Crash Landing was funny, tender, and just the right amount of messy. The characters felt real, the romance was swoony, and the emotional beats hit in all the right places. I adored it.

I went into this one very excited, two exes stranded on a deserted island… yes, please! However, it didn’t really live up to my expectations. It was a fun quick read, but if there’s a trope that I absolutely loathe it is the miscommunication trope. And the basis of this love story was exactly that, miscommunication. I also felt a bit disconnected from the characters and found their chemistry lacking. I felt they had much more chemistry in the flashbacks of their high school relationship than during their present rekindling in the island. The ending was satisfactory, but it was just as expected. The story did keep me entertained though, and if you don’t have an issue with the miscommunication trope then give this one a try.


*Thank you Avon and Harper Voyager for providing me with an eARC for review via NetGalley. All thoughts are my own.*

ɴᴇᴛɢᴀʟʟᴇʏ ʀᴇᴠɪᴇᴡ || CRASH LANDING [thank you to Avon Books and @netgalley for my #gifted copy!]

Title: Crash Landing
Author: Annie McQuaid
Genre: Romance
Format: Digital
Star Rating: ★★★★☆

ᴍʏ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛꜱ:
My favorite part of this book was definitely the survival aspect! It gave off like resort-Lost vibes, and I haven’t seen that show in probably over a decade, but I think it’s a solid comparison. I loved seeing Piper and Wyatt work together to overcome each new challenge that came their way on the island (all the way down to the “she takes care of him” moment).

My least favorite part was probably all of the flashbacks. I felt that we spent too much time in their adolescent past to see what went wrong, and not enough time in the present to see them come back together. I get pining and “the one that got away,” but this one gave a little bit of instalove. Which worked for me because they had a past, but I wish there had been more heart-to-hearts or some more time shown together after they’re saved (spoiler alert: unlike on Lost, no one dies on this island).

All that said, I did really enjoy this book and once I picked it up I couldn’t put it down! McQuaid’s writing hooked me and made me feel for the characters, and I can’t wait to see what she does next.

ʀᴇᴀᴅ ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ʟɪᴋᴇ:
Childhood BFF-to-Lovers
Second Chance Romance
“I’m Doing This For You”
Dual Timeline
Survival Romance

ᴅᴇᴛᴀɪʟꜱ:
GR: 3.45
# of Pages: 304
Pub Date: April 1, 2025

I really love the writing style of Annie McQuaid. I really love a good second chance romance, and Annie def gave us a good one with Crash Landing. Plane crash, deserted island, stuck with your ex, it had all the components of a good rom com.

Second chance romance is a trope I’ll never get tired of, and The Love Haters nails it. The story feels like a calm, breezy beach day—simple, soothing, and sweet.

Told across past and present timelines, Annie McQuaid balances both beautifully. Piper and Wyatt’s friendship-first love story is tender and heartwarming, and every flashback moment made me swoon. I did wish for a little more angst or tension in their reconnection, but the overall vibe was still incredibly satisfying.

If you're looking for a cozy, feel-good read with lovable characters, this one delivers. Piper and Wyatt totally stole my heart.

Big thanks to Annie McQuaid, Avon & Harper Voyager, and NetGalley for the ARC! 💕

Love this cover and this premise! Annie's writing is gorgeous, flirty and fun. I was eating up the story of a a second chance romance on while stranded on a desert island. What a fantastic debut!!

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I took me awhile to get into this book, but I really enjoyed it after that.

Read this book with huge expectations because I loved the idea and concept for it and even though it didn’t deliver everything I was hoping, it was still a good read.

The story starts with Piper and Wyatt, ex-high school sweethearts who haven’t talked in 8 years, randomly bumped into at an airport before a wedding. Their only flight gets canceled, and Wyatt (who just happens to be a pilot) offers Piper a ride. Cue: romantic plane ride that ends in a crash on a deserted island. From that oh-no moment, they’re stuck together, forced to work things out between surviving and sparking!

I really loved the survival + second-chance premise—it’s intense and filled with those awkward “I broke up with you and now we’re stranded together” moments made me root for them.

But honestly, Piper was a bit hard to relate to sometimes. She felt kinda whiny, especially early on, and her grudge against Wyatt dragged the pace down. I also think the dual timelines (flashbacks to high school and present-day) interrupted the story flow a bit instead of deepening the emotion. It needed more “real talk” moments between them, not just survival forced proximity.

