Well I have to admit that this book wasn’t the romantic escape I was first expecting, but I actually really liked and respected that about it. It was refreshingly honest and steeped in realism about the complexities of relationships, extended families and work/life balance.

For every humorous or light-hearted moment in the book, there is also a more serious or dramatic one, and this gives the book a good balance.

I loved the characters in this book. Neither Carl nor Natalie come across as perfect, and they both go on a journey in which they learn the fallout of keeping secrets from one another. They both have their faults and their redeeming features. Carl is a hard-working, impulsive, dedicated man. Natalie is a creative, loving and self-conscious person. I loved that both these characters were developed and complex.

Overall, this has been a lovely book about the importance of friendship, communication, loyalty and learning to enjoy life. Second hand furniture and the idea of a “second hand” husband in the book serve as a reminder that nothing is perfect but when we understand its history, we can create something beautiful.

I would definitely recommend this book to fans of Camilla Isley, Judy Leigh and Shari Low. I look forward to reading more by this author.

A Second-Hand Husband was an enjoyable read with a great smaller cast of characters. Firstly, the title was a nice clever touch as the story follows the main character who is a second wife as she navigates her new role. As she is a second-hand antique clock dealer, it was a fun touch to set the tone for the overall story. Natalie’s new life is very relatable as it is a common occurrence in the world and it was lovely to read about her experience, especially as she suffers from many self-esteem issues. Even those who are very confident in themselves cannot help but compare themselves to others, so it was nice to see how Natalie navigated her new life as a second wife.

Natalie is a 36-year-old owner of her own antique clock shop in London. She found the love of her life after he was a customer in her shop and the two of them wed after less than 6 months together. Now the two of them are navigating married life with some complications as her husband, Carl, a man in his early 40s and is a PR manager, has been married before and his two children live with his ex-wife. Before I, as the reader, even met Carl, I had to wonder about his children that still make me wonder, as it is never explicitly discussed in the book. It could also be different in the UK, but I automatically wondered why the two children lived full time with their mother. Carl is close with his children, so it made me wonder if it was a decision by either parent, a joint decision, a legal decision when they divorced, or if it was a decision by the children (they are younger, but some places do let kids have a say). 27 days into married life, Carl surprises Natalie with a new house that happens to be located in the same village as his ex-wife, Antonia. Even though it was Natalie’s idea for them to move closer to his children, she now has to wonder if it all would work out. The story follows Natalie’s adventure trying to navigate the new house, which happens to need a lot of work, the new family dynamics, and her marriage.

While the story was filled with a lot of humor, some of the characters were just not likable to me, no matter how much of a potential redemption arc they could have. Antonia did many “mean girl” behaviors where she would call the main character Natty instead of Natalie, even though Natalie repeatedly told her not to. Her character is written as the “Queen Bee” of the town and she comes across as perfect, although there is more lying underneath. Every reader will interpret her character differently, but I just did not interpret the “cattiness” as humorous and I commend Natalie for putting up with it, as I would not in the same situation. Now onto Carl, he makes many bothersome comments throughout the entire novel, so he was a very difficult character to like. He drove me crazy throughout the entire novel and I have absolutely how he ended up with either wife. Despite me not connecting with either of these characters, they were both written well and it did not take away from my enjoyment of the story.

Natalie was a delightful character. She has low self-esteem and does not think she is as great as “perfect” Antonia or the perfect girl for Carl, who she considers to be out of her league. She goes through a lot of character growth in becoming comfortable with her new role and with her esteem. It was nice to see her come into her own, even if Carl was not always around. I felt a lot of sympathy for Natalie as I just wanted her to discover how much she has to offer the world. She is not perfect, but she tries to learn from her mistakes and to grow as a person, which was relatable and interesting to read about throughout her story.

Overall, this novel was a nice and enjoyable read. There were some subplots, such as Natalie’s father and Carl’s brother, that I would have loved to learn more about, but I liked the general story. The setting was lovely and I would absolutely jump at the chance to live at Rose Cottage, even with all the work that is needed. It was a very sweet story about a woman finding out more about navigating life around her and learning more about herself along the way.

**I give a special thank you to Rachel @rararesources, the publisher, Boldwood Books, and the author Claire Calman, for the opportunity to participate in this enjoyable novel via Netgalley. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.**

One of the things I enjoyed about this novel was the fact that I was never completely sure what I thought about some of the characters until quite far into the story. In particular, Carl and his first wife, Antonia, were a little hard to read and the result of this was that I was also a bit wary about Natalie herself. Natalie turned out to have some issues from her childhood which went some way to explaining her suggestion that they move near to Carl's family.

