I love Beth O’Leary and I’m always really excited when she has a new book out! I like to take my time and savour them. Swept Away is a fun and emotional read. Lexi and Zeke meet in a pub and have a one-night stand on a houseboat. The next morning, they wake up to find the boat has drifted out to sea!

Stuck together with no way to call for help, they have to work as a team to survive. Obviously…. they start to fall for each other.
At times it’s perhaps a tad bit unrealistic, but overall it’s a really enjoyable and easy summer read.

Get ready to meet Lexi, who is out for the night, needing a break and looking for no-strings attached fun with a stranger. Zeke meets Lexi in the pun and whilst he wants love, is prepared to break his own rules for one night – which ends with both going home to the marina. Next morning, still hungover, Lexi wants Zeke to leave but there lies a big problem. The houseboat has been swept out to sea, supplies are low and the waves are high. How long can they survive on this houseboat drifting in the North Sea while waiting to be rescued? This was a one-read story, full of romance and fun, which will capture readers from beginning to end.

A new Beth O’Leary is always a pleasure to read and I really enjoyed Swept Away which published this week.

Lexi and Zeke have a one night stand on a houseboat (which they both believe is theirs, but don’t realise this until the next morning!) and when they wake up they discover they’ve been swept out to sea.

It’s a really entertaining book - funny and heartwarming with some really cleverly created characters. I loved how much they had going on in their lives and how we slowly learned about them as they learned about each other.

One to pick up this summer if you’re looking for a fun and easy read!

I really enjoyed this book. The banter was impeccable. The heartbreaking backstories were impossible not to sympathise with.

I loved the fact that Lexi is an older girl and zeke is younger with that boyish charm but not too young that he’s immature.

Watching them fall for each other while having to deal with the traumatic experience of being lost at sea was a huge roller coaster but I loved every second.

Laboured, didn't hit the mark for me.

I loved the O'Learys I've read previously, and the premise sounded different enough, another unusual coming together of two people. But for me this dragged on and on and I didn't find the characters very convincing, nor the story.

Two strangers meet in a pub. Lexi doesn't want anything long-lasting or serious. Zeke has promised himself to only commit to a relationship that he intends to stick with from now on... but is so entranced by Lexi that he decides to break his rule and take her back to his family houseboat for the night. But after a mix-up and a few errors, they awaken to find themselves with only sea around them, no phone coverage, and no power.

You'd think the stage would be set for some soul-searching and intimate falling in love. Well, it's kinda that. But as I headed this - it's SO laboured. Their intimate chats seem to go on forever, repeating the themes of Lexi's (never fully explained) poor self-image and refusal to commit, and Zeke's self-esteem issues due to his family history. Even their decision to not be intimate again isn't the tingling spark you think it might be.

And would it REALLY be so very long without sight of any sort of rescue? They aren't in the Pacific.

There's lots of navel gazing and intense puppy dog eyes, all a bit overdone I thought - yes we know there's a genuine attraction.

And how much food is there on this houseboat, that Zeke can keep conjuring up multiple meals?

I ended up feeling slightly exasperated with both the characters and how the story was progressing. Much more interesting to me was what the reaction was back on land and how the media saw the situation - this could have made a great, extended coda in itself.

Disappointed. I understand the setting makes this sort of story a challenge to write, though I saw Will Dean do this effectively in The Chamber. The threat to Lexi and Zeke, while obviously potentially dire, got silly in places (collapsing oil rig?!), and starvation never seemed to be an issue as there was always more food.

Could have been better edited. Sadly not as good as previous novels.

With thanks to Netgalley for providing a sample reading copy.

I fell in the love with Beth O'Leary's writing as soon as I read The Flatshare when it debuted and loved the concept and Swept Away hits with the same kind of feels. Another exactly setting and plot. I love how she takes a couple and puts them totally out of their comfort zone on this occasion a houseboat that has been swept out to sea. Throw into that an excellent twist and Swept Away is a truly great read.

3.25 stars!

I’ve somehow never read a Beth O’Leary book, despite how popular they seem to be - and I’d been really meaning to read at least her most recent one, because I like an enemies to lovers romance. So when I saw this e-arc pop up, it seemed like a great way for me to try her writing!

I have enjoyed this - whilst I’ve not felt incredibly compelled to continue it, I’ve also not felt like I don’t want to read it. I like it! It was surprisingly good for being set entirely in one place, over a short period of time. That’s a hard concept to pull off but she’s done it so well! I didn’t expect the injury, which added some gravitas to the situation. And the addition of the abandoned oil rig was compelling - and quite creepy when I was reading it in the middle of the night!

