I really liked this book! I was surprised by how much I got into the sailing life, and the technical aspects of being on board a ship like that. I've always thought people who sail are adventurers. I'd love to try it one day.

Ms. Alden's writing is very technical. You can tell she knows a LOT about sailing--the mechanics of it. Because I was surprised by how much I liked that, I wasn't surprised at all by how much I liked not only the story, but the romance in it.

Mia and Jonas are absolutely beautiful together. Being 35 years old myself, I love that she was an older heroine. I also really liked that they had both been divorced. It gave the story some heft and background. These aren't young kids, and I appreciated that. Mia was hurt by her divorce, but still so strong. Jonas isn't sure why his marriage ended, but you can tell it was for the best. He is looking for real love, and watching him and Mia fall in love was so sweet. I've always liked a slow-burn romance, but WHOA was it slow. It was over half the book before we get so much as a kiss. I also thought it was extremely unrealistic that they didn't even kiss for a month. They were even sleeping together and napping together, and yet, nothing. I wasn't a fan of that. Once we finally get to the steam, however, WOW was it hot. Super spicy. Sexual tension galore, and there were a few parts where I had serious butterflies in my stomach. What can I say? Jonas is a hot, muscled-up, modern-day Viking. I love that when they finally decided to get together, they go all in. I LOVE that.

Overall, though, I really loved this book. Mia is both vulnerable AND strong, and Jonas is a sexy teddy bear. Sailing together isn't an east thing to do, but they make it work, and fall in love in the process. I would definitely recommend this book to romance readers!

I received this book for an honest review from netgalley #netgalley

Poop so cute! This book got me out of a reading slump. Cute and fun just what I needed!

Loved loved this. My second book from this author. Loved it from the first book. I’m hooked. I need more. Must read. Makes me want to go sailing.

4.5⭐️

I was thrilled to read this second journey in Wanderlust, because don't we have a bit of wanderlust? If you can't imagine adventuring out into the world, I'm sure you enjoy immersing yourself in it through reading!

This adventure in love and find yourself begins before the end (and epilogues) of book one. The transition between the two, and the overlap of time, is done very well.

The book is sweet, steamy, and definitely makes me want to snorkel.

I started reading A Sailor in Polynesia right after finished another book that was set at sea. It was an easy transition, but one I would not recommend in order to fully appreciate this book. The author focuses the story on Mia and Jonas. Mia is solo sailing after a divorce from her sailing partner and she is stagnating in life. Enter Jonas. Jonas is also divorced which led to him taking the leap and getting a boat to sail around the world with a small crew. Both characters have residual bitterness and disappointment from their divorces, and through a friendship they start to heal a little. I think I had a slight problem in that Mia wasn’t really looking to be independent. She wanted a partner (which is fair), but it was to the extent that she couldn’t do things on her own. She was just offshore an island for weeks, doing nothing but moping until Jonas showed up with his crew. I kept waiting for her to restart her business of making videos but that didn’t really happen (at least until much later). Basically, there wasn’t much individual character development for Mia and she remained totally dependent on a man for her happiness.

I love the attention to detail that the author put into this book. Mia is a skilled free diver, and I really enjoyed reading about her adventures underwater. It’s clear the author researched sailing and diving, however there were some details that were left out although that might have been by choice.

I thought the ending was good, and a little unexpected. Mia’s decision made me sad but it also made sense, especially for where she was mentally and physically at that time. This was a fun lighthearted read.

*ARC recebida através do NetGalley em troca de uma opinião honesta*

The Sailor in Polynesia é o segundo livro da série Love and Wanderlust. A história de Mia e Jonas foi tão bom quanto a do casal do primeiro livro.

Mia é famosa por seu canal de navegação no youtube. Ela está de passagem na Polinésia Francesa, se recuperando de um divórcio tumultuado. Ela ainda se sente insegura em voltar a gravar seus vídeos e cuidar bem do seu barco Welina agora que está sozinha. E é nesse cenário que Jonas entra em sua vida.

O que começa com uma boa amizade aos poucos evolui. Tudo seria bom se caso cada um tivesse planos completamente diferente. Será se o sentimento que nasceu da troca de cocos e mergulhos irá superar as barreiras marítimas?

A história de Mia e Jonas é tão envolvente que devorei o livro em dois dias e fiquei querendo mais. Esse livro tem uma carga emocional um pouco maior que o anterior, visto que tanto Mia quanto Jonas são mais velhos e passaram por divórcios estressantes.

