The Second Story Bookshop
Release Date: October 7, 2025
Genre: Fiction/Christian/Romance/Contemporary
She inherits the bookshop of her dreams . . . But she has to run it with the ex she vowed never to speak with again.
Shelby Thatcher adores working in the charming small-town bookshop her grandmother opened years ago. Since high school she's helped Gram turn the shop into a community hub for book lovers in the lakeside town of Granville, NC. When her beloved grandma passes away, Shelby inherits the bookstore. But to her shock, Gram leaves half ownership to Gray Briggs, the man who broke Shelby's heart years ago.
Granville residents have been vilifying Gray as long as he can remember. After graduating high school he couldn't skip town fast enough, even though it meant leaving the girl he'd fallen deeply in love with and alienating her family once and for all. Now he's back, the beneficiary of his elderly friend's will. Facing the town's animosity is difficult, but seeing Shelby again is sheer torture. No one could ever stir his heart the way she did.
As the adversaries are forced to work together, Gram's beyond-the-grave scheme is working--Shelby's old feelings for Gray begin to resurface. But the problems that destroyed their relationship before still remain, and a new one surfaces--one that threatens Gram's beloved bookshop. Is their love doomed to fail again, or will they find a way to make it work this time around?
Denise Hunter
Denise Hunter is the internationally published, bestselling author of more than forty books, three of which have been adapted into original Hallmark Channel movies. She has won the Holt Medallion Award, the Reader’s Choice Award, the Carol Award, the Foreword Book of the Year Award, and is a RITA finalist. When Denise isn’t orchestrating love lives on the written page, she enjoys traveling with her family, drinking chai lattes, and playing drums. Denise makes her home in Indiana, where she and her husband raised three boys and are now enjoying an empty nest and four beautiful grandchildren. Follow Denise at DeniseHunterBooks.com; Facebook: @AuthorDeniseHunter; X: @DeniseAHunter; Instagram: @deniseahunter.
When Shelby Thatcher's grandmother passes away she learns that she has been given her little bookstore, which isn't entirely unexpected, but the brought that is unexpected is that she won't be running the store alone. Her grandmother decided to give half of the store to the guy that Shelby would rather not have anything to do with...as he is the man that broke her heart a long time ago.
The Second Story Bookshop is a beautifully penned story of healing, hope, forgiveness, acceptance, and rekindling lost love. Shelby and Gray have a past that holds a lot of hurt, and her grandmother knew the only way they'd heal from it would be to face it head on. So she created a way for that to happen, and while Shelby is appreciative for the bookstore she isn't so happy about the co-owner she'll be running it with. Being in the same room as Gray is a special kind of torture, he was the boy she thought she'd spend forever with, and he wound up walking away instead. How do you forgive someone for that? For breaking your heart so deeply? Good thing they have an angel on their side to help them get through it.
This book really hit it's intended mark for me. It was captivating, sweet and had many moments that touched my heart! Highly recommend!
I requested an advanced copy of this title from the publisher, via NetGalley request, and I am leaving my honest and unbiased opinion.
ARC provided by the publisher, via NetGalley request
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