I like Sally Thorne’s use of a rule-following, achieving heroine becoming undone by a hero with a slight bad boy persona. The repartee wasn’t quite as funny as The Hating Game, but it was charming nonetheless. The real gems of this book were the saucy old ladies (it is set in a retirement community).

I love Sally Thorne’s books! This was a quirky read filled with heart. I did not anticipate to like Teddy, but he managed to get on my good side as I cheered the two of them on! I appreciated Ruthie’s growth, as I often feel stuck in life it was nice to not feel alone. Which is the most important thing a book can do, make you feel less alone. I will sell this to the romance fans at work but also to those who need a sweet story about finding yourself.

Overall I enjoyed reading this sweet, charming book. Sally Thorne is a master at writing witty dialogue. I could identify with the main character and could actually see a lot of my own personality traits in her. I especially liked watching her grow as a person and her relationships with her coworkers and residents of the retirement community she works at. (Especially the Parloni sisters--you will enjoy that twist!) I wasn't quite as invested in the romance aspect of the book--maybe because it was slow developing.

This was simply a delight to read. The two characters were so very different on the surface, but turned out to have a lot in common. Ruthie is painfully shy and insecure. She works as an assistant manager at a retirement center and is afraid to go outside her role there, even growing nervous just to leave the grounds. She dresses like middle-aged spinster and is terrified of new experiences and people. But she can recognize her insecurities and secretly wishes that she could act like a more typical 25-year old.

Teddy Prescott seems like a typical rich, tattooed bad boy. His rich father sticks him at the retirement center because he has no faith in Teddy’s dream of opening up his own tattoo parlor. But Teddy is a very charming, funny guy who has his own insecurities and lack of faith in himself. He and Ruthie become friends as he starts working for a pair of ninety-year old sisters, fulfilling every one of their humiliating tasks with humor and panache.

I really enjoyed experiencing their growing relationship and discovering the secrets each were hiding. This was written so well and was a truly original romance.

I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book that I received from Netgalley; however, the opinions are my own and I did not receive any compensation for my review.

I received an advance copy of, Second First Impressions by, Sally Thorne. This was a very interesting book. Bad boy Teddy and reliable Ruthie.

Second First Impressions had all the ingredients I look for in a cute romance. Interesting characters, a compelling setting, but the romance and chemistry between Ruthie and Teddy just didn't work for me. I'm typically a huge fan of opposites attract, but in this case they may have been too opposite. There were a few scenes I really loved, but this one ended up not being for me.

I knew I was in for a treat when one of the 87 year olds at the retirement village says she had three boyfriends at once as she tried to tell Ruthie she needed to shake it up a bit.
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Ruthie Midona is 24 going on 124. She works at a retirement village. She likes life orderly and spends her free time running a forum for a faith based Tv show and dresses likes she’s a cast member of the #GoldenGirls. She hasn’t had a kiss since prom night and knows it’s time to get out there in the dating game, but how is the question.
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With the help of a co-worker turned BFF she decides to submit to online dating but what she doesn’t expect is Teddy Prescott to blow into her life. The tattooed and free spirit son of her boss brings much levity and sincerity to her life. With a list of zany characters including the beloved Parloni women make this book such a fun read, including Teddy’s love for his rescued
turtle. That relationship alone was perfect.

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This book was full of so much heart, I loved it. I loved the raw vulnerability of Ruthie and Teddy and I loved the Parloni’s, just want and see and you will fall in love with them too!
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I feel like the theme to her life is when Teddy is coaxing her into the pool and he says “Get in experience something. “

“Life requires full up to the neck participation.” This could not be a truer statement!
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Thank you to #NetGalley and #WilliamMorrow for an arc in exchange for an honest review.
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This book is available April 13th!

25-year-old Ruthie Midona loves her job at the retirement community and plans to live and work there until she retires and moves into one of homes, too! One day, she makes a rare trip off the property and plays Good Samaritan to a tattooed motorcycling hunk who can’t pay for his gas. He thanks her by complimenting her look, thinking she is wearing a Golden Girls costume on her way to a costume party! Ruthie leaves with hurt feelings and validation that leaving the Providence property is always a mistake.

