One Night on the Island by Josie Silver

What a wonderful book!

Cleo is from London, Mack is from Boston they both book a cottage on Salvation Island for work and some self-reflection. Unbeknown to them they have been booked in to stay at the same time, they have never met before and there is no where else to stay at Salvation Island because no other residence has room to rent so now, they have to share the cottage.

And the people who live in Salvation Island are so wonderful and welcoming they become closer than family “no one’s a stranger for long on salvation Island”.


I can not stress enough how much I loved this book. I loved Cheo, I loved Mack, I loved the wonderful ladies who live on the island. I loved all the other characters too


I have read every book Josie Silver has written and I have loved everyone of them. They are all wonderful stories that hook you from the first page, they touch your heart and inevitably you have to grab tissues as they make you cry. I cannot wait for Josie’s next book.


I would like to thank Net Galley and Penguin Random House for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

I was sent this book by Net Galley for which thank you very much.

The title is misleading and the prinicpal characters in the book are very complex people too. The book is set on an isolated island in the Atlantic off the coast of Ireland. The scenery is very descriptive and I enjoyed those descriptions. The island people are very friendly without being obtrusive and have taken to Cleo with the local knitting club adopting her! Cleo finds the people warming and friendly and she learns the meaning of true friendship.
Cleo has been sent to this island by the editor of a magazine in London to "marry herself" - she is staying at Otter Lodge she thinks on her own, but due to a mismanagement of bookings, an American cousin of the owner arrives at the same time. He is "trying to find himself" after years of marriage and two kids, his wife has left him for her boss in Boston. Mack and Cleo are at each other initially but over a long period of time, they begin to fall in love - they call it a holiday romance and they will not see each other again after one of them leaves. This book was too long, it could have been shortened by 100 pags and the story would have flowed better.

I'll give it a 4 because it was too long and because the principal characters do contact each other after Mack returns to Boston. You get the feeling it is a Happy Ever After story, which on balance in the short term, it may be, but I am not sure it will lend itself to a long term relationship.



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I saw someone else review this book and call it a ‘happy ending…for now’. I think this sums it up really well – there is a happy ending here, but acknowledgement that things in the modern world are tricky –

Oh this book is SO romantic. Two strangers sharing a cabin on a remote island, with bad weather, beaches, and lovable locals. Absolutely a book about accepting oneself too, but as a reader you are pulling for them all the way. It’ll have you packing up your sweaters and scouring the atlas for an isle of your own.

Cleo works as a successful dating columnist , she’s single, unluckylove and about to turn 30. Her editor thinks it would be fantastic idea to send her to a remote island to self couple and marry herself. I wasn’t sure about the whole marrying herself part, but I loved the concept behind learning to accept yourself, be confident and to love who you are.

Mack is successful American photographer with a young family who has gone through a separation. He has come to the island to get away and deal with his emotional turmoil.

Both have come to the Island with their own demons and agendas. Circumstances throw them together and they are stuck on the Island. Of course nothing goes to plan.

I loved how the book helped Cleo find herself and love who she was, Mack seemed rugged and brash initially but as i got to find out more about him the writing allowed to see the real him. The islanders were wonderful, a tight knit community, welcoming and nosey.

This was a lovely book, I couldn’t identify with the self coupling part, but enjoyed the whole idea behind the story.. The descriptions of Macks photos from Salvation Island made me just want to see and be there, tucked up in front of the fire at Otter Lodge.

This book is a nice easy to read romance, both characters were interesting and well thought out which really helped bring the story to life.

One Night on the Island is a complicated book – certainly not in the way it’s written, but in the necessary complications of being stuck on a remote island and having to bunk with a stranger.

Cleo is an aspiring author, who has come to Salvation Island to work, but could this time out be what she needs to make a decision about her future? Mack is on a more personal mission, but his need for time out is similar to Cleo’s – he’s separated from his wife so has removed himself to give her the time she needs to see what she wants.

Both these people are thrown together due to a mistaken double booking, but can they get along for the time it takes for the once-weekly boat to come back?

I very much enjoyed this book – Josie Silver is a great writer and I’ve enjoyed both her previous books – as it has a firm sense of place with the isolated but idyllic Salvation Island. Cleo and Mack are complex characters, each in their own way running from something, who end up running to each other.