The village Natalie moves to sounds idyllic on the surface but there are all sorts of local politics to be negotiated. It is a great source of humour and there are some genuinely funny moments as Natalie has to face spiders, missing roof tiles and a gate which is impossible to open. That is before she gets to meet the locals and runs the gauntlet of the main shopping street, hoping to avoid Antonia. With lively dialogue, vividly drawn characters and secrets from the past, this is a highly recommended read.

In short: Can a new marriage survive the family?
Thanks to the author for a copy of the book

They couldn’t be more different, that Natalie and Antonia. It’s pretty amazing how much abilities, interests, and personalities can differ between two people. As Clay’s second wife, Natalie suggests they find a home closer to his kids who live with his ex, Antonia. Clay goes ahead and buys a dilapidated home a five-minute walk from Antonia and their kids.

Natalie is gracious and agrees it’s her dream home, even with tiles missing from the roof. They get it fixed and rebuild the home, restoring its natural beauty while enjoying the nearby barn and pond. It’s when Natalie goes into the village that she constantly runs into Antonia, who’s always skipping ahead in line, buying up everything in sight, and making Natalie feel small and unimportant.

While Natalie works on making curtains for their new home and cooking and baking, Antonia suggests the priciest designers and stores to buy everything to meet her own standards. It seems the two are at odds while still trying to be civil, for the sake of the kids. It’s when the power goes out that Natalie proves to be more than useful and resourceful for Antonia and the kids.

It seems Clay is gone quite a lot for work, but now he’s also preoccupied with visiting his ill father at the hospital. He’s not around to help Natalie build their home, but the indecisive Natalie is still able to get the place decorated and furniture purchased to make the cottage a home that she enjoys. But every time Clay’s back, all they do is argue. It seems Natalie doesn’t feel respected nor that her thoughts matter.

I’m in the middle of taking an enneagram masterclass and reading this story makes me think Natalie is an enneagram type 6, also known as a loyal skeptic. Natalie values security and belonging through being safe and prepared. The more I submerse myself into the enneagram, the easier it is to consider an enneagram type for the fictional characters I read about. If you haven’t noticed, the enneagram is kind of like a personality test, but I believe it’s more about how we react to situations. It’s quite interesting and I’ll be sharing more and more in the coming reviews.

I really like Natalie. She maybe unsure of herself and take a bit to consider her options, but she can take care of herself. She can cook and bake and sew and swim. Natalie might be unsure of herself when confronted with an aggressor, but when she sets her mind to it, she will conquer anything!

Thanks to Boldwood Books and Rachel’s Random Resources for access to A Second-Hand Husband by Claire Calman. I give this book 5 out of 5 tiaras because it pulled me into Natalie’s crazy life and all the emotions she goes through simply to go into the village to buy food for meals and everything else in between. She endures a lot while doing her best to remain positive and hopeful. I admire her and think she’d be a good friend should I run into her in the village as often as she runs into Antonia!

Thanks to @bookandtonic and @NetGalley for providing me with a proof copy in advance of publication. 📚

This book is clever, bittersweet but with lots of soul, and you can tell it was written with love. It's a 2021 spin on the age-old tale of love and loss, grief and guilt. No one wants to share their husband, let alone with the ex-wife, who lives just down the road, where the grass is most definitely greener!

Definitely a book you can smash out in a day and recommend it to anyone who loves a bit of drama!

Firstly, I loved the cover. That’s what initially drew me in. I had high hopes for this book after reading the blurb, but, it really didn’t deliver.
I found Carl infuriating and he was constantly gaslighting Natalie at every corner. I was waiting for the big moment she realised she deserved better, but ( spoiler ) it didn’t happen. No one would act the way these characters were acting, I think the author took it too far. I found the plot all over the place, things happened with no relevance and lots of situations which needed more depth, reason and detail. I loved Celeste ( Natalie’s sister ) and would read a book about her and Stefan ( Carl’s brother ). I personally wouldn’t recommend this, but I’ve heard great things about the authors previous work.

