loved that this romance happened on a ship. loved that they both found love and that they were able to work through their issues.

I enjoyed the situation Ship. I did have to suspend my disbelief somewhat at times, for example, when Mina had only just met Poppy and seemed fully onboard with a plan to off Poppy’s boyfriend.

It was an eventful whodunnit with lots of dead bodies popping up. If you enjoy Kate Callaghan’s books, you will enjoy this one.

The Situation Ship by Kate Callaghan
Did not finish @ 25%
Reason: I found the characters to be annoying. I was interested in the mystery, but not engaged in any possible relationship between the two MCs.
I will not be posting a review on my social media.

I found this a fun and entertaining read. Starting off with quite some mysteries and murders to be solved by the princess of pop, Poppy and the broody detective now bodyguard, Isaiah. Both having their own secrets to hide from each other and the world. They have a fun dynamic and banter. Half way through though it fell a bit off on the high tension and started dragging a bit. The focus shifted more to the relationships instead of solving the murders. Having this take place on a cruise ship was entertaining and added to the mystery of how it was pulled off. Definitely for people who want a light, entertaining murder mystery with a romance sprinkled in.

3.5 stars
Thank you NetGalley, Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Titles and Kate Callaghan for an eARC in exchange of an honest review.

I love a mystery with a romance. I liked the way the story began, it hooked me right away and then it kept me hooked the whole time. The characters were good and the writing was great! Really wonderful book!

4.5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me this book to read before publication!

Wow. I started this book yesterday and couldn't put it down, I loved how classy and old-fashioned this book felt.
After being on a few cruises myself, this book SCREAMED out to me. I liked learning what cruises were like just under 100 years ago, and I am always really fascinated by the stories from the olden days. Although this book was written in recent days.

This book pulled me in from the get-go. Instantly growing fond of Olivia (Olive) and her story. But as soon as she got onto the shipand met Frank. The stars were already aligned for them. I just knew that they were meant to be. With Frank's instant care, love and protection upon Olive, to the point where you could see a clear comparison between love and dominance. Frank and Jimmy.

I love a short story/novella, and this summed up the perfect reason as to why I do.

‧₊˚ 🩵 ‧₊𓏲 ๋࣭ ࣪ ˖🛥️ the situation ship ‧₊˚ 🛥️ ‧₊𓏲 ๋࣭ ࣪ ˖🩵

𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙤: 𝙠𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙖𝙜𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙗𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙥𝙪𝙗𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙧’𝙨 𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣

𓇼 ⋆.˚ 𓆉 𓆝 𓆡⋆.˚ 𓇼 ⋆.˚ 𓆉 𓆝 𓆡⋆.˚ 𓇼

i really enjoyed this book!! it was a really good murder mystery novel, and the romance was there. the storyline was a bit confusing towards the end, especially when she finds out who the killer was, and i didn’t really understand who it was, but that was probably just me. i thought that it was a lovely book, and the cover was also stunning. it was my first time reading a novel by this author, and i definitely think ill read another book by her in the future. 🪸⋆｡˚

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for a free copy in exchange for an honest review. Despite a beautiful cover and intriguing premise, The Situation Ship didn't deliver. The characters came across as very flat, with no chemistry between the two main leads. The pacing of the mystery was also really uneven: slow for the first 2/3 and then rushed to the end. I didn't know that this book was the third in a series, but I felt like this could be read as a standalone, which was nice!

DNF @ 44%. It was good at first, but I just didn’t care more about the characters the more I was into the book and didn’t care to finish.

3.75 ⭐️ First off. Thank you NetGalley for this copy. I enjoyed it. The beginning was great. Very suspenseful. Bodies dropping like flies. Kept me on the edge of my seat. Loved the romance that was starting and banter between Isaiah and Poppy. However about halfway through it fell off a little. The romance felt rushed and went from not enjoying each other’s company to immediately hooking up. Also the murders and plot started becoming predictable and a lot of the story seemed too out there for my taste. The ending was cute though. All in all I did enjoy it. I had a good time reading it. Quick read as well. Just fell off in certain places.

This was my 3rd book by this author. I read Not Another Rockstar (which I loved) and Tis' the Season for Secrets (which I couldn't get into). So we can say I partly knew what to expect, but even with that, Kate overtook me.

This is a murder mystery book, where Poppy goes on a cruise boat with her new and hot bodyguard, Isaiah. These two are off limits to each other, and on top of that, are facing dead bodies left by someone unknown but close to Poppy. They, even though the crew isn't happy with that, work on solving the cases.

