Escape to paradise with New York Times & USA Today Bestselling author, Sandra Edwards, in her latest modern-day, romantic fairytale, Second Chance Bride!
After being jilted, practically at the altar, Genie Wainwright heads to Hawaii to escape the well-meant pity party her friends and family are bound to throw on her behalf. What she never expects is to find someone to help her mend her broken heart.
Donnie Taylor, owner of the posh Sapphire Bay Resort, has no interest in marriage—until he meets an unforgettable guest at the hotel. What starts out as a kindhearted gesture brings Donnie something he never expects—a chance at love!
*Second Chance Bride is a short novella of approximately 11,000 words. About 46 pages.
NEW YORK TIMES & USA TODAY Bestselling Author Sandra Edwards writes award-winning romance in a variety of subgenres such as paranormal (mostly time travel and reincarnation), contemporary, and suspense. She lives in the U.S. (west coast) with her husband, two kids, four dogs and one very temperamental feline. Sandra's books often push the envelope and step outside the boundaries of conventional romance. For more info on Sandra's books, visit her website at sandrawrites.com.
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Second Hand Bride by Sandra Edwards is a 2014 SE Press publication. I was provided a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Being left at the alter is one of those nightmares that could have a person waking up drenched in a cold sweat. For Genie, it's no nightmare. It's really happening. So, now there is nothing left to do by lick her wounds and pull herself back together again. Instead of going to Hawaii on her honeymoon, she makes a few changes and travels to Sapphire Bay resort, a quiet hotel out of the way in Oahu. The Owner of the hotel is Donnie Taylor, a man sick and tired of women only seeing him as a meal ticket. So, when his mother points Genie out to him and explains that the lady is suffering from some serious heartache, Donnie puts aside his reservations and extends a hand of friendship to Genie while she is staying at his resort.
This is a really sweet short story . ( Too short to be a novella IMO) Right away my heart goes out to Genie. I can't imagine what a blow it would be on so many levels to be left out in the cold on your wedding day. But, what makes the story so cute is Donnie. Here is a guy that wants someone to love him for himself and not his money. He makes a real effort to keep his guard up and then is blindsided by Genie. Donnie falls fast and hard but is keeping a little secret from Genie that could blow everything up in his face as a result.
I read this book on a lazy weekend morning while enjoying my coffee. It was a nice way to start out the day and left me with pleasant thoughts all day. As I stated earlier, this is a very short book and so things move along at warp speed. There is not a lot of explanations about the called of wedding for example and not a lot of build up to the HEA. If you are looking for a great story for your commute, break or lunch hour this one is a great choice. 3.5 rounded to 4
Second Chance Bride is by Sandra Edwards. It is a typical romance that takes no time to read and everything comes out right in the end. The book is a fun book to read. Genie Wainwright is devastated about being jilted almost at the altar. She cashes in her honeymoon and takes a trip to another Hawaiian island to escape her well-meaning friends and family. She needs a chance to unwind and figure out what she is going to say. She doesn’t expect to enjoy herself on this trip. Donnie Taylor is the owner of Sapphire Bay Resort. He simply sets out to make sure every guest has everything they need to have a memorable visit to the islands. When he meets Genie, he decides to help her mend her broken heart while she is here. His kindheartedness turns into love as he gets to know her. Will she reciprocate?
**The novella was sent to be my the publisher in exchange for my honest review**
This was an okay read. It's definitely not something that will knock your socks off, but it IS a cute read that will cleanse your palate.
Because this is a novella, it is a short read, which can also make for one of two things: a perfectly developed plot with characters or quite the opposite. This story is a mixture of both. The characters of Genie and Donnie are interesting enough, particularly for a "fairy-tale romance", but because it's such a short novella, there isn't much time or room for them to grow. So for the entirety of the read, everything felt extremely fast for me.
Now, I know that the argument will be that "it's a novella, you can't expect depth", but then I will argue back that if a short story can make me feel things and feel them brilliantly with excellent character or plot development (maybe even both), then why can't a novella?
Edwards does paint a pretty picture with this story and there were a lot of fun moments. I enjoyed the setting of the story, I enjoyed Donnie's mother. I even enjoyed Donnie and Genie, I just feel that Edwards could have done more with them.
Now according to Edwards' website, this is the first "book" in the new Sapphire Bay series, with the second book (or novella, it's unclear for me at this point) coming this Christmas season. There's nothing alluding to the fact that the same characters will be in the second book, so I don't know what to really think in regards to the potential development of Genie and Donnie -- they may have reached their peak. If that's the case, then that is disheartening to me because there wasn't a lot for me to grab onto when it came to these two. I needed more.
