Love Overboard by Ada Barume

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to NetGalley and Avon and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Blurb

The course of true love never did sail smooth. . .

Things on this yacht are about to get rocky…

When feisty chef Sophia and strait-laced first officer Jack are thrown together as the crew for a luxury yacht on the beautiful Amalfi Coast, it’s anything but smooth sailing. And after their first interactions end with one very soggy first officer and an all-out battle over strawberries, they vow to give one another a wide berth for the remainder of the season.

But even on a 154-foot yacht, space is tight – and, try as they might, Sophia and Jack are thrown together time and again. And when disaster strikes for their wealthiest guests, the pair are forced to put aside their rocky start for the good of the charter.

As the tides begin to turn, Sophia and Jack discover that they might just have more in common than they first thought. And maybe, just maybe, Jack might be the starboard to Sophia’s port . . .

After all, the most skilled sailors know that when the waters don’t run smooth, you simply need to chart a new course . . .

My Opinion

Love Overboard was a fun read that I managed to read in one sitting. Love Overboard would make for a good holiday read. A light-hearted read.

Rating 4/5

mention of a luxury yacht cruising the Amalfi Coast, Love Overboard by Ada Barumé might be the escapist romance you’re looking for—though not without some choppy seas along the way.

The story follows Sofia, a talented chef escaping the wreckage of a toxic relationship, as she joins the crew of a high-end chartered yacht. What she doesn’t expect is to clash immediately with the yacht’s First Officer, Jack—a man whose brooding demeanour and strict professionalism are no match for Sofia’s fire and independence. The two share undeniable chemistry, but their banter often feels more exhausting than electric, and emotional depth is sometimes lost beneath the surface of snark.

There’s a lot to love about the setting. Barumé delivers on atmosphere: from mouthwatering culinary moments to the stunning Mediterranean backdrop, it’s easy to get swept away in the glossy world of crew drama, extravagant guests, and steamy romances in tight quarters. The novel reads like a summer soap—messy, dramatic, and full of romantic tension. It’s not hard to imagine this as an episode or two of a reality TV binge.

However, where Love Overboard shines in setting, it struggles in character development. Both Sofia and Jack feel undercooked in places, with emotional arcs that lack the weight to justify their “true love” after just a couple of weeks. The late switch to Jack’s perspective—used sparingly—feels more like a missed opportunity than a meaningful twist. Several side characters had compelling stories that could’ve added richer layers if given more attention, particularly the hinted-at dynamic between Jack and fellow crewmember Patricio.

While the romance may not leave you fully convinced, the novel still offers enough flair to keep readers entertained. It's an easy, fast-paced read—perfect for a beach day or a weekend escape. If Barumé tightens the emotional plotting in future books, she could very well be a strong new voice in yacht-lit (yes, we’re calling it that now).

I received this book for free for an honest review from netgalley.
Great book for vacation or at home when you get that trouble itch.

I enjoyed the story, it was a fun read and fit the marketing. I did think it was a bit of a rushed narrative, and I have read other similar books that were more entertaining.

DNF @ 45%

Of late, I usually try to wait until about 60% to DNF a book, but since I keep putting off actually picking up this book and end up putting it down near instantaneously after attempting to read it again, I think I need to just recognize that I’d be putting myself through a horrible slog of a time if I just kept trying.

As far as <i>Love Overboard</i> is concerned, I think the biggest piece for why I just couldn’t keep going is that the pacing is just so bad. I was <i>constantly</i> bored with everything happening, from the present moments to the flashbacks. And unfortunately none of the characters were grabbing or engaging enough; I just didn’t care about anyone except, perhaps almost, the two leads. But therein lies the problem because, despite their fun dynamic, they’re not even spending a ton of time together. As a result, everything just dragged on and on and on. Even liking the two of them a little bit couldn’t exactly save this for me, which is such a shame because I was really looking forward to reading this book.

Anyway, I think I’m going to just stop here. Maybe I’ll come back to it someday because I don’t think that the premise or the main characters were terrible—their story was just, unfortunately, interspersed sporadically between a bunch of exceedingly dull events and characters.

