⭐️⭐️ 1/2 or ⭐️⭐️⭐️

I do love a good "there's only one bed" trope, or in this case, "there's only one sleeping bag"... That coupled with some witty banter and a whole hell of a lot of sexual tension made this a fun read. I also have a background in film, so I'm all for reading a book about women in filmmaking.

Sadly, the one thing I found inconsistent (and ultimately, lacking) was the actual romance! This is something I've actually noticed across a few of Sarah's books... The world building and side characters often entice me more than the central relationship. In the case of Drew and Alia, there was just too much back-and-forth for me. One minute, you'd think they had made some progress in their relationship and then four pages later, not so much. Lots of apologizing, lots of flip-flopping. All of it culminating in... *sigh* a misunderstanding.

Simply said, I liked the tone (I think that's what keeps me coming back to Sarah's books), but the story itself? Meh.

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A delightful book full of adventure, action, and thrills. Fun to read, engrossing world building, and very descriptive imagery made it feel like it was cinematic. It's hard to resist the story as it drives forward. Would recommend.

Thank you Netgalley and Publisher for sending me and ARC in exchange for an honest review. I tried this book a couple of times and honestly couldn’t get into the plot. The writing was well done, the story just wasn’t catching my attention. I think I had a difficult time connecting to the characters in the story. It just wasn’t the book for me.

Thanks Again!

I really loved this Sarah Smith novel. Loved the setting in Utah, the meet cute, the sexual tension. This book worked for me.

Alia was ghosted by an extremely handsome man who she accidentally turned into an online viral dreamboat, only to find that she has to work with him on her dream job.

Cute, sweet, and predictable. Not the most elegant romance but definitely above average, and the male lead is definitely a dreamboat. Worth checking out.

I am still working on completing this book and look forward to updating my review on it at a later time. I was captured by the cover and description from the beginning, but still need to make time to finish reading it.

Sarah is one of my favorite authors and I just love her books so much. She’s always welcome on my amazon live show because she’s just fantastic and she’s now an auto buy for me.

Watch my live interview with Sarah: https://amazon.com/live/broadcast/a494856e-024c-48ae-a337-b2990b0a768b?ref=social&tag=erinmbransco-20&linkCode=ilv

Three books in, and as much as it pains me to say it given that I want to support a Filipino author, but Sarah Smith's books are not for me. Like her previous books, On Location has a flimsy plot, a conflict that was stretched out, and just bad writing.

ON LOCATION was the perfect book to read to get me out of a reading slump. The one book that I found comforting was ON LOCATION, a romance novel. Romance novels tend to be lighter and almost always have a happy ending, which I needed. Compared to her previous book, On Simmer, I preferred this one much more, finding that the writing has matured, especially with the more natural dialogue. I may be biased as most of the book took place in Utah, my hometown state.

WHAT I LIKED:
▫️How the author explored workplace sexism, harassment, and women empowerment. I particularly liked the female friendship, loved seeing that women support other women, celebrating each other's accomplishments.
▫️Utah! While I have mixed feelings about my home state, Utah is one of the most beaUTAHful states. I’m not an outdoorsy person, but the national parks are worth it!
Alia is determined to make the Utah travel series successful in tribute to her apong. I found that so heartwarming.

NOT SO MUCH:
▫️The romance. I’m kind of tired of the whole miscommunication between lovers being the main plot. Also, do people really have that much sex? I know people love sexy scenes, but some of these scenes were hard-core cringy and unprofessional at times. Some were incredibly uncomfortable, forced, and far-fetched.
▫️Also find it annoying that authors seem that tweets and posts can quickly go viral. The main guy gives up his seat on the subway, and his photo goes viral. Really? Why?
▫️I didn’t connect with Alia much. But even more so with Drew. Just another bland white dude that is kind but has no personality.

While I have some complaints, I recommend the book if you’re looking for a lighter, feel-good read with lots of sex scenes (not very graphic, thank goodness) and women empowerment!

