I don’t even know if I can properly express how much I loved this book. I love love loved Float Plan so much. It was one of the last books I read in 2020 and it immediately made my favorites list. Believe me, this one is worth preordering early!

I’m not big on emotional romances, especially after how crazy 2020 was. I was apprehensive how I would feel about a story where the heroine lost her fiancé to suicide prior to the book starting, but Anna’s story is written with such care it’s impossible not to fall in love with how her journey is told. Grief is a hard emotion to properly convey in a romance, especially when it’s following the death of a romantic partner. Float Plan is on the shorter side (272 pages), but it packs a massive emotional and heartwarming punch. I enjoyed every second I spend with Anna. This is a romance, but this is truly Anna’s book. I loved how her character evolved throughout the story.

Keane was a swoon worthy hero. I so appreciated how his backstory brought some disability representation into the book. The scenes with him working through his emotions around losing his leg and part of his identity were so well done. I went into this book expecting it to be a lot about Anna’s grief (and parts of it were) but the chemistry and interactions between Keane and Anna had my heart soaring. I adored them so so much!

I can’t rave about Float Plan enough. The writing is beautiful, the story is heartwarming, the characters are true to life. It is such a well written and memorable romance. All the stars.

OUTSTANDING!
This book was so easy to love and enjoy...and impossible to put down. I was hooked from the epigraph:

"The cure for anything is saltwater—sweat, tears, or the sea." —Isak Dinesen

The journey of grief, with the sea as a backdrop mirroring the the growth of our heroine, was a beautifully and poignantly done allowing us to feel the journey right along with Anna (our heroine).

"I already know how it feels to try holding on to the light of a dead star."

The balance of grieving and loving our past, not forgetting, but remembering, and also allowing us to live in the present was absolute perfection. I cried so many times.

"Eventually...you'll start building a new house beside the ruins of the old. When you're ready, you'll know."

There's so much to say about this book, but at the same time, I'm finding it hard to find the right words. It just embodies so many wonderful expressions of hope, loss, growth, independence, love, and taking chances.

"The stages of grief are not linear. They are random and unpredictable, folding back on themselves until you begin mourning all over again."

And I would be remiss if not to mention how wonderfully complex and beautiful our hero, Keane, is in this book. He was the lighthouse guiding Anna to port.

"Your mess. My mess. At this point I feel like we're in this together."

I absolutely loved this book and will be recommending it to everyone. It's the perfect summer or anytime read. The storytelling is phenomenal and so atmospheric. The emotions were spot on and I adored every single word.

Now...I need to look to see who's selling Albergs! Because I've never wanted to sail more in my life.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the advance copy.

4.25 stars!

What a fantastic read! Float Plan exceeded all of my expectations.

Although the book deals with heavy topics (trigger warning, suicide and references to it throughout the novel), it was an uplifting and inspiring read. It was about getting over grief, overcoming fear and moving on.

My favourite thing about the novel? Keane! Ladies and gentleman, we have a new favourite love interest!

Anna and her fiancé had planned to sail to the Caribbean before his death, so in an effort to move on, she sets off solo. She quickly learns that she is not at all prepared and hires Keane, an Irish sailor. Let me just say that any irishman who sings the female verses of Fairytale of New York during karaoke, has my heart. He was a swoon worthy character; incredibly kind, patient, not to mention ridiculously attractive. He is one of those elusive genuinely nice guys.

I mean, he said things like, “Common decency should never be considered above and beyond.”

When Anna asks why he’s being so nice, he said, “why would I be anything else?”

And one of my favourite quotes from the novel, “kind is one of the easiest things to be.”

I’m warning you, this book will make you want to sail off to the Caribbean immediately, so just be prepared to live vicariously through it for the time being. While I was reading, I kept looking up the islands they were stopping at, making my own future travel plans.

I loved the story for so many reasons, the characters, the obstacles they overcame, the amazing locations, and the wonderful plot. It was a refreshing story, full of promise. I’m hoping for an Irish sequel!

Thank you Trish Doller, NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and St. Martin’s Griffin for sharing this ARC with me in exchange my honest review.

tw: death of a loved one by suicide (including the suicide note and descriptions of how he passed)

This is the second grief story where the main character 's fiancee has died that I have read this month, but grief stories where people are re-discovering themselves after a major loss have some of my favorite themes. This is a quick read about Anna, who is sailing the Caribbean on a trip she planned to take with her fiancee, and Keane is the man she ends up hiring to help her sail. I enjoyed the trip aspect of this, along with how kind Keane is, the depictions of his disability as he has a prothetic limb, and how their relationship blossomed. I loved the pacing of this for most of it, but the last 15% was way too rushed for how slowly it was built up, and that did take the enjoyment down a notch for me. If you enjoy grief stories mixed with romance, you'll likely enjoy this.

