Small caveat before the review: I understand a lot of Christine Riccio's following comes from her polandbananasBOOKS YouTube channel. I haven't watched any of her videos before, although my best friend is an avid fan, so please take any of my opinions with a grain of salt. I can't comment on whether Orie feels like a self-insert or not, and I'm not familiar with any of Christine's mannerisms, so I'm evaluating Attached at the Hip solely on whether it delivers on its promise of a Bachelor x Survivor YA rom-com or not.

Alright, onto the actual review now!

Attached at the Hip centers around 23 year old Orie, who is having an absolutely miserable series of days. She's a happily-ever-after enthusiast whose own "middle school sweethearts" romance fizzled out into nothingness, she's fighting with her sister over her codependency, and her parents' perfect facade may not be so perfect. So, naturally, when she sees a casting call for Survivor, her favorite show of all time, she takes the chance. Imagine her surprise when she becomes a contestant on a Survivor-style spinoff that promises to help her find her perfect match...while navigating twenty-four days marooned on an island. The premise of the show she's on, the titular Attached at the Hip, is simple: for 72 hours, two participants will be tethered together by rope and forced to compete in Survivor-style challenges, while getting to know each other in the hopes that romance will blossom. At the end, the last two standing will have a choice: split the money between them and get their Bachelor happy ending, or go full cutthroat and have America vote on the winner.

When Christine gives into the premise, it's loads of fun. I love the Survivor-style puzzle challenges she crafted and I love the strategy of Orie's alliance decisions. It felt very much like Survivor fanfic, but it a really good way. Most of these twists seem to be concentrated in the later half of the book, making that part a genuinely enjoyable read. But...everything else didn't quite captivate me.

I think it's because Orie never felt like a believable 23 year old. In her quirky mannerisms and overall immaturity, she reminded me more of a very young teen. In fact, I told my bestie (love you, Liv!) that it reads so much like an early 2000s Meg Cabot book, it's WILD. Orie wears polka-dot socks and yellow pants, wants to be called Piccadilly, and has endless discussions about how she will use the bathroom on the island. She jokes about her boobs in a bit that goes on FAR too long. She swoons over her potential love interests--there are two, Remy and Osprey--within five seconds of meeting them. She mixes up her words frequently. She uses exclamation points and all caps with wild abandon. Here and there, I found it charming, but (in the beginning especially), it went on so long that it turned--that dreaded phrase--cringeworthy.

There are also a lot of typos, which I am more than willing to excuse in an ARC, but I am hoping will be ironed out in the finished version. I still had a fun time, especially towards the end, but it doesn't feel like it hits either "rom" or "com," and instead straddles a strange line between them. Kind of like how Orie is technically New Adult age (she and Osprey have an entire conversation justifying whether she fits into YA, which feels like a hyperaware poke at how this book is categorized), but feels more like very young YA.

What I can say for Attached at the Hip is I was never bored. Frequently frustrated at Orie, yes. But never did I feel the urge to DNF. I think Riccio's writing fills that certain niche that Meg Cabot and Disney Channel Original Movies did for younger me; would I go back, as a 24 year old, and call those books and movies cringey? Probably.

So, Past Me and all readers like her, dive in. This one's not for Current Me, but someone out there is going to cherish this.

Thank you to NetGalley, Wednesday Books/St. Martin's Press, and Christine Riccio for gifting me this e-ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

5 marvellous stars!

I was very intrigued when I read the synopsis and I am very glad I was able to get my hands on this book. It'll be in my top books of 2024 for sure!

I loved the characters, the premise, the setting, the ending and literally everything else about this book. I read this over four days, I wanted to take my time with it as I was enjoying it so much. I enjoyed reading slowly while the whole thing played out in my mind.

If you're reading this, pick up this book! You won't regret it.

I'm pretty sure I see myself starting Survivor sometime in the near future!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing this book, with my honest review below.

Attached at the hip was a cute story overall, and I’d recommend it for those wanting a story that is easy to read but with enough intrigue to keep you hooked. While I loved Orie, I was really drawn to the premise and greatly enjoyed that. Orie is a bit of a Survivor nerd and after being accused of being co-dependent she signs up for a survivor like show that’s all about compatibility. Along the way you meet characters she has some form of compatibility with, and Orie struggles to know who is best for her heart.

I loved Orie’s journey to independence and the mystery in this, and I bet you will too! It reads a little YA and my best guess is that’s for to how Orie is presented initially, but this book definitely has some adult moments.

I can see why this book is being compared to The Bachelor but personally it wasn’t to my taste. It started off good but it was all kind of predictable.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this e-ARC.

