Such a lovely sunny chilled read.
The characters were very lovely and I particularly liked Ritchie and Etiene.
Sam was a great character and I liked the friendship Lily and him notched up.
Great book and very enjoyable
This is a perfect beach read.
Scilly and it’s surround islands with its azure blue seas sound perfect.
Thank you NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

With many thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK, Cornerstone for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Views are my own.

Lily is a workaholic who gets forced into a 2 week holiday by her PA when she collapses on the boardroom floor. She isn't happy about landing on the Isles of Scilly and being taken to a half finished retreat as its first and only guest by its grumpy but gorgeous owner, Sam. We all know how this is going to unfold - forced to stay, Lily makes the best of it and slowly but surely falls in love with the island, its community, and Sam. When she has a near-death experience and an obituary of hers falsely gets printed in the press, she decides to stay and help Sam finish his holiday cottages. She also helps Morven, Sam's niece who has artistic talent. Lily owns a craft business and of course, totally coincidentally, there will be a craft festival on the island soon. I bet if she had a cupcake business it would have been a cupcake festival, LOL.

I thought this was very well-written and reads easily and quickly. It's pure heart-warming escapism, and the description of the isles makes your mouth water and plan your next holiday there. I really don't know why authors don't get more tourism awards! Lily, Sam, Morven, Elspeth and Etienne etc were all great characters and I enjoyed their company and stories.

Thank you to NetGalley, the Publisher and Phillipa Ashley for letting me read this ARC for an honest review in return.

From the moment Lily Harper arrives at a remote retreat on the breath-taking Scilly Isles, she is itching to get back to civilisation - and her thriving business.

Slowing down simply isn't in her vocabulary, and so she quickly clashes with the gorgeous but dour Sam who runs the retreat.

Just as Lily is about to give up and leave, disaster strikes, and she is involved in an incident that changes her perspective on everything.

Lily is no longer sure she wants to return to the life she thought she loved. But will she have the courage to give the retreat, and Sam, a second chance?

This was my first read of Philippa Ashley’s and one thing that I enjoyed the most was how she described the idyllic descriptions of Scilly. The location plays a big part in this story and the author’s writing definitely did this justice!

In some ways, I think that Lily is a character that a lot of us could relate to… overworked, non stop workaholic and unable to slow down. Sometimes we find it hard to take a break, but when we do, we learn how beneficial it can be to slow down every now and again.

Lily and Sam are very similar in their ways when it comes to not having any time for anything other than work… they clashed a lot but I think it was these similarities that made it difficult for them to ignore what was between them.

Overall I think that this book does have a lot of potential, however, for me it could have been a lot shorter. Some parts of the story felt a little drawn out and it almost felt as though parts had been added in for the sake of it.

I received a free copy of, Second Chance Summer, by Phillipa Ashley, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Lily Harper needs a break, so she goes to a remote island, to regroup. Sam works at the island retreat Lily is staying at. What a great beach read, I really enjoyed this book. The location, the characters, so great.

After reading this book I want to visit Scilly. The descriptions in this story sound idyllic. I found the characters well written and realistic especially the teenager Morven! Phillipa Ashley is one of my favourite authors and this book doesn’t disappoint. I hope there are many more stories to come

I love a book where the landscape is almost one of the characters and this was very much the case in Second Chance Summer - a gentle, heartwarming tale of life, loss and love.
Phillipa Ashley's characters Lilly and Sam were likeable and believable and I was totally invested from the get-go. The supporting characters and storylines added depth and made the book so much more than girl meets boy with just enough complexity to keep you hooked.
I genuinely loved ever minute of this book and was sad to say goodbye to the characters.
Fabulous story, beautifully written, great characters and all-round lovely read.

A really great story where you follow the journey of Lily and Sam, feeling all of their respective emotions along the way

When I was offered the chance by Netgalley to review this book, I jumped at the chance. I finished the book over a week ago but wanted time to ruminate before posting a review.

Lily never stops a driven businesswoman, she has non stop drive and is always stretching to the next big thing.

When she has a turn in her office her assistant arranges a trip for her to a new spa on the remote island of Stark, but can she cope with a week of no phones, no WiFi, no pressure.

Sam is working night and day to try and get the island of Stark ready as en executive retreat, he also has the care of his neice a feisty teenager who is really rebelling without her dad.

When Lily's assistant calls and convinces them ti allow Lily to come as a soft opening, Sam knows this is going to be a disaster and when Lily is determined to leave as soon as possible, it looks like this is doomed to failure but after a year death experience and a major misunderstanding maybe Stark is the safest place for Lily just now.

This was a fantastic story, I have missed a few plot lines, this could have been a very cluttered book with the various storyline but it all weaved its way through seamlessly.

A wonderful book, guaranteed to stay with you for weeks afterwards. Definitely worth a read.

Second Chance Summer is a perfect title for a relaxing vacation read. I loved the setting that made me want to visit all of the locations (both fictional and non) that were described in these pages. I enjoyed the story (and backstory) of the two main characters, one a woman desperately needing a break and the other a man who is trying to open a mindful resort space.

