This Sexy Navy Chief is going to steal your heart. Sailor Proof by Annabeth Albert is just simply sexy, adorable page turning read.

Loved it and Recommend it to all readers.

Sailor Proof is a fake boyfriend, military romance in Annabeth Albert’s new Shore Leave series. After reading (and enjoying) a pair of the author’s new adult novels, I was looking forward to her return to military romance. This lighter, fluffier story doesn’t have much in common, though, with her edgier Out of Uniform series that I love.

Derrick wants to make his cheating ex-boyfriend, Steve, jealous and not look like a fool in front of him. Steve’s new boyfriend is a fellow submariner on the submarine Derrick is stationed on. They’re returning to base and Derrick has no family or friends to meet him on Homecoming Day. His best friend, Calder, suggests finding a fake boyfriend, specifically Calder’s younger brother Arthur, to annoy Steve.

Derrick and Arthur haven’t seen each other in years and they’re both impressed with the other. Amidst the fanfare, Arthur greets Derrick with a big, steamy, very public kiss so realistic it convinces Arthur’s parents they are a real couple. And so, instead of disappointing his mom and dad, once again, by admitting they’re faking it, Arthur begs Derrick to continue the ruse during a week-long family reunion vacation with lots of extended relatives.

See, Arthur has long been a disappointment to his family. As a musician, he’s the odd man out among all the do-gooders in the family – members of the military, first responders, and nurses. No one respects the youngest son. They make cracks about his career choice, his boyfriends or lack thereof, and call him an irresponsible nerd. Derrick is one of the few people who sees and likes Arthur for who he is, and laughs with him instead of at him. The family loves Derrick, though, so it makes Arthur feel more accepted.

The reunion – sigh. It sounds like torture for poor Arthur, with all the teasing, put-downs, pushiness, and betting that Arthur will fail at something. Or everything. It wasn’t all that fun to read, either, and unfortunately, it lasted for nearly two-thirds of the book! Much too much annoying family with their focus on winning, losing, and competition.

Derrick and Arthur are both very likable characters with good chemistry and a nice understanding of each other. That by itself is not enough to carry this book, however, and I didn’t enjoy it much. Sailor Proof doesn’t offer a fresh take on either the military theme or the fake boyfriend trope. The pace is sluggish and I ended up skimming the last half of the book. Overall, I rate the book average.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a free advanced copy of this book to read and review.

Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Carina Adores, Netgalley and Annabeth Albert for this free copy. All quotes in this review are taken from the Advanced Reader Copy and may change in final publication.

Oh my gosh, this makes it even funnier because of course this is about a submarine, which is what my husband is on. Yep, this was pretty emotional reading solely because my husband is on deployment for a long while and I’ve been missing him like crazy lately.

I thought this one was pretty interesting especially knowing a bit about how my husband’s life is like on a submarine. Trust me, I don’t know everything, and I don’t expect to know everything since that’s something that I will never experience myself, but it was a weird feeling being in this world. Nothing bad about the feeling, just weird in a sense that I could see some of the things happening with his command and others not so much.

For one, the dynamic between a Chief and his sailors… If Fox’s ex was on this sub also – which he was – that working dynamic is already messed up, which can cause a lot of problems in general especially in whatever kind of combat situations the submarine would be on. They were probably out on mission during this whole thing, and things need to be taken seriously. Sure, that could be me worrying about everything that my husband has to go through especially knowing that they go through some dangerous things that I’m not privy to, but I honestly don’t believe that Fox’s ex would be actively showing off about getting to kiss his other cheating ex when they arrive home. Then again, that’s just me, and this is a work of fiction.

If I try to erase everything that I know about the sub life, from having my own father in submarines while I was growing up to now my husband being in submarines, I could try to appreciate the love story for what it was: a fake relationship that gets exacerbated because of social media. Fake relationships can be some of my favorite types of stories because of how it starts and how the two main characters need to somehow fake it until they make it, and eventually learn how to fall in love with one another in the process. I personally don’t like cheating plots since that’s a sore spot for me, but if that’s how Albert needed to work out why the fake relationship came to be, then so be it.

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. I love Annabeth Albert's books, and this is another excellent addition. Great storyline and characters.

This book is another one is a recent string of arcs that never ended up on my kindle. I don't know what the problem is, but I can't review it. Sorry. I will definitely buy and review this on my own.

