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jeslowe115's review against another edition
5.0
I was provided a copy of this book so that I could leave an honest review.
I only read the story that J Kenner wrote, so that is what my review will be based on.
Another great story. I have loved every book of J Kenner that I have read. This was a fast read for me. I loved that I could read it in one sitting. The story was so hot. I wanted more.
I love how all there are links between the books but you're not lost if you haven't read them.
I cannot wait for her next book.
I only read the story that J Kenner wrote, so that is what my review will be based on.
Another great story. I have loved every book of J Kenner that I have read. This was a fast read for me. I loved that I could read it in one sitting. The story was so hot. I wanted more.
I love how all there are links between the books but you're not lost if you haven't read them.
I cannot wait for her next book.
nicki_theoverflowingbookcase's review against another edition
5.0
J. Kenner does not disappoint with this Stark novella. Blake and Penny shared one Night of passion, only to never see each other again when Penny walked away. But who should come to Stark Int'l where she is working as a secretary, but the man she could never forget. Does he remember her....hell yes which leads them to one night with all his desires. Will they both fall in love again, or will she walk away again? This was a great quick story filled with emotions and great characters. This was a second chance romance at its best.
akristinab's review against another edition
4.0
I only read One Night by J. Kenner. Cute story. Wish it had a little more to it though.
chroniclesofabookreader's review
4.0
Lovers of second-chance romances will fall in love with Second Chances. There is a story for everyone, from Contemporary to Young Adult to Paranormal to Historical to Romantic Suspense and anywhere in between. Some familiar faces from Christina Lauren’s Wild Seasons series and J. Kenner’s Stark world pop up, and from there, for me, there’s a whole host of authors for the sampling that I’ve never had the chance to read before which is always the best part of an anthology. And RWA did an amazing job at cultivating a fluent narrative with this many authors whose stories all fit together so seamlessly, and into a full-sized novel.
Aside from genre, I loved that each story had its own second-chance elements that tweaked the heart in the best way. That it’s-been-years-but-I’m-still-hot-for-you twinge that each author put their unique spin on, creating wonderful stomach dips and smiles. The greatest part of each one, of course, was experiencing all of these couples overcoming whatever tore them apart (or kept them from trying) in the first place. Each story had something great to offer, to showcase a brilliant love story that was years in the making, and even though we joined them in their stories now, it never felt like we had no know them then to love them now.
With varying heat from story to story, any reader can find their level of romance in more than a handful of these stories, but everyone will enjoy the main subject they each share: love. The Second Chances Anthology is well worth the read and I know everyone who reads it will find at least one new-to-me author they’ll continue to follow past this collection. It has heart and love for the basis of each story, and you can’t go wrong with that.
**Received an early copy; this had no bearing on my opinions**
Aside from genre, I loved that each story had its own second-chance elements that tweaked the heart in the best way. That it’s-been-years-but-I’m-still-hot-for-you twinge that each author put their unique spin on, creating wonderful stomach dips and smiles. The greatest part of each one, of course, was experiencing all of these couples overcoming whatever tore them apart (or kept them from trying) in the first place. Each story had something great to offer, to showcase a brilliant love story that was years in the making, and even though we joined them in their stories now, it never felt like we had no know them then to love them now.
With varying heat from story to story, any reader can find their level of romance in more than a handful of these stories, but everyone will enjoy the main subject they each share: love. The Second Chances Anthology is well worth the read and I know everyone who reads it will find at least one new-to-me author they’ll continue to follow past this collection. It has heart and love for the basis of each story, and you can’t go wrong with that.
**Received an early copy; this had no bearing on my opinions**
ssejig's review
4.0
One of my favorite tropes for romance short stories and novellas is the second chance. It makes it infinitely more believable for two people to find their HEA. It clears up the need for a first-meet and makes more room for a good story. This is a really nice mix of stories. I didn't love all of them but I didn't need to, this was more an introduction to the authors and I think that most of these stories probably nice captured the author's tone and writing style.
