Cleo, a dating columnist anticipating her 30th birthday with dread, travels to a remote island on a ‘self-coupling’ mission at the behest of her editor. She’s understandably shocked when an American man turns up at her one-bed cabin, adamant that he’s booked it. They’re as stubborn as each other, neither is leaving, but they can survive one night and sort it out in the morning… right?

I was inexorably drawn into this book not only by the writing and the story development, but by the dual first-person narrative and the way that really enabled me to understand Cleo and Mack. Both had entirely realistic issues that had brought them to this place; both made decisions that felt honest and sensible rather than ones that would have made for a more dramatic, overly romantic plot. (For example, I thought the ending was going to be different, and in many romance novels it would have played out exactly as I expected, but the actual ending was perfect for these characters.) The supporting cast and the island itself were also superbly done, and I was left with a definite sense of satisfaction, as well as the feeling that I’d hurtled through multiple emotions in a short space of time. Recommend for anyone who likes contemporary, realistic romantic story telling.

Thank you so much for letting me read this ARC via #netgalley
What an awesome book, at first I convinced that I wouldn't like this book due to the self coupling, however once I met Cleo and once she discovered her fate was to spend time in a cottage self coupling with the added twist of a random American in her space, it became a hard to put down book.

Cleo is almost 30 and her boss as decided to send her on an assignment to go to a remote island and self couple. Although Cleo has doubts she ends up on this adventure, alongside Mack who has travelled to the same island to regroup and discover the place he had only ever heard about in stories his grandmother told.

The Islanders become an integral part of their journey to self discovery, self love and adventure.

There are many many reasons why these two people can't be together and yet love defies all logic with many twists and turns.

Do they follow their heart or their head? Especially with Cleo just learning to be herself and to love herself, Mack having split from his wife is learning to be single and a father to his 2 sons,
Then there is that other little issue that means he lives in the US and she lives in Europe.

I really got into this book and it touched me on many many levels, Recently, on Doctors an English TV show, a character called Valerie married herself, which I was in two minds about. However, this book made me look at it differently, its not so much about marrying yourself but about loving and respecting yourself on all levels.

I laughed, felt the steam rising and my heart breaking, Definitely a 5 Star read.

I really enjoyed this by Josie Silver. I liked Cleo and Mack and the story of them forced into being with each other and then getting to know each other across the chalk line was lovely. I have to admit I kind of skipped the part where she “ married herself” as It just isn’t me and I didn’t get it but over all I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know the Island and it’s inhabitants as well as the 2 main characters, thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the chance to read this early copy.

Josie Silver has become my fave author after reading One Day in December , so I was genuinely excited to dive into One Night on the Island. The story started slowly, I do not mind slow beginnings. The true portrayal of the broken but resilient main character is something I could relate to — so you can imagine how much I have screamed, cried over the beautifully written paragraph! A sweet, emotional story based on real life experiences, just sparked so much joy and heartache for me!

Thank you to Netgalley for this arc.

Unfortunately, this book didn't do it for me. I really did try but I had to give it up after 50%. I loved the setting but the chemistry between the two characters didn't seem very believable and the amount of time it took for them to get together seemed too quick. While I loved the islanders and felt their personalities come to life, I just couldn't say the same about Cleo and Mack.

I know how well loved this book is though so I think that perhaps I just wasn't the right audience for this one. If you are a romance fan, you will probably enjoy this book.

Josie Silver strikes again.
I was so happy to receive an ARC of this one from @netgalley shortly after reading One day in December last month & loving it.

This one is just as beautiful & lovely to read, it’s raw, honest & heartwarming.
It’s set around a character named Cleo who is an online magazine columnist who writes about finding love, her boss decides to send her to an island off the coast of Ireland for a new project where she needs to “fall in love with herself” but after arriving on the island, she soon realises she’s not going to have much time to herself at all 😂

It’s got a good enemies to lovers style trope which just gets me everytime, but rather than this just being a cheesy love story like any other, Silver has managed to write a story that feels almost real, it’s got so much going on throughout the storyline it’s hard not to feel like you’re also on the island.

Although the island in the book is fictional (it may be based off an actual island but I’m not sure) she still really managed to capture the warmness & community spirit I think that is found in Ireland so very often & I could imagine each character as someone I’ve met before & it gave me a little feeling of pride for Irish people & how more common than not we are known to be a very friendly bunch.

Overall I just adore Josie Silvers writing & I really look forward to picking up more of her books in the future. This one has pulled on all my heartstrings & i can definitely see myself using this a comfort reread in future.

