A solid second-chance romance that beautifully digs into the history of two characters with sizzling chemsitry.

Love, Lists & Fancy Ships was a huge hit for me so I could not WAIT for this follow up. And it was even BETTER than the first one!!

This book was all sorts of complicated, but in a good way. I really enjoyed the writing and characters, and it’s epically angsty. I quite liked it, and I’m excited to read the next one in the series!

Great series from a great author! This is definitely an author I am looking to read more from in the future.

A must for romance readers!

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me. All thoughts are my own.

Nina Lejeune is in love with Ollie Dunne, but doesn’t want to admit it. She also doesn’t do commitment and that is non-negotiable. She just wants their relationship to remain how it is. But Oliver has had enough. . He’s tired of spinning his wheels with Nina- he feels it’s time to get serious or just move on. Oliver ups the pressure and takes back his old chef job on board the ‘Serendipity” yacht, where the couple also happen to be bunkmates, much to Nina’s irritation. Nina, has to decide what she wants and if she can truly open up again and take a chance on life and love. . But as their connection grows amidst chaotic guests and crew drama, could there be smooth sailing in their future?

Sarah Grunder Ruiz is a local author I’m excited to have discovered. Her rom coms with adventure backdrops are so easy to read and fall into, and I love her charming characters.

Luck and Last Resorts highlights a couple introduced in the first book. You don’t have to read the first book to appreciate this one, but I think you should because I was already charmed by them since I first “met” them. It also circles back to the first couple as well.

Grunder Ruiz is a master of witty banter. Ollie is a main character I think everyone will instantly love, and while Nina is a little prickly, she’s super relatable in many ways.

Second chance romances are always so hopeful. Rom com fans should know going in this one is more rom than com but the witty banter is always there. Overall, jump right in to these books. I’m certain you’ll love this author’s books if you enjoy the genre.

I received a gifted copy.

Second chance romance has been one of my favorite tropes for years and when I saw this cover I knew I had to read it. It was a quick and easy read and it was probably one of the best I've read in a very long time. Definitely reading more of Ruiz in the future!

Perfection. I love below deck & this series is making my heart so happy. Definitely an auto buy author now.

I loved how different from Love, Lists, and Fancy Ships this was. I really enjoyed the development of these characters and finally getting the backstory that was alluded to in the first book.

I loved Ollie in the first book and to see the relationship evolve between him and Nina was really lovely. The angst and unrequited but requited was was developed. While I felt the first book was more fun, this book had my heart and gut attached to it the whole time.

I absolutely enjoyed my time listening to Luck And Last Resorts by Sarah Grunder Ruiz. Apparently this is a companion book, but I haven't read the first book. You don't need to in order to be able to enjoy this one, although I imagine it enhances your experience. I do want to go back and listen to the first one though. Luck And Last Resorts is about Nina Lejune who is chief stewardess on the super yacht the Serendipity. She isn't one for commitments. An old lover, Ollie Dunne comes back into her life as the cook aboard the Serendipity after being gone for a year. He wants her to admit she loves him, or he'll go back to Ireland forever. As the story goes along, we see Nina and Ollie's love story and just why Nina doesn't get attached. 

Like I said, I LOVED my time with this book. Nina is interesting because she loves thrifting and board games. She clawed her way out of bad credit and debt that wasn't hers (that is such an interesting part of the story). Nina is also struggling with her best friend leaving the yacht employment industry. Things are changing for her. Oh and I love that she's so good at her job. And Ollie! What a complex, fascinating love interest. Ollie has a past of his own as well. I enjoyed how their stories played out and how it all ended. I also have to say, the audiobook of Luck And Last Resorts is perfectly narrated by Karissa Vacker. It is 9 hours and 21 minutes and such a joy to listen to. I will be back for more by Sarah Grunder Ruiz.

Sarah Grunder Ruiz is quickly becoming one of my favorites (she's already on my auto-buy list!) I really enjoyed Sarah's first novel, but Luck and Last Resorts was just ... mmm *chef's kiss* Another five star read for Sarah!!

I had to DNF this book. I got to about 20% and still wasn't sure what Nina and Ollie liked in each other. I needed more to believe in them as a couple. This mad me sad because I really enjoyed Nina in Love, Lists, and Fancy Ships.

Luck and Last Resorts is a second chance romance or maybe more accurately a "prolonged on-again/off-again friends-with-benefits over a decade" type situation. It sounds like a recipe for disaster in terms of what I do and don't like, trope-wise. It's angsty and messy. There's anger and an ultimatum, fear of commitment and the unknown. I ate it up. Like, I practically read it in one sitting, and it's been a while since that last happened.

