I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you Thomas Nelson Fiction!

Josie, an elementary school nurse, is all geared up for the ultimate sibling vacation with her brother, Jacob. Even arriving at a dilapidated old cottage doesn’t dampen her spirits - until the true nature of her arrival is revealed…

Wyatt Jacobs is a hockey star forced to step aside due to an injury. When he fails to take care of himself, his agent - Josie’s brother - arranges for Josie to take on the role as caregiver against her knowledge. With Josie and Wyatt’s complicated history still fresh in their minds, the two try to make the best of their situation.

This book was cute! Really fun and light. It’s the perfect summer holiday read.

It was very descriptive at times - honestly I would’ve preferred a bit more showing, rather than telling. And the monologues ran on a bit. But overall, I liked the story and the characters. The tropes are also very heavy here, so maybe keep that in mind!

If All Else Sails is released on 5 August!

I enjoyed the book and I love the how the author and her writing style. This book has some of my favorite tropes, close proximity, brother's best friend, and the banter between the two main characters! I laughed throughout the book, a slow burn read that had me from page one. I love Emma St. Clair's books and this definitely one of my favorites of hers!

This book was amazing! Emma st Clair is one of my favorite authors. I was so happy to read this book! The romance in this book was so fun and it kept me on my toes!

Thank you NetGalley and Thomas Nelson Fiction for this early read! I loved this book from start to finish. Josie and Wyatt were so much fun, the settings, his friends, her antics, all of it! Please don't sleep on this one - pub date 8/5/25!

I was really happy to get this ARC because I really loved the main story. This book seems to be an offshoot for.
I don’t know if it is a standalone in these characters aren’t gonna pop up anymore or if it’s a start of its own series .
Anyway, the MMC Wyatt, was a side character in the Appies series, and he disappeared about halfway throughout the season, saying that he got a contract with a NHL team.
So I love the idea that the author is gonna do a bunch of standalone’s for other side characters of the series or another series. You get so invested with their stories and sad when you never know what happens to them.

To the book itself -
The FMC Josie, is an elementary school, nurse and her brother, the son of their families’s solar system, is a professional sports agent. He was best friends with Wyatt, the MMC growing up.

Thanks to a little miscommunication trope/misunderstanding that never got fixed Josie has been under the impression for many a year that Wyatt hates her guts to the point of being disgusted. And when she shows up at his house thinking she’s about to have a fun summer adventure with her brother and instead she is arrested…. It’s all kind of downhill from there.

Which, brings us to poor foot in his mouth, Wyatt 😂😂😂😂
I think this man would benefit greatly from writing down his feelings and sticking to a plan when talking to people, but instead he seems to carry a proverbial shovel with him wherever he goes. On the rare occurrence he actually does open his mouth, he immediately starts digging.
So, he’s taken to just not talking.

For me, this book was kind of emotional to read because I grew up in Virginia, I’ve been to almost all of the places that were mentioned! Hell, I’ve been boating on the bay! It’s so funny because you rarely read books about the Hampton Roads area. It was great because I could literally picture every single part in my head.

This was cute , simple and not that much going on, but cute. it does need some work and maybe some chapters need to be looked at. The characters do need a little more development and some work to make them a little more likable.

Our main female characters gets arrested by our man within the first chapter, so really this gives enemies to lovers a new meaning. There were so many moments in this book I found myself genuinely laughing out loud. Forced proximity with her brothers best friend who’s an injured hockey player? Say less. I received this arc from netgalley and this opinion is entirely my own. I ate this up! Will definitely read more from the author.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC. If All Else Fails by Emma St. Clair is a heartwarming and uplifting romance that blends humor, vulnerability, and emotional depth. The story follows two main characters who, despite facing challenges in their lives, find solace and connection with each other. St. Clair’s writing is charming and relatable, with witty dialogue and a strong emotional core. The chemistry between the characters feels genuine, and their growth throughout the story is both touching and satisfying. Overall, If All Else Fails is a delightful read for fans of feel-good romance with a mix of lighthearted moments and deeper emotions.

This was such a quick sweet and spicy read from a new to me author! I picked this up because all the tropes just screamed to me in the best was and I love watching how the author unfolding this story.

I love Josie’s character and how she stayed strong and true to herself despite the misfortunes that may have happened in her life. I love how verifiable she felt as a character and someone I could picture being friends with. Paired with the grump of her brothers best friend, Wyatt. I love that his form of flirting could be insults but that he had such a softer tone with it came to Josie. He was gentle and patient, he gave the delicious side to the grumpy sunshine mix I tend to gravitate towards in my books.


The plot was super enjoyable! And while I did feel a bit rushed at moments and slower in others I found myself really invested in this story from beginning to end.


Will definitely be an author I pick up again!

"Better started than perfect. Better tried than unknown"

What an absolute delight! "If All Else Sails" was a perfect mix of charming Rom-Com with a heartfelt story at its core.

Josie is tricked by her sports agent brother into keeping an eye on his friend and client, injured hockey star Wyatt. If their history is anything to go on, Wyatt is grump with no time for his friend's little sister. As they navigate his recovery and plans to sail the Intracoastal, they discover that the course of true love never did run smooth.

