Member Reviews

This book was so cute! Very good read with good spice and adventure. I love the characters, Winston is my new Book boyfriend.

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Three and a half
I've truly enjoyed this authors previous work and quite honestly George from a previous book is one of my all-time favourite characters so I'm not sure what I think about this story. In many ways Winston is like George big grumpy ( oops meant cuddly) clever hunk of manhood and perhaps that's my issue. The characters and indeed the situation to an extent feel very similar as if I'm reading the same story but perhaps written as fanfic which it obviously isn't. Plus the twist with Winston well I didn't believe it , sorry.
Dahlia, was well frankly irritating and definitely not my preferred type of heroine. She's a little vain but most of all my issues with her stem from the fact that her sister could be lying dead somewhere and all she can do is eye up Winston although admittedly he's clearly someone who deserves a second look. I really wanted to like this but due to the similarities between this situation and the one in Gone Too Deep I struggled to just sink into it at times. Plus what is it with these new style covers ? Does the author wish us to think its a comedy as in a Rom com sort of book ? I do understand there's a shift in cover art but didn't think this one particularly did justice to the story.
This voluntary take is of a copy I requested from Netgalley and my thoughts and comments are honest and I believe fair

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When Dahlia's sister goes missing, Winston, a mountain survival expert, accompanies her on her search. Can Dahlia's citygirl ways survive in the wilderness? Can Winston get out of his grumpy ways to actually have a conversation with Dahlia? 

The grumpy/sunshine trope was in full force in this book as well as the one bed trope - or one sleeping bag in this case! I enjoyed reading how the two characters fell for each other but at times felt like their relationship overtook the main issue of looking for Dahlia's sister. I loved the ending and enjoyed the narration, which was extremely well done. I didn't realize Katie Ruggle had written so many other books! This is my first by her and I now look forward to reading more.

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When Dahlia's sister goes missing, Winston, a mountain survival expert, accompanies her on her search. Can Dahlia's citygirl ways survive in the wilderness? Can Winston get out of his grumpy ways to actually have a conversation with Dahlia? 

The grumpy/sunshine trope was in full force in this book as well as the one bed trope - or one sleeping bag in this case! I enjoyed reading how the two characters fell for each other but at times felt like their relationship overtook the main issue of looking for Dahlia's sister. I loved the ending and enjoyed the narration, which was extremely well done. I didn't realize Katie Ruggle had written so many other books! This is my first by her and I now look forward to reading more.

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This book is about Dahlia Weathersby, who is looking for her sister in the Colorado Rockies after receiving an emergency text from her. The police won’t take the disappearance seriously and think her sister is alright. Dahlia decides to go looking for her out on the trail, but realizes that she doesn’t have the competence to do so herself. She recruits the grumpy hermit, Winston Dale, to be her guide in the wilderness, using just a tiny bit of blackmailing. But the wild is not easily mastered, even with an excellent guide. Includes bears, toilets behind a tree, snow blizzards, and a shared sleeping bag.

I really liked this book, both Dahlia and Winston are totally likable characters. Winston is nice (although he doesn’t think so himself) and really takes care of Dahlia in a way she has never been cared for before. But she isn’t a helpless city woman, she has packed sensible clothes and is eager to learn about surviving in the wild. That’s really a plus for this book, that she doesn’t need to be rescued, but like all people, she sometimes needs help and is able to ask for it. The only downside (and a little bit strange) is maybe that she sometimes forgets about her mission to find her sister, and is happy about the hiking. But aside from that, it’s really nice reading and made me happy!

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Fish Out of Water was the opposite of what I was expecting. I didn’t know what to expect but I enjoyed it. It’s part thriller, part mystery, part aventure, with some added romance and nature.

The grumpy sunshine trope is one of my favorites and Katie Ruggle depicts it soo well in this book.

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⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙍𝙤𝙘𝙠𝙮 𝙈𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙨 𝙜𝙚𝙩 𝙪𝙣𝘽𝙀𝘼𝙍𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙮 𝙝𝙤𝙩 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙧𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙖𝙙𝙫𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚, 𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣, 𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙙𝙖𝙧𝙠 & 𝙨𝙘𝙧𝙪𝙛𝙛𝙮 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙤𝙚𝙨, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖 𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙦𝙪𝙞𝙧𝙠𝙮 𝙝𝙪𝙢𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙣𝙚𝙭𝙩 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙛𝙚𝙘𝙩 𝙚𝙨𝙘𝙖𝙥𝙚.

📍 Read if you like:
• The Colorado Wilderness
• Grumpy/Sunshine
• Romantic Suspense
• Insta Love

I went into this book with a completely different mindset, I wasn’t expecting it to have triggers such as gun violence.

The cover completely threw me off, I was expecting this to be a lighthearted romance - and while it had its moments, the mystery side of the story was a lot heavier. I honestly should’ve read the synopsis beforehand, but the story was still a good read.

This was a mix of romance, comedy, and mystery - each genre was portrayed well in my opinion. The story starts right away with the mystery, Dahlia is trying to figure out what happened to her sister Rose after she sends her a message asking for help.

