Going Overboard tells the story of Jessa, a young woman whose seemingly perfectly-curated life comes crashing down when her boyfriend Todd breaks up with her at their friends’ wedding. At the same wedding, Brody-a hot and famous cricket player-gets dumped by his girlfriend Nikki. A couple weeks later, Jessa has to face Todd at yet another mutual friend’s wedding and quickly discovers that Todd has moved on with Nikki; luckily for Jessa, Brody is there to save the day. As the two are thrown together in a third wedding situation-this one includes a 5-day Mediterranean cruise leading up to the wedding- Jessa and Brody decide that the best solution is a fake dating plot, but their attraction quickly blurs the lines of what is real and what is not.

I thought the premise of this book was so fun, but I was left a bit underwhelmed. I would have loved more moments of true connection between Jessa and Brody, but it was just one group outing-turn-competition after another. I wanted to see the small moments where their friendship and attraction grew; it would have made their sudden realization that they were in love with each other more believable. Also, I loved the interaction between Brody and Jessa at the bar before she knew who he was, but I felt like it would have worked better if she was the one to realize it instead of him having to tell her. That could have been a nice moment of juxtaposition for her to realize what a tool Todd had been from the beginning but I thought it was more just thrown in there without much purpose.
Overall, while there were moments of witty banter and funny situations, this was just an okay read for me.
Thank you to Boldwood and Net Galley for this ARC.

You know what you’ll get from a Portia MacIntosh romance novel. The couple will be from Yorkshire and part of a great friend group. I think the great group of co-ed friends is what I like most about her books.

The totally unbelievable plot here is that Jessa has been coldly dumped by her long-time boyfriend, Todd. And she has to go on a week-long wedding cruise to Sicily for her best-friend’s wedding. BTW how many people want to give up a week for a friend’s wedding? Although, that cruise sounded great.

As happens with romance novels, Jessa has to share a suite with her yucky former boyfriend and his witchy new girlfriend and the new GF’s former boyfriend, Brody, a star cricket player. So, of course, Jessa and Brody have to share a room with only one bed. Obviously. And they decide to fake a romance to get back at their former romantic partner.

And, predictably, they fall for each other during their playacting at a romance. Brody doesn’t mind that Jessa knows nothing about cricket. So after a week, they are both in love with each other and their former partners are bitter, jealous, and unhappy.

If you’ve liked other MacIntosh novels, you’ll enjoy this one.

I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book that I received from Netgalley; however, the opinions are my own and I did not receive any compensation for my review.

This romance is a great, short summertime read. It is a single POV romance that I think could have benefitted from being dual POV. The conflict in the book is catching enough to draw you in, and the setting of a Mediterranean cruise is good for a nice beach read. The book is closed-door, and the escalation from fake dating to actually being interested in one another felt a little rushed to me. It was an enjoyable time overall.
I was grateful to be able to read an early copy of this courtesy of the publisher through NetGalley.

A fun forced proximity romance novel with troupes including one bed and fake dating. At times both hilarious and emotional with entertaining characters and an endearing main character.

📚ARC Review 📚

Going Overboard ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

When Jessa and Brody are both dump by their partners at a mutual friend’s wedding, they figure out pretty quick that their ex’s are seeing each other. Now they are on a destination cruise for their other friends’s wedding and find out they have to share a two-bed suite with their ex’s, Todd and Nikki. With no choice but to ride out the awkwardness, Jessa and Brody hatch a plan. If they can’t win their exes back, they’ll get them back by faking a red-hot romance of their own. But the better they get at faking it, the blurrier the line becomes. Either way, there’s going to be trouble at sea because true love is never smooth sailing!


What a fun summer read! I enjoyed this forced proximity, revenge on the ex’s, one room trope. The situation the main characters got themselves into made for some funny moments and their witty banter added to it. Their chemistry was great with the enemies to lovers trope. I loved the cruise ship, summer vibes for this time of the year. It was a light, easy to binge read.


This book will publish on July 26, 2025. Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for my advanced readers copy This is my honest and voluntary opinion.

For Jessa her life is going in an upwards trajectory she has the perfect job and the perfect boyfriend with plans to bill their dream home. They are off to a friends wedding and Jessa hopes Todd is going to propose soon.

When at the wedding she hears a girl crying in the toilets she gives her some advice, dump her boyfriend if he isn't making her happy as she is worth more than mediocre.

