**I received a complimentary copy of this book for consideration. All thoughts are my own.
About the Book
Book: A Second Chance for Grace
Author: Karen Malley
Genre: Christian Women’s Romantic Fiction
Release date: April 23, 2021
A new life coming into the world disrupts Susan’s quiet life.
Susan Montgomery is used to a quiet, peaceful life managing her apartment building, where the hardest problem is her grouchy neighbor’s leaky faucet. She soon finds herself dealing with a pregnant teenage niece, a mysterious briefcase left behind by a tenant, and two very different men vying for her heart.
A near-death experience gives Mac a new outlook on life.
Christopher “Mac” MacAllister is trying to figure out how to “do the Christian thing.” As a new convert, he’s drawn to Susan’s love for life and for God. She’s nothing like the women he used to date; but can Mac compete with the guy who’s come out of nowhere and knows all the right things to say?
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About the Author
Karen is an author of Christian fiction. She lives in Southeastern Pennsylvania with her husband and two sons. She works full time as a scientist, but enjoys writing in her spare time. When not writing (with her left hand), she enjoys camping, hiking, playing board games, and especially reading! She loves reading faith-based stories, because we can all use a happy ending.
More from Karen
Follow your heart or your head?
In my early days in college, I dated a young man who wasn’t a Christian, but that didn’t stop my attraction to him. My heart wanted to be with him, but my head knew better. Later, another young man entered my life who was perfect for me on paper. He was kind, intelligent, taught Sunday school… We went out one time, but there wasn’t a spark. I decided I had to find the guy who captured both my heart and my head.
Fast forward to the summer before my junior year, and a third young man entered the picture. He was fun to be around, made me laugh, and believed in Jesus. We became friends and spent a lot of together before I finally admitted my attraction to him. Having been hurt before, I vowed not to get involved unless God was in it. I prayed about it, felt God’s blessing, and we’ve now been married over 20 years.
In A Second Chance for Grace, Susan finds herself in a similar situation. Mac instantly captures her heart, but circumstances cause her to doubt whether he’s the right man for her. When she meets Sam, she finds he checks all the boxes on paper, but she can’t seem to convince her heart he’s right for her. Having been in the same situation, it was easy for me to write about Susan’s dilemma.
Susan navigates many twists and turns throughout the book, from her pregnant niece moving into her apartment, to dealing with a mysterious briefcase left behind by a tenant, to trying to solve the dilemma of which man to choose. Through it all, she tries to follow God’s will for her life.
A Second Chance for Grace is the second book in the Pine Springs series. Mac and Susan meet in the first book, Following the Sparrows. To learn more about them (and their good friends), you’ll want to read Following the Sparrows first, but it isn’t necessary, as A Second Chance for Grace is a standalone novel.
Just like in real life, the characters in the novel have difficult decisions to make. Sometimes they make the right ones, sometimes they do not. Through it all, God proves He is the God of second chances!
My Thoughts
A Second Chance for Grace is book number two in Karen Malley's Pine Spring series. I personally hadn't read the previous book and found it read just fine as a standalone.
There is a LOT going on in this story! Each page seemed to bring something new and I found myself waiting to see what would happen next. As such it was a great paced story from start to finish and had my emotions all over the place.
I really enjoyed getting to know the characters in this story. Susan was more your typical Christian fiction heroine--- a devoted Christian whose faith was evident throughout all areas of her life. When we meet Susan, she lives a rather quiet life but that very quickly changes throughout the course of the story. Among those changes was a love triangle between the man who seems to be just the one she's looking for- crossing off everything she thought she wanted--- and Mac, who she finds herself attracted to right away... but isn't sure she can trust. I really enjoyed Mac's character---perhaps more than any of the others. As a brand new Christian, it was interesting to see his growth throughout as he tried to figure out his new life. Oftentimes in Christian fiction, we don't see that struggle between the old and the new so I thought that was unique and refreshing.
Overall, this was a quick and fun story. If you enjoy Christian fiction, it certainly one worth checking out.
Blog Stops
Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting, May 6
For Him and My Family, May 7
Kayem Reads, May 7
Texas Book-aholic, May 8
Ashley’s Clean Book Reviews, May 9
Musings of a Sassy Bookish Mama, May 10
Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, May 11
Locks, Hooks and Books, May 12
A Modern Day Fairy Tale, May 13
Batya’s Bits, May 13
Cultivating Us, May 14
deb’s Book Review, May 15
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, May 16
Happily Managing a Household of Boys, May 17
Inklings and notions, May 18
Vicky Sluiter, May 19
Giveaway
To celebrate her tour, Karen is giving away the grand prize package of an eBook copy of the first book in the series, Following the Sparrows, along with a journal and necklace that go with the theme of the book!!
Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.
https://promosimple.com/ps/10bab/a-second-chance-for-grace-celebration-tour-giveaway
It looks like a good read.
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