The story follows Nina and Ollie. When Ollie shows up to chef one more season on the yacht Serendipity, Nina is surprised. She thought he was pursuing his dream at a restaurant in Miami, never to return to the job where they met. But Ollie tells her she has two options: she can stop running from what they have and pursue something real and official together. Or he's going home to Ireland instead of existing in a liminal zone where his devotion is kept at arm's length. Nina has loved Ollie since the beginning, but the thought of depending on another person and changing her status quo sends Nina into a panic. Through flashbacks, we learn the foundation of their feelings for one another. We get the tender moments and the lingering devastation. In the present, we get the broken pieces of fear and hope.

This book called up a LOT of big feelings, which I am now catching on is a bit of a trademark move for the author. Protagonist Nina struggles with the tension between moving on vs feeling safe. She slides into a fear spiral about the unknown even if what's coming could be good. Just know that it's ultimately a story about therapy and taking brave steps for yourself.

My main hangup was that the flashbacks work well, but it emphasizes the patterns of behavior and makes them more frustrating when compared side-by-side. It was kind of magical to see Nina and Ollie in the past, but it's always with the lurking knowledge that it will implode. Plus, it features a truly excruciating final-act breakup. It's necessary. It's powerful. And that's more than you can say for the more irritating examples in the genre. But it hurt my heart to read, and a part of me gave up hope for them even though I knew I'd been promised a happy ending.

So would I recommend this to anyone? 100%. Do I think I could reread it? No, I think it collided with me in a way I hope not to replicate. This author conveys feelings so well, and the shadowy ones hung on stronger than the shine of the happy ending for me. Thanks to Berkley for my copy to read and review! I look forward to whatever emotional devastation Sarah Grunder Ruiz has in store for me next.

I wish I would have picked this one up sooner because I adored it. I feel like I would really like the show Below Deck because I always get so wrapped up in books that involve yachts and large ships. There’s not nearly as much drama on this boat in the novel, but the lifestyle sucks me in.

Nina frustrated the hell out of me throughout the book. I wanted her to open her eyes and see how much she loved Ollie, but I also haven’t experienced the type of trauma she had and therefore trust issues.

Ollie though 🥰 good for him for being true to himself and putting his mental health first. I loved his storyline and personality a lot. I’m also very happy this wasn’t a miscommunication trope. He knew what he wanted, stated it, and stood by it. Such growth in writing lately 🙌🏼

This love story was one I didn’t want to put down and would recommend to those who enjoy ship settings, and friends to lovers tropes 💜

Thank you to @berkleyromance and @netgalley for the arc!

Going into this book, I hadn’t realized that it was the second book in this series. I wish I had read the first to hear more about Jo’s story but it was also great to meet and get to know Nina from her perspective. Nina is so afraid of commitment that she seems to constantly sabotage her relationship. There were so many moments that I wanted to sit her down for a talk about what she was putting poor Ollie through. I adored Ollie’s character and loved how this story was told through different timelines. Reading it in that way made it feel more layered and provided some fantastic surprises I didn’t expect. This was a book that I felt pulled into and I really enjoyed not only the love story, but also Nina’s growth throughout.

such a FUN read! just as her her first novel, i absolutely adored this one. something about travel romance that just hits at my heart strings.

I got to read this book for my local book club last year and really loved being able to meet the author, and spend time discussing this book with my friends. It's such a sweet rom-com with a dreamy setting, and I absolutely adored it. The one thing that kept my love for this book at bay was that our MC, Nina, was a challenging character to fall in love with and root for. She had selfish tendencies, and it made me not fully root for the romance, which was such a bummer! But, I really loved the setting, and felt that overall the hero and heroine had fabulous chemistry.

This was cute, but not one of my fav romances. I liked the MC enough but the romance fell a little flat for me. Enjoyable, but ultimately not super memorable.

This was a fun read, and I flew through the book super quickly. I loved the setting, and I genuinely learned so much about life working on a fancy ship. While I enjoyed it, I did find myself wanting more nuance and substance to the actual romance itself.

Ok, but this BOOK!! I was hooked on SGR’s writing by the beginning of her first book, But this one truly cemented my obsession. I love Nina and Ollie so much it hurts. The dual timeline was absolute perfection, and the angst nearly killed me in all the best ways. Nina's character growth was just so beautifully done, & Nina and Jo have the literal best friendship ever and I am entirely
obsessed with them! (if you love Leslie Knope, you will love Nina. Nina and Jo are basically Leslie and Ann and I feel like that's probably part of why I loved them so much, lol)

And the love story between Nina and Ollie 🥹 They angst and the lining had my heart absolutely aching for them. They went through so, so much to get where they are and I just want to hug my broken little babies so much.Plus the chapter 4 reveal had my head SPINNING! This story was done so beautifully well, and I can’t wait to see what comes next from Sarah!