After a six month whirlwind romance that was truly wonderful Natalie has married Carl. She believed she was getting a wonderful life partner. In reality what she got was a man child who is as selfish as the day is long, had a tender ego that he did not like challenged, was a huge wimp, doesn’t care about anyone except himself and is pretty much the textbook definition of narcissist with the maturity level of a toddler. In essence, the bloom was off the rose the moment they said I do. He purchases a home for them with no discussion, her having not seen it and in the very village his perfect ex-wife and his children live. Basically next door. What?? She tries hard to make it work while Carl goes through life with absolutely no though to how his decisions impact anyone other than himself. She tried to do the best she could and yet I wanted her to stand up for herself. Push back, make a stand, do for
herself just once and maybe push him head first into the pond out back. Fully clothed. I wanted better for her. At times it is a funny read, but others, just a little sad and pathetic. It’s a mostly cute summer read, though I wasn’t thrilled with the outcome as I did not trust nor have any faith in Carl to actually mean what he said. Well written and I will most certainly be looking for more by this author.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

Natalie, whose newly married to Carl has agreed to move from London to Kent. This is so that he’s closer to his two children.

But, as they are about to begin looking for their house, Carl has bought a cottage which needs work, and this is a big shock to Natalie!

Adjusting g to the nee life has Natalie thinking maybe things are that bad, abs maybe this is as it should be. Another thing that she’s not that keen on is her husbands ex wife Antonia, whose now more nearer than she’d like.

Will she be able to make a life for herself in the village, knowing that his past life is always there?

A story with emotions as well as hope.

When I read Growing Up for Beginners, I was incredibly impressed by the way the author wove together three apparently disconnected stories, tangling the threads but not leaving a single loose end dangling. This book was entirely different, and did come as something of a surprise – a smaller cast of characters, a simpler story, a more conventional timeline, but still with that rather special touch with characterisation that I so enjoyed in the earlier book.

The book’s main character is Natalie – newly married to Carl, and can’t believe her luck. She has severe self-esteem issues, struggles with decision-making, feels awkward and out of place in social situations. But she really loves Carl, and feels for him that they live so far away from the two children of his previous marriage, and they’re thinking about moving closer. It’s something of a surprise though when he calls to tell her that he’s bought a house in an auction – one she’s never even seen – much closer to his former family. In fact, she finds it’s not only closer, it’s in the same village, only walking distance away: the house itself (to put it mildly) is something of a disappointment too, lacking a roof, needing an enormous amount of work to make it their new home, but it does have the pond in the garden that she’d always had on her “must have” list.

Living in such close proximity to Carl’s first wife proves to be an even bigger issue than she thought it might be – Antonia, now remarried, is always groomed to perfection, has a wonderful house complete with manicured garden and swimming pool, is the perfect hostess when inviting round her equally stunning friends and acolytes, and Natalie suspects there may be more between her and Carl that just their shared parenting. Everywhere Natalie goes, Antonia is there – popping up from behind the fruit and veg carrying her designer wicker basket, snaffling the last loaves of sourdough at the bakery, jumping queues with impunity while making loud proclamations about her frantically busy life. And, particularly loudly, she insists on calling her “Natty”, forbidden to anyone other than her closest family – and that’s when she’s not (equally loudly) referring to her as “Wife Number Two”, or to Carl as “our husband”. And then there are her children – particularly teenage Saskia, who shares her mother’s propensity for the put-down line, making Natalie feel even more unwelcome and out of place than she already does.

There are a couple of other storylines that emerge – the surprising reappearance of Natalie’s father, and the fractured relationship Carl has with his brother – but the story’s main thrust is around the relationship with Antonia and the family, as Natalie sets about making her home at Rose Cottage with Carl largely absent, while trying to decide whether her marriage really is what she wanted it to be and whether she can ever hope to be good enough.

It’s largely about the character progression – Natalie is so very downtrodden and lacking in confidence, her awkwardness really painful to witness, and you yearn for her to stamp her foot and assert herself, to stop being the total doormat she sometimes seems to be. But she certainly does have her moments of joy – supervising the work on the cottage while adding her own special touches (even picking up a sledgehammer – which must have been so satisfying – when life becomes particularly fraught), bravely swimming in Antonia’s swimming pool in her unfashionable costume, goggles and cap, or stripping off to swim in the garden pond.

It’s a difficult thing to build sympathy for a character who’s so desperately downtrodden but takes so long to do anything about it – and I must admit that I did sometimes find it a bit much, wanting to step in on her behalf (as her sister does, quite magnificently on one occasion), make Carl realise the misery he’s inflicted, tell Antonia what I thought of her and put her in her place. So does Natalie find the bravery to make a stand? That’s for you to find out when you read the book – and really the essence of the story.

