Read this if you like: LGBTQ representation, multiple POVs, tropical locations, summer reads

I feel like this may be an unpopular opinion but I thought I would love this book. There's an lesbian couple, who I did love. They were the only ones I liked. They along with their families go on vacation together. The Kellys are messy, loud, loving Australians. The Lees are sophisticated, aloof, buttoned-up Americans. They have nothing in common. A volcano erupts, literally, and the families are stranded there on the island. There was way too much unneeded drama in this book. That's saying a lot because I love some drama. There were way too many POVs, 9. Many of them did not need a POV. It could have just been the two women. This is marketed as a RomCom but I wasn't getting those vibes. The cover looks cute and sweet. I was disappointed in this book. The description isn't capturing how the story actually unfolds. I enjoyed the setting, the two women, and a couple more things. I would try other books by this author but this one wasn't it.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Atria Books for the gifted copy. ❤️

Island Time

Unfortunately this book did not work for me. While I didn’t have issues keeping all the various characters and their storylines straight, it suffered from a lack of serious editing. How a book where so much happens, can be so boring is perplexing.

I did enjoy the setting. I loved learning about aboriginal culture and way of life. The LGBTQ representation was great and I loved that it felt authentic.

However, overall… these characters were mostly unlikeable. All critiques aside, I would be willing to read whatever this author writes next.

Georgia Clark has the unique ability to write great ensemble dramas. Her books remind me of movies like Valentine’s Day and New Year’s Eve with multiple interconnected story lines revolving around.

🌊 ISLAND TIME starts out with a major event that totally hooked me! Then, I have to say, all momentum came to a halt….. the end picked back up nicely. Despite the slow pace, I had to know what what was going to happen to each member of the family!

🏝 The tropical island setting was pretty cool and also a little intimidating - lots of weather and living things (spiders, birds, crocs…😬)

💖There are a couple of romances happening that kept me satisfied. Mild steamy details and great LGBTQ+ rep! I loved how each character grew and changed during their time on the island.

This book was cute overall, but there were some things that bothered me. First, it had too many points of view telling the story, it was confusing keeping the characters straight. I enjoyed the cultural aspect, but didn’t find it was really a “romance” it was more of a family (drama?) not really that either. I also found that many themes or ideas were introduced but then just dropped and not explored. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book!

Clark is a master at telling multiple people's emotional journeys and this story of a family who get stranded on a remote Australian island is no exception. Bonus points for LGBTQ and non-binary rep but it took me about 50% of the book to get invested in the characters. I really enjoyed the second half but the first was slow. 3.5 stars

Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for the copy to review.

𝟹.𝟻 ⭐️ // 𝙸𝚜𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚃𝚒𝚖𝚎 (ARC ebook)

𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐟 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧:
After nearby volcano erupts and creates a powerful tropical storm, the three-day family vacation for the Kelly’s and the Lee’s turns into 6-weeks of being stranded on an island. During their forced proximity with only two other island employees, they discover each other’s quirks and secrets, and some romantic feelings start shaking the dynamic.

𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰:
The cover and book title first caught my attention, and I love a good “forced proximity” love story. I enjoyed the fast pace of the chapters, and I liked hearing the perspectives of the different characters. However, I was a little disappointed about the ending. It felt like it stopped abruptly. Otherwise, it was very entertaining, and it had both romance and women’s lit themes.

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐝 —
👀 Multiple POVs
💕 Romance
🖤 Diverse Characters
🏳️‍🌈 LGBTQ+ Rep
🥾 Adventurous
😂 Plenty of LOL Moments
🔒Forced Proximity
🏃‍♀️ Fast Paced

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐢𝐟 —
♟ You enjoy board games
🏝 You wouldn’t mind being stuck on an island
🎤 You fall hard for singers/musicians
🍹 You’d need a strong drink during forced family time
🎣 You enjoy picking up new hobbies, like fishing

𝐓𝐖: infidelity, divorce, near-death experience, drowning

Thank you, NetGalley and Atria/Emily Bestler Books, for providing me an ARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Georgia Clark’s ‘Island Time’ is at times entertaining and at times a little long-winded. Set on a fictional island off the coast of Australia, this novel depicts what happens when a natural disaster strands two families on said island, forcing them to confront relationship dynamics and other truths in super authentic (and oft times uncomfortable ways).

The star of this novel is definitely the setting. It feels lush and decadent, and the author does a nice job of incorporating Indigenous history and stories into the story. There is also a wonderful sapphic romance that serves as one of the (many) storylines in the book. This is a multiple POV (nine total, I think) narration, so if you like an ensemble element, you will get that in spades in this book.

For me, it took me a while to get into the flow of the book, and it I felt like the pacing could have been better given the book’s long length.

Through no fault of the author, I feel like the cover and genre categorization of this book miss the mark. This is more general fiction than women’s fiction. And it is definitely not a genre romance. I think that might have been why I had a tough time reading the book; I was expecting a different kind of story.

