Lighthearted, Escapist Romcom…
Lighthearted, escapist romcom with some entertaining (and some often frustrating) characters, a fun, fluffy storyline, witty dialogue and a less than serious tone. Enjoyable, relaxing reading.

So I loved this book! I found Natalie to be completely relatable and her personality was just lovable! I loved how she tried to do everything to make things easier for Carl, but it felt that it wasn't always reciprocated. From around chapter four I started to dislike him but Claire Calman had a way of making me find him adorable and then back to disliking him. He didn't deserve Natalie, and she had her faults as well, so I would have liked to have seen a redemption arc that highlighted that he had changed.

One of my favourite 'scenes/chapters' was between Stefan and Celeste and I wish I could see more of them! Or have a whole book dedicated to them! They added a comedic effect to the book in my opinion. This was certainly a book I would pick up in the shop to read as it's easy to read, it's 100% enjoyable.

The only thing I would have liked was that the main storyline linked with the father storyline a bit more as it felt that during those chapters, Carl pretty much disappeared, which given how the book's storyline was, was understandable but it would have been nice to see them link together more often.

I found the characters quite frustrating. Just when I thought I’d like them they would do something that further frustrates me. No adult lives their lives this indecisively. Or this controlled by another. If they do it’s quite sad really.

Natalie and Carl and newly and blissfully married when Carl rings Natalie up to tell her he’s about to bid on what is potentially their dream home. It’s got a duck pond and it’s near his kids so Natalie the ever loving second wife agrees to let him bid for it.
Turns out it’s a wreck with a stolen roof and is practically next door to Carl’s perfect first wife’s massive luxury Georgian mansion.
Natalie is dumped there and left on her own for reasons and as Carl becomes ever more distant she begins to wonder if her marriage wasn’t the biggest mistake she’s ever made.
This was a fun read Natalie is likeable enough if a bit spineless I have to say I preferred her sister more. Carl is also a bit of a prat and sometimes it’s difficult to see why she married him in the first place. The house renovation also goes surprisingly smoothly there is no grand designs type tension about whether the windows are going to arrive from Germany on time. Calman missed a trick there.

I was provided a free copy of this text by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This book was a light and breezy read for late spring. However, there was not much beyond the initial premise. Calman is capable of much more depth to her characters.

Sorry I didn't like the characters. I got annoyed with them and had to stop reading.
Not the authors fault but I wanted to scream at the husband and tell the wife to get a back bone. A good book inspires emotion and it certainly did, but not for me.

A Second-Hand Husband follows the quirky Natalie, who after a whirlwind romance with Carl finds herself married after only 6 months. Not long after their marriage, Carl buys a house at auction without Natalie's knowledge that is a hop step and a jump away from his ex-wife and children and Natalie realizes that there is an actual lot that she doesn't know about her Husband and that he isn't the best at communicating with her. This puts a lot of fear and doubts into Natalie's mind and she starts to question her relationship with Carl.

Throw in the perfect Ex-Wife Antonio who doesn't help Natalie one bit with her insecurities. Natalie can't help but compare herself to Antonio and wonder why her and Carl aren't still together, as they seem like the picture perfect couple.

Natalie was a real, raw and relatable character and somebody that I could see myself being friends with in real life and although I enjoyed the happy ending to her story, I must admit that there was a part of me that was hoping that she would leave Carl and do it solo.

I found it very hard to like Carl as a character but towards the end of the story you realize that although Carl hasn't been the perfect Husband to Natalie, he does love her immensely and that is all Natalie is wanting from him is his unconditional love.

If you are looking for a witty, quirky and humorous read that this is the book for you. There was vibes of confessions of a shop-a-holic by Sophie Kinsella in the writing style and would be great for anybody looking for an easy fun read.

A big thank you to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was really good! I enjoyed reading it and felt for Natalie throughout the book. How Carl managed to marry these two ladies is a mystery to me, but that’s how it goes- and what makes for a funny story! This is a great book to sit and read all the way through as it is full of drama, hilarious and touching all rolled into one. I will certainly look for more from this author!

Overall I enjoyed this book. It was a good read and it did take me a while to get into.

There were moments where I wanted to put it down just purely for my dislike of the character Carl. I cant really write how I felt about him but it isnt pleasant 🙈.

I did devour this in one day and I am pleased that I continued reading, filled with lots of hope and it is a perfect summer read.
⭐⭐⭐

I'd like to thank the author, publisher and Net Galley for providing a free e-copy of this book in exchange for my review.

