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Sweet Valley High #53
Second Chance
Just like everyone else...
Quiet, determined Kristin Thompson knows exactly what she wants from life. Since she was little, she has had one goal—to become a world-class tennis player. Now all she has to do is win one more tournament and she'll qualify to turn professional.
Then handsome Bruce Patman invites her out and sweeps her off her feet. But there's not enough room in Kristin's life for a boyfriend and professional tennis. She begins to wonder if a romance with Bruce will make her happier than winning the tournament ever could. Will Kristin give up the dream of a lifetime to live like an ordinary teenager?
Quiet, determined Kristin Thompson knows exactly what she wants from life. Since she was little, she has had one goal—to become a world-class tennis player. Now all she has to do is win one more tournament and she'll qualify to turn professional.
Then handsome Bruce Patman invites her out and sweeps her off her feet. But there's not enough room in Kristin's life for a boyfriend and professional tennis. She begins to wonder if a romance with Bruce will make her happier than winning the tournament ever could. Will Kristin give up the dream of a lifetime to live like an ordinary teenager?
133 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published February 1, 1989
20 people are currently reading
393 people want to read
About the author
Francine Pascal
1,139 books1,843 followersFrancine Paula Pascal was an American author best known for her Sweet Valley series of young adult novels. Sweet Valley High, the backbone of the collection, was made into a television series, which led to several spin-offs, including The Unicorn Club and Sweet Valley University. Although most of these books were published in the 1980s and 1990s, they remained so popular that several titles were re-released decades later.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
December 24, 2014
Welcome to "Wow, This Girl is Not a Pushover" or SVH #53, "Second Chance."
Here are the book's two major players (see what I did there?), Kristin Thompson, Miss Almost Pro-Tennis Player and Bruce Patman, Big Asshole on Campus, to narrate this story for you:
Kristen: So I'm new to this whole SVH book thing. Who are you, exactly?
Bruce: Ha! That's funny. Normally I go around trying to rape woman but, as far as you are concerned, I am a sexy and filthy rich tennis player.
Kristen: Sweet. Anything else I should know? Like who is that Liz chick trying to get me to join her Big Sister program?
Bruce: *pulls out a script from his back pocket* Liz and her identical twin sister, Jessica, are 5 foot 6 blondes with size 6 figures and eyes that are the color of the Pacific ocean. Liz and Jess only look the same, however. They are really as different as night and day. If you get to be in more than one book you'll learn that Liz is a pushover who NEVER breaks a promise. Jess is a sociopath who would be rejecting you right now if you weren't at least almost as pretty as she is.
Kristen: Thanks, but I already picked up on Liz being a pushover.
Bruce: So, what's your tragic life story? And I'm not exaggerating. Every girl in this series has one apart from Liz and Jess, who are perfect and better than you are. Jess needs to know your weakness and Liz needs something for her eyes to mist up at.
Kristen: *snickers* They're not better than me at tennis. Anyway, my mom died in a plane crash on her way to play Wimbledon. Ever since, I've gone balls to the wall with this tennis thing, because it's the only way to keep my mother's memory alive. My dad has turned into Lindsay Lohan's mom. I swear he'll have a heart attack if I do things a normal teenager would do.
Bruce: Well, you should know that I'm a great distraction. And I'm not going to give up. So, how about we go to my huge shindig at the end of the month?
Kristen: I'm busy as hell. But then again...
Bruce: Great, so you'll be there?
Kristen: Why not? I don't really know what I want anymore.
......................................
(Kristen was ignored at Bruce's shindig and is talking to her father after losing her chance to be on a pro team by botching an important match.)
Kristen: Dad, Bruce is stupid. Why didn't anyone warn me about him?
Dad: Because they don't care enough about you, Kris. You'll never be heard from again after this book. Neither will I.
Kristen: I love you, Dad. You always keep it real and tell it like it is.
Dad: So we're cool, then? We've got everything tied up into a happy bow? You know that I really don't love tennis more than you, right?
Kristen: Of course.
...................................
(The girl who beat Kristen in her important match has sprained her ankle and given Kristen a shot at being on the pro team. Bruce enters the scene again.)
Bruce: Kris, why did you leave my party early last night? Nobody does that to me.
Kristin: Don't call me that, asshole!
Bruce: But, I ---
Kristin: No, close your mouth. Listen up. This Sweet Valley bullshit is for the birds. I'm on a pro team, so I no longer have time to be a petty plot device in these stories anymore. You'll never hear from me again, because I actually am smart, driven and have a backbone. Peace out, motherchucker.
****End novel.****
Here are the book's two major players (see what I did there?), Kristin Thompson, Miss Almost Pro-Tennis Player and Bruce Patman, Big Asshole on Campus, to narrate this story for you:
Kristen: So I'm new to this whole SVH book thing. Who are you, exactly?
