I struggled with deciding on the star rating for this one… I enjoyed the story overall but there were a number of aspects throughout that led to my 3 star rating.

It felt to me like it was supposed to be Amelia’s story, but there was so much about everyone else that I think made the book feel longer than it actually was. I kept wanting to go back to Amelia — while also finding her behavior immature and at times quite frustrating.

The focus on every family member’s lives just felt like a bit too much was going on.

I also found the manner in which the family engaged with each other to often be quite frustrating with their lack of regard for each other’s personal boundaries. I know that can be realistic to a lot of family dynamics BUT their behavior made me dislike a lot of them.

Overall, I was intrigued and wanted to know where the story was going and how their different storylines would play out. I just felt like I got a little caught up in the weeds throughout.

I've come to the conclusion that this author just isn't for me. (I struggled with her first book but decided to give her another chance when this was up for read now) AND THAT"S OKAY. This was a slog to to get through. I'm talking months. If I'm being honest . . . finally had to skim read because I'm done with summer books! Way too many characters and story lines. (Something I personally struggle with and don't prefer) What I liked most was the scenery and LQBTQ+ representation. Reminder, not every book is for everybody, so please still give this one a try if it sounds like something you may like.

"You're not like anyone else. Neither am I. And when you're queer, you get to create a love story that's never been written before."

In this family adventure with elements of romance, the extended Kelly-Lee family takes a four-day vacation together that turns into a six-week extended stay in paradise. Their first night on the island off the coast of Queensland, Australia sees a tsunami bearing down on them. The only guests on an island that boasts no full-time residents (only one caretaker on site), the Kellys and Lees are stuck with each other for a much longer period than planned while they wait their turn to be rescued. None are harmed by the catastrophic event; they just have to settle in and see what emotional damage they can do to one another in the meantime. Matty and Parker, the glue connecting the two family groups, are preparing to undergo fertility treatments and start a family even as both are distracted by work opportunities and crises that could affect their well-laid plans. Matty's sister Amelia is distraught that they were stranded before her boyfriend could arrive, separating her from the man on whom she's pinned all her significant romantic and familial dreams. Meanwhile, the Kelly parents are secretly separated, Jules leading the charge into her future while her husband quietly drags his feet. With so many POVs, there's a spectrum of ages, sexualities, and distinct life journeys presented. Sharp foreshadowing makes clear what each will need to grow; this unexpected disconnect from daily routines leaves plenty of time to think, explore, and re-evaluate. None of the cast is perfect, which is crucial with ensemble stories like this one. You don't want to side too strongly with any one person or dismiss any perspectives when you're more sympathetic to someone else. It's a lot to juggle with so many POVs, but the author does it well. By having a main thrust behind each journey, it's relatively simple to keep up with what each person needs and the transformation they experience. It's also a bit predictable, which isn't necessarily bad, but it did remove potential curiosity or tension for the reader as a result.

One thing that I have mixed feelings about is the politics of the book, not because I disagreed with the author. I was mostly good to go with the nature of the comments, but the pontificating reached a "preaching to the choir" level. Instead of spinning off to wax on about a variety of issues, I personally would appreciate a more hands-on, embedded look at different problems without a paragraph about the environment or mental health or queer issues under the thin disguise of a character's inner musings. I had especially conflicted feelings about the author's approach to talking about Indigenous perspectives. And it's most important to note I can't and won't arbitrate where it's not my place to do so. I can just share what I noticed. A central concept of the story is that the island was returned to Indigenous custody. The author discusses important historical, environmental, and legal issues pertaining to Indigenous peoples in Australia. One side character (a love interest) is Indigenous. Jarrah isn't a POV character, so we get his thoughts filtered through how the largely white main cast perceives him. These characters try to check their privilege, and Jarrah is a respected authority figure concerning the island. The author mentions her sources for this topic in her acknowledgments.

I had more strongly positive feelings about the queer angle of the book. Two sapphic romances are central to the story, one established couple and one new love. We have lesbian, bi, and non-binary rep in the main cast. The book is infused with queer culture and explores how complicated identities can be, the way we can hurt each other within our community by not understanding and respecting that diversity of experience. There's also a positive message about charting your own course as a queer person and finding what makes you happy beyond traditional expectations. As a parting fun aside, I was obsessed with a throwaway comment as the Kelly matriarch hyperventilates at the concept of what the neighbors will think learning that both her daughters are queer, suspecting they will think she let them watch too much She-Ra growing up. I certainly think that's how I ended up this way. I suggest the slogan "Watch She-Ra, Get Queer" as a marketing tool for the show, in fact. Thanks to Atria for my copy to read and review!

I would like to visit this island no matter what the weather!!! Enjoyable, fun quick read that kept me interested from start to finish!!!