The humour throughout is excellent, witty and perfectly judged – although sometimes touched with a sense of acute embarrassment for some of Natalie’s experiences. The sheer joy of the book is in the characterisation, particularly the magnificent Antonia, whose increasing acts of thinly-veiled hostility – whatever may inspire them – make you gasp in horror. There’s a particularly strong sense of place too – the whole village of Little Wyford is perfectly drawn, with Rose Cottage becoming a home surrounded by the beauty of nature in contrast to Antonia’s stark designer house.

I will admit though that I just couldn’t love Natalie as much as I really wanted to: although I really felt for her, and wanted her to realise how much she had to offer, there were times when I just wanted to shake her. And I never entirely understood Carl’s behaviour – his self-centredness and lack of engagement often seemed rather at odds with his professions of love for his new wife.

It was a read I really enjoyed, but I do think I might have preferred just a little more complexity – the subsidiary storylines did peter out a little, and I’m not sure that Natalie’s progression was quite enough to make me entirely love it, although I did very happily read it from cover to cover in a single sitting. But I’m only one reader, and we all look for different things in the books we love – I very much like Claire Calman’s writing, and many might just prefer this rather more linear storytelling. So perhaps not one of my personal books of the year this time round, but I’ll still be very much looking forward to seeing what she does next.

#Blogtour

Within 16 lines of starting this book, it had me laughing out loud, at the thought of Nat, in the bath, talking to her new Husband Carl. Nat is trying her best to sound sexy, but her Husband asks if she’s unwell, since she sounds sick! I certainly might feel sick, if I were to find out that my new Husband had bought a house for us at auction, very close to his ex Wife, without consulting me. I would not be happy. Laughter at this early stage certainly augers well, and if the rest of the book continues in this comedic vein………..what’s not to love?
The storyline of this book took an ‘thoriffic’’ (a mutant form of terrible & horrific) turn, when It is revealed during a telephone conversation with Celeste, Nat’s older Sister) that the house is rather close to Carl’s ex wife! I think there was a double reveal, as the author also divulged her utterly wicked sense of humour to the reader at this point! I did love the cutting remark that the author gifted to Celeste ‘I wouldn’t trust a man to choose a glass of wine for me, let alone a house’. Needless to say, Nat is clearly not of the same opinion! I loved Nat’s dialogue and the more I read, the more I warmed to her as a character. I felt nothing but empathy for Nat and found myself rooting for her from afar and genuinely caring whether or not Carl manages to screw her life up!

Nat’s reaction when she realises how close the ‘new’ house is, to Carl’s ex-wife, is predictable, but it is described in such a way that you can’t help but empathise with Nat, and in my mind I was already casting Carl’s ex as the baddy in the situation, even though I have no evidence of her having anything to do with the situation. I feel that the author captured the perfect reaction for Nat, and to not have Nat reacting badly, would surely seem most unrealistic, given the situation. We are only human, after all.

The characterisation off Carl is superb, but I’m not sure that I would trust him, were he in my life. He seemed to me to be one of those people that kind of project their issues onto other people, and someone who has a psychological hold over loved ones.Why would I buy a house with no roof and not mention it?’ An example is where he is shouting about where the roof of the house has gone and says to Nat ‘Why would I buy a house with no roof and not mention it?’ – when as a reader I get sneaky , wily undertones from Him – and I feel pretty certain that he has done exactly that, and bought and tried to move his Wife into a house with no roof. I felt the most dislike for Carl though, when he ‘encourages’ Nat to put on lipstick, before they going into his ex’s house. I mean really – is he living in the 1950’s. I thought the thread was really well written though – because some men really do behave like that! Unfortunately for Nat, Carl seems hellbent on some kind of game of one-upmanship with his ex and her Husband, Dominic, although it increasingly seems that Carl is the only one playing the game! However, I must assure that you, that despite not particularly liking Carl that much, this in no way detracts from the talent of the author, and the way she portrays him and his actions, through a whole spectrum of personality traits, from sad, to funny, to loving, with several more in between. A character doesn’t have to be likeable, in order to testament to an author’s talent; indeed the author’s portrayal of Carl is bordering on genius.

Carl’s ex, Antonia almost comes across as pleasant,if a little high maintenance, although personally I would find her habit of referring to Carl as ‘Our Husband’, in front of Nat, more than a tad irritating. The writing is clever I think, in that it makes a character that I feel I should dislike, pretty likeable, despite her many afflictions!

