Second chance romance books are a tricky kind of romance novel. For many readers, they conjure up a particular angst that, when done well, delivers an epic romantic story. Those same readers brace themselves because too often, second chance romances rely on flashbacks and miscommunication and don’t quite hit the mark.
In this round-up, I’ve collected 10 of the best second chance historical romances that I have read (and one I wrote!). And because it’s my list, there are multiple Courtney Milan titles on it. You’re welcome!
But first, let’s answer the big question: what is second chance romance?
What is the second chance romance trope?
As with all tropes, we get so used to using the term as a shorthand, that many readers end up wondering, “what exactly does second chance romance mean?”
In this blog post, I’m defining it as a second chance for the specific couple in the book. They have had a chance at a relationship before and, for whatever reason, blew it. In the second romance romance trope, they get another try at falling in love and making it stick.
A broader definition of the “second chance at love” trope focuses on any one character who has been unlucky in love and now has a second chance–usually because their bad relationship has ended unhappily. However, for me, second chance really hits the spot when it is the same couple returning to each other and healing from the wounds they created for each other before.
Spoiler alert: the second chance historical romances on this list all end with a happily ever after!
10 Good Second Chance Romance Novels (Set in Historical Britain)
Scandal of the Year
By Laura Lee Guhrke
Average Goodreads Rating: 3.77
ONE TRYST WAS ALL SHE WANTED ...
From their very first meeting, Julia knew that Aidan Carr, the oh-so-proper Duke of Trathen, had a bit of the devil in him, a devil who secretly yearned for what he could not have, a devil who harbored a desire for her. So when she needed to be caught in a compromising situation, Aidan was the answer to her prayers.
ONE TRYST JUST WASN'T ENOUGH ...
Aidan is supposed to be looking for a bride, yet his scandalous liaison with Julia is all he can think about. Hot, erotic memories of kissing her skin, falling into her bed, pulling her naked body on top of his own continue to torment and tempt him. What is it about this brazen seductress that he finds so hard to resist? And how can he stop himself from falling into her bed a second time?
Bonus tropes: starchy duke, heroine with a reputation, enemies to lovers
Trial by Desire
By Courtney Milan
Average Goodreads Rating: 3.59
SHE CANNOT FORGET THE FIRE HE IGNITED ...
In the three years since her husband left her, Lady Kate Carhart has managed to forge a fulfilling life for herself. But when Ned Carhart unexpectedly returns, she finds her tranquility uprooted --- and her deepest secrets threatened. Though she has no intention of falling for Ned's charms, Kate can no longer deny the desire that still burns in her heart.
OR THE PROMISE OF HIS LOVE ...
Ned is determined to regain his wife's trust by using unbridled seduction. But just as Kate surrenders to Ned's passion, her carefully guarded past threatens to destroy her. Now Kate must place her faith in the only man she's ever loved, and the only one who has ever betrayed her ...
Bonus tropes: marriage of convenience, badass heroine, marriage in crisis
The Lady Always Wins
By Courtney Milan
Average Goodreads Rating: 3.54
It's all fun and games.
Nobody has ever come close to taking the place that Virginia Barrett had in Simon Davenant’s heart. As a child, Ginny was his best friend and comrade-in-arms. As a young lady, she became his sweetheart. But when his parents discovered their growing affection, they threatened to cut Simon off without a penny if he married her. And when Simon planned an elopement, Ginny refused: She wasn’t going to marry a poor man. Ever.
Until someone loses a fortune.
In the seven years since they last saw one another, Ginny has been married and then widowed. Simon has built an empire as a railway financier. When they meet again, there’s still that same delicious, playful attraction between them. But only Simon knows how tenuous his second chance really is. Everyone believes that Simon is wealthy. In truth, his company has been taken over by a hostile competitor and he is ruined. He knows from bitter experience that Ginny won’t marry a poor man. And so he has three days until the news becomes public—three days to seduce, woo, and marry the woman he cannot forget, or risk losing her…and this time, for good.
Bonus tropes: novella, Victorian capitalist, childhood friends to lovers
A Lady for a Duke
By Alexis Hall
Average Goodreads Rating: 4.08
When Viola Carroll was presumed dead at Waterloo she took the opportunity to live, at last, as herself. But freedom does not come without a price, and Viola paid for hers with the loss of her wealth, her title, and her closest companion, Justin de Vere, the Duke of Gracewood.
Only when their families reconnect, years after the war, does Viola learn how deep that loss truly was. Shattered without her, Gracewood has retreated so far into grief that Viola barely recognises her old friend in the lonely, brooding man he has become.
As Viola strives to bring Gracewood back to himself, fresh desires give new names to old feelings. Feelings that would have been impossible once and may be impossible still, but which Viola cannot deny. Even if they cost her everything, all over again.
Bonus tropes: virgin hero, war veterans, friends to lovers
Remember Love
By Mary Balogh
Average Goodreads Rating: 3.97
As a child, Devlin Ware thought his family stood for all that was right and good in the world. They were kind, gracious, and shared the beauty of Ravenwood, their grand country estate, by hosting lavish parties for the entire countryside. But at twenty-two, he discovered his whole world was an elaborate illusion, and when Devlin publicly called his family to account for it, he was exiled as a traitor.
So be it. He enlisted in the fight against Napoleon and didn’t look back for six years. But now his father is dead, the Ware family is broken, and as the heir he is being called home. It’s only when Gwyneth Rhys—the woman he loved and then lost after his family banished him—holds out her hand to help him that he is able make the difficult journey and try to piece together his fractured family.
It is Gwyneth’s loyalty, patience, and love that he needs. But is Devlin’s war-hardened heart even capable of offering her love in return?
