Book Review: The Second Chance Year

The Second Chance Year by Melissa Wiesner
Publication Date: December 5, 2023
Publisher: Forever
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Publisher’s Description:

Sadie Thatcher’s life has fallen apart in spectacular fashion. In one fell swoop, she managed to lose her job, her apartment, and her boyfriend—all thanks to her big mouth. So when a fortune teller offers her one wish, Sadie jumps at the chance to redo her awful year. Deep down, she doesn’t believe magic will fix her life, but taking a leap of faith, Sadie makes her wish, opens her eyes, and . . . nothing has changed. And then, in perhaps her dumbest move yet, she kisses her brother’s best friend, Jacob.

When Sadie wakes up the next morning, she’s in her former apartment with her former boyfriend, and her former boss is expecting her at work. Checking the date, she realizes it’s January 1 . . . of last year.  As Sadie navigates her second-chance year, she begins to see the red flags she missed in her relationship and in her career. Plus, she keeps running into Jacob, and she can’t stop thinking about their kiss . . . the one he has no idea ever happened. Suddenly, Sadie begins to wonder if her only mistake was wishing for a second chance.

Sadie has just had a Very Bad Year. Her temper has caused her boyfriend to break up with her and for her to lose her job as a pastry chef as well. Plus, she kissed her brother’s best friend Jacob, which was probably not a good idea. At a New Year’s Eve party, a fortune teller casts a spell that wipes out the previous year. The next morning when she wakes up, it’s the first day of what was her Very Bad Year. She has a chance to do things differently, so she doesn’t lose her job and boyfriend. And kissing Jacob never happened.

As Sadie relives the year, she starts to wonder if the Very Bad Year wasn’t so bad after all.

This book was cute. I loved Jacob. He was so shy and sweet. I thought it was clever that since. Sadie was a pastry chef, all the metaphors she thought were food related. For example:

“I blush brighter than a red velvet cake.”

The Second Chance Year is a great New Year’s themed book to read anytime.

***The Second Chance Year was one of my Book of the Month Club selections. You can join Book of the Month with this link and get a hardcover book for only $5 with no obligation to continue your membership.***