Spin the Bottle

Foodie Romance Journeys #11

by Isabella May

Can a Spin the Bottle kiss stand the test of time?

CELESTE thought she had long forgotten the sweet, citrusy smooch she shared with TRAVIS one hot summer...
Splitting her time between her accounts office in super Instagrammable Notting Hill, and her tiny apartment in quirky Exmouth Market, modern-day London life is simply too busy for men. Besides, whenever she tries to find The One, it always ends in disaster. From Tinder tragedies to tea for two tribulations, Celeste is beginning to think that she's cursed.

When Travis starts to pop up wherever she goes, Celeste knows with stomach-sinking clarity that fate has finally caught up with them both. Inspired by the idea of fake dating, she's convinced the only way out of this mess is to call the jinx's bluff. But will Travis agree? And how can she manage not to fall in love?
Pour yourself a lemonade and escape with this gorgeous will-they-won't-they rom-com set between London and Gibraltar!

Genres: Romance, Contemporary

276 pages, ebook

Published May 15, 2023

About the author

Isabella May lives in (mostly) sunny Andalusia, Spain with her husband, daughter and son, creatively inspired by the mountains and the sea. She grew up on Glastonbury's ley lines and loves to feature her quirky English hometown in her stories.

After a degree in Modern Languages and European Studies at UWE, Bristol (and a year working abroad in Bordeaux and Stuttgart), Isabella bagged an extremely jammy and fascinating job in children's publishing... selling foreign rights for novelty, board, pop-up and non-fiction books all over the world; in every language from Icelandic to Korean, Bahasa Indonesian to Papiamento!

All of which has fuelled her curiosity and love of international food and travel - both feature extensively in her cross-genre novels, fused with a dollop of romcom, and a sprinkle of magical realism.

Isabella is also a Level 4 Pranic Healer and a stillbirth mum.

You can follow her Foodie Romance Journey series at the following hang-outs:


www.isabellamayauthor.com

Twitter - @IsabellaMayBks
Instagram - @isabella_may_author
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/IsabellaMayA...

Reviews

[Sarah Kingsnorth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spin The Bottle by Isabella May is yet another gorgeous offering from this talented lady.

Celeste leads a busy and fulfilling life. She’s given up looking for love, because it never works out. But there is one person - one kiss that she has never forgotten.
When that face from the past keeps appearing in her present day life, Celeste can’t ignore the niggling feeling, that maybe, just maybe - he could be the one.
With her track record in the love department… what can she do?

#SpinTheBottle is a timeless love story. The fizz between Celeste and Travis can almost be heard crackling from the pages.
I liked the pair very much. They are both well drawn and have a certain sparkle to their characters.

As always Isabella May brings her settings to life with glorious clarity that tickles all of the senses.

#SpinTheBottle is another laugh - out - loud read from @IsabellaMay. I adore the humour that she writes into her books.
I also adore the food she includes in her stories. Although I feel that maybe I should deduct a star for the many trips to the fridge that her culinary suggestive writing has triggered!

I can’t fault #SpinTheBottle once again, Isabella May has written a wonderful tale, full of love, wit and beauty.
Let this book envelop you in it’s warmth and love. You’ll escape from the real world to somewhere quite special and be left with all the feels.

#SpinTheBottle is a fresh, Funny and feel good read.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

With thanks to @RachelsRandomResources for a digital arc of this title.

[Grace Power · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fabulous story with great characters and I loved that Celeste was from an earlier book. Travis was from Celeste’s past and they were fated to meet again. As with Isabella May’s books this was full of fun, food, fruit and the romance just fizzled throughout. Delicious, delectable and sprinkled with a touch of magic.

[Olivia Spring · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spin the Bottle is a fun, British romantic comedy.

The dates Celeste and Travis went on made me chuckle (especially at the bookshop spa!) and I found the puns they used funny too.

Best to read this book with a full stomach because the delicious sounding cakes that are mentioned often made me hungry!

After the dating disasters they faced throughout the book, it was lovely to see Celeste and Travis get their happy ending!

[Abigail Yardimci · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a delicious blend of passion, romance, magic and culinary pleasure! This sweet story of Celeste and Travis finding each other again, years after a spell was cast without their consent, is flowy, fun and fruitful in more ways than one. Don’t read this book with an appetite though, who knows what you’ll devour after reading!

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally reviewed for Chick Lit Central (www.chicklitcentral.com)

I love when a book I’m reading makes references to other books I’ve read by that same author! I will be honest–I don’t remember much about Celeste from Bubblegum and Blazers (reviewed here), but I got the impression that she wasn’t as big of a character within that storyline. It makes a lot of sense for this story, considering how much she wants to distance herself from her past. Celeste also visits The Cake Fairies, another book by Isabella May (reviewed here), which was really great and tied in well with the central theme behind Celeste’s motivations in not going back to what her life had been like in her youth. Particularly where Travis is concerned.

I thought it was clever that a game of spin the bottle leads to potential love over twenty-five years after the fact. It was definitely a unique premise, one that haunts Celeste daily. I’d like to know if her best friend, Mel, had been part of the Bubblegum and Blazers crew or not, because I can’t recall Celeste having someone like Mel in her corner. There is a lot of lamenting on how she used to feel like she could rely on Mel, but it’s apparent time has not been good to this friendship. When Celeste lets Mel know how she feels about Travis, there is a lot of contention. Not to mention what Celeste discovers about Mel’s personal life.

There is often a touch of mysticism within May’s stories, and there is no shortage of that here, either. Celeste is convinced that she and Travis are under a curse, one that sprouted on the same evening as their spin the bottle foray, and the only way they may have a chance of breaking the spell is to pretend to date. It starts out with both characters more than hesitant by the situation at hand, but over time, getting stuck together could be the best (or worst) thing for them.

