Chances Aren't

by Luke Young

Alternate-cover edition for ASIN B00G0KFZ7C can be found here

Also see alternate-cover edition for ASIN B00G0KFZ7C retitled as Don't Beat Yourself Up

How many lifetimes does it take to get it right?

Stunned by an impending divorce, Ben Hunter's life, which was barely working to begin with, suddenly takes a turn for the worse. After a series of extraordinary events, he's given a chance to fix all of it and in the process comes face to face with the last person he ever expected to see.

Chances Aren't is a funny, sexy story that will take you back. This book is intended for mature audiences due to strong language and sexual content.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Amazon, Novels

248 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 5, 2013

About the author

Want a free book? Download the Luke Young Starter Library! Visit my website:
https://lukeyoungbooks.com

Luke Young is a #1 Amazon Comic Fiction best-selling author and writer of five iBookstore top 300 and Amazon Rom Com best-sellers. He’s a husband, father, dog dad and dark chocolate lover. He writes hilarious and sexy romances with characters his readers fall in love with—from his reverse age-gap Friends with Benefits series to standalone romantic comedies—he loves making his readers laugh out loud.

Luke's Friends With Benefits series has garnered more than 6000 5-Star reviews (between Amazon, Goodreads and the iBookstore). Friends with Partial Benefits, is the sexy and hilarious first book in the series, and it’s been downloaded over 2 million times.

His latest work, Blame it on Emerald, is a contemporary romance stand alone filled with laughter, a full range of emotions, tons of sexual tension and heat.

He loves to hear from readers:

Personal Newsletter: https://bit.ly/LukeYoungNewsletter

Website: https://lukeyoungbooks.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LukeYoungAuthor

Reviews

[Heidi 1820 · Rating 5 out of 5]

What would we change if we were given the chance to go back in time? Author Luke Young has written a unique story that puts a different spin on this age-old question. Ben Lossman comes to a breaking point in his life, but because of a heroic act, is rewarded with the chance to go back in time to change things that put him in this bad situation in the first place. Through a first person narrative, this author gives a funny, realistic and sexy insight into a man who has doubted his life's earlier decisions but soon realizes longing for past fantasies has more than its share of flaws and rewards. This is one of those novels with great characters and a sexy storyline that draws you in and the twists and turns keep you there until the end. Mr. Young holds nothing back with Ben's search for great sex, contentment and love.

[Kellie Maddox-Ward · Rating 2 out of 5]

Yes I picked this up from Amazon for free.
I also decided to get it as it's a romance written by a male, thought I would give it a go.

Was it a "good romance"? No, to me it wasn't...
but it was an alright story.

Long story short?

Emily is leaving Ben.. (personally I would of done it a long time ago, the guy pissed me off badly!)

He whines and whinges a bit then decides to end things... fate however steps in and gives him a "redo" yep the old go back in time trick...

He goes back and is all about sex and just.. stupid shit really...

but in the end we get a HEA that was kinda predictable.

So really what we got was an alright story with a few sex scenes, some sexual education and a few giggles. Quick easy read.

[Amy Barber · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Chances Aren’t" now called "Don't Beat Yourself Up" by Luke Young is a story about second chances. Ben Lossman, after 25 years of marriage, sees his life falling apart and feels like things could have worked out so much better for him and his wife if he had made different choices 25 years ago. He gets a chance that not many get to travel back in time and relive that time and do it differently. I loved this story; it made me think about my own life and wonder, “what if?” I enjoyed the writing, the humor (you will laugh out loud) and the romance. It is a story of time travel, but die hard romantics will love this story because it is a story about love in the end. It’s a story with twists and turns, will keep your attention and has characters that you are going to love.

[Belinda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love a good time travel story!

I really liked this book a lot. I find the whole time travel storyline quite fascinating. What would that be like to go back in time, especially if you were trying to right a wrong? Hmmm, I don't think I'll get the opportunity to find out.
Ben was an interesting character. He was a good guy, just doing the best he could (or at least the best he thought he was capable of). I was pulling for him to get his act together (Spoiler! He did!).
As flaky as Ben was as a 20 year old, his heart was always in the right place. He was doing everything he could to save his wife from making a big mistake with him. As it turned out, he and Emily were destined to be together, after all.
Lots of laughs, some moans (no, not that kind) or should I say eye rolls, and some tears. Except for all the "ums" and "uhs," I thought it was well written. It was an enjoyable read.
You know, I had a funny feeling (call it a hunch) it was based on Mr. Young's own life. When I read the Author's note at the end, it turns out I was right!! 😁

[Kylie Coates · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing!

