Life isn't going great for Jas as she loses her job and her home through no fault of her own. She is all set to move back in with her parents when her childhood friend invites her on a luxury holiday. She is reunited with her old friends and is confronted by the past. But could she also have a second chance at happiness?
Long Time No Sea is a light hearted, warm and often funny novel about fresh starts.
Jas feels terrible about moving back to her parents' home but she has no choice. She is thrilled to be offered a free holiday and see her old school friends again. The love triangle from her past is still causing her heart to flutter despite the years apart. And something drove the friends apart 15 years ago, but what...?
Most of the book is written in the present day but some chapters show their teenage years to gradually reveal the past. I liked the way that the author built up the mystery about the past and the effect this may have had on the main characters.
My expectations were probably too high for this book as I absolutely loved Better Off Wed by this author. This book had the same warmth but I didn't feel as attached to the characters and missed the laugh out loud comedy.
Long Time No Sea is an enjoyable book that would make a good beach read.

eu gostei da história, ela tem uma proposta muito boa e entregou o que prometou!

é perfeita para ler no verão para os saudosos de seus amigos do ensino médio (ps, me admira que consigam manter amigos mesmo depois de tanto tempo)

aqui vamos acompanhar a jas que ta desempregada e receber um convite de uma amiga para passar uma temporada com os migles de ensino medio com tudo pago. logo, ela se encontra no meio do ex namorado e no que possivelmente poderia ser o seu novo namorado no primeiro ano da faculdade, se aquele acidente não tivesse acontecido...

e bom, ai eles se separaram e agora tem essa oportunidade de se reconectar

na historia a autora aborda a questao de estar com alguem pq outra pessoa não te ve com os mesmos olhos, sobre a questao da mudança dastrica que é sair da escola para a faculdade, e como sentimentos mal resolvidos ainda podem trazer dor.

foi uma boa leitura no geral, só nao seria uma que eu voltaria para revisitar

I love this one with the love triangle but was annoyed with some of the characters. I love a HEA though so this was definitely worth the read!

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley.

Jas has lost her job and her home. As a live in nanny - she has been terminated because the wife is aware of her husband's attraction to the nanny. So, back home to her parents house she goes. As she is being fired, the husband hands her a package that had been delivered in her name. Inside is a camera and she plays the video in it. It is her friend from high school offering her a week vacation - FOR FREE - off the coast of Italy. All she has to do is pack a bag - everything else is taken care of.

When Jas arrives at the airport, there are other people - her group from college, less one person. When they arrive on the coast, in a mega mansion where they will blissfully stay, the missing person shows up and the fun begins. As they lounge in the sun and reminisce, secrets come out and could there be a change to rekindle a love from the past?

This was a bit all over the place for me. The characters felt one-dimensional and the plot was disjointed. I had a tough time finishing it.

I struggled through this book. I had to put it down and pick it back up multiple times. I felt very disconnected with the characters and was uninterested in the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of Long Time No Sea by Portia MacIntosh in exchange for my honest review and opinion. This was such a cute read that left me with a big smile on my face throughout the entire book.. If you are looking for a quick, fun read than this is your book!

I LOVE Portia's writing and I think she comes up with some genius ideas that I don't come across often in books!

This one was cute and funny but I couldn't really connect with any of the characters and I felt the story dragged on quite a bit. Once it got around 60-65%, I felt it really hit it's stride. I feel like that's argument late in a book.

Nevertheless, I will still be checking out more of her books because I really do like her writing style!

Thank you to Boldwood Books and Netgalley for an ARC!

As I always say I love Portia's writing but this book although I did not dnf I did come close to it. I think our MFC is just a bit annoying to be honest, the start of the book was weird and unbelievable, you can see where the book is going and what the lies will be. TBH i just didn't have as much fun reading this book as I have her others. I think a contributing factor to making it unenjoyable is that these are 30 year olds acting like they are still teens and if I wanted to read that type I'd read young adult books. Another thing that let this down was that for a rom com there wasn't much romance or comedy. Bit of a let down tbh.

Jasmine's life is in chaos when her old friend Maxi invites her and their childhood friends on a trip to Italy, despite their falling-out years ago. Secrets emerge during the reunion, complicating things. The story jumps between their childhood and the present in Italy, revealing unexpected truths. While it took time to warm up to the characters, their journey was engaging.

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the opportunity to read Long Time No Sea.

3.5 stars. A lighthearted way to start my reading year.

This one started really strong for me with Jas embarking on a once in a lifetime holiday with her friends from high school who she hadn't seen or spoken to in years. Set on a beautiful island where no expense was spared the friends all reunite and catch up on where they all are now with their lives and the anticipation of old romances possibly re-sparking.

It also alternated between current day and 2008, their last few days of adolescence as they all patiently waited for their results to come out after final year exams.

This was a really cute read but it drifted off for me in the middle for a while when the group suddenly ended up on a random party-island plus sorry, Clarky irritated me immensely and I just couldn't cope with his character at all.

Overall though, still a decent read.

Really enjoyable read, not your classic romcom formulation by any means. There’s fun, jeopardy and mystery along the way. The dual timeline format is easy to follow. Just relax and enjoy the ride!

Thank you Netgalley

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC. This was a fun ready. The love triangle was presented wonderfully and the setting was perfect. A very laid back easy read that people will enjoy.

Jas, recently fired, joins old high school friends for a holiday in Italy organized by her now-married ex, Maxi. She's part of a past love triangle involving Mike and Cam. The reunion takes a surprising turn when Clarky's island adventure disrupts the plot, followed by a swift rekindling of relationships at a spontaneous sex resort, leaving the author's attempt at character growth and plot development feeling rushed and unsatisfying.

The book brims with fun, laughter, and friendship—perfect ingredients for a delightful summer read. I found myself laughing out loud, particularly during the holiday resort games! It’s a feel-good story emphasizing the importance of good friends for the soul.

Two decades of time pass amongst friends who decide to go on vacation together! What could go wrong?? All of it… the idea behind this book was cute, rekindling of relationships and bringing people back together to their former glory.. but it didn’t work that way. The story was sloooow, then so fast. It didn’t click together until about 60%, which is difficult to read as a person who loves stories that click from the start. Also, the characters all were narcissists, but would not ever admit it. This was difficult as a reader! Finally - there seemed to be some plot points that were rather interesting, but never fleshed out. It’s like the author wanted to introduce so many plot points but couldn’t figure out which one was best, so we just didn’t get any of them! Overall, not the best, but could be tons worse! Thanks for the opportunity to read.

I received this book for free for an honest unbiased review from Netgalley.

I wish more books were this well written. Characters were witty and the setting fantastic.

It was my first time reading the author and it sure won't be the last! Reading this book I realized it was the perfect summer read.
Fun, easy, fast peaced and with great characters.
The group of friends warmed ny heart and I didn't want the book to end.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy of Long Time No Sea by Portia MacIntosh.

Thoroughly loved this book loved the characters and the holistic approach to their depth from the format of present and now... set in 08 and present day it brought up lots of fond memories and feelings from being around their age at that time and now the contrast to adulthood very relatable.

This was fun! The story had a great pace, a good amount of humor and the characters were so fun! It felt like grown up summer camp plus lots of hilarious mishaps. This would be such a fun summery, vacation, beachy read for sure! It was so easy to relate to being 30 but not having your life all the way figured out like you think you should!


Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy to read and review. All opinions are my own.