I love Josie’s books but this one didn’t sing to me. I’m not sure if it’s my head space or the fact that I didn’t really like either of the protagonists. I did like that they each had real troubles but it just wasn’t for me this time around.

I did, however, love the setting.

This was such a wonderful book to read leading up to Valentine’s Day. The story takes place on a remote island in Ireland, combining the beauty of the beach with a cozy winter atmosphere and a bit of Irish culture.

A big mix-up in reservations occurs leading Cleo, a young writer from London having to share a cottage with Mack, a photographer from the United States. Since neither one of them was willing to give up their vacation, they called a truce and tried to make the best of things.

I’ll admit most stories like this are predictable and this one was—to a point. It was predictable in the best way, but also had some obstacles along the way, leading readers to question what might happen.

This is the third book I have read by Josie Silver and I will certainly be looking forward to any future book she publishes. I highly recommend this to readers looking for a fun, lighter read and a beautiful love story.

Many thanks to NetGalley & Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine for allowing me to read an advance copy. I am happy to give my honest review.

Josie Silver is one of my favorite contemporary romance authors because of her ability to write flawed characters who are looking for love like everyone else. In this story, we follow Cleo and Mack, two strangers with very different backgrounds. They find themselves sharing a cabin on a remote island because of a booking mistake, but quickly learn that they have more in common than they think. This book is perfect for anyone who loves slow-burn romances and forced proximity tropes. Throughout the book, Silver focuses on family relationships and how everyone's view on romance is shaped by their life experiences. Each character battles with their own demons and past, but learn to put themselves first to be better for the people they love.

I was first introduced to Josie Silver's writing last year when I read The Two Lives of Lydia Bird. I adored that book and had never felt so connected to a character and her emotions.

When I saw One Night on the Island I knew I wanted to read it and I am so glad I got the chance to!

Josie Silver has an incredible way of developing characters. They always feel like the kinds of people you've known for a lifetime and I definitely felt that way about Cleo, Mack, and the rest of the characters on Salvation Island.

This book is a sweet romance mixed in with two character's quests to find themselves. While I had some mixed feelings about the ending, I really enjoyed the book overall. I can't wait to read more of Josie Silver's books!

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for this ARC in exchange for a review.

I don’t know how to describe this one other than gut wrenching, emotional, cathartic, and absolutely beautiful. I cried in a couple spots throughout this book because of all the feelings given by the author for the reader to experience through the cast of characters.

I loved the setting of a tiny island off the coast of Ireland for the character to go away to “marry herself” the idea itself is pretty cheesy sounding, but something I feel like hold so much importance in the ability to love, accept, and honor yourself. We so easily make those promises to others, but often struggle to love and take care of ourselves. The reminder to take care of yourself and love yourself first was such a beautiful message.

The forced proximity/only one bed trope was done well in this book and in a way that made it feel believable. I’ve never felt it was as believable as it was in this one that there was no other option.

I loved the growth of the MC’s in this story and absolutely adored the cast of characters around them.

Initially, I didn’t like the ending to the book, but as I slept on it, it really is the perfect ending and would have ruined the message to love yourself and care for yourself above all else if it was done any differently.

Thank you NetGalley and Ballantine Books for the ARC of this book! I was so excited and blessed to have read it in advance of its release!

One Night on the Island

One: Josie Silver has an incredible way with words. This book hit me in all the feels. I was laughing, I was crying, I loved every moment of this story.
Two: Cleo and Mack are the best characters. I loved them as individuals and as a couple and I was rooting for them in all the ways.
Three: I do not regret reading this book at all. I adored it.
Three A: You should read it too.


I could say so much more but if you’ve read this one, you’ll know why I’m leaving this review at that.

One Night on the Island snuck in and slowly grabbed my heartstrings and started to pull until I was totally invested in Cleo and Mack's journey. I enjoyed the island setting and I loved the knitting group. All the characters in this book were great. There was so much depth to the emotions here and I think that is what made this story special for me.

Fans of Emily Henry and Sophie Cousens will enjoy this book. I loved One Day in December so was excited to get a copy of this.

Cleo is a journalist that, at the request of her employer, goes to a remote Irish island to have a “self-coupling” ceremony and write about her experience. Mac is escaping to find his roots and himself amidst a separation. In an unfortunate twist of fate, they have to share a small cottage for their time there. It’s a rough start, but they come to an agreement and help each other on their journey.

