It’s been ten years since Emma Stevens last laid eyes on Jake Murray. When he left the small seaside village of South Quay to chase the limelight, Emma’s dreams left with him.
Now Emma is content living a quiet and uneventful life in South Quay. It’s far from the life she imagined, but at least her job at the local hotel has helped heal her broken heart.
But when Jake returns home for the summer to escape the spotlight, Emma’s feelings quickly come flooding back. There’s clearly a connection between them, but Jake has damaged her heart once already – will she ever be able to give him a second chance?
Purchase Links
UK - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Summer-Taking-Chances-Lynne-Shelby-ebook/dp/B0849NF6KD/
US - https://www.amazon.com/Summer-Taking-Chances-Lynne-Shelby-ebook/dp/B0849NF6KD/
Review
Emma lives a quiet, happy life organising working as an events coordinator at a hotel and starring in the local amateur drama productions. It's not the life she dreamed of at seventeen, but she's content enough - until first love and famous actor Jake wanders into their local bar. He's just been dumped by his (also famous) on and off again girlfriend and has come back to their small town to avoid the paparazzi.
The story is told from Emma's point of view, including flashbacks to their teenage selves, so we get a really good look inside her head and a front row seat to her rekindling friendship with Jake. While I didn't agree with all her choices, this point of view makes them all understandable.
Jake has changed a lot since he last saw Emma, and I suspect he would not be nearly as sympathetic if he was seen from any other viewpoint. He chooses his roles purely on the payout (though it is made clear he doesn't need the cash) and looks down on amateur theatre. Thankfully, he doesn't stay that way. The way he and Emma quickly slip into Shakespeare is honestly adorable.
There's a great cast of supporting characters, many of them introduced in their dual identities in the town and in the play that forms the backdrop of Emma and Jake's relationship over the summer. We are given enough to appreciate them without them overloading the plot.
Speaking of the plot - I can't put my finger on how exactly, but I found this story perfectly paced and eminently enjoyable. There's no wild twists and turns, but there are the bumps and curves that crop up when people come together and the minor dramas of small town life. It was never boring, never saccharine, and never upsetting. There were a couple of seventeen year olds who made some poor choices, but seventeen wasn't a great year for anyone, so I find them reasonable, if frustrating.
If you're looking for a slow burn second chance romance with Shakespeare, please pick this up.
For a book I just really enjoyed reading and that may well become a comfort read, five stars.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley and Rachel's Random Resources; all opinions are my own.
Lynne Shelby writes contemporary women’s fiction/romance. Her debut novel, French Kissing, was published when it won a national writing competition. She has worked at a variety of jobs from stable girl to child actors’ chaperone to legal administrator, but now writes full time. When not writing or reading, Lynne can usually be found at the theatre watching a musical, or exploring a foreign city – Paris, New York, Rome, Copenhagen, Seattle, Athens – writer's notebook, camera and sketchbook in hand. She lives in London with her husband, and has three adult children who live nearby.
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