I was so ready for a fun, romance read on a tropical island after seeing this beautiful book cover. Unfortunately, this book was not what I was expecting and the story really dragged for me. The LGBTQ+ rep was great and the island setting was really unique but the overall story just didn’t do it for me. I found some characters really unlikeable and the amount of POVs seemed like a bit much. The reactions to the natural disaster seemed unrealistic and the aftermath didn’t really add up to me with the characters having access to things like Wi-Fi and all that food. I wish I would have enjoyed this one more, but it just wasn’t a good fit. Thank you for the opportunity to read!

I found this book to be such a fantastic and refreshing read. I really loved the escape that this book was able to provide and how easy it was to just read in one-sitting and lose track of the outside world.. It was so fun and the romance was great!

Could not finish this. I couldn’t get over the jokes that were made in the book. I just didn’t find it funny and it made it hard to stay interested I’m sorry.

I was really excited for this summer read, but it just didn't hit my expectations (maybe I went in with too high of expectations?). The read just felt a bit all over the place between the different characters and story lines. The steam of the book was just a bit too much for my liking- I feel like it strayed away from her typical contemporary romance.

This is a romance that is essentially about finding one's true self. There are a lot of characters in this ensemble with a queer romance set at the center.
I didn't like any of the characters very much and while I loved being able to see their motivations through a third-person perspective, at times, I felt myself losing interest.

Overall this book was a fun read.

I was a huge fan of Clark’s IT HAD TO BE YOU last summer, so I was really excited for this one. The synopsis was giving White Lotus, with a less murder-y spin. The idea of two families who don’t particularly love each other being stranded together on an island was very enticing to me, and I thought the focus on Indigenous Australians was fascinating and something I had never seen explored in a book before. I think my biggest issue with this book was that it felt a little too long. It took me about 100 pages to actually feel invested in the story and characters. I didn’t particularly love any of them, and I found myself reallllly not caring about some of their POVs. I also think the marketing of this was pretty off. It’s not as much of a romance/rom-com as her previous book, although I think the cover certainly suggests that.

While this book was interesting enough to finish, I wasn’t necessarily entranced. I felt the book felt longer than it was supposed to. I really enjoyed the themes and the setting.

This book had a lot going on. I did enjoy it, but there were. Lot of different parts. Each character group had a story of their own. There were a lot of stories to follow but I did enjoy learning about each character and every story pulled me in.

I could not connect with this book. It dragged and was not interesting. The characters were flat and I could not connect with any of them..

Island Time
By Georgia Clark

Island Time by Georgia Clark is a fantastic family drama sapphic love story full of amazing and diverse characters that is set on an island off the coast of Australia.
The Kelly and the Lee families are forced to stay together for six weeks after a volcano eruption. The Kellys are fun loving Australians and the Lees are as buttoned-up as they come, and not happy spending another day with them.
This forced time together forces some issues to be revealed – I enjoyed this drama filled vacation spent with some characters I have grown to love, and learning about the indigenous culture. This novel surely packed a punch, and don’t let the cover fool you – the complexities of the story really blew me away.

I like Georgia Clark’s writing a lot and always enjoy multiple points of view, but this time it felt crowded and didn’t give the perspectives that were the most important enough room to breath. Still a good read and good representation, but k won’t reread.

A lighter read for a family drama and a interesting concept. I think the story could have been told in a shorter page count. I didn't love one any one character in particular which may be way I felt so-so about the book overall.

The Kelly family and the Lee family are trapped on an island together in the aftermath of a tsunami. These families have nothing in common except that their daughters are married. Each family member brings their own drama to the island, as well as their own secrets. The adventure they go on is full of tears, laughs, and overall chaos. How will they survive 6 weeks together? How will this adventure change their relationships?

I really liked the second half of the book. The first half felt very chaotic to me, which matches well with the chaos of the story, but I found it hard to follow all of the different storylines and characters. Once things started to settle down just past the midpoint, I started to love the growth of the characters and their relationships. I enjoyed the queer love storylines and the acceptance I felt throughout the book.

This book was the perfect summer read. I love any book that will transport you to a tropical location and keep you in vacation mode throughout.

Book was average. To be honest I struggled to get through it And connect with the storyline or characters.

First, special thank you to Netgalley for the e-copy in exchange for an honest review. I will be really honest and I hope I will not get in trouble. I usually DNF books I can’t connect to. For some reason, I have extended the time I intend for the book and finished it.

The Kelly’s and Lee are families connected together with both daughter married. Matty Kelly who is married to Parker Lee. These families are celebrating a once in a lifetime family vacation in one of the dream destination island in Australia. Everybody in both families plus the island care taker were the POV of this book. With that being said, there were 9 total POVs, not unless I have missed anyone.

I don’t have problems with multi-POV but somehow the flow of this premise and switching from one character to the other without so much of an intro is so hard to follow. The humor is cringey and obviously trying way too hard. The family drama- well I do not have words for it. It was dramatic! I would have love for more casual and realistic dialogues.

I did like the Australian island descriptions as it was very detailed. I like that with all of the drama this family is having that it make my family a little better in dealing with problems and personal issues. Its LGBTQ friendly and the cover of the book was pretty.

Hopefully more readers will connect to this books better than I did. It has potential, I just don’t know how to get that potential.