Member Reviews

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for this ARC.

This book is everything I wanted in a romance novel. I laughed out loud, I squealed with delight, I swooned, and I got mad. "Attached at the Hip" is a Survivor-themed romcom that you need in your life RIGHT NOW!

It's been a long time since I related so much to a character in a book, and Orie Lennox has now topped my list. I don't know how Christine Riccio did it, but she created a character that:

1. loves book quotes as much as any bookstagirlie I've encountered,
2. is unnaturally scared of spiders (as someone who once signed up for a 24/7 pest control plan, I get it), and
3. is a Survivor superfan

Plus, the love story is so dang cute. We get Survivor-like games with a Love is Blind twist and go on a wild ride as Orie figures out who the heck she wants to be.

The pace was perfect. There was never a dull moment and I felt like I was reading the script of an actual Survivor show mixed in with a love story. I loved every second and even enjoyed some of the twists Riccio threw in there.

Do I recommend this book? Yes, yes, yes! I couldn't put this one down and I loved how we had some strong female characters. Plus, we got some romantic drama but no third act breakup scene. It was perfection and I am crossing my fingers that somehow we get enough book featuring Orie.

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Survivor....but make it a dating show? Orie Lennox is a lifelong Survivor fan. She has graduated and doesn't know what to do with her life. So she applies for the show...not knowing it is a romantic version of the show. Haha! Will she make a new best friend or find a life partner?
Tune in to find out!

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the review copy of this book.

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An irresistible romantic adventure that combines the thrill of Survivor with the drama of the bachelor. Who knew? This was a cleverly crafted plot with romance and humor.
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

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Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Overall I’m giving this book three stars. It wasn’t great, it wasn’t terrible. I was hoping for more, I really liked the idea of this book and I thought the plot was well executed but not the characters. They felt very immature and they weren’t very likable which made it extremely hard to read.

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If you enjoy reality TV you will really like this one. It's just like the premise says: Survivor meets The Bachelor. It was heavier on the Survivor vibes which I liked because I'm more into adventure and travel. There is some romance, but it's not overly romantic. I wouldn't recommend going into it expecting a happy ever after Prince Charming story. If you like the show Survivor then you will like this one!

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | Wednesday Books for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

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4.5 rounded up to a 5.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this. I read it in .. less than 24 hours. It's been a while since I have genuinely laughed out loud reading a book but the beginning of this had me giggling. The premise of Attached at the Hip was refreshing & different than anything I've read in the past. It's the Bachelor meets Survivor mashup that you didn't know you needed. I really loved Orie & really, deeply understood a lot of her anxieties & feelings about her life. I would 1000% read a follow up novel about her and her love interest.

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I'm a reader and a reality TV lover, so when I saw that this book advertised as Survivor meets The Bachelor, I figured I'd be the perfect reviewer of the Arc. The stunning cover art furthered my interest in reading Christine Riccio's latest work. After finishing the book, I'm sad to say that it wasn't quite what I'd hoped for.

The story begins with Orie feeling stuck in her current life. Her long term relationship is falling flat, her business relationship with her sister is strained, and her family life is in shambles. Good thing for Survivor fanatic Orie that the opportunity to be on Survivor lands in her lap. What she doesn't know until she actually gets to the show is that this particular season has a romantic twist, and her high school crush Remy is also a contestant.

Orie is quirky, and I actually really liked that about her. But her cast of supporting characters fell flat, and one their situations was downright disturbing to me. The two men Orie's love triangle were okay, but I felt their were aspects of their chemistry with Orie that lacked with each of them. My main issue with the cast, though, is that one of the primary contestants is an 18 year old that is still technically in high school. I know that 18 is technically an adult, but putting her on a dating show (and in a romantic relationship) with cast members who had already graduated college just felt icky to me. Maybe it's because my forty-something educator self isn't quite the right demographic for what I would consider this New Adult book, but I couldn't get past it or the lack of chemistry between most of the contestants. That being said, this was a quick read, and I did enjoy many of the aspects of the reality TV angle of the story. I just wish I had been able to connect with the characters and their relationships far more than I did.

