Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of Stuck in Paradise with You by Laura Carter.

Carrie, a tax accountant up for promotion to partner, travels to a private island in the Caribbean for a week to do some work for one the firm’s clients, Joe Hettich, one of the world's wealthiest individuals. Luke, Carrie’s former boss and the love of her life, who broke her heart seven years ago, is Joe’s best friend and CFO of Joe’s company.

This was my first book by this author so I had no idea what to expect. I was drawn to the description of this novel because I am an accountant and there are very few romance novels about accountants so I was excited to read about someone like me! I liked the portrayal of Carrie’s job, she works long hours and is working hard for her promotion, which is an accurate portrayal of a public accountant going for partner. I also thought the description of the hurricane was very accurate – I have been through a number of hurricanes, including a few where the eye went directly over, and the descriptions in the book were well done.

I thought the character of Joe Hettich was clearly based on Richard Branson, and it was a bit distracting. Joe’s character also came off a bit juvenile, interfering in the personal lives of his employees and service providers. I didn’t find this believable. Also, the main conflict in the book is due to miscommunication, which dragged on and on for so many pages I was getting bored. I think quite a few pages in the middle where Carrie and Luke just argue with each other could have been cut out to help the story move along.

Overall, I didn’t find the book to be a must read, but it was a nice light read with a HEA. A 3 star read for me.

This book was a delightful escape filled with romance and emotional depth. Carrie is relatable as she navigates her career and unexpected feelings for Luke, the man from her past. The chemistry and banter between the characters sparkles, making every interaction enjoyable. The Caribbean setting adds a vibrant backdrop that enhances the story's charm. While the pacing could be a bit tighter, this heartfelt tale is perfect for fans of feel-good romance.

This tropical island lovers to enemies to lovers is a cute book. The banter and dialogue were decent! You come to love the quirky side cast, but the main characters take a while to warm up to as they battle their inner demons from miscommunication. I personally am not a big fan of the miscommunication trope as I hate all the angst and hurt feelings and heartache that comes from it, but if that is your jam, this is a great book for you! I enjoyed it overall.

I absolutely loved this book! Inhaled in a day on holiday, the location, characters & pacing had me absolutely hooked and racing to turn each page. A 5 star read!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for providing me with an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Carrie must travel to the Caribbean to complete tax work for one of the world's wealthiest individuals, Joe Hettich, after her colleague becomes ill. Her former boss and the love of her life, who broke her heart seven years ago, also serves as the CFO of the Hettich empire.

However, as Hurricane Isabelle approaches the island where they are staying, we discover that things are not as they appear, as seen from both of their perspectives.

Will they be able to resolve their differences and rekindle their romance, or will this only make matters worse?

I enjoyed this book overall, but I did find that it was overly long. The constant bickering between Luke and Carrie became tiresome and repetitive, and the story could have reached its conclusion much sooner.

The Caribbean setting provides a beautiful backdrop for the novel.

I would have rated this book four stars if it had been a little shorter.

Forced proximity with an ex is a trope that can be hit or miss but this one was a hit for me. Now I won’t say I had moments like why are you putting them through this trauma - but in the end the storyline and character development worked. To a T. Now there was one particularly unrealistic part of the story that knocked it to 4 stars but overall worth the read. I got to read an ARC via NetGalley.

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC of Stuck in Paradise with You in exchange for an honest review. I picked this book because I loved the premise - romance, forced proximity, holiday vibes! I enjoyed the beginning of this book however the pacing and dialogue fell flat. I was tired of the miscommunication trope by about 50% and the lack of character development made it difficult to continue reading. It was a little too long and I was glad to get to the end unfortunately! This book had a lot of potential!

I really enjoyed this book! The characters and the plot are very well written and the story was interesting and thought out well. I would definitely recommend this book to my audience and friends.

Carrie and Luke have a past and when they are thrust back together on a remote island with a category 5 hurricane coming their way, they are forced to discuss what happened. Overall, cute story and I enjoyed the supporting characters a lot!

This book had a lot of potential, but in the end the miscommunication trope dragged on a bit too long. Still cute though.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of Stuck in Paradise with You by Laura Carter. This is my first time reading one of her books, and I went in pretty excited about the premise—second-chance romance mixed with enemies-to-lovers, plus forced proximity. That combo usually brings a lot of tension and great banter. However, this one landed at 3 stars for me.

The setup had a lot of potential. The two main characters are stuck together for a week in paradisiac island, and both have pretty solid reasons to want to avoid each other. But the miscommunication trope is at the heart of the conflict, and unfortunately, it dragged on a bit too long for my taste. I'm not a fan of this particular trope, especially when it feels like two adults just can't communicate even when they're literally in close contact for days, so it started to feel juvenile and kept me from being more invested.

I get that both characters had their baggage and reasons for keeping their distance, but I wish the plot had offered more beyond the repeated lack of communication. They only really started talking things through close to the end of the book, and by then I wasn't as engaged as I would like to be. I wish we had seen some development a bit earlier.

That being said, this was a light and fun read. The setting is great, and I enjoyed both characters. There were some great moments that made me smile and I really enjoyed the banter with the side characters as well.

If you love second-chance romance and don't mind a hefty dose of unresolved tension throughout most of the book, Stuck in Paradise with You might be worth a try!

