thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy. I really enjoyed this and will be getting copies for my shop.

Give me all the books set on a Greek island! Who goes to Greece, accidentally gets married, and somehow inherits a hotel? Amelia Lang does! This book was absolutely unbelievable, but truly in the best way possible. She and James were so much fun to read about. I didn't honestly care for all of the secondary characters, but that didn't bother me too much while reading. This rom-com is funny and will keep you engaged until the very end. This is Sierra Godfrey's second novel, and I can't wait to see what she writes next!

Total Mamma Mia vibes! Don't we all wish we could inherit a hotel in Greece and fall in love? Luckily for Amelia, she got it all. This was the epitome of a rom-com and a slow burn! Amelia and James had great banter and chemistry. The perfect summer or winter escape read.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC

While I was very excited by the premise of this book, I was a bit let down by the execution. It may be a pure preference thing, but it didn’t draw me in enough to really hold my interest.

I wish there was more tension between the FMC/MMC. I think a dual POV may have really helped as it didn’t appear that there was any chemistry between the characters after the first 50 pages. I also had a really hard time with the main characters decision to leave her friend. This stuck in my mind through the whole book as a selfish way to start her journey and was hard to get past.

I have not featured on my blog but did post a feature on publication day.

Very interesting read! The book pulled me in from the start and I wanted to see how it ended. Try it and see if this book is for you!

I won't lie. I picked The Second Chance Hotel based on my love of Greece and the bright cover. I was hoping for atmospheric Mediterranean romantic vibes. Unfortunately, I was left a little wanting.

The Second Chance Hotel is cute, humorous, and a bit over-the-top. It is A contemporary, slow-burn romance where the main characters find themselves and each other through leaps of faith and new beginnings.

You will have to suspend belief to buy into the plot, but it wasn't an issue for me. The atmosphere was perfect. I felt like I was on a cozy island filled with quirky characters. The side characters made this book for me. My biggest issue is I never connected with the main characters. Amelia, the female main character, was a bit unlikeable. It made it hard for me to care about the romance or root for them as a couple.

Fans of accidental marriages, over-the-top humor, island vibes, and slow burns will enjoy this. The Second Chance Hotel is the perfect beach read or an easy read if the winter blues have you down.

Thank you to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Landmark, and Blackstone Publishing for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for a digital advance reader's copy. All comments and opinions are my own.

No surprise here – the novel is called The Second Chance Hotel and it’s a story about two people getting a second chance at life and love. What was surprising was how much I liked the book – the characters, the small island town, the Greek traditions, the quirky citizens, and even the run-down hotel.

The premise sounds predictable, but the writing drew me in and kept me reading. Amelia and James meet while both are vacationing at the rundown Ria Hotel on the Greek island of Asteri. After a few days on the island, and the hotel’s only guests, they are invited by the hotel’s owner to a local wedding. They unintentionally get drunk, accidentally end up married, and become the unwilling co-owners of the hotel – all in one summer evening.

As this is a rom-com, things do not go smoothly. Before the marriage dilemma, Amelia had been spending three months in Europe to breathe and regroup after losing her job and apartment. Now, with time (and reserve funds) running out, she must return home to revive her career and find a new place to live. And also hopefully to make amends with her best friend. But what about the hotel? The marriage? The town that depends on the hotel to generate income?

This was a charming, easy comedy and a delightful trip to Greece. While there were some plot loopholes, it’s still a 4-star read for me.

I absolutely loved Godfrey’s debut novel and this was another 5 star winner for me. While THE SECOND CHANCE HOTEL is a romance novel, I’d argue it’s more about falling in love with yourself.

When Amelia’s relationship ends badly, she knows she needs to get some space and in a totally out of character move, decides to leave her life behind and travel the world. Two months into her travels, she arrives at her final stop; a hotel on the fictional Greek island of Asteri where her own parents fell in love years ago.

The island setting was so vivid and beautiful, it made imagining Amelia there easy. I became fully immersed in her story as a fish out of water from the moment she set foot on the island and fully invested as we met each new character who lived there. This book cemented Godfrey’s place on my must-read list and I can’t wait to see what she writes next.

My thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark for the advance reading copy.

An up and down romantic Grecian adventure. It was absolutely charming and funny for a while after a semi-rocky start. I mean, when the leading lady abandons her best friend’s wedding and MOH duties for all the weeks leading up to said wedding, and it’s not for a life threatening reason, well, it’s not a good look.

