Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Shop Wrecked is part of Olivia Dade’s Spoiler Alert saga which follows Maria and Peter on set. The two are actors working on filming a tv show when they are thrown together. I love the plus size representation in this novel! The banter and romance was spot on and was a joy to read! This was a slow burn but so worth the wait! I would highly recommend!

First, a huge thank you to Avon and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this ARC in exchange for a nonbiased review.

Olivia Dade continues her Spoiler Alert saga with Ship Wrecked, starring Maria and Peter during filming of the cult fantasy tv series Gods of the Gates. Dade continues her tradition of strong, plus sized main characters and their whirlwind romances. I found that the representation of the plus sized characters was far more positive in comparison to previous books in the series considering that Maria is self assured and confident in her appearance whereas previous plus sized main characters lacked confidence and allowed others to shame them about their appearances and/or weight.

The romantic tension and found family trope driving the story really stand out and hook you into the relationships as they are unfolding. Maria is a beckon of light and encourages Peter to build his communication skills and forge connections with others; not for her own gain but simply to better Peter's social skills and help him establish honest friendships among castmates. I enjoyed that the book spanned the entirety of the show filming as it added a lot to the romantic tension and pining. The one downside was the rushed conflict at the ending, it felt out of place and somewhat forced against the natural progression of the story. Overall, Dade delivers another fun and nerdy romantic read that readers are sure to enjoy.

A big, broody, bearded man meets a larger-than-life Swedish Viking queen - and they're costars!! Say less.

I think what I loved most about this is that *both* Peter and Maria are canonically described as fat. Not curvy, not "bigger" - fat, and each say that the other as desirable *because* of that, not in spite of it (because being fat and sexy are not mutually exclusive, thank you very much). Emphasis is typically placed on how much smaller or how petite the female MC is than the male, but that's not the case here. Maria is unapologetic about taking up space in the world, lifts weights, and places an emphasis on being strong - in short, daintiness is not glorified here and I could not love that more.

Plot: Ship Wrecked starts off HOT - Peter an Maria meet in a sauna and are immediately drawn to each other, which ends in a mind blowing one night stand. There's just one issue - Maria has no interested getting involved with a new man after a recent devastating breakup and leaves Peter without a word, which brings up old trauma for him. Cue an awkward situation when it turns out they'll be co-stars for a show that shoots on a remote island with a tiny crew and no other cast members for 5-6 years. Delightful. Luckily, over time they're able to repair their relationship and move forward as friends, but not without some serious sexual tension.
From there, the story slows down a bit as Peter and Maria continue to get to know each other, but it really didn't bother me. We see Maria begin to pull everyone together and pull Peter out of his shell. He calls her a midnight sun, pulling everyone into her orbit, and creating a small family within their crew.
Once filming is completed and Peter and Maria have to decide their next moves, that's when their relationship really begins taking off and the story picks back up considerably. The conflict was believable and I really liked seeing how they each learned more about each others' past and families, and made concessions for each other based on those in order for their relationship to thrive.

Overall, I really enjoyed the story and loved the way Peter and Maria's relationship progressed!

To say that this book gave me a lot of serotonin is an understatement. First of all, I love that both the FMC and MMC are both plus-sized - it's not something I've come across frequently in my reading of the genre but was a fact that I thoroughly appreciated. I really enjoyed seeing both characters interact and get to know each other over such a long period of time - typically my critique of anything-to-lovers is that the fall time is so rapid, but this felt like there was so much room for then to pine. I found the conflicts coming from genuine places and vulnerabilities, which I appreciated.

First, I want to thank Avon and NetGalley for the chance to read this ARC.

Second, I have loved every book I've read by Olivia Dade so far, and this book is no exception. This one solidified for me that she will always be an instant-buy for me and an instant-read. Olivia made me feel so loved and represented in all her books and she continues to do so with perfection. It was an absolute treat to dive back into the world of Gods of the Gates with their hilarious cast and crew. This book truly hit all the feels that made me laugh, cry, and really every emotion under the sun.

