Book Review - Second Chance Summer by Jill Shalvis

 

Second Chance Summer ( Cedar Ridge #1) by Jill Shalvis

Published: 30th July 2015

Publisher: Headline Eternal

Pages: 368

Available in Paperback and on Kindle

Order now from Amazon

 

Blurb

Lily's been back in Cedar Ridge for less than ten minutes when she bumps into Aidan, the former love of her life. So much for sneaking back into town unnoticed. And thanks to frizzy hair and armfuls of junk food, she's turning his head for all the wrong reasons.

No one knows why Lily is home after ten years, and she's determined to stay no longer than the summer. But Cedar Ridge and Aidan have other ideas. As they set about persuading Lily to give them a second chance, she finds herself falling under the spell of the Colorado mountains ... and the one man she could never forget.

 

Review

Second Chance Summer is the second novel I’ve read by Jill Shalvis and initially I was a little disappointed as it seemed to mirror the other Jill Shalvis book I have read which was Simply Irresistible. In both of these books the main heroine returns to her hometown after many years away, they then bump into an old boyfriend/ very hot guy and become overcome with lust. Luckily after a few chapters Second Chance Summer became its own story and one which I began to really enjoy.

Lily Danville has returned to Cedar Ridge her childhood home after ten years away. She’s not happy about having to return but an incident with her old job as a celebrity stylist means she’s been blacklisted almost everywhere, until her old friend Jonathon gives her a job at the Cedar Ridge resort salon. The resort is owned by the Kincaid family, one of which Lily had a huge crush on in her younger days and is now desperate to avoid. So who is the first person Lily runs into…literally...yes you’ve guessed it Mr Heartthrob himself Aidan Kincaid and almost instantly the sparks begin to fly.

All Lily wants is to hide away and battle with her guilt from her past but the more she sees Aidan the more obvious that there is some major chemistry between these two. Eventually she gives in but will she be able to conquer her feelings of guilt and will Lily and Aidan get the happy ever after that we are all hoping they will?

I loved the chemistry between the characters in this book. Lily and Aidan obviously had loads of chemistry sizzling between them and it was lovely to see Lily begin to loosen up let Aidan into her heart. I also loved the chemistry of other characters in the book, my favourites having to be the silly antic between the Kincaid brothers, I just loved the scenes with the fancy pants they made each other wear. I also enjoyed the friendly banter between Lily and Jonathon and was lovely to read about two friends so comfortable in each other’s company, even after ten years apart.

Although this is predominantly a romance novel I really enjoyed the background story that was being created around Cedar Ridge and its residents, which has left us with many questions for future books, what has happened to Jacob Kincaid? Will the Kincaid family keep their resort? What is Kenna’s background story? All of these I’m sure will be answered in future books in the series, which I am really looking forward to reading.

Second Chance Summer is a lovely romantic novel sizzling with chemistry and funny moments. It’s a story of romance, friendship, family loyalty and most of all being able to let go of the past and living for today.

I really enjoyed reading this novel and am eagerly awaiting the next Cedar Ridge book My Kind of Wonderful which is released at the end of this year.  I would rate the book 4 out of 5.

Thank you to Headline Eternal for sending me a copy to review.