A summer beach read must! Nell, who was given her time of passing a long time ago had lived life with gusto. She has settled her affairs and is ready to surrender to fate. Life had other plans for her. Changing from a rolling stone into a pebble that causes ripples to everyone’s life she’s come across. Taking a page from her book, her friends and family sit up and take stock of their lives and alter them for the better. Full of chaos and laughs Nell’s story is a great one. Thank you to NetGalley for this free advanced copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily

I've just finished this book which I have read for my book club.
I throughly enjoyed reading Nell's story. I felt slightly sorry for both Greg and Tom at certain points but was happy with the outcome.
Charlotte has some really lovely characters in this book. Juno being the absolute star of the show. I could just imagine what she actually looked like. It was so well written.
Overall the book really did make you think about living in the here and now. Perfect summer read. Very heartwarming 💕

📚☀🌈
'Practice gratitude. Find your passions. Do conscious acts of kindness. Connect with the like-minded. Nurture relationships. Cultivate optimism.'

This book is filled to the brim with a cast of wonderfully eclectic characters. Nell is a glorious protagonist and was a pleasure to read. She is fiercely independent, vivacious, hilariously funny and very self deprecating. She is a whirlwind and brings chaos wherever she goes. Nell possesses a unique ability to have such a profound impact on every person she meets. It's almost as if she can reach inside people and harness the best of them.

Baffled when a bus driver refuses a cash payment, Nell encounters Juno. Juno is in her late eighties, dressed in unconventional attire and is as vibrant as she is outrageous. They're kindred spirits and bond instantly, as Juno recalls stories from her amazing life. Soon, Juno becomes disoriented and is unable to remember where she lives. At this point, Butterfields writing is so tender and poignant. This brings about the beginning of the most beautiful representation of intergenerational friendship that I've ever read.

This story charts Nell's journey of self discovery as she embarks on her second chance at life, a life she didn't think she would ever live to see. Packed full of humour, wisdom and emotion-this book reads like a love letter to life. We're guided through a thought provoking exploration of family, complex family dynamics, friendship, love, grief and starting again. We see first hand the affect our past has upon our present, and how fate can intervene to change everything.

This is a powerful and inspirational read. My heart was so full and I was left with a overwhelming feeling of hope. This book continues to have a lasting impact on me, I honestly believe everybody should own it. Whenever you're feeling down or a little lost, reach for Nell.She will hold your hand and make your heart soar.☀🌈

This book was hilarious and so clever. The kind of book where you have a smile on your face the whole time you're reading because it's all just kind of clicking- the premise, the characters, the dialogue, all of it just worked.

Nell Graham is fully prepared to die, having spent the last nineteen years getting ready for this moment. She travels the world, sells her possessions, shuts down her bank accounts and social media, and sends farewell letters to loved ones. She even books a room in a luxurious London hotel to end her life. However, she wakes up alive the next day, with no plan and nothing to her name. This unexpected second chance forces Nell to confront what's truly important, reconnect with loved ones, and embrace life anew. The novel follows Nell and her dear friends Tom, Greg, Jenny, Polly, and Juno as they explore what it means to get a second chance. The story combines poignant moments with hilarious scenes, like Nell's escape from a hotel in a ballgown and a comedic Mrs. Doubtfire-like episode. The narrative is both heartwarming and humorous, celebrating the joy of rediscovering life.

Too stinking cute! I really loved the writing. It was so easy to fall in love with Nell! This book had me feeling all the emotions and kicking my feet like a school girl. 100% recommend!!!

Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for early access to The Second Chance!

Imagine a psychic telling you the day you were going to die, living your life according to that date, and then not dying on schedule! That's what happens to our leading lady, Nell. She has to reevaluate her life when she wakes up thinking she was going to die overnight - telling her family and two love interests she hasn't died after writing them all letters (some with some big secrets revealed and feelings expressed). I didn't really get into this story until about 75% in. Nell was not always easy to root for, but by the end I enjoyed the new life she had built for herself and the relationships she developed. Shout out to Juno for being the spirit, humor, and heart that kept me with this book. I will check out other books by this author (this is her debut), but this wasn't a love for me overall.

When travelling in Australia, 19 year old Nell visits a psychic who gives her the date of her death. She lives her life knowing the date is looming, and she plans for it in the smallest detail, sending incredibly honest letters to family and friends for them to open after she passes. However, Nell wakes up the morning after the date - can she stop the letters being opened, and can she handle a life she didn't expect to lead?

An entertaining story, with a great cast of characters. I would have liked certain ones (Tom especially) to be examined in more detail, but it was a fun read, perfect for summer.

This was a really great story set in the most wonderful sounding islands! The author really brought both her characters and her setting to life. I enjoyed the thawing of the main characters and felt the additional slightly quirky cast really added to the plot. A lovely read for summer.

What an amazing story about living your life to the full and making the most of every moment, This book made me laugh but also made me cry. I felt so sorry for Nell at times as she had always thought she was living with a countdown of her life.

This story felt very new and exciting to me and I highly recommend!

This was a great book and so different. While Nell is backpacking with her boyfriend in Australia they list a psychic who forecasts nineteen year old Nell's death when she is thirty-eight. Although Nell laughs it off it then shapes her life. Never settling, never allowing herself to get close to anyone. She plans the day of her death down to the smallest detail, only to wake up the next day! And then while grateful to have a second chance of life, she has no money, no clothes, no place to live and she has sent farewell letters to her nearest and dearest.
Nell soon discovers, she has inadvertently set the recipients of her letters off on new trajectories and now she has to deal with the aftermath.
The book is just delightful and a reminder on practising gratitude and grabbing life with both hands. It was funny, heartbreaking and engaging. I really look forward to reading more by this author.
Thank you Netgalley and Avon UK for the opportunity to read this digital ARC.

