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Chance #1

A Second Chance

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Teen/YA romance
Release Date September 30, 2013

Rayleigh Bell is your typical everyday high school girl. For years she has been bullied for being overweight and not blending in with the right crowds. Never making friends, constantly left alone, unless being tormented on a regular basis, she decides enough is enough, and convinces her parents into moving away.
New look, new town, new school, this is her new start.
When she meets football player Tate Davis, they spike up an unlikely friendship that has his girlfriend, Courtney, beyond pissed. She doesn't like the idea of her boyfriend spending so much time with the new girl in town.
When their friendship blossoms into something more than Rayleigh could have imagined, will Tate`s determination of staying friends with Courtney, keep Rayleigh and him from being together? Or will they overcome it all and have the happy ever after they both want with each other?

Unknown Binding

First published September 30, 2013

4 people are currently reading
220 people want to read

About the author

Isabella Bearden

7 books20 followers
What started as a hobby for Isabella Bearden has turned into a promising career path as a writer. A budding author of Young Adult and Contemporary Romance genres, Isabella began her writing career by keeping a daily journal while growing up. The fact that she comes from a large family, as well as being married to her high school sweetheart, has no doubt inspired her ideas for stories. Isabella has a strong passion for animals and at one point wanted to become a veterinarian. Her current hobbies including baking, reading, writing, and spending time with her family, which, of course, includes three members of the canine variety! Isabella thrives on the immense satisfaction she feels by knowing that she has created something for countless readers to enjoy. Her current novels include Love is Patient and A Second Chance. Be on the lookout for her third book, Lost Chance, coming soon!

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5 stars
16 (16%)
4 stars
19 (19%)
3 stars
37 (38%)
2 stars
13 (13%)
1 star
12 (12%)
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
Profile Image for Elle.
207 reviews52 followers
October 3, 2013
I have been reading a lot of bad books lately, but this one took the trophy.
Profile Image for Jaren.
94 reviews4 followers
October 9, 2013
Pffft. This is what i get for reading YA.

Sweet story but I had an issue with the way it was written. There were so many 'huh' and 'what?!' moments for me. Some points weren't defined clearly. I feel like it was a bit too rushed.
Profile Image for Kristin.
426 reviews
December 30, 2013
I received a copy of this book for an honest review. I really enjoyed the storyline and the characters. This book definitely got me hooked from the beginning and I fell in love with Rayleigh and reading how she recreated herself and was having a fresh start. When she meets her new hot neighbor Tate I grew to like him and how they had a connection. I also liked Lily who quickly became good friends with Rayleigh and i I thought they were good and brought the best out of each other, I also loved her mom and there were moments in the book that had me laughing. Then I was mad at Tate and couldnt believe he couldn't just tell her everything so they could just be together. The author definitely keeps you guessing and it was well written, I really enjoyed the first half but felt like the end was rushed. But overall I really enjoyed the story and recommend it to anyone looking for a really nice quick read. Can't wait to read the next one and continue the story and see what enfolds.
Profile Image for H..
563 reviews1 follower
November 16, 2013
I loved this book. The title is fitting because Rayleigh gets a second chance at having a normal senior year of high school. She is horribly bullied for most her life. After taking up kick boxing and moving things are starting to look up. New neighbor Tate is good looking and all alpha male. I don't want to give anything away, but the normal jealous stuff that happens in high school occurs. My favorite parts of books are the epilogue s and this one doesn't disappoint. It was an awesome way to end this book. I have never read anything by this author but can honestly say I'm looking forward to book 2. I liked how the situations in the book felt very real and I really got to like the characters
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Profile Image for Lily (Hopelessly Devoted 2 Books) Wallis.
175 reviews6 followers
September 28, 2013
4.5 Stars Really enjoyed this book! I was drawn into Rayleigh and Tate's world and found myself unable to put it down! I loved all the characters you could easily relate to them they are very realistic as were the situations they found themselves in! I enjoyed the length as it wasn't too long or too short the chapters were a nice length as well overall a great book I cant wait for the next book in the Chance series!
Profile Image for Renea.
Author 83 books210 followers
December 1, 2013
This was an enjoyable read! I was very invested in how Rayleigh's story would play out. She was bullied at her previous school......she moves to a new town with a new school and she meets Tate! Oh Tate! He is the goregous boy next door! Sparks fly and they must learn to trust eachother.....because of other issues in the story.