The story is set in the wilderness of Colorado and I absolutely loved that. It was so atmospheric and the wilderness was portrayed so well in this book. While the suspense was alright in this, I personally would’ve enjoyed the romance part more.

This story started off on a good note, I was enjoying it and was intrigued by the story. Again, I didn’t realize this had a mystery aspect to it before reading it. I definitely judged it on the cover alone. However, I wasn’t the biggest fan of the ending. It wasn’t bad by any means, it’s just not an ending I like.

I did, however, really enjoy the grumpy/sunshine in this and the one tent trope in this was absolutely phenomenal. I enjoyed the humor scattered throughout and I thought the audiobook was great.

This was an overall great romance read with a suspense subplot. While some of the elements weren’t my fav, I still enjoyed the story as a whole. I could definitely see myself reading more from this author.

Thank you so much NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for the review copy in exchange for my honest review!

•𝗧𝗪/𝗖𝗪: Kidnapping, Sexual Content, Abandonment, Drug Use, Gun Violence

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god, i really really wanted to like this book because the cover was so cute and the premise seemed so interesting but it just sort of fell so flat for me.

dahlia, our main character, was great. i actually really liked reading about her but the fact that this was written in a third person point of view with no real insight to the hero, winston, made it seem like the book could've done without the romance. which says A LOT since romance is the biggest pull for me to read a book (usually). i also didn't find much "suspense" given the entire plot is them looking for dahlia's lost sister.

also, while you, as a reader, do warm up to the possibility of winston and dahlia ever being able to be an item. most of their conversations are one sided with a series of grunts from him. i mean, honestly, how dahlia had any patience with him -- she deserves sainthood. i'm all for reading about a grumpy mountain man, but he has to give me SOMETHING more than just a couple moments of slipped vulnerability.

also it made me feel weird that anything physical happened between them while her sister was still missing and in (possible) danger. there were some instances during their time trapped in a tent with nothing else to do apparently but have sex that she mentions feeling guilty about her sister but then she pivots her thoughts to winston so she can focus on the task at hand - as if that was what was more important??

i wish we could've read more about winston and what happened in his head to make him a more believable romantic hero but this, again, all fell a bit flat for me.

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Thank you Netgalley, Sourcebooks Casablanca, and dreamscape media for the free e-Arc, and ALC. The opinions are my own. I love the cover however the story was so out of left field, not possible and the insta-love more then I could stand. The last few books I've read were insta-love and cemented I am not a fan....

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Fish Out of Water by Katie Ruggle is a contemporary romance with a dash of suspense currently scheduled for release on February 13 2024. When Dahlia Weathersby's sister disappears on what should have been a simple day hike, Dahlia immediately heads deep into the Colorado Rockies to find her. Knowing she'll never survive the mountains alone, she convinces the local hermit—adorably grouchy survival expert Winston Dane—to be her guide. All it takes is a good helping of Dahlia's charm, and just the teeniest bit of blackmail…before she's got all six-foot-something of him wrapped around her finger. But even with her very own mountain man in tow, things aren't going to be easy. With everything the wilderness has to throw at them, it'll take more than charm and some city girl ingenuity to make this trek anything but a disaster waiting to happen, and an adventure she'll never forget.

Fish Out of Water is a fun and engaging read. I liked Dahlia and Winston, their chemistry, and they way that communicated. There was fun and humor, but they did also do a little deeper sharing and getting to know each other. I liked that there was plenty of getting to know you time, and that neither of them were dismissive of the other's interests or concerns. I did feel a bit like most of it was less deep and layered than I was expecting from this author. The story that was here was entertaining and fun to read, and there were a couple moments of deep understanding between the two, and a dose of danger towards the end. However, I wanted something more. There was enough groundwork laid to cover so much more of the history and families of both Dahlia and Winston- but it was barely touched on. I get that it could very well be the groundwork for a series, but I still wanted more in the here and now.

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Fish Out of Water by Katie Ruggle was a cute rom-com with a little mystery thrown in to entice her suspense fans to read the book.
The first few chapters introduced Dahlia and Winston and they really were a perfect example of "opposites attract". I often laughed at Dahlia's ramblings as she was trying to get responses from Winston, who is definitely the "strong silent type". The plot moves swiftly as they try to find Dahlia's sister and there were a few twists but not until the dramatic finale.
I do agree with a few other reviewers that the plot is very similar to Gone Too Deep a previous book by Ms. Ruggle. However. the main characters were nothing like the characters in Gone Too Deep and this one had more humor throughout the book.
All in all, this was an easy and entertaining afternoon read. I would like to thank Alyssa Garcia for reaching out to me for a chance to read this eARC.

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3.5 rounded up

This was a funny and heartfelt opposites attract, forced proximity romance between a grumpy virgin wilderness guide and a savvy beauty influencer searching for her missing sister. I enjoyed this a lot on audio and would definitely pick up another book by this new to me author. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

Steam level: open door, mild details

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It seems like I've been waiting forever for a new book by Katie Ruggle and the wait was worth it. I loved this funny, quirky, small-town survivalist meets big town make-up artist story.

