Review: Twice in a Blue Moon

I think a few blue moons have passed since I read Christina Lauren's novel Twice in a Blue Moon. I read it back in October, just before it was published, and have even read (and reviewed!) their latest novel, The Honey-Don't List, since then. Somehow, I just missed talking about this novel that I devoured in one day.

Here's the synopsis:

Sam Brandis was Tate Jones’s first: Her first love. Her first everything. Including her first heartbreak.
During a whirlwind two-week vacation abroad, Sam and Tate fell for each other in only the way that first loves do: sharing all of their hopes, dreams, and deepest secrets along the way. Sam was the first, and only, person that Tate—the long-lost daughter of one of the world’s biggest film stars—ever revealed her identity to. So when it became clear her trust was misplaced, her world shattered for good.
Fourteen years later, Tate, now an up-and-coming actress, only thinks about her first love every once in a blue moon. When she steps onto the set of her first big break, he’s the last person she expects to see. Yet here Sam is, the same charming, confident man she knew, but even more alluring than she remembered. Forced to confront the man who betrayed her, Tate must ask herself if it’s possible to do the wrong thing for the right reason… and whether “once in a lifetime” can come around twice.

Now, a lot of people have said they didn't enjoy this one. There are various reasons, as there always are, but I really liked it. Maybe it was simply because I needed this kind of story at the time I was reading it.

One reason it could have appealed to me more is because I love a good second chance story. It's one of my favourite tropes and I enjoyed that this novel had the second chance happening way out in the middle of nowhere so they were kind of trapped with each other (but not totally alone, given they were on a film set).

I don't think I necessarily fell for the characters as hard as they fell for each other. Neither Tate nor Sam particularly stood out to me, especially when they were adults. I may have enjoyed their teenage love a bit more than their adult one. Perhaps because they were both so much...harder by the time they met again. I think I also just couldn't quite get over what Sam did to Tate.

I could, however, see that they still cared a lot for each other. There was a lot of hurt to get over on Tate's side but she was stubborn and didn't want to hear Sam's side of the story. Plus, she's a big star now and it was hard for her to look past that and focus on the movie they were making. Through all of that the reader can tell they belong together if they could just have an honest conversation about how scared they are and how much the other means to them.

While Twice in a Blue Moon won't stick with me forever, it was a delightful read. I'm still a big fan of Christina Lauren and am already looking forward to their next book.

*An egalley of this novel was provided by the publisher, Simon & Schuster Canada, in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.*