*Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson Fiction for providing a complimentary digital copy in exchange for an honest review.*

I got to 57% of this book when I realised I hated it and needed to DNF it.

I hate DNF-ing books, especially ones I have received as ARCs, but at that point I no longer cared for Addie, Wes or their relationship.

Don’t get me wrong, the writing is competent and the premise so very intriguing - even the humorous tone worked for me at the start - but the direction this story took made me so angry.

Addie was meant to marry Wes, when he left her at the alter, and fucked off to another town with no explanation and then married a girl from their town few years later. In the present day, he has become a governor, on the route to running for president.

Addie was heartbroken for years, then joined the CIA where she met the love of her life. Now, 22 years later, both their spouses are dead and for one reason or another both end up in their small town again.

And let me tell you - Addie needs to grow a backbone.

As readers, we are constantly told that what Wes did broke everyone’s trust and he is not welcomed back into town. He hasn’t made any effort to keep in touch with anyone and never offered explanation or apologies.

But instead, his friends welcome him with open arms, and Addie apparently is happy to spend time with him and reminisce, and literally, during their first real conversation in 22 years after he left her, she kisses him on the nose??? I was flabbergasted.

They keep sharing laughs and jokes and I just got more and more frustrated.

Honestly, where is her dignity? Where is her self-respect? Where is the whole town’s integrity?

Why would she even agree to spend time with this man? Nothing she did made sense to me. And the way he would weasel his way back in playing sadboy made me distrust him even more (him being a politician didn’t help). His excuses of why he left the way he did were so flimsy (not that he offered much).

And worse, this feels almost condescending to the reader - if you’re going to put such a significant obstacle on their path, you have to put in the work for these people to earn their way back to each other - and Wes definitely didn’t.

In the end, I don’t know if I hate Wes more, for just schmoozing his way back in, or Addie for letting him.

I would have rather read about Addie in the CIA, meeting Joel.

I loved diving back into the beautiful Colorado Mountains! This was such a beautiful story of 2nd chances! Wes had to win my heart, and he did! Addie was rough - but all that she goes through, makes it worth the angst. Such a lovely story of two people coming together and growing through the journey! I would love to read them all again! Such a fun group of friends who really needed each other! I enjoyed the whole thing! I would have only changed one thing. So this is more of a 4.5.

Thanks to NetGalley for this book, all thoughts and opinions are mine!

Wes and Addie Had Their Chance is a second chance love story by Bethany Turner. Wes and Addie were childhood sweethearts who were engaged and planned to marry after high school. They broke up unexpectedly the night before their wedding, and went their separate ways. They find themselves back in their hometown and single again decades later.

The author describes the younger Wes as kind and reserved, but not ambitious or intelligent. It is hard for the reader to believe that later in life he is a very popular politician and presidential candidate. Also, in the past, he cut all ties with his hometown and childhood friends. He is loathed by the community where he grew up, including his childhood love, Addie. Decades later, he seeks forgiveness from everyone, even the woman he broke up with the night before their wedding.

A predictable story continues after the reader meets Wes and Addie as they reconnect after many years. Addie finds herself back in their hometown, widowed and somewhat isolated. Wes appears to have been pining for her for years, despite never contacting or seeing her since they broke up. I had a hard time accepting the extreme changes from the child/teen versions of the main characters to the present day versions. These changes were not logical given everything that had happened in the past.

The author concludes the book on a happy note. She ties up all the loose ends of the story in a positive way, but the story overall was just too farfetched for me. The main tropes of this book are childhood friends to lovers and second chance romance set in a small town. If you enjoy those, you will probably like this book.

Thank you to Bethany Turner, Thomas Nelson Publishing, and NetGalley for an advance reader’s copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I had high hopes for this book, since I enjoyed the first two in the series, but Wes and Addie fell flat for me. There was so much angst and I didn’t feel like it balanced out with enough light-hearted, fun moments to make this an enjoyable read for me. I was also unpleasantly surprised by the same sex attraction storyline.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A Sweet Second-Chance Romance with a Clever Twist

Wes and Addie Had Their Chance is a heartfelt, witty, and emotionally satisfying second-chance romance. Bethany Turner delivers a story that’s both nostalgic and fresh, centering on two characters with undeniable chemistry and a shared past that refuses to stay in the past.

Addie is relatable and grounded, while Wes brings just enough charm and mystery to keep you turning pages. Their banter is a highlight—smart, funny, and layered with history. I especially loved how Turner weaves in pop culture references and real emotional stakes without ever feeling heavy-handed.

My only reason for 4 stars instead of 5 is that some parts felt a bit repetitive or overly introspective, slowing the pacing at times. But the payoff is absolutely worth it.

If you’re a fan of second chances, slow burns, and stories where love is messy but worth fighting for, you’ll enjoy this one!

