A review by hannavos18
The Bookshop of Second Chances by Jackie Fraser
4.0
I felt like this book had a very slow start, and I almost wasn’t sure if it was for me. But the second two thirds of the book make up for that.
I felt like Thea and Edward’s relationship was built up in a very realistic way. I liked that there weren’t crazy fireworks from the beginning; it made their romance feel tangible and believable.
Thea’s voice felt very practical and relatable. When she talks about her divorce, about feeling alone and unmoored, and about hating herself for getting too close to Edward, I felt like I could really empathize with her. I like that she had a normal, or “common”, air about her. Her desire to wallow in old-man pajamas and woolly socks was as humorous as it was relatable.
Edward seems to have built a reputation for himself as the local grump, yet there are still people who love him as he is. I like that Thea learned to appreciate his grumpiness, rather than try to change him. When he became more cheerful as the result of falling in love, it felt organic in that Thea had not been forcing him to “lighten up”.
I appreciated how Thea endeavored to help the relationship between Edward and Charles, although I did feel like it might have been a bit unrealistic to come back from some of the things they’d done to each other. Edward had slept with all of his brother’s serious girlfriends and wives—how could either of them move on from that?? I was surprised Thea could get over that so well, and with just one conversation. And after Charles locked Thea in a dark room with him and forced her to have a threatening conversation, I felt I would have been okay with her abandoning her efforts to get the brothers to get along, if only in the name of her own safety. But she doesn’t, and I think that speaks to her character’s desire to build harmony after having lost so much of her own life.
Overall, I liked the enemies-to-lovers theme, and the slow build of romance. I liked that the characters were messy and realistic. It made it easier to feel their pain and their triumphs.
I felt like Thea and Edward’s relationship was built up in a very realistic way. I liked that there weren’t crazy fireworks from the beginning; it made their romance feel tangible and believable.
Thea’s voice felt very practical and relatable. When she talks about her divorce, about feeling alone and unmoored, and about hating herself for getting too close to Edward, I felt like I could really empathize with her. I like that she had a normal, or “common”, air about her. Her desire to wallow in old-man pajamas and woolly socks was as humorous as it was relatable.
Edward seems to have built a reputation for himself as the local grump, yet there are still people who love him as he is. I like that Thea learned to appreciate his grumpiness, rather than try to change him. When he became more cheerful as the result of falling in love, it felt organic in that Thea had not been forcing him to “lighten up”.
I appreciated how Thea endeavored to help the relationship between Edward and Charles, although I did feel like it might have been a bit unrealistic to come back from some of the things they’d done to each other. Edward had slept with all of his brother’s serious girlfriends and wives—how could either of them move on from that?? I was surprised Thea could get over that so well, and with just one conversation. And after Charles locked Thea in a dark room with him and forced her to have a threatening conversation, I felt I would have been okay with her abandoning her efforts to get the brothers to get along, if only in the name of her own safety. But she doesn’t, and I think that speaks to her character’s desire to build harmony after having lost so much of her own life.
Overall, I liked the enemies-to-lovers theme, and the slow build of romance. I liked that the characters were messy and realistic. It made it easier to feel their pain and their triumphs.