Title: Swept Away
Author: Beth O’Leary
Publisher: Quercus/Hachette, April 2025; RRP: $32.99
Review: Marian Chivers
Author bio: Beth O’Leary is a bestselling author whose novels have been translated into over thirty languages. The Flat Share, her debut novel, sold over a million copies and is now a major TV series. Her subsequent novels The Switch, The Road Trip, The No-Show and The Wake-Up Call were all instant bestsellers. Beth writes in the Hampshire countryside and if she’s not at her desk, she can be found curled up somewhere with a book, a cup of tea and several woolly jumpers (whatever the weather).
Review: Lexi is looking for no-strings-attached fun with a stranger. She deserves one night for herself, doesn’t she? Zeke is looking for love. But for one night with a woman like Lexi, he’ll break his rules…
After meeting and connecting at the pub, they end up stumbling to the marina for a passionate night on a houseboat named The Merry Dormouse. The next morning, hungover and shaken by an amazing night together, Lexi is ready for him to leave. There’s just one problem…the houseboat they stayed on has been swept out to the North Sea.
This is a wonderful plot for a forced-proximity romance and the story is told by a master storyteller. It is narrated by the two main characters in the first person. Their name is given at the beginning of the chapter so that the reader doesn’t get confused. The fact that Lexi is 31 and Zeke is 23 makes it different to many romances but the relationship is believable — unlike some of the plot points concerning the boat, time, and the behaviour of the North Sea which may require some disbelief to be suspended. However, the developing relationship between Lexi and Zeke is beautifully done and they enjoy a happy ending after some dramatic situations that test themselves and their growing relationship.
@ TWO WOMEN CHATTING
I’ve read another of O’Leary’s books (The No-Show) and she excels at creating characters that the reader cares about and a story that keeps you wondering what happens next. O’Leary’s style is warm and amusing, if not downright funny. She knows how to tug at the heart strings, too. If you need a story that keeps you turning the pages and leaves you feeling happier with the world, then O’Leary is an author to add to your reading list.
Marian Chivers has a lifelong interest in reading and writing with her work and study involving books from children’s literature to post graduate studies. She has also spent many years with an active involvement in romance writers’ associations.
Review copy provided by the publisher
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