Derrick and Arthur are everything one another needs. From the opposites attract to the fake relationship to the low angst to the honesty to the passion, this hit all the points for me. The way they couldn't keep their hands, and all their other parts, off of one another kept me looking forward to the spice as much as the tender feels and confessions.

If the family dynamic had been a little less of the focus this story would have been perfect. I was really glad that Arthur was sick of the family's constant betting and competition because I sure was as well. And overall, this was a story that I was eagerly looking forward to and was so glad to have read.

This is one of my favorite authors, their characters are real, the writing is honest and engaging, the HEAs are exactly as they should be, and the feels are what keep me coming back to each book they write.

This was such a good story! I really do enjoy fake dating that we all know leads to more. This one was also best friends brother! Arthur was adorable and you can’t help but fall for Derrick as well. They both just got so well together that you can’t help but root for them both. It was sweet and funny as well which I like. Now I can’t help but think that the brother will get his own…I hope so! If you like Annabeths books, you’ll definitely like this one as well!

Annabeth Albert is becoming one of my favorite m/m romance authors, her stories are always hot and steamy ,and characters that you fell in love with. And this one is no exception. Normally I don't go for the fake relationship trope,but this one wow ,it had me hooked after just reading one hot scene between the two main characters. But it does also have a trope in it that like and that's brother's best friend/best friend's sibling romance . And those I can get lost in .

This is a sweet, low angst, quick read.

Derek and Arthur are seemingly meant for each other. They are very sweet together and never really ‘faked’ a relationship. They were all in from kiss one. Arthur gives Derek the family he’s always wanted, and Derek gives Arthur the confidence he needs to reconnect with his family. There is a minor, quick lack of communication that is quickly resolved but no other real angst for these guys.

Calder kind of drove me nuts in this story so I’m hesitant to start his book.

Going into this title I was concerned that the entire conflict would boil down to the two main characters refusing to communicate with each other. To my delight, that was not the case at all! I appreciate romances that actually feel like healthy adults.

I am ALWAYS down for a new Annabeth Albert book, and this was no exception. This follows Naval Chief Derrick Fox, who is pretty much resigned to the fact that he will be “married” to the Navy forever, and no one else, after being burned by his ex. To make this ex jealous and VERY sorry, a plan is devised involving some deception and his best friends little brother. The “fake boyfriend” trope at its finest, true feelings and potential love begin to form, even though Arthur, the “boyfriend”, has sworn to never date a military man ever. Relatively low angst, this story was heartwarming and awesome! And bonus, the “one bed” situation for good measure!

I was given an advanced reader's copy via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own

Annabeth has gifted us with a new Military Romance Series and I for one couldn’t be happier. Derrick Fox and Arthur Euler are perfect together in this fake boyfriend, best friend’s younger sibling MM Romance. Sailor Proof is the first book in the SHORE LEAVE SERIES which can be read as a standalone, but if you're like me you're going to fall in love with some of the key secondary characters and hope they get their own HEA's.

Well, that part of my review was written after I read this book last September but for whatever reason I never finished my review and only realized it when I read the second book in the series, SINK OR SWIM, which is Archer's brother's book and the one that I was hoping would get his HEA. Anyway, back to this review....

Archer is all in for playing the fake boyfriend to get back at Derrick's ex but when their kiss to make him jealous goes viral and creates sparks neither one expected they find it hard to keep things "fake" for long.

I loved how over the top Archer went with things and pushed Derrick out of his comfort zone, they were perfect together...yin and yang...opposites attract...either way you want to put it, it worked for these two.

If you enjoy MM Romances, Siblings Best Friend Romances, Military Romances, Opposites Attract or Fake Relationship Romances I would recommend this book to you.

Happy Reading!!!

Is there anything worse than being trapped on a submarine with your cheating ex? Naval Chief Derrick Fox is looking forward to setting foot on dry land, but he wishes that there were someone to greet him when he pulls into port—if only to make his ex jealous. Enter his best friend’s brother Arthur Euler. Arthur agrees to pretend to be Derrick’s boyfriend welcoming him home. But when a video of their kiss on the gangplank goes viral, they’re forced to continue the charade.

Fans of the brother's best friend/best friend's sibling trope will find a lot to love here! I also really enjoyed the exploration of how hard it can be in military relationships to be separated from the person you love, and Arthur's realization that he's willing to do anything if it means getting to be with Derrick.

