The man who broke her heart. The second chance she’s not sure if she wants.
Emmitt Brown’s demons are even bigger than he is, and as a defensive lineman for the San Antonio Rebels, that’s something. When DJ Madden tasks his defensive line to go home for Christmas and get rid of their biggest past regret, Emmit finds himself returning to the small town he grew up in to find the woman he never … he grew up in to find the woman he never should have left. Too bad she hates him and tells him to go away.
Mia Carter can’t believe Emmitt Brown is back in town. She does not need this right now. Especially since he’s been the ghost who won’t leave her conscience alone for the past five years and especially since she recently lost her husband. But when the pro football player steps up and offers to help her son fight cancer, she finds herself reluctantly agreeing.
Now they have to make a choice; dig into the past and let the truth bring them together, or lose the Christmas miracle right in front of them.
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If you love football players and second chances this is the book for you. The issues of abandonment, regret, and childhood cancer are intertwined in lives of a widowed mom, a child, and a football hero. With a thread of faith woven throughout the story I found this book to be a perfect balance of actions and emotions.
Watching Emmitt deal with his regrets and selflessly help Mia endeared him to me. He made mistakes, but owned up to them and came out, with God’s help, better on the other side.
Mia held her own regrets, and kept things together despite challenges.
Holding onto hope wasn’t something she was used to, but with Emmitt and Carter’s help her undaunted spirit, and faith shone through.
I loved Carter’s optimism—leave it to the innocence of a child to see it, and say it like it is. What a sweetheart.
I really enjoyed this book.
I received a copy courtesy of the author and this is my honest review.
What awesome story. I love how Lorana Hoopes writes about how God works in peoples lives to bring them what they need and want. That was so for this book. I thought it was awesome.
The characters were wonderful and relatable. Although this is a love story, a main part of this book is about forgiveness. It also deals with a child getting very sick. However, the story is upbeat and sweet. Clean sweet story.
After the death of the team’s owner, the players challenge each other to honor his memory by trying to fix their greatest regret. With some time on his hands, Emmitt faces his fear and goes to apologize to Mia for abandoning her right after he was drafted to a pro team. Mia is now widowed, with a young son, and struggling. She wants nothing to do with Emmitt, but he manages to meet her and try to apologize. As tragedy strikes her son, though, she’s willing to lay down her pride so that Carter can get the help he needs. In the process, their relationship gets a second chance, but can she truly forgive and trust Emmitt again. While I wondered how Emmitt could just walk away, his apology and explanation is heartfelt and sincere. I liked later on the explanation of how a good person could be influenced to do something against their character, and I liked how they both realized that they could have been doing things that would have made their relationship better the first time around.
What I liked: Carter is darling. Mia is a good mother struggling to get by after life has given her a number of trials. Emmitt is trying to show that he’s changed, and his generous and caring nature comes through.
What I liked less: The romance and Mia’s initial forgiveness seems a little fast for me. Likewise, her anger later in the book seems immature, and I wanted to see just a little more working through the problem in the end. Emmitt’s guilt is just a little heavy handed too. I’m not certain if the author intended for reveals in the storyline to be obvious or not, but they were.
Overall: Is it classic literature? No, but the story does well with what it sets out to do. There’s an obvious Christian theme along with the idea of redemption, but I thought it was handled well. I’m fairly new to Lorana Hoopes’ writing, but I’ll gladly read some of her other books as they come out.
I received an Advance Reader Copy and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I had an ARC copy of this book and this is my voluntary and honest opinion. Lorana has written another great book. The plot and characters are interesting and believable. The addition of a child with cancer adds an added dimension to the story. I enjoyed reading the book and would recommend it to others.
A heartwarming story of forgiveness between a football player who left the girl he loved without a word. Five years later he comes back to ask for forgiveness. She is a widow with a 5 year old boy. When she loses her job and her son gets ill, he steps in to help out and prove he can be the man she should marry. I received a complimentary copy and I am voluntarily reviewing.
I really enjoyed this emotional, inspirational book by Lorana Hoopes, who really knows how to touch the reader’s heart with her inspirational characters and stories. This book is the fifth book in the Bachelor Texas Rebel Romances series where five team members of the San Antonio Rebels football team make a pact to fix their greatest regret.
I really liked that this was a Christian story and that Emmitt Brown had changed his life, turned to God and was trying to be a better man. I also liked Mia Conrad and her cute four year old son Carter. I enjoyed her strong character, her optimism, and the strength she had to deal with what life had presented her and that she was not bitter about her past. I also liked that she was able to forgive Emmitt and move on. What a touching story full of joy, hope and faith. I received an advance copy of this book and I willingly chose to write an honest review.
