I really really enjoyed this story. Admittedly it took me a bit to get the hang of who was who and how they fitted together. A common issue when there are so many characters but then once you have that straight, it was full
Immersion into their situations.
This novel was beautifully set and I felt like I was there. I loved the characters stories and this holiday being pivotal for all of them. Thoroughly enjoyable. A perfect holiday read

I really connect with Jennifer Bohnet’s writing style and am so pleased that she’s written about strong female characters over 50 in ‘Villa of Second Chances’. Books with these characters are less than plentiful and I’m happy to read about mature women who are having a great second act in life. Women in my age group want to know how others handle their challenges and what inspires them to keep going. I absolutely loved this cast of characters who found freedom, power and joy as they aged and took hold, with courage, at a chance to reinvent themselves, find new love and embrace change.

Everyone in this story has baggage in the form of regrets. You’ll read about a couple who are getting remarried after being married for 17 years and divorced for 5, a woman who wants to make time for her dreams and is thinking about retiring early, a woman who shares a secret with a man she hasn’t seen for 25 years, a woman who hasn’t talked to her childhood friend for 43 years because she couldn’t apologize for a near-fatal accident when they were 14-year-olds, and a woman who has a guilty secret she can’t share with her friends nor her son. All of these people meet together at Villa Sesame, a boutique wedding venue on the Cote d’Azur. With unexpected timebombs in their luggage, will things get explosive or, with maturity on their side, can they be diffused quietly?

The villa works its second-chance magic on these guests, women who were at a crossroads and faced with new opportunities, and they are inspired to move on to the next stage in life by fully embracing their past and stepping out from the complicated shadows caused by their long-held secrets and mistakes.

This wonderful read about the power of second chances is a must for anyone who is looking for inspiration to move on to the second half of their life with courage. We all need the gift of a second chance!

I was gifted this advance copy by Jennifer Bohnet, Boldwood Books, and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

A fabulous Summer Read

This is a book of many tales that take place in Villa Sesame. It’s full of fun, drama and giggles. You follow the lives of families, friends and lovers.

Just like magic the author simultaneously tells a plethora of entwined stories that unfold the more you devour.

You will be transported to the beautiful south of France where you will enjoy scenery and mouth watering local delicacies.

This was a great read I simply couldn’t put it down until it was finished.

This is a good holiday book to take on holiday with you. It's lovely story about sisters who work together. One of the sisters is ready to try something difference where the other sister does think she will leave there partnership. It set in lovely setting a d also has weddings in the story. I found it hard to get in to but I think other people will enjoy this story.
Thank you netgalley for letting me read this book.

Rebecca and her sister Delphine run Villa Sesame, a wedding and celebration venue in the South of France. The book sees Freya and Marcus ready to hold their wedding at the venue, and we follow the individual stories of the couple and their guests as well as the Villa owners.

The book is a celebration of love stories - current, past and potentially future - in a beautiful setting. I really enjoyed the interweaving of the tales, however I did feel there were maybe one or two too many strands. I felt as if I wasn't getting to know characters properly because there were so many.

I'll certainly look out for books by this author in the future, the description of the settings made me feel like I was there, escaping the cold in the UK!

I love to immerse myself in one of Jennifer Bohnet's books. This one is set in Villa Sesame on the French Riviera where weddings and celebrations are held. It is owned and ran by sisters Rebecca and Delphine. The wedding to be held there is that of Freya and Marcus and they are renting all the rooms in the villa for their friends. Two of the most important guests are Freya's old friends, Clemmie and Angela. Everyone has there own problems to cope with when they come to the villa and bit by bit each person begins to find solutions that will help them in their life.
Another great read. I loved being transported to the riviera, to the sun, sea and sand and a story where people get their happy endings.
The author describes these characters so vividly I feel I know them. This book made me smile and blew the blues away.

I liked this, lovely setting, gentle story which was warmly told with engaging characters. Great easy going read.