When journalist Cleo goes to a remote island to do a piece on “self coupling” for her 30th birthday, things don’t quite go as planned. The remote cottage has been double booked and she finds herself sharing with recently separated American, Mack. What follows is a book which explores being on your own but not being lonely and realising you don’t have to have a partner to be happy and fulfilled, there is a huge dollop of romance as well. I found the book really lovely to read and the authors way with descriptions which are so real, whether it is scenery or people, I honestly felt that I had been there and met the characters. This isn’t a literary classic but it is a wonderful book about self acceptance, love and island life.

I honestly could ramble on about this book for ages - this has such an effervescent mix of characters and situations that you're dragged into their world in a flash and become a little bit Irish along the way :)

From behind a chalk line in the cozy cottage to the pub and the knitting circle (freakin loved the knitting circle) to the top of hill to get a signal on Salvation Island - this book is a motion picture in the making.

Well crafted and delivered, I really enjoyed my time with Mack and Cleo.

This book is just as good as her previous book One Day in December, if not better.
Cleo writes a romance column for a magazine and her boss asks her to go to Salvation Island on the Irish coast to ‘marry herself’ in the hope of expanding the reader numbers. Cleo finds she has to share her lodge with an American guy called Mack who is married with two children.
The book moves along at pace and gives great description to the scene as well as all the characters that live on the Island. It tells the background story of both Cleo and Mack with funny situations as they try to work out how they are going to share their time in the lodge. Whilst reading I felt I could easily live on Salvation Island and find the peace and love that came to Cleo.
I loved every word, page and chapter of this book and would thoroughly recommend it.
Thank you so much to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC. It was an absolute pleasure.

A single unattached journalist accepts an assignment to spend a month living in solitude on a remote Atlantic Island off the Irish coast; to celibate her thirtieth birthday, going through a self-ritual to marry herself so as to have a single life for ever, this in return for articles of her experiences. When she experiences the beauty and spiritual tranquillity of the environment, discovers the nearby small village community who enfolds her into its bosom, and then has a passionate but short holiday romance, her life changes forever as she resigns her job to become an author. A quite lyrical tale ending with a hint for it being on the authors life.

What a lovely book! It took me a little while to get into it at the beginning as the original concept was quite lighthearted, a journalist marrying herself on a remote Irish island for her dating column, which seemed a bit mad! So I expected it to be quite a light story, which it did start out as, but there was so much more depth to it and the more I read the more I couldn't put it down.

Cleo arrives on the island and it turns out the remote cabin she's booked to stay in has been double-booked and the owner's (very distant) American cousin, professional photographer Mack, has also arrived expecting to stay there. So after a bit of a rocky start a truce is called and they co-exist in the same house, initially with a chalk line drawn through the middle - Cleo on one side, Mack on the other - but get closer as time goes on.

They both have issues to sort through, Cleo is 30 during her stay and feels a bit stuck in her job, wanting to write a novel but never seeming to have the time, and Mack is in denial that his marriage has failed and trying to work through staying friendly with his wife while they hopefully sort out their differences, even though she's moved on, and how to bring up their two boys who he misses a lot.

I absolutely loved all the Irish characters on the island, along with the womens knitting group that I would have been joining straight away - well I would have been the only crochet member! They were such a funny yet close-knit group that were always there for each other, just what both Cleo and Mack needed.

The ending was just perfect, giving everyone time to work through things and not rushed at all. Wonderful, feel-good book that made you laugh and cry. Loved it!

Cleo visits a remote island to marry herself, and produce an article for her editor. She meets Mack there and they share a cottage. A wonderful love story, also recording the breakdown of Mack's marriage. How will Cleo cope when he returns to the USA. An unexpected ending completes the story.

Cleo, a journalist for a popular magazine goes to Salvation island as part of her latest column. Mac, a photographer, is looking for inspiration for his next photographic show on the island his family grew up. Both have booked a month in a cottage alone, away from the stress of relationships. Unfortunately, there seems to have been a problem and it is the only holiday cottage on the island. A true feel good romance. Predictable but this didn’t take away from the enjoyment. Devoured it in a day. Perfect feelgood summer reading

“Time is an unequal thing”
“Regrets get heavier as you get older”

🌟🌟🌟🌟.5
Cleo and Mack are both amazing characters and I thoroughly enjoyed reading their story. At the beginning, I was slightly sceptical about how this trope would pan out, but the author wrote the story really well and I loved it! There was always something happening and the pace was perfect. I also loved the description of Mack’s photos - they honestly felt real!!
It was very funny and included many witty and clever lines which I very much appreciated. The mix of POVs from both Mack and Cleo was very interesting and I loved seeing their individual takes on the situations they were stuck in!
The island sounds beautiful, honestly breathtaking and incredibly peaceful and all of the islanders were awesome!! Delta is hilarious and I really liked reading the growth of Cleo’s character, becoming the women she wants to be rather than the one she feels she needs to be - accepting herself completely.
For me, there were no cons. I can’t think of a single thing I disliked!
Overall, I really enjoyed this funny, heart-warming, self-loving book. I am very much looking forward to this coming out because it’s so lovely! 🥰💛

Cleo is a journalist who writes about romance stories every single day but is unlucky in love herself, so her boss sends her to a remote island to write about “marrying herself” in order to gain some hits for her column. As Cleo is about to approach her 30th birthday, she thinks why not and embarks on a solo adventure that is sure to change everything.