I really wanted to like this book. From the summary, I could honestly picture my husband doing something like buying a 'surprise' home for us and me making due with the whole situation. When I started reading it, I could relate to Natalie a bit, I could see she was trying to make the best of the situation and all, but - come on Natalie! You are trying too hard, my dear!

I wanted to like the book, but it was just too long, really. Too many unnecessary details. I didn't really care for the writing style. It was fun, but I never found myself laughing at all, or hoping for the outcome - I just wanted to finish it.

2 stars for 'it was ok'

Thanks to Boldwood Books for an advanced copy of A Second-Hand Husband.

A Second-Hand Husband was a fun and cute romance! It was exactly what I needed for something light and witty in between some hsitorical fiction. The plot was fun and I can't imagine my husband just buying a house at auction without me, especially if there was an ex who had a mansion nearby...

Natalies husband Carl has just bought them a new house, without telling her where it is or even showing her what it looks like. The worst of it is, the house is just minutes away from Carl’s first wife Antonia.

This is a fun, easy read that made me laugh and cringe (in a good way).

Loved this book, didn't want to put it down. A perfect way to spend the day !
Natalie is Carl's second wife who persuades him to move closer to where his kids live with his ex so he can see them more often. She gets much more than she bargains for when Carl buys a house at auction in the same village as his ex without telling her. When she goes to see it she finds its roof has been stolen and it needs a lot of work to make it habitable
Natalie has to deal with an interfering ex, a stepdaughter who doesn't like her and a husband who doesn't think she is capable of making a decision, plenty twists and turns

Overall a cute read, but the characters drove me a bit batty with how rude some of them were to each other! The setting sounded idyllic, and I would love to live in that cottage myself- but not if those characters were who I'd have to deal with all the time!

A Second-Hand Husband by Claire Calman is a thoroughly engaging read that had me laughing out loud more than once. Witty dialogue and an endearing protagonist made for a warm-hearted and utterly relatable read, and I enjoyed every word of it.

Natalie has married Carl only six months into the relationship, with the knowledge that he comes with an ex-wife and two children. When he purchases a house, without his new wife's knowledge, that is mere minutes away from his ex-wife's home, Natalie agrees to the plan, thinking that Carl will enjoy easy access to his children. But with Carl away more than he is at home, it falls to Natalie to deal with the glamorous Antonia or, as she refers to herself, wife number one. Natalie's internal dialogue while navigating her way around Antonia had me in stitches, and I enjoyed being privy to the ups and downs of their unusual and complicated relationship. This is, in my opinion, Ms Calman's best yet, and I cannot wait to see what comes next. 4.5 stars

Many thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for an ARC.

Natalie and Carl met and married within 6 months. Carl was divorced from Antonia and has two children. Natalie runs a antiques shop in London and Carl is in PR. Carl is trying to balance work, marriage an visiting his two children on a regular basis. Natalie sows the seed about moving out of London and to be nearer to his children. Carl announces that he has bought their first house, Rose Cottage, in the same village as his ex wife. Natalie is a little aggrieved that he has done this without her input and then they go to see the house and find it a worse wreck that he led her to believe especially as someone has stolen part of the roof . For Natalie it is a worse shock as it is virtually next door to Antonia. The first time she visits the house she is even more disarmed as it is beautiful and her friends at the pool party give her a complex and makes her feel very insecure. It does not help that Carl is not helping to wort out the house and his forever at work and the tradesmen etc are left to her. Eventually she begins to enjoy choosing things for their home but is becoming increasingly irritated that Carl is very rarely home or does not want any input into their first home. Life is less than smooth and then Carl’s father becomes ill and he lives in Bristol – more time away from home. Everywhere Natalie goes she bumps into Antonia who always has a story to tell about Carl and it becomes very difficult for Natalie especially when she finds out that Carl has another brother she knows nothing about. The story rolls on and is ok and at the end of the day all becomes easy as Natalie eventually says her piece and Carl decides to change. The setting for this book sounds lovely and I quite enjoyed the book but it has not been my favourite Netgalley choice.