I liked this book. The premise was fun and the characters were likable. It makes you think a lot about what you would do if you only had a few years to live. Nell’s decisions were interesting - I don’t know that I would have made the same ones. The second half of the book fell more flat for me; I disagreed with some of what Nell was doing. Overall it was a fun read.

This would not be a book I would choose browsing the shelves of a bookshop. However, I am glad I received an ARC as it is totally different to what I had expected. A very well written and enjoyable book.

It took me awhile to get into this story - I had some difficulty in connecting with the characters - but eventually I came around to Nell and her predicament. She initially came off as really selfish and self-absorbed, not really caring about anyone or anything else as she tried to live her life to the fullest ahead of her predicted death date. But when that date comes and goes, and she’s still around, she’s forced to deal with the fallout of all the years she looked out for just herself as well as the farewell letters she wrote to her mum Jenny, dad Tony, sister Polly, ex-boyfriend Greg from 20 years prior, and latest fling Tom. She reconnects with Greg the morning after, as a total coincidence puts them in each other’s paths, and while he’s completely changed from who he once was, they basically pick up where they left off - him out of this entitled idea that she is there for him, and her out of necessity, having donated everything she owned before her supposed death. She has to deal with the fallout of her honesty in the letters she sent to her family, especially her sister, who did not take her grand reveal with the same gratitude that Nell hoped she would. And despite her regret in sending a letter to Tom, who she barely knew, they seem to find themselves continually thrown into each other’s paths and have a hard time denying their chemistry, which leads to a bit of a love triangle between the herself, Tom and Greg. Add in her motley crew of found friends along with way, like Juno, Willa and William, and Andrea, and what started as a story of a selfish woman living for herself evolves into a story of self-discovery and growth, and figuring out how to rebuild a life that has meaning.

This was one of those books that grabs you straight away but then is a bit of a slow read... but in a good way.
It's a book you can have simmering in the background, read a bit here and there, but you keep thinking about.

I enjoyed spending time with all the characters, and felt a tad bereft when I finished. It had the ending I was wanting, but I'd spent so much time with the characters I feel like I will miss them.

The Second Chance is a beautifully written, original and life affirming novel that I loved. It’s an original premise, told with a light touch and I really loved the character of Nell. The supporting characters are all wonderfully drawn to and I was completely immersed in this novel over the course of 24 hours. A recommended read and I look forward to more from the author.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this digital ARC.

Picture this - you're 19 years old, spending time abroad in Australia with the boy that you love. You and your friends hear of a psychic who is able to predict the date of your deaths and, intrigued, you seek her out. Everything is fine until you realize that this might be more serious than you're bargaining for. 19 years. That's how old you are. And that's how much longer you have to live - 19 years.

Nell takes this news to heart and chooses to live her life to its absolute fullest - traveling from country to country to see all that there is, never settling down anywhere. Her death date is coming up and she's making all sorts of arrangements to relieve herself of all her worldly belongings - after all, she won't be needing them where she's headed. Except....her death date passes....and she's still alive.

This book is a wonderful story of "What would you do with your life if you knew when you were going to die?" mixed with "What would you do if you were given a second chance?" It was a great read and I look forward to more from Charlotte Butterfield!

The Second Chance takes you on an emotional journey full of highs and lows. Nell knows the exact day of her death and decides at nineteen when she finds out that she will live her life accordingly. One of her last encounters, when she sells her possessions, is when she meets Tom. When things take an unexpected turn, Nell is not sure how to act, even though her life has outwardly been living in the moment. When she doesn't die as expected, how does she live what remains of her life? It is engaging and thought-provoking, with an insightful look at relationships and family. I like Nell; she is believably flawed, and you invest in her life.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

A very clever book! Nell and Greg are travelling round the world, and in Australia they have their fortunes told. Nell is given a date she will die... 20 years in the future, whereas Greg is told he will live to be over 100. Nell starts to obsess about this, and it splits them up. She goes on to live a wild and carefree life, but keeps away from family. Then the dreaded date arrives and she sets herself up in a hotel, having discarded all her possessions, even her phone, and written farewell letters (with a few home truths) to her loved ones.

Nell wakes up the next morning, alive, single, penniless and in an expensive hotel wearing a rented ball gown. As she tries to sneak out she meets Greg, who has also lived his life according to the prophesy - carefully amassing sums to see him comfortable in his very long old age.

The result makes you think how people behave, and what makes for a happy life. Its told in a humorous and entertaining way, as Nell comes to terms with a longer life span and has to handle the fallout from her frank letters. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Live life to the fullest. Nell and Greg are two carefree lovers, traveling together in their gap year, living the bohemian life. They stay in hostels, work odd jobs, meet a variety of people and "go where life takes them." During their travels, Nell is told by a physic that she will die on a certain date when she is 36. Greg, though, is told that he will live to be 103. Nell continues to travel after her gap year is over while Greg goes home, finishes his studies and becomes a successful banker/investor. Nell lives a life that could be considered as "very full" because she figures she will be dying young. She does not get attached to anyone for more than a short time, she does not make long-term decisions. She distances herself from family and loved ones. Greg on the other hand, believes that he will have a long life and needs to amass his fortune early on, to be able to live well in his retirement. Initially I did not like Nell. She comes across as very selfish, living only to please herself, everyone else be damned.As I read though, it became apparent that rather than selfish, she was weaving a protective shell around herself and her loved ones. Greg I saw as materialistic and a boring workaholic. As the book continued, I began to see how a predictable date of death could influence a life, whether the person believed that prediction or not. It was funny. I laughed through the book but at the same time, it was a theme with depth. Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books for the digital ARC This review is my own words.