This is so much more than a love story. It’s heart-felt and raw in places. It’s about finding and loving yourself, the good and the bad parts. It’s about community and found family in unexpected places. I don’t think I’d like to be on an island like Salvation for as long as Cleo, but it does sound like a magical place to visit!

Thank you NetGalley and Ballantine for an advanced copy!

"Cleo, you've surprised me from the first moment I saw you."

Josie Silver's writing is IMMACULATE. If I was basing this review on that alone, I would've rated in 5 stars. I love it. It's so relatable, gut-wrenching, and romantic all at the same time.

That being said, I didn't love the entire plot of this book. I loved Cleo's story. I loved the idea of marrying herself and getting on the island to get away from the constraints put on her by society. I loved the idea of only having one living space between her and Mack. And I LOVED their sorta enemies - friends relationship. I ADORED all the side characters and really felt fully immersed while ready!

Unfortunately, Mack just didn't do it for me. He was married and I felt like he didn't know where his headspace was half the time. It wasn't fair for Cleo at all. I wanted to like him and at times I did, in the end I will say he redeemed himself. HOWEVER, it wasn't worth the entire book to find this out.

Did I enjoy it? Yes, it was a quick and easy read.
Reread? Probably not.

After loving One Day in December and really enjoying The Two Lives of Lydia Bird, I was thrilled to receive an e-ARC of One Night on the Island from the publisher, hoping that this would be another hit from Josie Silver. And I will say this book, like her others, is very well-written, delving into complicated relationships and feelings in the way I've come to expect from this author. Unfortunately, the premise of this book did not really work for me. My primary issues are with Mack (which are sort of spoilery so I'll include them below) but I also had a hard time connecting with Cleo as much as I wanted to. Perhaps I'm burned out on these sorts of stories, where an almost-30 year old struggles with their place in life ahead of a milestone birthday. I don't think Cleo's story is written badly, I just don't think it's a story I personally care to read at this juncture of my (post-30) life. I also struggled to connect with the island and its residents the way the book intended.

As to Mack, SPOILER WARNING - him being married just made it hard to get behind his story. I don't think he did anything wrong by engaging in a relationship with Cleo after his wife left him and started seeing someone else, but reading his feelings on how he felt like he was doing something wrong was just not something I personally enjoyed reading. Again, I feel like Silver wrote him very well, but this just doesn't appeal to me in a romance or romantic fiction.

I will keep reading Josie Silver in hopes of another beautiful emotional gut punch akin to the experience of reading ODID, but One Night on the Island wasn't it. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the e-ARC. All opinions are my own.

Cleo is a writer for a Love column about finding your “Flamingo” or one true love. Only problem is, she isn’t in love. The paper decides to send her to a remote Island “Salvation Island” to go on a self love journey. Due to a mishap with the cabin being double booked, Cleo finds herself sharing the cabin with an American Man Mack.

Mack a professional photographer goes to Salvation Island to take some shots for an upcoming art exhibit, and take a break from the nasty separation his marriage is facing.

With the boat only visiting the Island monthly, and only if the weather permits, Cleo and Mack quickly hatch a plan so they can work around each other to accomplish what they came to the island to do.

This was a cute story of finding love in unusual circumstances. I adored how Mack encouraged Cleo to find herself, and Cleo was a great sounding board for Mack during his struggles with his marriage. The side characters made Salvation Island so warm and cozy, a place I’d love to visit! I also really loved how Mack and Cleo were able to get to know each other by their “3 facts” game!

Thank you so much @ballentinebooks and @netgalley for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This one comes out Feb 15,2022 so be sure to watch for it!

This was a true return to form for Silver after the borderline sci-fi premise of her last book -- this gave me the reading experience of One Day in December, aka characters and a world to love, tons of emotions, and crying intermittently through the last half in the most cathartic way. Cleo and Mack are a fun couple to root for who also deeply need to get their heads on straight before moving forward. The travel porn of a remote island with very little cell reception but a snug cabin and delightful community was perfect and gave me big Jenny Colgan vibes.

Josie Silver is the queen of writing beautiful, heartfelt stories and her latest novel, One Night on the Island, is exactly that. It features a young woman named Cleo, who writes a popular dating column for a British publication. Her column follows her as she searches for her soulmate. Thus far her journey has been entertaining but unsuccessful, and now that she is about to turn 30, her boss thinks now would be a great time for Cleo to do something special for her column to mark the occasion. The boss’ idea of something special is to send Cleo to Salvation, a remote island in Ireland, on a mini sabbatical of sorts, where she can relax, re-energize, and basically fall in love with herself. The culmination of this journey would be a self-coupling ceremony where she marries herself, to signify that she’s at peace with herself and happy she’s single.

