Thank you NetGalley, author Portia Maclntosh, and Boldwood Books publishing for giving me a free arc of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
4.5 stars
When ever I put up a Portia Maclntosh book, I know I am in for a real treat and this book is not exception. I also am well aware I will need to set aside enough times to finish the entire book in one day! Her books have such an amazing range of humor, drama, romance, and emotion. Her writing style allows the reader to really get to know the characters as well as travel with them to the various settings with her use of atmospheric language that draws out the scenery and culture.
This book follows Peach, a mystery shopper, and Matt. They happen to have a wonderful meet cute at the airport waiting for her sister. They have a great dinner together at a fancy restaurant and one thing leads to another and they have a one night stand. Upon waking up the next morning, Matt is nowhere to be found, and that causes Peach to believe Matt did not feel the deeper connection that Peach felt. As she meets her sister at the airport, Peach's sister share the wonderful news that she is going to get married to a man she just meet less than a month ago. Her sister's fiancée just happens to be someone Peach knows very well in the past. Peach's sister Di asked Peach to be her maid of honor and Charles' best man just happens to be Matt. And the story takes off from there.
There was a lot going on in this book that made me feel it either should have been longer or some of the drama could have been taken out. I loved all the scenes that took place on the island. It really gave the readers a sense of escapism! Matt and Peach were a wonderful couple. They were so witty and dorky with each other. There were all sorts of secrets and twists that came out throughout this story and some were unexpected. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to those who are looking to escape to the beach for a summer of romance and fun. I can't wait to read author Portia Macintosh's next book.

Shenanigans In The Sunshine....
Shenanigans in the sunshine in this fun, escapist romcom. With a cast of colourful characters and a fast moving storyline the misunderstandings and disasters abound from start to finish. All good fun.

After reading the joy that was Faking It, I was ecstatic to get the opportunity to read Portia’s latest novel, Life’s a Beach. It was a sheer delight and a perfect example of a romantic comedy. I have found her novels to be an excellent and light-hearted escape read that is perfect when you want to read an entertaining novel with an element of fun.

Penelope “Peach” is a well-established mystery shopper who writes and reviews anything from restaurants to hotels to wedding venues. I absolutely loved this job for a character as it gives them a nice balance between their more homey average home life (they make enough to get by but are not overly rich) and the upper class lifestyle they experience through their job. Although I have done some mystery shopping experiences, they were nothing like Peach’s job where I mainly did department stores. At 31-years-old, Peach has not had the best luck in romance and has resolved that she might be single for the long run.

Her best friend and sister, Diana “Di” is currently on holiday for a destination wedding and Peach is excited for her to come home so they can spend a girls’ night during Peach’s assignment at a hotel near the airport. While waiting for Di to arrive, the plane ends up being delayed and Peach ends up having a meet-cute with Matt, who is also waiting for the same flight. The two of them end up completing Peach’s mystery shopper experience (eating at the restaurant and utilizing the hotel room) together with Matt. Peach ends up being seemingly ghosted by Matt when he is nowhere to be found the next morning. Peach thinks that will be the last she sees of Matt, but, alas fate had other plans.

The story centralizes on the wedding of Peach’s sister Di to her surprise fiancé Charles that she met while at the destination wedding. The two of them fell in love that week and are planning to get married the following week at a destination wedding of their own in Italy. Things become complicated when it is revealed that Charles and Peach knew each other in the past and Matt happens to be Charles’s best friend and best man. The soap-opera moments do not end, though, as there are even more surprise guests that relate in one way or another to Peach and Di, which makes this wedding very complex and humorous.

There are many complications in this story as all the characters weave together with many secrets and deceptions taking place. I love almost all of the characters, except for two as I think some of the things they did in the past needed a lot more explanation and time before they should have been forgiven. (I will not say which, though, as it could spoil part of the story.) Vanessa and Alex provided some levity to some scenes in their own ways and even Lex was enjoyable, although I think she would get on my nerves in reality.

