Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC copy of this book.
This was a fun summer romance set on a cruise ship, but I felt like it fell a little flat in some aspects especially the chemistry between the love interest. I like how it was a light read though which really is perfect for this time of year.

This was such a fun, feel-good read! If you’re a fan of classic romcom tropes like fake dating, forced proximity, only one bed, revenge pacts, opposites attract, and enemies to lovers, this book delivers them all in the best way.

Set on a cruise ship, the setting added an extra layer of fun and chaos that worked perfectly with the light-hearted tone. I really enjoyed the dynamic between the characters, they had great banter and believable chemistry.

The revenge-on-exes plot was handled in a playful, not-too-serious way, which made it even more enjoyable. I found myself genuinely laughing out loud, and overall had a really great time with this story.

If you’re looking for a cute, tropey romance that doesn’t take itself too seriously, this one’s worth picking up.

A lighthearted, sun-soaked escape filled with quirky characters, awkward mishaps, and a charming cruise ship setting. Going Overboard delivers exactly what you'd expect from a rom-com read: fun, flirty chaos with a dash of heart. While some plot points felt a bit far-fetched, the humor and fast pace kept me entertained. A solid 3.5 stars!

3.5/5 ⭐⭐⭐✨

Going Overboard is a splashy, feel-good rom-com that delivers big laughs, swoony moments, and serious vacation vibes. 💕☀️📖 It’s the kind of story that makes you wish you were sipping cocktails on a cruise ship deck while watching a fake dating scheme unfold in real time.

The FMC, Jessa, is a lovable chaos magnet whose life feels like it’s constantly one step away from a disaster—which makes her so relatable. 😅💁‍♀️ Her mix of sass, sarcasm, and just the right amount of revenge energy had me rooting for her from page one. The romance is equal parts sweet and spicy, with flirty banter, awkward encounters, and just enough emotional depth to balance out the fun. 💘🔥

Portia MacIntosh’s writing is smart, playful, and super easy to sink into. The plot is light but layered, with just the right amount of heart. After being dumped by her boyfriend Todd mid-wedding-dance (yes, really 😬💃), Jessa later discovers Brody—a dreamy, down-to-earth cricket star—was dumped at the exact same time. One year later, fate throws them together again on a wedding cruise, where they hatch a fake-dating plan to make their exes jealous. But, of course, sparks fly.

This is a textbook-perfect rom-com for fans of the fake-relationship-to-real-love trope, especially if you like your romances with a side of sunshine and sea breeze. 🌊❤️ It’s got that delicious enemies-to-lovers tension and just the right amount of wedding drama.

I read this while on a Bahamas cruise and honestly? The vibes could not have matched better.!!! This is the ultimate vacation read—whether you're poolside, beachside, or ship-side. ☀️📚🛳️

💬 Final thoughts: Going Overboard is fun, flirty, and full of charm. It made me laugh out loud and grin like a goof. This is a perfect palate cleanser after a heavier book. 10/10 recommend tossing it in your summer bag—or suitcase if you're setting sail!

🎉 Thank you to Portia MacIntosh, NetGalley, and Boldwood Books for the e-ARC! I loved this one!

This book is such a cute summer read! Reading it felt like watching a rom-com movie. Jessa and Brody growing closer while Nikki and Todd seems to grow further apart was *chef’s kiss* - I was totally living for the HEA in this one!

This is a light summery romance with lots of laughter, perfect for lounging on the beach or for dipping your toes in a pool.

I loved the premise, a fake relationship to get revenge on their exes who just so happened to dump both our MCs at the same wedding. The shared suite shenanigans were amusing and the cruise activities were a lot of fun.

This seems like a great friendship group to be part of (well minus Todd and Nikki of course, I mean how many times can you push someone in a pool? Not cool nikki).

I do have one small complaint though... the bantering and sexual tension and it was closed door!? No but seriously that's just personal preference but I loved Brody and Jessa and it could have been even longer to be honest. I would have loved to see even more of Brody and maybe a dual POV would have made this even better.

An absolutely brilliant romantic comedy. Portia Macintosh honestly never fails - her books are hilarious with delightful characters and plenty of humour and romance throughout - a good and quick summer read

Portia Macintosh has quickly become an auto-buy author for me. Her books are always a fun time and they're quick reads for me. This one was no exception. Jessa and Brody were fantastic together. I loved the banter and the build up of tension. I do wish there had been a couple more chapters at the end to better see where everyone ended up. But if my biggest complaint is that I wanted more of the book, is that really a complaint? Highly recommend to anyone who loves books with fake dating, only one bed, and revenge on the exes.

I liked the premise for this one but the execution was a bit bland and generic. The story was slow to start but it turned into a fairly quick and easy read overall. I found it a little hard to engage and stay engaged with the story and characters, and I specifically had some difficulty connecting with Jessa. There are some satisfying moments of connection between Jessa and Brody, but I would have liked reading from Brody's perspective too. I don't feel I was the right audience for this book, but I do think this is the kind of light read that's perfect if you're looking for a book to keep you company for a few hours. Great for fans of jilted exes revenge fake-dating each other, forced proximity and flirty banter turning into something genuine, fade-to-black romance.

Going overboard is a short romcom about a rather catastrophic breakup in the middle of a wedding. I felt that the main plot revolved solely around this concept, not the one whereby she has to pretend to have a fake boyfriend and falls in love in the process.

It was a light read, but I felt more hate than love in the novel. Also that the couple has not been developed almost nothing, I have not felt that love or that attraction characteristic of this type of books, I perceive that it has been touched very above.

