchored to her old life, Thea travels to Baldochrie to see about the house. Once there, she finds life in a small town on the Scottish coast suits her rather well, and then of course, there's Edward.

Edward has, like too many of us I suspect, based much of his life on the hurts of his youth. He's a modern-day Heathcliff who's moved past the romantic fixations of yesteryear long enough to become a curmudgeonly adult with a rather dysfunctional sex life. He's at war with his brother, the literal lord of the manor in Baldrochie, and spends his days holed up in his rare books shop. Until Thea walks in, and something like friendship begins.

I savored the slow unfolding of these two characters, who I grew to care about immensely. Fraser's is a nuanced portrait of a woman in middle age, facing the necessity of beginning again. To say Thea is an "everywoman" discounts her uniqueness, wit, and rather special charm, but she's not *not* everywoman, either. She feels like someone I know, or someone who could, in another life, be me. So it's a particular kind of triumph to see her grow and change and triumph.

Comps to EVVIE DRAKE STARTS OVER are warranted only in the loosest sense; the storytelling and writing here are far superior. Readers who enjoyed WOULD LIKE TO MEET will appreciate Thea and Edward's later-in-life romance, and fans of Graeme Simsion will find a lot to appreciate in Fraser's three-dimensional characterizations and excellent dialogue.

I adored this story. Glad I was given a chance to review this. It was a small step back from the in your face hard romance that I usually read. This was a slow burn of second chances set in a quaint, idyllic town in Scotland.

Thea and her husband have separated after 25 years of being together; he was cheating on her with a friend. The blows keep coming as she is also let go from her job. The only shining light seems to be that a Great Uncle Andrew has left her his lodge and books in his will. Keep in mind, she had only met this man a few times. But this is the diversion she needs.

While in Scotland she meets the Maltravers brothers: Edward and Charles. One is actually Lord Hollinshaw (Charles) as the first born (Edward) gave up the title. Charles is a curmudgeon who often keeps to himself and runs a second hand bookshop.Too keep herself occupied while deciding what to do with her new inheritance she asks for a job working for Edward.

He warns her about working for him. That he usually employs a rule of not hiring females as they fall in love with him. But Thea is most definitely looking for a relationship right now,

Their friendship is beautiful in its slow progression. Thea becomes friends with other towns people and thinks she might actually stay there after all.

Like I said the slow progression of this book was a welcome change/diversion. I loved the characters and was able to envision the town and surrounding countryside. The description brings you there. I was also able to tap into the heartfelt emotions of Thea from her sadness over her divorce, anger, feelings of inadequacy to the butterflies of kindling romance.

Definitely one-click this now! You won't be disappointed.

I have this obsession with what I like to call 'divorcee romances’, which I think are more respectably called 'second-chance romances' but not quite as fun. Books and movies like Eat, Pray, Love or Under the Tuscan Sun that really just tug at my heart strings. Unsure where this love stems from as I’m a 27-year-old who has never been married, but alas the heart wants what it wants. The Bookshop of Second Chances fits perfectly in this category and I’m also an absolute simp for romances about bookstores (so I can feel extra highbrow when I understand the literary references) and so I was thrilled when I was granted the opportunity to read this bad boy early.

Jackie Fraser writes a lovely debut novel about finding love and belonging in Scotland after she finds out her husband is having an affair with one of her friends. The novel is sweet and hopeful and all the things a romance book should be. The beginning was a bit slow for me and lacked some depth in what the characters were feeling. However, our leading lady, Thea, makes up for it as she slowly comes out of her shell to become quite a spitfire, as she regains confidence in herself. I was left a bit confused about her proclaimed love for her husband by the lack of anger she showed towards him, especially with how much anger she showed towards Edward (our hero) when they’d merely been friends. Overall, a nice story that serves as a reminder of the endless possibilities’ life can hold, even when it feels all has been lost.

Thanks to NetGalley for the chance to read and review this book early!

Thea Mottram nee Hamilton has just had her worst day ever. Her husband accidentally sends her an intimate picture meant for his girlfriend and she loses her job. Weeks later Thea learns her Scottish uncle has died and left her his lodge and some money. With nothing to lose, she heads to the small town of Baldochrie and finds herself in the middle of a family fight between the Lord of the manor and his bookstore-owning brother. Her initial hope was to sell the lodge and find a small apartment back in England, but the lure of the small town and the unconventional bookstore tugs at her. A charming tale of second chances in a extraordinary town.

This was such a charming, comforting read - a little cozy, a little escapist. The two protagonists are well-sketched and believable.

