Loved it

What a cute second-chance romance. I loved the then/now chapters as it gave us background into their friendship and their relationship as it developed to be able to fully appreciate why it hurt Piper so much. At first I was like, "it was your first love and a long time ago. Yes, it sucks, but jeeze get over it already." But then after seeing some more of the then chapters, I realized that Wyatt really was an idiot for hurting her like that haha

However, there's a lot more to the story that slowly starts to unfold and my heart just kinda hurt for Wyatt. He may be an idiot, but there was a reason behind it and not only did it hurt him more, but he's been punishing himself ever since.

Piper's mom is THE WORST. She gives her mom so much grace and I'm not sure I could do it. So, Piper is very much a better person than I am. I'm glad she finally stood up for herself and went after what she wanted to be happy instead of chasing everyone else's dreams and making them happy.

The crash landing on a deserted island with your first love/high school ex part of the story was actually a lot of fun. It forced them to be vulnerable with each other and work things out because they had to trust and rely on each other.

I believe this is a debut novel and if it truly is, I can't wait to see what Annie comes up with in the future as this was a lot of fun to read.

Thank you, NetGalley and Annie McQuaid for the ARC.

This was a lovely book! I enjoyed the second chance tension mixed with being struck on a deserted island. I typically don’t like books with a lot of flashbacks but I was able to stick with this one. I loved being able to see Piper and Wyatt’s growth and their journey together. I was definitely rooting for them at the end. Overall a great debut novel and I’m looking forward to what Annie McQuaid writes next.

Thank you to Annie McQuaid, Avon and Harper Voyager, and NetGalley for this arc!

Piper was excited for her best friend's destination wedding, but a flight cancelation left her without a lot of options. That was until her Ex, Wyatt, appeared and offered her a spot on a private plane. What could go wrong? Well, you know, an unexpected storm could cause the plane to crash and leave you stranded on a deserted island with your first love....

I LOVED this! My adoration of second chance romances runs deep, so it didn't take much to get me on board, but the shared history, how Piper and Wyatt evolved and grew, and their unfinished business had me even more invested in seeing their relationship resurrected. Piper and Wyatt grew up spending summers together. They shared a love of fantasy books and milkshakes, and slowly, fell in love as teens. But Wyatt abruptly ended their relationship, and it had been eight years since they had spoken.

Through flashbacks, I had the pleasure of seeing these two fall in love, and those glimpses into their past made me yearn for their reunion. I was all about "Wiper"! And the universe obviously agreed with me since it trapped them on an island where they had to rely on each other for survival. But, as expected, that isolation gave them the time and space to get to know the grown up versions of each other while confronting and dealing with their past. It was all wonderfully done with the survival aspect cranking my emotions up a notch.

Yes, their time on the island was something they both needed and gave them an opportunity to salvage their friendship, but it also gave them time to reflect on other aspects of their lives. Piper was not living her dream, and that became abundantly clear after she nearly died. I was especially pleased with the life decisions Piper made following the crash. These were HUGE and pointed her towards a future that both Piper and I were excited about.

Overall, this book was as stupendous blend of romance and adventure which had my heart pumping for all different reasons, but mostly for this couple's future together. Fun and feel-good, I am so glad I got to see Piper and Wyatt find their way back to each other.

This book was somewhere between “Survivor” and “The Notebook” and I very much enjoyed the crossover vibes.

I was instantly intrigued by the premise because I love survival stories, and “Crash Landing” was both poignant and interesting, with a dash of fun. It did not disappoint. The setting felt equal parts perilous and romantic, haha.

I’m usually wary of second chance/dual timeline books because I hate watching a couple careen toward heartbreak, but seeing Wyatt and Piper’s origin story was actually so special and added depth to a story that might feel like instalove (again) otherwise.

*Spoilerish* - I wish the last act had played out a little differently and Piper stood up to her mother immediately (those scenarios always frustrate me), but I also understand why it happened the way it did.

Thank you to HarperCollins for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my honest opinions!

I want to thank Avon and Harper Voyager publishing for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. If you're in the mood for a classic rom-com, honestly I don't think you can go wrong with this one. This has all the hallmarks of a classic early 2000s rom-com. It's got second chance romance, a plane crash, friends to lovers, people getting in their own way when it comes to their and the other person's happiness. I do wish we had some moments from the main male character's POV because there were times where I felt I would've liked to know what he was thinking.

CW/TW: Plane crash, references to PTSD

Thank-you to Annie McQuaid, Avon and Harper Voyager & NetGalley for this eARC copy of Crash Landing.

