Review: Swept Away by Beth O'Leary

 

Publication Date: April 2025

Source: Borrowed from library

Blurb:       [ Goodreads ]

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 . . .
Sparks fly at the pub, one passionate kiss leads to another and they end up stumbling home to the marina together.

The next morning, hungover and shaken by an amazing night together, Lexi is more than ready for Zeke to leave. There's just one small problem . . . the houseboat they stayed on has been swept out to sea.
As their supplies start to run dangerously low, and the waves pick up, Zeke and Lexi soon realise there's much more on the line than their new relationship.

How long can they really survive on a drifting houseboat in the North Sea? Will search and rescue find them? And who will they be if they both make it back to dry land?

As someone who is a big fan of Beth O'Leary's books, The Switch and The Flatshare are two books I constantly recommend and rave about, this one just didn't hit the same spot. I still flew through it in a few days and enjoyed it but it felt a little flat to me. 

I really loved our two main characters - Lexi was very independent, loyal and definitely had walls up to block out anyone from outside of her bubble who tried to get to know her. Zeke was funny, a bit of a character and a little bit lonely / lost. Reading from both of their perspectives, we get to know the characters so deeply (helped by the extreme close quarters they find themselves in) and over the course of the novel see how they both help each other work through aspects of their personalities to become more rounded and self assured people. I loved reading about their relationship, how they brought out different sides to each other and their resilience shining through an impossible situation to help the other survive. 

I felt that because of the lost at sea situation, which makes it very obvious we don't see much of any other characters, it did sort of leave me wanting to know more about the important people in their lives which have affected each of them into having these insecurities or boundaries with people. I would have enjoyed if there were more flashback style scenes where we got to see how some moments where the characters shared their own thoughts or memories about them, for example Zeke's mum and dad or Lexi's mum. 

The plot of the novel was enjoyable for sure but still left me wanting a little more. I found myself hooked in the beginning, then my interest waning towards the end where I admit I skim read the last 30 pages or so. The lost at sea was an interesting concept to read about but I found myself wanting some shocking twist. I have to admit the direction the plot went in towards the end, I had unfortunately guessed from the very beginning. I hate it when I am right! 

Written with Beth O'Leary's wonderful humour and storytelling, she has crafted a heartwarming story of resilience, survival and love both platonic and romantic. Shoutout to Eugene the seagull! I did enjoy this one but not as much as her previous titles. Would definitely still recommend but more for an easy-going, fun read rather than something that will stay with the reader after you turn the final page.