3.5/5, rounded up to 4

thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

to start, this story did cover some heavy topics, so definitely look out for TW’s!

onto the actual story— Fly With Me is a debut novel by author Andie Burke and centers Olive and Stella as they both cross paths in what is Olive’s nightmare scenario but Stella’s favorite thing in the world, an airplane! they’re both going through extremely difficult familial situations at the time which are central points in the story, but do not detract from the fluffy love plot!! im not entirely keen on fake dating plots and while that did take away a couple of points for me, olive and stella were overall a really great pairing and there was so much development between the two that made their relationship and eventual falling for each other seem so plausible!

a couple isses-
1. stella was SUCH a piece of token representation from a white author it fell really flat. so, if you’re going into this looking for latine rep, you’re much better off reading a book written by a latine author who can give justice to the character.
2. this should’ve been dual POV!!!!!! stella was really hard to read at times and I think the story would’ve benefitted so much from hearing what’s going on inside of her head and to better understand her hesitancies re:relationships
3. olive’s family issues felt like such a loose end and there was absolutely no resolution there that i felt like I was waiting for! not necessarily making up, but at least seeing olive find some peace within the turmoil

overall, this story was really solid for me!! i enjoyed reading it and found myself consistently going back to read more, I was excited to keep learning about stella and olive. i recommend this for anyone looking for a sapphic romance!!! this is such a solid debut novel :)

What a wondeful debut novel from Andie Burke!

Fly with Me is so much more than a sapphic, romantic story between Olive and Stella. It deals with heavy topics such as mental health issues, complicated medical decisions, societal opinions, and a lot more.

***SPOILERS***

To be a little more specific about the heavy topics, this deals with specific medical issues such as traumatic brain injury (TBI) and Parkinson's. Olive's brother Jake suffered from TBI after saving a kid from getting hit by a car and despite best efforts by the medical team, he's in a vegetative state. Because of this, Olive and her deeply religious mom are in conflict- pull the plug or wait for a miracle? This has created such a divide with Olive and her family as they treat her as the enemy as she wants to let him pass peacefully. As someone who works as a nurse like Burke, I've seen this happen too many times (especially during the pandemic). Stella on the other hand is dealing with her dad who's suffering from Parkinson's and its progression. This is also such a debilitating disease and would require a lot of care and attention which she really can't fully be there 100% of the time due to her job- hire more help or have him stay at a facility for 24/7 care? There's always that guilt, of course.

Other parts that I also liked include:
- DEREK
- Sibling love between Jake and Olive (the of the Jake's list made me a little teary-eyed ngl)

What I wished got explored further:
- Stella's feelings for Olive- I was still wishy-washy about her true feelings until the last couple of chapters... this book would've definitely benefitted from a dual POV.

READ THIS if you like:
- nurse and pilot MCs
- fake dating
- forced proximity
- spice!
- awesome best friend

Some TW include:
- mental health issues- panic attacks, anxiety, depression
- medical issues- tbi, parkinson's, end of life discussion, quality of life
- OW drama (toxic ex-gf)
- family conflict
- death of a loved one
- fear of heights

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This isn’t just a delightful fake dating turned-love story, but one about complex women navigating complicated families and tragedy. As their friendship develops, despite their electric chemistry and palpable attraction, it becomes clear that their resistance to their own happiness is fear based on previous wounds and current obligations. You find yourself not only cheering for them to finally admit their feelings, but to lean on each other as they process their grief. This book is funny, sexy, and while at times heartbreaking, ultimately a beautiful story about letting yourself live a joy-filled life with the person you love.

Setting: Maryland
Rep: bisexual protagonist; sapphic Latina love interest

This was very middle of the road for me. It was fine, nothing more. I did find myself getting bored at times and I wasn't that convinced of the connection between Stella and the protagonist (I finished this evening and have already forgotten her name). Also, the Lindsey subplot felt totally ridiculous and over the top and also it didn't go anywhere? Everything seemed to just fizzle out? Very underwhelming end. I felt like none of the subplots had much closure. As I write this I realise my rating is dropping down to a 2 as actually there wasn't much, if anything, that stood out to me or that I liked. Also, the Latina rep felt very flat. I had no idea Stella was Latina until she literally used the word to describe herself, and the only other mention was her dad calling her mija and her referring to her abuela. It felt like very flat 2D rep.

I received this arc in exchange for an honest review.

This started off great and I was super into it. I loved Stella and Olive, and I’m a sucker for the fake dating trope. Olive has some huge family issues and it’s dragged out so much (you don’t get the full story until the end) that it made me enjoy the romance less. It had a lot of heavy content and was open and honest about mental health, which I loved, but for me to enjoy the romance more I think having chapters from Stella’s pov would’ve immersed me back in. I didn’t care about the ending, it felt rushed. And I didn’t like that we got zero closure with the family. I don’t think this was for me, but maybe others will enjoy it! I did love the pop culture references and queer love and just Stella and olive in general.