When she arrives on Salvation Island - an isolated, sparsely populated area in Ireland - life seems to have other plans as the cosy cottage Otter Lodge where she’s meant to be staying has been double booked. A tall stubborn stranger called Mack claims the cabin is his for the duration of the stay but both he and Cleo are refusing to budge and as a storm approaches, the weather forces the pair to bunker down together. After all what damage can come from spending just one night on the island together?

This was ONE OF THE BEST forced confinement love stories I think I’ve ever read. Cleo and Mack’s experience on Salvation Island is engrossing and warm, with hefty helpings of self discovery along the way. Cleo’s experience in particular is empowering and inspiring, and the dynamic between her and the islanders was rich and tangible and so touchingly endearing I wanted to move there myself.

The dynamic between Mack and Cleo reminds me of the classic pairings normally found in the likes of Emily Henry or Beth O’Leary’s novels where slowly but surely their barriers begin to fall down and the pair begin to trust and open up with one another in moments of sweet and raw vulnerability.

This is charming, and delightfully light in parts but with enough emotional challenges to keep you hooked from the outset. If you loved One Day in December, this book will delight even the most cynic of romantics. Beautifully written with a heartwarming community feel, witty character and a scenic backdrop, this has all the ingredients for a perfect romance novel.


Huge thanks to Viking Books for my copy.

This just wasn't my cup of tea. I found it was rather repetitive and like it was lacking something. The romance fell flat as well as I didn't really see the chemistry between them, and I don't particularly like the 'cheating on his wife' aspect. I know they're having problems but they're still married.
I also don't really understand why Mack has his own POV chapters because I don't feel like they contributed much to the story, it made it even more repetitive than it already was.
Just not for me.

Josie Silver has done it again. I loved One Day in December and The Two Lives of Lydia Bird, and I really enjoyed One Night in the Island as well. I identified so much with Cleo - being scared about turning thirty is all too real and something I've recently experienced - and her journey of self-discovery throughout the book was a joy to read.

The romance between her and Mack sort of snuck up on me a little bit. At first I couldn't work out if these two would head in a romantic direction. Starting out as enemies and quickly becoming friends, I wondered if they would just become close friends and confidantes during their time on Salvation, but obviously they became much more than that (much to my delight).

The sense of community and found family in this novel a very strong theme - one I enjoyed so much. Mack and Cleo blend in so seamlessly to the community when they first arrive in the island. They're welcomed with open arms, and it's so heartwarming. I loved the friendships and strong bonds Cleo builds in such a short space of time.

Josie Silver uses some absolutely gorgeous language throughout this novel, and I highlighted so many bits I loved whilst reading - "he made me feel as if I'd swallowed stars" was a personal favourite, what a swoon-worthy statement! She uses description that not only creates a vivid mental picture, but also evokes a great deal of emotion. I loved it!

We definitely got our HEA in this book, but at the same time I loved the fact that Cleo isn't unrealistic about it. Mack might not be her forever, but she can cherish whatever they're sharing in the here and now, and that's just lovely.

My initial thought was, “Oh no, not another female dreading 30!”. Thankfully I trusted Josie Silver to produce an extremely readable book with wonderful characters, an amazing setting and fantastic storyline..
Columnist and would be novelist, Cleo is backed into writing her column about ‘self coupling’ by her editor. The idea is that Cleo spends the weeks before her 30th birthday accepting that she does not need a partner to be complete. Living in a one room cabin on the tiny island of Salvation off the Irish coast should allow her to become at peace with her single status and age. Unfortunately newly separated Mack has booked the same cabin.
This is one of the most tender, uplifting, funny, romantic yet down to earth books I have ever read. The characters come alive , the island shares its secrets. Read this and spoil yourself, you will not want to put it down, you will not want it ti finish.

I enjoyed this delightful book very much indeed, it is so atmospheric and filled with wonderful characters, especially the women. This is a story about reevaluating who you are and what you want from life. The ‘wedding’ should have been eye rollingly embarrassing to read, but it was written perfectly and very emotional. Oh, the Island! You can smell the sea, taste the diamond air, feel the wind blowing; the sense of place in this book is fantastic. A wonderful read, thank you.

Lovely easy romance to read. I enjoyed the characters both at the start of the book but also drawing in humour along the way. A very quick flowing read for me.
The description of The Island of Salvation was wonderful and you could visualise being there for a complete alternative kind of life.