Ship Wrecked focuses on the story Maria and Peter. A no-last-name one-night stand turns into “oh-sh*t-we-will-be-working-together-in-close-proximity-for-a-very-long-time” when they both are casted as a couple in a part of Gods of the Gates. The fun part for Maria and Peter is that all their scenes take place on a tiny Irish island with just them, and the crew. On top of that, add on SIX years of mutual, unannounced pining and sexual tension between the two of them as they travel from season to season. It is delightful.

One of my favorite things here, and that Olivia does well, is the found family and learning how to communicate. Maria is a sunshine forced to be reckoned with and all her positive energy is focused on Peter. She saw him so clearly and was so respectful towards him. And Peter's growth and ability to listen is something I really enjoyed.
I also loved the little family Maria built with the cast and crew during filming. And I loved what Peter does for Maria over the course of the book.

Another fun thing about this book is that it covers the entire length of the show and we get to see all the characters from her other books that we have loved before. They all make a come back through Dade's iconic group chats, email exchanges and fanfic references (Courtesy of our boy Alex).

As for the one star off, I think this might just be the digital formatting but the timeline was a little wonky in places. So there were moments I needed to back track to figure out what was happening. And some of the character development took a bit to get its feet off the ground. But otherwise, I really enjoyed this book.

I’m having a hard time figuring out how to rate this book! The second half was far superior to the first, and not just because of the (expected) conceit of romance novels. It felt like the characters were almost suddenly more open, more lived in, more believable.

I adored that both MCs are plus sized in a true and respectful way, and not in a way that feels fat-shamey or fatphobic like so many other books do.

I loved the Swedish nuggets sprinkled throughout, especially the herring bit, which made me laugh every single time.

I didn’t much love the black & white climactic tension towards the end of the book- it felt really forced and although both characters are very steady, I had a hard time believing their positions.

I’m still giving it four stars. I DEVOURED this book and my complaints really didn’t take away from my enjoyment.

Thank you Netgalley & HarperCollins for the ARC!

I don’t think I can properly explain my love for this book. This was absolutely exquisite and just so damn perfect! This was my first Olivia Dade book (I am currently on my way to reading everything off hers) and I am so happy I picked this up!! I honestly didn’t really know what to expect. I’m not typically into the acting/Hollywood trope, but...

This book was just pure poetry. It has angst, tension GALORE, tons of humor, pining, heartbreak, tragic events that happened in the character’s lives, steam, representation, a sassy and sweet Swede gal (we love alliteration), and a brooding not-so-grumpy-afterall hot man... it quite literally had it all!!!!

This story absolutely stole my heart in so many unexpected ways and I just kept finding myself unbelievably happy I picked this up on a whim. I smiled, I laughed, I absolutely cried. My emotions were totally and completely in Olivia Dade’s very capable hands. Her writing talent is absolutely beautiful and I was so swept up in this story and didn’t want to put it down.

The plot was incredible. I was so enamored with these characters and the side characters. While romance was a huge part of the plot (duh), there were so many other parts to this story and it was incredible. These characters had their own individual complexities and issues they were dealing with and working through throughout the story and with each other. The family and camaraderie was beautiful, unique, and so critical to this story. What these characters were struggling with and the way they struggled was realistic. I never felt like something was out of reach or too far out there. It was just written perfectly.

Overall, this book was absolutely incredible. I totally just found a new favorite author. I highly highly HIGHLY recommend this book to... everyone. Simple as that.

*Thank you Avon and Netgalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.*

I don’t think I can properly explain my love for this book. This was absolutely exquisite and just so damn perfect! This was my first Olivia Dade book (I am currently on my way to reading everything off hers) and I am so happy I picked this up!! I honestly didn’t really know what to expect. I’m not typically into the acting/Hollywood trope, but...

This book was just pure poetry. It has angst, tension GALORE, tons of humor, pining, heartbreak, tragic events that happened in the character’s lives, steam, representation, a sassy and sweet Swede gal (we love alliteration), and a brooding not-so-grumpy-afterall hot man... it quite literally had it all!!!!

