This book was SO FUN! I was rooting for Emmy from the beginning. Poor girl was having such awful luck and it legitimately was none of her fault. I loved the setting of this book, the romance, the side characters, and the reality show fun! I had a great time reading it.

[Note: I purchased the kindle copy of this book a few years ago and am copying over that review here]

This is FUN and my Bachelor/Are You The One?/Survivor-loving heart is elated. As much as I like reality TV on television, I don’t think the premise always translates well into romance novels. Well, I’m happy to be proven wrong because I loved this. The found family feels are epic. I legit cried several times — that end scene, when all the contestants are supporting Emmy during her encounter with [redacted character]? Amazing, one of the best scenes I’ve read all year. And Tad wins my vote for Most Surprisingly Improved Secondary Character.

What I didn’t love:

- Couple remarks about Wes’s weight loss after his childhood, paired with his focus on healthy habits and cutting down on impulses. Thankfully there were only a few throwaway lines, but it was unnecessary and could’ve been cut easily, imo.

- I recently read JK’s college romance with lots of explicit sex… This is not that book, lol. There’s one sex scene but it does that weird fade-to-black thing after mild foreplay. Upon reflection, I think the low heat fits the book because there’s so much plot surrounding the challenges and elimination repairing drama. But the low heat was unexpected and I felt bereft, so I’m knocking off a star.

But!!! Everything else was 💯 and I’m surprised there isn’t more hype. Overall, I loved this book because it is — as Jess says — an actual romantic comedy that makes you laugh. An endangered species, sadly.

Title: Big Wild Love Adventure by Julianna Keyes

Release Date: May, 31st, 2024

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Stars

Emmy Shaw, reeling from a broken heart and financial woes, impulsively applies for a dating-adventure reality show in hopes of winning a cash prize to turn her life around.

However, she's thrust into the jungle with minimal preparation, questioning if the show is worth the turmoil. Yet, as she bonds with her fellow contestants, including the enigmatic Wes, Emmy begins to see the potential for personal growth amidst the challenges. Through cave treks, jungle hikes, and unexpected connections, Emmy discovers a newfound confidence and a chance to rediscover herself in the midst of her chaotic journey.

This book offers a delightful blend of romance, drama, and self-discovery set against the backdrop of a reality TV dating show.

Emmy, our resilient heroine, signs up for the show to overcome her string of misfortunes but finds herself entangled in unexpected romantic entanglements, particularly with the serious and enigmatic Wes. As the story unfolds, Emmy undergoes personal growth, learning to let go of the past and embrace the future.

The book is filled with engaging characters, sizzling romances, and plenty of drama, making it a perfect summer read. With a slow-burn romance and a focus on Emmy's journey, readers will find themselves rooting for her every step of the way.

Overall, it's a fun and entertaining read that kept me hooked from start to finish.


Thank you to The Publisher Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op ,The Author Julianna Keyes & NetGalley for an advanced reader copy (ARC) in exchange for my honest review.

Big Wild Love Adventure by Julianna Keyes
Rating:4/5
Release Date: 31 May 2024

Dumped at the altar, Emmy Shaw’s heart, much like her dented food truck, is closed for business. Struggling with debt and eviction, she impulsively applies for a dating-adventure reality show on a friend’s dare, hoping for a shot at the cash prize to turn her life around.

But when she finds herself stranded in the jungle months later, wearing only a bathing suit and a backpack, Emmy questions if the show is worth it. Surrounded by fellow contestants, including the enigmatic Wes, Emmy begins to see the potential for more than just money.

Amid cave treks, jungle hikes, and unexpected connections, Emmy discovers a newfound confidence. What started as an escape from her troubles becomes a journey of self-discovery.

This book was absolutely fantastic and exactly what I was looking for! The side characters were incredibly well-developed, making it easy to fall in love with each of them and not want anyone to get voted off, unlike real reality TV shows. The show itself was a blast, filled with entertaining twists and turns, some of which were delightfully ridiculous.

Overall, it was a delightful read, and I'm thrilled that it lived up to the excitement promised in the synopsis!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Victory Editing NetGalley Co-Op, and the author, Julianna Keyes, for providing me with an ARC copy in exchange for an honest and fair review.

I enjoyed this book and finished it in a day. It was an easy read and lighthearted. The concept of a game show is unique and I haven’t read a book with this same premise before. The game show made it really fun to read and I could easily envision the characters, setting, and challenges.

But there were a few drawbacks. I found the characters seemed to fall a little flat and were pretty one dimensional. They don’t really have a personality other than their game show persona. The book’s plot was pretty predictable and I didn’t find the scene with Emmy and Wes’ exes to be necessary. It seemed super thrown in as a a last minute attempt at shocking the reader. But it didn’t really serve a purpose. The book’s “villain” was also just…immature and annoying. But I think the biggest drawback was the ending. We go from what’s supposed to be a huge buildup to just…nothing. And then they just randomly get back together? It was much too rushed.

