A beachside Christmas Brings unexpected gifts! A second chance. That’s what former navy SEAL Damon Woods asks for when Zuri Habib comes to Turtleback Beach with a nephew who looks just like him. After her sister’s death, Zuri believes Caden deserves to know his father–even if he did break her teenage heart. Can Damon and Zuri forgive each other and give a grieving boy the family he needs … boy the family he needs this Christmas?
USA TODAY Bestselling Author
Turtleback Beach
Book 1: Almost a Bride
Book 2: Caught by the Sheriff
Book 3: Second Chance Christmas
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Rula Sinara is one of my favorite Heartwarming authors, so I always get excited when I see there is a new book from her. I loved the diversity and setting (as well as the multi-generational aspect) of her From Kenya, With Love series, and I’m loving her new Turtleback Beach series too for many of the same reasons.
In Second Chance Christmas, we are gifted with three beautifully diverse main characters – Zuri Habib, her nephew Caden, and Caden’s newly revealed father Damon. I loved the mix of ethnicity among the story’s leads (including Jordanian-Mexican and Black), and the individual perspectives on life as a minority that we were able to read about. I did feel that at times this felt as though we stopped the story for a speech, that maybe these important thoughts could have been woven a bit more naturally into the narrative. But overall I very much enjoyed meeting Zuri, Caden & Damon and seeing the world through their eyes as I read this novel.
Zuri and Damon have a long history, and Sinara did a great job of addressing their cringe-worthy past (I wanted to purse whomp Damon) while also allowing these two characters to confront it now in an adult manner. It helps that they need to consider what’s best for Caden, and addressing their own issues works to accelerate their tentatively-new friendship into something more romantical which, of course, I loved.
Another bright spot in Second Chance Christmas for me is the other, non-romantic, relationships we get to watch develop. For example, tween Caden’s friendship & sweet ‘young love’ with Sarah, the granddaughter of the owner of the B&B where they are staying, was a breath of fresh air amid all the hatred in the world right now. I also loved watching Caden and Duck, Damon’s Newfoundland, together because dogs rule. And lastly, getting to see Caden & Damon develop a father/son relationship was also sweet and heartwarming – and a progression that I thought the author handled particularly well.
Bottom Line: At its heart, Second Chance Christmas is about relationships and loving each other despite our flaws and secrets and regrets. It’s about messing up and working to make things right again. It’s about grieving the people we’ve lost and the time we’ve lost, honoring the memory of those we love & starting to reclaim that wasted time. And it’s about family – the ones we’re born into, the ones we make, and the combination of the two. Sinara creates relatable, diverse characters that readers will love, all set in a cozy coastal town, with scenes that will take you through a wide range of emotions. Looking forward to more – and is it too much to hope for some books following Turtleback Beach’s kids, all grown up, like we got with From Kenya, With Love?
(I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book)
Second Chance Christmas is a sweet, holiday-themed romance. The “second chance” label is right there in the title, but it’s really more a of secret baby (secret twelve-year-old? Doesn’t quite have the same ring, I guess….) story–and the mother of the baby isn’t even in the picture, since she’s died of cancer before the book begins. She and Damon, the hero, had a one night stand thirteenish years ago after they went to the prom together. Zuri, Caden’s aunt and guardian, had asked Damon out back then (she’d been his tutor) but he turned her down–so their “second chance” is really more of a chance for him to finally do things right rather than a true second chance.
But I digress. 😉
Zuri is taking the Christmas holiday to do what her sister never did–let Damon know that he has a son, and let Caden know who his father is. Hurt feelings abound–she’s hurt over what Damon did to her in high school, he’s livid that no one thought to tell him he had a son, and Caden is upset that his mom and aunt knew who his father was all this time and never told him. Fortunately everyone gets over the bad feelings rather painlessly, because goodness knows there’s all kinds of other issues to iron out–especially the can this group somehow become a family? one.
(The answer, of course, is going to be yes–it’s a Harlequin Heartwarming romance! But of course Ms Sinara will make all of them work for it ;))
I enjoyed Zuri, Damon, and Caden’s story. It was my third trip to Turtleback Beach ( Almost a Bride and Caught by the Sheriff ), but I would have been just fine reading this one without having read the others. Zuri and Caden are new to town, and the brief introductions they get are more than enough to get readers new to the series caught up. (Though chances are good you’re going to want to know the stories behind their quick explanations, so consider yourself warned!) Ms Sinara really made the setting a part of the story here, as Damon is the head of the Ocean Rescue and Beach Patrol and Zuri’s current focus as an environmental scientist is exploring the environmental impact of water pollution and climate–could there be a better place for her to examine that than the Outer Banks? The small town setting is as charming as ever, with the Christmas season’s extra sparkle making everything seem brighter, even when the main character’s lives feel upended.
I especially enjoyed the portions from Caden’s POV–watching the hurting pre-teen find a family (and his own first love!) was very sweet. Seeing the epilogue from his viewpoint really wrapped up this contemporary romance nicely, and I turned off my ereader with a happy sigh.
Rating: 4 stars / B+
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.
Second Chance Christmas by Rula Sinara is about getting a second chance at love that got taken for granted.
Will Zuri and Damon be able to settle on what happens with Caden?