This story absolutely stole my heart in so many unexpected ways and I just kept finding myself unbelievably happy I picked this up on a whim. I smiled, I laughed, I absolutely cried. My emotions were totally and completely in Olivia Dade’s very capable hands. Her writing talent is absolutely beautiful and I was so swept up in this story and didn’t want to put it down.

The plot was incredible. I was so enamored with these characters and the side characters. While romance was a huge part of the plot (duh), there were so many other parts to this story and it was incredible. These characters had their own individual complexities and issues they were dealing with and working through throughout the story and with each other. The family and camaraderie was beautiful, unique, and so critical to this story. What these characters were struggling with and the way they struggled was realistic. I never felt like something was out of reach or too far out there. It was just written perfectly.

Overall, this book was absolutely incredible. I totally just found a new favorite author. I highly highly HIGHLY recommend this book to... everyone. Simple as that.

*Thank you Avon and Netgalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.*

I have loved every book so far by Olivia Dade and this one just cements her as one of my favorite authors. What a delight it was to dive back into the world built around the cast of the imaginary Gods of the Gates TV show!

Ship Wrecked focuses on Maria and Peter. A one-night stand turns into “oops we are going to be working together” when they are cast as a couple in the TV show. Their scenes take place on a tiny island, so you can add forced proximity to the mix. And then layer in YEARS of mutual pining between these two as they go from season to season of the show! It was delicious, and so angst-filled.

For me this was at it’s core about found family. The ones we make for ourselves and the ones we are adopted into. I loved how Maria saw Peter so clearly from the start and secretly worked to help him open up to the cast and crew.

The timeline of this book covers the whole length of the show, so you get to see the characters from previous books. Interspersed between chapters are the group chats from the cast, I loved seeing everyone!

I really liked this series, especially as someone still salty over the GOT ending; these last two books were definitely my favorite of the 3.

Maria and Peter hooked up the night before a life-changing audition for the two of them. They have to film their GOT-esque series on a remote island for 6 years and somehow manage to resist each other during that time. Once filming wraps, all bets are off!

I loved the banter between Peter and Maria, not to mention Maria's crazy Swedish family! And they definitely made up for lost time, which was fun.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the free ARC in exchange for my thoughts.

This was a fun read, but I didn't love it as much as Dade's previous. I haven't read the first one yet! This is a fun cast of characters, but something about this couple didn't work for me. That doesn't mean it won't work for you!

I’d love to interview Olivia Dale for my podcast sometime this year. I’ve interviewed Annika Sharma, Intisar Khanani, & other authors. In ship recked two co stars have a one night stand. This book has an adorable second chance romance. Even though I usually don’t like second chance romances because I believe that the past should stay in the past but… Maria and Pete are an exception to this.

This book murdered me. It sucker punched me repeatedly and I begged for more. I don’t know who I’d love to date more Peter or Maria because they are both pretty solid.


As the third book in this series, you’d think that it’d be getting old by now. Nope. Absolutely not. I have no idea how they keep getting better and better but they do.

A word of warning… several actually, have the time set aside to read this in one sitting because it’s going to kill you to stop midway through.

SPOILERS


That being said, I suspect that there wont be anymore based on the ending. It really tied things up. Like overkill tied them up. On one hand I love all the characters and their interactions. The humor is insanely bright. But at the same time, the ending went out of it’s way to push each character to explain their lives and what the did over the course of their books/current plans for the future. It was a bit drawn out but I love all the characters so much that it was nice to see that everyone is getting their happy ending..

Admittedly, I clearly hadn’t noticed this was book three before selecting this book, but it didn’t prevent me from jumping right in.

Immediately from page one, we are tossed right into a steamy scene, and I was not prepared.

The relationship between our two stubborn MCs comes about from the unwitting costars whose undeniable chemistry is undeniable to everyone…but then. Much like You Had Me at Hola.

I loved the representation. I’ve read a handful of books now with a larger female lead, but a fat male lead, well, that was new and it’s about damn time!