One thing that I enjoyed about this story was that it was not completely predictable, as some books in the genre can be. No spoilers but one example has to do with an incoming tide.

Anyone who enjoys women’s fiction/romance cannot go wrong with this title.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK for this title. All opinions are my own.

I always enjoy a Phillipa Ashley book and this is another great tale from her. The main character Lily Harper is in desperate need of a rest when she finds herself on the beautiful island of Sicily, what better place to recover, however the story is not without the obvious twists and turns.
Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this, very much enjoyed it.

I’m so sorry but I could not even finish the book. The writing was clunky and I did not enjoy it. Maybe it’s because it is incomplete but unfortunately I could not finish it

Second Chance Summer a heartwarming story of self-discovery and love. it’s an easy read that follows Lily Harper, a workaholic who reluctantly heads to Stark Retreat in Scilly where she finds herself to be the sole guest at a still-under-construction retreat. Here she meets Sam, the rugged owner of the retreat.
As expected in a romcom book, there’s chemistry and emotional baggage, that’s what I sign up for when I open the cover though! A perfect summer read 😎

What a lovely read. Lily Harper is in dire need of a total rest after suffering from what I can only call burnout. Her assistant much to her horror books her onto a new retreat on one of the remote islands of Scilly. No internet or mobile phone service. How will Lily cope not being in control of her business? Well, from discovering this she makes immediate plans to make her escape back to the mainland, but weather conditions and a near life incident starts to make her rethink her life. The retreat is also not really ready for customers, so she offers her help to Sam the owner, who begrudgingly accepts. As the pair start to talk, they both open up about past grief and begin to move on. The slow transformation of Lily back to her creative being is lovely to see and I think we can all take something from the idea of a digital detox in our busy lives and embrace the beauty that surrounds us. Throw in a teenager with angst and the story is more than a will they won't they. Thank you Netgalley.

I've always thought that I would love to go to the Isles of Scilly and this book has reinforced that wish. The islands sound idyllic
Loved the main characters Lily and Sam both having a lot of emotional baggage. Both characters were very driven, so they did have something in common.
A near death experience brought them a little closer and the obituary notice about Lily was a shock to her about how she was perceived and maybe acted as a wake-up call
I really enjoyed the book

Cornwall and more specifically a previously uninhabitable small island, close to Bryher in the Isles of Scilly, is the main place for this heart warming and feel good story.

Lily, the overworked control freak who leaves London for some luxury relaxation booked by her PA, is not too happy when she realises that there is no mobile phone signal and no wifi...

Sam, the rugged islander who is coping with his grief by building a luxury resort, forgot that he actually needs to interact with his guests...

These two souls somehow connect, initially out of necessity, but later out of choice.

Second Chance Summer by Phillipa Ashley is currently due to be published on 6 June 2024, just in time for peak tourist season!

I do enjoy Phillipa Ashley's writing and this book did not disappoint. It made me want to book a trip to the Scilly Isles and she captured the beauty of it while keeping true to the place. You were rooting for Lily and Sam to find their happy ever after when they had dealt with their own stuff.
Lovely book.

I really enjoyed this book. Funnily enough my husband had suggested a holiday in the Scilly isles and then I picked up this book, so I was very surprised to find it set there and having read it, I only want to visit the islands more! I thought this was a well written story. I liked Lily and Sam's characters and enjoyed seeing Lily slow down and enjoy life a little more. I didn't love the amount they went on about her comments on the TV programme and that she was a minor celeb- I'm not convinced it really fitted in with the wider story, or was that necessary. But I did enjoy Etienne and her nieces, the wider characters on the isles, like Morven and her auntie. It was a great and easy read and one that I enjoyed.
Thanks!

Lily Harper is a successful entrepreneur, running a web-based shop for hand made products from small creators.

She’s always working and has driven herself into the ground following an unfortunate off-mic discussion that was umm, on-mic, after she appeared on a tv show.

After a fainting episode, her doctor brother in law tells her in no uncertain terms that she needs to take a break.

Lily’s PA arranges a last minute stay at a new island retreat in the Scillies and off Lily goes, somewhat reluctantly, to have a rest and recharge.

This is a very enjoyable story, in a lovely new location for Ashley, and I found myself checking the Scilly Isles out for holidays. It sounds fabulous (if rather daunting from Edinburgh!).

Lily meets Sam, the owner of the island, Stark, and soon realises that the retreat isn’t quite finished… and she really can’t see herself wanting to stay for more than 5 minutes, although the fog and terrible weather put paid to her turning round and going straight back to London.

Her enforced stay does change her mind though, even leading to her spending some on the beach…

And then a near death experience gives her a whole new perspective!

Great story about family, relationships, community and a lot more besides.

A fabulous book once again from Phillipa. Reading this on a cold winter’s day it made me long for going back to the Isles of Scilly. A good mix of characters especially Lily and Sam, both have their own reasons for retreating into themselves, they both need to move forward to heal. A fabulous heartwarming read.

What a great escape Phillipa takes us on with her latest novel, I feel like I've been to the Isles of Scilly. A masterclass in description of the scenery, together with a plot which never slows down, you have to read this book.