A small dash of The Notebook, and large helping of Six Days & Seven Nights, I ate this up.
The comedic and serious moments were balanced well, the relationships development was paced perfectly and I loved that there was enough to make me unsure about what was coming next.

The dual timelines explain the past as you go, and Annie’s telling of a first heartbreak was chefs kiss 😣 I really felt for Piper. The family issues and Wyatt’s past troubles added to the story well. A good little adventure with second chance romance.

I’ll be adding this debut author to my watch list and following her on insta, and that means business 🫡
I thank you! 🙏🏼 pls write more.

This second chance romance was very sweet. Despite the initial intense plane crash scene, the angst was low throughout. I didn’t feel that tension I was hoping to feel from Piper and Wyatt, if anything, I was more drawn to their “then” storyline. Unfortunately, this book ended up having the microtrope I find most frustrating; I pushed you away because I felt like it was best for you but didn’t talk to you about it at all, oof. I think because the characters spent almost the entire book deserted on the island, I don’t feel like I got to know them in their world. It made it hard for me to connect to them. I do think there is an audience for this book, if you like second chance, low angst, low spice, dual timeline, light reads then I think you should try it.

I usually love books with this theme so I knew I’d enjoy this one and it didn’t disappoint. Piper and Wyatt are high school sweethearts who had a bad breakup and never had closure. They reunite years later for their friend’s wedding, but their plane crashes on a desert island on the way there, where they’re forced to survive and actually talk to each other.

This book is told in two alternating parts, the “then” and the “now”, which I really liked, I think the then story gave really good context and insight to the parallel story happening in the now.

A great debut by Annie McQuaid, will definitely be reading her other books in the future!

Second chance romance isn't something I normally gravitate to, but the cover and the Caribbean setting beckoned me to apply for the eARC of Crash Landing... AND I'M SO GLAD I DID!

We meet Piper, a med student in her 2nd year, on her way to her best friend's destination wedding in the Caribbean. She bumps into her ex from high school, Wyatt (and said best friend's cousin), at the airport. Their commercial flight is cancelled and the upcoming scheduled flights were already at capacity and would have made them late to the wedding festivities.

Wyatt borrows his friend's plane and Piper begrudgingly decides to tag along. Before they took off the weather forecast didn't indicate anything to be concerned about, but while in the air they end up encountering bad weather and crash on a deserted island.

The chapters alternate between the past and present and I thought it was done perfectly. Piper grew up with wealthy parents that were dedicated to making sure she's on a "successful path" and Wyatt's upbringing was completely different from hers.

I saw some reviews mention that they didn't like the "brand name drops" and pop culture references but it made me connect to the story even MORE - I LOVED IT ALL!

Expect a lot of swoony and cute moments, kisses, and a little bit of spice.

Thank you, NetGalley and Avon, for giving me the opportunity to read and review Crash Landing. I can't wait to read more books from Annie McQuaid in the future!

This was a cute, easy read, with the added bonus of ~survival-esque~ thriller vibes (which I would further classify as having moderate to lower-end "high" stakes). While I love the Forced Proximity and Second Chance Romance tropes, I did find this book to be quite cliche and cheesier than expected/for my tastes. While I do think McQuaid did a good job in terms of pacing and tying in the flashback portions with the present day plot, I ultimately found the characters to be a bit bland, with even their development arcs being rather surface-level at best; I definitely felt like she could have dug a little deeper in order to make the overall plot and Piper & Wyatt's relationship more engaging and believable. In the end, I think this book would still be a fun, breezy one to take with you on holiday/read on the plane, etc, as it's still an enjoyable ride (even in all its simplicity).

The premise of this was so promising but it ended up being kinda disappointing for me. I liker Wyatt’s character, but Piper felt really predictable and flat to me. While she did have some growth, it was so standard and didn’t totally make sense to me - how have you gotten through two years of med school with how she acts around blood? It also was super repetitive until the last 25%.

I did enjoy Piper and Wyatt as a couple in the end, but the story itself was not my favorite.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon for the advanced copy!

