"More Than Shipmates" by Philippa Young follows the story of Eliza Chapman, who has always felt like she's fallen short in various aspects of her life. From failing to get into drama school to struggling to maintain relationships, Eliza's self-esteem has taken a hit. However, when she lands a job as an entertainment host on a Caribbean cruise, she sees it as an opportunity for a fresh start.

Determined to focus solely on her career and avoid any romantic entanglements, Eliza pledges to stay away from men during her time on the cruise. But her resolve is put to the test when she finds herself drawn to two intriguing colleagues: the cheeky American Tom and the charming Brit Oscar. As the lines between professionalism and personal feelings blur, Eliza must navigate the challenges of romance in the midst of her new job.

"More Than Shipmates" promises to deliver a tension-fueled, steamy romantic comedy with multiple points of view, offering readers a story of fresh starts, self-discovery, and learning to open oneself up to love.

This was everything I didn't know I needed in a book! I loved the writing style, it felt fun, easy to read and definitely kept me hooked. Characters and storyline were brilliantly written, with some real laugh out loud moment and some great spice too. Brilliant summer read.

I’m an idiot for not reading this sooner. It was brilliant. I absolutely loved the style of writing. It kept me engaged the whole time, and when I wasn’t reading it I was thinking about it.

The character growth from all was written so well. I loved how they all helped each other grow.

My only complaint is the constant self doubt from the main characters. After finishing I understand and appreciate the need for it but at the time I found it a little annoying.

Everything else was fab, and I can’t wait for the next instalment!!!

3.5 stars. Thank you to Netgalley and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for this E-ARC. I could not handle the build up in this book. I was here just screaming just do it with someone already I dont care who. All that sexual tension just made me feel like a teenager again and I was not mad at it. I loved all the characters I enjoyed seeing the growth in them and cant wait for the next book

This book was light hearted and fun. It was funny and had some great parts. However, there was something about the writing style that I found it hard to connect with, which made it hard to get through. I would recommend this book to whoever loves quick, light hearted spicy rom coms.

"...whatever you pick, you need to make sure it's the right decision for you and your future, not his."

Thank you to NetGalley and Summer Stars Publishing Limited for sending me an advanced reader's copy of More than Shipmates by Philippa Young. All thoughts that follow are my own.

More than Shipmates is about a woman named Elizabeth who is currently reeling after being rejected from her top three choices for drama school, betrayed by her friends, and cheated on by her boyfriend and looking for a fresh start by accepting a job on a cruise ship as an entertainment host.

This book was very weird in several ways. The characters seemed very immature for their age in terms of how they handled problems within their relationships. I also felt as if the romances between the characters were developed way too quickly. Eliza and Tom didn't have much interaction for the first bit of the story but then the reader gets to the first chapter of Tom's POV and he is almost creepily in love with her. Oscar and Eliza grew a bit more organically and didn't feel as forced but Eliza needed to grow up a little bit and learn how to let things go. The author tried to tackle a lot of serious issues in this book and I don't think she succeeded because they all felt the same, from something as simple as feeling betrayed by your friends to grieving a death within a family. It was also hard to keep up with the pacing of this book. It just felt like everything was moving from day to day and then suddenly it was Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. The pacing just felt way off. When I read that the book was set on a cruise ship, I was so excited because I was hoping for descriptive scenes of being on a ship as well as the excursions but the excursions were rushed over and the only areas the reader saw were the crew bar and the crew cabins. Everything else was very lackluster. One of the things that bothered me the most was that by the end of a book that was way too long for a romance novel, everything was finally looking up for Eliza and she was willing to give up everything she wanted for a guy.

I also expected this book to be a little less explicit. I've read steamy books previously but none to this extent. The games they were playing in their spare time and the sex scenes between the characters made me blush at some points but that's just my own personal opinion.

Overall, I would recommend this book to people who like the Below Deck show and super steamy romance novels. 2/5 stars overall.

Love triangle, on a cruise, forced proximity, AND spicy??? The perfect combination of tropes. This book follows Eliza after several failures in London. She decides to get on a cruise and work as entertainment staff. There she meets two handsome coworkers creating a tense and hot love triangle.
This book was so fun and the best time to read. This debut novel leaves you wanting more and I am so invested I cannot wait for the next book. 4 stars for me!!

My first cruise ship setting was everything I didn’t know I wanted! Eliza feels like she’s out of career options and with “nothing left at home”, she signs up to be on the entertainment team of a cruise ship. She meets new friends onboard the ship, including Tom and Oscar. It doesn’t take long for the closeness on the ship to take effect and spark a little love triangle!