Soon tattooed Teddy appears at Ruthie’s office (his father just bought the property), gets a temporary job on the property and even becomes her next door neighbor. Everyone warns her that Teddy is a charmer and that her innocent heart is not prepared for the likes of him. However, the more she gets to know the real Teddy, the more she realizes he is a generous and caring man who is just looking for some peace in his life.
She also knows he will be leaving as soon as he has saved enough money for his own tattoo studio, so she tries to protect her heart and keep him at arm’s length.

Ruthie’s journey could have been cliche, but in Thorne’s hand it is anything but. The hilarious story is told through Ruthie’s perspective and we witness every revelation and experience as she transforms herself from shy, insecure introvert into someone confident and willing to take what she wants from life. Teddy is a dream, and the surrounding characters all leap from the page including Renata and Aggie, two eccentric senior residents who enjoy torturing assistants and employ Teddy to help them with daily tasks and not-so-daily tasks such as plating a McDonald’s meal as if it were a featured entree in a 5-star restaurant.

Hilarious and heartwarming, this one kept me reading late at night and early in the morning. I loved the author’s previous work (The Hating Game) and love this one even more! If you love books by Kristan Higgins or Jennifer Crusie, check this out!

Advanced copy courtesy of Netgalley and William Morrow Paperbacks.

I genuinely didn’t think a character existed who could unseat Joshua Templeman from his Book Boyfriend throne, but that was before I met Theodore “Teddy” Prescott in Sally Thorne’s latest and greatest (you heard me, I said GREATEST) novel, Second First Impressions.

Ruthie is twenty-five going on 125, and readily admits she has more in common with the geriatric residents of the Providence Luxury Retirement Villas where she works than with people her own age. But Ruthie's quiet, predictable life gets a literal and figurative makeover when Melanie, a temp at the Villas, decides to take Ruthie under her Millennial wing. Mel's plans to get Ruthie out of her shell and into the world outside the retirement community are disrupted when a chance encounter brings Teddy Prescott--son of the real estate developer who recently acquired, and plans to demolish, the Villas--crashing squarely into Ruthie's life. Teddy takes on a role as "house boy" for two of the community's most beloved Biddies; while historically he's been a flake-slash-rolling-stone, Teddy's newest role could mean he finally gets to realize his dream of owning his own tattoo parlor. Ruthie and Teddy both know they couldn't be less suited to one another for about a hundred different reasons, but that doesn't stop them from developing a friendship that becomes so much more than either expected.

If you're a Hating Game fan who felt disappointed by 99 Percent Mine, let me assure you that Thorne is at the absolute top of her game in Second First Impressions. This novel is all about character:
- Mel is confident and empowered, and I was delighted by the support, honesty, and humor she and Ruthie shared. (A romcom that passes the Bechdel Test? Yes, please!)
- Teddy is a messy, refreshing, big-hearted "adoree" who manages to be awake to his flaws without simmering in self-hatred. He's not the Book Boyfriend I expected to love, but here we are.
- The Parlonis (aforementioned Biddies) are fantastic comic relief, but their presence also lends sweetness and gravity to the story in quiet, unexpected ways.
- Ruthie was, for me, easy to cherish and identify with. Past mistakes loom large for her, but her earnest desire to break free from guilt and shame felt authentic and powerful.

Is the ending a little rushed? Sure. Did that detract even one iota from my enjoyment of this book? Nope. I savored every last word of this heartfelt, hilarious novel, and I already can't wait to listen to the audio.

Thorne skeptics, stand down. She's back and, quite literally, better than ever.

I adored The Hating Game, but I hated 99 Percent Mine because Thorne stripped away the sweetness with which she wrote Josh and Lucy and turned the chemistry into spite and ill-intentioned sarcasm.

I was happy to see that, with this book, Thorne returns to the sweetness and lets the relationship between Ruthie and Teddy develop organically; it's clear from the tiniest of details Thorne incorporates that they care deeply about one another. Thorne's silly, almost frenetic way of incorporating asides from her characters makes her reader (at least, this reader) feel as though they have more insight into not only the protagonist, but also the side characters.

