My immediate reaction: good for her!

Liz & Tobin's marriage in trouble story is fantastic. I enjoyed the different take on this trope - sex works for them, but they struggle to communicate in other aspects of their relationship. The author did a wonderful job portraying Liz's feeling trapped and Tobin's yearning. Their story is about balancing life, work, and relationships and not letting others run you over. I also appreciated the discussion of what gets people to the top in their professional lives - privilege, barriers, and bias all played a role in this story.

It did get a little draining as I just wanted them to sit down and talk, especially as Liz learned to work out and articulate her frustrations. Overall, this story wasn't quite what I expected and I loved it.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

2.75⭐️

Rules for Second Chances is a second chance romance between married couple Liz and Tobin. The story is told from Liz's perspective, and she struggles to find ways to stand out in her company and to make her husband 'see' her again.

Liz is unknowingly autistic, and has spent her life trying to fit a different mold of how she should act and what she should say. Feeling unseen, she decides to sign up for an improv class, and Tobin volunteers to be her practice partner despite no longer living together.

I wish I felt more connected to the characters than I did. The narration kept hinting at different things that had happened in Tobin's and Liz's lives, but because of the narrative style, it did not feel as in-depth as it could have been.

The improv was definitely unique to the storyline! I loved when it pushed Tobin and Liz to really talk. I do wish there was more of Tobin and Liz together, as some plot lines became very repetitive, leaving the romance at an odd pacing.

This novel is sweet, has autism representation, and has a spin on the 'second-chance' romance trope I haven't seen too often! Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

An emotional, dynamic story about a woman with undiagnosed autism and how it affects her marriage.

Liz feels invisible and stuck in her life and decides to try to reclaim her identity by trying stand-up comedy. This was the part I didn't love as much; the stand-up, role-playing stuff was just too out there for me. Felt a lot second-hand embarrassment.

I did love the tender conversations with Tobin, Liz's husband.. I'm a sucker for a marriage-in-crisis plot though. I ached when Liz confessed to Tobin that she was trying to make herself better for him. I loved their deep conversations as they worked through their issues.

Unfortunately I keep starting and stopping this one. I should enjoy it, because it has everything I look for in books, but it just isn't working for me right now. I was hopeful maybe I was just in a slump, but in reading other books and trying to come back to it, it just can't hold my attention. I'm hoping to try again in a few months.

2.5 stars. This book had a really cute idea and I love second chance romance, but I don't think it was executed well. A couple on the verge of divorce tries to save their marriage by taking an improv class together... although it never really seemed like either one of them wanted a divorce? I felt like they could have just easily had a conversation and all would have been solved. The main character was a little annoying and hard to root for, too. The writing was also a little annoying and hard to follow sometimes. I was confused a lot during this book!

But all that to say, it could have been a "me" problem. I'm sure others will love this book as it does have super cute elements and is a good second chance romance trope.

Thank you to NetGalley for the early e-copy of this book in return for my honest thoughts.

Rules for Second Chances was a little deeper than I was expecting but I like reading second-chance romance about a relationship in trouble and a couple finding their way back to each other. The characters were so well written and I liked seeing Liz fight for what she wanted in her life and also her marriage. Thanks to @smpromance for my copy.

I did not really vibe with this. I kept waiting to feel connected with the characters in any capacity, but I just didn't. It all felt disconnected and a bit disjointed.

Such a delightfully sweet second chance romance with a lot of self discovery involved.

Liz is struggling to find herself and be who she wants to be, and is also struggling to be "seen" as she wants to be seen by her husband. In a moment of frustration Liz decides to move out and find herself, which is quite the process. It was hard at times to watch her struggles, but I also really felt some of them. North did a fantastic job of weaving the two different story lines together!

Liz is tired of playing a back seat to everyone, especially her husband, Tobin. Tobin is outgoing and the social butterfly of the relationship. So, she takes an improv class to help with her social awkwardness and, hopefully, to get a promotion. She is tired of spread sheets. She wants to do more!

This is a pretty good read. I just did not like the main character, Liz. Yes, I get her situation is different but I just did not connect with her well. Her actions do not fit the way I thought she would act. Just read it and see what you think!

I did enjoy the improv idea. How unique to use it to draw someone out of their shell. And Liz uses this to help her try, key word, try to get a promotion.

This is a cute story, with lots of character. I just did not connect very well with some of them. And the story itself can be a bit confusing in places.

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

I'll be honest, I'm not a fan of second chance romance and have stopped requesting them. But, I wanted to give this book a fair chance and this was better than I thought it would be. The couple dealt with real struggles that can occur with a marriage and there were some heavier topics explored. I can appreciate the reality of this, marriage in crisis can be difficult to navigate both in the real world and the fictional one and she handled it well. The author did a decent enough job of me rooting for this couple to overcome their obstacles and I appreciated their conversations surrounding their relationship.

However, the pacing was a bit off and there were times I was actually confused with what was going on because of the writing style. And the whole improv aspect was a bit cringey to me. And please authors stop mentioning Tiktok in your books.

