The Bali Bucket List: From Good Girl to Whole Woman

by Ava Wilde

After HR's favorite good girl, Jasmine, gets dumped three months before her wedding, she escapes solo to Bali with a bucket list of everything she's been too scared to try.
Caught between three irresistible men and a hostel crew of beautiful disasters, she starts writing her way through heartbreak, lust, and self-destruction—one filthy blog post at a time.
When her anonymous sex blog goes viral and threatens to expose her, Jasmine has no choice but to confront the woman she’s become. Because sometimes, finding yourself is the only way to find the love you've been searching for.
Tropes: Blogger/Writer FMC, Paradise Setting, Good Girl Gone Wild, Spiritual Healing Journey, Starting Over, Travel Romance, Grumpy/Sunshine, Second Chance, Enemies to Lovers, Choose Your Own Adventure, Found Family, Female Friendship.
Steam Level: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

Genres: Romance, Erotica, Contemporary Romance

462 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 21, 2025

About the author

I write filthy, funny, feel-good monster romances and sometimes contemporary when I lower my standards back to men 🤣

Follow me on IG/TT @avawildewrites for my latest releases.

On a personal note, I choose to protect my real-life identity/privacy because I write erotica and the real world is not always kind about that. I'd like to keep my day job and my in-laws’ ability to make eye contact with me at family gatherings. So I’m represented by a digital avatar I identify with.

If this would get in the way of enjoying my books, please give them a miss with my gratitude for considering them. Otherwise, strap in. It's about to get weird, wonderful and very, very tentacle-y.

Reviews

[Berry ⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to Ava Wilde, Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op, and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

4.5 / 5 ⭐️

Wow, that was such a spicy, empowering read.

It read like a typical romcom, filled with heartbreak, healing, and steamy scenes tenfold.
I came into this book expecting it to go like most other contemporary bucket list fulfillment, but wow this took me for a ride!

There was SOOOO much spice. But it wasn't too overpowering! Ava Wilde's writing was so heartfelt and so easy to get into, and I am so thankful for this ARC, because it brought me back to my own journey of self discovery as well. Maybe not as wild as Jasmine's, but it was definitely nostalgic. I loved it.

♡ pre-read ♡

AHH i love me a bucket list fulfilment.

[Frida Hemborg · Rating 4 out of 5]

That was probably the spiciest romance book I’ve read in a LONG time. But also, the most soulsearching romance book I’ve EVER read. Like the author herself wrote in her thank you letter at the end, ”therapy through smut”, is a pretty damn good way of describing this book. We follow Jasmine, as she navigates her life and trying to find herself in Bali, after being dumped three months prior to her wedding. Who is she without her fiancé? Can she learn to live for herself, and not for someone else? She sets up a bucket list (or a f**** it list) to help her stay on track. What follows is a self discovering journey through the jungles, monasteries, hostles, nightclubs, motorcycle rides and so much more. In many ways it’s the journey, and not the destination, that’s the goal. And Jasmine truly fumbles a lot during this journey, makes many mistakes, but also learns from it. The thing is, that everyone else around the world is also following along on this journey, since she decided to blog about her experiences. And it gets detailed, very detailed. We get to read her blog posts, as well as the comments. Who you can imagine is very fifty fifty about women empowerment, and sexual freedom. We’ve all stumbled upon several incels online. This book is riddled with beautiful writing, humor and realizations, and gorgeous sceneries from the beautiful country of Bali. And most important, friendship. The friends she has and gains throughout this story, are for life. Beautifully written.

If you’re looking for a book that doesn’t excuse itself, that has swearing, sex, female liberation, a book that truly says ”F**k it”. Then this book is for you 👏🏼

[EmJustReading · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Therapy through smut”

This book was much deeper and more well written than I expected it to be. From the blurb and disclaimer I thought there would be very minimal plot and majority spicy scenes. The spicy scenes were really good (and pretty long and detailed, which I appreciated), but there was less of it than I anticipated.

The premise and the characters were likeable, and the reader really gets a sense of who Jasmine aims to be — even when she is lost and trying to find herself. Most of her struggles are very relatable and J feels like a kindred spirit.

The book was really reflective and insightful and discusses how people make mistakes— often from being too shallow and/ or unappreciative of what they have. I also like that we get to see comments from all kinds of people which is very realistic. We get to see haters and supporters and how different people would respond to the content J puts out.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for the ARC.

[Jessica DiResto · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m blushing 🤭 maybe read alone? 🤣 very fun and cute book!