Der Liebesroman erzählt die Geschichte von Sophia, einer aufstrebenden englischen Köchin. Sie verlässt ihren erfolgreichen Job, um als Chefköchin auf der Luxusyacht "Lady Ixchil" zu arbeiten. Dort trifft sie auf Jack, den ersten Offizier, mit dem sie von Anfang an aneinandergerät. Trotz ihrer Bemühungen, einander aus dem Weg zu gehen, zwingt die Enge der Yacht sie immer wieder zur Zusammenarbeit. Während sie gemeinsam Herausforderungen meistern, beginnt Sophia zu erkennen, dass hinter Jacks grimmiger Fassade mehr steckt, als sie zunächst dachte.​

Besonders gefallen haben mir die Beschreibungen der Schauplätze entlang der Amalfiküste und die Darstellung des Lebens an Bord einer Luxusyacht. Insgesamt bietet "Love Overboard" eine leichte Lektüre für Fans von Liebesromanen mit maritimem Flair, auch wenn es in der Tiefe der Charaktere und der Originalität der Handlung ein paar Schwächen aufweist.

Below Deck is my guilty pleasure. This book follows Sophia’s journey, narrated mostly in third person, with occasional flashbacks to her past. Later, there’s a shift to Jack’s perspective, which disrupts the story’s flow. The jumps between timelines are a bit jarring and could have been smoother.

Sophia, the heroine, is often frustrating—she's quick to judge, overreacts, and makes some questionable decisions, like throwing wine at a stranger or drinking despite knowing she can’t handle alcohol. Jack isn’t exactly perfect either, coming off as grumpy and overbearing at times. Some side characters act strangely, alternating between being friendly and rude for no clear reason, which felt inconsistent. Overall, while the story had potential, the pacing issues and character behavior made it difficult to fully connect with the plot.

This had a very sellable premise - the Below Deck hook really worked on me, but unfortunately I didn't find the romance to be believable at all. I just don't think I'm a fan of insta-love.

This was a lighthearted romance read that is set on the high seas.
Sofia and Jack are a hate to love story that is sweet, funny and enjoyable.
It was a little slow paced in places but it was a nice easy read that I enjoyed.

As someone who loves the show Below Deck, this was a cute read. It had the drama and the romance. Definitely a quick read and the audio was good. I liked the characters but of course the misunderstanding and miscommunication trope is never my favorite but still cute.

I really wanted to love this one because I love workplace romances and yachtie stories. But the slow start and miscommunication turned me off a bit.

This was good but I did feel as though it could have more of a fast-paced to the book full stop the main characters are interesting but I just could not really get into their love story. Another one of those books where the side characters were more interesting.

I found this book quite boring which was quite disappointing as I was really exited to read this, I found no real bond between the two characters and the romance started way to late for a romance book.

This is a cute romcom perfect for summer beach reads with the travelling vibes.
Do not read this on an empty stomach, though. There is so much food chat that you will have a rumbling stomach after!
I really enjoyed learning a little about the crew life on the yacht, and the scenery sounded incredible.
There were some really touching moments between all of the characters, and also some really funny one-liners.
It's a really quick and easy read. I finished it in 2 days.
There's a couple of explicit scenes, and they were really well done.
I'd recommend this to fans of summertime romances. I look forward to reading more by this author in the future.

Well this is just a delightful read - light-hearted and fun, some romance too.. Lovely descriptions of food, set in the Amalfi Coast. Pure escapism.

dnf 23%
i received this book as an arc from netgalley. i have to be honest, i was adamant that i wouldn’t dnf this book (and i have wanted to since the first chapter) because its an arc and i wanted to be able to give a well rounded review but i just got so frustrated with our main character and the story in general that i just had to give up.
There’s a massive theme of “the older you are the wiser you are” and that age = maturity which just isn’t true and it felt a little bit like it was being used to belittle other characters in the fmc’s mind. this is especially concerning because, despite the fact that she is 27 years old, she acts like a teenager, which she acknowledges, and then continues to act in the same way?!
The main reason i got so frustrated was because our main character was acting beyond rude to who is supposed to be the main love interest. she is immediately stand offish towards him when they first meet and even though they have to work together in close quarters, they do nothing to remedy the fact that they are both quite hostile to each other.
to end this on a positive note, this book does have short chapters and is quite easy to read and get through.
- Thankyou Netgalley and Avon Books UK for the e-arc! -

thank you so much Netgalley for this ARC.

I was really looking forward to read this book but unfortunately i dont have anytime, so therefore i couldn't give any review or thoughts about this book, but i hope this book is as good as i expecting.

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

I was hoping I would love this book but it just didn’t sit right with me and I could absorb myself completely. This wasn’t for me!

This was a fun book, although not one I would select to reread. It had a promising premise, and the execution was a solid passing grade. 💖