Bruce: Ha! That's funny. Normally I go around trying to rape woman but, as far as you are concerned, I am a sexy and filthy rich tennis player.
Kristen: Sweet. Anything else I should know? Like who is that Liz chick trying to get me to join her Big Sister program?
Bruce: *pulls out a script from his back pocket* Liz and her identical twin sister, Jessica, are 5 foot 6 blondes with size 6 figures and eyes that are the color of the Pacific ocean. Liz and Jess only look the same, however. They are really as different as night and day. If you get to be in more than one book you'll learn that Liz is a pushover who NEVER breaks a promise. Jess is a sociopath who would be rejecting you right now if you weren't at least almost as pretty as she is.
Kristen: Thanks, but I already picked up on Liz being a pushover.
Bruce: So, what's your tragic life story? And I'm not exaggerating. Every girl in this series has one apart from Liz and Jess, who are perfect and better than you are. Jess needs to know your weakness and Liz needs something for her eyes to mist up at.
Kristen: *snickers* They're not better than me at tennis. Anyway, my mom died in a plane crash on her way to play Wimbledon. Ever since, I've gone balls to the wall with this tennis thing, because it's the only way to keep my mother's memory alive. My dad has turned into Lindsay Lohan's mom. I swear he'll have a heart attack if I do things a normal teenager would do.
Bruce: Well, you should know that I'm a great distraction. And I'm not going to give up. So, how about we go to my huge shindig at the end of the month?
Kristen: I'm busy as hell. But then again...
Bruce: Great, so you'll be there?
Kristen: Why not? I don't really know what I want anymore.
......................................
(Kristen was ignored at Bruce's shindig and is talking to her father after losing her chance to be on a pro team by botching an important match.)
Kristen: Dad, Bruce is stupid. Why didn't anyone warn me about him?
Dad: Because they don't care enough about you, Kris. You'll never be heard from again after this book. Neither will I.
Kristen: I love you, Dad. You always keep it real and tell it like it is.
Dad: So we're cool, then? We've got everything tied up into a happy bow? You know that I really don't love tennis more than you, right?
Kristen: Of course.
...................................
(The girl who beat Kristen in her important match has sprained her ankle and given Kristen a shot at being on the pro team. Bruce enters the scene again.)
Bruce: Kris, why did you leave my party early last night? Nobody does that to me.
Kristin: Don't call me that, asshole!
Bruce: But, I ---
Kristin: No, close your mouth. Listen up. This Sweet Valley bullshit is for the birds. I'm on a pro team, so I no longer have time to be a petty plot device in these stories anymore. You'll never hear from me again, because I actually am smart, driven and have a backbone. Peace out, motherchucker.
****End novel.****
November 21, 2020
I downloaded this book via Kindle Unlimited.
As far as SVH books go, this one wasn't bad at all. This book follows Kristin Thompson, a new character, as she signs up to the Big Sister, Little Sister programme our ever philantrophic Elizabeth sets up with Enid. Big on tennis, she's paired with a kid who also loves tennis but Kris soon realises that as much as she loves tennis, she'd love to be a normal teenager for once. Who else to make you feel like a normal teenager, Bruce Patman, of course.
I found this book fine. I didn't leave much of an aching impression on me, no real drama happened within this one and it felt like a fine filler book. Hopefully more drama ensues soon, I feel like the AJ/Jess breakup happens soon.
As far as SVH books go, this one wasn't bad at all. This book follows Kristin Thompson, a new character, as she signs up to the Big Sister, Little Sister programme our ever philantrophic Elizabeth sets up with Enid. Big on tennis, she's paired with a kid who also loves tennis but Kris soon realises that as much as she loves tennis, she'd love to be a normal teenager for once. Who else to make you feel like a normal teenager, Bruce Patman, of course.
I found this book fine. I didn't leave much of an aching impression on me, no real drama happened within this one and it felt like a fine filler book. Hopefully more drama ensues soon, I feel like the AJ/Jess breakup happens soon.
August 15, 2024
Very good! I love this series! 😀
October 11, 2022
Second Chance:
Kristen LIVES, EATS, SLEEPS, BREATHES tennis! She practices after school. She practices on the weekends. But there’s a reason that no one else knows about. When her mother was alive she was a pro tennis player. Her final game would have been the competition to meet all competitions- Wimbledon-(that’s not what the book called it but I’m blanking on what the actual match was called so I’ma go with Wimbledon).
Anyways Elizabeth (always involved in something) invites her to be a big sister to a little girl that like her is obsessed with tennis. The little girl’s mother also died and at first Kristen is reluctant and she keeps telling herself she doesn’t have the time. But then she thinks about it and thinks maybe she’s being put in this little girl’s life for a reason.
