Once Upon A Mistake: An angsty second chance romance (Il Cuore Book 1) by Shilpa Suraj
Pages: 277
Price: Rs. 199 INR(Kindle Edition)
ASIN: B09ZPS6194
Buy here: https://amzn.to/3MZEszX
My take on the book:
Maya got dumped by her fiancé while in her hospital bed, after a gruesome accident, which left her with a permanent limp in one leg that resulted in an even worse heartbreak. While struggling to pay back the loans her family took for her grand marriage, she also tries to rebuild her life and career.
Yash got dumped by his fiancé through a text message, whom he started off knowing through an arranged setup but with whom he fell in love, head-over-heels. As he recuperates from a lifetime low of losing his father, his job in the US, Yash works extremely hard to build a dream career, this time from scratch.
As Yash and Maya’s paths cross when they attend a memorial meet of a common friend in Il Cuore, memories from five years back are revived and sparks fly instantly. As they meet again and again, professionally this time, will they be able to give their relationship one more chance or will the past threaten to never let them forget it, forms the rest of the story.
Second chance romances come with the inherent curiosity of how the story is going end and how the protagonists are going to sort their differences. For that to work, a strong reason for their separation, strong characters and an undercurrent of tension and passion form the key. Once Upon a mistake scores big on all these fronts and has more to offer.
Yash, as in Maya’s words, scores with his quiet sexiness as a perfect contrast to Maya’s uninhibited extroverted energy. As with other books from Shilpa, Yash scores big when compared to Maya, as he is perfect in all aspects while Maya fumbles at places with her hasty decisions and conclusions. I liked how the author depicts the aftereffects of one tragic accident, which can change the lives of those involved.
I loved how Maya’s character is depicted to be strong, confident despite the permanent disability she acquires post the accident. The author makes that aspect a part of her life in all important situations in the story, as Maya struggles with her injured leg but never lets that hamper her life or career. Maya’s warm relationships with her friends also scores high.
But the surprise for the reader is the upcoming story of Kanak and Aakash in the next part in this series, which is totally unexpected by the way their characters hated each other at the beginning of this story. The raw humor and one liner by Maya’s friends in Il Cuore are on point, the conversations between the protagonists will make the reader want to read them repeatedly. The story is equally likeable when it is about the fun between the friends or when it deals with serious professional equations between Yash and Maya.
Pick this one if you are looking for a romantic story with lovely protagonists and second chance romance interests you.
My rating:
4.5/5.