I am a sucker for anything archeology related so I took a chance on this more romcom based novel and was so pleasantly surprised! It’s an absolute good time! Adriana and her brother William are hilarious and entirely relatable. Dr Andrew Jones is a perfect book boyfriend and such a dreamboat! I loved the adventure part of the story and it reminded me so much of a mix between “Jewel of the Nile” & “Indiana Jones.” There’s a good helping of spice and some great banter. A very solid good time!!

Thank you to NetGalley & Olivia Jackson & HarperCollins for letting me read and review this book!

Indiana jones vibes
Treasure hunting
Forced proximity
Found family

Book moved very quickly and was insta love. He got the girl and the treasure in the end

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Collins UK for the arc!

This was such a fun and adventurous romcom!!! I loved how fast paced and action packed this book was and the forced proximity was so good!!! I loved the quirky dialogue and the romance between Adriana/Andrew was just so cute to read about.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for the arc <3

"Digging Dr. Jones" by Olivia Jackson is a delightful adventure rom-com packed with action, adventure, and romance. The story follows Adriana Jones, a struggling business owner who unexpectedly finds herself on an archaeological quest with the charming and handsome Dr. Andrew Jones. Their journey through the jungles of Colombia in search of ancient treasure is filled with witty banter, sizzling chemistry, and plenty of unexpected twists.
The book strikes a great balance between mystery, action, and humor, with strong Indiana Jones vibes. The fast-paced adventure keeps readers hooked, while the romance adds a fun and engaging dynamic. Overall, this book is an exciting and entertaining read, perfect for those who enjoy a mix of action, adventure, and romance.

I really had fun with this book! It was adventurous and reminded me of Indiana Jones, tomb raider, and the mummy. I thought the FMC was quirky in a good way and the MMC was HOT. The premise was cute and I love a treasure hunt.

This book drops you right into the heart of the action with the main character receiving a bracelet within the first page. Which she promptly puts on, that locks onto her wrist and away we go on a dramatic adventure.

First things first. This isn't archaeology. This Dr. Jones is as much an archaeologist as the more famous Dr. Jones. I had to pause, close my eyes and mutter it wasn't real for a couple of moments. Once I pushed aside my schooling and allowed my suspension of disbelief to kick in, it went much smoother.

This was a fun little adventure, it might not linger in the mind too long, but it was easy to digest and entertaining enough in its own right. Nothing new perhaps but it wasn't trying to be. This was exactly what it said it was, and it works for that.

I was very torn on the character of William. On one hand, I found him super annoying, the 'token gay' but on the other... I would like a book about his adventures, his pov of this story, because what actually happens to him as it goes on is delightful. He's outside of the main drama, but he has his own stuff and I want more. Pretty please?

4.25⭐️
I wasn’t sure exactly what to expect going into it, but this book reminded me of the movies The Lost City, Jungle Cruise, and National Treasure combined with Indiana Jones. It’s like if Indiana Jones was a rom com. I’m no archaeologist, but I think it’s safe to assume that if you are looking for accurate historical/archaeological information/processes, this isn’t gonna be it, but it was a very cute and entertaining read. It has a little bit of everything: action, adventure, mystery, comedy, and romance. The chemistry between the main characters was great and both the main characters and supporting characters were likable. I think it would have been nice to have some dual POV from Dr. Jones’ perspective in some parts. There were definitely a couple of spicy chapters that seemed a bit over the top and I just kinda skimmed through. Overall I think this was a cute read and great debut novel. I would definitely read future books from this author. Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC in return dor my honest review.

Not for me I fear. Read the word "wowza" on the first page- being used unironically!- and feared the worst, and unfortunately my gut feeling was right, It only got worse from there. The writing style was just not for me. Too millennial for my taste.

Excellent premise! I think we can all agree that a quest with a hot archaeology professor to save ancient treasure sounds like a great book. But the execution missed the mark. The characters felt flat, the FMC was not that likable, and several passages were either confusing or poorly written. Also I was promised laugh out loud! Disagree. I was also promised spicy and that it is. I would pass on this one next time.

Thank you to HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter and Netgalley for this ARC.

I absolutely loved this book!
If you’re coming into it, looking for deep diving history and archaeology, you’re not gonna get it.
This is Like if you mash up Raiders of the lost Ark and the lost city, it’s about action and adventure and archaeology, but it’s also not super serious. There is action and there is adventure, but there is also a lot of comedy and it doesn’t take itself too seriously.

The strangers to reluctant accomplishes to lovers is center in the story
There is background for both characters, but it’s not delve into so deeply that your left heartbroken or crying. This is definitely a feel good book and it doesn’t really lean into any dark themes.