I loooved this rom-com! A classic workplace enemies-to-lovers with excellent charm, sexual tension, and forced proximity. Can't wait to read Smith's next release!

This was a fun, easy romance that quickly pulled me in. I really enjoyed the messages the author wrote. It was thought provoking and I really enjoyed the book.

Oh this was a fun one!!

Alia Dunn has finally gotten her big break at producing a show for the travel channel she works at! It’s about the National Parks in Utah. Unfortunately the execs picked a bummer a-hole of a host for the show. And, Drew Irons, the independent contractor they hired to help with the show is (unknowingly) the same guy who ghosted her after an incredible evening out a couple months earlier. So, yeah, things are awkward. Then things get hot. Then awkward again because people forget to communicate sometimes. And… I appreciated the themes of inequality in the work place and women empowerment woven into the story just as much as the romance!

When you text your friend throughout this book, just cringing...

There was so much about this book that just needed help. This book needed at least another round of edits, and maybe some beta readers.

Let's talk about some of the technical things I couldn't get behind:
The beer law in Utah changed in 2019 and this was published in 2021. It wasn't a big thing so it could have easily been fixed in editing if she wrote this prior to 2019.
If someone eats an entire bag of edibles, they are in outer space. They are not "just a little bit out of it"
Mind blowing sex does not include a "beard burn". If he's using his chin down there, he's doing it wrong...

Now there's some more serious things. I absolutely hated both of the main characters. I hate that Drew shares a birthday with my dog (although he's totally a Sagittarius. And that is not a compliment) The MC is also just completely irritating and I couldn't care less about this romance.

I didn't enjoy her other book either, and I had high hopes for this book, but after this, I just don't think she's the author for me...

On Location by Sarah Smith had a fantastic setting and was such a cute read! It took place in Utah's beautiful national parks, which are now on my travel bucket list! Thank you to Berkley Romance for the gifted copy!

Alia Dunn is in her early 30s and is finally getting her shot at producing her own show at the top outdoor channel on TV. She'll be featuring the national parks of Utah, and she has the perfect crew. What could go wrong? It turns out her new field coordinator, Drew, is the last guy she went out on a date with, the one who brutally ghosted her. Will they be able to get through these next few awkward weeks of filming?!

They'll have to overcome some crazy chemistry, a host who's derailing the show, a network who won't support Alia, and much more...

lia Dunn has been working in the male dominated TV industry for years. More specifically, she’s been slaving away at a top travel channel, patiently waiting for her ship to come in.

Then one day, it happens- Alia actually gets the go ahead to make her passion project about Utah parks, a bittersweet full circle to her childhood roots. So what if she has limited time, a shoestring budget, and a horror of a host to contend with? Alia is finally getting to see her dream come to life and she will be damned if anyone (or anything) takes that away from her.

As if the production wasn’t complicated enough, Alia is shocked to discover her crew member, Drew Irons, is the very same guy she thought she had a love connection with weeks prior, only to have him ghost her.

Talk about awkward.

With the sexual tension mounting and the clock ticking, can Alia pull off the impossible or will her dreams end up on the cutting room floor?

On Location is the latest in the lane of candy color covered stories that, on the inside, are anything but. Sure, this story had a classic meet cute in the beginning, but that’s pretty much where the “cute” stuff ended. The romance itself is more steam than substance, reminiscent of the plot-hole ridden, cable movies that used to make me giggle as a kid when they aired after hours. (If you’re my age and you say you never watched one of these you’re lying, btw). 😝

But, if you enjoy the trend of books that you can take out and about and fool the masses while you read them in public, then this story, with the running reading time of about the length of a classic Skin-a-Max movie, just might be a location worth scouting.

A highly entertaining forced proximity workplace romance set on location in Utah as television producer Alia is trying to film her first show all while dealing with a pain in the butt star and fighting her feelings for fellow swoony co-worker Drew.