Solid effort besides those few issues for me.

Thank you so much to St Martins Press and NetGalley for the arc.

3.5 stars

I cannot place my finger on it, but this book was missing something for me. I think maybe it was the rushed pacing of it between Liz & Tobin. You really rushed right into the point that Liz wants more out of life and out of herself but you don't know the characters well at all yet for this to happen. It made it hard for me to really care about what was happening. I don't know enough about Tobin or Liz to determine if this really makes sense for them and if I'm on board or not. Either way that part was tough for me.

Once you get to know the characters a little bit more, they become much more relatable. I think, for me, I would have loved to see Tobin's pov once that happens. It would have been such an interesting, maybe even a little bit more intimate book because Tobin has a lot of mental health issues and trauma, but you barely see him get any help. I also would love for him to get into therapy for himself only, as well as marriage counseling that they discuss if needed, because he really needs to talk to someone on his own.

Outside of these concerns, I really did want them to figure their shit out. I enjoyed the bit of growth that the characters realize and also love the mental health & autism representation in here. I related so well to Liz and how she wants so badly to fit in with people. It can be difficult for me as well to fit in or work well with a crowd so I felt for her in those situations.

I wouldn't NOT recommend this one, but I would say you have to be in a certain mood for it.

Rules for Second Chances by Maggie North was a great surprise.  You know how sometimes you get into a book rut and feel like you are reading the same story over and over, just with different characters and different settings (ya know, like a Hallmark Christmas movie)?  That is not this book!  A neurodiverse character, an improv class, a challenging sister relationship and the self-battle of "should" vs. "want to" - this second chance romance is one I will be recommending.  

Liz Lewis lives in a mountain resort town.  She has tried to fit in but has always been labeled different from everyone else.  In her job of wilderness expeditions, Liz is the spreadsheet girl while her husband is the popular adventure guide.  Liz is tired of taking a back seat to her own life so she leaves her husband and aims her focus on a job promotion.  Her boss strongly suggests Liz take an improv class to help her develop her interpersonal skills.  

I loved Liz's and her husband's transformation throughout the book.  You should check it out ~ available now!
Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin's press for an advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thank you for providing me this ARC in exchange for a review. I’ll be completely honest, I forgot to finish this because I had a really hard time connecting with the characters. I don’t mind second chance romances, but I struggled with this one. I really wanted to! It is an interesting premise and I’m sure if I gave it another chance, I’d feel differently about it.

The book has a unique premise, with some odd scenes. The writing style felt a little bit too offbeat for my taste. This is not for those looking for a lighthearted story, instead it's a book filled with angst and 'real life' characters.

This was an enjoyable second chance romance. I liked the fact that it was a second chance marriage situation, which you don't get many of these days. It was s simple and quick summer read.. I liked the characters but their relationship just didn't seem genuine to me.
Overall this was a good book, if you're thinking about reading it I'd say give it a shot!

i’m submitting the reviews for books by you that I already have, but I will never request another one. In October one of your employees made a horribly racist statement and you have chosen to do nothing about it. People have continuously asked you to say that you don’t stand with what the employee said, and you refuse to. This is not someone who I want to promote ever because you are sending the wrong message. These reviews will not be posted on social media because you don’t deserve the promotion. By not speaking out you are also not preventing your followers from stalking and harassing people who are participating in the boycott. Your silence speaks volumes. I hope that all of your authors move to other publishers because you are standing with a genocide. You are also currently saying that you support black women in black history month but you have ignored their concerns for months and shown them no support.

Watch this video for more information https://www.tiktok.com/@vivafalastinleen/video/7288407369313307947?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7211704101519296042

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Liz is tired of changing herself to be what everyone else wants. She's determined to figure out what it is that she really wants for herself. She's taking a break from her marriage and starting improv classes to get herself ready for a big pitch that could change her trajectory at work. But what if everything she thought she wanted isn't what she wanted at all?

This book wasn't for me, but I could see how some people could relate to the characters. I found the boundaries around the marriage separation and the inability to communicate feelings effectively very frustrating and unrelatable. The improv class participants were the best part.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of this book.

I wasn’t completely sure what to expect going into this one, but I really enjoyed it and was rooting for Liz and Tobin! The scenarios they ended up in were 🤣☠️.

While I think this is more women’s fiction than romance, there was also a major romance subplot in a marriage-in-crisis. I think this one had some great life lessons in it while Liz tried to find herself.

This one is already out and you should check this one out. Thank you netgalley and the publisher for my early copy. All opinions are my own.

I want to take a moment to think NetGalley, as well as the publishing company, for giving me an ark of this book and exchange for an honest review.

There is just something about a second chance Romance. Overall, if this is a trope that you are looking to read about then I would definitely pick this book up. It is swoon worthy and bring me so much joy.

I really loved this book more than I even expected to. It was so easy to connect with Liz in a way that sometimes you just can't with main characters. If you're a fan of Christine Lauren or any books by similar authors you need to pick this one up! Well written and I just couldn't put it down.