This swoon-worthy debut romance follows two exes who find themselves stranded on a deserted island after a plane crash.
Piper is on her way to her best friend's wedding in the Bahamas when her flight gets canceled, and every other option seems impossible. Just when she's out of luck, she runs into the last person she ever expected—her high school ex, the one who shattered her heart and disappeared without a trace eight years ago. As fate would have it, he has a charter plane and offers her a ride. What could possibly go wrong? The answer: a lot.
Told through a dual timeline, we get to experience both their high school romance and their survival on the island. The stakes feel real, and I especially loved how the rescue unfolded, it kept me hooked. But what stood out the most was Piper’s personal growth, as she carves out her own path, independent of the expectations placed on her. My only wish? That we had more of their interactions as adults, fully exploring who they’ve become and how their love matured with them.
Thanks to Avon and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. An adventure rom com with a second chance romance and two main characters that were well written and real. Wyatt and Piper loved each other in high school and then all of the sudden that was over. After not seeing each other for years they end up on a private plane to a wedding that crashes. Seven days lost on an island gives them plenty of time to figure out why things went the way they did and gives them a second chance to be together…as long as they can be rescued before something terrible happens. The character development was really strong in the book and you are pulling for these two the whole time. Sometimes you have to learn the hard way to live for yourself and not others. “You’ll figure it out. As long as you do what makes you happy, and not anyone else, it will all work out”. Words to live by. Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins for the advanced copy in exchange for an unbiased review.

Piper is in the airport going to her best friend’s destination wedding when she bumps into Wyatt, her high school boyfriend, who she is definitely not interested anymore 😉 She had no idea he was invited to the wedding and when their flight gets delayed, he borrows a friends plane and invited Piper to fly with him to the wedding. When they crash in the Caribbean and end up stranded on a deserted island they are forced to come to terms with their past and work together to get off the island. That is hard when the guy she loved left her once already…can she really trust him?

This was such a good debut novel from McQuaid. We have the perfect middle ground between “oh crap, we are stranded on and island” and “lets figure out our feelings for each other.” I enjoyed the dual timeline with the flashbacks to their time in high school. The forced proximity of them being stranded on this deserted island was good and it made them learn to trust each other again, even after the original heartbreak. I do like how Wyatt encouraged Piper to follow her dreams when they got off the island instead of just following the path that her parents created.

4.5/5

Firstly, the second they started talking- in detail- about Harry Potter I was kind of done. Like I get that McQuaid is using it because Wyatt and Piper are fantasy fans but there was a whole series specifically made up for the book- why do you need to use HP to cement their interests? (Also, if you are going to name drop a real series, use one that isn't written by a racist transphobe?)

Anyway, I was excited for this story because the premise is so interesting but I just didn't feel the chemistry between Wyatt and Piper unless we were in a flashback. I also didn't feel particularly connected to either Piper or Wyatt. Or the writing style, unfortunately.

This book lived up to the promise of two exes surviving on a deserted island together while somehow managing to give the reader enough assurance of their safety that survival could take a backseat for the majority of the story. Well balanced and well done. I do hope that the two MCs get therapy after this and not just for the island stuff because they both came with their own stock of issues.

A sweet debut with a unique plot line. I’ve never read a survivalist love story but now I need more of them, tbh.

I could’ve done with more tension between the two main characters after the crash. I think there was a chance to build up the complex emotions and tension that comes from their not talking to each other for 8 years and then being crash landed on an island.

I will definitely be reading more of Annie McQuaid’s writing!

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Thanks to Avon and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon & Harper Voyager & Annie McQuaid for the chance to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

This story lands in this weird space between fun & flirty second chance romance and stranded on a deserted island, so much closer to death than you would think with a cutie patootie romance. It's not that I got whiplash between either concept- it actually worked- I just don't know how to explain it as a vibe.

But just know- I enjoyed this book.
Do I advise reading this before flying in a small plane over a body of water? Not really.

Do I advise you read it if you like high school flashbacks, rekindled second chance magic with the boy your parents didn't approve of and also finally gaining independence from your said controlling parents? Absolutely.

A perfect forced-proximity, love rekindled, high school sweethearts romance! Having two characters stranded on an island means the characters have to have great chemistry to propel you through the book. The author did a perfect blend of showing their past relationship mixed with the current day fireworks. Piper is definitely a girl to relate to - how do you react when your only option for getting where you need to be is with the boy who broke your heart in high school? A tricky situation, for sure. And of course, Wyatt seems to act like it doesn't affect him and he did the right thing by abandoning her. Piper also has the oh-so- relatable uncertainty of being in school for something you're not passionate about and always being pressured to be with people you don't have chemistry with. The current day situation of how will they get off the island keeps you flipping pages, just anxious for the resolution. A must-read summery romance!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for a chance to read this eARC!

While for me this book was not a home run, I can see how it might be for lots of readers out there!!

I do love a second chance romance and I’m usually a fan of forced proximity, but with this story, I just could not get over the unrealistic aspect of it all. It seemed more like a soap opera/ Greys Anatomy episode then a cute romance book!

While I know this was a piece of fiction, I do prefer to read something I can see myself being a part of, and this just feel short for me. So many parts of this book on their own were great, but just all together, it wasn’t it for me!