Fate works in mysterious ways—and this Valentine’s Day, it’s feeling particularly mischievous. From accidental Zoom crashes to graveyard resurrections, six beloved romance authors bring you a collection of increasingly steamy second chances.
Accidentally Yours by Christina Lauren
When marketing consultant Veronica accidentally crashes the wrong Zoom meeting, she’s shocked to receive a job offer from the company’s intriguing CEO. Their professional email exchanges quickly turn flirty, but Veronica’s mind keeps drifting to her reserved but gorgeous new neighbor. As Valentine’s Day approaches, she’ll discover that sometimes the most improbable meet-cute can lead to the perfect match. (2 hours, 10 minutes)
Time Will Tell by Hannah Bonam-Young
When a history teacher receives a letter from her deceased grandmother revealing a secret love affair in the 1950s, it leads her to a time capsule hidden decades ago. But it’s the charming grandson of her grandmother’s lost love who changes everything, proving that sometimes the heart knows exactly where—and when—it belongs.
Second Act Romance by Julie Soto
When food poisoning takes out the lead in their Valentine’s Day production of Oklahoma!, TV sensation Colby J. Turner swoops in to save the show. But for leading lady Bex Hardgrave, this last-minute casting is more drama than she bargained for. Eight years ago, their onstage chemistry sparked real-life fireworks—until a misunderstanding brought down the curtain. As showtime approaches, Bex and Colby must decide if their second-chance romance deserves its own standing ovation.
A Play for Love by Trilina Pucci
Years ago, during a college production of Romeo and Juliet, Rory and Oliver shared one unforgettable stage kiss before fate pulled them apart. Now, while drowning her Valentine’s Day sorrows at brunch, she spots her former Romeo, wearing nothing but gold shorts and wings, playing Cupid for the lovelorn masses. Their chemistry still sizzles, but these former leads will need more than Shakespeare’s guidance to turn their second chance into a true romance.
Death to Valentine’s Day by Catherine Cowles
After her boyfriend’s betrayal, the last thing Maia St. James wants is Valentine’s Day. But when friends drag her to a Death to Valentine’s Day masquerade ball at a mountain lodge, she ends up kissing a masked stranger—only to discover he’s her ex’s older brother. And when a guest is found murdered, the party becomes a deadly mystery. Now Maia must unmask a killer before her second chance at romance is cut short.
Valentine’s Slay by Navessa Allen
Louisiana gravedigger Noah Evans’s Valentine’s night shift takes an unexpected turn when his high school crush, Emma, starts screaming from her freshly dug grave. As they unearth a deadly family conspiracy, Noah and Emma discover that old flames burn even hotter the second time around—especially when someone’s trying to kill them.
Accidentally Yours by Christina Lauren
When marketing consultant Veronica accidentally crashes the wrong Zoom meeting, she’s shocked to receive a job offer from the company’s intriguing CEO. Their professional email exchanges quickly turn flirty, but Veronica’s mind keeps drifting to her reserved but gorgeous new neighbor. As Valentine’s Day approaches, she’ll discover that sometimes the most improbable meet-cute can lead to the perfect match. (2 hours, 10 minutes)
Time Will Tell by Hannah Bonam-Young
When a history teacher receives a letter from her deceased grandmother revealing a secret love affair in the 1950s, it leads her to a time capsule hidden decades ago. But it’s the charming grandson of her grandmother’s lost love who changes everything, proving that sometimes the heart knows exactly where—and when—it belongs.
Second Act Romance by Julie Soto
When food poisoning takes out the lead in their Valentine’s Day production of Oklahoma!, TV sensation Colby J. Turner swoops in to save the show. But for leading lady Bex Hardgrave, this last-minute casting is more drama than she bargained for. Eight years ago, their onstage chemistry sparked real-life fireworks—until a misunderstanding brought down the curtain. As showtime approaches, Bex and Colby must decide if their second-chance romance deserves its own standing ovation.