One thing I loved the most was how effortless the comedic aspects of the story were balanced with a beautiful romance. I was hooked by the hilarious opening chapters where Josie is wrongfully detained. Then as the story progressed, we saw how the relationship between Josie and Wyatt was so sweet. I appreciated the green flag way in which Wyatt was so respectful of Josie's heart, being patient with her hesitancy, even when not fully knowing the impact that her past had on her.

😂❤️ Romantic Comedy
🏒 MMC is an injured hockey player
👩🏼‍⚕️ FMC is a school nurse
⛵ Sailing trip and forced proximity
🫑🔥 Slow burn, closed-door romance
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Absolutely loved it!!

I loved these two so much. The chemistry, everything was just so amazing. 20/10, will be reading this again very soon.

Oh my goodness, this book is everything I hoped it would be! I love grumpy sunshine tropes, and this one is just perfect that way! Wyatt and Josie could have worked out their differences earlier, but I doubt the story would have been so good. They are the perfect complement to each other, and I loved being a part of their love story.

Thank you netgalley for the arc of this book.
I loved this book so much. And there was even a few of the Appies that showed up so that's always a bonus. I loved the banter. The so called enemies to lovers troupe.
When Wyatt is injured and not taking care of himself so Jacob gets his sister to come take care of him under false pretenses. She has always disliked him and thought he hated her. So when she realized what Jacob wanted her to do she was definitely not on board.
Such a good book.

I enjoyed reading this book a lot. The plot is well written and the characters are loveable. This is my first read of this author and definitely won't be the last.

This was a fun, cozy romance between two people who thought they were enemies and then found out they were something more. This is a clean, entertaining read. I give it 4 stars. I received a complimentary review copy of this book from NetGalley.

What a fun book! From the very first chapter I was in love with this story and the mischief the MCs got up to. 😆😍 The romance was so well written, sweet, and cute! Josie and Wyatt had a rough start, but the more you reader the more you realize he’s just a big ole softie with foot-in-the-mouth disease (iykyk). The characters were great, plot engaging, and romance clean!

/Thank you to Netgalley and the author for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own/

Josie y Wyatt se conocen desde hace algunos años, ya que él es amigo de su hermano. Por alguna razón, no se llevan bien, y cada vez que se encuentran, sus interacciones son incómodas, ya que terminan ignorándose o él dice alguna tontería. Lo último que Josie quiere es pasar sus vacaciones con él, pero su hermano le ofrece dinero para que sea su enfermera y lo ayude con su lesión, para que pueda regresar a jugar hockey, termina aceptando. Durante esas semanas, por fin hablarán y aclararán los malos entendidos. Josie descubrirá que él no es tan malo como creía y que nunca fue su intención ser grosero.



~


Prácticamente toda la relación entre Josie y Wyatt está marcada por una serie de malos entendidos, causados por la falta de comunicación de ambos y terminaron creyeron que el otro no lo toleraba. Sin embargo, la realidad es que siempre se gustaron. Ella tenía miedo de los deportistas debido a una mala experiencia, y él habla sin pensar lo que dice, lo que puede hacerlo sonar brusco.

Yo quería pov de Wyatt cuando fueron al hospital. Ya sé que después explicó lo que pasó, pero fue de manera superficial. Me gustaría saber qué estaba pensando cuando vio lo que hizo y dijo.

¿Jacob tendrá su propio libro? Porque se le tendría que hacer un cambio total de personalidad.



Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A sweet read. Loved reading about all the sailing terms. I felt the chemistry between the two main characters but felt their inner monologue was a bit much. I found myself rolling my eyes from some of it. I felt like shouting "Just talk already!" I loved seeing Van and Eli from the other books. Cute and predictable but a nice read to relax with. Not my favorite from this author but I am glad I read it.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

🩷 romcom
🩷 spice free
🩷 slight enemies to lovers
🩷 brother’s best friend
🩷 hockey
🩷 forced proximity
🩷 one bed

This book is so adorable!

The Characters
My absolute favourite thing about this book is the characters, they felt so realistic, with fears, hopes and dreams that really shape their character and also the actions that they take throughout the book. I could imagine them to be real like these characters could be people I walk past on the street.

Wyatt was so nice, his actions towards the main character felt so understandable, his choices reflecting who he is. His past and journey to get to where he is felt so true, his emotions about everything seeming to come off the page. And his patience and kindness>>> The way he acts around Josie is the cutest thing ever, each interaction had me screaming for more, making me stay up way too late so that I would get to know what was going to happen sooner.

Josie felt so realistic throughout the book, the traumas that she dealt with and the fears that she has. I love how the characters worked on their traumas, and how they got to know each other and confide in each other without just jumping straight into the relationship. The way they learned about each other and began to slowly understand and grow closer was so adorable.

The Setting & Writing
The setting was one of those things that added so much to the story, it was a mix of the setting itself and the amazing descriptions that were used for each scene. I felt like I was able to picture each scene perfectly, and the book played out like a movie.

Thank you to NetGalley for the free e-ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

So much of it was too…unbelievable to make this book enjoyable. Why do we never get a good explanation about how Wyatt goes from a slight fever to comatose in a snap? The whole book just…dragged. Are hockey players even that famous? I like romcoms with more substance and depth. It’s just them being obsessed with each other and never actually facing real issues. All the issues are faced off the page and then briefly mentioned. Just…not my favorite.