Romance ❤️❤️❤️
Spice 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Crying❌
Action 👊🏻👊🏻👊🏻
Kicking feet 👣
Happy ending 💒💒💒💒

This romcom is a delightful mix of The Mummy and Indiana Jones, it's full of mystery, adventure and a high stakes mission to find some hidden treasure before it falls into the wrong hands. I'm a little disappointed to say that the premise sounded better than what the book actually was, I did enjoy it and would recommend reading it if you're looking for a simple romance that's bound to make you feel like you're somewhere else, but it lacked true depth and some aspects of it just felt off.

I can't say I liked the main heroine and leading lady, Adriana. She's the first to make a mistake but never truly apologises or struggles to own up to it, she comes off as entitled despite having a tragic and traumatic background, and she's also a bit bland. Her brother, William, was quite the same. Thankfully the love interest and 'Indiana Jones' of this book, Andrew Jones, was much more entertaining.

The forced proximity and fish out of water romance didn't quite hit for me, I hardly felt their connection and found it too quick considering Adriana despises romance and most men in general. It did have some cute, cliché moments, mostly with Andrew falling head over heels for the woman who's thrown his plans in the air, and the spice was alright, though maybe too much with one scene right after another for no reason, and the banter and teasing was also humorous at times.

The last few chapters were pretty intense, with the book taking a dangerous turn, I liked the twists and high stakes, but the childish arguments and lack of communication made me less worried about the true dangers and more annoyed at the characters. The story does wrap up well, and gives readers a happy ending, which kind of feels contradictory and somewhat selfish, but at that point I was just rolling with it all. Overall, I can't say I adored this book, but I'm glad to have read it as a filler read.

3/5 🌟

This book reminded me a bit of Christina Lauren's writing except Lauren did it better. I went into it blind so I didn't know a whole lot about it or what to expect. I loved that the action started almost immediately. It's a cross between Indiana Jones and National Treasure with a splash of romcom.

What to expect:
- Slow burn
- Adventure/Action romance
- Forced proximity

Things I liked:
- the slow burn was *che'fs kiss*. The chemistry between Andrew and Adriana was very well done and the tension leading up to their steamy scenes had me aching!
- Adriana's brother (I've already forgotten his name) - he was a HOOT and I wish we got more of his romance :)
- the adventure was super fun

Some things I didn't like:
- the way the author described some of the places they went (i.e., Colombia) and how dirty and unsafe it was. It didn't seem like the author (or subsequently the characters) did any research on the country because Colombia is a beautiful place (yes there are unsafe places but there are unsafe places everywhere).
- the random definitions - honestly, I didn't understand these or why they were put in the book
- body shaming hints like "calories don't count on vacation" and things like that. Or the time Adriana said that Brie (Andrew's ex) will need Botox because once her looks are gone, she'll have nothing left. There were just some one liners that gave me the ick.

Overall this was a fun read with lots of action but there were enough one-liners and toxic traits from characters that just gave me such icky feelings that I couldn't, in good conscience, give this more than 3.5 stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and the published for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Such a fun read! It jumped right into the action, with a bracelet locked on Adriana's wrist. It took us through villages, crypts, jungles, and hidden clues and traps. Adriana and Andrew were such a fun couple to follow, and Olivia Jackson is a STAR at writing longing. The whole cast were fun, and such a thrilling story!

This book is what you’d get if Indiana Jones was a romcom. It’s cute and full of adventure. It has lovable main characters and supporting characters. You can expect it to be a little bit cheesy, but it works for what the book is. This would be a great beach read. My only complaint is that it’s not dual POV.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

I thought the premise of the book was great! It was different from what I normally read but has been an amazing experience.

Thank you net gallery and Harper Collins UK for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Pre Thoughts:
- Adventure romance

Post Thoughts:

This was a very enjoyable Action + Adventure romance read.

The beginning hooked me in, as I was quite intrigued to see how it progressed for the MMC and the FMC.

Dr Andrew was a memorable MMC.

I found it interesting integrating definitions thought the novel.

Tropes:
Slowburn
Adventure Romance
Fast Paced
Forced Proximity

Ratings
3.5 / 5 stars
1.5 spice

I liked the whole adventure rom-com concept of the book. I also liked the banter between Adriana & Andrew but I'm not a fan of insta-love and unfortunately, this book had it. The book was a slow burn but they cau ht feelings real fast for my liking. Nevertheless, I liked seeing them together, so it was a save. Still, the plot wasn't as interesting as I thought it would be and I found myself getting bored through some parts. The mystery was kind of dragged which made me want to skim through some paragraphs tbh. But the character growth was well written (albeit I felt like Adriana was a bit snobbish and self centered and her brother was kind of immature) and some scenes were fun to read. It also took me some time to really get into the story, because the start was really slow though. So while I didn't dislike the book, I did not entirely love it either.