I absolutely devoured this book! I’m a sucker for a cruise (I even booked one halfway through reading this 🫠) and it was the perfect summer read. The multiple POVs was so fun and written really well, giving you a more in depth understanding of all the characters and their true feelings. And the spice?! Chef’s kiss 💋🌶️ check in with me when you get to the truth-or-dare scene cause that had me in a chokehold! All in all, I clearly loved this book and think everyone should read it!

Thank you NetGalley for a copy in exchange for an honest review 🫶🏼

Such an enjoyable read!! I really liked this book and was so happy I was given the opportunity to read it here at netgalley. Made me laugh out loud multiple times.

I was initially given this as an ARC by @netgalley (TYSM 🫶🏼) but for some reason, I just never got round to reading it. Then I recently saw Philippa announced the second book in the series so I knew it was time and I can’t believe I didn’t read it sooner!

This book was so much fun. It’s a steamy but sweet workplace romcom set on a cruise ship. The forced proximity tension, chemistry and banter was perfection. The games and activities they participated in had me laughing out loud and gave me major Below Deck vibes with all of the mischief they got up to with the guests being blissfully unaware.

➡️ Swipe to read the dedication in this book which I knew instantly meant we were in for a wild steamy ride and I LOVED that it had its own playlist!

It was just a perfect sexy, fun summer read and I can’t wait for the next one ‘More Than Clickbait’.

The subtitled said steamy, but from the cute cover this was maybe just too much for my personal tastes. From the cute cover I imagined it'd be less explicit. Just my personal preference.

More than Shipmates when I saw this as an option I instantly got Below Deck vibes.
This book made me laugh out loud so many times! The character building in this book was spot on! Every character was so enjoyable to read about and I loved each of them!
The love triangle! I was rooting so hard for Tom but I knew that I would have picked Oscar too!

A really cute read. I could not put this one down. I adored Pippa's writing, and Eliza was a really fun main female character. This was the first love triangle book I've read in a while, and I really enjoyed it.

This was just not it for me. The crazy love triangles happening and the back and forth with each other, it all just get really immature and awkward. I wanted to love it. The spicy parts were fun and good but overall the story itself and the characters left me not wanting to continue with the book.

More Than Shipmates captivated my attention. I fell in love with the characters and the setting, their emotions filling me. I absolutely loved this book!

Whoa. Had a totally different picture in my head about this book in comparison to how it was actually executed. This book was all over the place and so immature and a love triangle without the triangle… and it was just a no for me. I stuck through, thinking maybe it’ll get much better, but it got much worse. Just not my cup of tea based on how they do it all and still thrive and survive! Not for me. Thanks for the opportunity to read.

This book was so fun to read. However I did love the love triangle plot, I think it could have done without. Tom seemed like a great friend but he didn't really make sense to me as a love interest.

If you are a fan of the Below Deck series on Bravo, this book will strike a similar chord. A solid choice as a summer beach (or cruise) read.

3,5 ⭐️

I loved all the nautical vibes of this book so much. Ship life seems like something everyone needs to experience once in their life. I also appreciated the plot, but the characters, mainly Eliza, were just a tad bit too immature for my taste. The spice was very well done, though sometimes a bit too much. My cheeks reddened when I read about some of the games they played.

Overall, a quick nice romance, with a very nice and entertaining setting! 🛳️

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for a review ♥️

This is a great debut novel. This book was so much fun. I picked it up because I was in the midst of binging some Below Deck and the cover had some of the same vibes. If you are a fan of Below Deck, this book is for you! Characters are all professional with the guests and then when it’s just the ship’s crew, things get a little wild. Eliza has committed to a six month contract to be an entertainment crew member. They are sailing in the Caribbean. She meets Tom and Oscar, who are both hot…along with everyone else on the ship. But Eliza is pretty determined not to mix work and play. However, it is almost impossible not to get sucked into some naughty games that involve kissing, groping and ultimately more.

The story made you feel like you were right there with the characters. There is a definite love triangle, lots of drama and spice. Eliza had good, but different, chemistry with both Tom and Oscar. This book pairs well with a glass of wine and a fan. It’s fun and a perfect romantic escape. There is some self-discovery on the way and some good friendships are made. I like the author’s extras - a great Spotify list, an amazing cover and fun merch on her website. I hope there is a book 2 of this high seas adventure. Pick this book up now!
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3LOgdCRTLXuHeAJ2kL6Ubd?si=6322b1784bf1418f