A Play for Love by Trilina Pucci
Years ago, during a college production of Romeo and Juliet, Rory and Oliver shared one unforgettable stage kiss before fate pulled them apart. Now, while drowning her Valentine’s Day sorrows at brunch, she spots her former Romeo, wearing nothing but gold shorts and wings, playing Cupid for the lovelorn masses. Their chemistry still sizzles, but these former leads will need more than Shakespeare’s guidance to turn their second chance into a true romance.
Death to Valentine’s Day by Catherine Cowles
After her boyfriend’s betrayal, the last thing Maia St. James wants is Valentine’s Day. But when friends drag her to a Death to Valentine’s Day masquerade ball at a mountain lodge, she ends up kissing a masked stranger—only to discover he’s her ex’s older brother. And when a guest is found murdered, the party becomes a deadly mystery. Now Maia must unmask a killer before her second chance at romance is cut short.
Valentine’s Slay by Navessa Allen
Louisiana gravedigger Noah Evans’s Valentine’s night shift takes an unexpected turn when his high school crush, Emma, starts screaming from her freshly dug grave. As they unearth a deadly family conspiracy, Noah and Emma discover that old flames burn even hotter the second time around—especially when someone’s trying to kill them.
Fate works in mysterious ways—and this Valentine’s Day, it’s feeling particularly mischievous. From accidental Zoom crashes to graveyard resurrections, six beloved romance authors bring you a collection of increasingly steamy second chances.
Review:
Thank you to Amazon Original Stories and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this title to read and give my honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
I'm in my novella phase. I read the short stories Amazon put out last year and adored them. I was excited to see there were more coming out for the season of love and couldn't wait to read them! I'm excited I got to read them. I loved all the different themes that were presented. I will say I was expecting them all to be second chance romances given the title but they were not.
Accidentally Yours by Christina Lauren: I don't think there's anything Lauren can write that I don't love. This one was totally charming and funny as all get out. I loved the accidental zoom, the fact that the FMC, Veronica, (who had nothing to lose), calls the men out on their BS. How she and Jude communicate via email and get to know one another. It totally had You've got mail vibes with that (one of my favorite movies). Is there some miscommunication with this one, there is, and normally it makes me crazy. But it truly worked with this story. This would be a great full length story and I gave it 4.5 stars just because I needed more!
Time Will Tell by Hannah Bonam-Carter: Another author that is aut0-read for me. I really love her all inclusive stories. This was probably my favorite story out of all the ones presented. I loved how the two characters form a relationship via email, then texting, then phone calls. The build up was a lot of fun. There was flirting and a bit of pining. The romance between Georgia and Callum was truly charming and I enjoyed how they got to know each other. Even the side characters were fun. This is another title that would be a great full length story and I gave it 4.5 stars just because I needed more!
Second Act Romance by Julie Soto: This author can be hit or miss for me. I did like the idea that this story was actually a second chance, which is what I was expecting. However, I think because I don't know all that much about theater, I lost my edge understanding this story. Often times while reading I didn't really understand what was going on. This made it hard to feel the chemistry between the two characters. Plus there is a lot of focus on the side characters which I usually enjoy but as a novella I feel like it was too much. I needed a bit more focus on the FMC and the MMC. This was fun but not my favorite of the stories. 3 stars.
A Play For Love by Trilina Pucci: I have not read anything by this author before, I always love being introduced to new authors to see if I'll enjoy their writing. This did meet the second chance romance vibe I was looking for. I really enjoyed the initial meet-cute and then the subsequent follow up. The first part was a good build up for me. I loved how Rory reacted. And then to get Oliver's POV later on as he's struggling to find work and takes on a job he truly doesn't want just to make some money for rent. I would have liked to see more of him and his love for teaching kids. We're really just told about it rather than being shown and I feel like that would have made the ending make more sense. But overall I enjoyed the writing and the short story and could see myself reading more from this author. 4 stars.
