✨ Audiobook Review ✨
If All Else Sails by Emma St. Clair
🎧 Listened on audio

This grumpy-sunshine, brother’s best friend romance was the perfect summer listen. I laughed out loud more than once, and the male narrator nailed Wyatt’s grumpiness in a way that had me grinning every time he spoke. His voice for Josie was great too!

The first half had me hooked. There were so many fun moments and I loved the little ways Wyatt showed his crush on Josie. (The silent longing--and not so silent fevery confession? So good!) He might be one of the grumpiest MMCs I’ve read in a while, and I was HERE FOR IT.

And Jib the dog, with all her little outfits, totally stole the show. 🐶

I did wish for just a bit more heat and romantic payoff earlier on. (Waiting until 95% for the kiss was torture. 😅 ) But if you're a clean/closed door romance reader who doesn't want a lot of steam in your books, then this should be perfect for you!

The premise: Josie, a school nurse, ends up stuck in a run-down cottage (aka “quaint little murder cottage” 😉) with her brother’s injured hockey player best friend Wyatt. Cue bickering, tension, boat trips, and plenty of sunshine cracking through his grumpy exterior.

If you’re in the mood for a swoony, slow-burn romcom with heart, humor, and a rugged hero you’ll secretly want to nurse back to health too… this one might just be for you. ⛵️ 💛

If All Else Sails is a witty, heartfelt summer romance that blends charming banter, emotional growth, and a grumpy-sunshine dynamic that works beautifully. Josie’s upbeat personality and Wyatt’s prickly demeanor create a slow-burn chemistry that’s as frustrating as it is swoony, with plenty of laugh-out-loud moments along the way. The sailing setting and quest to scatter Wyatt’s uncle’s ashes add a fresh twist that sets it apart from other rom-coms. While some plot beats feel predictable and the pacing slows in the middle, the warmth and humor carry the story through. Overall, it’s a cozy, feel-good read perfect for fans of clean, heartfelt romance.

I did not like the male narrator...

When Josie’s brother tricks her into spending the summer caring for his injured best friend, hockey player Wyatt Jacobs, and Josie’s sworn enemy, she reluctantly agrees to help out, especially for the paycheck her brother agrees to. But as the two spend time together loving in Wyatt’s “quaint little murder cottage”, both will realize their previous characterizations of one another may have been incorrect.

If you are looking for a sweet, adventure-filled romance as we sail (pardon the pun) into the final month of summer, look no further. Emma St. Clair always writes feel-good, cozy romance, heavy on the swoon, light on the spice (as in none), and I know going on, I am going to enjoy the story.

If All Else Sails had all of this and more. Not only is there the most adorable romance between Wyatt and Josie at the core of the story, but there are these added layers of emotional depth and complexity within each character, as they struggle with past traumas they have not yet let go of. I loved how their sailing adventure is so wrought with tension, as they are unable to address their unresolved feelings towards one another. And yet the humor in the book really shines through, perfectly juxtaposing the more serious elements and creating that feel-good nature I have come to love about St. Claire’s books.

🎧 The audiobook, helmed by Andi Arndt and Patrick Zeller, is fantastic! Both brought their characters to life in a very dynamic way, that at times, gives the audiobook a movie-like quality. Very fun and a terrific way to go if you pick this book up.

Read if you like:
▪️summer romance
▪️brother’s best friend
▪️grumpy x sunshine
▪️forced proximity
▪️sailing adventure
▪️enemies to lovers
▪️hockey romance

Thank you Thomas Nelson for the advanced copy.

The Brief: Josie isn’t happy about the last minute change of plans to the Super Summer Sibling Extravaganza. The new plan involves nursing her brother’s grumpy hockey player bestie back to health. And living in the murder cottage.

The Debrief: Favorite book to date by @ and an absolute delight. From the very ugly meet again to the swoony last word… I. Was. Smitten. Wyatt is such a brooding man with so many lovable layers to discover. His low key charm and wit became exposed to the sunshine and I melted.