Then at the wedding during the first dance Todd dumps her she is shocked, they have two weddings of other friends to go to this summer and when Todd announces he has a new partner Nicki Jessa is left on the back foot.

Body has just been dumped at a wedding, and he too has two weddings this summer to go to. When Jessa and Brody discover their ex partners are together, they come up with a plan to pretend to be together and not come over as the heartbroken exes but when it starts to feel real it gets complicated.

This was an amazing book, great characters and situations, their ex partners are so evilly written. Definitely a must read for the summer

I really enjoyed this book. I loved how the main characters met at first and how they had no idea who each other was. This whole book was wonderful and I loved the story.

You absolutely need to get your hands on Portia MacIntosh's Going Overboard! If you're anything like me, you live for a romance that serves up delicious banter, and let me tell you, Jessa and Brody deliver it in spades. Their back-and-forth, especially given their hilariously awkward predicament, is pure gold. I found myself grinning like a fool through so many of their interactions.
This book is a masterclass in all my favorite tropes – fake dating, forced proximity, and an enemies-to-lovers arc that will have you absolutely swooning. The "only one bed" situation? Chef's kiss! You just know that's going to lead to some seriously delightful moments. And the revenge pact? Oh, it's just as fun as it sounds!
MacIntosh has a real knack for creating characters you can't help but root for, even when they're making questionable decisions (looking at you, Jessa and Brody!). The chemistry between them is electric from the get-go, and watching it simmer and spark had me completely hooked. If you're a fan of Emily Henry or Alex Aster, you're going to adore this. It's the perfect blend of humor, heart, and just the right amount of steam for a truly unforgettable summer read. Seriously, dive into Going Overboard – you won't regret it!

Thank you to Boldwood Press for the advanced copy!

This book was the PERFECT summer read! It was addictive, funny and the characters were so lovable! I loved how the story linked together at the end. The perfect book to read while lying on the sunlounger by the pool. Thank you to Portia MacIntosh and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I really wanted to like this book, but it just couldn’t hold my attention. The pacing was so slow, and I kept waiting for something to happen—but it never really did. Eventually, I just lost interest and put it down for good.

Maybe it picks up later, but I didn’t have the patience to find out. Not for me.

Thank you to Boldwood Books for gifting me this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review of Going Overboard.

Firstly, how gorgeous is the cover of this book, it just drew me in instantly. It got me in the moon for a holiday instantly.

I loved this book from the off, going through the trauma that Jess encountered with being dumped by her boyfriend, and then being in close proximity with him and her replacement, his new girlfriend just 2 weeks later — I really felt this. As somebody who has been in a similar situation, I felt her pain really went along on this journey with Jess.

The humour in this book was really adorable, and it went from giving me giggles, feet kicking and some laughing out loud. The cruise ship vibes was something I really loved, the whole cruising experience and how many different entertainment and food options onboard were really involved in the story.

Jess was lovely to get to know, she was incredibly likeable and I really wanted her to win in this storyline. Now, let’s talk about Brody Ryan, I feel like every girl needs a Brody in their life, especially when they are going through a breakup. He was such a sunshine character, full of fun and banter (and a professional sportsman playing Cricket for England - which was actually really refreshing to have a Cricket player rather than a hockey player etc) - I absolutely loved him!!!!

Jess and Brody winding up awful Nikki and Todd the whole way through this book was brilliant but the book ended all this just at the right time I think before it started to get tedious, and Brody reminding Jessa regularly that they no longer mattered really helped with this also.

My only issue with this book is I wish it had been longer!! Yes it was the perfect length as it was but I just would like to spend more time in this World and group of friends. Book 2 for their wedding with all their friends is needed - Please and thank you!

I love the whole "Our-partners-left-us-so-we'll-pretend-to-date-to-get-back-at-them (but are we really pretending?)" plot. And having that while on a cruise to Italy? Absolutely devoured it. I loved Brody so so much. How laidback, funny and caring he is. I also liked Jessa, but felt like she was a bit too focused on making her ex pay? I felt like this has taken a bit too much space, and while I really enjoyed it at the beginning, I wanted more genuine, we're-not-pretending anymore moments between Jessa and Brody. We had a lot of friendly, bantering moments, but I wanted a bit more steamy, lovy moments.

It was cute, lighthearted, chaotic, messy, and funny. I loved the writing and overall had a fun time!