Her Father and her tennis coach continue to put pressure on her about winning Wimbledon- I think it’s a competition to qualify her for touring with the professional tennis circuit-. So one-day tennis practice will be a little later and she runs into some kids that invite her to the beach. She turns them down of course, but there’s one offer she can’t refuse. Bruce Patman-whose maybe the 2nd best player at SVH. He drives her to practice and invites her on a date. And he’s Bruce Patman he of the golden piece and no SV female would DARE turn him down- So she accepts and starts to think is this what I’ve been missing out on.
She gets in late and it shows. She loses the next day’s match. She only has one more chance to win the final match.
She starts to bond with her little sister and invites her to practice.
She sneaks around with Bruce but quickly sees that he’s self-absorbed. Still, like every girl in this book she continues to date him. With her final match nearing she lets Bruce convince her to go to a party with him -as his date-. Her father isn’t really happy about her seeing him, but she convinces him “he’s a friend”. When she gets to the party -like we all knew he would- Bruce’s attention is all over the place with different girls. Kristen decides she’s not missing anything and goes home.
Throughout the book, she wonders how her Father would feel is she lost the game and if he just loves her because she’s a winner.
The next game is close, but she loses. Her little sister confesses to her that she lost out on going to tennis camp and Kristen tells her it doesn’t matter she’ll get in next year and she doesn’t love her any less. Then she realizes that just like her little sister she had the same fears.
In the end, something happens that won’t let the winner play. So they choose Kristen as a stand-in (maybe permanently).
Bruce asks her why she left the party and she tells him off and tells him she’s not going to have time for him now (diss and dismissed).
My Thoughts: I think the only thought I had for this one was an extreme annoyance. Do ALL the girls at SVH have to fall head over heel with Bruce’s “charms”? Yes, in the end, Kristen tells him off, but just ONCE can’t we see a girl Bruce is attracted to that sees through him from the jump and says “I’ll pass. I heard about your reputation. You’re the biggest asshole on campus and I’d just rather not.” A girl that’s not impressed with his good looks or his money. Kristen’s little sister reminded me of a very special time in my life when I was in school-even a lower grade than this- and took in two little sisters. Only they called me mommy. It was a thing. All the elementary girls in the highest grade “adopted” kindergartners. It can be a very memorable, touching, experience to take into your heart little girls that look to you for guidance. I admire Kristen’s dedication. Anyone who dedicates all their time and energy to a life-long passion. And I admire her for taking some time out from tennis to be a positive role model in a little girl’s life. That made her a winner in my book without the tennis.
Rating:6
Kristen LIVES, EATS, SLEEPS, BREATHES tennis! She practices after school. She practices on the weekends. But there’s a reason that no one else knows about. When her mother was alive she was a pro tennis player. Her final game would have been the competition to meet all competitions- Wimbledon-(that’s not what the book called it but I’m blanking on what the actual match was called so I’ma go with Wimbledon).
Anyways Elizabeth (always involved in something) invites her to be a big sister to a little girl that like her is obsessed with tennis. The little girl’s mother also died and at first Kristen is reluctant and she keeps telling herself she doesn’t have the time. But then she thinks about it and thinks maybe she’s being put in this little girl’s life for a reason.
Her Father and her tennis coach continue to put pressure on her about winning Wimbledon- I think it’s a competition to qualify her for touring with the professional tennis circuit-. So one-day tennis practice will be a little later and she runs into some kids that invite her to the beach. She turns them down of course, but there’s one offer she can’t refuse. Bruce Patman-whose maybe the 2nd best player at SVH. He drives her to practice and invites her on a date. And he’s Bruce Patman he of the golden piece and no SV female would DARE turn him down- So she accepts and starts to think is this what I’ve been missing out on.
She gets in late and it shows. She loses the next day’s match. She only has one more chance to win the final match.
She starts to bond with her little sister and invites her to practice.
She sneaks around with Bruce but quickly sees that he’s self-absorbed. Still, like every girl in this book she continues to date him. With her final match nearing she lets Bruce convince her to go to a party with him -as his date-. Her father isn’t really happy about her seeing him, but she convinces him “he’s a friend”. When she gets to the party -like we all knew he would- Bruce’s attention is all over the place with different girls. Kristen decides she’s not missing anything and goes home.
Throughout the book, she wonders how her Father would feel is she lost the game and if he just loves her because she’s a winner.
The next game is close, but she loses. Her little sister confesses to her that she lost out on going to tennis camp and Kristen tells her it doesn’t matter she’ll get in next year and she doesn’t love her any less. Then she realizes that just like her little sister she had the same fears.
In the end, something happens that won’t let the winner play. So they choose Kristen as a stand-in (maybe permanently).
Bruce asks her why she left the party and she tells him off and tells him she’s not going to have time for him now (diss and dismissed).