I truly loved this book! The whole second chance at life- Thinking he wanted something different and how it ends uo turning out was so amazing!

[Cecily Bonney · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 Stars!!!!

Ben Hunter gets the surprise of his life when he walks in the door after a hard day at work. What kind of surprise you may ask? Well, it starts out to seem like a good one when he comes home to his wife cooking his favorite meal, but then she drops the ball on him… She wants a divorce! I am talking, she already has her bags in the car ready to go in 2.5 seconds kind of SURPRISE!!

Now, Ben and Emily have been married for 25 years and have been trying to have a baby for the majority of those years. I know trying to have a child can put a lot of pressure on couples, but to be brutally honest sometimes things happen and we tend to just stop trying. Everyday life gets in the way. So once his wife closes their front door, he goes through the motions wondering what sprang this change within her and then BOOM his entire life literally changes.

But don’t worry we get to see what happened between them because, Ben goes back in time and let me tell you, this is where the story gets really good. This is when he goes back to see if he really did have a chance at happiness with a girl that he had for one night.

Luke Young had me laughing my ass off, spitting my drink out of my mouth, texting my friend different lines, and wishing I could go back and explore my past through every passage. If time travel existed I’d be the first on that machine trying to understand where I went wrong in some areas of my life. So I don’t blame Ben at all! I think everyone wishes they had a second chance at something at least once in their lifetime.

So with all that said I guarantee you that you will love Chances Aren’t and you will not want to put it down. I mean…Older Ben, Younger Ben…both will have you saying “I so could hang out with these two jokers." I have to admit and say that I really want this book to be a movie, yes I said it. I mean, for one I love 80ish movies and Ben goes back to 1989, how cool right?! I know. And two well it’s the perfect story that everyone will want to live out for themselves if they could.

And as for the ending, it will blow your mind and you will never see it coming. After I was done reading I was like holy mother, I love this book. So grab on to your seat belts…figuratively speaking of course…and take a trip back in time with Ben and see where things will land you in the end. You will for sure have the time of your life!

[Heather · Rating 1 out of 5]

I truly wish we were able to give half stars on Goodreads and on Amazon. I wouldn't give this book one star if I could help it. I haven't read many romance books in quite a number of years, but that doesn't skew my perception of a good book. Let alone a good romance book. This was NOT a good "romance" book.

I wanted to read this book because it dealt with time travel. If people read this thinking that it is a good time travel book...and actually believe that it is a good time travel book...I am sorry. I feel sorry for you, it is not. It is also NOT a good romance book. I feel there is NO romance in this book at all. I wanted to read a romance book written by a man because I wanted to see the male perspective. This does NOTHING but drive home the same thoughts that I have about men. They are not romantic. My husband isn't romantic, and I have accepted this. I do not look to change him, and I refuse to change him. IT WON'T HAPPEN! Women who think they can change men will forever be lost. The same thing can be said about men. Thus the reason why I HATED THE FIFTY SHADES books.

This book, only made me think that men only want sex. They only want GOOD sex and a sexy woman to share it with. ALSO! The whole Bi/Lesbian thing...YEAH THAT IS FUCKING BULLSHIT! I do not know one Lesbian or bisexual couple who wants a fucking man to watch them have sex! REALLY! That is all a male perspective issue...unless the woman is into voyeurism.

Towards the end I was going to give this book three stars, when ever Ben saved his soon to be ex-wife. He did that because he was human. However he woke up in the hospital and showed that he had not fucking changed one bit. He was till a pig that only looked for sex. UGH! I disliked this book and went into it, thinking that it would be good. (Don't EVEN get me started on the whole time travel bullshit!!!!)

This book has just about turned me off of romance novels. I know I will not look to reading "romance: novels written by male authors ever again. This just made me sick.

[Romanticallyinclined · Rating 1 out of 5]

So... the plot is a neat idea. The story follows Ben, a middle-aged man whose wife leaves him (because he's an insufferable selfish ass) at the beginning of the story. Ben realizes that he hates his life, his body, his personality, his wife, his job, etc. He makes a series of bad choices and is divinely given a chance to right some wrongs. There's a HEA, obviously.