With that being said, I am glad that I read the novella. I appreciate it for what it is. Fluff. It's a palate cleansing read that allows you to escape for a brief -- very brief -- moment in time. That's not necessarily a bad thing. It's not what I was expecting when I picked this up, but it's not bad. We need books/stories like this. Sometimes books are just there to make us feel good. And that's it. Did I feel good after reading this story? Yes. Then, mission accomplished.
After being left at the altar on her wedding day, jilted bride Genie Wainwright changes the planned honeymoon destination from Maui and escapes to the posh Hawaiian Sapphire Bay Resort on the island of Oahu to mend her broken heart.
Donnie Taylor comes from old Texas money and is the owner of the Sapphire Bay Resort. He enjoys living in paradise and running the resort, but he hasn't met a woman that he would want to spend the rest of his life with.
With a little matchmaking help from Donnie's mother Marla, Genie and Donnie meet and get an unexpected chance at love.
Second Chance Bride is wonderful romantic novella that transports the reader to the tropical paradise island of Hawaii where they follow the unexpected fairytale romance of two people who weren't looking for love. This sweet little romance is the perfect escape on a lazy summer afternoon, the story has just the right amount of romance, humor, and a rich description of the tropical island setting that will easily draw you into the story and leave a smile on your face.
Second Chance Bride, by Sandra Edwards is incredible. I give it 4 stars. Poor Genie was jilted at the altar. She cashed in her honeymoon trip to Hawaii to grab a few extra days at a posh Sapphire Bay Resort on one of the islands. What she didn't intend to happen is finding love while there with the owner Donnie Taylor. Donnie also did not intend to find love, especially not at the first site kind of love. His mama pushed Donnie into asking Genie out on a date. She accepted.
Second Chance Bride, really is one of those fairy tale type ending books. Jilted bride not looking for anything but some solitude, and a man that that just was too busy to be interested in romance.
However, I am a fairytale kinda gal and love a good ending. So, I won't let you in on that. You will just have to buy your own copy of Second Chance Bride.
** I received a copy of Second Chance Bride for free in hopes I would give an honest review on my blog.
Second Chance Bride is a quick read as this is a Novella. Now sometimes I dislike novellas because there are hurried but I absolutely did not find that the case whilst reading this book until the very end. Yes sadly I thought when they got together that night it was smidge hurried. The epilogue was much needed and the perfect way to wrap up Genie and Jay's story.
The characters are easy to like. I did think Jay said 'Mother' a bit too often but hey if that's his only fault we can totally get over that ;-) Sandra pulls you into the story quick and the initial scene when she's in the room on her own had you routing for her immediately.
This is what I class as an old fashioned style romance, very sweet and cozy read. Nothing graphic but very romantic and I have to say sometimes it's a very pleasant to ride along with an endearing romantic read.
I enjoyed this and I would recommend for a lovely, feel good quick read.
This novella was given to me in exchange for an honest review. Genie Wainwright thought her life was perfect. She had planned a fabulous wedding and was waiting to get married to the man of her dreams. The man of her dreams, however, had other plans...he jilted her. What is a girl to do when she had all her dreams crashing down on her? Well, Genie cashed in her honeymoon and headed to a different Hawaiian resort to nurse her wounds. What she didn't expect to find was Texan, Donnie Taylor. Genie wasn't looking for love, she wasn't even sure if she was interested in dating but she couldn't deny the sparks the Donnie produced. Donnie had been dodging his mother's attempts at setting him up with guests, but once he lays eyes on Genie he suddenly isn't averse to his mother's matchmaking attempts. This is a very short, sweet novella that was a quick, fun read.
I can't imagine being stood up at your wedding which is what Genie had to endure. But she decided to have some fun anyway and takes her honeymoon ticket to Hawaii and try to forget her ex fiancé and men in general.
On arrival she meets Donnie, a handsome guy who has all the right moves and he may be just what Genie needs to get past her unhappiness, he's handsome and fun, and they get on great. Genie needs to watch her heart!
And Donnie is not usually the type of guy to settle down, but after meeting Genie and spending time with her, he's thinking maybe he is. But he hasn't been very honest with Genie, he doesn't just work in the hotel....he owns it.
This was a nice, if not short, novella. It was sweet and romantic, and I was gunning for Genie and Donnie to finally become a couple. A very nice read.
This is a perfect little escape. If you are looking for a break from reality for an hour or two, this book takes you to a posh Hawaii resort. The sweet love-at-first-sight romance is a quick and delightful read that transports you to the scene of the couple's meeting. I'm not often a fan of novellas because I feel incomplete at the end, but this book didn't make me feel that way. It has just enough detail and an interesting story. Read it after a long day at work (like I did) and feel a bit better afterwards because you feel like you went on a mini-vacation and fell in love.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
After facing every brides nightmare on their big day by getting jilted at the altar.
This very nightmare happens to Genie Wainwright. She was planning on going to Hawaii but she changes her plans and go to Sapphire Bay resort, which is in Oahu and is completely out of the way.