[Victoria Fellers · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve been trying to avoid using some of the more overused book buzzwords but there’s no getting around it. This book is absolutely unhinged in the best, most emotionally consuming way. I was so deeply immersed in Jazz’s journey that I felt every single emotion right along with her. The writing is magnetic, the tension is electric, and the spice? On a completely different level. I’ve read a fair share of romance but this was next level in terms of intimacy, vulnerability, and emotional impact.

This wasn’t just a love story. It was a story about heartbreak, healing, self destruction, and self discovery. It made me laugh, it made me ache, and it made me want to highlight entire pages because the writing hit that hard.

Ava Wilde was actually the first indie author who ever popped up on my feed. I read her two novellas in a single day because I was instantly hooked by her voice. So when she dropped her debut full length novel I didn’t even hesitate. I added it to my TBR immediately. I went in with no expectations and somehow it still managed to exceed everything I could have hoped for.

And her dedication? “Did I just get therapy through smut?”

Yes Ava. Yes I absolutely did.

If you are questioning whether or not, you should read this book don’t I promise it’s worth it 🖤

[Stace Ord · Rating 5 out of 5]

❝If you picked up The Bali Bucket List expecting a cute little travel romance with shy forehead kisses - sweet summer child, you’re in the wrong fucking jungle.❞ 🌴🔥

ARC REVIEW 💌
📖 The Bali Bucket List - Ava Wilde

I am OBSESSED. This was such an addictive read I could not put it down. How is it possible for a book to be so wholesome but SO fucking spicy? 🌶️🥵

Good girl Jasmine has her heart broken when her fiancé calls off their wedding just three months before the big day. Instead of falling apart, she stops people pleasing, takes all of her vacation time and books a one-way, solo ticket to Bali.

This leads to a chaotic, liberating journey of self-discovery that includes jungles, beaches, nightclubs, hostels, motorcycles, a lot of questionable decisions and a secret sex blog 👀

I love that Jasmine isn’t perfect, she makes mistakes while trying to find herself but she takes accountability and actually grows. It felt messy, real and so empowering.

Don't even get me started on the love RECTANGLE, I genuinely didn't know who to root for but somehow, not knowing what I wanted from the ending made it even better, I couldn’t be disappointed by anything 😂

This book made me want to book a one-way ticket, sip cocktails on a Bali beach and completely reinvent myself ☀️🍹🏖️

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was as spicy as advertised and I have high standards! The chemistry was outstanding… in every pairing, the spicy scenes were habanero level hot, creative and memorable. The emotional growth within Jazz was perfectly balanced and the HEA was just perfect, I loved her final choice, it was definitely who I voted for in her blog poll!
Highly, highly recommend this one for an ultra spicy mental vacation that would make the perfect summer beach read!

Thank you to Ava Wilde and NetGalley for an ARC of this spicy good time of a book! 🔥

[Charmaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Soooooooo I didn’t read this book’s description as I thought “hey what a great looking rom-com”. I was greatly mistaken.

One reviewer suggested reading alone and I concur as I was blushing constantly or just had to put down the book(HELLA lot of smut )but it made me cry on occasion.

Other than that the book was about being truthful to oneself, utter selfishness,self-empowerment, willingness to continue to try and relationships

I was also #teamviking 😉

[Maeve Kavanagh · Rating 5 out of 5]

did not realize what type of book this was and was like wait whyyyyy are we going into so much detail about a flashback to when she lost her virginity

so I can’t believe I’m giving 5 stars to a smut book but the go-see-the-world-and-self-reflect/self-therapy part of the book was really good & hit home

[Mya Tidd · Rating 5 out of 5]

First off I want to say thank you to NetGallery for early access to this book but honestly where to start? I went into this book thinking it would be a fun smutty book, and yes it was smutty, and fun, but so much more than that. Inspirational maybe, I'm not saying I want to get railed by multiple men at once...BUT in finding yourself. I actually had such a good time and would shout and scream that everyone read this. Why not right?

[Audrey W · Rating 5 out of 5]

did not expect this level of soul-searching.

LOVED the reflective blog posts.
LOVED the chaotic found family.
LOVED the female friendship in this.

Reading this just makes me just wanna go to Bali.

came here for a smutty good time and ended up in tears.
one of the best books I've ever read.

[✨ Reading in Rays ✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I honestly don’t care what this says about me, this book can have my 6 ⭐️s. Look, this is not a perfect book, in fact at times it can be repetitive (could be fixed with a little editing) and some of the nicknames are cringy (we know how I feel about angel face.) But Ava Wilde says it best in her author note “did I just get therapy through smut?” And yes. Yes I did!