Andie Burke's debut brings as much heat and heart as I'd hoped! Olive and Stella are each such wonderfully unique individuals. Their individual struggles with their families and careers make them that much more dimensional and real. Their love story feels honest and realistic. Burke takes a well known trope––fake dating––and makes it new and fresh again. Can't wait for the next one!!!

It was a very sweet story. I was hooked very quickly and really enjoyed reading it. I could have done with a little less of the crazy ex. I also wish there had maybe been a little more resolution with Olive’s family after all of the focus on them, but families can’t always find each other again after hard times. Overall, I would recommend! Great debut!

DRC provided by St. Martin's Press, St. Martin's Griffin via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Fly with Me is an effervescent young adult debut novel that will catch the heart of more than one reader.

This book started out strong for me and pulled me in immediately. The story itself was entertaining, and the characters were fleshed out really well. I liked the people I was supposed to like and didn't like the ones I wasn't supposed to like. There were so many things going on in the story - Olive's fear of flying, the issues with her brother and the rest of her family, her job, and her ex. The same goes for Stella - her career and her father, meaning there were opportunities to amp up the story along the way. The author did this well.

I have to admit that once the story moved to the "fake girlfriend" portion, I lost a little bit of interest. It just felt long and drawn out, but overall, it was a satisfying read. I did find some errors, but I'm hoping that's because this was an ARC copy.

A nice and cute sapphic romance. Really appreciated the characters, however a little too fast-paced for my liking.
It is a fun, quick and easy to read novel.
Looking forward to Andie Burkes next storys!

Thanks for NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review,

Thank you so St. Martin's Press for the ARC of this book! This book kept breaking my heart and patching it up and breaking it again. What Olive has to go through with her family is devastating and horrible and I just want to yell at her family and tell them to stop hurting her so much, And Stella suffering in silence trying and trying to be the best and make her father proud and be the good daughter and take care of him is admirable and crushing and made me fall in love with her right alongside Olive. Also their chemistry is insane and the connection in their intimate scenes is unmatched. I was taken off guard and so pleasantly surprised by this one.

This book started with an adorable meet cute between a pilot and a nurse who ends up saving a fellow passenger on the flight. As I learned more about the characters, I really appreciated how relatable they were--each had their own clear flaws and baggage. However, as the book unfolded, I realized the major hook was actually a fake dating trope. I realize I am quite biased because I'm really not a fan of this trope, but I actually think the book would have been much stronger without it! The main characters were juggling a parent struggling with age-related illness, a brother who was on life support (and a family who wanted to keep him on it indefinitely, waiting for a miracle cure), seeking a promotion in an industry known for sexism, and a mildly emotionally abusive ex. I really think we didn't need a troupe to hook us--these challenging situations offer so much opportunity for miscommunication and conflict and if the author had leaned into that, I think the character's relationship would have been much stronger and the book would have felt less over-the-top dramatic. Still, plenty of folks read to enjoy the drama so I recognize this one just might not have been in my wheelhouse.

Thank you to publisher for providing a digital ARC.

This book was such a cute Sapphic romcom with engaging characters. Both MC's are fleshed out and real and I may have cried a little every time Olive talked about her brother.

There are only two problems I have with this book, both purely personal preference. The first is that I do not enjoy when an ex's personality trait is that they're obsessed with the MC. I wish there was a little but more to the character, but I do understand that this happens in real toxic relationships.

Second, I thought Stella's decision at the end was a little sudden. Her arc seemed weaker than Olive's, but that could just be because it's written through Olive's perspective.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and read it in like, a day. Would recommend!

3.5 Stars Fly with Me by Annie Burke was a surprisingly emotional, but heartfelt opposites-attract sapphic romance. ER nurse Olive Murphy is afraid of flying and during her very first flight to Orlando, she saves a man during an in-flight medical emergency. The man happens to be a popular character actor who plays Mickey Mouse at Disney and the video of Olive saving him goes viral. The plane is diverted to another airport and Olive is stuck and most likely will miss running in a Disney half-marathon in honor of her brother. Luckily, the co-pilot, Stella Soriano, offers to drive Olive all the way to Disney so she doesn’t miss the race. After spending more time together and getting along surprisingly well for two very different people, Stella proposes that she and Olive fake date. Stella needs more attention from her airline if she’s going to make captain, which she desperately wants to do before her sick father passes. Olive sees the arrangement as a way to get closer to Stella and hopes to turn the fake relationship into a real one, so she agrees. The two grow closer through their ruse and it becomes hard to decipher what’s real and what’s fake.