With sixteen stories, I'm not going to review them all but there were some authors that I'm going to explore further. I definitely liked Cassandra Dean's "Scandalous," a historical story of a woman who was ruined but then traveled the continent and returned to the man who finally realized he might be good enough for her. If this were a longer book, I think I would have liked it quite a bit.
Another one I would have liked the full-length version of (but enjoyed the story) was Lizzie Shane's "Something Old, Something New," the story of a couple who had been lovers, but then the man ghosted. Now they've met again at his best friend's wedding that she is the planner for.
Overall, a nice sprinkling of romance authors. Every romance reader will find at least one story to enjoy.
With sixteen stories, I'm not going to review them all but there were some authors that I'm going to explore further. I definitely liked Cassandra Dean's "Scandalous," a historical story of a woman who was ruined but then traveled the continent and returned to the man who finally realized he might be good enough for her. If this were a longer book, I think I would have liked it quite a bit.
Another one I would have liked the full-length version of (but enjoyed the story) was Lizzie Shane's "Something Old, Something New," the story of a couple who had been lovers, but then the man ghosted. Now they've met again at his best friend's wedding that she is the planner for.
Overall, a nice sprinkling of romance authors. Every romance reader will find at least one story to enjoy.
thebookdisciple's review
So, I have been really digging anthologies lately! I love getting short stories I can dive into and finish in one sitting and I love getting a peek into authors I might not have heard of or read before. In this case, those authors I have never read before were ALL of them except Liliana Hart and Tara Wyatt. Yep, I have never read J. Kenner or Christina Lauren. So, here is a perfect way for me to get a taste of LOTS of great new-to-me romance authors! Yay!
All the stories have 1 thing in common: second chances! So, if this trope is your JAM you will love this. There are historical stories, teenage drama stories, romantic suspense stories, PNR, and contemporary stories so whatever genre you prefer, you can find a second chance story that works for you!
Obviously, I am not going to give you my thoughts on all the stories, because no one has that kind of time. So, here are my top picks with a nugget of why I enjoyed them:
- Fortune's Treasure by Liliana Hart: Bad break up and history!!
- One Hot Mess by Tina Ferraro: high school love and hijinks!
- Scandalous by Cassandra Dean: ruined reputations and a rogue who is sorry!
And I was thrilled to get a glimpse into the worlds of Christina Lauren and J. Kenner! Having never read them before, I enjoyed getting a peek at their style and characters!
Second Chances has literally something for everyone and its short stories are perfect for quick reads while you wait at the doctors office (I read one while waiting for my ENT), on the subway, at your kids games, etc!
Any of these authors, or other second chance stories like Wrecked by Cynthia Eden, Its Me Again, Baby by Katie Reus ...then you will probably like Second Chances!
Second Chances
4queenofnothing's review
2.0
The stories I read were:
The Fisher Men: Levi’s Story by [a: Christina Lauren|6556689|Christina Lauren|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1554664497p2/6556689.jpg]: 2 stars
One Night by [a: J. Kenner|6459302|J. Kenner|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1449167361p2/6459302.jpg]: 2 stars
The Fisher Men: Levi’s Story by [a: Christina Lauren|6556689|Christina Lauren|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1554664497p2/6556689.jpg]: 2 stars
One Night by [a: J. Kenner|6459302|J. Kenner|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1449167361p2/6459302.jpg]: 2 stars
amburhostyn's review
5.0
I've always been a sucker for a good second chance romance, so when I saw that RWA was putting together an anthology titled, Second Chances, I jumped at the chance to read it! I actually didn't look at the author list until I was about to start reading it...and when I saw that the first story in the anthology was written by Christina Lauren, I was thrilled! :D
To be honest, I don't typically read anthologies all the way through, but with this one I did! I did it because I wanted to give the entire anthology a fair shot, and I actually really enjoyed the stories and wanted to keep reading it, too. As I've hinted already, the Second Chances anthology starts off with a story by one of my favourite authors, Christina Lauren! It was titled "The Fisher Men: Levi's Story" and it featured, you guessed it!--Finn's brother, Levi! Levi is one of the secondary characters from their Wild Seasons series, and this anthology was worth reading for me for their story alone. I absolutely LOVED Levi's story and I only wish that it had been longer! haha ;)
Other than Christina Lauren, I hadn't actually read anything by any of the other authors in this anthology until I read their short stories here, but I enjoyed them all. I definitely liked some more than others, but they all had their merits and I think this anthology would be great for all romance readers, especially if you're already a fan of any of these wonderful authors! I was surprised that two of my other standout favourites in the anthology were the historical romances: "Scandalous" by Cassandra Dean, and "The Jilt" by Sharon Sobel. And the last few stories had me tearing up, especially "The Family Tree" by Brandi Willis Schreiber! The final story in the anthology, "Jake's Djinn" by Alyssa Day also surprised me! It's the only fantasy story in the anthology so it felt a little out of place at first, but I loved it (made me want to go back and read the author's books from the same series)!