That all being said, I think that fans of Clark’s other work will definitely enjoying reading ‘Island Time,’ if only for the fantastic setting and some of the romantic elements of the narrative.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

Georgia Clark is back with another quirky, sexy, messy ensemble that I couldn't put down. This time it's two families (in-laws united in marriage by their daughters) stuck on a remote island after a natural disaster cut them off from society. It doesn't take long for all the very real, very complex, feelings to come bubbling to the surface. A fun read.

This book has 9 povs. At first I was a tad bored with the book. So I stopped and read a few other books. I needed to cross this off my list. So I started again and was able to finish it. Hallelujah. It's basically a family drama. Lots of secrets. Bad communication amongst the family and they are all trapped on an island for six weeks. I didn't care about any of the characters except the Dad. He seemed sweet and stuck in a mean family.

If you like family drama, this book is for you. I liked it but it wasn't my favorite.

Georgia Clark's new ensemble-comedy romance is well worth the read--though it is more a general fiction dramedy than romance. The Kelleys and the Lees are as different as two families can be. The only thing they have in common? Their daughters are married. With this premise, we move through a story of drama, comedy and family. I really enjoyed the relationships in this book, between parents and their children, siblings and siblings, in-laws and in-laws. Clark writes complicated family relationships and dynamics really well. All of that worked very well for me. But it's been marketed specifically as a romance when it definitely is not. There are romantic aspects and relationships of course but overall this is a dramatic comedy, emphasis on the dramatic. At times it honestly felt too dramatic and too heavy in comparison to the summary. It's not exactly what I was expecting, which isn't a bad thing by any means as I did enjoy the book, but it wasn't really what was advertised in my opinion. Still, Georgia Clark has an enjoyable writing style and I'll be looking into her other work as well as future projects!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Two families who couldn't BE more different end up on an island together to celebrate the marriage of their daughters. The Kellys can navigate around the sophisticated (read: uptight) Lees for a few days, and the Lees can deal with the messy and loud Kellys in the name of playing nice. However, when a volcano erupts nearby, the two families are trapped on the remote Queensland island for six weeks and are forced to confront their issues — a failed marriage, a nefarious boyfriend, and hesitation on procreation — with no way to escape.

I just love every character that comes out of the mind palace of Georgia Clark. Just like her book from last year, It Had To Be You, the novel has an ensemble narrative, bouncing perspectives around the island. I just loved the self discovery happening all around, from the two dads bonding over birds to an unexpected yet STEAMY romance (and I do mean steamy). Also like major kudos to Georgia for writing such an inclusive, representative cast. Know this book isn't *only* a romance, but boy oh boy does it celebrate queer love in such a special way. And messy families. And major life decisions. All in such a fun setting!

What did I read? I was so close to DNFing, but my brain wouldn't let me! This was a rom com? Was there romance? Sure. Was there comedy? Meh, I guess? But overall this was a family drama about a family who gets stuck on an island in Australia after a tsunami hits and how they survive the 6 weeks together and with the islanders. If you go into it with that in mind, I think you will enjoy this, but as it is being marketed as a rom-com, I would say you won't get what you are looking for.

For me this book had way too many characters and points of view. I was constantly trying to remember who everyone was in relation to each other. It also didn't help that nicknames were involved as well. I also found a lot of it to be not believable. Off the bat a tsunami hits, and everything is somewhat fine. They still have wifi and all the luxuries of their villa. It just seemed unrealistic. And they keep talking about food shortages, but yet are always cooking and baking big fabulous meals for each other. Not to mention the romance in this book was so insta-love and not in the believable way. Also all the characters were somewhat cringey. Matty and Parker and their "boo-boo" was unbearable! Amelia asking Liss to marry her after what, a 10 day relationship, after she was convinced she was going to marry James before he dropped a bombshell on her. Ummmm what? The only relationship I found cute was Mr Kelly and Mr Lee and their quest to find the mysterious bird.

I really wish I had nicer things to say about this. Maybe re-market it as a LGBT+ Family Drama and it would be much more successful.

I was excited to read this book because the cover is so fun and the idea of being stuck on a tropical island paradise with family seemed like a really interesting concept. It didn't quite land for me though. There were too many points of view and I felt like while I wanted to get to know some of the secondary characters, it seemed like we were given just enough of their perspective to create rambling side stories but not enough to really care about.

I chose to read Island Time, by Georgia Clark, based on the quirky cover and brief description, thinking it was going to be a light romantic comedy. This was not the case. I got bogged down in trying to keep up with all of the characters presented in the story and found myself checking to see how much further until I finished. For me, it was just an ok read. Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher, for an ARC ebook in exchange for my honest review.

This book surprised me. Looking at the cover, you might think it’s a lighthearted romcom set on a beautiful island. You’d be wrong. The story is about a family/extended family of 7 who go to a remote island off of Australia to meet the boyfriend of one of the daughters. That’s fine, until…..