I read this book slowly, devoured every page and chapter. The Criminal + Romance tropes are so original and Kate handles suspense and dangers so well in unknown, crowded places and comfort by being with someone you love. Bonus points for the appearance of Axel and Phoebe

One thing I thought could be better was the love between the main characters — even though their story was described as fire, world-burning and steamy, I didn't get it.

the situation ship came across my tbr next pile and i new it would need to be a read now instead. because look at this title, this cover, how could i resist for one minute more? i loved how drawn in i was just from those things and was already getting excited for it. im so glad i did. this was just the book i needed today.
on this ship we have a pop star with alot going on. we have a scarred detective. oh and the small problem of being on board a luxury ship,effectively trapped but with a stalker. oh ok not so good.
so how was this going to turn out? well, it was a high tension but also gorgeously romantic, with added broody hero and strong but vulnerable heroine sparking off each other. yes yes im here for this thank you very much.
this book was about some kind of organised chaos lol. so somehow the whole thing just worked.
poppy and Isaiah's chemistry was on point and only added to the tension in the story line. but also their deeper moments were what really stood out for me too. its those moments that make books like this credible. for me anyway.
being on a cruise only added yet more tension. it made everything feel even more closed in. and with the stalker and murders things really ramped up. your feelings are all over the place alongside the characters in this one. but again somehow it all just worked. and that take skill on Kate's part and a really tight and smart plot map.
there was surprising depth to this book too. a vulnerability that made you all the more immersed into the read and finding out what was going on here. there is clearly more to what is happening to Poppy and i just found myself more and more concerned for her. how was she linked to these murders? when the final reveal came it was a shock but one that made so much sense. i was fooled big time but then when it was revealed it fit together perfectly. i did find myself wanting to go back to all "their" parts and seeing if i could spot it now, or should have!
a really good read this was. and it felt fresh and different and not like my norm or go-to's. and i needed that today, a bit of amixup and escape into something i would perhaps need to focus a little more on but not too much it felt difficult was just the order of the day.

Thank you to NetGalley for this e-copy of The Situation Ship by Kate Callaghan in exchange for a honest review.This is a great murder mystery book that keeps you guessing to the end about who is trying to murder Poppy Roe, a famous singer who has committed her fair share of murders herself.She only killed people who had made her life hell like her adopted mother/aunt and a former dance teacher who physically abused her..When she boards a luxury cruise ship the body count starts and all the people dying have some connection to Poppy-it’s almost like the murderer is trying to pin their murders on Poppy while also plotting Poppy’s murder..With the help of her hunky bodyguard , Isaiah, can Poppy find the murderer before he/she finds her? Read the book and find out.

3.75 stars
I gotta be honest, I almost DNF this book, but I'm happy I stuck it out. I really wasn't sure who the culprit was until a specific point in the book, but even then I was just a little sus of them but not sure they were the murderer. Poppy is just surrounded by one death after another, all while Isaiah and Mina are doing their best to keep her safe from harm. Which proves to be harder than they both anticipated.
Talk about a cruise from hell, I'd be getting off that ship as quick as possible and never getting on another in my life!

The Situationship was an okay read. A murder mystery with a dash of romance, it kept me guessing, and the twist landed well. That said, the romance didn’t feel entirely believable, which dulled some of the impact.

It was so fun as usual, but I also loved the mystery and suspense elements. From start to finish, it kept me on my toes. I absolutely have no words to describe Poppy and Isaiah's chemistry; it was simply chef's kiss!

Did I suspect who the killer was? Yes, kind of.
Was I able to suspect the killer's motive? Absolutely not. It was incredibly satisfying to watch those final scenes unfold and see justice served.

At this point, it's safe to say that anything Kate Callaghan writes, I will read and enjoy immensely. Also, a special shout-out to Phoebe and Axel - I love it when other couples show up in each other's books in interconnected series!

I really enjoyed the premise of the book. The setting of the luxury cruise ship was something different that I haven't read before and the pace was fast but not so fast that it was easy to get lost. The writing style just wasn't for me though. I found the characters lacked a certain level of depth and the overall syntax felt more appropriate for YA or even middle grade at times.

This was a very easy read for me, well written and had great pacing. Not too slow and just enough extra stuff so it didnt go by too fast. The characters definitely had depth to them and were written believably, with flaws and questionable pasts but you still loved them.
I also want to give a kudos to the author for two things at the start of the book, a list of chapters for those wanting to skip spice, it was very mild spice compared to what I read but for those that aren’t a fan of spice it’s such a thoughtful touch from the author. Also a QR code to a playlist on Spotify, was just something I adored and now want to petition that every book (especially fantasy) have one of these. Such a beautiful extra, thank you

This was an engaging read, yet I didn't love it. I've read a bunch of books by the author till date, many of which I thoroughly enjoyed, so it comes as no surprise to me that the writing style was just as good in this one. However, I couldn't bring myself to like the characters in the least. There's a certain nonchalance everyone in the story seems to have with death and all the mishaps that happen on the ship. A lot of times when certain things from the past were "explained", things were taken too lightly, and that didn't sit right with me. I didn't feel the romance in this one as I did with other books by the same author, or just other stories in general. What Poppy and Axel found attractive about each other is beyond me.

In hindsight, Ms Perfectly Fine may have been my least favorite book by the author so far, so maybe it the romantic suspense genre that is the issue. I'm likely going to skip the next book in this series whenever it comes.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Kate Callaghan for providing me with a complimentary digital ARC for The Situation Ship coming out July 27, 2025. The honest opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author. I didn’t realize it was part of a series. I really enjoy stories on ships. I liked this book a lot. I think the plot was pretty good. I was hoping for a little more. I would check out other books by this author.