Let me begin this review by making it perfectly clear...I adored the first two books in this series and I love Bethany Turner. I have been anticipating and looking forward to this book for ages. It unfortunately just didn't land like I imagined and wanted it to. I respect Bethany so much and I appreciate what she was trying to do here. Her author's note was wonderful.

As always I enjoyed all the wonderful pop culture and nostalgia Bethany weaves into her stories. It really is a gift. I enjoyed revisiting Brynn, Seb, Cole, and Laila so very much. They are old and dear friends at this point. And the town of Adelaide Springs has my heart. I think that's part of my beef. One of my absolute favorite side characters was painted in a not-so-great light and it just made me sad. This whole situation is repaired somewhat by the end of the book, but the damage had already been done with the portrayal of this character not being justified in his feelings/actions and straight-up overreacting.

There was also a particular theme that I was a little disappointed to see coming from a Christian author. I know the MMC is a politician so politics are quite literally part of the plot, but the politics brought about with the inclusion of this theme just weren't necessary or appreciated in my personal opinion.

All that being said, I still think Bethany Turner is awesome and I can't wait to see where she takes us next!

⭐⭐⭐.5 rounded down
🚪

I loved this second chance story. Wes never got over Addie the girl he left at the altar when they were just 18 years old. It's 20+ years later and he's just lost his biological father and his wife when he returns to his hometown unexpectedly. Addie had come back home after her husband died and is surprised to see Wes when she picks him up at the airport as she's a driver for the car service in town. A lot of revelations are made during the few days he is in town. 4 1/2 stars

Wes and Addie Had Their Chance by Bethany Turner is a sweet love story. Addie Atwater-Elwyn has come back to her mountain home town of Adelaide Springs, Colorado after many disappointments in Washinton DC. Wes Hobbes was our high school love who left her at the altar. She wants to forget him, but that is hard when his face is everywhere since he is running for president. It can only get worse when he shows up back in town.

I felt like this was a very well written second chance love story. Wes and Addie had grown up enough to reconnect in a believable way. Their characters were well developed, had great chemistry, and wonderful banter. There were many light moments between the heavier ones which made for a funny, but meaningful story. I enjoyed revisiting with everyone is Adeliade Springs and seeing their reaction to Wes and Addie.

I absolutely loved Wes and Addie Had Their Chance by Bethany Turner. The author is an auto buy for me, and this could be one of my favorite stories she has written. I read this quickly and happily embraced losing sleep to read. I highly recommend and this will be a 2025 favorite.

I was given a complimentary copy and not required to write a positive review.

After reading the first two books in the Adelaide Springs series, it was wonderful to finally know the story behind Wes and Addie. It seemed that their absence in the earlier books always hinted at something grand, and in a way, getting to meet them both in this last book was both fitting and satisfying. I was grateful that both mysterious characters made their long-awaited appearance, so that readers could understand the motivations for their behaviour and disappearances. Even better than that was seeing how they were able to take responsibility for their past actions against each other. With Wes and Addie being in their 40s, it was refreshing to see how they worked to clear up any miscommunication between them instead of descending into assumptions. Of course, it wouldn't be a Bethany Turner book without the pop culture nods along the way to evoke that shared nostalgia as well.

This book is marketed as clean fiction, so there are few faith references, with the exception of one scene that briefly alludes to it. Otherwise, it's a continuation of a charming small-town series with plenty of appearances by and references to the previous couples we've met in Adelaide Springs. One of the things I've liked most about this series has been the intergenerational nature of it, with a focus on the older characters that have guided and mentored the younger ones. This book does address heavier and potentially controversial topics, so readers might want to explore some trigger warnings beforehand. Those who have followed along on this journey in the series will be interested in discovering the answers to what happened between Wes and Addie all those years ago, with a dose of the inner workings of an American political campaign.

This is another great installment in Bethany Turner's Adelaide Springs series. I loved checking in with the couples from the two previous books while watching Wes and Addie work through two decades of baggage to find their way back to each other. I liked that the protagonists were a little older (40s) and that they had a long history together. It was very satisfying to see them get their second chance. I also loved the references to pop culture that popped up in their dialogue. I had entirely forgotten about Death to Smoochy and appreciated having that bit of nostalgia brought back to me. This series has solidified Bethany Turner as one of my all-time favorite romance writers!

Wes and Addie Had Their Chance is a second chance love story that has everything you want. Set in a small town in Colorado, Addie and Wes meet again 20 years after Wes left Addie at the alter. They are now living very different lives although both are now widowed. I loved both Addie and Wes and all the side characters too. I want to visit this small town in Colorado. While the book is a romcom, it did have depth which I wasn’t expecting but loved. I recommend this book to everyone.

I received both an audiobook and an ebook and I loved both. The narrators in the audiobook book did a great job.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. Opinions are my own.

