I wasn’t sure what to expect going in to ATTACHED AT THE HIP was I was drawn to the comparisons of The Bachelor meets Survivor.

This was a cute YA romance based around a reality game show that is great as a summer read. I enjoyed the characters and their developments and am glad I grabbed this on NG ☺️

A fun, fast-paced rom-com. The applicants thought they applied for Survivor, but they actually were accepted to be on a new spinoff - ten people - three of who are romantically matched based on information collected. Pairs, challenges, strategies, back-stabbing, drama, family situations are all wrapped up in this story!

I am not an automatic rom-com reader, however, this was fun and smart. As a fan of Survivor, I feel I have a deeper insight into the characters.

Definitely for someone who wants fun, romance, competition and happy endings!

(Actual: 2.75⭐, rounded up) Ack— whelp. I really wanted to like this one, but it was just..... ugh, I just couldn't. And the fact I couldn't probably partially stems from the fact that this is marketed as being YA and it *definitely shows* 🥴 While the premise sounds interesting enough, it ultimately just came off as very.... silly and completely improbable? That being said, the reality [survival/dating] show aspect was the only thing that really ended up piquing even a modicum of my interest; I really did enjoy the games/challenges and how they were written from a narrative standpoint— it really did feel like I was watching this type of show at home (though admittedly I don't watch much reality TV in general, so.... lol). However, this book obviously tried its d*mn hardest to be ~quirky~ and funny, what with its bit-joke dialogue (that fell flat) and its the endless stream of pop culture references (that also just felt so dated and cringey and just UGHHHH).... also the FMC giving herself a "more unique" nickname (and a dumb one at that) to stand out - despite her name already being pretty f*cking unique......... I tap, I'm out 🤠🔫 I'm sorry, but despite seeing some glimmers of its potential, this book as a whole just ultimately wasn't for me. I'm sure others may enjoy it though, especially perhaps those who fall under its preferred targeted demo, so I'd still say to check this one out if you feel so inclined and find out for yourself!

Christine Riccio gets better with every book! Attached At The Hip uses a reality game show to create a fresh and addictive romance. I loved the uniqueness of each character, the competitive elements of the plot which strengthened character motives and the twisty ending. Riccio is excellent at making you connect emotionally with her characters and I felt conflicted as she took me on an emotional journey throughout the novel. I cannot wait to see what she does next and I'm already looking forward to re-reading AATH!

ARC of this book provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

I love survivor and struggled to get into reality tv, so I was really exited for this book! The concept was really exiting and like nothing I have ever seen before, which is why i stuck it out till the end. Unfortunately, the main character was very RanDoM and *Not Like Other Girls* in a way that was a little off putting. The premise was really fun and i enjoyed the novel, but the main character was just insufferable.

I love Survivor but THIS is not what I expected. The romance in the book was beyond awkward. Her characters were very immature and childish. The characters were so annoying.

I tried to read her other book, and even though I wasn't a fan of that one I thought I'd give her another try and I found out quickly that Christine Riccio is not an author for me.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ebook.

This concept is so fun! I love a romance that takes place on a reality show. The rules of the game were explained well so that you don't have to be familiar with Survivor to enjoy the story. The multiple love interests kept me guessing.

I have been a major fan of Christine Rissio’s since the early Book Review days of her YouTube channel. Attached At The Hip is her third published novel. Christine has playlists on her channel that she created while writing her novels (this one, and the previous two Again, But Better and Better Together). This is an excellent resource for inspiring other authors; and as a bonus, readers and viewers of her channel can develop a deeper attachment to Christine Riccio and her writing.
Christine Riccio seems to be one of those few author’s that I seem to have ended up on the marketing lists for, because Wednesday Books keeps gifting her books to me in my inbox (Thank You So Much For This Wednesday Books!) I am super grateful for this and I hope that they will continue to do more of this in the future.
The novel follows our main character Orie as she competes on a dating version of the competition show Survivor. There are so many twists and turns throughout the novel that I felt like I was experiencing an unpredictable T.V. Show.
There are so many different character types littered throughout this novel; it was really fun watching them try to interact with each other. Christine takes all of these tropes and makes them unique; she doesn’t shy away from toying around with strengths and weaknesses this time around. A common funny interaction that carries across the narrative is that characters are constantly trying to guess which classic Survivor tropes they themselves would be placed into by the hypothetical viewers of the show.
What I enjoyed most about this novel was just how real and empathetic Orie was as a main character. Her journey and growth throughout the novel felt genuine; there was a natural progression that breathes through Christine’s writing instead of everything feeling forced for the novel’s narrative. Orie ends the novel as a stronger more confident version of herself, but she is still the same loving person that she was at the beginning, as well. This was refreshing because so many character’s seem to do the complete opposite in most YA books that I come across lately.
I personally can’t think of anything negative about this novel, but I could potentially see some readers getting annoyed or tired of Orie’s slightly airheaded and overly positive personality. I thought that it was funny and charming. For example, her naming tendencies… PICCADILLY IYKYK. But given that this is Christine Riccio’s third novel and such humor is kind of her staple… I feel like most readers should expect such things by now.
I loved every moment of this novel and I hope that Christine Riccio will continue to write more in the future.
Thank You, NetGalley for this early review copy. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a light and fun summer read.