*A special thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an ARC of Attached at the Hip in exchange for an honest review*

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The writing felt college-age, not really teen, which makes sense as the MC just graduated. Likely more appropriate for upper-level grades. I’d guess three stars for the target, 4 for the right readers. I stopped after chapter 1.

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the ARC.

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Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read an early copy of this book!

I've watched Christine off-and-on on Booktube for quite some years, and I was excited to finally read one of her works. I was actually quite impressed with how much personality and humor comes through in her writing. I think this is a perfect fun summer read to pick on the beach, especially if you're a fan of Survivor or reality TV, and love to root for your favorite couple.

I will say, I'm more of a historical romance fan, so this very contemporary setting and style of writing wasn't really for me. It was a fun one-time read, but I don't think I would pick it up again. However, if you're a fan of contemporary romance, I think this would be much more up your alley. There's also a center on family dynamics with Orie and her sister that I probably enjoyed the most. A quick warning - this book contains pop culture references. So if that's not your style, maybe pick up something else.

Overall, not for a historical fantasy lover like myself, but if you enjoy quirky romcoms and reality tv, give this a try!

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Attached at the Hip is a fun, adventure based, forced proximity romance. When Orie's sister calls her co-dependent, she spontaneously applies to be on Survivor. Things don't quite go as planned, but while embracing the challenge, Orie sets out to discover her passions in both love and career. Christine Riccio incorporates pop culture and creates likable characters. Definitely worth the read.

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I was worried when I read the premise that it might be a bit cheesy but I couldn’t have loved it more! It’s quick, fun, suspenseful and entertaining.

I related to Orie so much. She’s a kooky bookworm with anxiety who completely forgets how to talk when she’s nervous. She’s cute and lovable and just trying to figure out who she really is and what she wants out of life.

There of course are two hunky men and in the beginning it’s hard to know who to root for. They both bring something to the table and the competition for a million dollars really makes it hard to know who to trust, friendships included.

If you are a fan of reality dating shows or just reality shows in general, you’re not going to want to miss this one. There’s strategy, challenges, relationship dynamics, isolation and snippets of cast interviews throughout. This was a fun read.

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I want to begin by saying I am not really a YA/new adult genre girlie, nor do I really watch reality tv. That being said, this wasn’t the book for me. Maybe I’m too old (valid), but I just didn’t really connect with the characters, I felt like the book could have been 200 pages shorter, and it was just not my cup of tea.

However, if you’re a fan of the genre and love reality tv (especially shows like Survivor), then this may be the book for you! There’s a lot of action where the characters are involved in challenge and the politics/drama that go down on reality tv.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for a copy of this arc.

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3⭐️

Attached at the Hip is a twist on the tv show, Survivor, with a bit of romance added to it. The concept of this book immediately had me intrigued. I really enjoyed getting to read all of the challenges that each of the contestants had to go through in order to continue to the next round. Also, the eliminations had me on the edge of my seat. I couldn’t stop reading because I needed to know who would win the million dollar prize. I also really loved seeing Orie’s personal character growth, and I’m so happy she got the happiness she deserved. The beginning of the book starts off pretty slow, but by the 30-40% mark, I was hooked. It was so worth it to keep reading.

P.S. I’ve never actually fully watched Survivor before (idk how I never have 😅), but this made me want to watch it asap.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an arc of this book.

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Saw that this one was about a reality tv show and was IN. Have you seen The Bachelor?? Exactly! Anyway, I went in looking for a quick fun read, and Christine delivered. All of Christine's books have been hits for me. 4 stars.

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3.5 ⭐️ (rounded down) | 0/5 🌶️ - Attached at the Hip - Thank you to @StMartinsPress and @netgalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

What to expect:
💕 Reality TV show meet-cutes
🩵 Adventurous Challenges and Witty Banter
💕 Found family/alliances
🩵 20-somethings finding herself
💕 Love triangle
🩵 Twists, turns and betrayals!