Read this if you loved The Hating Game or if you're in the mood for a sweet, kind of strange contemporary romance with some heat.

This new novel has Sally Thorne's signature wit, humorous situations, and eccentric, loveable characters. The story centers around Providence Retirement Villa, a retirement community managed by twenty-five-year-old Ruthie, who is socially anxious and feels most comfortable around older people. Her orderly world is turned upside down when the community is bought out by a large company. The owner sends his son Teddy, a carefree tattoo artist and motorbike enthusiast, to live on-site and his stuck-up daughter Rose to evaluate the business side of the concern. Of course, opposites attract and the love story between Teddy and Ruthie develops sweetly, even as chicanery involving Ruthie's missing boss further threatens the survival of Providence. The story is entertaining and the characters endearing. Ruthie and Teddy's back stories lend them some depth as well, and the conflicts between them and their respective families add interest. The dialogue sparkles with wit and a bit of edge, making this a perfect escapist read for the summer.

If you are expecting another Hating Game get that ‘impression’ out of your mind because this is not that kind of book. This is funny, sweet with a slow burn romance. The real stars of this book are two fun old ladies that will have you laughing. I think this will appeal to contemporary readers even more than romance readers.

What a great book! Okay this was so great! Renata was my favorite character. I wasn't a sheltered Christian girl, but I did relate because I did go to Catholic school.
Second First Impressions had such great character development. I'm big fan of Sally Thorne's writing style of will they won't they. But man, Teddy you are the best :)

I would like to thank NetGalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review. Second First Impressions by Sally Throne is everything I love in a rom com! There is tension, there is chemistry, there is laughing out loud moments, and there is hope! This book is about Ruthie and Teddy and an old folks home! Add this to your list! You won't regret it!

Thank you to William Morrow (via NetGalley) for the ARC!

This was very cute and sweet and fluffy and low-stakes, and perfect spring break read since I am stuck inside while the weather can't make up its mind (it's been snowing off and on and I'm about over this).

Ruthie run a retirement community, dresses like an old lady, and has pretty much decided she will live the rest of her life and die there. And she's okay with that. Until Teddy shows up. He's the boss's son, and a bad boy. He's covered in tattoos, and is untrustworthy. His dad needs somewhere to stash him so Teddy can prove that he can finish something for once in his life. And Ruthie has the perfect job for him: personal assistant to Renata and Aggie, two of the most ruthless and demanding residents of the retirement community, who have run through dozens of assistants already. Teddy is determined to prove himself, while Ruthie doesn't think he'll last a week. She also doesn't think she's in any danger of being charmed by him since she clearly lacks any appeal with her wardrobe of brown cardigans and grandma glasses. But when Teddy moves into the unused half of her on-site cottage and they start to spend more time together, Ruthie learns more about why Teddy is the way he is, and she starts to see that maybe there's more than just accepting her lot in life.

This book was soooo super cute. Teddy is charming as HECK and very swoony. It never felt fake, though, even though the whole time we are led to believe he's a bit of a player and has never been serious about anything in his life. Ruthie is sweet and naïve, but opens up throughout the book, and learns what she really wants in life. She also has a very dry sense of humor, which I LOVE, and reminded me of myself a bit.

I was not really a fan of the religious stuff, but it's not a super huge part of the plot. It's mostly just referenced in Ruthie's past, but it does have an influence on her character. Her parents suck, full stop. I would have liked to have seen the mental health aspects of Ruthie's character a little more developed because I feel like it was kind of just plonked in there and not really examined very much.

The side characters were super fun. I aspire to be as wacky as Renata when I'm 90-something years old, and Melanie was also super cute and added a lot of fun to the plot.

Relatedly, I would now like several more tattoos.

Anyway, this was very cute and fun, and I really enjoyed it! Not as intense as The Hating Game for sure--it definitely felt much more low-stakes than that one--but really enjoyable!