Overall, the book was fun and lighthearted. I wouldn’t recommend it to everyone but I would pass it along to those I know like an easy, fun read. I would read more from this author.

After being ditched at the altar, Emmy Shaw’s heart, like her dented food truck, is definitely not open for business. Deeply in debt to her parents and evicted from her apartment, she takes a friend’s drunken dare and fills out an application for a new dating-adventure reality show. She never expects to be chosen—or to get a chance at the show’s huge cash prize, which could put her life back on track.

But when she’s abandoned in the middle of the jungle two months later wearing only a bathing suit and a backpack, she questions if being on the show might be even worse than the #emmytrashtruck hate brigade she left back home. Then she meets her fellow cast members—including sexy, inscrutable Wes—and starts to reconsider, wondering if maybe money’s not all she stands to gain from this experience.

After a year of abysmal failures, this summer of cave treks, jungle hikes, impromptu talent shows, and a sexy flirtmance turns out to be just the thing to help Emmy rebuild her shattered confidence. She signed up for the show to hide from the mess her life had become, but this escape from reality might be just what she needs to find herself.

Dabney: I adore Keyes’ Charleston Thrashers series–those books are a perfect balance of romance and humor–so when this one came up for review, it was a no brainer to say yes.. That said,I don’t watch reality TV and I wasn’t sure whether or not I would find the setting interesting. ButI loathe baseball and that hatred didn’t keep me from enjoying the Thrashers books. What did you think about the worldbuilding in this book? 

Caroline: I didn’t feel that the reality TV setting was realistically developed. They do talk about cameras, the story is shaped by challenges and events, but I’m not even into reality TV much and I can tell you things that are left out. Nobody wears a mic pack. Nobody ever has to re-enact a conversation or event because of cameras. At one point, we know that another candidate was interviewed by producers, but we never see Emmy do a producer interview. It’s a bit wallpaper to me.

Dabney: I agree. I wish reality TV was like this–full of warm, smart, funny people–in general–who routinely care for one another more than they do the cameras! And I loved that Keyes made her show hilarious to read about. But, no, it is firmly in the fictional realm which, honestly, isn’t the worst. I’m not sure I’d be up for a romance where everything is manufactured and designed to manipulate the viewer. 

Caroline: Oh, yes, there’s none of the - to be honest, cruelty - that marks producer-participant relations on a lot of shows, where they try to provoke contestants into fighting and breaking down. My favorite part was the challenges. I love partners or teammates as a foundation for relationships, so it was nice to see Emmy and her partners work together.

Dabney: I too liked the challenges and all the teamwork. But, even more, I liked the humor. Keyes is funny and every few minutes I found myself snorting with laughter. And her humor isn’t ironic or compromised by judgment–the way she writes funny encompasses acceptance for all. That really works for me. 

Caroline: Yes. Even her “villain” had her moments of kindness. Of the secondary cast, I especially loved Tad. We stan a thoughtful himbo with a precise internal clock.

Dabney: It looks as though Tad will get his own book–here’s hoping. His story arc was lovely and had a sense of realness to it that some of the others didn’t. This is a book–which is kinda funny given that it’s about something as forced as a reality love show–that finding out who you really are. No one did that better than Tad. 

Caroline: I think it’s telling that we’ve reached this far in the conversation without talking about Emmy and the man she falls for. Their relationship is nice, but this is not a relationship-driven book. Neither protagonist is extremely complex, and they mostly grow or make relationship progress because of the show’s obstacles. 

Dabney: I guess I’d say this primary focus of this book is about the characters’ relationships with themselves. Emmy came onto the show with a bruised ego, a wreck of a work life, and a really crappy past love life. All of those things made her underestimate herself. Over the course of the book, she learned how great she was. That worked for me. This is a romance and I was rooting for Emmy to find true love but, more than that, I wanted Emmy to see herself as a winner. 

Caroline: I also felt that the pacing was off. So much of the early scenes with just Emmy could have been told in backstory or returned to in the show (treating her business struggles like her relationship with her ex), and entire days went by on the show without any narration or character interaction. 

Dabney: That didn’t register as much with me although I agree that the book certainly could have started with Emmy arriving on the show.

Caroline: It bugged me a bit that Panama was treated as an uninhabited jungle or resort, nothing in between. Actual people do live there.

Dabney: Well, I think it was for this show. But I hear you.

Caroline: This was a fun, fast read which definitely fits the bill for what a lot of people are looking for in the summer. I’d completely recommend it for a lighthearted poolside read. 

Dabney: I thoroughly enjoyed it. I am firmly in the camp that good romance novels can also be frothy and lesson free. This book is just a good time. It’s a B+ read for me. 

Caroline: I’d say B+. Highly recommended for a fun, light good time.

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