Wild Tropics

Christmas Key #2

by Stephanie Taylor

With the crew of 'Wild Tropics' arriving to film their reality show in the middle of a Halloween heatwave, mayor Holly Baxter has her hands full with PR duties, and not everyone is thrilled to have cameras and prying eyes on Christmas Key. In fact, one of the locals is more than happy to let her know how he feels about the situation, and before she knows it, Holly is defending her choices in front of the whole island...

Following their steamy summer fling, River O'Leary pays Holly another visit for the holidays. But their timing is all wrong: Holly's locked in a battle for the title of mayor, and she's worried about the reality show turning into a runaway train that she can't control. In the midst of all this chaos, can Holly juggle both her own desires and her neighbors' needs? And will Holly and River be able to stoke the flames of their island romance, or will their relationship fall prey to the whims of the wild tropics?

Genres: Chick Lit, Romance, Fiction, Contemporary, Christmas

295 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 7, 2016

About the author

Stephanie Taylor writes a romantic comedy series about a fictional island called "Christmas Key," as well as several other standalone romance, YA, and middle grade titles.

You can check out her website at: www.redbirdsandrabbits.com

Reviews

[Stephanie Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, to be fair, this is my own book, but I haven’t read it since I wrote it in about 2016. I listened to the AI narrated version and it was pretty good (save for the mispronunciations of names), but hearing your own book read aloud is a surefire way to catch EVERY mistake you missed before publishing! 🥹😫 I really enjoyed hearing it, and Christmas Key is still my favorite not-quite-real destination on the planet! 🌴

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm continuously bothered by details, the same as watching a movie with glitches. The concept of living on a deserted island is great, but the whole economy and reality of how civilized things are is bothersome. Such as at some point one would think there would be reference to the noise of the generator that provides electricity as they are too far to string to mainland.

[Klaas Mansier · Rating 2 out of 5]

Irritation was key here. You can say that having emotion during reading is better than boredom, but here I have my doubts.
Holly is in essence a really nice character, but in this book there are zo many things she does that are just weird, and the way the author explains them are just plain stupid. Holly has to protect her ex against the nasty television people. An ex That just behaves like a basic a-hole anyway.

[Avalon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wild Tropics reality show is filming on Christmas Key but Holly is concerned about Jake her ex who has taken part in the show as they are starving the contestants for tv ratings. Meanwhile she has an island to run and food to prepare. Her friend River has flown halfway round the world to see her but her mind is occupied....

[Leslie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the idea of this sweet island. Such friendships and community support are endearing. On the other hand, the premise is a bit silly. But as long as it is entertaining, that is okay. A deep read, it is not, but light and entertaining.

[Becca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wild Tropics

This book has a little more drama to it with the appearance of a reality show and some mayoral competition. Holly has a lot to experience and learn. Still the same sassy characters as the holidays come to Christmas Key.

[Nancy Wilkinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really good read! I wish I lived on Christmas Key... The people are interesting and really support each other so well, and the reality show and the interpersonal relationships provide plenty of excitement. Nice job, Ms. Taylor!

[Princess Pie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Way too dramatic, too long (it felt like it could have been a much shorter book), and frankly, a disappointment. The ending is awful. This is supposed to be a light rom-com. I found nothing light or funny about it. The first book was good, so I was looking forward to this one. What a let down.

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

favorite author

Stephanie Taylor is quickly becoming a favorite author. Her writing makes it so easy to visualize what is happening. I can’t wait to see what happens next in the series.

[Lesley · Rating 1 out of 5]

To start with the size of the book is annoying and difficult to hold.
I didn’t like Holly and it was all so unbelievable, I kept putting it down and then picking it up again. I actually speed read through a good portion of it.
I like a light read but couldn’t get on board with it.

[M. Zyngier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this series so far!

This book makes you want to keep reading. Its a clean, interesting and heartwarming storyline that makes you want to move to the island. Great read.

[Kirstie Ibrahim · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't enjoy this as much as the first book. I found from around the half way point that I was getting a bit bored. I will have to think long and hard before deciding to risk reading the next one.

[Constance Leonard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun but I didn’t love it as much as the first book

[Trudy Gleason · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not sure how I felt about the ending of this book.

[Angela Bowser Cummins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun easy read!

[Kathleen Abeel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent

Wonderful read. I love reading this series. The author is spot on with this series. I cannot wait until I start the new book.

[Kathy Dryden · Rating 5 out of 5]

HATED the cliffhanger! This was a fun book of island life and family dynamics....but get to the end and WHAM!!!!!
Bring on the next in the series. Love Stephanie Taylor.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Holly really drove me insane in this book. If I️ could choose more like 2 1/2 stars I️ would.

[Jaime · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wild Tropics picks up not long after Christmas Key, Book 1 (There's Always a Catch). Holly has her hands full juggling her conflicting feelings for Jake/River, her mother, the reality show that she championed, and a threat to her run as mayor of Christmas Key! Sprinkle in the fascinating back stories of the Christmas Key residents, vivid imagery of tropical beaches and Florida sunshine, and the fun banter between Holly and her best friend (the town's doctor), and you've got the makings of a great read! Holly is fully developed in Book 2, and you know that even though sometimes she might not be making the best decisions, her heart is always in the right place. I love the love triangle between Jake, River, and Holly, and the fact that she just doesn't know how to make her decision about them. After all, Holly's first and enduring love is Christmas Key itself! I'd highly recommend this book and I personally can't wait to see the adventures awaiting Holly and the gang in book three!

[Claudete Takahashi · Rating 4 out of 5]

It´s very interesting to see the developments in the island´s life after the reality tv show starts to be filmed and how it also impacts the life of the main character - Holly. Things are never as straight forward as we wish them to be and reality tv shows can be deceiving and that´s what the islanders are going to find out soon. The story also focuses on friendship, loyalty, the need for accomplishments, hidden secrets. The ending is sort of a cliffhanger but let´s see what the next book in the series will bring!

[Samantha Glass · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of intertwined story lines here, and they mimic the ones in our heroine's life. Am interested to see where the tale leads next.