September Sunrise is a light, contemporary romance with a set of likeable characters and a well-paced, relatable storyline.
Mia and Ethan were each other's first love and they had so many dreams and plans for the life they would build together after leaving their hometown. But things changed when a tragedy struck and Ethan left to pursue those dreams, leaving Mia behind. It's been 7 years since they broke up and now he's back.
Mia has moved on and is content with the life she's built for herself. Seeing him again makes her realize that she never stopped loving him but he hurt her too much for her to be able to trust him again.
Mia is the only girl Ethan ever loved and now that he is briefly back in town, he hopes for a second chance;however, she is now with Troy (his once best friend) and he knows he can't blame her for moving on with her life.
Both the lead and supporting characters get enough attention in the story and the flaws and emotional struggles of the characters make them relatable. We see the characters struggle to move on after loss, deal with difficult family members and situations, work hard to become bigger than their circumstances, avoid talking about painful stuff, refuse to let people in to avoid getting attached and/or hurt, and not see that those closest to them might prefer to be told difficult truths rather than be protected by being kept in the dark. So basically, they are like most of us.
The plot is definitely predictable and includes familiar tropes (nothing excessively dramatic, forced, or unrealistic), but it is still enjoyable and you could pick up this book when you need a palate cleanser.

Content triggers
The following are mentioned in the text: death, dysfunctional family, terminal illness, accident, prison, surgery, alcoholism, vandalism, adoption, miscarriage, dementia

I thank the publisher for providing me with an arc of this book via Netgalley in exchange for honest feedback.

September Sunrise is the third title in the Secondhand Hearts series, and brings us Mia’s and Ethan’s romance. They were high school sweethearts with plans to head off to college and their future together. Ethan had a very volatile home life, and he couldn’t wait to leave. Mia was a hard worker, had a loving, supportive family, and was ready to branch out to the future she and Ethan had planned. Life had other plans for this couple. When tragedy struck, it caused those plans to crumble as Ethan had to leave town for his own sanity, and Mia chose to remain and support her family through a very difficult time. Several years passed before Ethan returned home for a major project… and to bring Mia back into his life, a second chance he had hoped, yet so much has changed for them both, even if the love was still there, it was also hidden beneath hurt, anger, and fear of trusting again.

September Sunrise by Charlene Tess and Jodi Thompson is a well-written, emotional, and intense romance that easily caught my attention and never let go until the final page. Mia and Ethan were believable and faced the consequences of their decisions years ago. I liked them both, individually and as a couple, even if I did want, at times, to step into the pages and give them a stern talking to. I enjoyed myself in this world, and if you love a good, realistic hard fought for second chance romance, then this one would be perfect for you.

*I received an e-ARC of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley, and I sincerely thank the author or publishing house for their trust. It is my choice to leave a review giving my personal opinion about this book.*

this was a moving story and it was enjoyable. it was an interesting story, with heartwarming connections in families and a town. loved the connection between Ethan and Mia, they had such a strong love between them and were so cute. it was such a sweet story and different to other second chance books, a special book. can imagine it as a film!

This was a surprising fun read. I actually thought, at first, that this was a book by Tess Thompson, a writer of bestselling books. Imagine my surprise when I read the fine print! 🤣 In this book, high school sweethearts meet up again after years apart. This was a nice romance novel.

A sweet romance. Second chance in a small town. Lots of history for the couple. I do think a lighthouse should be on the cover as the story does revolve around it. I do love lighthouses. Several surprises with heartwarming results. Thanks to the publisher for providing a copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary.

Set in Haven’s Reach, the story follows Ethan and Mia’s reunion seven years after he left. Can you really pick up where you left off after all that time? The setting, the characters, the storyline, I loved everything about this book. All of the characters were loveable, from Mia and her reluctance to get her heart broken again, to Lyle and his hidden feelings for Patty. This book contained friendships, true love, hope and a sense of community. There was just the right amount of anticipation, and the ending rounded it all off perfectly. A truly uplifting, heart-warming read.