Although there are some admittedly moral grey areas here (but we’re all adults, aren’t we?) it ends up being quite a sweet love story between two lost souls.

The supporting cast are proper characters, with the local knitting club adopting Cleo while she’s on they island, and the warmth she finds in the community makes Cleo question the true value of friendship. Outside of the romance, this strong, female kinship is lovely to see here.

I saw someone else review this book and call it a ‘happy ending…for now’. I think this sums it up really well – there is a happy ending here, but acknowledgement that things in the modern world are tricky – fan fiction writers could have a field day with this book!

Single magazine columnist, Cleo is sent to salvation island by her boss, who wants her to go through a self-coupling ceremony for an article.

On arrival, Cleo finds the cabin is already occupied by American, Mack who won’t leave destroying the solitude she’d been hoping for. What follows is a fun gate-to-love romance with plenty of grit, baggage and issues to overcome along the way.

The book didn’t exactly have me gripped throughout but it was a sweet story with some fantastic characters. Perfect for curling up with on a winters day.

If you're looking for Salvation - you might just find it in this book!

The story of Cleo, a magazine columnist panicking about imminently turning 30 is a truly lovely heartwarming read. This book is not girl meets boy and romance ensues. This book is woman has her plans derailed and ends up finding herself on a beautiful remote island within a community of warm, funny and well written characters whilst also being distracted by the handsome stranger she gets stuck staying with.

It's not a perfect romance and it's a little messy in places but I so enjoyed reading this book. I only wish I could go and stay in Otter Lodge too!

With thanks to Netgalley for the ARC

Loved this, a beautiful story that has an original twist on the romcom format. Silver’s second book lost me a little, but this is a return to form and lovers of One Day in December will be very satisfied.

This was perfect for a holiday read - Cleo is a writes for an online dating magazine about being single, she is approaching her big 30 and her boss suggests a trip to a remote island in Ireland where she can marry herself (!) and search for answers about her love life!(The marrying yourself slightly put me off but I went with it !) The Island is tiny and there appears to be a mix up with the accommodation - Mack has also booked the lodge and they both end up sharing the lodge and a lot more besides ! Its a fun read

When I first heard of Cleo's plan of 'self-coupling', I thought the same as Mack: "It sounded like a crazy idea when she first told me." But the more he gets to know her, the more he understands what she intends with this ceremony on her 30th birthday.
To be at ease with yourself, not needing to be part of a couple in order to feel 'whole' and most of all - loving yourself with all your heart (and all your imperfections). Actually, it sounds great!

The whole book was great, for that matter. Although I'm absolutely no fan of anything ethereal or spiritual, but thankfully Josie Silver goes very light on this. She rather focuses more on her two protagonists, who are both very likable characters. Maybe not so much on the very first pages, especially Mack is very grumpy about the fact that he has to share "his" lodge with a total stranger. (Well, yes, I would have been grumpy, too. And probably never agreed to the co-habitation compromise they come up with. But still, it wasn't Cleos fault that there was a double-booking.)

I really enjoyed the fact that this is no romance with an 'insta-love' and a constant inner monologue about how hot the other one is, even if her/his pure presence is getting on his/her nerves. It was refreshing to get to know Cleo and Mack each on their own, and then when they 'meet' in their neutral zone on the kitchen table.

Since this book belongs to a certain genre, you can easily guess the outcome. But honestly - I would have been just as happy with a different one, or maybe with a more open ending. That's how much I enjoyed just getting to know Cleo and Mack and their little Irish island called "Salvation".

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Review will be shared on other portals upon publishing date

I love books that can transport you to feel like you are in the book setting, which happens to be the case for this book, an idyllic island off Ireland. The community feeling of the island was built really well, any one of those characters could have their own book. I loved the duel perspective, so you aren’t trying to work out what the other character is thinking. I really enjoyed the ending, it was really satisfying. Plus loved and appreciated the Amelia Shepherd Greys anatomy reference. I would really recommend this book.

Journalist Cleo takes a trip to Salvation Island, off the coast of Ireland after she finds herself pressured by her boss to write a column about ‘marrying herself’… it’s all about not needing a relationship and being happy with yourself first apparently. The premise is a bit silly but end up on Salvation Island she does.

She meets an annoying American man on the ferry over and guess what? He turns up at her holiday cabin claiming he’s booked it too and refuses to leave.