I started this book and got maybe 25% in and put it down, I wasn’t a fan of the authors writing style nor the characters. I’m sad because I wanted to love this. I think I’m gonna give it some time and come back to it. I do not want to DNF it because I was enjoying the storyline. I guess it’s just not for me at the current moment. Will update when I come back to it.

2.5

This is hard because I enjoyed reading this, for the most part. I was engaged and loooved the reality game aspect of the book--I think it was some of the best parts of the story. I'm a Survivor fan. At the same time, UGH. There was so much that was, on a technical level, bad/cringy about this that it kept pulling me out of the story! Let's dig in. (Warning--some spoilery content in this review. But since this is an arc, I'm going to keep things rather vague.)

The self insertion
I remember self insert characters being a problem in Chrstine's first novel, Again, But Better which I read years ago when it came out. It was awkward the first time, especially since Christine has such a public persona, and it's even more awkward this time. Orie's character felt exactly like Christine. She's obsessed with books and movies, is wacky quirky, does yoga, wants to go abroad to London. What makes it EVEN worse is that Orie is... not likeable. It was hard for me to want to root for her! She wants people to call her... Piccadilly... WTF. Listen, me personally, yes I'm weird, I'm a weirdo, I don't fit in, but girl even this is too much for me.

The pop culture references
It was too much. Wayyyyyyy too much. Orie has Divergent and The Mortal Instruments tattooed on her back and the love interest RECOGNIZES them. Too much for me to process

The love interest(s)
Okay, this was honestly pretty interesting. There are two main guys on the island and we find out one of them is not exactly what he seems. I liked this deception but I think it also felt underdeveloped. At the end, there's nothing to wrap it up. Orie also calls him a "sociopath" multiple times which feels like a bit of an exaggeration, though I think the ideas of manipulation, gaslighting, and victimizing were very interesting and could've been explored a bit more. I feel like we also don't get a full picture of his motive. The other guy is a sweetheart and I liked him for the most part.

All caps
THE ALL CAPS IS CRAZZZYYY OVERBOARD. Got me jumping in bed. BOO
(I remember hearing in a video that Christine loves all caps despite it being untraditional in publishing. I honestly don't mind them used sparingly, at all, but they were on almost every page! It reduces the impact if you're just going to capitalize everything. Italics can have a similar effect.)

Fan fiction
I can't get over that this is essentially Survivor fan fiction. I mean, I'm down, I love Survivor, and this was a fun concept. But also, what makes this different from AO3 material?! Definitely agree with some other reviewers that the name "Survivor" just needs to be... removed.

Ok. The tribe has spoken.

Such a cute story!! Very YA! The MC was relatable in some ways which made the story a a little more enjoyable for me! Recommend as a summer time read for sure! Enjoyed this book! Great read!!

This was a cute young adult novel. I wish we could have had a little more character development so I could connect more with the MC. But overall super cute!

4/5 ⭐️

As a young teen I watched Christine Riccio religiously on booktube! It’s amazing to see her go from reader to writer and it’s even crazier for me to go from watching her videos to reading her works.

Attached at the hip is the perfect spring/summer/warm weather read. It’s a romcom in the best way. This book also has a great representation of learning to find, believe and trust in yourself.

If you have a beach trip planned soon pack this one to take! It’s the perfect “beach day read”

Its Survivor meets The Bachelor.

This is one of the best romcoms I have read in a while. It's Crack like how reality-based shows are. It had all the survivor vibes and structure with the drama and messy emotional tension of The Bachelor. I was so invested in who was going to win and who was in an alliance and all the bonds that formed.

Orie's inner monologue could be over dramatic and childish but after a couple chapters I didn't mind. I love how corky and ood she is. She's funny and clever in her comebacks. Her character ARC is authentic and I was able to relate to it.

I'll keep my mouth shut about the MMC but he's so loveable and real. And their banter is fire. A definite must read.

5/5 ⭐️
0/5 🌶️

I went into this book fairly blind. I knew that it was a young adult contemporary with a mix of Survivor and Bachelor in Paradise. I love both of these shows, and immediately lost myself in this story.

The main character, Orie, had a lot of unexpected character depth. I liked seeing her interactions with the other characters and liked how the time spent with each deepened the plot and individual character development.

I loved the twist about halfway into the book, and I wasn’t able to put it down after this point. I read this entire book in a 24 hour period, and I loved every single page of it.

I enjoyed how this book was young adult but the characters were older than the typical YA cast. It was nice to see characters have chemistry and passion without the book containing any open or closed-door spicy scenes.