Thank you Netgalley for an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest opinion 🫶🏽

This was my first time reading a book by this author and I’ll definitely be reading more. I felt like this was a great summer read and definitely made me wish I was on a cruise. I’d love to see this being turned into a film as I’d definitely go see it. The main character Jessa, is so relatable and the dictionary definition of bad luck. This was so funny and I’d definitely recommend this to others. I give this book a 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Thanks to the Publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book.

Jessa and Todd are attending a wedding of their friends. She’s happy in the relationship and thinks Todd will propose and it to the next step. But, at the wedding, on the married couple’s first dance Jessa is dumped by Todd.

Now, they’re both due to attend another wedding, firstly aboard a cruise ship to Sicily, where the wedding is taking place. When she boards the ship, Todd attends with his girlfriend Nikki, not only that, expecting a single room, she finds out that along with Brody, who was dumped by Nikki, they have to share a suite.

Todd and Nikki are thinking that their ex’s are a couple, so Jessa and Brody decide to act like they are. On board the activities the engaged couple have set up don’t go according to plan when Nikki gets jealous.

As Brody and Jessa continue to act loved up, they soon start to enjoy being together with funny moments and finding out more about each other. The acting starts to become more than that.

Will they end the fake relationship once the wedding is over and go back to their own lives, or will they admit their feelings to each other?

I highly recommend this book.

I want to thank Netgalley and the author for gifting me the ebook. I absolutely love reading books from this author! MacIntosh does not disappoint. I always find myself laughing out loud and can't wait for the next door! I can't wait to hear this book on audio! If you like Sophie Kinsella type books you will love this one!

Going Overboard was such a fun rom-com read. A cruise ship, fake dating, only one bed. What more could you ask for? I love a fake dating trope. And this one with a side of revenge was so fun. The banter and flirting were top notch.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Going overboard is another great summer read by the fabulous Portia MacIntosh!

The book follows Jessa who’s happily in a relationship with Todd and going to the weddings of friends in their friendship group.

While at a friends wedding, Todd dumps Jessa out of the blue saying that settling down with her wasn’t what he wanted. She is heart broken and while at yet another of her friends weddings two weeks later, has to come face to face with Todd for the first time since breaking up and shockingly he has a new girl on his arm - Nikki.

A bit of drunken drama ensues where Jessa ends up in the room of Brody who will be best man at her best friends wedding and who happens to be Nikki’s ex.

Cue Jessas best friends wedding which starts with a cruise to Sicily. The wedding planner messes up the rooms on the ship so Todd, Jenna, Nikki and Brody end up sharing a 2 bedroom suite so obviously Jessa and Brody pretend to be a very loved up couple to mess with their exes!

There’s lots of fun, flirting and drama that follows with Jessa and Brody growing closer and Todd and Nikki seeming growing more jealous of their exes and cracks forming in their relationship.

I loved the characters of Jessa and Brody and loved to hate Todd and Nikki. The secondary characters were all fun too! This book was a delight to read - it was easy to read, funny and lots of drama and romance to keep me fully invested in the book. I’ve been a fan of Portia MacIntosh for a while and will continue to read her books!

Thank you to Netgalley and Boldwood books for the arc of Going Overboard - I loved it!

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC copy of this book.
This was a fun summer romance set on a cruise ship, but I felt like it fell a little flat in some aspects especially the chemistry between the love interest. I like how it was a light read though which really is perfect for this time of year.

This was such a fun, feel-good read! If you’re a fan of classic romcom tropes like fake dating, forced proximity, only one bed, revenge pacts, opposites attract, and enemies to lovers, this book delivers them all in the best way.

Set on a cruise ship, the setting added an extra layer of fun and chaos that worked perfectly with the light-hearted tone. I really enjoyed the dynamic between the characters, they had great banter and believable chemistry.

The revenge-on-exes plot was handled in a playful, not-too-serious way, which made it even more enjoyable. I found myself genuinely laughing out loud, and overall had a really great time with this story.

If you’re looking for a cute, tropey romance that doesn’t take itself too seriously, this one’s worth picking up.

A lighthearted, sun-soaked escape filled with quirky characters, awkward mishaps, and a charming cruise ship setting. Going Overboard delivers exactly what you'd expect from a rom-com read: fun, flirty chaos with a dash of heart. While some plot points felt a bit far-fetched, the humor and fast pace kept me entertained. A solid 3.5 stars!