I got a 1/3 of the way through and ended up DNF'ing the book. I really liked the story, but with-in the first couple of chapters it quickly passed the level of language that I am comfortable with. Too many F-words. I tried to keep going but it just bugged me.

Coming back to re-adjust my review. I kept thinking about the story so I went back and finished it. I really liked it, but I still hated all the F-words.

After the loss of her fiance Anna has been stuck in her pain of loosing him. Then a reminder goes off about a trip they were going to take together. Anna decides to go on the sailboat alone and go on the trip. However after a storm she realizes she cannot manage it. 

She hires Keane a professional. Keane has his own struggled trying to get used to his future being different then he planned. As the voyage continues and romance blooms they learn that its never to late for a new beginning. 

This is a new author for me and after reading the summary I was excited to read it and was lucky enough to get an ARC from Netgalley and here is what I think. 

It was a very good book once I started reading it I couldn't put it down. The characters feel real and they go through a lot. I don't know much about sailing and I feel like the book taught me about it along with Anna.  If you are looking for a book to read look no further check this book out and this author. It is a very emotional book with lots of different feelings and grief. I love books that are real and that has a possibility that it could happen in real life and this is one them. 
*****This book does have a trigger warning suicide is mentioned in it. *******

I absolutely loved everything about this amazing book! I loved the 2 main characters, in fact, I think I fell in love with Keane. This is a beautiful story about a woman repairing her broken heart after her fiancée commits suicide. She takes a daring trip through the Caribbean picking up the sweet, good-looking, and also slightly broken Keane to help crew her boat in Bimini when she realizes she’s not quite experienced enough to do it on her own. Over the following 5-6 weeks she learns more about Keane, herself, and how to mend her broken heart and fall in love again. This story is sweet with right amount of pace. The love story is just gorgeous and tender and made me swoon so many times. This will be purchase for my shelf upon pub day! Congrats to a wonderful book!

4 heartfelt + wanderlust + meaningful + brave stars to this dear novel! This book captivated my attention immediately and held it throughout the course of the story. I felt myself emphasizing with the characters- feeling their sadness and cheering on their wins. A beautiful and poignant conversation about grief, the power of vulnerability, and finding strength and healing within one’s own self, this novel follows Anna on a 1000+ mile sailing journey from Florida to Trinidad. Anna is grieving the loss of her fiancé Ben- who died by suicide a year earlier. Grappling with feelings of anger, guilt, loneliness and pain, she is determined to sail the course they charted through the Caribbean on his sailboat. She impulsively sets out on her own- until a very close call when she realizes she needs help. She hires Keane, a professional sailor, to assist her in her quest. Along the way, they experience the beauty and dangers of nature, the joy of unexpected plans, friendly faces, delicious food and even love. This book was a beautifully written, intimate and accurate portrayal of the grieving process. I love how the characters found their own peace and resilience by the conclusion.

Thank you so much to St. Martin’s press + Netgalley for this advanced reader copy in exchange for honest review.

I loved Doller's "In A Perfect World", so I was really looking forward to this book which is going to be her debut in the adult genre. What can I say? It was amazing.

We follow the story of Anna, who lost her fiance (Ben) to suicide ten months ago, and she has been swallowed by grief ever since. On the day of their supposed trip together, her alarm goes off and Anna impulsively decides to go to sea, in their sailboat, alone. She does it for Ben, thinking that completing the voyage would help her to finally let go. Until one unfortunate night when she realizes that everything wouldn't be as easy as she initially thought, and so she hires Keane, a professional sailor, to help her reach her destination.

This was such a beautiful book. I knew from the first chapters that it was going to hurt (because obviously, the book deals with some really sensitive stuff) but I wasn't prepared for the overwhelming message about second chances, the feel-good vibe + sensory overload. It was the perfect book to get lost in and even the dialogues were meaningful and well-written. It was a pleasure to see Anna's character grow, and how she slowly loosened up and learned to be happy again. Everything was just so gentle and riveting. And Keane! Such a decent and sweet guy! I loved the unexpected stops they made along the way, the sense of community, and the brief moments in life that we often take for granted but turn out to be some of the best.

TW: depression, suicide, death of a loved one, grief, loss of a limb

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Griffin for the earc! Float Plan comes out on March 2nd!