Attached at the Hip by Christine Riccio caught my attention because of its unique premise—a reality show with a twist reminiscent of Survivor, which I’m a fan of. At first, the main character seemed a bit immature, but I found her growth throughout the story to be well done. The time she spent on the show was particularly engaging, offering interesting dynamics and insights. The ending took me by surprise, adding an unexpected twist that made the story even more memorable.
Thank you Wednesday Books for the copy through NetGalley in exchange for a review.

Orie, a 20-something influencer, feels that her life has gone stale. She's just going through the motions of her job, relationship, and social life. So, she jumps at the chance to join the cast of a new Survivor spin-off show called Attached at the Hip, focused not just on surviving on an island and winning challenges, but also on forming relationships.

I really enjoyed Attached at the Hip and thought the Survivor/romcom mashup was so unique and refreshing. This novel sports a young early-20s cast, so I would say it leans more towards New Adult than Young Adult, but I still found it to be very fun to read. It was the perfect summer beach read and had me immediately searching for more Survivor-inspired romance novels. My one reservation about this book is that the main character, Orie, was extremely quirky and a little off-putting at first. However, she really grew on me while I was reading and I enjoyed the range of characters included in this novel. Overall, I would recommend this book to any YA/New Adult romance lovers out there and would especially recommend it as a fun summer read for any Survivor fans!

4.5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/Wednesday Books for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

What a fun and intriguing read this was. I enjoyed the the survivor type reality show plot line, as well as the romantic journey many of the characters take. I also very much enjoyed the friendships the main character had and developed throughout the story (gotta love the great squad vibes).

I actually really enjoyed this!
I loved the survivor aspect of it.
I loved how they referenced certain famous books, authors, and movies.
I also liked how they incorporated having to pooping the story. This may sound weird, but here me out. Am I the only one who wonders if their favorite characters ever poop? What if they are in a huge battle and they have to go? Only one other book I've read mentions watery bowels.
My favorite scene had to be when two characters were singing to make each other comfortable while they dropped off some timber.
I found Orie to be annoying at first, but then, as she started coming to her own, I really liked her.
I liked how the story ended, but I really would have liked to learn more about Kennedi and Ories friendship as well as what happened to Remy after the show.
Again, I find it so interesting now how books are more and more, referencing how big of a part social media plays in our lives.

As a big Survivor/Bachelor franchise fan, I had a lot higher hopes for this.

I did like the premise of the show but I really had a hard time connecting with characters. I really was not a fan of the FMC, Orie. I thought she was extremely annoying. I also wasn't a fan of all the pop culture references. I normally don't mind them but it started to get annoying and repetitive.

Such a good read that I enjoyed! I'm so glad that I got the chance to read it early and will definitely be recommending it to multiple people who enjoy these types of novels. I enjoyed the characters and especially enjoyed the writing by this author. I'm excited to see what the author comes out with next as I'll definitely be reading it! Thank you to the publisher for my early copy of this book!

Orie Lennox, prepped for her happily ever after, unexpectedly lands on a reality show. Stranded on an island, she’s literally tied to her old high school crush, Remy. As they compete in challenges and navigate budding feelings, this unique blend of “Survivor” and “The Bachelor” delivers an irresistible romantic adventure. 🌟🏝️ 123
If you’re into friends-to-lovers dynamics and TV romance, give it a read! 😊📖

This was an interesting story about a girl named Orie and applying to be on a tv show to find herself. Along the way she starts to develop feelings for one of her survivor partners but is she who she thinks he is? Can she trust any of her partners or will she get screwed over and lose the competition?

I wanted to like this book but I just couldn’t. I think my biggest thing was that I didn’t love the main character, so I never truly felt invested in this one. I did enjoy the reality show aspect (and that was why I kept pushing through the book). Unfortunately, this one just wasn’t for me at all.

I loved the reality TV show aspect. I’m a huge fan of The Bachelor so I thought I’d enjoy this concept. This book was very silly and cheesy though! Overall not a bad read, but probably not my favorite.

Survivor meets the bachelor makes for fun rom com that will keep you reading for hours

What I loved—the characters, an insanely fun read, reality tv at its best, characters that love to read, fake dating, enemies to lovers, all the quirkiness

I’ve been a fan of Christine’s since the early booktube days and it’s been such a pleasure to follow her writing career. Her books just keep getting better and better and Attached at the Hip is a perfect example of this. The concept of this book is so fun and different from a lot of the romcoms on the market at the moment and as a Survivor fan I really enjoyed that element of the story. And just like in a good season of survivor Christine did a great job of building twists and turns with the plot, and creating characters that you think you’re going to hate at the beginning of the season only for them to be your favourite. The only things that didn’t really do it for me with this book was at times Orie was just a little too wacky for me - like insisting people called her Piccadilly sort of took me out a bit, but overall I read this over two days at a cottage and it had me audibly laughing out loud regularly. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
3.5 stars