I loved this book. No--I will not purchase it for my high school library, because it is a book for grown-ups. I loved the story, I liked the two different points of view in the book, and I liked the reflections. The characters were interesting, and I like all of them. There is an "I wonder what will happen
next", but maybe that should be left to the imagination. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc with no pressure for a positive review.

I really love the Bethany Turner writes older protagonists. This is part of a companion series but obviously you don’t have to read the other books, they just give you a little more context of the friend group and town. Speaking of, the little town these stories take place is a little lackluster. I wish there was more details about it but they might be found in earlier books. The minor characters really make the whole vibe so much better. I really enjoyed the military and political aspects, Addie being former CIA and Wes running for president. Also they were both widowers and I love the depth that brought to the story. Overall, I highly recommend this one!

I have read Bethany's previous two books centered on Adelaide Springs and this installment did not disappoint. It has a slew of interesting, well-drawn secondary characters, a beautiful backdrop, and a precious, sweet, second-chance romance with a very interesting backstory. Bethany is a great writer; the dialogue is funny and the pacing is good. These characters are precious humans. She manages to keep it swoony without any spice. Definitely recommend all of the Adelaide Springs books to romance fans.

At last, we get the third story in Bethany Turner’s series about the couples of Adelaide Springs, CO! This final book in the series about a group of five friends from a town so small that they were its entire graduating class in the early 2000’s, centers on the relationship and history between high school sweethearts, Wes and Addie.

22 years ago, Wes left Addie at the altar. Today, Addie has returned to Adelaide Springs to recover from the premature death of her husband and the loss of her job in DC, while Presidential candidate Wesley, who left Colorado on that wedding day never to return, has flown home in secret to ponder withdrawing from the race.

This is a sweet story about grace, forgiveness, owning up to past mistakes, and the joys of long friendships. It is a fitting end to the trilogy that began with Brynne bashing her hometown on a hot mic then learning to love it, followed by two lifelong Adelaide Springs residents realizing their love for one another while contemplating a move to NYC. While each title in the series is a rom-com, the beauties of friendship and the love of home also feature prominently. It has been a delightful series.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Thomas Nelson for the advanced copy of this title in exchange for my honest review.

I love a good second chance romance, and Wes and Addie Had Their Chance didn’t disappoint. I really enjoyed the characters and appreciated watching their personal growth and transformation throughout the story. The chemistry between them felt so real and fun—their banter genuinely had me chuckling! This was such a charming and uplifting read.

Bethany Turner's Wes and Addie Had Their Chance is a charming reminder of how life often circles back to give us what we didn’t expect. I loved how the chemistry between Addie and Wes immediately rekindled. I also related to the poignant small-town dynamics and the complex, tender bonds of found family and being friends with our childhood pals well into adulthood. The relationship between Addie and her father is super sweet as well.

To me, what stands out is the way Turner handles such a challenging story. She isn’t afraid to explore the bittersweet intricacies of love, loss, and the journey toward personal redemption, all while keeping the pace playful and engaging. From the fiery spark of old romance to the subtle evolutions of mature relationships, this book captures the essence of second chances.

In short, Wes and Addie Had Their Chance is a heartwarming story about how sometimes, life's detours lead us exactly where we need to be. Well done, Bethany!

Full disclosure: Bethany and I are friends and I did receive a complimentary copy of the book from the publisher and NetGalley.

After 14 years, they are back in their hometown for reasons, Addie worked in the CIA and Wes is running for president. It was slow pace. I liked that Addie came in and confronted Wes right away after he left her at the altar years ago. She said her peace to him and the plot move on to a sort of reconciliation. They got to know the adult versions of themselves. Little tension between MCs but I was rooting for them to work it out and become more than friends.

Oh! This book is so good. Fantastic story. Fantastic pacing. Lovely characters. Great banter. I just loved every minute of reading it—including the laughing and crying.

Wes left Addie at the altar 22 years ago, when they were 18 years old. Now as the leading candidate for U. S. President, he wants to go home. Last he knew Addie was married and NOT living in their small town of Adelaide Springs. He’s in for a big surprise. In fact, everyone in Adelaide Springs who think Wes and Addie had their chance are in for a big surprise.

I love these characters. Both of them are smart, sweet, and emotionally mature, but still healing from life’s twists and turns. The writing is smart and witty. So well done.

You don’t want to miss this book. Was I crazy to request this ARC after it's publication day when I have 2 other arc deadlines looming. Yes. Do I regret it? Absolutely not. Thank you @netgalley for a complimentary copy in exchange for my honest review.

This is the third in a stand-alone series. You don’t have to read the others, I didn’t, but if you read the other books, this will be even more fun for you than it was for me. This is my first book by @seebethanywrite and she is now on my auto-read list.

This one was just okay for me. There was so much information, so much trauma, and so much drama. I didn't really related to either of the main characters. The main reason that I finished this one was the story was told during the first two books in the series, and I wanted to see how it ends.

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