Cleo isn’t completely sold on the self-coupling idea but decides time for self-care in a remote location might not be such a bad thing. That is, until she discovers that the cabin she is supposed to be staying in has been double-booked and there’s no where else to stay on the tiny island. Great…how is she supposed to embark on a journey of self-reflection and self-love with an unwanted roommate, especially when that roommate is a handsome American photographer named Mac who gets under Cleo’s skin from the first moment they meet?

I really loved the chemistry between Cleo and Mac. There are some hilarious moments between them as they verbally sparred over who was most entitled to stay in the cabin and when they resort to drawing a chalk line through the center of the cabin to carve out space for themselves. But it’s not all humor between these two. Mac is separated from his wife, on the verge of divorce, and is missing his kids like crazy. He’s pretty heartbroken and has no idea what his future is going to look like. He has, on the surface, come to Salvation to photograph the island for an exhibit, but he’s also there to do some soul searching. In spite of their initial animosity toward one another, Cleo and Mac begin to talk and realize that their reasons for being on the island aren’t so different. I really loved once they made it to this part of their relationship and began to grow closer.

While Cleo and Mac and their growing relationship definitely stole my heart, I was also completely enamored with all of the residents of Salvation. They’re basically one big extended family and they welcomed Mac and Cleo with open arms. The sense of community and how they were all there for one another just made my heart swell.

I have to admit that I was a little nervous that the self-coupling aspect of the story would be a little hokey, but Silver pulls it off flawlessly and it ended up being one of the most moving and magical moments of the whole book for me. The rugged terrain of Ireland didn’t hurt either, adding so much atmosphere and beauty to the moment.

If you enjoy heartwarming books that feature both a romance as well as an intimate personal journey for its characters, I highly recommend One Night on the Island.

I’m convinced that Silver is fueled by the tears of her readers. Why else would she make me sob through every one of her novels? Before this one I had recently read The Two Lives of Lydia Bird and yep, I sobbed my way through that one too.

Cleo has been shipped off to a remote island off the coast of Ireland to write a story about finding, and marrying, yourself. It’s part of a dating column she regularly writes for an online publication back in London. But when Cleo arrives at Otter Lodge, an even more remote spot on the already remote island of Salvation, she finds that there is someone else staying there.

Photographer, Mac, has come from Boston to stay on the island that was his ancestor’s home. He’s separated from his wife, and generally having a shit time of things. He’s also trying to do a bit of soul searching and be by himself for a while.

It quickly becomes apparent that not only aren’t there any other accommodations on the island, but the boat isn’t able to come back for a while due to the stormy weather. Cleo and Mac have no choice but to share Otter Lodge, which they do with open hostility.

Over the weeks they become friendly with each other, but also with the other islanders, and start to learn more about themselves and open up to the possibilities of the future. It’s a healing and restorative trip for both of them, which was truly moving and beautiful to read.

The first half was a slow build-up, but really set the scene wonderfully. The second half was just a roller-coaster of emotions, and as I mentioned I shed more than a tear or two at various points.

I just love Silver’s writing, and she’ll be an auto-read author for me from now on.

Thanks NetGalley and Ballantine books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book had a slow start and then got very deep all of a sudden. That was odd to me. I struggled with this one a lot—it took me almost a month to read, which shows my lack of wanting to return to it. I’m disappointed because I LOVED this author’s other two books and was really looking forward to this one. I could not
connect with Cleo or the mission she was on to “marry herself” during her island getaway. I know it was supposed to be empowering to woman—it just wasn’t well crafted IMO. The divorce stuff from Mac’s side was very reflective and I honestly was more into that storyline than any of Cleo’s stuff. The side characters were there but sort of random and not at all well developed. I loved the *idea* of this small island town and their closeness, but couldn’t buy into what the author was doing with these characters. Without them being well developed all of the events involving them seemed over the top. To me this was so different than Josie Silver’s other two books—I loved those both so much and recommend them many times over this one!

I hate to do this to an ARC because I truly appreciate receiving them. I didn't love this one at all. Cleo was whiny and very childlike despite being almost 30. Mack is a married man. The romance wasn't exciting at all. I really struggled with this couple..

The grammar and structure were good but the book just had too much. I would try this author again.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House- Ballantine for the ARC!

(3.5⭐️) Charming, atmospheric, warm. This is a cozy read about learning to love yourself so that you can accept the love of someone else.