Dahlia is in search for her missing sister, and Winston is her reluctant guide. Dahlia can't stop talking and Winston just grunts with an occasional smile. Two opposites, that are perfect for each other. It had everything I want in a book, humor, action, romance. I couldn't put it down. It's a quick & easy read, that left me wanting for me.

I received this advance review copy from NetGalley & the publisher for my honest review.

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Fish Out of Water generated mixed feelings for me as a reader. Dahlia, a girly girl, heads to the Colorado Rockies in response to an SOS from her missing sister. Early in her search, she connects with Winston, a somewhat reclusive guy who agrees to help. I enjoyed their outdoor winter trek, following a map left by Dahlia’s sister Rose. There wasn’t a lot to the plot and the suspense factor was not particularly intense. Dahlia herself was a mix of unrelatable silliness and respectable competence. Overall, I feel lukewarm about this book. I prefer some or Katie Ruggles’ earlier titles.

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This was a fun mystery romance with humorous banter between the two main characters. There was enough action and witty dialogue to keep me interested. I really enjoyed it and would highly recommend it.

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I really enjoyed this one. It was really fun to read. This book was well written with good conflict and fun character banter. I love a good introverted mountain man hero! This was a fun rom com with some mystery thrown in. The characters were developed with good chemistry. The only issues I had were that I know Dahlia is a city girl, but I expected her to be a bit more concerned about her sister. Overall, a great read. I can’t wait to dive into her romantic suspense books. Huge thanks to Sourcebooks and Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book!

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“I feel like the more you know about me, the more you want to learn.”
“I really do. I want to know all about you.”

Dahlia and Winston. After receiving an emergency text and not hearing from her sister, Dahlia rushes to Howling Falls to find her sister. She blackmails the towns grump to help find her, and they embark a hike through the mountains while there’s a blizzard happening.

I have to rate this a 2.5-3 stars because although I was enjoying it in the beginning, it was starting to get slow throughout the entire book. I was also getting tired of reading about their hike and how they had to camp during a blizzard. It was so also frustrating that there was a whole chapter dedicated to her giving him a makeover…while they’re camping…and the fact that they hooked up? Like they should be focusing on finding Dahlia’s sister.. It was just weird. This book was unnecessarily long.

🏔️READ IF YOU LIKE🏔️:
- grumpy x sunshine
- witty banter
- opposites attract
- he’s a mountain man, she’s a city girl
- only one sleeping bag
- virgin hero
- cozy mystery author
- locking pinkies
- hiking & rescued missions
- strangers to lovers
- forced proximity: out in the wilderness
- tiny mountain town

cw: death of loved one, mention of suicide, shooting, kidnapping, drugs

Thank you @sourcebookscasa and @netgalley for the advanced copy! Fish Out of Water is available on February 13, 2024!

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I went into Fish Out of Water knowing nothing, because I prefer to do that whenever I can. Something I was not expecting about this book was the mystery component. That, plus the romance, plus the mention of a ton of foods especially at the beginning, made my brain equate it to a cozy mystery novel. I love cozy mysteries, so I was very pleased to draw this comparison.

The cozy mystery vibes did die down though as the book went on and it became more of an romance/adventure novel. Due to this, it was pretty fast paced. I liked that the story moved along quickly enough for me to not lose interest. At this point, it shifted more to a romantic suspense novel.

Something that did stay consistent was that it was a romcom throughout. There was a lot of funny dialogue and I liked the way the main characters interacted with one another. It was very fun to see the progression in the way their relationship with one another and how it evolved throughout the story.

There were a couple reveals in this book as well, which I didn’t predict. I liked how those reveals impacted the storyline as well and that they weren’t super obvious.

Lastly, the ending was very satisfying! It was a great conclusion to the story and I was happy to see how everything played out.

I liked the writing and I’ll definitely be reading more by this author in the future!

Read if you enjoy...
🔎 Mystery
🌧️☀️ Grumpy/sunshine
⛺️ Only one tent
🏕️ Adventure

I received an advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for my honest review! Thank you to Sourcebooks Casablanca and NetGalley!

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Dahlia is in a small mountain town looking for her missing sister and enlists the help of local grumpy hermit Winston. He’s apparently skilled at survival while hiking, so he helps her through the mountains. These two are full of banter and shy flirty glances, and apparently Winston is a stealth cinnamon roll. The forced proximity of the hike and huddling in the tent for warmth turns into huddling for more than just warmth. As we get closer to possibly finding Dahlia’s sister, we get to see some crazypants out-of-nowhere plot when we we’ve just been quietly hiking through the woods thus far. Super fun and sweet and we get some third-act adventure too.

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This book was absolutely adorable and made me laugh out loud in multiple places! Winston (my only gripe would be the choice of name... It just doesn't suit a rugged mountain man as he's portrayed) is the epitome of the grumpy trope complete with growls and grunts. Add in Dahlia, full of sunshine and positivity, and they're perfectly matched. Dahlia's personality is infectious and she seems like someone you'd love having in your life, down to her weird little quirks. This was my first read from Katie and I will definitely be checking out her other books. Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for the copy to review.

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