Not sure I was a fan of Zeke being Mae’s real father, though. It made for a great shock twist, but then Lexi absolutely ices him out when she knows he used to sleep around and that he’s been to therapy and is in recovery… I mean, she owed him a conversation. She didn’t have to date him if she didn’t want to, but she owed him an explanation for why. She must’ve known that he wouldn’t have known what he did, and third act breakups are tiring.

Overall, it was good.

…Do I think it’s unlikely that two years later they were living almost full time on a boat after all that trauma? Yes, I do, but I did mostly enjoy it.

This my fav Beth O'Leary book since I read The Switch: it made me smile, root for the characters, appreciated their path to happiness and how romance was realistic and sweet.
Excellent, well done
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of the eBook.

Beth O’Leary, the woman who made me fall in love with romance when I read The Flatshare years ago.

While this book doesn't beat The Switch to be my favourite of hers, I still loved it. Beth writes fantastic characters and this was no difference with Lexi and Zeke, I was attached to them both immediately.

I love how unique this story was for a romance, with the majority of the book taking place lost at sea!

Can't wait for the next Beth O’Leary!

3.5 stars! Another great book from a favorite author of mine. Beth never disappoints! I knew going in that this probably wouldn't end up being one of my favorites of hers simply because I have this strange aversion to nautical books. Anything about boats...I'm just not into it. But if anyone can get me to give it a shot, it's Beth! I ended up really enjoying Zeke and Lexi's story. The premise is so amusing, ending up stranded at sea on a houseboat with a one night stand...horribly funny. This book actually ended up being a lot more serious than I anticipated. The romantic content was sparse and and a bit too deep, too quick; maybe because of this I found it a little hard to buy into at times. The pace is slower and overall the focus seemed to be more on the predicament (surviving at sea) rather than a more complex emotional portrait of the characters as they were connecting. They each had some of their own self reflecting to do, so that took away from the romance as well. These are not necessarily negatives, just something I wasn't expecting from the usual tone of Beth's books. Swept Away definitely feels like her most mature story yet. In typical O'Leary fashion there's a bit of a twist going into the final stretch, I feel pretty indifferent about it because it wasn't what I thought, but also was not super convincing. If I think too hard about what the scenario would actually look like long term it gets messy and weird, but to be fair I thought some of the relationships between characters was a bit off to begin with (Lexi/Mae in partiuclar). On the other hand, it was sooooo refreshing to read an age gap romance like this one. I really resonated with a lot of the dialogue and feelings represented there. All in all, a good time was had with this book. Shout out to Eugene the seagull, you deserved way more page time.

Thank you to Quercus and Beth O'Leary for my beautiful advanced reading copy!

I love a Beth O’Leary book, and I was really intrigued by the premise of this. Zeke and Lexi are swept away to sea in a narrowboat following a one night stand. A romance story filled with adventure and peril, it was a fast paced read that has made me want to go on a narrowboat holiday (so long as it’s properly moored and nowhere near the sea!)

This was another excellent read from this author, she’s fast becoming an automatic “add to shelf” for me.
As well as interesting and unusual situations the characters have to contend with, in this case it’s a doozie! There’s also their inner journey to discovering more about themselves, I think it’s important to find the roots of who you are as a person, you might not be able to change your past but you can grow towards a better future.
I loved the relationship between the characters in this one, it was heartwarming, even as they had to deal with some extreme situations.

Swept Away is an incredible new direction for Beth O'Leary! While her books always have interesting dynamics, this one has an additional challenge - a survival situation with two people who have only just met! Lexi and Zeke have a one night stand on a houseboat which is then swept out to sea! Both main characters are flawed and interesting but Eugene the seagull has my heart! I found Beth's writing of the survival elements to be genuinely nail-biting - I was on the edge of my seat! Read in just a couple of days because I needed to find out what happened, I loved this and would recommend to anyone!

This review is for Swept Away by Beth O’Leary which releases in the UK on the 8th April! Thanks so much to Netgalley and Quercus for giving me an eArc copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Beth is definitely a must read author for me at this point, as I really love her take on the romance genre. There’s always a nice quirky little twist to her stories which keep them interesting and stand out from the other romance novels I read.

This one is about Zeke and Lexi who have a one night stand on a houseboat, and end up dragged out to sea while they sleep. The entire process was very well researched and written, it was a bit dramatic but actually felt super realistic at the same time.

Zeke and Lexi are very much lust at first sight, but over the days stuck on the houseboat they do make a genuine connection and you can see through the story. Their romance was quite sweet, and was genuinely excited when they began to fall in love with each other (even when one won’t admit it 😂). The twist near the ending actually surprised me, and I loved how the hints throughout the novel all linked together to make it all make sense.

Would definitely recommend this to any survival romance lovers out there, although any who are afraid of deep and endless water… maybe not 😂😂

Swept Away
Beth O’Leary

“You’ve surpassed all my expectations,” she says, her voice fainter now, as if she’s about to fall asleep. “Every single one.”

What if you were lost at sea… with your one night stand?

“No. It’s embarrassing.”
“Is it as embarrassing as tying a houseboat to itself?”
“Is anything that embarrassing?”

This was exactly what I was expecting. Easy, feel good romance with a side order of survivalist thrown in.

‘If I survive this, I’ll look back on these days as the making of me, I know i will.’

Although I had numerous thoughts of how someone could have easily changed their phone voicemail to alert people to their situation (you do not need signal for this) and no doubt I questioned how lost they could have gotten from one of the worlds biggest shipping routes… I digress… we don’t read these stories for their logic and facts.

I was undoubtedly still swept away with the tale of Zeke and Lexi.

I absolutely adored The Flat Share and Beth’s newest addition left me satisfied. It’s such a feel good read, a perfect palette cleanser.

Could you live on a houseboat?

I loved the concept of this book-the setting was something new and immersive, the survivalist aspect kept me hooked, and the slow burn romance felt semi realistic in such intense circumstances. Waking up from a one night stand stranded in the middle of the ocean? Bonkers.

Lexi and Zeke’s dynamic had depth, and I enjoyed their forced proximity and tension. But while the writing held my attention, a certain plot point toward the end felt too unrealistic, and overall, I just didn’t enjoy this as much as I’d hoped. Entertaining, but ultimately not as memorable as I wanted it to be.
I do think I will be in the minority, and I would still recommend it nonetheless, it just wasn’t my favorite from this author.

Tropes and themes:
⛵️Reverse age gap
⛵️Forced proximity
⛵️Grumpy x sunshine
⛵️He falls first
⛵️Lost at sea
⛵️One night stand to lovers

Swept Away by Beth O’Leary
I give this book 4.25 stars.

Lexi is looking for no-strings-attached fun with a stranger. Zeke is looking for love.
Sparks fly at the pub, one passionate kiss leads to another and . . . .
The next morning, lost at sea . . . with your one-night stand. How long can they really survive on a drifting houseboat in the North Sea? Will search and rescue find them? And who will they be if they both make it back to dry land?

Totally loved the unique concept of this one, a romance novel with more! The Merry Doormouse, 2 strangers stranded in extremely close proximity and a whole host of problems to endure (including an oil rig) Hours and hours with nothing more to do than survive the ordeal and talk, each of them opening up and the reader experiencing the characters growth as we read. I loved that the author includes both their outer and inner dialogue and I need to give a huge shoutout to Eugene! The writing flows well and for the storyline the pace was spot on. I’ve enjoyed all of this authors books and if you haven’t tried her yet. . . . Why not?
With thanks to Netgalley, Beth O’Leary and Quercia Books for my chance to read and review this book.

Zeke and Lexi share a one-night stand, with no intentions that they will ever see each other again. Zeke is only in town for the weekend to buy back his late father’s houseboat and Lexi has no time for dating when she needs to help take care of her best friend's daughter. However, when they find themselves miles out in the ocean, as the houseboat is not tied to the dock, they find that they need to work together if they are to survive until they are rescued. All the time spent together can either lead to love or dislike.
Despite their age difference, which I initially thought could be an issue, they are both likeable characters who seem to connect. Lexi has had to grow up fairly quickly, having to take on the responsibility of caring for Mae whilst the younger Zeke seemed a bit lost after his father’s recent death. As they faced the dangers of being at sea with the thought that they might not be rescued, it made for an interesting read. Some parts were a bit challenging to buy into, such as the fear that their food would run out, but then Zeke seemed to be always cooking.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thanks to the Publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

When Lexi and Zeke meet, they spend the night together on a houseboat. But, what they didn’t expect was that they’d get up in the morning and find themselves at sea and no else in sight.

As they have no other option but to spend the time together, they find out more about each other, Lexi tells Zeke about her sister and her daughter Mae. Zeke tells Lexi that he feels that he’ll find some answers to questions about his Dad on the boat.

Something happens on the boat which is bad. Reading it you didn’t know how it would end.

I highly recommend this book.

Beth is a fab author & I really loved this book.

Thanks for the opportunity to read & review it.