Neat idea in theory.

Throughout the book, I HATED Ben. Not only is he an insufferable ass, but he doesn't think, doesn't listen, doesn't learn from those around him or his past experiences/mistakes. The book is written from his perspective, and I was just gritting my teeth the entire time. I almost stopped reading several times. I think he was supposed to come off as adorably blunt and fliter-less, but he's just annoying and selfish and whiny.

There's time travel. As a big sci-fi geek, I had a really hard time buying this element of the book. It was just not well thought out. There were so many times in this story that I had to keep from yelling "You can't do that!!! Everyone knows you can't do that!"

The HEA is confusing as all hell. One second Ben is back in present time but has no recollection of the past 20+ years, the next he's making comments that indicate he's suddenly remembered everything. He continues to be an insufferable ass and his wife and friend Laura just smile and shake their heads at him.

There's some issues with continuity. Ben mets Emily when he's 20-21. The book begins when he's in his 40s. He says they got married within 2 years of meeting and have been married for 10 years. ...that doesn't add up!

I was a bit leery of the book after reading some of the reviews about how truly awful Ben is, but was hopeful. Ultimately, not for me and not really enjoyable.

[S.H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an interesting book. It was intelligent, funny (hilarious in some parts), sexy, insightful...surprising. It was a REALLY new take on romance & also an inventive journey of self-awareness & self-improvement.

I got this book because Luke Young wrote it. I just love his works. His "voice" just speaks to me. I never read the description or any reviews. So, I had no expectations. Kind of a "blind read" for me.

I enjoyed it from the 1st page but didn't get too "into" the book for a bit. I love the random thoughts that the character had. Things I can relate to like his pondering of the various pastas. I just "got" him. I also share his passion for food & sex.

As the book progressed I got more emotionally invested in Ben & his story. By the end, I really loved that dude. Although there was some unbelievable things in this story, it was told in a realistic way that was easy for me to relate to. The characters were so human. Ben could be annoying, silly, selfish & negative. However, in the end, he was a really good guy with a good heart.

The views on youth & aging were interesting but not always comforting. Maybe a bit too real. As always, in Luke's writing, the sex is brutally honest, funny & has heat. I also enjoyed the action/suspense parts! What a surprise. What a fun ride!

This was a truly interesting, satisfying journey. I loved the humor. I loved the ending. I really loved this book. It made me look at my own life a bit differently. How often can you say that about a romantic comedy?

[Josée · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wasn't going to leave a review, just my rating of 5 stars, but after reading the one-star review, I feel I must. I might have given it four stars to start with, but to even out the one-star review I'm gladly giving it an extra star just for that.
I loved this book, I read it in a few hours, couldn't put it down. I just had to find out what happened to Ben and to Emily and with such a wacky twist I was dying to find out how it ended. It was fun, funny even at times, it was well written and the author did a good job of making his main character, Ben, likable even with flaws.
I am very sad to see that someone would take up space to write a review on a book based not the book's merits but on her own life's disappointments regarding men and sex in general. I found that review offensive and really uncalled for. Everyone's entitled to their opinion on a book. This particular review was not an opinion based solely on the book.
This book deserves praise and I am happy to recommend it to anyone who wants to have a good laugh and read an interesting well-thought-out story. I read hundreds of books a year and this one is definitely up there.
Should anyone wish to know if my husband is romantic, how I feel about gay sex or if I think men in general are pigs or not, feel free to comment and I'll be happy to answer but I don't think my views on those things have anything remotely to do with this book.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got an ARC of the book and I wanted to write a review as well. I'll try not to include spoilers.
This story has a unique plot which most people would find intriguing; getting a chance to go back and have a redo of a pivotal point in your past. At first, I thought, because he was so depressed and feeling worthless, thinking everyone would be better off without him, etc. that it would be like "It's a Wonderful Life" but ... no. He is not merely an observer but a participant. He is also not stepping into the being of his younger self in that earlier time. He actually goes mano a mano with himself! Luke throws out all the usual malarky about destroying the space /time continuum if he encounters his younger self when he goes back for that "redo"! Complications ensue.
This story was more introspective than other Luke Young stories I have read; even melancholy. But there are, of course, some moments of guy humor thrown in there. And sex. Or sex talk. Or reminiscences of sex.
In my opinion, this is not a comedy, a tragedy, sci-fi, a sentimental story or really a romance. It is more a cautionary tale to live life fully and engage meaningfully with your family and friends and to strive to do your best, not just coast along, getting by, afraid to commit to the struggle that is life and love.
If you had a chance for a do-over, would you take it? Or would you say, nope, I've lived my life and will accept the consequences and rewards for my actions and decisions?

