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paxyshia's review
adventurous
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
3.5/5 - I liked it and I don’t know if I’d read again but I liked it.
Definitely for you if you like:
- Easy, soft love
- Strangers to friends to lovers
- Sailing
tw: suicide, minor description of suicide, self harm, grief, depression
Anna is greiving after the passing of her fiancé and decides on a whim to take the boat trip they were supposed to take together. She’s determined to complete the voyage planned but after an awful first night of sailing, she decides to hire help to finish it.
She hires Keane, a professional sailor with a warm Irish accent, to help her. Keane is also dealing with how to move forward from a life he thought he had all planned out. As they understand one another’s losses and try to maintain friendly on a small boat, their connection continues to rise. The romance seems inevitable but they still need to continue on how to let go and how to plan for something brand new.
📚
So I liked this one. Just not as much as I thought I would. I got an ARC of the second in the series and adored it and thought I’d like this one too but the pace was just a little too slow. I think it’s fitting though with what grief does to your life and also sailing. Lots of patience, yeah? So I wasn’t too mad about it. I guess this is just a warning to say: It’s slow paced. The second one is definitely a little more lighthearted.
I think maybe the pace would’ve been better with a dual POV, maybe? Maybe that would’ve given too much away, I don’t know.
I did just love how their love was easy. It wasn’t hard or dramatic and filled with anxiety or nerves. It was just warm and knowing and like coming home. Keane was really the perfect man for it. I adored him.
Keane was just so dreamy though and I really loved him as a character. Honestly, loved Anna’s friend Cara and would love to read one about her! Reading these thoughts about Anna and her grief really was… not for the faint of heart. I can’t even begin to imagine the grief she felt and reading those moments of bargaining and anger and sadness was heavy.
I think the only thing I really wanna leave here is this quote because Trish Doller really summed up what I believe dealing with grief is like: “But I’m starting to understand how sadness and happiness can live side by side within a heart. And how that heart can keep on beating.”
Grief grows from love. It is simply love with nowhere to go.
Definitely for you if you like:
- Easy, soft love
- Strangers to friends to lovers
- Sailing
tw: suicide, minor description of suicide, self harm, grief, depression
Anna is greiving after the passing of her fiancé and decides on a whim to take the boat trip they were supposed to take together. She’s determined to complete the voyage planned but after an awful first night of sailing, she decides to hire help to finish it.
She hires Keane, a professional sailor with a warm Irish accent, to help her. Keane is also dealing with how to move forward from a life he thought he had all planned out. As they understand one another’s losses and try to maintain friendly on a small boat, their connection continues to rise. The romance seems inevitable but they still need to continue on how to let go and how to plan for something brand new.
📚
So I liked this one. Just not as much as I thought I would. I got an ARC of the second in the series and adored it and thought I’d like this one too but the pace was just a little too slow. I think it’s fitting though with what grief does to your life and also sailing. Lots of patience, yeah? So I wasn’t too mad about it. I guess this is just a warning to say: It’s slow paced. The second one is definitely a little more lighthearted.
I think maybe the pace would’ve been better with a dual POV, maybe? Maybe that would’ve given too much away, I don’t know.
I did just love how their love was easy. It wasn’t hard or dramatic and filled with anxiety or nerves. It was just warm and knowing and like coming home. Keane was really the perfect man for it. I adored him.
Keane was just so dreamy though and I really loved him as a character. Honestly, loved Anna’s friend Cara and would love to read one about her! Reading these thoughts about Anna and her grief really was… not for the faint of heart. I can’t even begin to imagine the grief she felt and reading those moments of bargaining and anger and sadness was heavy.
I think the only thing I really wanna leave here is this quote because Trish Doller really summed up what I believe dealing with grief is like: “But I’m starting to understand how sadness and happiness can live side by side within a heart. And how that heart can keep on beating.”
Grief grows from love. It is simply love with nowhere to go.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Self harm
grizzlysnack's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.5
I reimagined almost all of the big plot points of the story in my head as I was reading so it would make more sense in the aspect of Anna making an 'Anna-type' of decision based off the information that the author gave in the book, same goes for Keane, etc. etc.
The only redeeming factor I found present in this story was the characters. They had so much to give and could've been written in such a way that made them feel like a human being but they were written VERY flat and vaguely. The only reason a character would be introduced was to further Anna & Keane's relationship onto the end goal (dating) and not give the reader any more depth into the main characters themselves. I also found that Anna's decisions would have made a lot more sense if Ben had died a couple months before they were supposed to take the trip, not ten months after the fact. Anna would have been much more impulsive immediately following Ben's death based on her actions we see a few chapters in, not after she'd have almost a year to gather her thoughts and trying to be okay without her fiancé. I know everyone's road of grief is different, but the way the story is written is not realistic in my eyes.
The foundation which every character was standing on was made of popsicle sticks. Each character's actions and thoughts rarely match up to cooperate intermingled; almost as if Anna & Keane were accidentally written like they both have Disassociative Identity Disorder but neither of them knows it.
I was thoroughly disappointed in this story. The concept is amazing, but the execution was worse than poor :(
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Grief
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, and Mental illness
Minor: Sexual content
kdscolley's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Grief
beckielouisexx's review
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide and Grief
abigailp's review
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death, and Suicide
teacupsandfirereads's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I picked this book up because so many friends really enjoyed it. However for me, it was a quick, enjoyable read, but I didn't love it, and after the last page, most of it is a blur. Meaning I can't remember the details of the story, but the overall story. Yes it had more depth than a typical romance, but I did feel that parts of that were lacking in terms of development. It still sort of felt surface level. I do think it is worth picking up if you are looking for something quick and fun.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide, Grief, and Mental illness
Minor: Ableism
pinkberryoasis's review
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Death, Grief, Mental illness, Suicide, and Vomit
nicoledean's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
After losing her fiancé to suicide, Anna decides to sail solo on the trip they were supposed to take to the Caribbean. When she realizes she can’t do it alone, she hires Keane to sail with her.
This was a perfect summer read. I loved all the descriptions of the different islands and of course the food. It was a cute story, with a bit of heavy subject matter, but I loved seeing Anna come into her own.
Perfect if you enjoy books with travel or are looking for a summer type read.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide and Grief
catladyreads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Death, Suicide, Medical content, and Vomit