I was really intrigued to read this book because it very much felt like it would be Paramore-inspired.

I thought the plot of the cruise ship reunion was a fun idea, and I liked that Micah and John were longtime friends. However, I was very underwhelmed. I think the story lacked depth or drama. The characters didn’t have any interesting qualities and read as bland to me. Most of John’s friends and their bandmates could honestly be used interchangeably because they weren’t fleshed out enough to have unique voices.

The romance between them lacked yearning or tension, or really any passion. They felt like friends with benefits the entire time. The writing wasn’t bad, I just think it was flat. Even the big performance at the end didn’t feel big. Throughout the story I felt like nothing was actually resolved and any obstacles kind of disappeared, like Ryder.

This was a quick, easy read, but not something that kept me interested or wanting more.

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for an advanced readers copy of this book.

You can always count on Alicia Thompson to give us an inclusive, feel-good, romance with a happy ending. "Shipped" was no exception. I love an author who carries characters from book to book, so the continuation from "With Love from Cold World" was an fun bonus. (This is a stand-alone, but reading Cold World first will definitely add to the experience.)

In typical fashion, this is presented in the third person (which some readers really don't love.) I didn't have issue with that, but there were times that I felt that the narrative seemed forced. While the MCs struggles were relatable, there was just a slight disconnect with the overall development. Major points for a bi-sexual FMC and an MC who was unbothered by her sexuality though. (Honorable mention to the inclusion of a they/them member of the band. Representation matters!)

Overall, it's a quick read with lots of personal drama, a cute story line, and some spice. (As usual, there's not a lot of spice, but the spice you get is spicy.)

📚Trope(s): Friends to Lovers, Second Chance (sorta), Forced Proximity, Bi FMC, Self-Discovery
What you get: 🌊🚢🎸🎤
⭐️Plot: 4/5
🔥Chemistry: 4/5
🌶️Spice: 3/5

ElectricOh! is a classic one-hit-wonder band--they hit it big after being featured on a popular television show and then quickly broke up, almost entirely due to lead singer Micah. When almost a decade later, the band is invited to perform on a tribute cruise for the television show that shot them to stardom, they all reluctantly agree to be in the same room together. Micah is tired of living off of royalties and not doing anything with her life, and John is eager to see Micah again. The two had been best friends since childhood--even through Micah dating their d-bag band member--and he's always wondered whether they could be something more.

I'm on a celebrity romance kick and this one recently filled the niche I was looking for. I've read several of Thompson's works (somehow, not yet With Love from Cold World, but SOON!) and this may be my favorite so far! The celebrity and musical elements, the sexual tension, the cruise setting--I love it all. I easily binged this one in one night, as I was rooting for these two so hard. No notes.

Thanks to Berkley for my eARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

5 stars - 10/10

4.5 stars. Alicia Thompson creates another interesting premise, this time with a nostalgic TV show-themed cruise that provides the setting for a second chance romance between childhood friends and former bandmates. Micah and John haven’t spoken in years, but now they’re stuck together on this ship for several days, playing midnight shuffleboard and getting the band back together.

Great chemistry between the leads and well-drawn secondary characters. My only complaint is that we didn’t get resolution on some of the side plots. But maybe there’ll be another book!

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for the ARC to review. All opinions are my own.

Never Been Shipped follows the story of Micah and John, both past members of the band ElectricOh!, as they reunite for a themed cruise.

Their relationship and the relationships between the other band members was probably the most interesting part of the story, in my opinion. Reading about the workings of a band and the complexities involved with that added more to the story than just the romance. The cruise was also unique as a setting for the reunion of the band.

I did struggle a bit with the progression of the romance between Micah and Jonah. I think I was just expecting them to discuss more about past events before deciding to get together. However, I did enjoy reading about the way they understood and supported each other. The later third of the book did seem to be a bit slow compared to all the events before.

If you enjoy friends-to-lovers romances, then you will like Never Been Shipped!

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for this ARC!

I've really enjoyed the last few book I've read by Alicia Thompson, so I was very excited to get an early copy of this book. It's difficult to describe this book except to say it's like if Paramore broke up and are now reuniting years later on a Vampire Diaires themed cruise...and 2 member of the band are in love with each other? Maybe?

The romance was well-written with some good angst and tension, and I enjoyed the other band members (except for Ryder, ew). I do feel like the second half of the book dragged a little, but overall I really enjoyed this book and I'm looking forward to reading future books by this author.