Josie has no idea what to do about a kind Wyatt when she remembers him as her enemy. Her cheery attitude was the perfect backdrop to laugh out loud banter filled And can we take a moment to soak up that chemistry? I was there for all of it.

I am looking forward to going back for a re-read, and snagging a paperback, but I was lucky to listen to the audio. Wowzers. Both narrators grabbed me from the first word and never let go. They did a phenomenal job keeping me involved in the story and laughing at all the right places. Just so many quotables. My notes:

Wyatt has dropped his anchor and wants to float in a gray haze. When Josie shows up in his life again, can she coax him to sunnier days?

I obviously highly recommend this romantic comedy with deep vibes that will warm your heart. Complimentary copy. Audio from NetGalley My thoughts.

This book checked all the boxes of tropes I love. Grumpy/sunshine...check
He falls first...check
Hockey player...check
And bonus, it is a closed door romance. This was a great pool read for the last days of my summer vacation. The narration was excellent, the characters were likeable, and I didn't want the book to end. Emma St. Clair did not disappoint with this one.
Thank you NetGalley for the advanced preview.

I grabbed this because I love these narrators, and they did a fantastic job. They brought out all the nuances of character and humor. Their performances kept me up late listening.
The reason I took a star off is that the author and I have very different ideas of what belongs in a romcom. Some of the incidents that were supposed to be funny were not. Josie makes sure we live through every moment of her anxiety with her, and that gets trying. Wyatt isn't a lot better. It is hard to imagine these two actually being happy in the future because they are so sad now. The epilogue gives us some of that, but I would have liked more.
That being said, the characters did have depth, and I did care about them. Some of the book was hilarious. Patrick Zeller acting like he was being tickled was the best part of the whole thing. The dog is a fun touch. I might listen to this again and just fast forward through the overthinking.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for this audio ARC.

This was exactly what I needed! It hit the spot. It is a quick, cozy read with banter and a sprinkle of humour. Watching their relationship progress the way was delightful and endearing.

Wyatt, a professional hockey player, is a slump and needs help getting through it after getting injured. Josie, an elementary school nurse, is expecting a fun vacation with her brother and instead…gets something she never expected, but needed.

There’s a cute dog that tolerates being put in cute outfits, boats, caregiving galore.

My only complaint, is that the blurb summarizes the book too well.

The narrators performances, Andi Arndt and Patrick Zeller, were so good. In particular, I loved Zeller performance. At certain points when his character was feeling more frustrated or grumpy, he did something with his voice (almost like a growl, but not quite) that was so fun for the character.

Tropes:
- grumpy x sunshine
- brothers best friend
- nurse x hockey player
- caregiving
- enemies to lovers
- forced proximity
- slow burn
- closed door romance

This was so fun!

The light, witty humor really had me from the start—I found myself laughing out loud a whole bunch, which is a huge win in my book!

Now as for the characters… I LOVE Josie, holy crap. She’s just so goofy and endearing in the best way. The trauma she had added a lot of depth to her character, which I greatly appreciated. It had a nice realistic touch! And Wyatt? Yeah, he’s one HECK of a man if I do say so myself. He’s a total grump, but in a way that made the dynamic between the characters so good. Josie was exactly what he needed to loosen up a bit, to soften his rough edges, and together they were hilarious! I wouldn’t say the romantic chemistry was completely up to par, but I still enjoyed them as a duo.

As for the audiobook… eh. Mixed feelings. The female narrator pretty much nailed it—she totally got the humor and delivered Josie’s personality perfectly! No complaints there. The male narrator, though, didn’t seem to work as well with the story. He came across way too intense, like practically yelling, trying way too hard to emphasize certain scenes. His voice was so low and gruff at times that I had trouble understanding what he was saying. Honestly, I just don’t think these two narrators went together well enough.

With all that said, I still had a fun time with this one! It was a fun, easy read/listen, and the humor alone made it what it is.