Christine Riccio created a unique twist on the classic Survivor television series to have a romantic element, for book lovers! As a person who is a fan of both rom-coms and reality TV, I was very excited about this book. It was an easy read, with enough detail that you don't need to be a Survivor fan to enjoy the plot.

Orie Lennox is a 23 y/o AcroYoga influencer who is unsure of her place in this world. She has never been alone, and doesn't like to be - why would she want to when her AcroYoga partner is her sister and she's been in a childhood friends to lover trope relationship since grade 8! Until everything comes to a boiling point, and Orie needs to reclaim her independence - she applies for Survivor, but ends up on a romantic spin off of the show instead.... where she won't be so alone after all. For 72 hour cycles, she will be attached by an 8 foot rope to potential love connections and fight to survive in this cutthroat game!

While I definitely enjoyed this book, I had some issues with some characterization and plot points. First, Orie is 23 but reads as 16. I can understand why as her story comes out more but for the set up of the book, it was difficult to connect. She was "weird" for the sake of it, and wanted to be called Piccadilly to stand out, when she already has a unique name and style. Orie also felt like a self insert character of the Author, as I couldn't help but notice the similarities between their interests and quirks. This book is marketed as a Romantic Comedy, but IMO, the romance felt like a subplot to this book. Which would've been fine if it was marketed more as coming of age! The actual challenges and Survivor aspect of the book is what kept me page turning and going on. I liked the twist and betrayals we see near the end. Overall, it was a fun book and this would be perfect for a mindless summertime beach read!

Out on May 21st

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Attached at the Hip is contemporary romance by Christine Riccio where Survivor meets the Bachelor. After feeling out of place in her life, Orie decides to audition for Survivor. To her surprise she's cast in a new edition of the show with a dating component! Now she'll be stuck in an island in the South Pacific with multiple love interests while competing for a million dollars. An old flame returns and a new love interest emerges but Orie will have to outsmart the best if she wants to win the money.

I really enjoyed this book! I'm a sucker for reality shows. Something about them is so addicting. I think the author really nailed the head on the coffin with this book and it felt like a real reality show was taking place as I read. If this was a real show I'd been obsessed.

Orie was a bit...kooky? at times. But I still found myself laughing at her or rooting her on. And for the sake of spoilers I won't say who but I was definitely feeling one of her relationships in this book. I think the author also portrayed a shocking moment very well and I wasn't expecting the plot to take that direction!

I'd be so down for a sequel to this book! I definitely recommend Attached at the Hip to lovers of reality tv shows and contemporary romance.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for an eARC of this novel. All thoughts and opinions contained within this review are my own.

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I truly had no idea what to expect from Attached at the Hip other than it was like a set in Survivor meets The Bachelor reality show, which, wasn't that everything I didn't know I needed to read about! Author Christine Riccio writes with such witty and intriguing language that pulled me in from the jump -- and made it impossible to put this book down. (I finished it in two days because I couldn't not read this one, you know?) It's a fun concept, complete with a love triangle trope, and like so freaking funny. The banter literally got me, so good and relatable -- and not just because I've literally had one of the awkward bad-at-flirting conversations myself nearly verbatim. But anyway, this entire book was so beyond cute and fun. And then that HEA? Dang, it did have my involuntary smiling for the characters. Sooo, how soon is too soon for a re-read?

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This book is amazing! Order it now!

The book mostly takes place in fiji in a survivor TV show like setting. The pacing of the book is excellent. It gives you enough time in between challenges to develop the characters and their relationships. It also provides enough action and suspense during the challenges without feeling like it went on too long.

I did not want to put this book down. It is truly binge worthy.

At first I thought the main character's codependent tendencies were going to bug me, but after the initial set up I no longer had that concern.

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“Attached at the Hip” is a heartfelt and entertaining novel that will resonate with anyone who has ever found solace and friendship in the world of fandom. With its storytelling, relatable characters, and powerful themes, it’s a book that leaves a lasting impression and reminds us of the importance of embracing our passions and the people who share them.

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This was a fun take on Survivor with some Bachelor mixed in. It was a light and interesting easy read and the. Haracters were fun.

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