⚠️ PSA - I’m fine with spice in books: if it doesn’t have spice any…fine, if it does…that’s okay too, depending on the book I’ll skim it if it seems too cringe, feels like it’s there for no reason or takes me out of the story. With that being said this book is 🌶️ 🌶️ 🌶️ 🌶️ 🌶️ Literally 5🌶️s worth of spicy. If you do NOT want spice, absolutely do NOT 🙅🏼‍♀️read this book. I warned you, now back to the review ⚠️

This book is so much more than the spice (which was also very well done IMO). It was healing, it was growth, it was messy, it was hard, it was rough around the edges and most of all it was beautiful. There were so many moments where I felt seen or understood. So much care was put into writing this book. This is the author’s first full length novel and she delivered in the best way.

This book was the embodiment of being human. Of heart break, of finding yourself, of making mistakes and then growing from those mistakes. Life doesn’t always go as planned. As humans we are constantly changing. How we respond to those unplanned things in life and how we respond to how we are changing is the only real thing we have control over. And sometimes we lose that control and fight to get it back.

This book was raw and real. It showed people hurting each other (no matter how unintentional) and then it showed people growing from those mistakes. Forgiving each other for the pain caused. Several characters in this book made decisions that were absolutely f*cked up and truly hurt others. And then we saw a journey to forgiveness. Through open communication, hard work, true self reflection, sincere apology with changed behavior and heartfelt love. We saw boundaries being made and self worth being grown. (“Boundaries are gates, not walls.) We saw discovery happening right before our eyes. We saw so much love. Gratifying self love, deep love between friends, love between coworkers, love from strangers, romantic love, lust and everything in between. We saw a beautiful found family be born that was quite literally steeped in love. I feel like the FMC didn’t just find a soul mate in herself or in a romantic partner but also in the relationship she built with her friends. All these people decided to do life together even from a distance. To keep showing up for each other even when they were apart.


There were so many inspirational and motivating moments and honestly the best way to truly get the most from this book is to just read it yourself. I’ll try to post some of my top quotes at the bottom of my review.

⚠️ Do not scroll to the bottom if you want to go in blind, but if you need more convincing to read it, check out the quotes because that would do it for me⚠️

Would I recommend this book? I want to say a resounding YES! But I understand spice is not for everyone. So if you aren’t okay with spice, this is NOT the book for you, skip it. But if you are? YES, YES, YES, YES, YES 🙌🏼






















Notable Quotables:

“Maybe I was naive, but I still believed that if you were kind to the world, it would circle back eventually. That goodness was still worth something.”


“It was a soft, broken kind of grief. The kind that makes you hate the person you love for being human. The kind that reminds you that even when someone breaks your heart, they're breaking their own too.”


“I don’t know who I am without him.” “Yes. You do. You’re just not her yet.”


“I’m not trying to heal. I’m trying to transform. I want to torch every inch of my old life and see what rises from the ashes.”


“Destruction is sacred work. You have to be willing to demolish the life that's making you miserable before you can build one that will make you whole. Most people try to renovate around their dysfunction instead of tearing it down completely.”


“I erased myself long before he erased me. Who the hell am I?”


“Healing isn't something you do once. It's something you practice."


“This time, I just said, "No." No explanation. No apology. And you know what happened? Absolutely fucking nothing.”


“Fear held me prisoner for twenty-eight years. Fear of disappointing people, fear of being disliked, fear of not being enough, fear of being too much.”


“I became so skilled at anticipating what other people wanted that I forgot how to want anything for myself.”


“When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.”


"Think about it. When someone likes me, it’s not really me. It’s the idea of me they’ve built in their head. Same as when they hate me. It's all projection. None of it is real. So why give it power?"


"Maybe home isn't a place. Maybe it's people. Maybe it’s those who look at all your broken parts and decide you’re worth loving anyway. Maybe home is just whoever stays."


“The flower is not less beautiful for having known darkness.”


“What we built together was beautiful, even if it wasn’t forever.”


“I’ve come to understand that loving someone means wanting them to be whole, even if that wholeness doesn't include you."


“True power isn't about taking everything you can get. It's about having the ability to take anything you want but choosing to use that wisely.”


“It required giving up the power of keeping my options open to experience the deeper power of choosing one path and walking it fully.”


“…choosing feels better than staying open to everything. Commitment feels better than possibility. Love feels better than attention.”