I wanted to like this... and really, I do know the exact customers in my shop that will love it, but from the male perspective, this fairy-tale feels short-sighted. It's about a long-term relationship that is no more and the transformation of the main character. Everything is well written, the characters are well developed, but it feels a little shallow. The only real struggle is the main character coming to terms with the fact that she needs to find her way in the world. The settings are magical and I know some of my clients will love it. I think I'm just not the target market for this read.

This book was received as an ARC from Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

There was a sign that I had to read this book. Any book that is about overcoming hardships and new beginnings is very heartwarming for me and I could not help but love every page of this book. I loved how warm and welcoming the community was with Thea moving into her uncle's house and when she discovers her uncle's antique book collection in hoping to sell them to the bookshop owner around the corner. The thing is, the owner is not so welcoming to Thea and holds grudges to almost everyone that wrongs him or reminds him of anyone who has wronged him (such as Thea). Thea is very persistent on winning over the owner no matter the circumstance that she ends up discovering more about herself than she has ever known and her new life is becoming more complicated than the one she escaped from. Even though there were many complications to this book, it was such an enjoyment to read and I know our library community will love it.

We will consider adding this title to our Fiction collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.
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I loved this sweet, funny romance and story of a middle aged, recently separated woman finding herself.

I will be reading other books by this author!

The book features those who love to read, a great plot and a strong central female character, all of which makes for book perfection!

Jackie has a way with words that makes you feel like you're in the story with the characters. I really enjoyed the interaction between all the characters.

Just lovely. I adored that the protagonist was in her 40s and they were all middle aged and that was normal. It’s seems so dark to read something where everyone is my age and normal things are happening and they’re getting on with life. Just a lovely, gentle read.

Thea truly needs to start over. She lost her job and her husband, both without warning. She gets a lucky second chance when an uncle leaves her his charming cottage in rural Scotland. She decides to get a part time job and ends up working in a bookstore with a very cranky owner -- who of course turns out to be the love of her life. I really enjoyed this story. The true strength of this book is the voice of Thea. She is smart, sensible and incredibly funny. The dialog is so entertaining. I think readers who enjoy Elizabeth Berg, Susan Elizabeth Phillips and newer books like Evvie Drake Starts Over and Beach Read will like this. I look forward to recommending it.

I couldn’t get into this as much as I thought I would enjoy it. Romance novels are kinda my thing. A woman finding herself in the midst of her life being upheaved is kinda my thing. However there was just something off about this one for me. Maybe it was all of the dialogue. There is a lot of banter in this novel, and maybe that’s an English thing (I’m from the US), so maybe this is part of why it didn’t appeal to me. Overall I loved the story line. Enemies to lovers. A woman finding herself again. We love a good come back.

The book centers on Thea, very recently separated from her husband who cheated on her with one of her friends and is now moving his mistress into their home. Luckily, Thea inherits a house in a sleepy Scottish town complete with a fantastic library. Once in town, she decides to stay for the summer and gets a job at a local bookshop owned by the eternally grumpy, Edward.

My biggest issue with the book is Edward. I wanted to like him. I love grumpy characters but there wasn't anything really redeeming about him. To start, he told Thea he didn't usually hire women for the shop because they either fall in love with him or he falls for them and it's too complicated. He's incredibly immature and his rivalry with his brother is petty at best. I liked Thea's character for the most part but she's confident and sassy in one moment then incredibly self deprecating and whiny the next. Their chemistry fell short for me too.

I loved the setting and the small town characters that Thea meets in Scotland. I like stories about new places and starting over but this one just fell a little short for me.

So cute!
I'm a sucker for "bookshop books" and this one did not disappoint.
The plot centers around Thea, who in the first chapter loses her job and her husband. She's not having a good run!
But then, her distant uncle in Scotland dies and leaves her a house and an extensive book collection. Thea is off to Scotland.
I loved Thea; she was spunky, clever, funny, so realistic. Her circle of friends, Edward, Charles, Xanthe, and others, are all equally well developed and engaging.
I was engaged in this novel from the first page and could not put it down.
Jackie Fraser sets her novel in a charming Scottish town; the bookshop is dreamy, and Thea's house is perfect.
All in all, I loved this book.

Thanks to Random House/Ballantine and NetGalley for the ARC.

*I received an e-ARC of this book through Net Galley.*

I so enjoyed The Bookshop of Second Chances. It is a fast, enjoyable read that will find admirers among Jenny Colgan fans, like myself. While the "woman suffers misfortune, uproots her life, and moves to Scotland" plot has been done many times, I think Jackie Fraser did a lovely job of keeping it interesting. Her strength as a writer is in exploring the emotional world of her characters and their relationships with one another. I especially enjoyed the fact that the romantic leads in this book actually communicate - even about tough topics - with one another. Thea's character seems to shapeshift over the course of the book, but overall she's a relatable heroine and we root for her success.