I'm a Sally Thorne fan and I loved The Hating Game and 99-_Percent Mine. Second First Impressions was just so, so for me. There were moments that were laugh out loud hilarious and very touching moments.

As much as I enjoyed The Hating Game, this was a bit lackluster for me. The side characters of the retirement home were, I think, the highlight of this novel, and the turtles. It's still a good entertaining read, just not quite up to par as the author's past book.

Gosh. I LOVE Sally Thorne. She is my favorite romance author, and I will defend her and her books forever. Second First Impressions started strong and continued all the way through. The romance was instantly sparking, the flirting was so good. The tension could have been cut with a knife. Gosh. I loved this so much,

(4.5 stars)

Move over, Joshua Templeman--Teddy Prescott is here to win your heart. And he'll drive away with it on his motorcycle.

Like most of the romance-reading community, I have highly anticipated the release of Sally Thorne's third novel. Just like her first two books, Second First Impressions is packed with clever humor and the desperate-but-fun, sunshine-sweet kind of yearning that we've all felt when we have a huge crush. Add in endangered tortoises and hilarious side characters like Renata, the octogenarian fashionista who torments her assistants for fun, and you've got one of the most charming books I've read in a long time.

However, it was far from a perfect book. On a personal note, I was disappointed by how "clean" and almost fade-to-black the sex was in this book. The steam-factor in this book was almost nonexistent, which was a bit of a departure from Sally Thorne's previous books and not one that I enjoyed. Even beyond just enjoying that element of romance, I feel it would have been very powerful to have one or more steamy, sex-positive scenes with a character like Ruthie who was inexperienced, stifled, and almost traumatized from a religious, repressive upbringing. Without more direct dealing with Ruthie's past, the book suffered--it raised so many questions that remained unanswered by the end, even though the romance itself was satisfying. Though I liked her a lot by the end, reading about an overly-cautious 25-year-old-grandmother was not my personal favorite part of the book--even with the first-person narrative, it was hard to truly root for a character who did not root for herself without the added depth the book could have had by addressing her upbringing more directly. Overall, between Ruthie and The Hating Game's Lucy, I will choose Lucy every time. Whereas Ruthie's Big Sadness (traumatic past of shame from her staunchly religious father, both in relation to sex and otherwise) is undeveloped and falls flat, Lucy had a full and satisfying arc about loneliness that puts The Hating Game on another caliber of romance.

Ruthie grew a backbone and some actual youthful energy by the end of the book, though, thanks to Teddy, who was the most lovable romance hero I've maybe *ever* read. He made up for the fact that Ruthie was not always the most relatable or fun narrator for me to read. I love his comfortable, casual confidence. I loved his motorcycle. I loved his love for his son, TJ the tortoise. Most of all, he was refreshingly open and soft. Everything about Teddy screams soft artist boy, and I am an absolute sucker for it. I would read 30 more books with Teddy Prescotts in them.

Ultimately, my main gripe with this book was that lost potential for added complexity. By the end, of course we get our happy ending, but parts of it all feels a little *too* convenient and thus less satisfying. Ruthie's relationship with her parents is never fully fleshed out or addressed despite the fact that 1) they seem to be the only people she shares a relationship with, as the book references her traveling to see them on her vacations from work and 2) her upbringing, especially with regards to religion, is a major part of her character and 3) we even get a throwaway line that Ruthie is going to talk with her father. (We never get to read that talk.) I would have loved a couple of extra chapters--at least one for Ruthie to actually confront her father, maybe one for Teddy to really confront his own past/family instead of just magically making up with his sister. Honestly, the whole book could have benefitted from a dual point of view--Teddy was the more compelling character for me, and I would have loved his perspective to balance Ruthie's stuffy voice and to give him more depth beyond just being adorable.

Overall, though, Second First Impressions was delightful. I only wish Sally Thorne could once again achieve perfection like she did in her first novel--she's getting closer with this one, but no cigar.

Second First Impressions is a cute romance, definitely more cute than steamy. Ruthie and Teddy meet-cute at a gas station, then bond while working at an upscale retirement home, I think I may have enjoyed the side characters even more than the main ones.