I usually am a fan of Alicia Thompson, but this book just missed the mark for me. I didn't love it being in third person nor did I fall in love with any of the characters. I think the plot was a little strange, and it didn't pull me in entirely. Something about it was just off!

If there was ever a book that made me want to book a cruise immediately, it was Never Been Shipped. The author delivered a second-chance, friends-to-lovers romance with just the right mix of nostalgia, tension, and pure musical magic.
Micah and John’s chemistry was like a song that had been stuck in my head for years—a slow burn that finally (finally!) hit all the right notes. Micah was guarded, John was quietly pining, and their history made every glance, every lyric, every near-kiss agonizing in the best way. And the forced proximity of a cruise? Perfection.
The band drama? So much mess. The tension? Practically humming off the pages. And the romance? Let’s just say, if these two didn’t get together by the end, I was ready to throw myself overboard.
The only thing keeping this from a five-star standing ovation? Some pacing hiccups and a few moments where I wanted to shake Micah and tell her to just let herself be happy. But overall, this book was a total vibe—equal parts angsty and swoony, with a love story that was worth the wait.
Thank you to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This was a very nostalgic and fun read. I love a good childhood friends to lovers romance and anything to do with music. The relationship, both as friends and more, between Micah and John was sweet. My biggest issue was the abruptness of them hooking up for the first time. It came out of nowhere. I wish there was a little more depth and that they hadn’t been separated for so long, but overall really enjoyed this.

Okay first things first, how adorable is this cover? As soon as I saw it I wanted to read this book. I love books with a music aspect plus forced proximity on a ship? I’m here for it. I loved John, he was perfect. I wanted to protect him at all costs. What I didn’t love was Micah, I found myself getting so frustrated by her character repeatedly. Overall I wanted more from this one but it was a fun read and I recommend it if you love second chance romances.

While Never Been Shipped is technically an interconnected standalone with With Love, from Cold World, it also works completely independently if you, like me, did not read it. In which case, I found it to be a fun, indulgent, and cute second-chance, celebrity, and forced proximity romance between two former bandmates forced together on a reunion cruise. Told in dual points of view, Never Been Shipped is written with compelling language (like The Art of Catch Feelings, which I did read by this author) and a fun premise. I was completely drawn into the story and eager to find out what would happen next. Also, there is some spicy spice scenes, but none overpower the actual plotline, which I was grateful for.

Alicia Thompson does it again! This is an absolutely incredible romance and has truly solidified Thompson as an auto-buy author for me. I was so intrigued by John in With Love, From Cold World, and so happy to hear he was getting a book of his own. This book truly did not disappoint.

John and Micah have some of the best on page chemistry I've ever read. They have a long history and very interesting relationship; from childhood best friends, to band mates (then ex band mates) to lovers, their relationship was such a delight to read. John and Micah's individually are such well written, intriguing characters. They both have unique struggles and I cared so much about them on their own, which doesn't always happen. I also loved how, regardless of the romantic chemistry between these two characters (SO MUCH!) I could also so wholly believe that they were best friends first - they were so FUN together. That isn't to say their own personal struggles and complicated histories didn't impact their interactions, but I loved how much fun they had together.

This leads me to one of my absolute favourite features if an Alicia Thompson romance - the way that heavier plot points make appearances in otherwise light and frothy sounding romances. Whether its a winter themed amusement park or band mates falling for one another, the light hearted framing never detract from some heavier discussions. With John and Micah we see discussions of an abusive childhood as well as depictions of anxiety and panic attacks - non-stigmatized depictions of people taking medication, navigating symptoms, discussing them openly. I love how Thompson is able to seamlessly combine these real, important plots this with a romance that had me giggling and kicking my feet most of the time.

Finally, I adore the bisexual representation in this book. Micah is bi, has known this since childhood, and it's so easily accepted by everyone, never questioned. There is a scene where Micah mentions previous romantic partners not understanding or even believing in her bisexuality. John, king that he is, knows Micah's bisexuality is part of her and also he doesn't get to have an opinion on it. I also just loved the casual queerness of so many other characters.

I absolutely adored this book and cannot wait to get my hands on a physical copy to reread come publication day.
Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc of this book.