The part of the storyline where Nat feels as though she’s not good enough for Carl is positively heartbreaking. The section is so well written and realistic, that I could feel real tears forming. I felt completely divided – torn between overflowing with empathy for Nat and anger and frustration towards Antonia and Carl, and taking a moment to admire the strong, yet poignant prose. I wasn’t convinced that Antonia was an unpleasant person, buy more careless/thoughtless, with a hint of selfishness. Surely can’t possibly thinking of the connotations of constant try reffering to someone as their Husband’s no. 2💩 and I cannot help but wonder if Carl really does think that Nat is ‘second fiddle’ to Antonia, or whether he is ‘just’ a selfish, thoughtless, egotistical narcissist!

I love the way that Nat clearly adores her family, and I empathise with her hugely over the relationship with her Father, which is difficult. The relationship with Carl is sad at times, in that he is hardly ever at home, but I think that the author captures how Nat feels about this in a sympathetic, yet realistic manner. It’s a shame that Nat has so many ‘difficult’ relationships, ranging from that with Antonia, through to the issues with Carl, and then to the awful way that Saskia, Carl’s Daughter behaves towards her. I felt that the way the relationship with Saskia was described completely empathetically. It almost feels as though Nat is the only adult who genuinely has time for Saskia, and tries to understand her – for example, Nat realising that Saskia is not a confident swimmer – yes sadly Saskia is rude and tries to push her away at every opportunity. Despite these scenes making for uncomfortable reading, they were again a huge testament to the author’s writing skill. Not every situation is sparkles and unicorns, and the author clearly recognises this and writes about difficult situations and difficult people, with great skill and empathy. Indeed one starts to wonder whether or not Nat actually needs Carl in her life so much – such is her ability to get on so well without him. I love the way this is written – proof of the fact that a woman does not need a man, in order to live their life to its best.

In all, this was an über read that I simply did not want to put down.

An amusing, easy to read story about the imperfections in all of us and our relationships.
To begin with I found the characters hard to like - Natalie is too keen to please everyone else and Carl acts like a spoilt child. With a little background explanation however, I began to understand appreciate some of their actions and towards the end I was hoping that things would work out for them both.

Massive thank-you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for an ARC copy of 'The Second-Hand Husband' in exchange for an honest review!

Romcoms aren't usually my thing however there was something about the blurb that enticed me and, boy am I glad that I requested to read this! Despite this not being my typical genre, I loved this book and actually ended up reading it in one night.

Calman perfectly captured life's different and tricky relationships and in turn provided a book that acted as a little safety blanket with her characterisation. Whilst I adored Natalie and wanted to wrap her up in the biggest hug, I wanted to give Carl a slap and tell him to stop being such an idiot.

Whilst there are a lot of storylines circulating throughout the novel, I have to say I loved this novel and am looking forward to reading more of Calman's novels!

I thoroughly enjoyed this - even though I wanted to slap Carl from here to next week. He really infuriated me and this is a sign that I was emotionally invested in this story. Ms Calman brought her characters to vivid life, and I loved the journey Natalie was on and the way the first wife reacted to her. Oh, and Carl's daughter was so realistically portrayed, it had me rolling my eyes in sympathy.

This book was a hoot from start to finish, a great light-hearted read with the underlying message of the need to stick up for yourself.

Thank you NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC copy of A Second-Hand Husband in exchange for an honest review!

When I saw this title on NetGalley, I thought it looked cute and interesting. I will say after reading it was a cute and light-hearted read. I really enjoyed Natalie and loved her relationship with many of the characters. I did find Carl to be a little annoying and a pretty bad husband.

I really enjoyed this story and felt like I could see myself in the cottage and the village. The author did a great job of describing details in a way that made me feel like I was part of the story.

I will say that this book had LOTS of different storylines going on at the same time and I think there could have been a little less going on. But in the author’s defense, this is a story about being human and dealing with family issues. I think we can all agree as humans that we have a lot going on that we have to balance. Also family life is not easy and there are always issues to resolve!

The ending was pretty cute, I won’t lie. I’m glad it ended the way it did. Overall, I would recommend this. If you’re looking for a cute, light-hearted read that will also empower you to stand up for yourself when you feel you’ve been wronged, then this book is for you.

Two’s company and three’s a crowd in this marriage.

