Book Review: Second Chance Summer by Phillipa Ashley #SecondChanceSummer @PhillipaAshley @PenguinUKBooks @RandomTTours

Synopsis

From the moment Lily Harper arrives at a remote retreat on the breath-taking Scilly Isles, she is itching to get back to civilisation – and her thriving business.

Slowing down simply isn’t in her vocabulary, and so she quickly clashes with the gorgeous but dour Sam who runs the retreat.

Just as Lily is about to give up and leave, disaster strikes, and she is involved in an incident that changes her perspective on everything.

Lily is no longer sure she wants to return to the life she thought she loved. But will she have the courage to give the retreat, and Sam, a second chance?

My Review

When Lily faints at work she is forced to take a break. Her assistant books her a short break at Stark Retreat which is on a remote island where she meets the owner Sam. Is it finally time for Lily to reassess what she wants in life and make some changes?

Having spent time on Stark and Bryher during my reading journey I was a little sad when the book ended and I had to leave these places. They both sounded like the perfect places to relax, recuperate and switch off from the outside world.

As soon as I met Lily I knew that she was a character that I could relate to because like me she is a workaholic. Lily has worked hard in her career. She started an independent business which blossomed and she’s always been grateful for the success. However, Lily does take her job very seriously and in some ways too seriously because she puts her work before everything in her life including herself and her family. It does start to have a negative impact on her health because it results in Lily having a fainting spell because she is overworked and stressed. Although Lily is reluctant to take a break she has no choice in the matter but the glamourous spa resort that she is expecting isn’t what she hoped it would be and to say it’s a work in progress would be an understatement. Not only is Lily the only guest but she is the first guest at Stark Retreat. So Lily decides to leave Stark Retreat as soon as she can but then she meets Sam.

The more time Lily spends on Stark with Sam away from her hectic life she realises it’s the break that she needed. Initially she misses having access to her phone but slowly starts getting use to being disconnected from her old life. It also gives Lily time to reflect and get back in touch with her creative side. Slowly Lily realises that she would like to prolong he visit and spend more time there. When Lily is involved in an incident on the island it puts things into perspective as to how important her life is and she starts to live more freely.

I loved the connection between Lily and Sam. Although they are very different, they’re also very similar and work well together. One of the things that the Lily and Sam have in common is that they are both lonely and loneliness has played a big factor in their lives. Lily is still grieving for her sister and has thrown herself into her work using it as a distraction. Lily might be surrounded by lots of people but she isolates herself from everyone like she is trying to protect herself. Sam has been through something traumatic and he has tried to cope by living in a remote location and working on making the retreat a success. By spending time together Lily and Sam start to trust each other, lower the walls they have built around themselves and start to let love back into their lives again. As for the ending it warmed my heart and filled me with hope.

If you’re looking for a book to escape into then this is one to add to your list.

Author Bio

PHILLIPA ASHLEY is a Sunday Times, Amazon and Audible best-selling author of uplifting romantic fiction. After studying English at Oxford University, she worked as a copywriter and journalist before turning her hand to writing. Since then, her novels have sold well over a million copies and have been translated into numerous languages. Phillipa lives in an English village with her husband, has a grown-up daughter and loves nothing better than walking the Lake District hills and swimming in Cornish coves.