Thank you to St Martins Press and Netgalley for a digital advanced copy of Float Plan by Trish Doller.

cw: suicide, grief, physical trauma

This story follows Anna ten months after her fiancé passed away due to suicide, on a voyage using his old boat to sail across the Caribbean. She is determined to create the exact trip Ben had mapped out for the two of them to do together, but she realizes as she departs Florida that she is in over her head and needs assistance. Keane Sullivan is then hired to travel with Anna, and along the way the two of them grow fond of each other. Anna soon realizes that life without Ben can still go on and she will not only find herself again but also someone who can not fill the void of her heart, but help mend the wounds and make space for growth.

What a fun escape to the Caribbean this was in the midst of a global pandemic. I am very fortunate to have never experienced the loss of a loved one due to suicide, but for Anna that is not the case and the reader truly feels the grieving process she goes through throughout the story. She ultimately becomes guilty that she is falling in love with someone else, but I think this was valuable to show that those left in the wake of suicide will stumble into a new footing sometimes and find that you can still live your life while still honoring the life of the ones they lost. The author does an excellent job of enriching the reader with beautiful descriptions of all the islands Anna and Keane travel to and one day (once life returns to normal) I would love to see these places for myself. There was just enough of a slow burn for the romance to feel authentic, but my only qualm was that out of the blue conflict is created to separate the couple and then we're left with very little time for resolution. Otherwise, this is a great novel to escape into when you miss traveling and warmer climates!

Anna has been dealing with grief in her own way after the loss of her fiancee Ben. Her mom and sister are worried about her - worried that Anna is going through the motions, but not really living her life.

Anna and Ben were planning a trip on his sailboat to the Caribbean islands, but Anna had forgot about the trip. When a reminder alerted her of the trip, Anna decides on going on the sailboat solo. Sailing alone is hard, harder than Anna anticipated and after a few rough days Anna hires Keane - a sweet professional sailor.

I absolutely adored Float Plan. The writing by Trish Doller is brilliant and immediately once I started reading I was highlighting passages. Both Anna and Keane are characters who have faced so much in the past they are processing their own grief separately and together throughout their journey.

I loved how Doller was able to describe the various islands and mechanisms of sailing without it feeling overwhelming. I honestly felt as if I was on the boat with Keane and Anna, sailing through the Caribbean sea. The other characters we meet and the relationships that Anna and Keane have with them were so very special and I never felt as if a character was there as a filler.

Anna's journey of self discovery was captured so perfectly in Float Plan. I was holding back tears towards the end of the book. And although this book is categorized as a romance, it was so much more than that. The romance between Keane and Anna was there, but was so was companionship, understanding and so much love. I'm looking forward to reading more by Trish Doller.

Not sure what I can say other than sleep is very important to me and I sacrificed it so I could spend more time with Anna and Keane. This book is similar to Beach Read in that it is a romance with heavy themes. But oh how I LOVED these characters and how I loved sailing with them. Immediately wish I could read it again for the first time.

Content Warning: suicidal ideation, suicide

Unfortunately due to person reasons I will not be providing a feedback on this title.

Heard amazing things about it just personally I cannot read it due to sone content.

Thanks NetGalley and St. Martin Press for the ARC.

This one didn't wreck me as much as I.... hoped? I guess is the word. But, that said, I did enjoy the story and the romance of this quite a bit. Sailing isn't something I'm super knowledgeable about, but I think the author did an excellent job explaining details without being too much of a manual, or leaving the reader confused. I've loved Trish Doller for years, and this is no exception.

I love a book that can capture how difficult and long the grieving process is. I really liked Anna and was rooting for her throughout this story. The author tied together the way two strangers grieved the loss of lives they one imagined, and used the imagery of the sea to do so.

In a time when travel isn't happening in the world, I loved that this book took us sailing through so many places.

Quick read and cute story. Not a steamy romance but a believable one!

"Traveling almost 1,700 miles might not have made an impact on mankind, but the crack in my own small world is patched."

This is an epic story, in the very definition of the word. It's a journey filled with so much heart, and FEELINGS, and personal growth. Float Plan is emotional, enlightening, empowering, encouraging —I think it could *and should* be the PS I Love You meets Eat Pray Love of our time. It has the power and capacity to truly connect with as many people in significant ways as those do. And the Romance! It's also got the 'I'm gonna do this myself, in the middle of this heartbreak, I'll figure out the logistics' vibes of the sailing story (and Shailene Woodley movie) Adrift.

The love story is wonderful. Keane is charming and delightful, and adds a whole new dimension to the spirit of this trip. He's a super special guy, a wonderful sailing companion and romantic partner. He's also lost one leg and wears a prosthesis, and there's a story arc on this trip about his career life coming to terms with this. The adventure feels incredibly vibrant and life-changing.

