Another 5 star read from Samantha Chase! She’s one of my favorite authors and an automatic listen/read for me as soon as her books release. I was lucky enough to get early access to Karma’s a Beach, which comes out on September 23rd. I loved it so much that I binge listened to the entire story in less than 24 hours.

The narrators are Penelope Ann Ross and Willem Bloom. Both were the perfect match for this story. They were expressive, and so easy to listen to.

Publication date- September 23. 2025
#KarmasaBeach #NetGalley

The first half of this book is like a soap opera! There’s a lot of drama and most of it isn’t even with the main characters, it’s all the support characters. It kind of starts to drag the plot down a little bit but when the focus goes back to the MCs, the story became more enjoyable. I absolutely LOVED Sebastian’s character. The self-discovery/healing journey that Olivia goes through brought a really emotional element to the plot, I teared up a few times. It also appears that this was setup to segue into an interconnected standalone series (which I look forward to reading if it does).

The audio narration by both Penelope Ann Rose and Andre Bellido was great! Only critic there, is that it’s a little on the slower side but that was easily fixable by increasing the reading speed.

Thank you NetGalley & Dreamscape Media for this ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Quick Summary: A perfect match up women's fiction/romance

My Review: Karma's a Beach by Samantha Chase is a 2025 contemporary fiction novel. The audiobook is scheduled for release on 9/23/25. The book edition was previously released in July 2025.

About the Book: " I have to fly home for...

My ex’s funeral.

I have to give the eulogy.

But of course, nothing ever goes according to plan."

In My Own Words: When a former boyfriend turned ex dies, an author and her airplane seat buddy connect in a most peculiar way. Could destiny be a part of their story?

About the Characters: A hodgepodge group of friends gather to remember a friend. Mixed feelings, misunderstandings, memories, and more help them to reveal their deepest thoughts and heal from unsaid hurts.

I would love to know how the other characters stories play out. They were all so interesting. There was a new and old love theme, a right in front of your face theme, and a just the two of us ++ theme. It makes me wonder if this will turn into a series.

About the Conflict: The conflict in this story was multi-layered. I loved that many of the issues were so believable. Although karma played into the main characters storyline, there were other relationships woes that were explored.

About the Audiobook: Narration was done by Penelope Ann Rose and Willem Bloom. This duo made it so easy to listen to this story. Their tones were so soothing, as strange as that sounds. I was able to complete the audiobook in one sitting. Quite frankly, I did not want to miss a thing. The listening experience was just that good.

My Final Say: I love the way everything came together in this novel. It was light and sweet, but it was also deep and meaningful. Strangers. Friends. Unexpected surprises. Healing. Love. Family. It was simply beautiful. The emotional tone was just right, and I got my happily ever after.

This story has room to grow into something more. I hope that happens.

Other: Readers who enjoy reunion stories, beach romances, and karma connections will like this book.

Rating: 4/5
Recommend: Yes
Audience: A
Re-read: Yes
Status/Level: 💕

Sincere appreciation is extended to the author, to the publisher (Dreamscape Media), and to NetGalley. Thank you so very much for granting access to an ALC of this title in exchange for an honest critique. It was an absolute pleasure to review this work. I am grateful to have been given the opportunity. I look forward to reading more from this writer.

Narrated by Penelope Ann Rose, Andre Bellido

First quarter? Cute and quick—like a little beach read should be. Then midway it started dragging like it was being pulled through drying concrete. Way too many irrelevant details and filler that added nothing to the story. Honestly, even narrator Andre Bellido sounded like he was over it—rushing through vapid descriptions like he just wanted out. A disappointing slump after a promising start.