I really enjoyed this one. The setting in different national parks was original and fun and the plot dealing with toxic workplace relationships, sexual harassment and sexism in the entertainment industry were all highly relatable. Great on audio and definitely recommended for fans of other reality tv romances like The charm offensive, One to watch or Love and other disasters. Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my advance review copy!

I will always read Sarah Smith, she seemlessly mixes bits of her culture with all of her books. I enjoyed specifically how well this book deals with themes of misogyny in the film industry! The conflicts are always realistic and they are so very steamy. I love reading her books and I can’t wait for whatever she does next.

Loved this one! it was cute and the perfect romance. I definitely recommend to anyone! The characters were super sweet and likable. I like the relationship trope.

Alia Dunn has finally gotten her big break- a chance to serve a show-runner for a series she pitched to the outdoor travel channel she works for about Utah’s national parks. The host chosen for her by the channel’s executives may not have been her first choice (or even her fourth or fifth choice), but it’s a chance for her to prove herself and honor her late apong, so Alia is ready to give it her all. Then Drew, the highly recommended location scout she hired, turns out to be the same guy that ghosted her weeks before after a seemingly perfect first date. Not to worry though, Alia is a professional and she intends to power through the shoot without letting their burning-hot chemistry phase her, but after long hours together in the desert fighting against the most unprofessional host ever, Alia may have to fully give in and trust Drew and the rest of her crew to help her turn the show around and save her apong’s tribute, before it’s too late.

I absolutely adored this story. I love to read a strong female protagonist and enjoyed seeing Alia fight against sexism in her workplace and finally win her chance to produce her own show (with the help of another female producer/mentor in her corner-love women who reach back and pull others up with them!). I also never had a strong desire to travel to Utah and see all the National Parks it has to offer, but after reading this book and spending so much of the past 18-months inside, I just might need to plan a trip. The concept for the show seemed to be a great one to me, and I loved the personal connection that kept Alia driven and focused to make the show happen and be the best it could be.

I also thought that Drew was a well-written love interest. He was gorgeous (of course) and talented, but I also loved that he was portrayed with excellent allyship – he stood up against their male co-host when sexist or other gross behaviors occurred. There were times that his allyship wasn’t as strong as it could be, like when he wanted to take a path of less resistance in dealing with the host. But when Alia explained to him why she wouldn’t allow this toxic male to get away with his current behavior, Drew came back and showed that he learned and absorbed what Alia said to him and then demonstrated that he had taken something away from their conversations in his actions that followed as well. And, you know, his bedroom skills didn’t seem to be lacking anything either ;).

Beyond the sparkling romance and the strong female protagonist, this one also had what I felt was some great mental health representation: characters acknowledged past experiences had impacted them and that they had sought therapy! Yay! It also really portrayed an excellent found family vibe between the crew; I always love when a group comes together and supports each other.

All in all, this one is an excellent read and I highly recommend it!

I loved this book I have read all of the books that Sarah Smith has written, and she has become an auto buy author!!
Alia Dunn is having a rough day she was rejected on a series she pitched, and now she’s stuck on a stuffy train until she catches the eye of a cute passenger. The handsome stranger gives up his seat to an elderly woman and soon Alia and him are talking and make plans for a date after the most amazing kiss. The only problem he never calls her like he promised. Much to her surprise her luck changes and she gets to produce her series, the only exception the host the executives choose is Blaine a narcissistic, drug addict, unreliable D-list star. The series is a dream for Alia it holds a special meaning it’s one of the places she’s seen with her grandmother when she was a child and it’s a way to honor her. Alia is shocked when her new PA Andrew is the same man that ghosted her from the train!! When she talks to him ,he gives her the phony excuse about dropping his phone and loosing her number. The more Alia works with Andrew or Drew as he likes to be called they can’t deny the chemistry they have and what a great team they are. Soon it’s apparent Blaine is doing everything he can possibly do to ruin Alias series, can Alia save her series and also resist the charm and feelings she has for Drew? On Location was the perfect escape from my couch! I loved Alia she is strong and isn’t afraid to stand up for herself and Drew was charming and absolutely adorable! Five stars!!