Even though there is a crazy spider web of complications to keep track of in this story, I found it still to be an easy read. Some of the scenarios seem extremely coincidental, but it added to the fun escapism of my reading experience. Some of the characters were more loveable than others, but I enjoyed all of them and felt they each fit well together. It was a true blend of some quirky characters that were a delight to read about in this fun story. Not only does the reader become invested in Peach’s life, but also if Charles is really the one for Di and the wedding should move forward. I do wish that Peach and Di’s parents were included more towards the end as they were a fun presence at the beginning.

Overall, this is an amusing story that does not take itself too seriously. There is a lot of heart and joy throughout the novel that just leave you satisfied once you complete your reading. As there were a lot of characters and secrets involved, some got more attention than others. I do wish that some of those got a little more time to become resolved, but their exclusion did not ruin my reading experience. Easily, I would read more from this author as I love the joy that she brings to her stories and would recommend others to definitely give this novel a try!

**I want to give a special thank you to Netgalley and the publisher, Boldwood Books, for a review copy of this very entertaining novel. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.**

Thank you NetGalley, Boldwood Books and Portia MacIntosh for gifting me an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!
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A fast and fun romcom, Life is a Beach is the perfect summer companion to read poolside! The characters were likeable and while there were a few moments that made me giggle, the plot itse;f is pretty straightforward and predictable. Honestly though? This is exactly how i like my beach reads to be. Sometimes it’s nice to pick up a book and just know there’s not going to be any huge twists or crazy angst.

I always enjoy Portia MacIntosh books and when I saw this new one up for review from Netgalley I knew that I had to request it.
Peach is a nice character. I actually used to be a Mystery Shopper, so I absolutely loved reading about her job.
This is a easy and entertaining read, perfect for relaxing and escaping with. This book didn't disappoint me, It was fun and lighthearted. It was a little farcical in places but this is common in Romantic Comedy books. It was still very enjoyable to read.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for my ARC.

This is an enjoyable enough book. However, there is nothing about it that would distinguish is from all the other books in this genre.

I'm a huge fan of Portia MacIntosh's book so every time one loads on Netgalley I race to request it and cross my fingers. They are always so delightful and charming, set in the UK without being extra confusing for us foreigners who don't fully understand the lingo. Life's a Beach is no different.

Peach is a mystery shopper, paid to review brands by pretending to be customers. She meets Matt at the airport when her sister's and his friend's plane gets delayed - so she asks him to join her on her hotel mystery shopper experience that evening on a whim. One thing leads to another, and she wakes up alone in a hotel room - and Matt is gone. When her sister gets engaged after a week long relationship, and plans the wedding for the following week in Italy, Peach will do anything to stop the wedding - including inviting her sister's ex to the wedding (not on purpose!), only to find out the groom to be is the man she lost her virginity to, and he's you guessed it, Matt's best friend.

Confused yet? Don't be, there are so many entanglements on this wedding holiday which leads to hilarious hijinks, awkward moments, and secrets aplenty. Life's a Beach is short but charming, and has several different romance stories wrapped into one book. I would personally rethink the ending, I don't think it fits perfectly well, but that's the only critical feedback I would provide. Just wasn't to my taste.

**Thank you to Boldwood Books and Netgalley for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review **

Fun, adorable rom com that was a pleasure to read. Perfect beach read or summer read. Well written with relatable characters. A light, easy read that will pull you right out of a reading slump.

What a fun and hilarious read! Although I am still not sure I like the name Peach I found this an enjoyable fun filled rom com. I was still guessing if this was going to have a happy ending or if it was going to let me down righ towards the end and to be honest I liked that it kept me guessing a little. What I didn't enjoy was all the dramatics rushed through at the end in the wedding.
This was almost a farcical romance setting but it didn't venture into the ridiculous that it took away from the story, the romance or the comedy. Portia MacIntosh has balanced the comedy, friendships and romance perfectly.