Then we’re on a picturesque Greek island, with quirky characters and meet-cutes, and delightful misunderstandings fueled by boozy days. It’s fun, it’s rom-com, it’s a perfectly great time.

… and then it slows down. It’s a little less fun and little more frustrating. Not bad but it felt like we lost the great vibe. And besides attraction, that neither one really follows through on or communicates in the second half, the romance was erratic.

Additionally, and this is totally a me thing, the ending is too Hallmark for my tastes. I could expand but I’ll refrain for spoilers.

Mostly, it was the location and secondary cast that kept me invested in the book. I wanted to see the island and its people thrive. Even while they were frustrating me they were far more interesting and engaging than the main plot. So, in the end, there was good and bad points, but I didn’t regret reading it.

This was a very cute and fun romcom. The characters were bright and eccentric which made it feel all the more real and grounded. I enjoyed the relationship between Amelia and James and the slow burn of it. I also loved the character development we see with Amelia throughout the novel. Life is full of second chances and I liked that the main point of the book wasn’t about second chance romance, but delved into second chances in a person’s life and choosing the right path. Overall, an enjoyable read.

Ugh another book that had good concept but bad execution. I found the main character kinda insufferable lol I was just not rooting for her on this self discovery journey at all. I couldn’t deal with all the ridiculous miscommunication and I felt zero chemistry between these characters. The plot also felt super slow and repetitive. I honestly wish I had DNF.

Oh to have a runaway escape trip to Europe and ended up accidentally married a gorgeous stranger and inherited a remote island hotel together? Will she running again and get back home safely or keeping both the man and the hotel.

This book is such a cute, quirky, and funny slow-burn romcoms. It has all the elements you need to breakaway from you mundaneife for awhile, from. the humor, emotional, and heartwarming scenes. I like the narration styles, t's so easy to follow the story and relate or rooting for the main characters, from learning their flaws, dreams, train of thoughts and their growth, as well as all the quirky residents of Asteri island. The characters has great banter and chemistries that makes them feels like real people somewhere out there. I couldn't put this book down and will have a hard time to move on from Ria Hotel.
Surely this is one of my best read in 2023.

3 stars.

I feel like Sierra Godfrey's "The Second Chance Hotel" starts off really strong with its zany premise, but it ends with a predictable whimper, not an exciting bang. First of all, I loved the setting of this book. Godfrey paints such a delightful picture of the Greek island of Asteri. It sounds like such a wonderful place to visit, truly serene and calming and lovely. True escapist fodder for those who love to travel or read about new places. Unfortunately, I really did not like the main female character, Amelia. From the jump, her character comes off as selfish, brash, and frankly, unlikable. I appreciate that she's a mess of a person, but she treats people as disposable and blames most of her personality foibles on her mother. To be fair, her mother *is* the worst, but she uses this as a crutch and an excuse for continuing her bad behavior. Other than that, I found her to be a very whitebread, bland main character. Nick as the main male protagonist is a little bit better, but I really didn't want him and Amelia to be together. I wanted him to find someone who would appreciate him and his nerdiness more! There is some decent banter and humor between the two of them, but I didn't ever find myself rooting for them to make it as a couple, fake marriage or otherwise. I think this book is too long, and it can also get a bit repetitive. The concept is great, but Godfrey fumbles the ball the long it goes on. Maybe if I had cared about the characters, I would have felt differently.

Thank you to NetGalley, Sierra Godfrey, and Sourcebooks Landmark for the complimentary ARC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.

A wild romance set in Greece. Amelia is used to running away. After losing her job, (for throwing a mug at her exes' head!), she hops on a plane for a three month stay in Europe. This break is just what she needs. Her final stop before heading back home is the small Greek island of Asteri. There, she stays in a rundown hotel. She's the only guest, other than James, another American traveler. Unfortunately, their host is in poor health, and as he is passing, he convinces the drunk Amelia and James to take over the hotel (and cons them into getting married). Uh oh. How will they make it out of this situation? Or will they even want to?

