The synopsis of the book led us to believe that this is a
comedy with a wish-fuelled ending. But it turned out to be much more than we
were expecting. This is more about self-acceptance wrapped within a supportive
community and an unlikely romance.
Twenty-two year old Willa Rogers is a popular Instagrammer
with about five hundred thousand followers. Living in a tiny seaside island,
Willa works in a sailing shop and Instas about sailing. The catch is that she
cannot sail and never has, though she has convinced everyone, including her
bestie Bodhi and Bodhi’s mums who own the shop she works in, that she can. When
a big High Seas championship comes to town, her followers erupt with requests
for her to participate. She tries to wriggle out of it, but someone enters her and
a helpful neighbouring shop owner gives her a boat. Trapped in her own lies,
Willa has little choice but to go ahead. She gets a lucky break when she finds
out that Lane Cordova, a retired High Seas champion has recently moved
to the island. Willa tracks Lane down only to realise that she’s already has a
not-so-great run-in with Lane recently. She somehow manages to convince lane to
give her sailing lessons. It doesn’t take long for both of them to figure out
that sailing is just not Willa’s thing and the lessons peter off. Willa,
however, turns up at the championship and crashes and burns. In more ways than
one and the house of cards that she’s built on numerous lies collapses.
Willa is rash, reckless and a serial liar (which is somehow
explained convincingly enough to be forgivable). However, we aren’t sure how we
feel about her particularly about her behaviour with her mother and her
cavalier attitude about stealing and subsequently destroying Lane’s parents’
boat. Lane is an interesting character – a person coming of age in her thirties
(there is a fifteen year age gap between the two MCs). Bodhi is super chill and
super likeable as is her friend (and new romantic partner), Hunter. In fact, we
feel that Lane-Bodhi and Willa-Hunter would’ve made better romantic pairs and wish
that is where this book would’ve headed. We aren’t totally convinced that the
Willa-Lane couple will make it long term.
Despite dithering over our feelings about Willa, this book
held us right up to the end and we’d say: give it a shot.
⭐⭐⭐
