The Bookshop of Second Chances

A Novel

By: Jackie Fraser

Narrated by: Ell Potter

A woman desperate to turn a new page heads to the Scottish coast and finds herself locked in a battle of wills with an infuriatingly aloof bookseller in this utterly heartwarming debut, perfect for readers of Evvie Drake Starts Over.

“Humor and charm abound.... [This] love story hits the spot.” (Publishers Weekly)

Thea Mottram is having a bad month. She’s been let go from her office job with no notice - and to make matters even worse, her husband of nearly twenty years has decided to leave her for one of her friends. Bewildered and completely lost, Thea doesn’t know what to do. But when she learns that a distant great uncle in Scotland has passed away, leaving her his home and a hefty antique book collection, she decides to leave Sussex for a few weeks. Escaping to a small coastal town where no one knows her seems to be exactly what she needs.

Almost instantly, Thea becomes enamored with the quaint cottage, comforted by its cozy rooms and lovely but neglected garden. The locals in nearby Baldochrie are just as warm, quirky, and inviting. The only person she can’t seem to win over is bookshop owner Edward Maltravers, to whom she hopes to sell her uncle’s book collection. His gruff attitude - fueled by an infamous, long-standing feud with his brother, a local lord - tests Thea’s patience. But bickering with Edward proves oddly refreshing and exciting, leading Thea to develop feelings she hasn’t experienced in a long time. As she follows a thrilling yet terrifying impulse to stay in Scotland indefinitely, Thea realizes that her new life may quickly become just as complicated as the one she was running from.

©2020 Jackie Fraser (P)2021 Random House Audio

LOVED THIS BOOK!

And loved everything about it! Amazing narrator! And all the emotions are so relatable! Brilliant work! i look forward to more books by this author. she gets it. she gets Life. my two favourite quotes from this book are:
"- Are you lonely?
 - No. I think one has to like people more than I do to be lonely." XD
and:
"If you look at happiness it usually disappears. A shy creature. And also, it's just a layer, isn't it? A moment's joy that's come from nature, sunshine and seaside, overlaying everything else."
SIMPLY BRILLIANT!

Delightful

I loved this book! The characters, their personalities, the humor, the sadness - it was all there in that bookshop. I really enjoyed the narrator's voice too.

Lovely story

I love how the author describes things. Makes me want to look of villages of Scotland and go rent a holiday home. The characters and the way they grew was perfect. The humor was fun too. And I enjoyed the narrator as well

Slow start but an awesome book!

I started listening to this book and thought it was slow. I was ready to stop but I LOVED the narrator and continued. I am so happy I did! This ended up being one of my favorite books of all time and I am an avid reader. I got to love the characters. The story was great. I loved the character development. I have recommended this book to many of my friends!

Lovely , sweet story

Looking for an easy listen and enjoyable story of second chances, this fits the bill.

I love that it was not your typical storyline. Something different for a change.

The story was unique and interesting and the narration was wonderful! So happy to have found this writer.

Thea is a fabulous lead character

So funny; you fall in love with the characters and want them to be happy

Refreshing and satisfying

I quite enjoyed that the couple was older, and child free by choice. So many of the romance novels I stumble upon have women who’s happy ending involves a pregnancy—and I don’t personally relate to this. I loved seeing how this woman decided to fill her life with not only a love-interest, but with a new profession, friends, and taking interest in her family history and the landscape around her.

I also quite enjoyed the writing style and narration. There were often thoughts/sentences left unfinished with interrupting thoughts or conversations. Maybe it’s my adhd but I related to this style and it felt very genuine.

The bookshop of second chances

The story was written very thoughtfully. The characters mingled very nicely. I enjoyed the book.

Easy read

It was cute, I found myself looking forward to listening to the story as it progressed.