Donnie Taylor is the owner of the resort but increasingly getting fed up with women who only want him for his money.
Donnie's mum spots Genie and convinces Donnie to ask her out. So with the help of Donnie's mum meddling both Genie and Donnie get a second chance at love.
This is like reading a beautiful fairytale between 2 people that never expected to find love in a hotel resort.
5 Star Review I read this book as part of the Sapphire Bay Romance Box Set and loved it. Second Chance Bride is just that. Imagine being stood up at the alter .... Genie decided after her no wedding fiasco to take herself off to Hawaii but a late change of plans brings her to Sapphire Bay. Donnie is the owner of resort and he hates that every single woman who visits the resort is after his money, is Genie any different......, This is a sweet short romance that is perfect for a holiday read. Sandra Edwards has a way with words she makes you feel like you have visited Hawaii and you will feel like Sapphire Bay is real and a holiday destination you want to visit. Loved it
When Genie is stood up at her wedding, she decided to cash in her honeymoon to Hawaii and go there herself, to avoid the people in town. There she meets the owner of the resort and what both did not expect happened. Donnie gave her comfort and they felt in love. Donnie's Mother plays a role it in too, besides that she is a scream, she also pushed Donnie in asking Genie out. Sandra is describing Hawaii so well I love her books, this is another great one! she does magic with her words.
Can you imagine being stood up at the altar? Well, using the honeymoon trip to Hawaii would kind of perk things up! The author gave us a beautiful description of the hotel, the grounds, and Hawaii. Reading this short story was like taking a vacation without leaving my house.
I was enjoying the story so much and the characters that I hated to see it come to an end. If you are looking for a short romantic read, this is a very good one!
Second Chance Bride: I loved the romance, the style of the story, the Hot man and second chances. I loved that even though she got dumped that she took a chance on loved again. She had the perfect setting! I always though Hawaii was magic and it can always been in a book! I just loved the whole concept of the love! They both took a chance on Love and it really worked out! It was a beautiful romance! Its every ones dream!
Genie Wainwright, a jilted bride, escapes the embarrassment and pity of friends and family by going on her honeymoon to Hawaii alone. There she meets a nice woman who introduces Genie to her son, Donnie Taylor a, confirmed bachelor. No spoilers from me, I highly recommend this quick and very enjoyable book.
I was given a copy by Sandra Edwards. My heart broke for Genie when she was left at the alter. Genie goes to Hawaii to try and put her self back together.
Donnie owns the hotel Genie is staying. She meets Marla Donnie's mother. Marla plays match maker. Thanks to Marla true love is found.
What a sweet mini story. I was extremely sad when I finished it simply because I wanted to stay in the love filled world that this story created. It ended very simply and did not leave you with questions or any form of cliff hangar. Second Chance Bride was a breath of fresh air. I would recommend this story to anyone who is looking for an easy read of a wonderful romance.
Alright, so while this wasn't a book that thrilled me and left me dying to go read more works by this author, it wasn't necessarily bad either. It started out showing promise, but, in my opinion, just didn't execute the story and develop the relationship between the characters very well. Maybe if the book was longer and included more in it...
aww! LOVED this sweet novella! short, sweet, lovely! fun and perfect! Taylor was such an amazing, sweet, man! I almost wished it was more in depth but for a novella it was perfect! right amount of each character, just enough sappy/sweet to make you smile :D with no tears! great afternoon read!
I really enjoyed this short story, Genie is dumped at the altar and her best friend convinces her to change the honeymoon and still go to have her recovery somewhere nice. She meets Donnie and can't believe her feelings for him, this is able to whisk you away and it really is a feel good story.
oh what a beautiful romantic story. Genie gets jilted at the alter so goes on honeymoon alone. there she meets Donnie. A case of love at first sight. absolutely loved this story and just perfect for a short novel
A short and sweet read. I think it was a little too short to really have any good character or plot development, but I liked the MCs as much as I can from what I found out about them in this short. A little unrealistic, perhaps, but a nice, simple and sweet love story nonetheless.
The story behind in heartache and follows with a happy ending. Genie's adventure is quick moving but it works for her. This could have had more substance but it was still a decent book.
Weird, sloppy, and downright inadequate, SECOND CHANCE BRIDE is an attempt at romance, but does not hit the mark. This novella is extremely unrealistic and even boring.
Hey, it took place in Hawaii.
Oh wait, it didn't even feel like the story took place on a tropical island.
A light but charming romance. Very well written. A young lady is dropped at the alter so she uses her tickets ( and cashes one in to upgrade ) and goes to a resort in Hawaii. There she falls in love. It was an enjoyable read.
Very much enjoyed this book , first time I read this Author. I loved all the characters in this book.They were fun and quirky at times.The storyline had sweet and colorful turns , but that's what made it great. Can't wait for the next book. Yes this can really hsppen in real life.