Bonus tropes: big family, delightful children
Nobody’s Lady
By Annabelle Anders
Average Goodreads Rating: 4.19
A London deb and a military hero meet at a ball and fall in love. (sigh) They succumb to passion out of wedlock, but due to unimaginable circumstances they are tragically separated. Of course, she suffers the consequences while he goes on to inherit a dukedom.
Years later, a chance meeting reveals the truth of the past and yet the impossibility of a future together. Can they surpass love’s barriers the second time around?
THE DUKE -- After managing a dukedom and serving in the House of Lords for nearly a decade, Michael Cortland has finally become betrothed to the perfect lady, Natalie Spencer. While traveling to London for the 1824 parliamentary season however, a highway robbery leaves him stranded and mired in mud. All of his strategic plans are called into question when his first love happens along to “rescue” him.
THE WIDOW -- Thankfully widowed after enduring a forced marriage for eight years, Lilly Beauchamp is returning to London to present her stepdaughter to society. Unable to resist, she finds herself aiding the man who betrayed her years ago. As the facts behind their estrangement emerge however, blame shifts and passions are reignited.
Amidst political and social intrigue, Lilly discovers her inner strengths while Michael reconciles a gentleman’s honor with his heart’s desire and his conscience. Falling in love all over again, new challenges face the star-crossed lovers. There is a choice after all, but do they have the strength and courage to choose each other?
Bonus tropes: widow falls in love, love triangle
A Scandalous Kind of Duke
By Mia Vincy
Average Goodreads Rating: 3.73
Leopold Halton, the Duke of Dammerton, is the man with everything: perfect hair, beautiful waistcoats, and London’s finest collection of decorative objects. But two years after his highly entertaining divorce (entertaining for everyone but him, that is), Leo still doesn’t have what he wants most: another wife.
Leo is ready to propose to a suitable lady, but with gossip dissecting his every move, the family of his nearly-ideal bride demands that he first stop calling on artist Juno Bell, the first woman he ever kissed and now, a decade later, his friend.
After ten years of hard work to become an artist, Juno has everything she dreamed of: a flourishing studio, a wealthy patroness, and the freedom to live as she pleases. She even receives visits from a duke (and don’t London’s gossips love that!).
Juno has always known she can never hold on to Leo, yet when he declares their friendship must end, she finds it harder than expected to let him go. At least, not without a kiss.
After all, if their friendship must end anyway, then they have nothing more to lose … right?
Bonus tropes: artist heroine, starchy duke, opposites attract
Designing His Duchess
By Gabrielle Carr
Average Goodreads Rating: 3.91
Marry or find herself penniless and ousted from her aunt and uncle's home. Those are Miss Juliana Drake's current options. Having never felt the need to know how long she could survive without basic provisions, she chooses the latter. Only she knows as much about charming a suitor as she does about charming a snake.
Nothing.
The solution? Colin Lewis Francis Latham, Duke of Herstshire. The man who offered her marriage years ago, then vanished without as much as a by your leave. When he returns to London and offers to instruct her in the art of husband hunting, Juliana is both insulted and desperate enough to accept his offer.
She's no longer the gullible young woman of her youth. She can handle being near him without losing her head. Although, it would be much easier if she could finally expel him from her heart.
Bonus tropes: disability rep, novella
A Beginner’s Guide to Scandal
By Alivia Fleur
Average Goodreads Rating: 4.04
After twelve years in the country, Hamish, Lord Dalton, heir to Earl Caplin, has been sent to London to find a rich and titled wife. That’s his story, and he’s sticking to it. But Hamish has his own plans: to create a scandal and embarrass his critical, condescending father.
If only he knew how.
Iris Abberton wasn’t always confined by expectation and obligation. As a young girl, she ran wild through the streets of London, causing chaos and playing tricks on the ton with her best friend, Hamish.
Now, as the secret accountant for her father’s company, she spends her days juggling ledgers and maintaining appearances. Her wild years are behind her. And she cannot afford a hint of scandal if she is to realise her dreams for the business.
But what harm could there be in one tiny adventure? Just one evening of fun with her mischievous—and incredibly handsome—old friend.
It’s not as if their friendship has turned into something more.
Iris’s heart does not tremble with unsaid things when Hamish is around.
And nothing will sway Hamish from his mission. Yes, Iris is now all grown up, with sensual curves, kissable lips, and the same twinkle in her eyes, but he does not think about her in that way.
They’re just friends. Understand? Friends.
Bonus tropes: heroine with a business, hero with daddy issues, childhood friends to lovers
The Sailor Without a Sweetheart
By Katherine Grant
Coming on april 19, 2024!
IS LOVE WORTH GIVING A SECOND CHANCE?
Six years ago, Amy Lamplugh decided not to elope with Nate Preston. Ever since, she has been working hard to convince herself she was right to choose her family over Nate.
Now, Nate is back. After an illustrious career as a naval captain, he faces a court martial for disobeying orders while fighting the slave trade. He accepts an invitation to await the trial at a country estate outside of Portsmouth - and discovers he is suddenly neighbors with Amy.
Nate is shocked to find that Amy didn’t end up marrying someone rich and titled. Instead, she is a glorified companion to her younger sister - and is clearly battling some unnamed illness.
Thrown together by circumstances outside their control, Nate and Amy try to be friends. Soon, it becomes clear that their feelings for each other never died.
DO THEY DARE RISK THEIR HEARTS AGAIN? HAS ANYTHING CHANGED, OR ARE THEY DESTINED FOR HEARTBREAK ONCE MORE?
Bonus tropes: naval hero, chronic illness representation, inspired by Persuasion