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cardcatalogdreams 's review for:
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
In Whisked Away by M. Colette, Ellie returns to the coastal town of Dove Point after heartbreak sends her fleeing from New York. Hoping the ocean breeze and her childhood roots will help her sort out her future, she reconnects with Rowan—her former best friend and the man who’s quietly loved her all along. Rowan, still carrying the weight of his own loss, has built a successful life as the owner of The Salty Dog brewery. When Ellie walks back into his life, the two must navigate past wounds, rekindled sparks, and the pull of a love that never fully faded.
On paper, this book has everything I love in a romance: a beachside town, a second-chance love story, baking (bonus points), and a lovable dog named Milo. Dove Point itself was beautifully drawn—the descriptions of the beach and the brewery were especially strong and gave the story a cozy sense of place. I also really appreciated that Ellie and Rowan weren’t portrayed as perfect. They had flaws, histories, and emotional baggage that felt grounded in reality.
But while the ingredients were promising, the execution just didn’t work for me. The writing often leaned into telling rather than showing, which dulled the emotional impact. Characters repeatedly fixated on things like clothing, hair color, and eye color—details that started to feel oddly emphasized and, at times, even distracting.
There were also too many side characters introduced, some with loose narrative threads that never tied up. It left the story feeling cluttered and a bit underdeveloped. And in the intimate scenes, while I appreciated the effort to add nuance, the repeated focus on tongue-sucking pulled me out of the moment—it felt incongruous with the otherwise spicy tone.
Overall, Whisked Away has charm and heart, and I think M. Colette has a strong foundation here. But the story didn’t quite hit the emotional beats I was hoping for. It’s a sweet concept that I wanted to love, but ultimately, it didn’t rise to its full potential.