My Thoughts: I think the only thought I had for this one was an extreme annoyance. Do ALL the girls at SVH have to fall head over heel with Bruce’s “charms”? Yes, in the end, Kristen tells him off, but just ONCE can’t we see a girl Bruce is attracted to that sees through him from the jump and says “I’ll pass. I heard about your reputation. You’re the biggest asshole on campus and I’d just rather not.” A girl that’s not impressed with his good looks or his money. Kristen’s little sister reminded me of a very special time in my life when I was in school-even a lower grade than this- and took in two little sisters. Only they called me mommy. It was a thing. All the elementary girls in the highest grade “adopted” kindergartners. It can be a very memorable, touching, experience to take into your heart little girls that look to you for guidance. I admire Kristen’s dedication. Anyone who dedicates all their time and energy to a life-long passion. And I admire her for taking some time out from tennis to be a positive role model in a little girl’s life. That made her a winner in my book without the tennis.
Rating:6
April 14, 2010
The problem I've had with Second Chance since I first read it, however many years ago, is that I really don't care about Kristin. She may get mentioned in a couple of books after this one, but this is basically her first, last, and only hurrah. On the plus side, she doesn't really fall for Bruce Patman's 'charms' and she does tell him off more than once.
But the knowledge that she wouldn't even be considered a C-list character kind of hurts the whole book. There's no real B-plot to the book either, because that's also taken up by Kristin.
Of course, if you're a sucker for SV tennis, you're in luck.
But the knowledge that she wouldn't even be considered a C-list character kind of hurts the whole book. There's no real B-plot to the book either, because that's also taken up by Kristin.
Of course, if you're a sucker for SV tennis, you're in luck.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 5, 2019
I don’t think I read this one years ago, I certainly don’t remember it.
I kind of liked Kristin, she is obviously very determined and talented, but her schedule is gruelling. It reminded me of Hayden panitierres character in the ice princess; skating for her mums dreams rather than her own.
The thing I found utterly ludicrous was that she wouldn’t have known that Bruce had a Porsche and was an arrogant rich jerk, they are literally his most famous “qualities”.
I liked the interaction with her and Emily.
Ok, but I don’t remember the character so not sure if she’s in any more of someone just fancied writing about tennis!
I kind of liked Kristin, she is obviously very determined and talented, but her schedule is gruelling. It reminded me of Hayden panitierres character in the ice princess; skating for her mums dreams rather than her own.
The thing I found utterly ludicrous was that she wouldn’t have known that Bruce had a Porsche and was an arrogant rich jerk, they are literally his most famous “qualities”.
I liked the interaction with her and Emily.
Ok, but I don’t remember the character so not sure if she’s in any more of someone just fancied writing about tennis!
June 7, 2025
I’m not entirely sure I ever read this one as a kid because nothing about it was familiar. I’m also fairly positive that we never hear about Kristin again after this book.
However, for her one and only showing she was pretty cool. She actually told off Bruce, which instantly raises her in my eyes.
The B-plot is Elizabeth and Enid putting together a Big Sisters program with elementary school kids, and with the way Liz and Jess fawn over their little sisters you’d think we’d hear about them again after this book…. but you’d be wrong.
However, for her one and only showing she was pretty cool. She actually told off Bruce, which instantly raises her in my eyes.
The B-plot is Elizabeth and Enid putting together a Big Sisters program with elementary school kids, and with the way Liz and Jess fawn over their little sisters you’d think we’d hear about them again after this book…. but you’d be wrong.
December 15, 2021
Stuck up Kristi is only interested in one thing - TENNIS! But is the pressure too much? When she joins the Big Sister mentorship program, she realises that maybe there's more to life that winning her next match
December 19, 2024
I thought this would be sooooo boring but it turned out to be one of the more interesting ones. Cheesy as hell ending, but still.
April 9, 2020
Tennis champ and serious athlete Kristen is the star of this book- another random acquaintance of the Wakefields, this time knowing each other through the Big Sister program that Enid started and the twins particpate in and Kristen is talked into. Kristen becomes quite attached to her little sister, who, like her, lost her mother and loves tennis. Kristen deals with managing expectations and complicated feelings about her mother and tennis while helping her little sister do the same. Throw in some sleazy Bruce Patman side story, and I actually thought this book was ok, even though ususally the side character books irritate me. Two stars.
June 12, 2008
looved it!
September 24, 2009
Because I'm reading them entirely out of order, I was shocked- SHOCKED!- to find out Regina Morrow had died from trying cocaine one time. WTH, Francine Pascal?!
October 24, 2010
I even loved the twins' friends as much as I loved them. Francine Pascal had a way of writing that I adored as a pre-teen.
June 21, 2013
I remember the cover just not the story.
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August 1, 2013Graded By: Erin
Read the drinking game and review here.
Read the drinking game and review here.
March 5, 2015
I love SVH!
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews