Love, Lists and Fancy Ships

  • Author Sarah Grunder Ruiz
  • Release Date November 23, 2021
  • Publisher Berkley
  • ISBN/ASIN 9780593335420/B08XC2GM2Z
  • Our Rating
  • Reviewed by Michele Rioli

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Our Review

LOVE, LISTS AND FANCY SHIPS is delectably dishy and deeply emotional. It stars a pretty lady, Jo Walker, who is trying to finish her bucket list before she turns thirty. She is a stewardess on a private yacht in Florida. Her best friend helps her with her bucket list and urges her to cross one item off by kissing a complete stranger while they are at the local bar. She plants a wet one on extremely handsome Alex Hayes. What possessed her to do that?

Alex is stunned when the lovely lady sitting next to him kisses him. Hmm, very interesting woman. Fate brings them closer together, when Alex is hired as the new yacht chef on the ship where Jo works. Flirting and frisky banter between them turns up the heat. Then, Jo discovers Alex has a daughter and he lives near her in the same complex. Well, well…

Then, Jo’s young nieces appear unexpectedly at her condo. Her life is disrupted in more ways than one. Her heart is torn into pieces as she and her nieces grapple with grief over the ramifications of the sudden death of her young nephew, a couple years back. Between dealing with her moody nieces, her romantic life, and her job, Jo is awash with unexpected feelings that she is not certain how to navigate. Her nieces help her complete her bucket list, at the same time testing her patience with their antics. Life holds a lot of surprises for Jo. Is one of them a romance with the sexy dad who makes her heart go pitter-patter?

LOVE, LISTS AND FANCY SHIPS is a stunning debut novel that explores grief in all its forms with a beautiful romance woven in. Jo is an adorable character and a fun aunt who handles life’s unforeseen disruptions as best she can. She meets hot, hunky Alex and they fit together like pieces of a puzzle. The author beautifully pens a slow burn romance while piecing together a perfectly paced fascinating plot. I absolutely adored the nieces and their youthful exuberance! There are plenty of subplots and interesting characters that round out the whole story. This is a fantastic novel that kept me turning pages way into the night! LOVE, LISTS AND FANCY SHIPS is about personal feelings on grieving with a fun, gratifying romance. Definitely a story to treasure!

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