My enormous thanks to Becky Hunter for sending me a copy of The Second Chance by Charlotte Butterfield in return for an honest review. Slightly later than intended, I’m delighted finally to share that review today.
It’s just over two years since Charlotte provided Linda’s Book Bag with a wonderful guest post in celebration of By This Time Tomorrow in a post you’ll find here.
Published by Harper Collins imprint Avon on 9th May 2024, The Second Chance is available for purchase here.
The Second Chance
Nell has always known her expiry date.
After a psychic predicted her death date twenty years ago, she has lived life accepting she would never see forty – embracing adventure and travelling the world, choosing fun over commitment and laying down roots.
So, when the fateful day comes, Nell feels ready. She sends five excruciatingly honest confessions to her sister, parents and past loves, knowing she won’t be around to face the consequences. Then, with her heart laid bare, all that’s left to do is check into a glamorous hotel and wait for the inevitable…
But when Nell unexpectedly wakes up the next morning broke, single and very much alive, she must figure out exactly how to seize this second chance at life. And then it also hits her:
What on earth happens now that everyone knows how she really feels?
My Review of The Second Chance
Nell is preparing to die.
The Second Chance is a super story of what is truly important in life and I enjoyed every moment of reading it.
The plot races along as Nell’s expected demise doesn’t occur and she has to come to terms with the consequences of her past life and her recent actions. There are relatively few truly dramatic moments and that is the absolute strength of the novel because it is in the ordinary and prosaic that Nell discovers the truth about life and herself. I loved the way Charlotte Butterfield mixed both humour and emotion in a pitch perfect balance. There’s a super thread of Nell’s relationships with Tom and Greg that adds a frisson of excitement and great romantic interest too.
Nell is fantastic. At times I loathed her for her selfish and unthinking attitude, at times I admired her vivacity and her ability to find the best in the most desperate of situations, and by the end of The Second Chance I loved and appreciated her unreservedly.
However, it was Juno who appealed to me most. She is the living embodiment of Jenny Joseph’s poem Warning. I loved her unconventional attire, her outrageous stories, her incisive intuition and her vulnerability as dementia affected her. She is so sensitively and authentically developed that I found her quite wonderful.
There’s a great balance too in the men in the story with Greg and Tom contrasting brilliantly with Tony and Ray so that The Second Chance feels populated with real people rather than mere characters in a story.
Add in thought provoking themes of family and friendship, the impact of the past on our present lives, the way fate has an ability to intervene in our lives and scupper our plans and Charlotte Butterfield shows us how life is for living, doing our best but not forgetting those we love. I thought her story was fabulous.
The Second Chance is a brilliant escapist read. It’s filled with warmth, human understanding and humour. Reading it I was completely absorbed and transported away from the trials of my own life. I have certainly been convinced that we need to be more Nell – and more Juno!
About Charlotte Butterfield
A former magazine editor, Charlie Butterfield was born in Bristol and studied English at Royal Holloway. She moved to Dubai by herself on a one-way ticket with one suitcase in 2005 and left twelve years later with a husband, three children and a 40ft shipping container. She now lives in the Cotswolds, where she is a freelance writer and novelist.
For more information, follow Charlotte on Twitter @CharlieJayneB and find her on Facebook and Instagram.