The body positivity we need 👏
honestly i was drawn to this mostly because it featured two fat mcs and it’s not some major plot point. miss olivia handled that immaculately and on top of that delivered the most angsty, pining, and satisfying lil love story 😫

Thank you to netgalley for providing me an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I didn't intend to finish this book in one day but I did. I couldn't put it down.

After a memorable one night stand Maria and Peter find themselves working together on a remote Irish island starring in Gods of the Gates.
I loved watching the relationship develop between Maria and Peter. Omg the pining Peter does in this book was epic! Maria is probably my favorite character in the whole Spoiler Alert universe and I loved the nicknames she gave Peter when he was being annoying. Plus I wish I was a part of her family because they sounded awesome.
The thing I love about Olivia Dade's writing is she pulls you into the world and you feel like you're a part of the cast and crew of Gods of the Gates.
The fact that the main characters were fat was just an added bonus in a already fabulous book.
I give this book a solid 4.5 stars out of 5

Olivia Dade delivers the goods in this third installment of her excellent Spoiler Alert series, each of which focuses on a relationship born of the epic, award-winning Guardian of the Gates television series and each featuring a fat female lead. This couple is by far my favorite of the three, though all of them have been delightful in their own way. Dade's unhurried depiction of this relationship is an ode to friendship and intimacy, as well as a gift to all readers who love a slow burn. There are plenty of sexy scenes, genuine belly laughs, and found family joy in Ship Wrecked, and I was sorry to say goodbye to Peter and Maria as I turned the last page.

Overall, this is fine. I didn't find the main couple to be all that believable - there just isn't that spark that's needed for a romance novel to really flourish. There was just something missing, though I'm not 100% sure what could be added to make them work. Their dynamic was just a bit too stilted. Beyond that, this is charming and Dade is a talented writer.

While I absolutely adored Spoiler Alert, I was lukewarm at best on the follow up, All the Feels. I was cautiously hopeful approaching this, the third book in the series, and I’m delighted to say it absolutely blew me away.

Maria and Peter redefine slow burn. After a sizzling night together, they’re shocked to discover they’ve been cast as love interests on Gods of the Gates, where they’ll be filming from a remote island for the duration of the series. For fear of letting any relationship drama interfere with the filming or the dynamic among the cast and crew, they ignore their feelings for each other. Though they’re not pursuing a romantic relationship, the friendship that evolves between them over the six years of filming is so sweet - I especially loved how Maria gently helped to draw Peter out of his shell and to feel more comfortable forming friendships with the crew. Of course, it wouldn’t be a romance novel without a bit of drama, but in this case it felt genuine - they love each other, but they also both want to defend their dreams and needs.

Olivia Dade has rightfully received much praise for her fat-positive characters and this book is perhaps my favorite so far. Maria is fat, yes, and she’s also strong, and powerful, and comfortable in her skin. Dade makes frequent reference to the strength both Maria and Peter possess, though it may not be as visibly obvious as typical Hollywood stars with six packs. As someone who constantly battles with assumptions about my health and physical ability based on my appearance, I found this book so comforting. I also love that Maria stood up for herself and her needs, even if it meant possibly losing Peter - she’s a heroine that I can definitely look up to.

I appreciated this book more than I enjoyed it. The leads are admirable, but they lack warmth and spark. Being back in the world of the Gods of the Gates production was tantalizing, but since the actors are mostly isolated, so is the storyline. Perhaps my expectations were too high after the first two entries in this series, both pretty dazzling. I'll continue to recommend those and look out for this author's next!

Just read Ship Wrecked ARC by @OliviaWrites. When a lady ghosts him after 1 amazing night, an actor is stunned to learn she'll be his new costar in a GOT style show--just the 2 of them on a remote island for years of filming. A+ body positivity, yearning, & chemistry for days!

I thoroughly enjoyed this. I hated when I turned to the last page. I love the Dade has no problem including all different body types in her books. It is so hard to do for some authors but she knocks it out the park. This was a fantastic read and I will continue to pick up her books.

I've been LOVING Olivia Dade's books, and Ship Wrecked is no exception! This book starts off STRONG with our main characters in the literal throes of a one night stand and devolves into my absolute favorite trope of all time "we had a one night stand and now we're TV stars stuck on an Island for six years"!!
Something I love about Olivia Dade's books overall is that they're fat-positive, sex-positive, and EXTREMELY inclusive. All types of people are welcome on her pages. I am obsessed with the way Olivia Dade can casually write about sex and really normalizes whatever people like in the bedroom.
Something I loved about this book in particular was getting to see Maria and Peter spend time together, learn about each other and settle into a beautiful, well-developed, deep relationship. It was lovely!!
I felt this way about Dade's other books, but this book is a bit slow in the middle, so push through because the ending is fantastic!!

I highly recommend Ship Wrecked. I loved the relationship between Peter and Maria. The book takes place over a six year period, from the time Maria and Peter first meet to the ending. I loved the TV series aspect and especially the representation of fat actors in Hollywood. I look forward to reading the other two books in the series and love the representation that Olivia Dade gives us. Not to mention, this book is spicy as hell!

Another total hit from Olivia Dade! This one just as funny, heartwarming, and body positive as the others! Maria and Peter are so beautiful and perfect for each other, I just love how they’re both mature and fat and secure in their sexuality. And give me more Viking-like men! What a gem of a read.

And once again, thanks Olivia for the absolute killer GoT critique. It’ll never get old. Please keep writing in this universe! I want to read how Carah and Summer get together!

Olivia Dade could keep writing this series forever, and I hope she does, because I would read them forever. There's not a single character or installment of this series that I've disliked so far, and I hope she keeps 'em coming. This one was probably my favorite, though I did really love the first one!