“You taught me that love doesn't require possession.”


‘Love feels better than attention’ suggests she learned the difference between being desired and being loved.


“The kind you build by falling in love with yourself first, then inviting someone else in to love who you've become.”

[Nyahthebookreader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Would recommend!

At the beginning I was skeptical about the depth of the story, thinking it would only be romance and nothing more. Boy could I be more wrong. What seemed as just spice was just a wrapping for self discovery. Jasmine faces her fears and fights to become a person she can be proud off.
The characters seemed superficial but the more you read, the more complicated they become.
The blog factor put an extra pinch of tension and mystery into it.
The ending surprised me a little. There were two possible endings I would be fine with and this was one of them. I honestly don’t know if I would have preferred the other one.

Overall:
If you are a quiet person who wants to discover being themselves

[Maren]

eat pray love but make it SPICYYYYY and unhinged in the best way

reading this literally felt like watching a chaotic 90s romcom, with ALL the vibes

[emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC REVIEW - Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of the updated second edition

The Bali Bucket List by Ava Wilde
Rating: 4 / 5 ⭐️
Spice: 5 / 5 🌶️
———————

I LOVED this book. It has the vibes of a 2000s romcom and features an FMC who is deeply flawed and accepting of her own brokenness.

This book takes on Jasmine’s journey of self acceptance and discovery in the wake of heartbreak. In her grief of her ten year relationship ending 3 months before the wedding, she goes on a trip to Bali to discover the person she could have been and always wanted to be. Along the way, we meet a found family in her hostel and a parade of MMCs that each have something loveable about them. We have -

AXEL: the Swedish god, basically a reincarnation of Thor and a walking sex magnet. Every girl wants him, every guy wants to be him and Jasmine isn’t ready to give him what he wants.
KAI - a man trying to change the world in Bali. He’s rich, hot, sure of himself and wants to build a life with Jasmine - but is she ready for it?
DANIEL - the fiance who broke her heart. The man who upended the life she built and had her running off to Bali to discover herself. The question becomes, can he win her back?

I’m not typically on board for a love rectangle (?) but the way this one is written works really well. Each relationship is explored and we’re given reasons why Jasmine would want to be with each of them. This is a true book of self discovery with a very messy FMC who fucks, fucks up, and takes accountablity.

Only a ⅘ because I didn’t like who she ended up with (petty, I know), but I will definitely be reading more Ava Wilde

[Katie Rushworth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was very lucky to receive this as an arc and I do appreciate it but unfortunately I did end up dnf at 30% and gave it 2 stsrs. I liked the idea of a new start and doing a bucket list in Bali but I didn't like the characters or feel like I could relate to any of them. I didnt like that Jasmine changed her name and pretending she had a different job and I actually think she was a bit nean to Axel teasing him. It was all a bit rushed and there wasn't much info on the characters background, some of them already knew each other but it didnt say how or from when. She was like 2 completely different characters and I feel like the change happened too quickly. It grates on me in these second chnace stories where they can just visit another country for like 3 months just like that. Are they made of money! I found some of the sex scenes so cringy and the phases that were used made me feel sick. I love spice in a book but this just didn't do it for me

Just because this book wasn't for me, doesn't mean that other people wont love it. Reading is subjective

[Alice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well its steamy, Jasmine is getting ready to marry her fiancé (Daniel) the only man she's ever been with, they have been together for 10 years since college and only 3 months to their wedding, Jasmine works at a publishing company as the "hrs queen" she likes to plan, to be the fixer, organization- then Daniel calls during work on a Friday asking if they can talk she assumes its about wedding stuff left to finalize- its not he thinks they need to separate, he needs to sow his oats so to speak- she asks if there is someone else - of course there is- she then calls her best friend and she comes over. And by the end of the weekend, she has decided to go to Bali and live out. Her dreams of who she was before Daniel. So she books a one way ticket and takes off on Monday- she makes a list of all the things she wants to do on her trip.A bucket list kind of thing, once there, upon check in, she decides she's no longer Jasmine.She's Jessica - she's staying at a local hostel where she meets kind of a ragtag.Bunch of people that are just there vibing, and doing their thing, and Jessica is going to have some fun. And boy Dashi, I see commits to starting her list off strong, and she blogs about it. And her blog begins to take off and it is well liked. And a thing of controversy with some people embracing her doing what I want lifestyle and others saying, not so nice things, i loved this book.It's about the power of women.And power doing what you want and not making apologies.And saying no, if you feel like it, not having any guilt for choosing you or choosing what you want. My only thing I did not like about this book is. The C-word is said an awful lot. And I think for all the words we have for it. Maybe the writer could have used a different one once in a while. That's just a personal preference, though.If you don't mind it.And it doesn't bother you, you'll be just fine.After the nine millionth time, I just kind of rolled my eyes- what the book itself is great. The twists and turns and what Jessica does next, it's a ride of a lifetime she's having in Bali - what an awesome awesome, awesome beaut?And if you're going to Bali this summer even better