Death To Valentine's Day by Catherine Cowles: This is another author I've never read before. But her books have been on my radar so I was excited to have a chance to get to know her writing through this novella. I will say this story took a turn I didn't think it would take, murder mystery. I did love the idea of it, though. The chemistry between the two main characters was lacking for me. I needed more between them as it came off as inst-love and I am not a fan of that trope. I just didn't feel like they had a chance to ramp up their chemistry given the side story of the murder. And the ultimate murderer was definitely a shock but I also would have liked to see more finger pointing to other characters first so we could be kept guessing more. 3 Stars.
Valentine's Slay by Navessa Allen: I have enjoyed the dark romance this author has written and I was excited to see what kind of novella she would give us! I love the idea of a graveyard romance. I will say the build up between the characters was lacking. While I know it's hard to create that tension in such a short time, it's totally doable and I just didn't feel that from the FMC, Emma. The MMC, Noah, yes. He told us over and over about his attraction to Emma and how he never thought her marriage was right for her. But overall their connection just wasn't there. The story line was cute enough. Kind of mysterious but not really as I guessed it from the very start. I'll continue to give Allen a try as she comes out with more books. 3 stars.
Overall, this was fun to read and I hope Amazon continues to put out fun short stories. I'm loving the holiday themes and I hope they continues to publish them as they truly are so much fun!
Authors:
Christina Lauren is the combined pen name of long-time writing partners/best friends Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings. The coauthor duo writes both Young Adult and Adult Fiction, and together has produced twenty New York Times bestselling novels. Their books have been translated into 30+ languages. (Some of these books have kissing. Some of these books have A LOT of kissing.)
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We don't respond to private messages here, so please contact us on instagram. Thank you!!
Hannah is an Amazon bestselling romance author from Ontario, Canada. She lives with her childhood-friend-turned-husband Ben, two kids, and bulldog near Niagara Falls on the traditional territory of the Haudenosaunee and Anishinaabe peoples.
Hannah writes romances featuring a cast of diverse, disabled, marginalized, and LGBTQIA+ folks wherein swoon-worthy storylines blend with the beautiful, messy, and challenging realities of life.
When not reading or writing romance you can find her having living-room dance parties with her kids or planning any occasion that warrants a cheese board.
Hannah writes romances featuring a cast of diverse, disabled, marginalized, and LGBTQIA+ folks wherein swoon-worthy storylines blend with the beautiful, messy, and challenging realities of life.
When not reading or writing romance you can find her having living-room dance parties with her kids or planning any occasion that warrants a cheese board.
JULIE SOTO is a USA Today bestselling author, playwright, and actress originally from Sacramento, CA. Her musical Generation Me won the 2017 New York Musical Festival’s Best Musical award, as well as Best Book for her script. She is a musical theater geek, fandom nerd, and the author of many spicy fan fictions. Julie now lives in Fort Bragg, CA, with her dog, Charlie. She is probably drinking coffee as you read this.
Trilina Pucci, a #1 Amazon and USA TODAY Bestselling Author, is a connoisseur of pop culture and SANPELLEGRINO, but her true passion lies in crafting tantalizing romantic novels that delve into the depths of desire, emotion, and even hearty belly laughs.
When she's not penning steamy love stories, you'll find her indulging in Netflix marathons with her husband, Anthony (Residence is a fan fave), and their three not-so-little ones.
When she's not penning steamy love stories, you'll find her indulging in Netflix marathons with her husband, Anthony (Residence is a fan fave), and their three not-so-little ones.
Writer of words. Drinker of Diet Cokes. Lover of all things cute and furry, especially her dog. Catherine has had her nose in a book since the time she could read and finally decided to write down some of her own stories. When she's not writing she can be found exploring her home state of Oregon, listening to true crime podcasts, or searching for her next book boyfriend.
Navessa Allen is an author who resides on a 200-year-old farm in rural New England. She shares her home with her husband, cats, and various farm animals. Allen's writing career has garnered attention, particularly for her dark romance novels. Her book "Lights Out" has gained popularity, especially on platforms like TikTok and Goodreads. Allen maintains an online presence through her Patreon page and website, where readers can stay updated on her latest projects. Her work often explores themes of trauma, healing, and complex relationships, blending elements of dark romance with humor and character development.
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