It was a very quick and enjoyable read, and in the end I liked it, the only thing I would have liked much more if it had gone deeper into the couple <3

1.5 stars

Alright where to start with this… this was my first book by this author so I’m not sure if all of her books are like this but the writing is just not for me. I feel like the plot was good but the romance was so bland.

I felt like the author left a lot of important things off page like ANY KISSES HELLO.

Overall I just thought the writing was flat, romance was not there, and dialogue was slightly cringe.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC :)

This was a fun ride! I liked the drama (I am a total drama lover) and the sticky situations the fmc found herself in were really funny. Everyone trapped on a boat together with their exes and a little fake dating??? absolute goldmine of drama.
Can't give this five stars because I thought it was a bit overwritten in places. It was filled with interiority that was redundant to the scene, or information that we just didn't need or I didn't care about.

oh Portia do you know not what you do to us with your skills. Portia knows how to write books. Portia knows how to write them best of books. i cannot tell you over the years the utterly delight her books have given to me. i love how you can just see an authors name and think "yipee".
this was just the best take on this little trope and it made it explode brightness.
Jessa has found herself dumped. bad enough right? yeh, a bit worse when its on the dance floor. oh yeh even worse when its during a first dance at a wedding. ooooooooooooooh yeh even worse still when she soon finds out he with another woman who was dumping her boyfriend at the same time. this boyfriend is Brody and yes hes just been dumped by Nikki. so when the two ex's turn up together its pretty yuck for both of them. so what do our pair do. well revenge is best serve pretend loved up isn't it? except pretending is great and the plan is working. but they were planning for their feelings to grow into something more?
our pair our lovable characters on their own but together they are fabulous. i was rooting for these two and i know when im truly into a book and characters when i worry if they will end up together. and i cared how this story would go. if they would get their happy ending. their connection and witty interactions was so well done. i smiled a lot.
but it's meant to be a short quick read so I get it!
loved this book. at this point i think Portia must be magic or something because she is creating books like they are the best kinda spells you could wish for.

I enjoy Portia MacIntosh's lighthearted novels, they're great as a palate cleanser after a heavy historical or horror tome. This story was no different. It was a romantic comedy set against the backdrop of a summer of weddings.

Unfortunately for Jessa, her long-term relationship with Todd is headed on the road to disaster, and it comes a cropper on the dancefloor at a wedding. She takes to her bath, but things are going to get worse when she discovers he has picked up with a petite and rather vacuous and vicious girl called Nikki. I personally felt that Nikki was a bit of a caricature, pretty, blonde, a bit stupid and very mean; the tricks she pulls to make herself the victim reminded me a little of those weird 'romance novel' ads you see on Instagram. Whatever the purpose of her character, she was good at making you really sympathise with Jessa and her plight.

Brody, our leading man, comes to the rescue, and it's even more necessary when they go on a cruise to Sicily as part of Jessa's best friend's wedding week (seriously, is the friend's family made of money?). The fantasy is real, people. I liked that, though this tackled the reality of being dumped (Todd moved on incredibly quickly, and I would have liked a bit more about this development), it was a fantasy romance, with the swoony sporty leading man, the almost cartoonish villainous ex-girlfriend who pushes people into pools when she doesn't get her way, and the supportive best friends.

Enjoyable, funny and possibly could have done with being a little bit longer!

Another 5-star read from Portia MacIntosh.
The perfect read for the summer!
Going Overboard is a fun, feel-good rom-com with a beautiful setting and chaotic but irresistible characters. Portia gives us lots of sass, and laugh-out-loud moments through the protagonist Billie, as she finds herself on a holiday gone wrong. The banter is on point, the pacing is perfect, and the mix of family drama, romance, and twists keeps you engaged throughout. It’s the kind of book you can breeze through in just one sitting and it will definitely have you recommending it to your friends!

This was fantastic! One of my favorite Portia MacIntosh books to date! I loved the banter between Jessa and Brody, as well as the heat! This book singlehandedly caused me to neglect my poor family all evening because I could not put it down. Absolutely engaging. I found myself laughing, sighing, and at one point tearing up a little. Highly recommend this one!

This is the first time in a long time that I've read a "rom-com" and actually laughed regularly while reading it. These days "rom-com" gets thrown around a little too loosely, but Going Overboard delivered on the genre tag. As much as I enjoyed the story, however, it just didn't quite stick the landing. Still, I will be looking out for more books by Portia MacIntosh.

Portia MacIntosh does it again, a brilliant story with fabulous character’s, Imagine being dumped by your fiancé who is having a relationship with a mutual friends ex girlfriend and then having to share a small ships cabin with the “new” couple and another jilted ex to attend your best friends wedding,!
Loads of laughs and emotions in this book, absolutely loved it, made me laugh out loud and also have a wee cheer when things work out the way they should.
Perfect summer holiday reading!

Jessa's life gets turned upside down when her boyfriend Todd dumps her at a wedding during the first dance. Plot twist across the room, cricket superstar Brody is getting the same treatment from his girlfriend Nikki. Double plot twist: Todd and Nikki are now together. Just when Jessa thinks things can't get worse, she's trapped on a cruise to Sicily for her best friend's destination wedding with both exes onboard. Thanks to a booking mix-up, she's sharing a suite with Todd, Nikki, and the infuriatingly handsome Brody. Their solution? Fake a red-hot romance to get revenge on their cheating exes. But the better they get at pretending, the more real their chemistry becomes, and suddenly the line between fake and real gets dangerously blurry. Sometimes the best revenge is falling for someone new.

Going Overboard is a really fun holiday read. I couldn’t put it down and raced through it in two days which is exactly what I want for a sun lounger book. (Plus I love cruising so that was a bonus.)

It was a fun take of fake dating, forced proximity and only one bed and I was rooting for Brody and Jessa throughout.