Go ahead and grab it. I recommend!
Profile Image for Nicole.
1 review
March 13, 2014
I was so glad that I got the chance to read this book. Rayleigh is so easy to connect with that you just have to feel for her. I admit I had a LOVE/hate thing going with Tate. I do wish it was a little longer but when a story is good when do you ever want it to end. I will definitely be looking forward to more of Isabella Bearden's books.
Profile Image for TreLyn Cecile.
Author 1 book6 followers
October 5, 2013
Loved this book. I can relate well with Rayleigh and what she went through. I am looking forward to reading the next book about Courtney and finding what secrets she holds. Def worth reading!
Profile Image for Christina.
1,458 reviews101 followers
October 14, 2019
Oof. I’m not sure where to start.

Well, I guess I now understand why I don’t normally read YA, preferring NA and its slightly more complex storylines, because this story was ridiculous. It was very immature in its push/pull and manufactured drama. Even my own teens are more mature than any of the characters in this book, to the point that I could see my fifteen year old throwing this on the DNF pile within the first chapter.

The major problems though stem from the editing/proofreading...or the complete lack of.

After everyone sung happy birthday to me and I cut up the cake.

I don’t know what else to say. Courtney was telling the truth when she said she didn’t have anyone but Tate. But they really need to draw a line where her friendship goes with Tate if he wants me around. “Okay, I get that she isn’t going anywhere but, Tate you really need to draw a line if you want me around...”

“I just hurt you and I’m sorry for today and back then, and when you left school and came home, I just followed you.”

And the one that knocked my review from a two star to a one star?

“No, I told you after I seen them...”

The punctuation (apostrophes in particular) are abused throughout, the language is redundant and repetitive (if I had a nickel for every time Rayleigh put on a sports bra and shorts, took a hot bath, or went out to hit her heavy bag, I’d be very, very rich). Rayleigh likes her inner dialogue but then will come out and say the exact same thing again. Add on the sentence fragments EVERYWHERE, and it made for an unnecessarily painful read.

Needless to say, not a fan and I definitely won’t keep up with this series, it’s just a bit too “young” for me.
Profile Image for Jennifer Turnipseed .
18 reviews5 followers
November 12, 2013
I really liked the idea behind this book. Having been the subject of bullying myself, the idea of having a 'fresh start' was a welcome concept. What really prevented this book from being great for me were the many grammatical errors and the overall lack of editing. It was a distraction for me while I was trying to read the story.

I feel that I could have connected more with this book had more background been provided on some of the characters and/or situations. It seemed like there were scenarios thrown out that were not clearly explained.

**SPOILERS**
For example: more details regarding her relationship with her aunt prior to the tragedy occurring would have made me feel more for the heroine. Unfortunately their relationship was mentioned almost as an afterthought and I found myself not really connecting or feeling any emotion about the loss. The situation with Randy was resolved with a tidy little bow with only an apology needed. After what sounded like years of cruelty and humiliation at his hands (even following her to her new life) she accepts his apology with no explanation on his part. And honestly, the apology did not even seem all that sincere. After a while it seemed like Tate was more abusive than alpha, but he seemed to settle down as the story went on. I did mostly like the way Ray was portrayed. She was strong and determined and would not let anyone bring her down.
Profile Image for Barbie.
112 reviews2 followers
June 20, 2014
I received an ARC of this book for an honest review.


Where do I even start? Did I like this book or no? Honestly, I have no clue, I'm for once completely mixed with emotions about a book. I don't even know where to begin this review.

I guess I will start with what i liked about the book, right?

This book has potential, alot of it,It has a awesome story line, which is what gives it potential.

