"To Do List
1. Replace decapitated groom cake topper
2. Complete twenty-page questionnaire for second-choice celebrant
3. Break family curse
4. Ignore ex-boyfriend / current client"

Rebecca is determined to defy her family's curse: that no woman marries their first fiance. But when Rebecca's ex, Alex, shows up as her new client, she begins to wonder whether she should believe in the family curse.

Being a fan of well-done love triangles, I love this set up. It's always the best when the two love interests in the love triangles are both top tier. Matt & Alex were both superbly set up and written by Steph that even I had a hard time picking one!

Becs is delightful and easy to relate to, making it very easy to become entralled in her world and her choices. Her relationships with Matt & Alex and her family and friends felt so real - beautiful and messy, which is important.

I think this is a beautiful exploration of messy and real human relationships and Steph's writing makes it easy to read and enjoy.

4.5 ✨ rounded up to 5.

Thank you to HarperCollins for an e-arc! All opinions are my own.

‘A Smart Girl’s Guide to Second Chances’ is brilliant. Intelligent, witty, warm and insightful.

I’m typically not a fan of love triangles (why would anyone be when ‘why choose?’ exists?) - but Steph Vizard executes this usual bomb of a trope with aplomb.

ASGGTSC hooks you from the first page and continues to build momentum - upping the intrigue, the emotional stakes and your investment in the characters and story with every page you turn. I couldn’t put it down.

Was a huge fan of FMC Becs (overly preoccupied with lists - same, girl, same) and the entire ragtag cast of supporting characters. MMC Matt was swoony as all hell.

ASGGTSC is a masterful dissection of and commentary on relationships - self, romantic, familial and platonic. It was beautiful and thought provoking - and at times heartbreaking.

Complicated and messy yet undeniably romantic. Easy 5 stars and a hard recommend from me.

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins Australia for the ARC.

Rebecca, (aka Becs), is about to be married to a man she knows is caring and reliable, who really really loves her, but if something can go wrong leading up to this wedding it will - and is it all because of the family curse? A curse which means a marriage to your first fiancé will never happen. Becs ,who is a logical and intelligent woman, knows it is all a bit rubbish, however when even the cake toppers can't make it out alive, she isn't sure all is going to go to plan. It doesn't help either when Alex, the love that got away, comes back into her life - is she making some huge mistake? This was a really lovely rom-com with a cast of super characters surrounding Rebecca and her fiancé, Matt - you definitely become quite torn by the situation that Rebecca has found herself within. What is the right answer and who should you be rooting for to get over the wedding line? It wasn't an easy answer. It is one of those stories that you become more and more invested in as it progressed. This was my first book by this author - certainly will be seeking out more as I know that she has written another book called 'The Love Contract'. I look forward to reading it and any future creations. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this arc in return for my honest opinion.

I have read Steph’s other novel, The Love Contract and thought that was great, so I was looking forward to reading her latest novel, A Smart Girl’s Guide To Second Chances. Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins Australia, I got the opportunity to do so before it’s release later in the year.
The story centre around Rebecca, who is engaged and only weeks away from marrying Matt. Rebecca works as a consultant for a company and life is hectic - the wedding plans aren’t going as they should, and Rebecca is hoping to avoid the family marriage curse which claims no woman marries their first fiancé.
Enter Alex, Rebecca’s ex from her uni days, as her new client. As her past and present collide, she is faced with many decisions, including whether she will still walk down the aisle, and if so, to who!
This rom-com is an easy and enjoyable story.

Oh Steph, what have you done! I finished this last night, and my heart! Had I not been reading this ARC on my iPad, I might have slept with it under my pillow. And then I needed to go back this morning and reread the last few chapters again.

I loved this book so much. There wasn't a character in it that wasn't beautifully drawn. The relationships between friends, lovers and family felt so real. This was a love story that was as complicated and messy as real life, and one that I think so many people will identify with, and fall in love with. But it wasn't just about the love story between the two main characters, Rebecca and Matt. We saw Becs resha[ing her relationship with friends and family, and eventually with herself and her career.