That said, there were bright moments: witty banter, small emotional breakthroughs, and that moment when Piper starts to see Wyatt as more than her ex—those were sweet and made me smile.

All in all, Crash Landing is a fun, breezy read with some heart—but I wanted a deeper emotional payoff and smoother pacing. Great for a cozy weekend escape. 3 stars.

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher and author for providing me this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I got sent this eARC of the debut novel, Crash Landing by Annie McQuaid, and was immediately drawn to read it based on the cover alone.

Piper never expected to not make it to her best friend’s wedding. But then again she also never expected to be stranded on a Caribbean Island after a plane crash with only the ex boyfriend that broke her heart. While stranded, Piper and Wyatt are forced to talk for the first time in over eight years. They begin to get to know each other again as adults now, and also finally get answers to what happened all those years before.

Crash Landing is about first loves, second chances, new beginnings, and speaking out to live the life you want - even if it isn’t what is expected of you. I really enjoyed this one, it was the perfect accompaniment to my pool day! I also loved learning Annie is from Raleigh NC right near my hometown and I cannot wait to see what she writes next.

Fun, quick, drama filled second chance romance.

Third person is really hit or miss, and for the first time in a while I’ve found a romance that it actually pairs well with!

I can relate to Piper in a lot of ways, which was comforting. It kept me going, for the most part. But Piper… was not the most likable in my opinion. She was very dense sometimes, and it was hard to read certain scenes without getting second hand embarrassment.

Wyatt has a heartbreaking background and a lot of complexities to him; it’s impossible not to admire his character for not only his strength but also his heart and the way he loves Piper.

I was getting Sweet Home Alabama vibes, which is one of my favorite romcoms, so safe to say I thoroughly enjoyed this. The second chance Piper and Wyatt were given was emotional and beautifully romantic.

3.3 ★

𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙪𝙗𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙉𝙚𝙩𝙂𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙮 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘼𝙍𝘾!

This story follows two exes forced to reunite when a plane crash leaves them stranded on a deserted island. I haven’t read a stranded in the middle of nowhere story in a while and the author did an amazing job with this book. I loved the way the story was written and the conflicts the MCs had to face. It’s not only about be stranded but also about healing, finding love, and knowing what happened in the past. For the most part, the pacing was fine until the end. This book is told from Piper’s pov which also features some past povs.

Piper is the FMC of the story and she was a relatable character. She knows the path she is following is not it. I loved seeing her development but I wish it was better. Then we have Wyatt. I wish we got his pov but he did play a big role. I liked how the author made his character vulnerable. There aren’t many main side characters but there are some who show up like the friends and parents. The romance is second chance and forced proximity. This is also a closed door romance story which was well done.

The ending was rushed and I wish it was a bit better. I think Piper finding out what she wanted to do was a quick decision and I wanted to see more time between the couple. Overall, it was a great story and I had a fun time reading it. I will be reading more of the author’s books.

*this book was sent to me by the publisher to give an honest review in return*

i was given an ARC for an honest review.

Sadly, this just wasn't for me. I was given the ebook, but I couldn't get into it, so I opted for the audiobook, and I made it to 3 hours in, and I had to stop. the narrator was just okay but wasn't on my favorites list. The characters are what made me stop reading and listening. I didn't like either one. Didn't feel the connection just because I didn't like this. You might

Crash Landing by Annie McQuaid was a wonderful debut novel. It wasn't perfect in my mind but the good outweighed the bad, for sure. I liked the survival aspect on a tropical island with an ex. I think where things went south was in the flashbacks. The story would have been stronger without those. Overall, however, I really enjoyed this one!

DNF at 50%

I was enjoying the storyline, but the excessive descriptive language got to me! The last straw was this description “Tears glittered in his eyelashes like diamonds caught in cobwebs.” Huh? Diamonds in cobwebs?

I’ll still give this three stars because the storyline was interesting - a second chance romance, coupled with a plane crash in being stranded on a tropical island. Kind of a different premise.

Thankful to Harper Collins and neck galley for the digital ARC in return for an honest review.

***Edited to add*** I went back and finished and enjoyed it a lot. Still cringed at the overuse of similes and metaphors, but since this was an ARC, maybe some of them got edited out.

A Solid Debut.