This was a fun book! Great for when you’re in the mood for a light, easy read. I read it in just a few hours and enjoyed it thoroughly. I look forward to more from this author!

What a lovely book to read. Pure escapism with every page. I really enjoyed this book with relatable characters and lovely scene setting

Great read. I loved the engaging characters (even though I’m totally wanting a job like Peach’s) and the story. There were some great laugh out loud moments (pharmacia) and some cringe moments (oysters) and some really surprising twists and turns. It was great to have characters who were “real” - not too good or bad to be true and I changed my view of some characters as the story progressed. There were even things I never wanted to think about again (naked Wednesday 😱). Overall a perfect read.

Great introduction to the main characters but it goes downhill after a few chapters. This wasn't to my taste. 2.5 stars for the beginning.


**************************************ARC from NetGalley for my honest opinion.***********************

Life's A Beach is a fun perfect beach read. It's light-hearted and hilarious.

It follows Peach and her younger sister's hot mess wedding party. After her sister gets engaged to a man, she has only known for a week, Peach is determined to make her sister see the light. The book is full of laugh-out-loud encounters with ex-boyfriends, one-night stands, and family.

It's sexy, but a closed-door romance. Which normally is a turnoff for me, but it worked with the story. Even though I am a huge fan of high steam levels, I never felt like there was anything missing.

It's a quick, funny, romantic read I recommend full-heartedly.

*Thank you NetGalley and Boldwood Books for my copy of Life's A Beach in exchange for my honest opinion.

I absolutely loved this book. Throughout the book, I felt more like my dear friend was telling me a story. The characters felt like people I could be friends with, and I loved the "who will she end up with" part of the story. In fact, I stayed up so late last night reading this that I'm exhausted today. But I would totally do it again. I can't wait to read more from Portia MacIntosh!

Yet another really great read from this author. Her characters just jump from the pages and come alive. It was a joy to read and although I raced through it I felt sad to finish the story and wanted to know what happens next to them all. The author writes with such a light touch that makes the most of all her story lines.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read a preview copy of this book.

Peach is happy, but a little hesitant when her sister comes home from a holiday declaring she is getting married to a man she has just met.

What comes next is a destination wedding full of hilarious mishaps. With guests who include ex boyfriends and one night stands.

Another hilarious book from Portia McIntosh.

*I received a free copy of this through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*

I loved this book! It was hilarious. I honestly wish I could have read it on a beach. Peach is so great. I loved the tangled mess everything became. Peach actually summed it up at one point, how everyone on the island was connected and it was so complicated and hilarious. I loved it. There were some things that were swept under the rug that I don't think should have been and I would have loved to see them fleshed out. For example - Di sleeping with Peach's ex of seven-ish years who cheated on her? That is NOT okay and Peach was basically just like "well, oh well. I don't want to upset Di." Peach should have confronted her - it'll come out sometime and it'll be more awkward the longer it takes. But overall, this was super fun and cute and a perfect summer read.

I read a lot, and I read all genres: sci-fi, biographies, novels, historic fiction, psychological thrillers, chick-lit... Lately I've found myself getting sometimes bored by rom-coms. That what I thought, at least. Portia MacIntosh made me realise I get bored by boring rom-com, which this one definitely isn't.
Life's a Beach is ADORABLE! It's fun, witty an brilliant. The characters are vibrant and relatable and the style is very fresh.
There are some twists in the plot that adds to the story and the end is soooo perfect!! Loved it!

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Is it possible to fall in love with someone within a week? When Peach’s sister Di comes back from holiday engaged to a man she met the week before with the intention of marrying him the following week Peach doesn’t see how it can be true love.

For her sister she’s willing to suck it up and take on any chief bridesmaid duties Di can throw at her though. Including exes and the man she’s just had a one nightstand with.

There are times throughout this book that had me laughing out loud. I loved the characters, especially Van (here’s hoping she gets her own book at some point) and the villa setting in Italy is wonderful.

I would definitely recommend as a feel good read.