Anna's journey includes learning to sail, meeting an eclectic kaleidoscope of people, becoming part of a sailing community, grieving in so many ways, at so many stages, self-discovery, romance, and hope. I loved that she's socially aware, and vocal about things like colonisation and the role of patriarchal society even in tiny moments here.

Trish Doller's writing is beautiful and descriptive, making every moment a vivid experience; as if the author went on this entire trip and documented every little detail, then handed some of the gems to us, between some very normal moments that make it seem more relatable. The sailing logistics never feel laborius or technical, the food always sounds delicious, and the landscape views are almost painted right before my eyes. I can't really express how much it felt like I had been to each of those places.

And the bit that's stayed with me most, throughout the months since I've read this book, is every single time someone says "I'm sorry" to a grieving person, my brain automatically switches to "That f*cking sucks." It's a game changer.

Read. This. Book. If you have a book club, this should be your next selection. I could not recommend it enough. It'll also be a wonderful personal gift to give.

Content warnings: This story opens with a suicide note, and centers around a wife grieving the suicide of her husband. Discussions of self-harm. Descriptions and flashbacks to her husband's depression, and actual suicide. The way she meets her romantic interest is questionable, in that it includes being black-out drunk and having to believe in his heroism based solely on his recollection of the vulnerable situation. Mention of a reckless driving accident in the past.

Wonderfully written book, grabbed me from the beginning.
Hard to put down.
After the suicide of the love of her life, Anna found it hard to function. She decides to sail the trip by herself, they had planned before his death. I loved traveling through the islands by sailboat with Anna. The sights, smells, food were wonderful!
Book gets a 5 star


Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher and author for an ARC of this book.The opinions expressed are my own.

I loved this book so much. It is about sailing, grief, acceptance, and moving forward. Anna's pain and grief felt so real that it felt more like an autobiography than fiction to me.

Anna came home one night to find her fiance dead on the floor. Suicide. They had bought an older boat, and he had revamped it and gotten it ready for the two of them to sail to all these different places in the Caribbean, where they were also going to get married. He leaves her a letter asking her to go without him. His itinerary is the float plan of the title. Anna feels as if she can't move forward until she completes this journey, which they were supposed to do together.

She decides to go on the trip but ends up hiring a crew member after she almost wrecked the boat. The man she hired, Keane Sullivan, has also had a major life change. He lost his leg, which also cost him a coveted sailing job. Like Anna, he is having a difficult time adjusting to his changed circumstances. After a while, the journey that was supposed to be the one planned by her fiance becomes hers, and then theirs.

I loved the descriptions of all the islands they visited. It gave me a glimpse into life on relatively small islands in the Caribbean and made me want to visit myself. I loved the descriptions of the island dogs, the churches, the people, the food, and the island culture.

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher and Netgalley. These are my own opinions of the book.

Anna wakes up to an alarm, "Today is the day! We're going sailing!" It's almost a year after her fiance died by suicide and Anna is struggling to move on. In an attempt to heal, she packs a bag, quits her job and takes their Alberg boat out on the trip they were supposed to make together. Anna soon realizes that she's bitten off more than she can chew and needs to hire help. Cue Keane, who not only helps Anna sail the Caribbean, but also helps her find her way.

Float Plan is spot on with its portrayal of grief. Is there a limit on grief? Who says when it's time to get over loss? How long you are allowed to mourn? This book handles grief with the care it deserves. But it also shows that you can come back from loss.

Keane's character is just the best. Anna describes him as an Irish Mary Poppins with facial hair. I loved his positive outlook and his strong convictions. He's confident, but knows how to push Anna without breaking her spirit. Keane helps Anna see that Ben's plan might not be her plan and that's okay.

My only criticism is that the end of the book seemed to drag a tad. I understand how it all fits into Anna's journey of self-discovery, but my heart hurt for her. I just wanted her happy ever after and it felt like it took longer than usual to get there.

Overall, I loved the book. Thank you to NeGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

My first 5 Star read of 2021!

After it's heart-rending opening, Float Plan is a story that deals with loss, the grieving process, and the effort to start moving forward.

The author rendered grief in all it's honesty, but also lightened the story with moments of wit and charm. I loved every minute with the relatable heroine, as well as it's swoony Irish hero. While not entirely focused on romance, the relationship between Anna and Keane was beautifully and realistically developed. The sailing details were vivid, but not overwhelming and Keane and Anna's time on the water created a convenient forced proximity scenario. It also provided introductions to a number of fun secondary characters.

The author mentions that she began the process of writing this book eight years prior. I sure hope it doesn't take that long for her next adult novel to get here. Regardless, I want to be first in line.