It's nice to have a book about women in their 50s making new choices and trying new business ventures and having solid group of friends. This town seems to cycle through lots of small business because lots of places are available for new ventures though so who knows how long the bookstore/craft shop/bakery/art gallery/b&B/vineyard will be around. Money doesn't seem to be a concern to any of them so maybe they don't care how long they'll be open.

I *think* this book is set in December 2021. The town has a tree lighting and the characters make Hanukkah and Christmas crafts and bake Christmas cookies but then it's Thanksgiving. The timeline was confusing.

The main character is overly disappointed that her new beau is going to be in the Galapagos Islands for 6 weeks. He's made this work trip for 17 years. It is unrealistic for her to think after a few months, he'd just cancel to be with her. As a couple, Katie and Deke didn't have much chemistry and the love scenes felt awkward.

There is a lot of Covid talk. A lot. It's what the conversations of most of the characters revolves around. They talk like they were very alone and isolated for the last year and a half but also found new love interests, made new friends and opened in-person businesses. One character swipes right on a guy in March 2020 and she's still living with "Lockdown Larry" 18 months later because it wouldn't be right to dump a guy in a pandemic?

The narrator, Maria Marquis, was excellent and the reason I kept listening to this book.

Thank you to Make Waves Press | Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Audiobooks and NetGalley for the advance reader audiobook. I am required by law to disclose this. #SantaOverboard #NetGalley

Thank you to Make Waves Press | Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Audiobooks and NetGalley for the advance reader audiobook. I am required by law to disclose this. #SantaOverboard #NetGalley

Santa Overboard was a fun short audiobook with goofy drama for the most part. It's definitely a light read. I did not read the first book and I feel like that would have been better because I would have had a deeper connection with the characters. The author did a good job of referencing the previous book, but I'm confident it would have helped me enjoy this book more. I really enjoyed that these characters were 50+ and what they had been through up until this point felt relatable.

I received a free copy of this audiobook from NetGalley; however, it did not impact my review.

- holiday vibes
- based on the time of the pandemic
- MCs in their 50 🧐

It is so bad; I wanted to give it a zero.. but it's not possible, so I gave it a one. I only ended this bcoz it's short and for my NetGalley profile the narration is good tho

This is a short audiobook of a Christmas tale, but I am DNFing it. I can get behind the love story of a bunch of 50-year-olds and everyone making mistakes, but when the main character has been divorced three times, I don’t find a character I want read another romance about. I applaud everyone their journey, but I can’t get into a love story, knowing the characters had three others and gotten it wrong, made the wrong choice, etc. It makes finding a Happily Ever After implausible.

It was nice to revisit this Katie along with her family and friends. She has been through a lot and rather than giving up, she is moving forward and taking charge of her life with purpose. She has a wonderful friends, a healthy relationship with her daughter and may have finally found a wonderful man until doubt creeps in. Is it her past and head that is causing doubt or is he really the one? So many questions about where she is in her life and where she wants to be. It is so mice to read about a woman over 30 and dealing with some real life drama and learning to move forward in the best way for herself.

Enjoyed it but not sure I would say it’s a romance lots of tension, and very little romance. It’s a very short read with a good amount of characters to keep track of. Felt like it had more to do with the fmc friendships with the other females.

It was a nice change to read a novel with a female main character who was older. I really liked how the story centered on Katie as she learned to love again, opened up, became vulnerable, and grew from her experiences. This growth helped her embrace her current relationship without self-sabotaging, which I think many women can relate to.I enjoy reading as a way to escape, but the repeated references to COVID and the pandemic throughout the story unfortunately diminished my enjoyment. Each mention reminded me of the current situation, which was distracting. A few mentions would have been fine, but it felt overwhelming since it came up in almost every chapter.

Despite that, I found the audiobook quite enjoyable overall.

I love reading books where the main characters are in the middle of their lives - and Santa Overboard fulfilled that interest with Katie and her friends returning from the first book The Cicada Spring! There is a rich selection of characters who are relatable and are always on the lookout for one another. I was a little disappointed that Katie kept revisiting her insecurities and issues from The Cicada Spring, I was hoping for a little lighter material for a holiday book.

Katie Young, a middle-aged woman who's been divorced three times, has moved to Occoquan and is in a new relationship with Deke, a local scientist. When Deke plans to work during the holiday season, Katie struggles with feeling left behind. Throughout the story, Katie relies on her female friends for emotional support. The book explores her personal growth, learning to be vulnerable and not self-sabotage her current relationship.

A gentle warning: Set in 2021, the narrative references to the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the characters' lives. It is mentioned more frequently than I believe most readers would enjoy, especially if it is a sensitive topic. Overall I enjoyed a lot about this book - more mature main characters, her friends, and honesty about navigating life after having your heart broken. It wasn't super Christmas-y, so if you're looking for something that is focused on Xmas, this might not be your favourite.