Past regrets have a way of not staying in the past. They continue to come up in the present and you have to deal with them. This is what happens with Emmit Brown. He’s a professional football player and he left his one true love behind to play football but the problem was, he continued regretting it because he left without saying goodbye or anything else and he has felt bad about that for 5 years. He’s finally going to do something about that. Although he’s always been a Christian, he hasn’t “walked the walk” so to speak….but he’s a different person now and he let peer pressure stop him from doing the right thing before. I loved Emmit’s character and it’s a lesson for all of us. It’s never too late to do the right thing. He goes back to his hometown to “do the right thing” with Mia and good thing because she’s in a pickle! Mia and her son, Carter, are great! They were very realistic – a single mother (widow) and her son who have fallen on hard times. I enjoyed all the characters in this book and definitely recommend it. You CAN right a wrong if you swallow your pride and go for it!
This was a sweet, second chance at a forever love. It’s easy to let life, shame and other people influence you. Sometimes that takes you away from the person who is right for you. It takes a strong person to go back and apologize, no matter the outcome. And to do the right thing.
This is a wonderful message that reminds us of God’s grace and teaches us to treat people right.
Her Second Chance Forever Groom is the newest book written by Lorana Hoopes. This is the 5th book in the new multi- author series, Bachelor Texas Rebel Romances. It is a very good “clean” book that I can highly recommend. I became lost in the book after the first two pages and stayed up all night to finish it. The book is based on the idea of making things right with someone that you hurt. The book reminded me that God doesn’t ask us to do anything without blessing us more than we can imagine. The main characters, Emmitt and Mia, were a couple during high school, dated through Emmitt’s college days and split up when Emmitt disappeared after he was picked for the NFL Draft. Will Mia accept Emmitt’s apology or will she tell him to get lost? Ms. Hoopes did an excellent job with character development. The characters have depth; their actions and personalities very life-like. Being a Lorana Hoopes book, there is a romantic HEA. This is a good book to read when you need an emotional pick-me-up or just need to get away from your reality for a little while.
Great 2nd chance romance. The thread of redemption and the opportunity to ask forgiveness for past mistakes is woven thru this story. It shows how choices effect not only that person but can alter others lives as well. Mia and Emmitt are brought back together and walk through a parent’s worse fear the illness of a child as they fall back in love. This is my own opinion and hope you enjoy this book as much as I have.
Her Second Chance Forever Groom is a football story, but it is so much more. Once again Ms. Hoopes has created a wonderful, second chance romance. To commemorate their late coach, the players are asked to confront and correct their biggest regret. I loved Mia and Emmitt. They make a wonderful, believable couple. I liked their story – especially the emphasis on the difference being saying you are a Christian and actually being one. Mia’s son is adorable. This was a wonderful, Saturday evening book!
This is a wonderful story of forgiveness. Lorana Hoopes is a master at characterizations and interesting story lines. Pride can make you make foolish mistakes that feel right at the time. One mistake plus pride equals five years of separation. I love that Mia doesn’t jump at being Mrs. Brown and Emmitt doesn’t try to pressure her. Also Ms Hoopes doesn’t mind tackling tough subjects such as childhood cancer and treatment. Don’t miss this book.
Loved this story! I was able to read in two short sittings and really enjoyed. Regrets can really hold a person from having the life they were meant to have. It was wonderful reading how Mia and Emmett found their way back and learning to love again. I highly recommend if you like inspirational stories.
I enjoyed this book very much! It is a 5 stars, not, 4!
Regrets, we all have them. This sweet, clean read shows us it’s never too late to try to make them right. Lorana does a great job covering some difficult topics and this story unfolds perfectly. No spoilers here, this is a must read… you’ll be glad you did.
I received a free copy of this book, and this is my unbiased review.
Some of Emmitt’s teammates decide to spend a week getting rid of their regrets, to make amends. Emmitt wasn’t sure if he were ready to face his biggest regret, leaving his girlfriend without a word five years ago. Emmitt now is a character that I loved. He’s truly repentant and feels guilt over how Mia is having to live. He knows she wouldn’t be in such bad straits if they had lived the life they planned together. Mia is a widow working hard to provide for her 4-year-old son after her husband was killed. I loved the faith journey shown in these character’s lives, including how they recognized if they had been growing in their faith together that they wouldn’t have committed the sin that drove them apart. The plot has some twists and turns and moves quickly. There’s a great HEA and a very satisfying epilogue. I enjoyed reading this book and would recommend it to friends and family. I plan to read more of this series and more from Lorana Hoopes. I enjoy her writing style and her plots. I got my copy through KU.