Book itself: 2.3 ★
Audiobook: 3.5 ★

𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙪𝙗𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙉𝙚𝙩𝙂𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙮 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘼𝙍𝘾 & 𝙖𝙪𝙙𝙞𝙤𝙗𝙤𝙤𝙠!

School nurse Josie and hockey player Wyatt get manipulated into spending the summer together by Josie's brother/Wyatt's best friend. An enemies-to-lovers romance ensues. The publisher's blurb does a great job of summarizing the story . . . pretty much start to finish.

This is my first experience reading St. Clair's work. If All Else Sails is a clean, closed-door romance with banter and mild humor. Overall, it makes for a sensitive, sweet, easy read. It's not all happiness and light, though: Josie alludes to her dislike of athletes so many times throughout the book—and Wyatt brings it up at least once each in the first half and the last quarter—that I became impatient. I felt like Josie's trauma was being pimped—a decidedly unclean tactic—to draw out the friction between Josie and Wyatt. Additional content warnings include the death of a beloved uncle (before the story begins) and temporary peril to a dog. Despite these rough topics, the reader gets the expected happily-ever-after. I feel confident rating the book higher than average, despite my one considerable objection, and I'll consider reading more of the author's work.

Narrators Andi Arndt and Patrick Zeller (new to me) both have pleasant voices and delivery.

3.5⭐

Thank you Thomas Nelson and NetGalley for the ARC!

This one was cute! I couldn't help falling in love with both main characters in this story. I love a comeback story, and this one was no exception! The romance had me swooning, and I really loved the audio version of the book.

Thank you again for the ARC!

3.5 stars

For the first 60% or so I was sure they both had the emotional maturity of a walnut. They did finally have some growth but not much past walnuts.

Josie had some trauma that was alluded to throughout the story and we don’t actually learn about it until about 80% into the book.

Wyatt…i don’t know about Wyatt. He grew up privileged and didn’t necessarily fit into that world but then he became a professional athlete. He doesn’t like fans or interacting with fans at all. He didn’t have a lot of redeeming qualities imo.

I always love reading Emma St. Clair's books, and I was so excited to read Josie and Wyatt's story!

The first few chapters had me cracking up. I was hooked right away! The banter between the two of them was perfection. Enemies to lovers and forced proximity were the perfect combo as they got to know each other and helped each other heal. And I think this book has me convinced that he falls first is one of my top favorite tropes! (I absolutely loved the brief visit from some of my favorite Appies players too!)

Wyatt is a hockey player, but I love that hockey isn't the focus. I definitely recommend this to anyone who loves a witty clean romance!

The audio narration was enjoyable and fun to listen to!

Thank you to Thomas Nelson Fiction, NetGalley, and Emma St. Clair for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest opinions.

This was such a fun & Swoony romance. In true Emma St. Clair fashion there was angst, but lots of sass & banter.
I absolutely adored the way Wyatt & Josie’s relationship was redefined in just a few short weeks. I love the banter between Wyatt & Josie, all of the chaos & shenanigans with the animals, Jib & her fashion, & the friendship that was hard won.
There was tenderness, empathy, grief & loss, hope, encouragement, angst, & love.
I absolutely adored every minute of this book!
The narration was absolutely amazing!

A cute if relatively run-of-the-mill romance. This book features many tried and true tropes and executes them with success - brother's best friend, hurt athlete needs help, grumpy x sunshine, he falls first, and only one boat ;). It is a hockey romance, though the actual hockey action is minimal. I thought the parts with the dog were especially fun and I loved how the MMC talked to the dog. Overall, a charming summer romance read.

**SA briefly mentioned in FMC's backstory.

This was a cute story. Loved the sailing side of the story and the dog chief's kiss! Overall, I really enjoyed this. But I didn't feel the want and the romance in the characters and there was just more of themselves telling me how they were feeling instead of showing to each other.

Thank you NetGalley for this Audio Arc.

Release date 8/5/25

Thank you to Netgalley and Thomas Nelson for my advance audiobook copy of If All Else Sails by Emma St. Clair in exchange for my honest review!

