A love story, Second Nature, the newest book by best-selling novelist Jacquelyn Mitchard, is not just one love story but many love stories wrapped into one. Like Mitchard’s previous books, Second Nature is an engrossing read that touches your heart and makes you think about life.
Sicily Coyne’s life changes at 13 when her father is killed and she gets a disfiguring burn on her face in the same tragic accident. Twelve years later, Sicily is given the chance to receive a face transplant and a new chance at life. With an almost overnight transformation from burn victim to beauty, Sicily deals with the effects of her new life on old and new friendships and most of all a chance at real, complicated love.
Not only does Sicily deal with the ins and outs of family, friend and love relationships, she faces several moral dilemmas that, like all dilemmas, could have more life-changing outcomes. Sicily’s desire to lead a normal life like any 20-something young woman outweighs her fears of the unknown.
Mitchard uses an interesting technique of switching the first person perspective throughout the book – about every other chapter – between Sicily and one of the several other characters in the book. I don’t remember if Mitchard does this in all of her books; it certainly gives the reader a different perspective of each of the characters. It works and is necessary for a complex story like Second Nature.
The book is one that I read quickly and didn’t want to finish because it was such a fascinating and intriguing story. However, I was a little disappointed by the too good-to-be-true, practically perfectly tied up ending. But, that’s the beauty of fiction, right?!
Second Nature is sure to be another bestselling novel by Mitchard. I encourage you to read it for yourself.
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