This was a very enjoyable and surprisingly quick read. I wasn’t expecting the heavier topics around caregiving and end-of-life care and decisions that both Stella and Olive had to consider for their loved ones. I wish that Olive would have been able to reconcile with her family, but her friend Morgan was right, some people never get over the changes that grief and loss bring. It was heartbreaking to read nonetheless. Also, the miscommunication and withholding of feelings between the main characters drove me crazy at times. They both were inconsistent and hurt the other person by not being honest about what they were feeling or what they wanted from the other. Overall, I liked the story and the characters.

3.5 stars! This was a cute, sapphic romance that covered on some heavier topics around mental illness and caregiving for a loved one (called out by the author’s note in the beginning as well!). I loved the relationship between the two main characters, but felt the ending was a bit rushed and wanted a bit more depth with the supporting characters. Overall definitely still worth a read though!

Fly with Me is a sweet romance following an ER nurse and a pilot. I think my issues with it are more about my problems with romances in general rather than this book. I don't enjoy romances as much as I used to and I think books read too self-aware for my personal tastes. A lot of romances read like YA to me which I personally do not enjoy. This book had a lot of external references that might've been more enjoyable if I was more aware of popular culture and a lot of phrases that took me out of the reading experience. The good about this one was the characters. I thought Olive and Stella were believable as people and enough of the side characters felt well developed to matter. The structure of the plot didn't bother me and buying into the fake dating excuse was easy since it was incredibly obvious from the first two chapters that they were both pining. The author handled a lot of heavy topics well and I did like both of the leads, but sometimes it felt like there was so much going on that it was hard to feel committed to each plot line. The bad, for me, was the writing style. I don't personally enjoy a self-referential style and a lot of details were over-explained. The "villains" were cartoonish in their cruelty, while I believe that there's a lot of horrible people in the world, I don't enjoy reading books where characters are so flat that they're either the scum of the earth or amazing people. The ex-girlfriend was overkill and I felt like her plot didn't really affect the rest of the story or add anything to it. The sex scenes didn't work for me, but that's just personal taste, it felt like too many thesaurus words: "probed her deep places", etc. I probably wouldn't have finished this book if I wasn't gifted an early copy, but I do want to make it clear that I think this is mostly a personal taste issue and I think a lot of people would enjoy reading this if they wanted a sweet, straight-forward, and heartwarming story.

What an enjoyable read! Fly With Me was a treat from beginning to end. Andie Burke did a wonderful job of tackling heavy storylines with levity and subtle jabs at classic romance tropes. What I enjoyed most was the chats of characters. I wish we had more moments with some, such as Stella’s dad Hector, or even Joni. Overall though. Fly With Me is a delightful book. Do yourself a favor and pick it up asap

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC

Oh I loved this! It’s one of those books where I could have read another 300 pages. I couldn’t get enough of the characters.

Stella & Olive were absolutely perfect together. I’m a sucker for the fake dating trope and this one was done so well. I really enjoyed seeing the two get to know each other. They had lots of sweet moments and the romance felt so realistic. I wish we would have got some chapters from Stella’s POV. I would have loved to know what she was thinking all throughout the book.

Both characters have a lot of heavy things going on in their lives. Stella is taking care of her dad after his Parkinson’s diagnosis. I loved the bond that they had. Olive is dealing with family struggles after her brother’s accident. I was so mad at how they were treating her. She was trying to what was best for her brother and they completely ignored that. While Olive did get some closure, I was really hoping that she’d stand up for herself a little more.

Fly With Me also focuses on fear. It’s something that Olive struggles with and I related to her because of it. She learns that fear can be helpful at times but it can also stop you from chasing your dreams.

This was such a fun read but an emotional one too. I cannot wait to see what Andie Burke writes next!

4.75 / 5 stars
I COULD NOT PUT THIS BOOK DOWN! I have said this for many other books, but it is especially true for this one. It took me under 12 hours to read the whole thing and when I had to stop, I couldn't wait to pick it up again. Stella and Olive's chemistry was great and I was left wanting more! I love a good fake relationship trope and this one definitely fulfills everything I look for.

This is more of a personal preference, but I would have liked to have seen Stella's perspective. Seeing her job as a pilot and all the things she had to deal with at work. I would have also liked to have seen some more resolution with Olive and her family, it was such an important piece to her story/character.

This was very nice. Sweet. An easy read-prose wise. I’m not a fan of the fake dating trope, but I actually thought it was handed well—for once I understood why someone would propose something so ridiculous, though crush or no crush I still didn’t buy that the other person would accept this proposal. Still, any struggles I had with the book were more on the subjective side. Olive’s family issues were very heavy, and it didn’t help that it didn’t really feel like Olive took much action against it.
She just let herself be railroaded and mistreated by everyone in her life. While I have anxiety and find someone of that relatable, it was hard to bear just how passive Olive is. She doesn’t fight for herself, she doesn’t fight for her brother, she doesn’t fight for Stella. She is so helpless, to the end, that there is just no forward momentum, and no catharsis, despite the HEA. It really made the story drag for me, and even some of the sweet, romantic moments sort of lost my attention because of it.