Maria Marquis does a great job narrating, with different voices for male characters and a good Southern drawl!

Thank you to Make Waves Press and NetGalley for providing a copy of this audiobook for review.

Short and sweet holiday read that was cute. Didn’t enjoy the Covid references but overall kept me interested.

Katie Young is navigating midlife as the holiday season begins, along with her girl gang, her boyfriend Deke and her daughter having their own things going on. There was a lot going on with each of the characters and I honestly wondered what the main storyline actually was, despite this being such a short story. It also got very philosophical at times.

A sweet tale about love, friendship and second chances, this is just the airport novel to take you home for the holidays.

Thank you to Make Waves Press and NetGalley for the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This was a cute book. I did enjoy the story even though I found parts of it a little cheesy. It was a quick read. I did enjoy the narrator.

I hadn't read the book previous to this one, so these were all new to me characters, author and story.

I liked the characters, and narrator enough to go and buy the previous book on audible. The narrator Maria Marquis was enjoyable to listen to, and made the characters come alive.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Make Waves Press for giving me the opportunity to read and review this audiobook.

This was a fun holiday romance that was a bit of a mash up of genres. It was romance, it was comedy, it had some spice (which surprised me), and it also seemed Christian in parts. I hadn't read one by this author before but I wondered if this could or would be part of a character series. The narration was fine, though I speeded it up a bit. It kept me smiling while I was driving to work!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this free audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
 
Santa Overboard is a fun, fast-paced holiday romance with some very unique elements. This is the second book in the Potomac Shores cozy mystery but can be enjoyed as a standalone. The story follows Katie Young, a middle-aged woman who’s moved to the town of Occoquan, where she meets and falls for Deke, the town's resident scientist. As Deke is set to venture on a work assignment over the holidays and won’t be with Katie, she becomes unhappy with their relationship. The book features some popular romance tropes, including small town romance, second chance romance, and slow burn romance.
 
The story’s main protagonists being middle-aged brings a fresh and unique take on the holiday romance trope. Even still, some of Katie’s actions, especially her unwillingness to have Deke spend the holidays away from her, come across as quite immature and selfish. Overall, the characters are realistic and relatable, and their dialogue has some meaningful moments, especially for such a short book.
 
It should be noted that this story takes place in 2021, and there are references to COVID and some challenging related experiences for the characters. Unfortunately, the amount of COVID mentions takes some of the cheer from the story; it would have been more effective to have limited the COVID references and added a bit more substance to the storyline.
 
Narrator Maria Marquis does a great job narrating this audiobook using an exuberant voice filled with emotion and well-placed dramatic flair for the climactic moments. Her excellent pacing and delivery of distinct, authentic voices for the characters enhance the listening experience.
 
Overall, this is a lighthearted holiday romance with unconventional middle-aged characters. Being a short listen at less than 4 hours, the story can be read in a single sitting. If you enjoy small town romance, realistic characters, and quick holiday reads, this book is one to consider for the holidays!

Santa Overboard had potential. The story was cute but there was WAY too much mention of Covid. Reading is my escape from reality. Unfortunately, this was a huge letdown for me and I can’t recommend it

It was a nice change to read a novel where the FMC was more mature in age. I loved that the story focused around Katie learning to love again, open up, be vulnerable, learn through her experiences and grow so that she could embrace her current relationship (and not self sabotage) which I think a lot of woman can relate to.

I read to escape and the constant mention of covid and the pandemic throughout this story unfortunately ruined the listening experience for me as it kept drawing me back into reality every time this was mentioned. I wouldn't mind the odd mention but as it was brought up in nearly every chapter it was a bit much for me.

Overall I enjoyed this audio, the characters and the HEA our girl Katie got.

2.5 Stars

I listened to this as a standalone novella but if I had read it as an accompaniment to book 1 of the series, I would have appreciated more. While I could follow where the characters were in their individual journeys, I didn’t feel connected enough to them. If someone read book 1, I’d absolutely recommend the holiday novella but if they hadn’t I wouldn’t recommend.

This was such a cute holiday story! It was an easy, nicely paced listen. Kate Young is preparing for the holiday boat parade, trying to establish a new relationship and heal from loss due to the pandemic.

I would call this a palette cleanser. There is no deep character, romance, or conflict plot. And the world is everyday USA.

This slow-burn cozy romance is a nice intro to the Christmas holiday season.

Thank you to Netgalley, and Carolyn McBride for the ALC of this fun little book. I am voluntarily leaving this honest opinion.

Santa Overboard by Carolyn McBride is a fluffy and cute holiday romance with a wonderful audiobook narrator.