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review

Thank you to NetGalley and to HarperCollins UK for the ARC of Digging Dr. Jones by Olivia Jackson.

I was drawn to this book when it said it was for those who liked the movie The Lost City and Christina Lauren (my thought was a comparison to Something Wilder, which I loved). It definitely has some of those vibes - a young woman, Adriana Jones, and her brother are on vacation in Costa Rica as she nurses her wounds from a bad professional decision. She accidentally accepts a package meant for a Dr. Andrew Jones containing a very fancy bracelet. She puts it on mistakenly believing it to be an apology from her ex business partner, only to find out it's part of a treasure hunt in Colombia that Dr. Andrew Jones is trying to solve. When the bracelet cannot be removed from her wrist, Adriana accompanies Andrew on his adventure, and the stakes to find the treasure before his competitors grow higher and higher, as does their attraction to each other.

This is a cute book overall, with a fun premise. Unfortunately, for me, it missed the mark with comparisons to The Lost City and Christina Lauren. I think this is because there are aspects of the novel that feel more engaged in the toxic cultures of the 2000s that reduce Adriana and other female characters to really one dimensional roles. Adriana has to state how "calories don't count on vacation" and focuses on negative body image connotations on more than one occasion - questioning if Andrew will even like her body, etc. Brie, Andrew's ex, is relegated to being a bitch, a cheater, and whiny with no thoughts outside of men and being mean to other women, Adriana is catty in response, making notes about how Brie needs botox, because when her looks are gone she'll have nothing left. It just felt shallow, and like the opposite of how we want to envision women in 2025. It made me dislike Adriana as a heroine.

We also spent close to 1/5th of the book thinking Andrew is married, and Adriana has no problem ogling him, flirting with him, and imagining hooking up with him all while she believes him to be married which kind of gave me the ick, especially when he was flirting back. When they do eventually get together the sex scenes go from 0 to 100 multiple times, leaving the latter half of the book pretty smut heavy compared to the first half.

I also had a few concerns about certain language used to describe Colombia when they first arrive in the country. Adriana makes a few comments about it being unsafe, dirty, etc. while at no point actually engaging with the culture or the people. As someone who has spent time in Colombia, including Santa Marta, the negative connotations didn't seem like it was necessary to the story.

There were also a few instances where randomly there would be a definition of a word with a funny description - at first I thought these were specific to each chapter, but then it seemed like they were just random placements. I'm not sure what purpose they really served.

For the mystery itself, I enjoyed it, though I think there were a few plugs into the plot to make all the pieces work in the end, which I will write in the comments to the publisher and not this review.

Again, overall it was a cute and fun story, but for me I think I needed a bit of a different vibe from the characters to really want to root on their adventure.

This adventurous rom com is like National Treasure with a rom com twist! It all starts with a bracelet being delivered to the wrong Jones, and the adventure begins taking Adriana and Andrew on a quest to uncover the treasure that began with an ancient love story. Villains, fake friends, a drunken brother, and so many other mishaps that lead the two to many plot twists while they also find love of their own! Cute story, loved the treasure hunt, and it comes together nicely. Some of the spicy scenes felt like they weren’t needed, but I adored the foils of William and Brandon. Such a good message that we cannot allow our past and shame to impact our future!

This lush adventurous tale takes us on a treasure hunt through colourful Columbian towns and rainforests alongside our two love interests, Adriana and Dr. Andrew Jones. This novel is a modern rom com twist on the classic 'Indiana Jones'.

The plot was engaging and action-packed, as well as comedic. I loved the historical aspects to this novel, and the intrigue and mysteriousness behind uncovering the location of the treasure. The background lore behind the artefact was very well thought out and well written. I felt immersed in the history of it and how special the story behind it was.

Andrew and Adriana's journey spans around two weeks of searching for clues. However, the romance is certainly a slow burn. It isn't until well over halfway through the book until their first kiss is shared. Their flirting and snarky better was super fun to read however. Once the simmering romantic tension finally breaks between our main characters, the spice does not disappoint! Their chemistry was electric!

I didn’t love the FMC's personality as much as I did Andrew's. Andrew was sweet and funny and confident, whereas I think Adriana's inner dialogue let her down a bit, as I found her quite sardonic, and she thought some cringey things at times.

Due to the length of this novel, the search for the mysterious artefact became a little dragged out, as it needed to be really stretched out in order for the story to fit the page count. I think it could have been shorter and still had the same impact. However, some people may enjoy the longer time we get to spend with the characters.

Thank you to the author, NetGalley, and the publisher for giving me the chance to read and review this!

*I received this book as an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) for free in exchange for an honest review*