My favorite quote from this book is “Isn’t that piece of advice kind of sexist in itself? Because women tend to look for romance, and dudes tend to be afraid of it for years, so we should pretend to be uncaring and aloof?”

This was my first book written by Riccio, and it definitely will not be my last. I can’t wait until Attached at the Hip is available because it is begging to be a part of my physical library. Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this advanced reader copy, I loved it!

Thank you for the e-arc
This book is like survivor but teetering on the YA/NA line, similar to Check And Mate. Oh yeah and some silly goofy romance. I didn't like this book very much because the main character was a quirky girl, the stereotypical not like the other girls.

this book was SOOOO cute!!,,! 4/5 ✰

this book follows Orie, who on a wim applies to be a contestant on her favourite show, ˗ˏˋSurvivor´ˎ˗ but with a twist! this was such an interesting concept and was so enjoyable to read. The plot was soooo fun and i’ve always imagined what it would be like being on shows like this and this book did a great job at making you feel invested! ˙✧˖°

Orie gets paired with her old highschool crush and we get to see them explore their relationship. Orie is such a delight to follow throughout this book. She is written so well and her fears, life-goals and feelings are so understandable and you can feel her emotions though the pages. She is our everyday classic book and moving loving girl and this book was FULL of book and movie references (orie having a divergent tattoo and loving percy jackson was so me coded). Watching her navigate through the show and learn to live her life was a delight to read. ALSO the twists had me going CRAZYYYY I couldn't make up my mind on who I should believe or trust, making me really feel as if I was on my own survivor/bachelor show ˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶

➳ The friendships Orie builds through this book are so refreshing and heartwarming. (spoiler but i love how they all supported her at the end) OSPREY had my whole heart and definitely quickly became my favourite character ˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡˚ they way they bonded was so genuine and made me SO happy for her. The love you can feel through the friendships and relationships is so beautiful and quickly makes you feel connected with the characters. definitely pick this book up as soon as it comes out!!

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!!!

While it took me a few chapters to warm up to Orie as a character, the more I read the more I fell in love with her! Ive personally never watched Survivor but I may have to start if it’s half as intriguing as Attached at the Hip. Even though she couldn’t hear me, I caught myself yelling to Orie “don’t trust that man” whenever I was reading her confessionals. It is always so much fun when a book elicits an out loud reaction from me.

I also adored the inclusion of LGBT folks on the island, something the dating reality TV scene rarely ever does.

(I docked a half star for some spelling errors which I found rather distracting while reading. Due to this I have rated the book 4 stars here)

*thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

What a delightful read!! I had the best time reading this book! this was such a fun and entertaining read and I enjoyed it immensely! I definitely recommend this if you are up for a great read!You won't be disappointed! 5 stars!!

This is the first book I’ve read by Christine Riccio, but I’ve followed her on social media for awhile now and will be picking up another of her books shortly to read. This book was a quick, humorous read.

As someone who loves reality tv, I loved the premise of this book. Orie the main character was easy to connect with, although I do agree with other readers that at times she says random things that can be annoying. I still enjoyed the book and the back and forth between her and her high school crush, Remy. I would compare this to a funny Survivor-ish read with the highlight grind the confessional portions when we get to hear what other characters in the book are thinking while on the reality show.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I wasn't sure if this book was going to be for me but I actually enjoyed it. HAE at the end but it was a great story although the main character made me a little crazy. I'm glad she finally started to take control of her life but it would have been better if she had started a little sooner. I enjoyed the story and it was a nice read. Haven't read the author before but it was realistic and entertaining.

I don't watch (and never have) reality tv shows of any sort, but let me tell you, this book kind of made me think I should start? I was SO sucked in and didn't want to put it down! What a fun premise for a book, and it was very well executed. I don't want to say too much about the ending, but Riccio really made me care about the characters and I was super bummed with one character's arc (and I'm still not entirely sure I understand the motivation/why behind that character's actions, tbh). This was a fun read-- add it to your summer TBR.

A quick summary of this book, The story follows Orie, the younger sister in the LennoxSisters AcroYoga duo, dealing with attachment, family issues, and a survior-ish dating experiment. While the survivor themes are okay, the romance unwhelming. Fans of survivor, psychological thrillers, or YA romance might enjoy this book. It does a decent good in exploring complex relationships and mind games, hinting at the author's potential in the mystery/thriller genre.
Thank you Christine Riccio and NetGalley for letting me read this book.

I really love the aspect of this novel! When reading this book it feels like watching a Reality Show. This type of show that the author created was so fun to read. I really related to the FMC since the start bc I hate being alone too and when I started reading books, it gave me the confidence to go out and make friends and hopefully love like she did.