Josie Silver does address the fact that no woman in her right mind would allow a complete stranger to stay in the one bed cabin with her overnight without fearing for her safety but it’s very tenuous.

Don’t let this terrible scenario put you off though - it almost did me… Also don’t let Cleo’s rampant hostility towards the annoying American put you off either. Mack seems ok.

Once you get past the rather contrived scenario and the inexplicable annoyance Cleo has at Mack, who has as much right to be at the cabin as Cleo, this is a lovely story.

The people of the island are delightful, the description of the landscape and the sea is just beautiful and if I could have wished myself into the knitting group for tea and cake, I would have.

There are no real surprises with what happens between Cleo and Mack but they share their stories along the way and Mack’s in particular is engaging and a little sad, he’s a noble man whose marriage has broken down and left him thousands of miles from
his lovely sons.

Definitely read it, just suspend disbelief and accept these two people are stuck together in a cabin on a small island with literally nowhere else to stay.

Even the ‘wedding’ itself is beautiful and life-affirming, even though I found the concept squirm-inducing. But then I’m a miserable old cynic!

'Tell the wind your secrets and the ocean your dreams.'

'Salvation is an almost invisible mark on a map, but it's left an indelible imprint on me.'

Josie Silver became a name to watch for me after I read her tremendous debut novel, the heart-wrenchingly beautiful, One Day In December back in 2018. So when I knew she had a new book due to be released, I just had to read it.

London-based dating columnist Cleo Wilder is trying to find her flamingo. Looking for love in all the wrong places, and documenting her dating disasters for Britain's most successful online lifestyle magazine, Cleo needs a change. And when her boss, Ali, sends her on an assignment to a remote Irish island to 'marry herself', following in the footsteps of the one and only Emma Watson and her 'self-coupling' antics.

With Cleo's thirtieth birthday approaching (and her desire to avoid the surprise party her family has planned), Cleo is persuaded to travel to the island and live alone in a cottage overlooking the ocean, whilst documenting her adventures for her readers.

When she gets to Salvation Island, however, rather than being alone in the luxury cottage, Cleo finds a big, brash American man in Otter Cottage, complete with his big red coat and head torch.

Mack Sullivan is a photographer from Boston. Married with two young boys, Mack is descended from the island. But he's going through a difficult separation from his wife. All Mack wants is his wife and family back, but until then he'll escape back to his roots and photograph where his ancestors came from, whilst staying in his cousin's cottage. The last thing he expects is an uptight English woman in his refuge. And neither of the residents of Otter Cottage is happy with the circumstances!

Forced together, Cleo and Mack must make the best of their situation. But chalk lines and ill-tempers eventually lead to sharing secrets in the dark, and boundary lines being blurred. But what will happen when it's time to leave the island?

Josie Silver has such a beautiful way with words. They slowly weave their way around your heart, while simultaneously capturing your imagination.

I started this book a little nonplussed by the idea of Cleo marrying herself but by the time her birthday rolled around, I understood her reasons (which brought me to tears). Even if it is a bit silly, I love that Cleo chose to love herself and say 'I am enough'; certainly women are often their own biggest critics and don't treat themselves right.

And by the time we got to the first kiss, it was such a build-up to the moment that I felt my heart soar. It felt like I was almost in the moment with Cleo. It's rare I get so swept away with what's happening in a book.

One Night On The Island made me laugh, it made me cry, it made me fall in love with these characters and this place. If it was real, I'd go to stay in Otter Cottage myself!

The friendships Cleo formed on the island were so genuine, so realistic that I wanted to pick up knitting needles and join them (though I can't knit, so I don't think Dolores would let me join!) I loved these ladies; their humour, their friendship, the sisterhood they share. I actually wish Josie would take us back to the island at some point. Delta and Barney, perhaps?!

From a self-coupling eye roll, to a full heart just in love with these characters and this book, One Night On The Island left me feeling uplifted. I highly recommend it.

I'm giving One Night On The Island a solid four stars. It was so close to being a five star read, but it lost a star as I found it a little difficult to warm to Cleo at first, meanwhile, whilst I loved Cleo and Mack together, and felt Susie was horribly selfish, if Mack was given the option he was at Christmas, I could only see him making one decision, so that didn't ring true for his character. And whilst we get a HEA, one which definitely fits the characters, I'm a traditional HEA girl, so I was slightly disappointed with where we left our characters (even if it was perfect for them after their journey).