Life is full of tricky relationships and Claire Calman’s new novel embraces many of them. In this modern day world where blended families are far from unusual, newlywed Natalie is about to discover that her marriage to Carl is definitely overcrowded. With a glamorous ex wife still hogging the limelight, awkward step children to negotiate and sibling fall outs to contend with, their honeymoon period comes to an abrupt halt. Packing up her antique clock business in favour of moving from London to rural Kent so husband Carl can spend quality time with his children, Natalie is left dumbfounded when Carl buys dilapidated Rose Cottage at auction without consulting her first. Putting on a brave face in light of this surprising decision is just half of the forthcoming battle. What awaits in Little Wyford in terms of Natalie’s dream home and the welcome she receives from certain quarters is going to test her wedding vows to the extreme.


Obviously this is a character driven novel and once again Claire Calman has chosen to draw on some of the more negative aspects of human nature when penning her main players. She’s provided her readers with plenty of grounds for character assassination! Where shall I begin? Carl, for me is the most disagreeable and he comes with an awful lot of baggage. If buying their dream home without consulting his new wife isn’t automatic grounds for divorce then having Carl’s glamorous ex wife and two spoilt children living a stone’s throw away immediately suggests he’s insensitive, selfish, presumptuous and not the right man for the uncomplaining, forgiving, down to earth Natalie. You wonder what kind of life poor Natalie has signed up for living with someone who is either absent thanks to his workload and family obligations or who is never mindfully present when he does make an appearance, forever glued to his phone. With wife number one, kids Saskia and Max, and a stressful job all demanding his attention Natalie resigns herself to sharing her husband even if that means she constantly finds herself at the bottom of the pile. As the romantic ‘hero’ of the novel, Carl is by no means up to scratch leaving you exasperated and annoyed at his shortcomings. Ditch the phone Carl and actually TALK to your wife otherwise there’ll be more than a few tiles missing from the roof of Rose Cottage;your far too patient wife will have scarpered!!

Antonia, Carl’s first wife and Queen Bee of the village is one of those characters cast as the villain but I absolutely adored her even though everything about her screams first class b***h. You can imagine her as the leader of the cool, mean girls at school, a role she happily carries through into her adult life surrounding herself with equally glamorous shallow acolytes and it’s for this reason she is so unapproachable, at least for the likes of Natalie. From referring to Carl as ‘our husband’ to swanning around the village pushing her way to the front of every queue, buying up all the sourdough, calling Natalie Natty (which only one person has ever been allowed to do) and looking down her nose at wife number two at every opportunity, Antonia injects some oomph and humour into this storyline. Love or hate her ,it’s her interactions with her ‘replacement’ Natalie that amused me the most. She may have the mansion house complete with swimming pool as opposed to Natalie’s crumbling cottage, full of second hand furniture but underneath her air of grandeur is Antonia really that different from her counterpart?

What can I say about Natalie other than that she has a heart of gold and deserves a medal for putting up with both Carl and Antonia’s atrocious behaviour? She’s your typical wholesome girl next door character who struggles to fit into village life thanks to Antonia’s best efforts to belittle her. Hiding her light under a bushel, Natalie is rather insipid to begin with; all you want is for Natalie to wake up and smell the roses and realise she’s worth far more than Carl and Antonia combined. She’s simply too nice. I’m glad that as the storyline progresses she finds her feet and her voice but is it enough to shrug off that unflattering title of wife number two?

With background details of both Carl and Natalie’s upbringings offering up excuses/reasons for their individual personality traits, Claire Calman creates a small cast of imperfect characters to reflect exactly how messy and complicated life in general can be. However it’s a shame a couple of these don’t have more of a substantial role in this family oriented novel. I’d have liked to have seen more of Carl’s brother, the sexy Stefan and Natalie’s cool sister Celeste to offset the drama surrounding Carl, Natalie and Antonia.

One of my favourite parts of this novel is the setting itself. As a born and bred Kentish girl all the places the author mentions are familiar to me and I spent the whole time wondering where exactly in the county the village of Little Wyford is based upon. Thank you to the author for revealing her sources of inspiration for this fictional setting which is far more idyllic than the surroundings I grew up in! I loved the picturesque descriptions of the village and of Rose Cottage with it’s very own pond and the way it contrasts with Antonia and Dom’s more palatial residence.