As Cleo approaches her 30th birthday, she finds herself flailing and buried underneath expectations. Mack’s life has gone a bit wayward and in a direction he never expected or wanted. Both come to Salvation looking for solitude. But that’s not what either gets upon realization that they are mistakenly double booked in the only available cabin on the isolated island.

The story started off a bit slowly, especially because of my intense initial frustration with Cleo. But as the chalk lines were drawn and the residents of Salvation became more familiar, I found myself engaged and invested.

I enjoyed how Cleo and Mack slowly let down their defenses and became friends. I especially enjoyed how the chemistry built until it combusted into exactly what I longed for. But most of all, I loved that the focus was always on self-discovery rather than getting lost in another person.

While Cleo and Mack are the main characters, its Salvation and it’s residents that are the real stars. The quirky and endearing residents made me long to grab my knitting needles and gossip or share a pot roast dinner and pint at the pub. And the island itself had an ethereal nature that made me long to journey there, even in the worst of storms.

Many thanks to Josie Silver, Ballantine Books, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an advanced copy of this book.

When dating columnist Cleo Wilder books a stay on Salvation Island for her 30th birthday getaway, she dreams of solitude and soul-searching. Mack Sullivan arrives on the remote Irish island looking for clarity about his struggling marriage and time to rediscover his ancestral roots on Salvation. Neither anticipated that a booking mix-up would have them sharing the 'honeymoon package' with a chalk line down the middle of the cottage. Neither did they expect to forge a friendship with an uninvited, annoying roommate.

I thought I knew how this romantic comedy would play out, but Josie Silver's novel is sweet and surprising in the best way. I fell in love with the characters that inhabit Salvation, and desperately want to spend time there myself. My heart broke for Mack and his boys with every phone call home, and I truly could not decide how I wanted his marriage to resolve. I thought the ending to the story was perfect, it left me positively glowing!

This is my third Josie Silver novel, and I have loved each one. She writes a wonderful romance with real characters who struggle with real issues, including relationships that don't quite live up to romance novel perfection. I look forward to reading more!

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House/Ballantine for the opportunity to read an e-ARC of this wonderful book. The opinions in this review are my own

Cleo is heading to the remote Irish island of Salvation for work, but it's personal too. She's about to turn thirty, an age her father never reached, and she's trying to reconcile where she is in life. A columnist who writes about finding love, she's yet to discover it herself. On Salvation, she plans to "self-couple"--a concept brought up by her boss, but Cleo can't help but feel there's something to finding herself. As for Mack Sullivan, he's heading to Salvation to research his ancestry and photograph the island he's heard so much about from his mother and grandmother. Escaping his estranged wife and crumbling life is a bonus, though he'll miss his two sons terribly. It's only when they arrive on the island that Mack and Cleo realize they've booked the same one room cottage--a terrible mix-up on a tiny island with no other accommodations. Forced to live together until the next ferry arrives, the two can barely stand being in the same space. But as time passes on the lovely island, their attitudes change.

This is a very slow moving, slow burn romance that focuses on being thoughtful and deliberate in its descriptions. There's less action and a lot of focus on the island and tons and tons of focus on Cleo and Mack's emotions and thoughts. So many thoughts, so much angst!

As for my thoughts... seriously, even on a small island, no one had a spare room? Not even a little one? Enjoying this book means buying into the premise that two complete strangers were truly willing to share a ONE ROOM cottage--sleeping across from another in a bed and a sofa. Thanks but no thanks. Also odd was Cleo's self-coupling (aka marrying herself) concept, which both she and her boss seemed quite into and even Mack accepted. Hmm...

Far more delightful was Salvation Island and its inhabitants. I could have read an entire book just focused on the enjoyable folks Cleo and Mack ran across, particularly the women Cleo joined at knitting circle and the lively group who gathered at the local pub. And while there were plenty of descriptions of this island, some were quite fun (otters!).

The book is told in a back and forth point of view from Cleo and Mack. They grow on you. It's not their fault they were trapped in the same lodge. This one was a little too slow and emotional for me in the beginning, but I still got a bit tearful at the ending.

3.5 rounded up.
One Night on the Island is a quick read covering not only love but life, personal growth and acceptance of oneself. I did enjoy meeting Cleo and watch her grow from her personal struggles to a much better sense of self. Mack has a lot of growing to do as well and while the overall story was highly predictable, I thought it was a good, solid read. Thank you to NetGalley and Random House/Ballantine Books for my early release copy in exchange for my honest opinion. One nIght on the Island will be available on 2/15/22.