Olivia Dade has done it again!

I absolutely adored this book and it's one of my new favorites. I will pick up anything by this author!

Olivia Dade creates rom com magic AGAIN - her love stories are a sheer delight to read. This latest installment in the "Spoiler Alert" series includes elements of mental health representation, body + sexual positivity, off the charts witty banter, fan fiction fun, steamy af sex, genuine romantic connections, sassy + eclectic characters and all the feels + swoon.

Thank you Avon Romance and Netgalley for my copy.

Maria and Peter meet one night and have a one night stand where Maria then leaves in the middle of the night without a word much to Peter’s dismay. They’re reunited again at an audition for Gods of the Gates and then both are cast forcing them to work together on an island with a very small crew.

I really enjoyed that both Peter and Maria are plus sized. Peter is an introverted, rough around the edges American who needs to be brought out of his shell. Maria is Swedish and uses a lot of Swedish endearments and hauls a lot of Swedish treats to the island.

Their initial acting interactions are awkward due to the previous encounter but once they talk things out they become fast friends and Maria really brings the crew together to bond.

There were lots of bits of Alex (male MC I. All The Feels) who I LOVE and this brought me a lot of joy, he’s my favorite and I love his ridiculous banter and the joy he brings to the page (and of course, emailing everyone fan fiction). Bless him.

This has crossover with the previous novels in the Spoiler Alert series that take place at the same time, such as the convention and the fan uproar over the leaked final season scripts.

Once the show wraps Peter and Maria finally feel free to be together but much like any romance novel there’s a third act conflict and I honestly didn’t really agree with the heroine and it rubbed me the wrong way how black and white she painted the situation. There was some resolution later on I was somewhat happy with but the whole interaction and reaction really knocked off an entire star for me. It needed to be far more nuanced and perhaps could’ve used further dialogue to articulate this point of contention and resolution. It almost felt entirely selfish with no thought for the other person in the situation.

TW for fatphobia and body shaming. I do really love how Dade (as a plus size woman) writes plus size characters and doesn’t shy away from talking about their size. I also love that there are two plus size MC’s on the cover and it is CUTE! Love to see it!!

Overall, I enjoyed my time with this one.

4 stars

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Review: Ship Wrecked is set in the same world as Spoiler Alert/ All The Feels with character crossovers from both books. This is definitely my favorite of Olivia Dade‘s to date because of how she creates such emotionally mature characters.

Some of my fave parts of the book were:
💙Forced proximity
💙Mutual pining
💙Friends-to-lovers
💙Plus-size characters & body positivity
💙Mental health representation

I liked that Maria and Peter‘s love story wasn’t an insta-love. Because their story is set over the course of six years, I feel like it gave more depth to their tension and ended up creating a healthy relationship once they got together. Friends-to-lovers isn’t usually one of my favorite tropes, but the way it explored in this book was incredibly well done, especially all of the banter filled scenes between Maria and Peter. Overall, Ship Wrecked is such a fun and cozy romance.

Thanks to @NetGalley and @Avonbooks for the ARC!

This book is close to perfect! It is the third in a series, but I haven't read the first two and had no issues with the story line. The body positivity was awesome and unusual in the contemporary romances I've read. The characters are hilarious their chemistry was off the charts. I will now have to go check out the first two books and hopefully enjoy them just as much.

I loved this book. Such a great well written book. Just perfect. I loved Peter and Maria’s relationship. Two plus sized main characters!!! Yes! I love the cameos from the other Gates stars and I also love that it can 100% be read as a stand-alone. I will be purchasing a physical copy when it comes out!

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read this before it was published!

Thanks NetGalley and Avon for letting me read an ARC! I always enjoy an Olivia Dade book, and Ship Wrecked was no exception! With plot points involving fandom, body positivity, slow burn romance, found family, and childhood trauma, it felt like I was reading a story about my best friends (if my best friends were actors in a popular tv series). For the first half of the book, I did feel that the pacing was a little off; there were some time jumps that I had to go back and reread to figure out what happened. But ultimately, this was a very sweet read and a nice addition to the series.

💙 E-ARC Review 💙

Book: Ship Wrecked

Author: Olivia Dade

Release Date: Nov. 15, 2022

GOOD THINGS CHECKLIST:

✔️ forced proximity, workplace, super slow burn romance 🔥

✔️ FAT REP!!! seriously I think this is probably the most uplifting fat rep I have seen in books. our FMC lovessss her body and stands up to societal conventions & rude men that think they can tell a woman what to do with her body (NEWSFLASH: THEY CAN'T) 😈

✔️ honestly just some quirky characters that felt so real and unique - LOVE IT

✔️ MMC & his found family 🥺

✔️ producing and acting in a TV show within a book HAHAH I love when authors do this & you experience 2 plots at once

ONE THING THAT ANNOYED ME CHECKLIST (minor spoilers):

✔️ I would say this book is trying to be an enemies to lovers, but the reason behind their "hatred" really frustrated me (like.... frustration from chapter 2...) - essentially our MCs meet via random one-night hookup & our FMC slips out in the morning without saying anything, leaving her number, etc. WELL WITHIN HER RIGHTS TO DO, I MIGHT ADD 👀 but our MMC meets her again in auditions and absolutely rips her a new one for leaving, tells her she isn't good enough, and yells at her. This felt SO out of line for a man to do & regardless of the circumstances and his past trauma, & was quite frankly a disgusting behavior to me.... THUS, I didn't ever enjoy his character or their relationship; I just couldn't connect.

definitely a book that had some good things going for it!!! unfortunately, this one wasn't for me, as I couldn't move past the initial set-up of the relationship plotline!! 💙

thank you to @avonbooks and @netgalley for the advance copy!