This is a SUPER cute and clean 5 star read. We have Josie who thinks she's going on a vacation with her brother only to find out he led her to his best friend's home...her sworn enemy. When Wyatt sees her on his property he calls the cops. This is a laugh out loud scene which really puts the grump stamp on Wyatt.

Wyatt is recovering from an injury, but listening to no one. Josie is a school nurse and her brother begs her to stay and try to help, it's his last shot at ensuring Wyatt (a pro hockey player) can get back on the ice.

I loved the growth in both Josie and Wyatt and how their story unfolded. This is a great read for anyone looking for a swoony romance. It's perfect for most ages since it's a closed door romance too!

Josie is a school nurse, excited to spend her vacation on a trip with her brother. Except, when she gets to their appointed location, he's not there. Instead, she gets tricked to take care of her brother's client, Wyatt, who also happens to be his best friend, and has never been so fond of Josie.

This was such a lovely read! So cute and cozy. Josie and Wyatt were adorable, watching as their relationship grew overtime was such a delight. The chemistry and tension between them was undeniable, with a great banter tagging along.

The pacing definitely slowed down in the second half, giving space to so much miscommunication, or let's phrase it as leaving things unsaid, but I still enjoyed following their story.

Advertised as enemies to lovers, which like in most romance novels isn't accurate - Josie thinks Wyatt hates her, while they are actually both down bad for each other.

It's the brother's best friend trope done right, where instead of getting pissed, Jacob actually plays their matchmaker. It was such a pleasant surprise.

Audiobook is narrated by Andi Arndt, who's voice I already adored, and new to me Patrick Zeller, who did an amazing job bringing Wyatt's grumpiness to life.

Anywho, I really enjoyed it. I recommend it to anyone looking for a sweet, totally closed door, feel-good romance.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an ARC of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review!

I am so excited for this to be my first NetGalley audiobook! I really liked the narrator for Josie. I thought she was perfect for her character. Wyatt’s voice actor wasn’t terrible, but I thought he yelled for no reason too much. I could see he was trying to sound exasperated, but it came off too aggressive.

This was a cute romance! I thought it was a fun and unique plot!

If you love purely sickly sweet romance, you will love this.

The beginning started off super strong. I was really enjoying it. Their banter was funny and I loved how Wyatt called the cops on Josie when they first met.

As the book went on, it started to get a little too cheesy for my taste. When they started to actually fall for each other, it got more sickly sweet and I felt less and less interested.

I’m not a huge romance person so I should have realized this wouldn’t totally be for me, but it sounded cute and when I listened to the sample for the audiobook it seemed like one I would really like!

And I did like this, it just wasn’t totally up my alley.

That is more of a personal preference, if I was a huge romance fan, I would have given this 4 or 5 stars since it was written well!

It was a little bit “enemies to lovers” but in the sense there was some miscommunication to make them not really like each other at first. That didn’t last long thankfully.

I thought it wasn’t too much instalove which I appreciated. Their relationship progressed very naturally! I liked the forced proximity. I wish there was a little more to do with sailing because that is what drew me to this book in the first place! But it was nice to see that bring them together.

I liked one of the two narrators. The male narrator was too over the top. As for the story - it felt like there were missing transitions. Almost like I was watching a tv show/ movie and one scene would end and then the next scene was in a completely different place and I have no idea have we got there.

⭐️ — 4/5

HUGE thank you to NetGalley, Thomas Nelson Fiction, and the author for my copy of this audiobook — all thoughts in my review are my own.

This was such a cute, feel-good romance story. Want a closed-door romance that will have you grinning like an idiot and kicking your feet when the MCs finally, FINALLY get together? Pick up this one.

Andi Arndt and Patrick Zeller did a fantastic job bringing these characters to life — AA is one of my favorite narrators so I’m not surprised in the slightest that I enjoyed this so much, but the addition of PZ was such a great choice. They played off each other so well, the banter was incredible and the two narrators made me really feel the tension.

✔️ forced proximity
✔️ brother’s best friend
✔️ witty banter
✔️ closed-door romance