Five First Chances by Sarah Jost

 A life-affirming debut that blends a poignant exploration of friendship and loss with a truly unforgettable love story.

What would you do if you had one more chance for the life of your dreams?

Lou feels like she is stuck on the wrong path: alone, in a city far from home, watching other people be happy. When the man she's in love with announces his engagement to someone else, Lou is consumed by 'what ifs'.

That's when she finds herself slipping back in time to a night two years ago, where one small decision changed everything...

Suddenly, Lou has a chance to fix her mistakes. But as her choices lead her down roads she never could have imagined, she finds herself stuck in a time loop of her own making. And with each slip, Lou notices her life intersecting with one person again and again. A friend of a friend who once lived on the periphery, who is slowly becoming the one person who makes her feel like she might finally be on the right track.

Lou is about to realize that our greatest love stories aren't always the ones we expected, but are the ones we choose to fight for.

For anyone who has ever felt stuck on the wrong path comes a stunning, time-bending love story that challenges what it means to get things "right." This is a book that will pull at your heartstrings and make you realize that our world is full of inspiring people poised to change everything...and you might just be one of them.

Pick up your copy here...

Five First Chances: A Novel: Jost, Sarah: 9781728262703: Amazon.com: Books

Sarah Jost was born and grew up in Switzerland, against the backdrop of Lake Geneva and the Alps. She moved to the UK in 2008 to learn English for a year and somehow didn't manage to leave. She now works as a French teacher and pastoral manager in a girls' school, which she considers an immersive course in character study. Her debut novel One Last Chance (UK) / Five First Chances (US) is out in April 2023. Some of her favourite themes are art, empathy, female protagonists with space to grow, love stories in all shapes and quirky animals. Sarah lives in Buckinghamshire with her husband Luke and their adorable (and hard to keep up with!) golden shepherd Winnie. 

My Thoughts...

I love a good friendship/romance read and this one was on point. I will be honest it had a little bit of everything. Jost has a way of weaving the words to break your heart, but she helps put it back together at the same time.

I highly recommend this one.

The Mary Reader received this book from the publisher for review. A favorable review was not required, and all views expressed are our own.