Thank you to netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review

[Pinchofrosereads · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wholly Gaucamole with a side of SPICY meatballs 🥵🥵

I knew I was getting myself into something on the spicy side. But DAMN! I was covering my face from embarrassment, like I should have walked out of the room tl give the characters some privacy 😅. I'm not someone who reads a lot of shut (especially to this level), but the story!!!! Loved it. There were scenes of passion which weren't for me (the size of ones wrist and licking of toes) but I kept reading for the story. It was captivating, the fmc's growth throughout, including the characters around her. Reading this, I found myself re-evaluating my values and wanting to put myself first without apologising.
The blog aspect was a great read, and to include such a realistic comment section which included the classic male toxicity.
Thank you so much to NetGalley, Victory Editing and Ava Wilde for giving me the opportunity to read this arc.

[Lauras Fiction Addiction · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow!
You know when you're so into a book you don't want to finish it? This book was one of those for me.

When HR queen and all round good girl Jasmine is unceremoniously dumped by her fiance before their wedding, she heads off to Bali to figure out her next steps. What follows is a wild ride of self discovery.
Writing an anonymous blog, Jasmine soon becomes famous for its spicy contents and honest, empowering posts.

This book was such a wild ride! Fabulous characters, a beautiful backdrop and a voyage of self discovery, it was just brilliant! Can't wait to read more from Ava Wilde.


Thanks to Netgalley and the author for providing an ARC to review.

[Amy M · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was TRANSFORMATIVE. I am in awe of how this book made me feel and I will probably not read anything for a few days so I can keep this in my head longer. This will likely be added to my list of books that I reread every year.

Jazz has her Eat, Pray, Love journey in Bali that starts as a cliche and ends in a poignant social commentary on self love and actualization. Including the blog posts between chapters was cute, but including the comments is what did it for me. Keeping the real life experience of people being nasty on the internet and strangers hyping bad behavior really took me on a journey. The 50-60% mark had me second guessing if I was going to finish the book. Please know that it was absolutely intentional and all of it happens for a reason. I really didn't like where the story was going but I love where it ended. Growth is not linear and I loved that this book wasn't either.

If you are wanting an ending of Jazz's personal journey, I would recommend skipping the last chapter. The final blog post is a super satisfying ending on its own and you can pretend that she chooses herself. The last chapter is solely focused on the romance and revealing who she chooses. There is nothing relavent to the plot, mostly just more spice and finishing out the character arc for the MMC.

I honestly cannot hype this book enough. This should be required reading for every woman (over 18 because that spice was spicing) because it is never too late to choose your own happiness. Also, dont read this on vacation, it will absolutely make you make bad decisions🤣

Thank you to NetGalley and Ava Wilde for the free eARC.

[Jon H · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unexpected in the best way…

This was technically my first ever romance read! I liked the cover art and the synopsis sounded interesting so I went for it – and I’m sure glad I did because WOW this is one helluva book.

I truly had zero expectations going into it and it continued to surprise me. One thing I loved is that there is still character development through all the spice. Like yes it is every bit of the 5 pep and more, but it’s all used to develop the main character PLUS help move the plot forward in a meaningful way. It made the story so much more intricate and interesting compared to some fantasy/romantasy books out there that throw in spice just for the sake of having it in the book.

I was most impressed by the writing itself. The flow of dialogue and story build was smooth and seamless. Everything combined, this was a highly enjoyable read!

I would recommend this to absolutely anyone who loves romance and is okay with a high level of spice. I’ll be checking out some of Ava’s other stories!

[Sue Em · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25⭐

[Tasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

First and foremost, thank you so much for the ARC of this novel.

“Men are the most confusing appliances”. This book was insane in the best way. It was deliciously spicy and somehow not overpoweringly so. The female empowerment throughout the entire story makes me want to be brave in my life. I loved the journeys that each character took and their HEA’s. Loved it

[Anita Rae Rotteglia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was the very first book that had my bawling my eyes out in the first 30 pages! Such a whirlwind of emotions, desire, spiciness and all around love. I loved this story and strongly encourage the Author to never stop writing! So gifted and captivating.

