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liciaaaaa's review
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing, Sexual content, and Alcohol
Minor: Death of parent, Deportation, Injury/Injury detail, and Toxic relationship
abookwanderer's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Very rarely do I want to read a book because of the cover alone, but Luck & Last Resorts by Sarah Grunder Ruiz, was one of those occasions. When I was invited to read her sophomore novel, I immediately wanted to accept, falling in love with the charming cover. But I quickly realized Luck & Last Resorts is the second novel in her romance series following the popular Love, Lists, & Fancy Ships, which I have not read yet. After reading some early reviews from fellow bloggers, I felt reassured that it wasn’t necessary to read the previous novel, and I accepted that invitation.
Let me assure you, my fellow bloggers were not wrong, and I adored this romance about the staff on the Serendipity, a super yacht, sending Love, Lists, & Fancy Ships sailing up my TBR.
In Luck & Last Resorts, we follow Nina, Jo’s best friend from Love, Lists, & Fancy Ships. I was very impressed with Ruiz’ ability to make Luck & Last Resorts not feel like a follow-up. Typically when I read a subsequent book within a series without reading the first book, there will be a few holes within the plot that have me feeling like I missed something, but not with Luck & Last Resorts. It felt like a wholly complete book on its own, that happened to feature side characters I’d like to know more about.
Now about the story… Luck & Last Resorts frustrated me in the best angsty way. I didn’t want to set this one down, reading into the wee hours of the night to finish. Despite it only being from Nina’s point of view, I fell hard for Ollie, Nina’s on-again-off-again-best-friend-with-benefits love interest. Ruiz’ talent for perfectly capturing a character only viewed through another character’s point of view, reminded me so much of Emily Henry’s style. I felt like I knew Ollie, the Serendipity’s sometimes grumpy chef, in the end only wanting what was best for him, even if that meant it wasn’t Nina.
Nina’s self-destructive behavior when it came to their relationship was hard to read at times, but very rewarding in the end. These are two characters with broken pasts, who find solace within each other, and it was refreshing reading another book where the male lead is the one with confidence in the relationship. (I just finished Bend Toward the Sunwhich had the same theme, and I highly recommend it, as well.)
Lastly, the setting on a super yacht was so very unique and fun. And I liked how the author spent very little time focused on the guests of the ship. The story was about the crew, and that’s where the heart of the story remained.
I sped through Luck & Last Resorts quickly. It’s a shorter book, coming in at under 350 pages. It seemed like the perfect length. No long, drawn out chapters, every sentence packed full of meaning. I highly recommend this one, especially if you’re a fan of second chance romances.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you to Berkley and Netgalley for providing me with an advance copy.
Check out my reviews and playlist at A Book Wanderer
Let me assure you, my fellow bloggers were not wrong, and I adored this romance about the staff on the Serendipity, a super yacht, sending Love, Lists, & Fancy Ships sailing up my TBR.
In Luck & Last Resorts, we follow Nina, Jo’s best friend from Love, Lists, & Fancy Ships. I was very impressed with Ruiz’ ability to make Luck & Last Resorts not feel like a follow-up. Typically when I read a subsequent book within a series without reading the first book, there will be a few holes within the plot that have me feeling like I missed something, but not with Luck & Last Resorts. It felt like a wholly complete book on its own, that happened to feature side characters I’d like to know more about.
Now about the story… Luck & Last Resorts frustrated me in the best angsty way. I didn’t want to set this one down, reading into the wee hours of the night to finish. Despite it only being from Nina’s point of view, I fell hard for Ollie, Nina’s on-again-off-again-best-friend-with-benefits love interest. Ruiz’ talent for perfectly capturing a character only viewed through another character’s point of view, reminded me so much of Emily Henry’s style. I felt like I knew Ollie, the Serendipity’s sometimes grumpy chef, in the end only wanting what was best for him, even if that meant it wasn’t Nina.
Nina’s self-destructive behavior when it came to their relationship was hard to read at times, but very rewarding in the end. These are two characters with broken pasts, who find solace within each other, and it was refreshing reading another book where the male lead is the one with confidence in the relationship. (I just finished Bend Toward the Sunwhich had the same theme, and I highly recommend it, as well.)
Lastly, the setting on a super yacht was so very unique and fun. And I liked how the author spent very little time focused on the guests of the ship. The story was about the crew, and that’s where the heart of the story remained.
I sped through Luck & Last Resorts quickly. It’s a shorter book, coming in at under 350 pages. It seemed like the perfect length. No long, drawn out chapters, every sentence packed full of meaning. I highly recommend this one, especially if you’re a fan of second chance romances.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you to Berkley and Netgalley for providing me with an advance copy.
Check out my reviews and playlist at A Book Wanderer
Content Warnings
Minor: Alcohol
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