A volcano erupts on a nearby island, causing a tsunami and trapping the 7 family members and 2 island caretakers for 6 weeks. It’s a great forced proximity premise, but 9 POVs is a lot to keep track of. Plus, 8 of them are having some sort of personal life-altering crisis.
The book has several LGBTQ+ characters. One couple is struggling with the decision to have a baby, and the other one is in the initial stages of their relationship when all they want is to be together.

The descriptions of the island are lovely, and I especially enjoyed the stories and rituals of the native aborigines. The book is fairly long, and along with the multiple POVs, it’s not a quick read. It’s very well written and I did want to see how the characters ended up.
By the way, I was amazed that they never lose power or internet after a significant natural disaster and they always have plenty of food! 4 stars.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed as in this review are completely my own.

Synopsis:
Love is in the salty sea air in this smart and steamy ensemble romantic comedy set in a tropical paradise, from the author of the “sparkly and entertaining” (Oprah Daily) It Had to Be You. This is one island you won’t want to be rescued from.

The Kellys are messy, loud, loving Australians. The Lees are sophisticated, aloof, buttoned-up Americans. They have nothing in common…except for the fact that their daughters are married. When a nearby volcano erupts during their short vacation to a remote tropical island off the coast of Queensland, the two families find themselves stranded together for six weeks.

With only two island employees making up the rest of their party, everyone is forced to question what—or who—they really want. Island Time is a sumptuous summer read that dives deep into queer romance, family secrets, ambition, parenthood, and a bird-chasing bromance. This sexy, sun-soaked paradise of white sandy beaches, crystal-clear waters, and lush rainforest will show you it’s never too late to change your destiny.

The writing style in this one was interesting and took me some getting used to. I’m having a hard describing it beyond saying that the writing was very … in depth? Descriptive and articulate.

Upon starting this book I was worried about how so many distinct personalities were going to fit together. The book is told in third person from the point of view of pretty much every character. While definitely an interesting way to give the reader glimpses into the different characters’ motivations, I found that the jumping around didn’t necessarily allow for extensive development for all of the individuals — almost like there wasn’t really room for them to do so. All of the characters l seemed to experience a lot, but it didn’t really feel as if they developed.

What was interesting about this book is that while I didn’t necessarily like any of the characters very much (except maybe Liss), I still felt a lot of sympathy for them.

Rather than a romance novel, I would classify this as a book about navigating relationships while trying to find a sense of self.

{2.5 ☆} Island Time, a novel written by Georgia Clark is a book with diverse characters, tons of drama, chaos.

I found the book to be a little too much for me given the fact that there were just so many different perspectives, characters and NICKAMES. SO MANY NICKNAMES.

So many things were happening and being talked about at once and that made it really hard to understand what was going on at that very moment.

I would’ve preferred it if the povs were limited to the mc and her love interest but unfortunately, that was not the case. And now, if you were to ask me about a character in this book it would probably take me a good minute before I provided you with a concrete answer since things were just all over the place.

I feel that the beginning of the book was extremely confusing. More and more characters kept getting introduced to the story which made it very hard to keep track of who is who. The nicknames, which I will never get over, made everything worse since they were thrown in there without any context and you had to connect the dots to figure out who that person was addressing.

Thankfully, things started to pick up after the volcano erupted (around chapter 7 or 8 I think). If it were for that I would have most likely dnf’ed the book.

On a happier note, I actually really loved the LGBTQIA+ and Indigenous aspect of this novel. It’s a combination that I’ve only seen in one book prior to this one (I would love to see something like this again).

If you’re thinking of reading this book all I have to say is: be patient and don’t give up. The chapters may feel a little long and unnecessary (pretty sure one of the chapters was about a toilet. Like the entire chapter…) but bare with it, it gets better (kind of).

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for this arc!

Overall I enjoyed this book. Fantastic setting with wonderful descriptions so it felt like you were there, aboriginal history, lots of family drama, romance and multiple journeys of self discovery. It was a little hard to keep track of all the point of views and it dragged some.

This book follows two families and island inhabitants as they are stranded while they are vacationing in Australia. There are 9 different point of views and over 70 chapters.

What I liked: This was my first Georgia Clark book and I liked her writing style. She did a fantastic job describing Australia, the landscape, animals, and indigenous clans that live there. I also liked some of the character development and the romance between a few of the characters.

What I didn't like: The book was long winded and also a bit confusing as to which POV the book was on since there are no chapter indicators as to who is talking. Some of the characters were a bit unlikeable as well.

Thank you Atria Books and NetGalley for an advanced e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

Georgia Clark writes ensemble casts with so much heart and drama. I really liked IT HAD TO BE YOU, so I was excited for ISLAND TIME. This book takes place in Australia, where a volcano erupts during two families— the Kellys’ and Lees’—vacation. The families are forced together for six weeks, and the only reason they are even together is because their daughters are married. Clark is great at weaving together multiple POVs and storylines to create a compelling novel.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my complimentary ARC. All opinions are my own.