[Lauren Byron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to Ava Wilde and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op, and NetGalley for the ARC.

This book for me was a 5 Star read!! I wasn’t sure what go expect when I started reading but Oh my days I enjoyed every minute of it. I felt like I was living through Jasmine. Through all the fun, sex , drunk nights dancing it was brilliant.

I loved watching her channel her alter ego Jess and seeing who she could be and then putting them both together and realising she could be both.

This book was STEAMY 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️and at some points I had to take a breather!!!!

The found family in this book were Chefs kiss🤌🏻🤌🏻 all of them from different walks of life and somehow they all fit together like the perfect puzzle. never been more happy to see a group of people achieve their dreams.

The way jasmine thought she was fixing herself but she was turning herself into someone she didn’t recognise was heartbreaking. But then watching her build herself back to someone she loved was EMPOWERING.

I loved every minute of this book.

[Ash Devereaux · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to Ava Wilde and NetGalley for access to this ARC.

First things first, this book was a WILD ride. It was a little slow to begin but when Jazz had gone to Bali, the book got soooo good and crazy (in a good way). Jazz goes through a whole transformation and learns from her mistakes in a real world way.

I really enjoyed going from her POV to her blog; the mixture of supportive and hateful comments at the end of each blog was so real and made me feel like I was really reading a blog out in the wild. Very inspiring and makes me want to drop everything and take a trip overseas to find myself. Super sexy and there were times where things happened in the sexy times that I glossed over due to not my cup of tea😆
Definitely recommend especially for those who have been living through the motions and those who feel like they have lost themselves along the way.

[Louisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.6🌟

[Tia's BookTok Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t even know how to properly put into words what The Bali Bucket List did to me, but I’m going to try.

This book is everything. It’s chaotic, emotional, healing, wildly spicy, and so deeply human all at the same time. Ava Wilde took a “good girl gone off the rails” premise and turned it into something that feels raw, empowering, and completely unforgettable. Her writing style is so vivid and realistic that you can’t help but get completely sucked into the story. She somehow manages to make it feels like you’re living it right alongside the characters.

Jasmine’s journey wrecked me in the best way. Watching her rebuild herself, take risks, and actually choose the life she wants instead of the one expected of her? Yeah… that hit. Hard. The found family, the friendships, the self-discovery was so monumental, and it all felt so real and so earned.

And let’s talk about THAT romance. Because when I tell you I did not see her final choice coming…I mean it. Completely shocked me, but in a way that made perfect sense once everything came together. It wasn’t predictable, it wasn’t safe, it was right.

Also, can we PLEASE normalize epilogues like this one?! The bonus chapters wrapped up every single character’s story so beautifully. No loose ends, no “what happened to so-and-so,” no crumbs left behind. Just pure, satisfying closure. Every author should be taking notes.

Come for the spice (and WOW is there spice 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️), but stay for the story, because this one will absolutely own you and heal you by the end.

[Missy Kayy · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who travels with their heart on their sleeve, this book was a total sanctuary. It’s rare to find a story that respects the sensitivity of heartbreak while celebrating the bravery of solo backpacking. It was serene, beautifully written, and reminded me why I fell in love with the hostel life in the first place. It didn't just tell a story; it brought me back to my most adventurous self.
It perfectly captures that specific, electric energy of meeting strangers in a hostel and the peace of wandering a new island alone. For the girls who feel everything deeply but still pack a bag and head out into the world anyway, this is for you. It made me so nostalgic for my own adventures and left me feeling incredibly peaceful. Hands down must-read for any solo female traveler looking to heal and rediscover her spark. I absolutely loved this!

[Berenice Peltier · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, and I’ve been absolutely captivated. The way the story explores her heartbreak after the separation and how she slowly sublimates that pain through new experiences feels beautifully raw and deeply intimate.

I’m usually not the biggest fan of second-chance romances, but this one completely pulled me in. And the spicy scenes—especially the moments with D, Motorcycle Man, and Viking—were incredibly well done, intense, and impossible not to get swept away in.

What impressed me most is how ambitious this book feels. Writing a story like this is no small feat, because every character carries such a distinct personality of their own. With a harem made up of three men and one woman, plus the surrounding cast of friends, the author manages to make each dynamic feel layered, believable, and unforgettable.

This was such a bold and addictive read, and I’m beyond impressed. Highly, highly recommended.