My Review Of Lauren Dane’s Second Chances

Published October 25th 2010 by Carina Press (first published September 15th 2010)
Review copy obtained at Net Galley.

Rori Simon left town 10 years ago an over weight and shy girl only to return as an attractive self confident woman. When she finally catches the eye of the town bad boy, Jude Callahan, she is ready to let loose all the wicked fantasies she had about him. When Jude awakens the submissive in Rori they both feel the powerful connection between them grow. But Rori has grown up and Jude hasn't and his playboy ways send Rori packing. Now all Jude can do is sit back and watch as Rori meets Zach Helms. This sensual Dom wants Rori with every fiber of his being; to take her, own her, and make her his forever. As Jude watches Rori fall in love with Zach he can only wonder if he has lost his second chance at love forever.

I adore Lauren Dane's stories. She has a wonderful voice that gives life to her flamboyant characters. The writing was smooth flowing with a steady pace that kept me hooked from page one. The sex scenes were very hot and demanded a few re reads. :)

I enjoyed our heroine Rori a lot. She came across as intelligent, honest, and unapologetic about enjoying sex. That is one thing I love about Ms. Dane's stories. Her characters like sex and you never get an ashamed or apologetic vibe coming off them for that.
Our hero(?)Jude was an enigma for me. He portrayed perfectly as the man who has to merely crook his finger and the ladies drop their panties. Seeing him try to deal with the intense feelings he develops for Rori and his inadvertent sabotaging of their relationship said a lot about his character. While I was angry at him through out the book, I couldn't help but love him myself as I watched him suffer for his fear of loving Rori completely.
Though I did like Zach and Rori together, I had a problem with his character. He was too intense right off the bat for me. He also crossed some boundaries a few times that made me feel he wasn't completely honest with Rori when he said he only wanted obedience in the bedroom. I felt he wanted to possess her 24/7 and it creeped me out a little. And Rori forgiving him right away annoyed me a little. If he had pulled that stunt with me I would have been upset for longer then 5 minutes. On the other hand though, Zach treated Rori the way she deserved to be treated and I never doubted his love for her.

The secondary characters were fab. Ms. Dane always builds such a strong family base around her main protagonists that really solidifies the story for me. I adored Rori's sister Kelly and her brother in law Matt. They were there for her every time and never hesitated to say what needed to be said.

The pivotal point in the book is pretty obvious hence the title, but the way Ms. Dane brings it about is an emotional journey filled with heartbreak, tears, and hope. My heart broke for Rori during this time and it took me a little to get back on track with the story.

All in all this was a enjoyable story that goes beyond simple erotica. Second Chances is a humorous, romantic, steamy love story that shows us the lives of 2 people who are given the greatest gift of all, not once, but twice.
I gave this 4 stars.

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