Piper Adams is a rule following, cautious, and people pleasing FMC. Wyatt has nothing to lose. Did I mention they were high school sweethearts, well that was until Wyatt dumped Piper and she was devastated.
When they end up stranded on a deserted island together while on the way to a close friend's wedding, it is the last place either of them would like to be.
Survival comes first, but maybe a chance to rekindle their love can come second?

While second chance romance is not my favorite trope, it is very well executed in this author debut. I enjoyed the characters and getting to watch them fall in love in the flashbacks as they fell in love again stranded on the island.
Wyatt was a solid well rounded character throughout the whole book for me. His military roots providing good survival skills and his troubled past making him unsure if he can love again, made me fall in love with him. (Basic I know)

Piper on the other hand I found a little annoying. I understood her need for security and sticking to what she knew, but when it came to standing up to her mom and she couldn't do it... I went crazy. (Especially since it led to an unnecessary 3rd act breakup... personally deemed unnecessary because he said he loved her and she loved him and the only thing was her mom trying to control her adult life. You are a grown woman stand your ground. Which eventually she did, but still annoying.)

Epilogues are not really my thing, but this one was perfect. I liked the side characters Annie built and am happy to get to see their happily every after's in the epilogue. I do wish I could have had more of these characters, but with a remote island setting post a plane crash I understand why it wasn't possible. I look forward to more books by her where she is able to dive deeper into more characters.

"Crash Landing" is a force proximity romance featuring childhood sweethearts who were forced apart by meddling parents. It's more than a decade later now, and a mutual friend is getting married. Piper and Wyatt are both enroute to the wedding in the Bahamas when their plane is canceled. Wyatt manages to borrow a friend's plane so he and Piper can still get to the wedding on time, but they crash land on an island along the way.

In a dual-timeline format, we see them as kids and how special their relationship was, and we see them now as they try to navigate regrets and hurt feelings while they are forced to depend on one another for survival.

Overall, I enjoyed the storyline, writing and characters, but I did find Wyatt's misguided obstinance to be a bit tiring after a while, especially when he breaks his promise not to ghost Piper ever again. Some of the story was predictable, but I still enjoyed the book anyway.

Thank you to Annie McQuaid, Avon and Harper Voyager, and NetGalley for an advance review copy.

Gotta set the record straight - I have such a hard time with second-chance romance. Mostly because the reason they "broke up" in the first one is a lame one, or it was a maturity thing. But I enjoyed seeing these two characters fall in love again as adults and taking each other's edges and all. The dual timeline really worked to help solidify the story and make it so genuine, I thoroughly enjoyed this and I cant wait to read more from Annie McQuaid.

I liked the plot description of second chance stuck on an island when the plane crashes. It's not often used so it's got a fresh feel to it. The part where they're stuck at the airport, manage to rent a small plane & then crash was, to me, the best part of the story and I expected more from it.. There was potential for provocative talk, looks, a little hands touching moments but I didn't get enough of them. Piper and Wyatt were stranded for 7 days and there could have been more feisty enemies to friends to enemies again. Back home things were awkward with misunderstandings, expectations, emotions kept in check until they blew up - which was a good thing. Getting home and being overwhelmed by everyone's idea of what happened was a good way to carry out the confusion which led to a nice ending.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions express in this review are completely my own.

#CrashLanding #AnnieMcQuaid #Avon #NetGalley #bookreview #secondchance #romance #contemporary

Thank you Avon Books and Annie McQuaid for my gifted copies. All opinions are my own.

This took me a little bit to really get into it and also some suspended belief, but then I enjoyed it.

Piper and Wyatt are headed to his cousin and her best friend’s wedding when their flight gets cancelled. Since he has a pilot’s license, Wyatt is able to borrow a small plane to fly to the destination wedding. Unfortunately something happens and their plane crashes. some of the suspended belief included how many things survived their crash. They both survive with minimal injuries and must figure out how to survive and try to be rescued.

I think my favorite part is this was the flashbacks to their friendship back in high school. They bad so much in common and such a sweet friends to more story. I like how they had to work together and rebuild their relationship. I enjoyed McQuaid’s writing and will look forward to future books from her!

What would you do if you were stranded on an island with your ex who broke your heart?

Crash Landing was a fun summer beach read. I wouldn’t recommend it if you’re going on a plane anytime soon and have anxiety lol but I loved it. I really enjoyed the flashbacks to when the main characters were falling for each other as kids to when they re-fell for each other as adults. The story has some sad moments, but I laughed a lot out loud too. Good light-hearted read.