One Night On The Island is released in February 2022. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Penguin for an eARC of the book in exchange for an honest review.

This started out so millennial and I was hating the vibes, but the more I read the more I grew to love - Josie Silver writes with such honesty, that made me empathise with the characters and made the story all the more emotional. Adored Mack and Cleo and their development - this kind of development is rare in your standard romance book. Excellent cast of supporting characters. Definitely a book that immerses you, and makes you forget about your own life for bit. Highly recommend you read it with a glass of wine.

Thankyou Netgalley for the arc! 🥰

This is such a great book. Cleo works for an online magazine in London writing a column on how to find your flamingo (as they mate for life). When Cleo’s own flamingo continues to evade her her editor sends her off to a small island off the west coast of ireland so that she can self couple and write about it in her column. Cleo is unimpressed. A cottage has been booked for her so that she can spend some time alone preparing for the self coupling.
When Cleo gets there and moves in she soon finds out that she won’t be the only person in the cottage. Mack, an American photographer has also booked the cottage indefinitely.
You get immersed in the small village life in this book, on an island where everyone knows everyone. Cleo and Mack find themselves becoming friends with the islanders even if they can’t stand each other.
Would highly recommend.

This is another Josie Silver novel so don’t be surprised to find a slightly disorganised and not quite settled young heroine who eventually, and after a whole series of problems, finds Mr Right.

The trick in doing this is to make it original, so Cleo, a romance and dating columnist, is dispatched to an Irish island to contemplate self-coupling which is basically marrying yourself and coming to terms with who you are, warts and all! That is certainly different but you won’t be surprised to learn that the cottage arranged for her has been double booked and, yes, there is no other alternative accommodation on the island so regrettably she has to shack up with a hunky American photographer, Mack who is trying to cope with the breakdown of his marriage. And, of course, they don’t get along, at least to begin with…

The island and its community, the pub and the shop are all welcoming and idyllic in a jolly, loving, Irish way with no mention of church, politics, smuggling, abortion or relations with the EU. Its rustic charm woos the two protagonists and its natural beauty – plus time to unravel themselves – leads inevitably to you know what and there’s quite a bit of that and a lot of the other!

There are also lots of complications. Mack has two sons in the USA and Cleo has to plan her wedding and, more importantly, re-evaluate her life. It’s obviously sensible for them to part as friends and get back to the real world so he goes back home and Cleo tries to write a novel and, because this is Josie Silver, this is not the end…

Along the way, plenty of heart strings are plucked, the community embraces both of them, someone conveniently dies and even Cleo’s mum is at it. There’s something here for everyone.

If this is Chicklit then Josie Silver is a master of the genre. She writes characters and conversation skilfully and even if Mack is a little too obvious and contrived that is probably exactly what her public wants! It’s a great read.

🧡 REVIEW 🧡
One Night on the Island by Josie Silver

5 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

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Josie Silver is fast becoming a favourite author of mine!

I adored The Two Lives of Lydia Bird & One Day in December so couldn’t wait to read this one.

Cleo is turning 30 without a significant other.
Mack’s marriage has crumbled.
Both escape to a beautiful remote Irish island for some alone time.
An accidental double-booking sees them having to share a tiny cottage, and bad weather means neither of them can return home.

A close proximity, there’s only one bed, strangers to enemies to holiday romance to… (read for yourself to find out).

This is not your typical romance.
It’s so raw.
It explores the complex feelings at play when a marriage is ending and you begin to move on.
It’s about self discovery, and community, and friendships.
The descriptive writing it stunning and the setting is just wow.

It stole my heart ❤️

What a beautiful read .When Cleo and Mack arrive on Salvation a tiny remote Island off the coast of Ireland they are shocked to discover there has been a mix up with the booking and they both end up at Otter lodge and sparks soon start to fly as they try to establish who is going to stay. They have different reasons for wanting to escape from their lives for a while, but things don't always go according to plan. The characters are fantastic and so believable it's a lovely warmhearted, well written story that was emotional but uplifting as well I really loved it

This was just lovely. Great characters set on an amazingly well-described island with a small community, I really feel in love with the place. A lovely storyline and a beautiful ending. Highly recommended.