6 books about the unseen beauty in second chances

There has been a time in all our lives when we have hoped to wake up another day, with the ultimate power to rectify what we have caused because we know very well, fixing the past is something of fiction and the impossible. No amount of sorry or pity relieves us of the pain but what does give hope is the sense of a second chance. A chance to redo things right and better. A chance to start fresh with no thoughts or history attached. A chance to cleanse our conscience. A chance that could change the course of your story toward the light. A second chance is a rare gem that can only be found within the ones who know they deserve it. It cannot be attained nor can be found elsewhere. Let’s immerse ourselves into a selection of books that express the beauty within a second chance, an absolute fresh start with its own risks.

1.  Before The Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
In the quaint nook of Tokyo sits a café that has been around for over a hundred years, brewing a careful concoction of coffee but, that’s not the only speciality it beholds. The customers wander to the café to experience something out of this world, a chance to travel back in time. But everything has its rules of risks and this experience has such boundaries. Customers must sit in their seats, they must not leave the café, the person they intend on meeting should have visited the café earlier themselves, and last but not least, they must return to the present before the coffee gets cold. In this story we are introduced to four characters who come looking for this café, with intentions of their own; (a) To confront a man who left them, (b) To receive a letter from their husband whose memory has been taken by early onset Alzheimer’s, (c) To see their sister one last time, and (d) To meet the daughter they never got the chance to know. Do you think the characters will be able to be back before the coffee gets cold? Immerse yourself into a slow-burn yet heart melting story authored by Toshikazu Kawaguchi.

2. Maybe In Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Hannah Martin, an aimless twenty-nine-year-old has moved across at least six cities along with a huge bunch of insignificant jobs ever since graduating. Drained of all hope and any interest, Hannah steers herself back to her hometown in Los Angeles, and finds a place to stay at her friend Gabby’s guestroom. When the pair heads out to the bar one night, she is unexpectedly met with her high school boyfriend. The night comes to an end and Gabby is ready to head home, but Ethan extends an offer to spend the night with him and he would be willing to give her a ride later. Hannah is stuck in hesitation between going home with her best friend Gabby or stay back with Ethan, but we get to experience the realities of both decisions pan out side by side. The novel unfolds in two parallel universes all coming back to the same question of hesitation, should Hannah go home with Gabby or stay with Ethan? Dive into the parallel worlds of Hannah Martin as her fate tells you of the result of her decisions, written by Taylor Jenkins Reid.

3. Britt-Marie Was Here by Fredrick Backman Translated by Henning Koch
Torn from the disloyal, unfaithfulness of her husband, Britt-Marrie pulls away from her marriage and goes about to find her way out of the grief. She is a woman of absolute perfection who despises the slightest disarray and doesn’t see the necessity to hold back from restoring order and all her life she has been treated brutally for who she is. All her hazy thoughts and her unspeakable sorrow leads her to the dull and depressed town of Borg. It’s not much. Most of the towns people seem to have left. The ones who remain barely make up for a population, overall consisting of the former star of the local football team who is blind, a business owner who is confined to his wheelchair, and orphaned children. Even though Borg doesn’t seem like a good place of choice for someone trying to heal from a life of ordeal, this was exactly what Britt-Marie needed. This was her chance to restore the colors of the town and perfectly timed, she is given the back-breaking responsibility to coach the children soccer team to victory. Travel to the town of Borg alongside Britt-Marie as she tears down the grey clouds hanging above and restores purpose in the town, a heart-warming tale written by Fredrick Backman and translated by Henning Koch.

4. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
Imagine you were given the opportunity to know the outcomes of all your decisions, the consequences, the achievements and everything that comes with it, all in a library beyond the knowledge of anyone, where you are left to understand your existence, your potentials and every minute outcome of all your choices. That place is known as the Midnight Library. When Nora Seed finds herself in a difficult situation, demanded to make a decision, she must find her answers with in the midnight library. Every book is a different reality where she has made many different decisions. She may pursue a new career, undo a past break-up, embark on her dream to become a glaciologist, and many more possibilities. Get cast into a world where every single possibility is a book on the shelves of an ongoing life of Nora seed, authored by Matt Haig.

5. Ghosted by J.M.Darhower
Jonathan Cunningham, a young actor and Hollywood’s latest dreamboat, starring in a superhero franchise, is left to deal with the flooding fame all by himself while already drowning in endless scandals and addictions. On the other hand, Kennedy Garfield, a single mom who is the assistant manager in a grocery store waits for a day when the tabloids on the magazine stand don’t glare back at her with the face of the man who left her all alone, completely unaware of the existence of a daughter. Back in high school they were unconditionally in love with each other. She saw every part of him, even the tiny broken parts of him and embraced him all too well and he her just the same way. Blinded by love, they ran away to pave a path of their own but in the present the only thing they share is a daughter who absolutely adores the superhero, unaware that that’s her father. When Jonathan finds himself at his lowest, he greatly wishes to make amends with the only person who left her whole world behind for him, and his daughter whom he is yet to meet. A wonderful romantic tale on second chances magically captured in words by J.M.Darhower.

6. The Overdue Life of Amy Byler by Kelly Harms

Amy Byler, an overworked single mom who could really use a break, has an opportunity knock on her door when the father of her children steps in to take care of them for the summer. It only seems like a fair decision to give him the chance and to take her chance with a little getaway, far from the rural Pennsylvania to the buzzing city of New York. For the first time in a long time Amy is excited and overwhelmed all at once unsure of where to begin but regardless, soon enough she lets loose and allows herself to feel the taste of a little break. While she enjoys the frivolities the city has to offer, she goes on a few blind dates here and there only to meet a guy who seems to have invaded every thought of hers. The summer flies like a flash of memories before her and before she realizes, she must make a decision to whether stay in this brand new version of her life or go back to her old glum life. Just in time, a crisis comes along threatening both her worlds which she just might lose if she doesn’t grasp onto one or the other. Tag along with Amy as she figures out a way to balance her life without breaking the core to either of worlds, an emotional at the same time a splendid tale authored by Kelly Harms.