You definitely have to suspend your disbelief for the wacky situation that Amelia and James find themselves in. But it's such a fun journey. They fight their feelings for most of the story, leading to a successful conclusion. Asteri is a beautiful setting. Makes me want to go to Greece. Amelia is initially a bit unlikable, but I soon connected with her, and rooted for the romance. James is sweet and nerdy cute. Very slow burn.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The setting of this somewhat odd romantic novel is exquisite - an enchanting Greek island. It is a cute love story in a way but the development of the main characters felt off to me. When Amelia suddenly takes off on a European trip after being sabotaged by a jerky boyfriend who works at the same company, it seems like a good idea...except...she has to betray her best friend who counted on her to support her during her upcoming wedding.

When the story picks back up a few months later, I am a bit baffled by some aspects of Amelia's character as she recalls sleeping around in several countries while she makes one last stop - the Greek island where her parents had a romantic stay early in their relationship (but who are now divorced - the whole parental thing and clingy, self-centered mother are another aspect of the book that just didn't sit well with me.) She just seems so crass and ignorant and oblivious to other people's reality or feelings. Of course it isn't unusual for a young person to avoid dealing with their own pain or mistakes by getting drunk and hooking up, but the way these memories are depicted are just so cold, with not one iota of introspection or understanding of self afterwards.

So, when she seems to transform into someone more sensitive with a good heart, it is jarring and quite unbelievable to me. Though the setting and other island characters are fairly well-done, I just never really felt that it was a very believable story in terms of characters and plot. But, it was fun and I loved the setting, and even the romance was rather sweet, eventually. There was a twist toward the end that really had me intrigued.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for allowing me to read an eARC of this book, which was published on September 12, 2023

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher! This was a delightful novel! I enjoyed the premise and setting, and found this to be a quick read. I’m excited to read more from this author.

Amelia Lang is having an early mid-life crisis. Her horrible ex-boyfriend finally drives her to her breaking point and she throws a coffee mug at his head in a meeting at work, gets herself fired, and decides it’s time to take a break from life. She runs away to Europe, knowing she is going to miss her best friend’s wedding and ruin their friendship.

I discovered this book after being slightly obsessed with blue zones and wanting to immerse myself in all things Greek culture. This was the perfect book to pick up! A small Greek island, the local food, the local community and traditions, and a love story to boot. It was exactly what I needed. Once Amelia lands in Greece, she learns that the owner of the hotel she is staying in leaves the hotel to her and another hotel guest, James, who she has formed a friendship with. Amelia and James try navigating the world of hospitality, neither of which have experience, with the help of a comical and quirky cast of characters from the Greek village on the island of Asteri.

This book had me all over the place with emotions, it made me crack-up, had tension you couldn’t help but feel, had moments where the main characters drove me crazy and I wanted to slap some sense into them, but it was also adorable and made me smile. I wasn’t really feeling the chemistry between Amelia and James until the end of the book, but all in all, It was a unique story set in a beautiful location that I couldn’t put down.

The Second Chance Hotel was a good, if predictable, read. The Greek Island setting was its greatest strength. The island scenery, Greek food and local personalities were all very appealing. And I liked the accidental marriage trope, silly though it seemed. Amelia was a successful business woman. Unfortunately, her competence did not carry over into her personal life. Her many bad decisions and her inability to read and consider others’ feelings and needs were at odds with the skills she demonstrated professionally. All that said, I enjoyed this (mostly) formulaic story., the slow burn romance and the supporting cast of friends and family. A good, light read. And I appreciated the inclusion of the moussaka recipe at the end!

I adored this fantastic story of two people finding each other, discovering themselves in very unique circumstances, and eventually falling in love. James and Amelia are so good together and I love that they both need to find a little bit of themselves in the process of becoming a couple. The descriptions of Greece are beautiful and I had lovely images in my head of the views. Sierra's writing style is just so good and hilarious. I laughed out loud 1many times in this book and found much of it very relatable. I listened to the audiobook and it was incredibly well done. I had such a good time in this story and I didn't want it to end!

Amelia Lang's life is kind of a mess. She's stuck living at home with her narcissistic mother. Her tech bro ex-boyfriend deliberately sabotages her at work, and she gets fired after throwing a mug at his head (it's okay! She missed.) Then she has a major falling out with her best friend. So Amelia does what Amelia does best: She runs away.

This was such a charming book. It has a wonderful found family aspect to it that I adored. You cannot help but fall in love with the people of Asteri. There is some miscommunication in here which I cannot stand and why I had to dock it half a star. I normally will not read a book if I know it has miscommunication in it, but I am so glad that I did not know about it in this one. I would have missed out on a great read.

I am excited to read more of Sierra Godfrey's work.

4.5 stars