I requested this ARC because I had read Spoiler Alert and thought that it was okay. But I think that her writing style just isn’t for me. So, instead of writing a review that bashes this book. I’m going to go over the things I love. The first scene. I love immediately starting with a one night stand. Probably the best scene in the whole book. The spice? Pretty freaking yummy. The overall concept? Sure. Love the idea. Plus size rep? Yes, we need more!

What lacked for me was the miscommunication/lack of it, character development, timeline weirdness. Maybe her books just aren’t for me and that’s totally okay.

I was lucky enough to be given an ARC of Ship Wrecked (I still don’t know how I got approved for any arcs). I think that Maria is such an interesting character. She is so unapologetically herself which makes the dynamic with Peter so fascinating to read. They are so similar and so different that they just work but they also put in work which I love to see. The timeline of this book does overlap with the timelines of Spoiler Alert and All the Feels so you got to see the perspectives from Maria and Peter on a few events.

The characters were so fleshed out, I was truly surprised. A lot of romance novels tend to throw character development to the wayside in exchange for more smut. I felt like we genuinely got to know both of the MCs (which is apparently a common theme for this author - I have never read a book by Olivia Dade before this).

The third act breakup/drama was completely unnecessary (as it is in most, if not all, romance novels). It’s getting to be a really tired trope and I’d like to see it go away.

3.5 rounded up to 4

The sex is redhot but the romance and conflict is lukewarm. This is the 3rd book in the Spoiler Alert series and it's definitely the weakest (though I will point out it's still a great vibe and worth reading over many other random romances I've tried but I'm reviewing from a technical POV). It's starts with a bang...literally. One-night stand realizes they're gonna be forced together for the forseeable future, great start, great trope, great ideas. Throw in a little bit of misunderstanding and a grumpy asshole/swedish sunshine setup and it's everything you want with the beautiful bonus of Dade's signature normalization of fat characters. Gimme.

Where it let me down was in the time jumps. There was too much lost in transitions. I was left wanting more from interactions over those 6 years. And it also swirls around the events of the other two books, the result being that you feel like you missed chapters. It just left me wanting, though it was still entertaining. There are great family interludes and plot points, both high and low, to bring depth, drama, and humor.

What brought it down to 3 stars, though, was the ultimate conflict between the character's relationship. I didn't agree with the reasoning for Maria's character. I'm not going to spoil anything, but I just kept thinking, "Wait, what did you expect? This is the job." It's addressed, slightly, but not to my satisfaction. The plot is left heavily on Peter and I still think, even though he was working through issues (which, yay, depth and emotional journey), he got the short end of the stick here.

Overall, though, it was a nice addition to the series. just not one I'm clamoring to reread like I did the others.

* I received a free early e-copy from the publisher.

I couldn't really get into this book. Both Maria and Peter felt extremely one dimensional and had very little (if any) character growth. I felt like the focus was on all the wrong things - the show, Peter's career, inside jokes and banter that weren't very funny, insults directed at each other's cultures in way that felt xenophobic but like the author thought it was okay because they were "punching up" and making fun of "white Europeans". The time jump felt very out of place. I felt that we didn't see Peter and Maria's relationship develop at all - one moment they aren't speaking and the next they are best friends who are (not so) secretly in love with each other. And most importantly, for me, is that this book fell into the "this could have all been resolved ages ago if you had an adult conversation without waiting to be pushed into a corner".

Being my first Olivia Dade book, I went in blind and ended up shocked. The very first scene was steamy, and while it did get my hopes up(just to let them down) I was shocked.

The lovers to friends to lovers wasn't my favorite, but I understand why it was done and it definitely did lead to an enjoyable book. Having Peter navigate his feelings and turn out to be a decent person after those first few chapters would have made this book worth it by itself. Throw in Maria, who seemed to be the perfect human(honestly, not how I like my characters) but who could go toe to toe with Peter, and the story really shown. The group chat, however, made the book. It was funny, it brought together the cast and it kept the book rolling along.