So what, if anything can you learn from Claire Calman’s characters? What words of wisdom filter down through the pages? Well, it’s the usual standard fare with all these characters undergoing a certain amount of personal growth and development, having realised the errors of their ways. One of the biggest lessons to learn is the importance of valuing your true worth rather than measuring yourself up against the next person and finding yourself wanting. It’s frustrating that so many women are guilty of this, even subconsciously, telling themselves they are not thin enough, pretty enough, smart enough, rich enough, cool enough; basically they are not enough to be anything other than second best which is so unhealthy and dare I say slightly tedious? This competitiveness is so unnecessary as we’re all aware outward appearances never tell the whole story. Natalie and Antonia take note! Communication is key in any relationship and that’s something these characters definitely struggle with!

My major criticisms are that whilst this is funny (in places) I didn’t always find it laugh out loud funny but it is at times sweet and charming. The characterisation is good although in my opinion none of them display that extra special magical ingredient to make them stand out from the crowd. Overall I think this is a novel that is enjoyable for the short time it takes to read but is one that will be easily and quickly forgotten, especially if you’re a voracious reader like myself. However often nothing more is required of a book than to allow you to switch off and inhabit others ‘reality’ instead of your own and so if, like I was, you’re in the mood for some light entertainment, A Second Hand Husband fits that bill perfectly. Undemanding (in a good way!) this novel makes ideal lazy weekend/summer holiday reading.

My thanks as always to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for a copy of this ARC to read and review.

This was an easy & light hearted read that I finished in a day. It was fairly predictable but I find most romcoms are, didn't detract from the pleasure of reading it. The writing was lovely and descriptive and the setting of the book sounded beautiful.

Both of the main characters frustrated me from beginning to end although Natalie did grow on me a little bit once she started to stand up for herself but basically I wanted to punch Carl in the face for most of the book 😂😂 I hope there aren't many men out there that are as self involved as he is.

Would recommend for some easy summer reading.

🌟🌟🌟 from me.

A Second-Hand Husband is a hilarious book about living in a blended family. Natalie and Carl are newlyweds when he calls Natalie to tell her he bought their first house on an auction. At first Natalie is thrilled as it will be closer to Carl's kids, who live with his ex wife. What Carl failed to mention is the house is a fixer upper (in the worst way) and is half a mile from his ex-wife's house. It is also in a small town where everyone know everyone. What could go wrong???

I absolutely loved this book. It is told from Natalie's point of view as she deals with moving to a town where her husband's ex-wife is the Queen Bee. The book is very funny and I did not want it to end. I also loved watching Natalie grow during the book into a strong self-reliant woman. Reading Natalie experience house renovation, new neighbors, and family secrets is the perfect escape. You will definitely want to add this book to your summer, winter, anytime reading list.

Thank you to Rachel's Random Resource and the publisher for providing me the opportunity to be part of the blog tour for this book. I received an ARC and all opinions are my own.

I love stories set in the English countryside. They have an idyllic bent that I have always appreciated. It was fun with the story being well told and very compassionately portrayed.

I received an arc for the book and my honest review.

Ok romcoms are not usually my thing but I do enjoy them sometimes. This one was definitely an up and down on my like meter. At first I thought Natalie was a nervous, insecure person who always let people walk all over her. Then I read on and got to know her. I ended up loving her and found out she is actually an amazing nice strong woman. The same with the "first wife" Antonia. In the end I enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to all romcom lovers.

A Second Hand Husband is a cute romance set in the idyllic English countryside.

Natalie and her new husband Carl dream of leaving the big city life of London behind in favor of a slower life in the country. Natalie wants Carl to be close to his kids from his previous marriage so she suggests looking at villages nearby. Natalie’s life is turned a little upside down when Carl calls her saying he has found their dream home and he has bought it for them. Shouldn’t they be picking out their dream home together? Natalie has never seen the place and has no idea what it even looks like. When she finally gets to see the house her husband bought without consulting her, she finds the house in shambles. It doesn’t have a roof and it will need quite a bit of remodeling. She also discovers that the house is 5 minutes down the road from Carl’s children....and ex wife, Antonia. Natalie suggested moving close to the children, but she didn’t sign up to be next door neighbors with the Antonia. It doesn’t help that Antonia is glamorous, lives in a fancy mansion and seems to have it all. Natalie can’t help but to play the comparison game and it hurts to see the chemistry that Carl and Antonia still have everyday. As Natalie and Carl’s new home gets remodeled and they start to build their home together, Natalie begins to question what she signed up for and is this really her dream?