Zuri Habib
Zuri Habib is an aunt to a tween boy that just recently lost his mom. To help Caden cope with his loss, Zuri thought that he should finally meet his dad and get to know Damon. Zuri has a hard time letting Damon do things independently, and she doesn’t think that Caden can handle the truth at certain times in his life. In a way, by reading the book, I get where Zuri is coming from, but I also get where Caden is coming from in terms of needing his own space while also needing to know the truth. I like Zuri as a character. Also, the way she uses her scientific brain to think of somethings while not realizing how wrong she is about other things that she thinks she is protecting Caden from.
Damon Woods
Damon Woods is an ex-soldier who is now working in search and rescue and is coming to terms with a tween son. He has a lot to learn about not only his son but about Zuri all over again. Damon is a smart man and does everything he tries to do right when the concerns Caden because he wants what is best for him while also trying to be in his life. He also wants Zuri in his life as well but knows that he has many bridges to mend before that can happen. Damon is a wonderful character, and I love all the scenes with Damon and Zuri and the scenes with Damon, Zuri, and Caden together.
Five Stars
Second Chance Christmas by Rula Sinara is a great book about having a second chance at love and becoming a family. Zuri and Caden give Damon that chance with the two of them throughout the entire book. Even if Caden is going through tween drama, these three are so wonderfully developed, and I love how they all interact with each other. I am giving it five stars and recommending it to anyone that loves a sweet holiday romance.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from the Prism Book Tours. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of Second Chance Christmas by Rula Sinara.
Until the next time,
Karen the Baroness
If you would like to see other reviews like this one, check out BaronessBookTrove.com.
When Zuri’s big sister dies, she decides to give her nephew the gift of a lifetime: his father. When Damon’s friend from high school reached out to him, the last thing he expected was to learn he had a secret baby.
Second Chance Christmas explored the relationship between Zuri and Damon. High school had been a long time away but betrayal is hard to get over especially when it had resulted in a child…one you’re related to. I respect Zuri’s determination to do the right thing though it came at a personal cost. She was a bit of a helicopter parent but I understand how difficult it is to navigate the whole parenting thing especially when you come into it with a child half-grown.
In many ways, Damon, though he was a new parent himself, balanced Zuri’s tendency to hover and gave Caden a sense of balance.
Damon and Zuri’s relationship in the present involved a lot of them unraveling the damage done in the past and considering how it would affect Caden which meant that there was a lot of balls in the air. I liked that Damon was willing to step up to his responsibility and that Zuri was willing to give him the chance to do so.
The three main characters had to deal with handling expectations and coming to terms with their grief. These themes were woven throughout the book and I liked that Ms. Sunara never tried to minimize the characters grief or make it seem as if not living up to people’s expectations was something that could be resolved in a jiffy.
I read the first two books in this series and liked being able to see how the characters from earlier books had progressed. Second Chance Christmas is the third book in the series but can be read as a standalone. The stories from the earlier books are summarized in this one but not in a way that would create spoilers if you were reading the books out of sequence.
I received an advanced reader’s copy from the publishers through Prism Book Tours; a positive review was not required.
Second Chance Christmas is the third book in the Turtleback Beach series. It can be read as a stand-alone but the series is so wonderful that you will wish you had started in order. Turtleback Beach is a small town with heart-warming residents. I loved seeing the characters from the previous books and what their future had become. All the characters in this series have been memorable and make the small town a wonderful place.
Zuri Habib had a crush on senior Damon Woods in high school which ended the day he laughed at her for asking him out and then went and asked her older sister Vera to the prom. She was hurt by his disregard for her but didn’t tell her sister until later since Zuri didn’t want to ruin her sister’s date. After graduation when Damon left town she was hurt even more when Vera announced she was pregnant with Damon’s child. With the animosity between the two families, Zuri and Vera never told their parents who Caden’s father was. When Vera dies from cancer, Zuri goes against her sister’s wishes and takes Caden to Turtleback Beach, the small-town Damon now lives in. Zuri wants to help Caden deal with his grief and hopes his meeting with his dad will help.
Damon liked Zuri in high school but thought a relationship between them would be too hard since they both had different friends. She was introverted and smart while he was part of the popular sports crowd. In his senior year his parents informed him they were getting divorced and Damon was scared and upset. He didn’t mean to embarrass Zuri when she asked him out, but all his friends were around and making fun of them. After high school, he joins the Navy and becomes a SEAL and now works as part of the rescue team in Turtleback Beach. Discovering he is a dad and didn’t know if for twelve years was devastating for him. He learned a lot while in the SEALS and knows his bad decisions had really hurt Zuri. He had never given a thought to having a family of his own, but now he knows he wants one with Zuri. Can he tell her his secrets and convince her of his true feelings?
The book was easy to read and kept my attention until the end. I didn’t really care for Damon’s character and his behavior. I am glad he regrets his decisions but asking out her sister and then getting her pregnant was very childish of him and I don’t know if I could be as forgiving as Zuri was. I also feel like they didn’t really have a chance to get to know each other again. Their reconnection was too fast for me. I would have liked to see them spend more time together and learn how each of their lives had changed. Overall it was a good book but I like the first two books in the series better.
I received an ARC and am voluntarily leaving a review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.