Stuck in Paradise with You follows Carrie and Luke. Carrie is about to make partner at the accounting firm where she works and is doing everything it takes to get there, including flying to the private Carribean island belonging to one of the firm's biggest clients to talk business. However, what she never could have expected was for the person she was meeting with to be Luke — the man who broke her heart. Things did not end amicably between them and that is clear from the tension in the air. And what do exes who are stuck on a private island and forced to do business together need? A massive hurricane heading their way that makes escaping impossible, of course.

This was really, really great. I have read and loved another Laura Carter book before so I knew I was in for a treat when starting this one. There are so many redeemable features of this book: the tropical setting, the business-minded and determined female main character, the dual POV, the cast of supporting characters — I could keep going. The writing is fast paced and entertaining while striking the perfect balance of banter and emotion. There are many enemies-to-lovers books where the 'hate' isn't believable but this wasn't one of them — the tension was palpable. I also loved the way Carrie put herself and the career she has worked so hard for first; that was refreshing.

All in all, I would highly recommend Stuck in Paradise with You. The perfect summer escape. Released on the 15th October, 2024.

Carrie is hoping to make partner in her company but discovers she's got to go to a Caribbean island to meet millionaire Joe to sort out his finances. She then discovers that Luke who broke her heart 7 years ago also works with Joe. She ends up getting stranded on the island when a huge hurricane comes in

I was bored with this book. I didn’t like the two main characters, Luke and Carrie. I wish I could have seen more of their personalities, qualities and talents. . I didn’t love that Luke was technically still married when he hooked up with Carrie, and I hate that he left her for his wife and communicated that via TEXT. It was super uncool what Joe did to bring them together. Totally unprofessional and condescending. The looming hurricane and the actual storm scene gave me some anxiety, so I feel that was well written. Although Carrie disappointed me again by being stupid and chased after the dog into the storm. I felt a lot of frustration with this story. 2 stars.

This one sounded fun but I wasn't really getting along with either of our protagonists. It didn't seem like them getting back together would be worth it and it sadly put me off the book.

As always, I've fallen in love with Laura's writing! RTC soon after publication! Thankyou to Netgalley, the Author and the Publisher for this wonderful ARC in exchange for an honest review!🥰💞

This ended up being a quick read for me, however I am torn on what to say for a review. The enemies to lovers aspect of any book is wonderful for me. But I did not care for the countless miscommunications between the main characters of this book. Don't get me wrong, both characters have honest reasons for being upset with each other. However, the only reason they did not reconnect sooner was simply because of some letters that never got delivered. This leads us to reading the book and having them in my opinion almost never have real conversations until basically the end of the book. The lack of character development both separately and together had me wishing they would actually communicate so the pace of the story would pickup and be more enjoyable.

With all that being said, I do really enjoy a split POV. The way they would both flash back to seven years a go to when they dated the first time gave me the understanding as to why they both missed each other so much during the time apart.

Overall, the book was fine to read, but felt like it was dragging at times and had me wishing they actually had more meaningful conversations so we could have a fighting chance at actually falling in love with both Carrie and Luke.

I just finished Stuck in Paradise with You by Laura Carter, and I’m feeling a bit torn. I love a good enemies-to-lovers story, but I’m not a fan of the miscommunication trope, so I was kind of conflicted the whole time. I ended up giving it 3/5 stars because while I enjoyed the story, there were definitely some things that bugged me.

Carrie and Luke both had legit reasons for feeling the way they did—Carrie felt betrayed when Luke left, and Luke thought he was doing the right thing by going back to his ex-wife and potential baby. But here’s the thing: Luke wrote letters explaining everything, and they just never got delivered. So we spend 200 pages watching them bicker and avoid just having a grown-up conversation, which was frustrating. I really hate when characters don't just say what’s on their mind, so that dragged the book down for me.

That said, I did enjoy the split POV. It was interesting because I couldn’t figure out who I was rooting for—both of them had pretty solid reasons for their feelings, so it kept things interesting. And of course, the forced proximity trope was fun too!

Without spoiling too much, they do get their happy ending, but I was kind of annoyed it took so long to get there. Overall, it was a decent read, but it felt longer than it needed to be.

Stuck in Paradise with You by Laura Carter is an enchanting escape to a sun-soaked island, where romance and personal growth intertwine beautifully. The chemistry between the main characters is electric from the start, and their witty banter kept me thoroughly entertained. Carter’s ability to craft realistic, three-dimensional characters makes their journey from strangers to lovers all the more satisfying.

The setting is a character in itself, with the vivid descriptions of the island making me feel like I was right there with them, enjoying the warm breeze and stunning views. The story is a fun balance of humor, romance, and heartwarming moments, making it an easy and enjoyable read.

However, there were a few moments where the pacing felt a little slow, particularly in the middle where the plot could have moved forward quicker. A bit more tension or drama could have made the story even more engaging at times.

That said, the overall charm and feel-good nature of the story more than make up for this. Laura Carter has delivered a delightful, romantic getaway with characters you can't help but root for, and a setting that feels like a dream.

Absolutely fun! Romance is supposed to be a light read and enjoyable and this was it. Loved the atmosphere and the island!