[PepsiGirl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picked this story having read a few of Young's other stories. I thought it was entertaining and out of control. Getting the guys perspective of how things are is refreshing after reading my typical stories. So I enjoyed this wild ride not knowing where it was going to go. Lots of unexpected things happen, as Ben's life spirals out of control. He plans a way of escape but he can't even pull that off with divine intervention and all. His second chance proves he's got a lot to learn. He proceeds to muck up his life all over again in a new way, and things don't go according to plan. I won't lie, Ben was a scoundrel had no morals and little self control but yet I found myself still liking him. You know there's always a guy like that that you know, that you say he's such a tool, as you laugh. That would be Ben.

[Krissys Bookshelf Reviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

i was fairly surprised by this book both when i got it because the cover doesn't begin to give you the impression of what the story is really about and two because the story and the writing itself was far beyond my expectations. luke has written a fabulous story well worth reading asking the age old question of if you could .... you sure find out.

[Bukcrz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think if I was not very aware that the author was a male name and that I was expecting a bit different voice because of the said awareness, I might have enjoyed this book.
That being said, the overall message of the book was universal and convincing. Too often we second guess ourselves when things aren't going our way. The interaction of the main character with 'himself' is also quite entertaining and realistic to say the least. Like I said, without my above expectation (maybe call it prejudice) I would have loved this book.
I guess self-discovery isn't just for kids who just left home.
Love this quote: "Youth is truly wasted on the young."

[Donna Bond · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a Wonderful Life meets...well...Judd Apatow...

This novel is that rarity: a romance not just written by a man, but written with a decidedly male voice and sensibility. Author Young takes on a suicidal man's time-traveling adventure to his 1980's college days, where he's given the opportunity to "do-over" the one big "mistake" that led to his present-day predicament...and gives him, and us, far more than he ever bargained for. Filled with laugh-out-loud moments, smart dialogue, unexpected plot twists, and an ending that was as surprising as it was satisfying. Great weekend read.

[C · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy author Luke Young's humor, character development and skill to create a winning story. Anyone attempting "time travel" angle in a book faces a great challenge to not only make it work but to be good as well. I read that successful combination in this book and recommend everyone to enjoy as well.

[WiLoveBooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this. So funny. It is a guy romance filled with guy humor. The story starts out by showing us just how pathetic Ben's life is, then he gets a chance to change things. Makes you wonder: What would happen if you had a chance to go back and do things over? Just a really fun read. Different and funny and I couldn't put it down.

[Nichelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book! Well written comedy that keeps you laughing and turning pages. Think about it...if you could go back in time and talk to your younger self what lengths would you go to to ensure a better future? Oh the things I would change! So many questions stirred up from this wonderful book. I highly recommend.

[Connie Bredernitz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ending

Really enjoyed this book, in the beginning. When the time travel started, I was a little put off, but kept reading. Then I was engrossed all the way to the ending. I must of missed something, I am totally confused about the ending.

[Lindsey]

Amazon Freebie 11/16/13

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was so different from any that I have read before. Ben learned a lot when he traveled back.

[-Edamommie-]

http://www.amazon.com/Chances-Arent-L... FREE on AMAZON 11/19

[Bhupinder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ben gets another chance to go back in time and make choices given second chance. I read it in one day , could not resist to give it another day. I downloaded free copy of it from amazon.

[Andrea Doss · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was not a book I was expecting from the guy who write the friends with benefits story but it was still great. It answers the what if question we all wonder about. I really enjoyed it.

[Kimmi Bailey · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fun story! I so loved it. I look forward to reading more from Luke Young.

[Becky Pierce · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story - kind of long and confusing at times. Glad I stuck with it.

[Louisa · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wasn't thrilled.

[Jilly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Can't say I really liked Ben, either one of them. But I enjoyed the book none the less

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was ok, I liked how it ended, but for most of the book I was just wanting it to be over

[Mike Fordice · Rating 1 out of 5]

Starts off OK but goes downhill quickly. Not worth the time.