However it is lacking numerous things, which why I cannot give it more then three stars.

For one it seems like it is a debut novel, very amateur writing style. Maybe it is because what I read was not revised or edited. That possibly could be why. It was very short, only eighteen chapter's and an epilogue. Normally short reads are good, however I am wanted more to this book, longer, not short.

Then the character's, I didn't feel as I connected with them, or knew anything about them. There was alot of holes in the book, questions, that were not answered, and just left hanging in the air.

The whole book was to rushed for my liking, and as mentioned very fast paced. The character's were so unrealistic it was quite annoying actually, the girl Ray was very whiny, and acted immature, where as the boy Tate was all controlling one minute then, begging the next.

But over all even with the many things I disliked about the book I still enjoyed it, and will read the actual book when or if it is already out.

Oh by the way the ending of he book had me in tears, got my happy ending
Profile Image for Kim Howlett.
839 reviews
July 17, 2014
Review of "A Second Chance" by Isabella Bearden.

After reading the blurb for A Second Chance, I thought it looked like a good YA read.
The book follows Riley. She has been bullied at school for a very long time. She doesn't really have any friends, and is being terrorised on a day basis. Riley has had enough so convinces her parents to move away so she can start afresh.
Tate is Riley's new neighbour. He's a very gorgeous alpha male.
Sparks fly very quickly between Riley and Tate, and there's a lot of teenage angst and jealously between them both.
The story wasn't a predictive YA read. Isabella did a good job to change it up slightly, which I liked.
The first half of the book was very good, but unfortunately the second half felt very rushed and under developed. I found this a real shame as the book had a lot of potential.
There was a lot of Grammar errors throughout the book also.
The story was a very good idea that was just slightly let down by the grammar errors and the second half of the book.
If you fancy a quick read, than this book would be great.

3.5 stars.

Reviewed by Kim Howlett on behalf of Just another girl and her books .
Profile Image for Carra.
1,733 reviews31 followers
June 23, 2014
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I really liked the premise of this book and was looking forward to Rayleigh's fresh new experience after leaving her "old self" behind. But while the idea behind the story was promising, the execution of the story just wasn't very good.

The characters started out interesting, but it quickly became apparent they were immature and honestly a bit annoying. Even though they are high school characters, their behavior and attitudes were more like 8th graders. I didn't find them likable at all and found myself rolling my eyes on more than one occasion at the things they said and did.

This story could have been so much better, but the way the characters were written just turned me off. Two stars for the idea behind the story, but the poor execution and characters leaves me with a read it and forget it story.
14 reviews
December 10, 2013
4.5!
Read, Read, Read!
4.5 stars! I loved this book. Rayleigh is such a strong woman and I loved how alpha male Tate was with her. If you need a quick read that can evoke emotion and has a great story line this is it! If Isabella can almost get me crying, it has got great emotion! I am not too sure about Courtney or Brent...perhaps they can redeem themselves in book 2! Can't wait for more
Profile Image for Dienne Valencia.
86 reviews7 followers
August 22, 2014
I got angry with all the back and forths . What is going on? I never thought high school was this dramatic.
But I love Tate 's persistence.
the "Fat much " storyline is too short. I though it'll be interesting since the story started with Rayleigh 's transformation. I'll read the next book
Profile Image for Laine.
91 reviews21 followers
January 27, 2015
I must be punishing myself because I TRiED to finish reading it. I find myself getting tired because everything was happening so fast. And the scenarios were just repeating over and over. And what's irritating? She's the one whose always whining. (I even think Courtney was nicer than her.)
Profile Image for Moira.
265 reviews
Read
October 5, 2013
Got as far as the 'date' with Mr.A**hole, or Tate, and could stomach no more of him.
Profile Image for Meli.
182 reviews2 followers
November 19, 2013
Could not finish, too immature and cliche for me, sorry.
Profile Image for Tiffany.
151 reviews2 followers
June 30, 2014
I loved Tate and Rayleigh . When everyone else turned their back on Rayleigh she had no one then low and behold hottie Tate comes along..
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews

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