Apesar da insegurança, Mia é uma mulher determinada, alegre e cheia de vida. Jonas é um tanto introspectivo e tímido, mas de uma personalidade calma e gentil. Justamente por serem pessoas divorciadas e mais velhas cercada de jovens (no caso, a tripulação do barco de Jonas), eles se entendem muito bem e sabem o que o outro está sentindo.

Ri demais com o Jonas no começo, todo tímido e nível fangirl pra cima da Mia. A amizade que nasce entre os dois é bastante fofa e legal de acompanhar. Jonas se torna uma boa companhia pra Mia e a pessoa que ela precisava ter ao lado naquele momento.

Assim como em The Hitchhiker in Panama, continuamos no dia-a-dia de um barco. Acho bem legal que, no final do livro, a autora comenta da sua viagem de barco aos lugares citados na história. Também temos participação de Lila, Eivind, Elayna e Marcella, que aqui faz sua despedida para poder protagonizar The Chef in Mediterranean.

This book reads like the author's love letter to sailing and French Polynesia. This is slow-burn (and damn, did that burn feel slow at times), but the real hero of this book is the sailing life and islands. I usually don't mind setting-focused books (I mean, I read a ton of fantasy and urban fantasy that are very setting-forward), but I think with this because it was a real location that I could visit, I wanted to just go to these places rather than read about other people going to them. Who knows though, this could totally be the quarantine talking.

Overall, I did like the characters and even though it felt slow at times, I did enjoy this.

CW: references of past emotional & physical abuse, sex

Thank you to NetGalley and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for an advanced electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Mia is an American woman in her 30s, recently divorced, and sailing alone in the South Pacific. She meets Jonas: also divorced, Norwegian, sailing with a small crew. He recognizes her from her YouTube videos, and they begin to get closer. But is it enough, when their plans are so different?

If you're looking for a slow burn, this is it. I also wouldn't typically consider myself to be someone who feels a great deal of wanderlust, but this book definitely stirs it up in you. I loved Mia and Jonas, and their unproblematic way of handling things. I hate the inevitable conflict in a romance, but the conflict here was barely a blip, which is PERFECT for me!

Easy 4.5 stars

I liked it. Just didn't love it. Thought the book didn't have enough conflict or incidents if that makes sense. Everything was fine though-out the book, no major issues to really overcome for the characters expected for one when the boat was taking on water. With that being said I also felt as if there wasn't enough dialogue between the characters or inner description on emotions and feelings. Most of the describing was how to sail the boat which is fine but there was not enough to balance it out. Too much telling not enough feeling.
Would I still want to read the next book in the series? Yes.
Also I absolutely love the covers!

I received an ARC for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Okay so Mia and Jonas are just absolute perfection together. Let’s just start there. They are one of my favourite romance novel couples I’ve ever read about. I really liked them both individually, but together they were even better. From the first moment they met in the book, I was eager to just keep reading more about them. They’re both in their 30s & have gone through a divorce that has made them rethink a lot of things in their life, but their connection as soon as they meet is so cute. Jonas watched and loved Mia’s YouTube videos about sailing, and had a crush on her before they ever even met, and it was wonderful to watch that develop (and become mutual) as they got to know each other more & more.

It was really nice to see all of the crew members from the Eik so much in The Sailor in Polynesia, after being introduced to them in The Hitchhiker in Panama. They have such a lovely dynamic, and it was just fun to read about them and their activities. All of the snorkeling moments has made me so ready to go sailing and go on adventures like theirs.

I really loved every moment involving Mia’s family. Honestly, I kind of thought I wouldn’t like the moments when she was with them instead of Jonas just because I was obsessed about reading about the two of them, but the way it was written in was perfect. It added a whole new level to their connection, and Mia’s family was wonderful. They were so funny when she was with them & in phone/email chats with Mia, and I loved that Jonas took interest in learning about them.

Alright, let’s get to the really good part. The sex. Oh, my god, the sex. This was a slow burn, and so worth the wait. There were sweet moments that became more passionate, teasing moments that turned into pure satisfaction, and very clear consent that lead to just the hottest moments between Mia and Jonas.

I seriously cannot recommend this book enough. The setting is amazing, the friendships were a joy to read about, the family interactions were so great, and the romance is unbeatable. I’m so glad I read this book, and will absolutely be adding a physical copy to my shelf when it comes out on June 3!

Thank you to Liz Alden & NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book!