A lovely story set in the French Riviera, all about second chances of love and life. A lot of characters which may not be for everyone one but they do all help the story along. A great beach read. Thank you netgalley for the advance copy

Love holiday books and especially with a wedding involved. Loved the setting for the book you. Such an easy and quick read!

Villa of Second Chances by Jennifer Bohnet is a story of two sisters who run Villa Sesame, a wedding event venue with rooms and restaurant services. Delphine and Rebecca have always been close sisters and had made plans to purchase, renovate, and operate the villa together when they were young adults. Time has passed and they are older now. Delphine, the chef, is a widow and feels a bit restless. She tells Rebecca she wants to take time to "sleep, read, paint, sit by the sea, travel a bit. Maybe get a dog, make new friends." She offers to train a new chef for their beautiful and popular Villa Sesame located along the Cote d' Azur overlooking the Mediterranean. Rebecca is shocked and can't bear the thought of running the villa without her sister. Rebecca had been a single mother and the sisters shared the care of her son Bart when he was a baby and during his growing up years. Rebecca thinks back over the years and begins to understand Delphine's reasons for wanting a change, but she doesn't like this change in their lives.
Freya and Clemmie have been friends for years. Freya and Marcus have decided to celebrate a second marriage ceremony and have invited a few close friends and family to stay with them at Villa Sesame for the event.
Villa of Second Chances is a charming story of several people and the choices they make that change their lives.
Publication Date: March 1, 2022
Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I received an ARC, of Villa of Second Chances by, Jennifer Bohnet. Change is never easy, which Rebecca finds out, when her sister Delphine wants to retire. This is a nice story, in a lovely setting. Rebecca and Rufus are great.

i love books with wedding settings and i actually did enjoy this one but not as much as i thought i would and i think it's probably because of the age difference between me, the reader, and the main character. i still would recommend this if you're a fan of wedding related books and also if you want to read about finding love again at an older age.

Surprisingly i really enjoyed this book, i thought at first maybe to many characters but no lovely heart warming book.

A story of women facing challenges who embrace second chances and new love, all narrated against the sundrenched backdrop of the French Riviera - this novel was just up my alley.

Sisters Delphine and Rebecca run the elegant Villa Sésame, spectacularly located on the Riviera. Together they built and operate a successful venue that caters to weddings and events. But Delphine is beginning to rethink her life after the death of her husband; she is ready to hang up her chef’s whites and travel the world, leaving her sister to wonder what will become of their business. But concrete decisions must await the next busy wedding booking.

Freya and Marcus have booked a lavish week at Villa Sésame. After marriage, divorce and falling in love once again, they are marrying for a second time in their late fifties and replicating the old bridal party. Freya’s friends Clemmie and Angela, eager to escape their own concerns, come down from the UK to reprise their bridesmaid roles, while best man Rufus joins them.

This story was told through the perspectives of multiple characters and deftly addressed the themes of love, loss, grieving, and the power of second chances. I enjoyed the characters and their layered stories and the heady setting of southern France. A highly enjoyable read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this novel, in exchange for an honest review.

La vie, part deux. A tender book about starting over and second chances. Guests arrive at Villa Sesame on the sparkling Côte d’Azur for the upcoming nuptuals of Freya and Marcus. We soon learn the heartfelt backstories of the guests and the villa owners alike. The wedding indeed serves as a new beginning for everyone. A fun, feel-good read and a beautiful escape to the sun-kissed south of France.

"Villa of Second Chances" is an ensemble drama set on the French Riviera and in Dartmouth. The main characters are 3 old friends, one of whom is getting re-married, and the owners of the venue where this is happening. The characters are at different stages in their lives, so we have a widow, someone who has just embarked on a new relationship, someone about to retire, etc. The nice thing about this book is that most of the people are more mature (50+) - they are not all 20 or 30 somethings, even though there is romance.

Antibes, Cannes and the surrounding area are lovingly described but it is clear that this is a part of the world where only the well-heeled can afford to live and play. All of the characters are a bit too nice and forgiving but then this is a feel-good book. Escapist literature at it's best.

Thanks to Net Galley and the publishers for the opportunity to review this book.