Annabeth Albert’s opposites-attract romance starts the Shore Leave series with a splash, and I'm excited to see where she takes it!

While I don't love the military aspect of this, I think the romance was well done and I really liked the supporting cast.

I love Arthur and Derrick in Sailor Proof. Arthur and Calder’s family is the best. Sabrina is the best friend everyone needs to pull off a scam and promote it. Albert gives us everything in this fake-boyfriend military romance.

The humor is on point. The issues of military families are real and dealt with sensitively. The sex is hot. The romance makes me wish I had given sailors a chance. Albert has given us another romance that you will want to re-read every year.

I received a free copy of this book and I am writing a review without prejudice and voluntarily.

* 2 stars *

When I first read about this new series by Annabeth Albert I got excited, because I was hoping for a repeat of the awesomeness that her Out of Uniform series was.

Well, sadly, the sparks didn't fly this time for me.

"Sailor Proof" is more about the civilian side of life than the military one and it mainly takes place over a family week vacation at a camp site. Nature, games, family, all the expected elements such a week would entail. With the added detail of a fake relationship in the midst of it all.

The story was light hearted and easy to read. Derrick and Arthur hadn't seen each other for years but they found their supposed roles in the fake relationship easily. In fact, they found them so easily that the fake part stopped being accurate pretty quickly.

I liked how minimal the drama was, even though there was a bit of struggle as Arthur was reluctant to date a military man after being around similar relationships his whole life.

Arthur was the odd one out with his family and he didn't like how everything was a competition, but Derrick clued in quickly on how uncomfortable Arthur was with all that and tried to support him and help him have a good time.

I didn't like the fast pace of the relationship and the many details that surrounded the family activities, as it took time out of building said relationship between Arthur and Derrick to something more solid.


~ An ARC of this book was kindly provided to me, through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review. ~

I absolutely love Annabeth Albert. Sailor Proof is the first in a new series from her – all the books will be companion novels. It was a great, quick read, and I was excited to dive into the lives of Naval Chief Derrick Fox and his best friend’s little brother, Arthur Euler. The two create a quick “fake romance” to make Derrick’s ex jealous, but it quickly gets out of hand when Arthur’s parents see the big homecoming kiss and are excited about the new romance. The two decide to fake the relationship for the Euler family camp trip, and of course, sparks fly and what started as something fake turns very, very real. I loved Derrick and Arthur together. They are both really positive influences on each other, and it was super sweet to see them falling for each other. I loved how different they seemed on the outside, but how perfect they actually were for each other.

Annabeth Albert doesn’t disappoint in the debut of her newest series, Shore Leave. One of the things I love about this authors writing is her meticulous research and her world building ability that leaves the reader feeling like they are experiencing everything first hand. I refuse to give anything away about this story; I will however say it’s a fun “falling in love with your best friends brother” trope. Grab this book today you won’t be disappointed!!

5 Stars ⭐️

I love military romances, love m/m romance, and love Annabeth Albert’s writing. Luckily this had all three. It was a light romance, a fun family and a sweet love story.

Derrick and Arthur were adorable together. It all started with a kiss to show up Derrick’s ex, and Derrick’s best friend calling in a favor with his little brother as Derrick returned from deployment was the easiest way to accomplish this. Their attraction was instant and hot and gooey and all good things. But as much as I loved their first kiss, as much as l enjoyed the craziness of Arthur’s family, as much as I adore Annabeth Albert’s books, I wanted more depth to these characters than I got.

Derrick was stoic and sweet, but when it came to the romance department, he was sort of naïve. First of all, the ex-boyfriend he was trying to get his revenge on was a jerk. You had to wonder why someone like Derrick would be with someone like this in the first place. And once he realized this person’s true colors, why he continued to care. Derrick was solid and stable. But to be honest, he was kind of boring.

Arthur, on the other hand, was a free spirit, but the way he was with his family was almost sad. It was wonderful to see Arthur’s family realize his worth in the end and that, even though he didn’t fit into the competitive mold that everyone else did, he brought a lot to the table, showing that everyone had something special to offer. But why did they need someone outside of the family to point that out to them?

I did enjoy Sailor Proof and am excited to get a new series from this author. But I hope that the next one has a bit more excitement than this did. The majority of it took place at the equivalent of family summer camp, which puts a bit of a damper on sexy times.