My enormous thanks to Georgia Hester at Harper Collins for sending me a surprise copy of The Second Chance Cinema by Thea Weiss. It’s my pleasure to share my review today.

The Second Chance Cinema will be published by HQ on 7th October 2025 and is available for purchase through the publisher links here. 

The Second Chance Cinema

What if the love of your life could watch the story of your past?

At the end of a fog-covered alley, glitters a glamorous cinema. It’s nearly impossible to find. When Ellie and her fiancé, Drake, stumble upon it during a late-night walk, they’re shocked to discover what’s playing inside the red-velvet auditorium: their formative memories.

Drake fears what the cinema might reveal, but eventually gives in when Ellie insists they return for more viewings. She’s haunted by a night from her past that she doesn’t fully remember. This is her opportunity to piece the story back together. But as the memories displayed on screen inch closer to the present, they realize they’re both keeping secrets from each other.

With their wedding on the horizon, Ellie and Drake must decide if seeing their pasts changes their plans for a future together.

Filled with warmth, hope, and a dash of magic, The Second Chance Cinema is both an enchanting escape and a thought-provoking examination of how our memories shape who we are.

My Review of The Second Chance Cinema

Ellie and Drake are newly engaged.

The Second Chance Cinema is an absolutely wonderful read. I had expected a rather light and entertaining love story, but actually what I found had far greater depth and whilst it was enormously entertaining, it was totally mesmerising and fascinating too, with elements of human understanding that transcended my preconceptions. 

The story is beautifully crafted. I adored the sense of America without it dominating the story. There are painterly descriptions that place the reader at the heart of the action but much of the story isn’t about place and action; it’s about feelings and emotions and this is what makes it so compelling.

The prose thrums with underlying tension as Ellie and Drake watch the stories of their lives playing out on the screen inside the mysterious and magical cinema. I loved too, the traditional structure of teh book with three acts bookended by opening credits with a secret scene at the end. It provides a firm backbone to a story that is quite fluid because Ellie and Drake discover that the past might not be quite as they remembered or have the same importance as they believed – a lesson any one of us could learn. Indeed, I could easily see The Second Chance Cinema as a fantastic television series or film itself. 

Ellie and Drake are multi-faceted and intriguing characters and I found my allegiance vacillating between them as aspects of their lives were uncovered. The reader discovers so much about them as they return to the cinema for the midnight screenings of their lives, but I’d argue that the two discover even more about themselves and one other and its fascinating to see this play out. Their relationship with each other and with their friends and family is complicated, realistic and frequently emotional. I found myself swept up in their lives. However, it is their self-discovery, their sense of guilt and their humanity that makes The Second Chance Cinema such a brilliant read.

The Second Chance Cinema is a messy, realistic, love story but it’s also an utterly absorbing and emotional insight into who we are as people, how our past shapes our present and just how hard it is to let go in order to move on. I loved it. Oh, and if you simply want a diverting love story and wonder just whether there’s a happy ending for Ellie and Drake – well, you’ll just have to read the book – and I suggest you do!

About Thea Weiss

Thea Weiss is a copywriter and screenwriter who previously contributed to the Twilight franchise. She lives in Denver with her husband, daughter, and dachshund–and loves going to the movies when she’s not writing. The Second Chance Cinema is her first novel. 

For further information, visit Thea’s website or follow her on Instagram.