Second Chances - Love it or hate it?

I had no idea when I wrote this book that readers would be so divided in their reactions to it. They either love it or hate it. No in between.

After reading the bad reviews over and over, I realized that some of the haters had some valid reasons for disliking my baby. I took their comments to heart. I revised and republished the book, changing some of the things they didn't like while sticking to my guns on some of the other things, and keeping true to the heart of my story as I visualized it.

Interestingly even after revising and republishing the book, my readers were still divided down the line of loving it or hating it, even though the advantage was on the loving it side of the line.

However, I do admire one lady who had given it a bad review. She read the revised edition and posted this comment to her review: "I liked the new revision. I am humbled that you cared enough to take your readers into consideration and reworked your book...But I thought to myself, 'this author is not going to let the readers get everything 'their way'...I also like how you stuck to your guns...Thank you for the revised edition of your book. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I actually got a kick out of reading the story again."

Just look at this list of reviews that readers have left at Amazon.com. See how divided they are? Amazing!
(21 customer reviews)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(5)

In the interest of presenting both sides of this love/hate relationship with my Second Chances, here are some excerpts from both the 5 star reviews and the 1 star reviews that readers have left at Amazon.com. After reading these excerpts, can you believe they are talking about the same book?

All I can say is buy it, read it for yourself, and decide if YOU love it or hate it. It will only set you back 99 cents.  Be sure to add YOUR comments to those that other readers have left at Amazon.com.

I'm waiting. :)

5 Star Reviews:
Second Chances is a beautifully written love story that will warm your heart. I was so taken with the story that I read it in one sitting last night.
**
As a lover of cowboys and western romances I decided to try Second Chances and will say that the one star reviews given this title don't do it justice at all. While not as steamy as some western romances, it was sweet, well-written with characters that each reader will enjoy.
**
I have read Kristie Leigh Maguire's other books, but this one definitely tops the list. A fun read with lots of real down home folks you will remember for years to come. Highly recommended.
**
Most of the characters in this book were really flawed, and I have to tell you that half way through the read I couldn't imagine how this would work out. But this is one skilled author and this was a really satisfying book. I can't wait to read more books by this talented author.

1 Star Reviews:
For me, this story was pure drivel. You did not come away with a good feeling. The author portrayed her characters as ignorant. Their vocabulary was poor and they seemed uneducated. The heroine was a pushover.
**
I wanted to like this book, I felt that I could have liked this book, but it just didn't happen. This book had me rolling my eyes ALOT. I wanted so bad to read it, The summary soundedd so good but it was just a mess.
**
I made it halfway through this book and then gave up. This writer used so many cliches and trite phrases was almost gagging.