After a whirlwind courtship Natalie and Carl are now newlyweds, and as all newlywed couples are want to discover, you only really get to know your partner after the pretty dress and party. Sure, Natalie knew that Carl had two children from a previous relationship, but what she didn’t know was that her off-hand commitment to living ‘closer’ to the ex that would turn out to be down the street from her and her apparently perfect life when Carl buys a house on the spur of the moment without even consulting with Natalie. To top this off, Natalie discovers Carl’s ex Antonia is the Queen Bee of the new village she is to call home who appears to miss nothing and is involved in everything. The cherry on the top is that Carl’s kids don’t appear to take to Natalie with their adolescent anger at parent’s new relationships despite her best efforts to not be the nightmare stepmother. And just like that, Natalie’s dreams of what life would be like float off into the ether and she is left navigating not just a new marriage but finding out how to stand on her own two feet despite the curveballs that life has thrown at her.
A Second-Hand Husband is an engaging look at the efforts required to make a civilized divorce, remarriage and a look at what it takes for a relative stranger to put the needs of someone else’s children ahead of her own. It looks at the baggage a person brings into and what a modern-day relationship is and what makes a blended family. It looks at love, loyalty and honesty so vital to a relationships long term survival.
It also takes an unnerving look at the competitiveness that women seemingly bring into every relationship. Antonia has the annoying habit of calling Carl “Our Husband”, always making Natalie feel unsure of her place in the world and her role in her husband’s life. It’s disturbing to see played out on the written page how women tend to feel so out of control of their own lives that the only manner in which they can wield power and feel better about themselves is to put other women around them down. That acceptance can apparently only come after an emotional blow up and finally honesty and openness slide into the relationship.
This is a feel-good book in which the happily ever after that a reader comes to expect in this genre is only really a steppingstone to the next stage of awkwardness and selflessness necessary for the growth of the ongoing relationship. It is relatable in that Natalie goes on a journey of self-awareness and personal growth, despite handling some situations really badly, which is very much what people in the real world are known to do. The characters in this story are far from perfect; a mixture of good and bad that are shown in clear detail. Insecurity, paranoia, resistance to humbleness and honesty are just some of the threads in this finely woven story that will keep the reader engaged right from the start.

A fun, easy read with great character development throughout the book. The relationship between the two wives was well written. Highly recommended.

I was in the mood for a light-hearted read when I chose to read A Second-hand Husband, and it certainly delivered, making me smile and shake my head in equal measures.

The story is told in the first person by the newly-married Natalie. She married divorcee and father of two Carl after a short romance. The couple live in London, while his children live with his ex-wife a couple of hours drive away in a tiny village in Kent. Natalie understands how important it is for Carl to be closer to his children and has suggested they move to be closer to his children. She wasn't expecting what came next. He bought a house without telling her where it is, and exactly how close it is to his ex-wife's home.

There are family dramas to resolve, a couple of large spider events, an idyllic setting and of course a rather unpleasant ex-wife who seems determined to put Natalie down at every opportunity. Carl's son, Max, appears to have accepted the divorce and welcomes Natalie into his life, while Carl's daughter, Saskia, in typical teenager fashion, is wary and abrasive. Natalie realises she cannot simply insert herself into Saskia's life, and slowly builds a relationship with her.

I found this story very entertaining and it lifted my mood. It is well-written, humorous, and engaging. I loved Natalie as a character but did not take to Carl at all; nor his ex-wife Antonia at first, although without Antonia, there would be no story.

I first came across Claire Calman when I was on the blog tour for Growing up for Beginners. I thought that was a sensational book and had high hopes for this one. I’m pleased to say that Claire doesn’t disappoint.
I was immediately immersed in Natalie’s world, complete with her insecurities and imposter syndrome. A special mention, of course, to our shared arachnophobia! That said, I can’t relate to her sensational, gymnastic avoidance technique.
Blended families are a common subject and it’s not unusual to read about the difficulties of being a second-wife or a stepmother. This book takes the concepts to a more detailed level as we are faced with the minutiae of Natalie’s insecurities as she compares herself to the flaxen haired perfection that she’s measuring herself against.
From Natalie’s complicated family to Carl’s estranged brother, Claire Calman has created a wonderful tale of human frailties and the comedy that can be derived from the feelings of not fitting in. The story doesn’t shy away from examining Natalie’s very real and debilitating low self-esteem however, the comedy is based around her situations in a kind and gentle manner.
At the core of this wonderful book, is Carl’s unfaltering love for Natalie. He’s not a perfect husband, but he wants to be perfect to her. Hold onto that as you delve into the story and enjoy the ride.
I hope that you get as much pleasure from Natalie’s adventures as I did.