3.75/5

i swear i don't read this fast, i just keep forgetting to mark books when i actually start them

the only reason i requested this arc was the cover... the art is spectacular and i will be thinking about it forever !! the band reuniting aspect of this book didn't fully grab me but i looked past it. i have heard a lot about this authors books but i haven't picked any of them up. because we met asa and lauren in this book, i will probably look into their book plus she has a sports romance so...

micah and john had so much chemistry that their romance alone would be a five star. like hello alicia thompson, i was not familiar with your game. the first sixty percent of this book had everything, tension, pining, great chemistry, and it was just fun. sadly the last forty percent lost me a bit but i still really enjoyed seeing the love story. micah was a character i wasn't expecting to completely fall for but i did almost immediately. she is such real character, her thoughts on life and what she has or hasn't achieved made so much sense to me. like i said the band element didn't really grab me but she was perfect and i wanna her a huge hug/get lunch and be besties!! john was pretty okay, i liked how different he was to the average male main character but i wanted more from him... idrk..

i haven't mentioned the second chance element of this book but i really ate it up. had this just been about them reconnecting, without the band revival, i would've been so much more in love with this. so yes this was a really good romance but the other aspects were kinda meh.

*thank you net galley and Berkeley for the arc*

Li ed this book it was f b s first from the author and I plan to read manh more. I enjoy that it was enemies to lovers.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

NEVER BEEN SHIPPED brings back one of the supporting characters from Thompson's WITH LOVE, FROM COLD WORLD, and makes him the MMC of this book. I really enjoyed John and Micah's story, always a sucker for childhood friends reconnecting. I especially loved that the majority of the characters from WLFCW made an appearance here as well. It's always a joy when authors create their own universe between their books.

Really enjoyed this one! I don't usually gravitate towards famous people books, but I'm glad I gave this one a shot. Lots of tension, but also lots of tenderness and emotional internal resolution. I appreciate how Alicia didn't shy away from Micah's flaws or mistakes (let her be a complex female character!!) and while she didn't get off easy, she didn't get overly punished for anything. I really liked John's character and arc (also he's HOT! anyway) and think that the timeline for the book's modern timeline was well balanced, since the cruise was like four days and hooking up on a boat does not a relationship make. I was pleasantly surprised by how not-dramatic the second half of the book was (if someone is looking for a super messy, drama-filled book, I will not point them here) and how Alicia lets the characters breathe and figure their shit out. Great main couple, diversity, side characters (Frankie ily) tension and premise!

I’d give Never Been Shipped about 3.5 stars.. I just expected something different and just wasn’t vibing with it. Meh

This was such a cute friends to lovers romance! Never Been Shipped follows two former best friends (John and Micah) who are reunited when their former band performs on a cruise ship. I thought that the ship was such a cute, unique setting. The vibes are perfect for a little vacation or summertime read. I loved the incorporation of music and their band in the plotline.
Third person for a romance was a bit different for me but it actually worked! I think because it was third person, I couldn't relate to the characters completely. I also feel like some serious topics came up and were either resolved quickly or not talked about again. It was a tad more spicy than I expected but it didn't overly consume the plot!

I would definitely recommend this one for a short, fun vacation read. Even more perfect if you read this on a cruise!

Thank you Berkley and NetGalley for sending me this eArc in exchange for an honest review!

As usual, Alicia Thompson ate and left no crumbs, as the youngins say. I was hesitant, as I struggled a bit with With Love, From Cold World, but after reading this I'm going back to read it again.

I also found the insta-love even after 15 years of zero contact kind of grating, but it sounds like they trauma bonded young, so I could kind of suspend my disbelief.

I really struggled to like Micah even when I felt sympathetic to her past. But then, I also think that's what makes Thompson's books hit different. Many times, her heroines are so a little unlikable, a lot of frustrating - but that's what makes them so relatable. I can say sit here and say OH GOD, JUST GET OVER YOURSELF. WHY ARE YOU PROJECTING THIS ONTO EVERYONE ELSE! But then I take a step back, and I get it. I've been there. Not pop star levels, but I've been there.

It's what roped me in as a hard core Alicia Thompson fangirl, and I can genuinely say she solidified her place as one of my favorite romance authors from the day I started reading Love in the Time of Serial Killers, and every book since has just reminded me of why.

But Micah was still my least fave heroine of the Thompson Literary Universe, so I must 4 star. Anyway, Imma re-read With Love from Cold World now.

A sweet love story of two friends from school who should have been together from the start. But, 20 years later reconnect on a cruise ship where they reunite with their band and fall in love.

I feel like this was a predictable plot old friends to lovers with an ex that is selfish and deeming to the FMC.