I think what I loved most about this anthology was that the authors interpreted second chances in different ways. Most of them were what you would expect, couples that had their time together, had some kind of breakup/separation, and they came back together, but they were all still completely unique which I really loved! Other were second chances of another sort, which was interesting! I also loved that there was a mix of genres. Some were contemporary, others were historical, and as I previously mentioned, there was even one fantasy! The age range varied too. A couple of the stories were young adult and were sweeter, light romances, while others were a bit steamier and were aimed at a more mature audience. Most of the stories were m/f romances, but there was one m/m, and all of the stories were definitely adorable! Some of them had me laughing, others had me crying, but they all left me smiling in the end!
Overall, I really loved the Second Chances anthology! I don't think you necessarily have to read all of the stories at once--it would be a great anthology to come back to whenever you were craving a quickie romantic novella, but if you do choose to read them all in one go, like I did, I don't think you'll be disappointed! This is the perfect anthology for anyone who has a romantic side, and loves happy ever afters!
To be honest, I don't typically read anthologies all the way through, but with this one I did! I did it because I wanted to give the entire anthology a fair shot, and I actually really enjoyed the stories and wanted to keep reading it, too. As I've hinted already, the Second Chances anthology starts off with a story by one of my favourite authors, Christina Lauren! It was titled "The Fisher Men: Levi's Story" and it featured, you guessed it!--Finn's brother, Levi! Levi is one of the secondary characters from their Wild Seasons series, and this anthology was worth reading for me for their story alone. I absolutely LOVED Levi's story and I only wish that it had been longer! haha ;)
Other than Christina Lauren, I hadn't actually read anything by any of the other authors in this anthology until I read their short stories here, but I enjoyed them all. I definitely liked some more than others, but they all had their merits and I think this anthology would be great for all romance readers, especially if you're already a fan of any of these wonderful authors! I was surprised that two of my other standout favourites in the anthology were the historical romances: "Scandalous" by Cassandra Dean, and "The Jilt" by Sharon Sobel. And the last few stories had me tearing up, especially "The Family Tree" by Brandi Willis Schreiber! The final story in the anthology, "Jake's Djinn" by Alyssa Day also surprised me! It's the only fantasy story in the anthology so it felt a little out of place at first, but I loved it (made me want to go back and read the author's books from the same series)!
I think what I loved most about this anthology was that the authors interpreted second chances in different ways. Most of them were what you would expect, couples that had their time together, had some kind of breakup/separation, and they came back together, but they were all still completely unique which I really loved! Other were second chances of another sort, which was interesting! I also loved that there was a mix of genres. Some were contemporary, others were historical, and as I previously mentioned, there was even one fantasy! The age range varied too. A couple of the stories were young adult and were sweeter, light romances, while others were a bit steamier and were aimed at a more mature audience. Most of the stories were m/f romances, but there was one m/m, and all of the stories were definitely adorable! Some of them had me laughing, others had me crying, but they all left me smiling in the end!
Overall, I really loved the Second Chances anthology! I don't think you necessarily have to read all of the stories at once--it would be a great anthology to come back to whenever you were craving a quickie romantic novella, but if you do choose to read them all in one go, like I did, I don't think you'll be disappointed! This is the perfect anthology for anyone who has a romantic side, and loves happy ever afters!
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