It was great to read about the different cultural experiences Celeste goes through, not only in the present time, but when she was young, too. I also loved the backdrop for where the story takes place. I’ve always wanted to go to London, and at some point visit Notting Hill. The story of Celeste and Travis was a fun experience, and a memorable one!

[Kerry https://likeherdingcatsblog.wordpress.com Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

In spin the Bottle, Isabella May has yet again served up a delectable mix of love, laughter and food.

Celeste and Travis have such great chemistry all the way through and I adored them both. I haven’t dated for such a looong time and I love reading humorous stories about first dates as I am so out of the loop. Both Celeste and Travis’s attempts at dating made me chuckle out loud. They are both such lovely characters and I was rooting for them all the way through.

The contrasting settings of Gibraltar, Exmouth and Notting HIll work really well together to show different aspects of Celeste’s life. I loved the appearance of some familiar faces too from other novels by Isabella - I always enjoy catching up with them.

My favourite thing about an Isabella May novel is that there’s usually a sprinkling of food magic in there which gives the romance a quirky and fun twist. I adore it.

Spin the bottle is a charming and fun romance novel that is just delightful to read. I highly recommend this, and all other novels by Isabella May. They make amazing summer reads!

[theweebookworm · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the settings, going back and forth between London and Gibraltar. The descriptions were quite vivid. The hotel especially sounded amazing.

Unfortunately I didn't really take to Celeste but I did liked Travis and his back story was not what I expected. I enjoyed the fake dating as some of the locations were quite inspiring.

There was a lot to unravel in the story with some characters coming across as not very nice. There was a lot of humour, great food and locations, some drama and a lot of sizzling chemistry.

Thank you @rachelsrandomresources for my #gifted ARC copy and spot on the tour.

[Sophie · Rating 2 out of 5]

it was ok, nothing more 🙃

[Lavi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really cute book. The time travelling cafe owner added literally nothing to the story.

[Sue Wallace · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spin the bottle by Isabella May.
CELESTE thought she had long forgotten the sweet, citrusy kiss she shared with TRAVIS during a game of spin the bottle. Splitting her time between her accounts office in super Instagrammable Notting Hill, and her tiny apartment in quirky Exmouth Market, modern-day life is simply too busy for men. Besides, whenever she tries to find The One, it always ends in disaster. From Tinder tragedies to trampolining tribulations, Celeste is starting to think that she's cursed.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. A refreshing read. I love this author. 5*.

[Karma Queen]

I just cannot get into this book. Cutting my losses now.

[Nicola Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

The covers of Isabella May’s books belie the layered storylines within. Do not let them fool you. They may appear whimsical but they are far from it. Don’t get me wrong, they’ve not got deep philosophical threads running through them but the storylines are so well thought out and come together in one cohesive ending that they are worth a look. I’ve read a lot of her books and they never fail to keep my attention.

This one grew on me the more I read it. Not as complex as the others, but it was an enjoyable read. Sometimes less is more.

[kelly freaney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another of this author books were I'm constantly hungry! I'd love some rainbow cake right now!
A teenage game which follows you into adulthood? Do curses exist or was it true love. I really enjoyed finding out

[Yvette Salmon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Isabella May books never fail to surprise me. Good story and good food what more could you ask for. A good beach read.

[Charlene Mattson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Warning, here be spoilers because I cannot talk about what did and didn't work (for me anyway), without discussing the ending. So forewarned!

I don't like rom-coms. There are a few reasons for it: being demisexual, the whole love at first sight, sexual tension at a glance doesn't mean anything to me (always preferred the how they get to know each other lol) and I find them mostly terribly cliche. (Especially the will they, won't they. They will, they *always* will, but they do some breathtakingly stupid things along the way that could have been sorted in five sentences.)

I bring this up because one of the things I liked about Spin the Bottle was that the characters did do some silly things, but when it came to the crunch, instead of doing *more* eye rolling, cringey things, they... talked! They acted like they were in their thirties instead of their teens! So that was a very nice surprise. (Ok it looked like Male guy had done a stupid thing, but it was actually a fairly mature thing to do and more importantly, it didn't cause another 50 pages of spiralling angst).

Now, I did take issue with the ending. Actually, 2 issues but 1 may be resolved in a future book so we will set aside Mel's rather dark life atm. (But man Did not see that coming. Rom coms aren't all tee hee, so kudos)

The thing I took issue with was the Why Lola Did the Thing.

She did it because Celeste was too pretty and would possibly attract trouble as a teen.

Like *ffffftttt* kinda cringe.

And kinda off brand for Isabella. Now, I do not pretend to be privy to her mind, but I like to think we would get along if we didn't live an ocean and continent apart. She'd call me cynical, and I'd try to get her to read sci fi 😅. But I have now read several of her books and her female leads are of course pretty or cute but that has always been kinda secondary. Polly is cute but also adventurous and canny, for example (yay Cake Fairies!)

And Celeste is certainly more than a pretty face. But boiling down the reasoning for the lemon chant as being basically She's just too pretty was kinda weak imo. If Lola had done it because Celeste was already in trouble with guys or she foresaw a string of bad dating or worse, maybe *she* would have ended up with Emit, then maybe. But doing all this cause Celeste is beautiful, ehhh. It didn't feel as mysterious or mystical as other characters so it lost me.

Obviously your mileage may vary. But it bugged me.

Everything else I quite enjoyed. And again, yay for the return of the Cake Fairy!

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another wonderfully written, heart-warming romance by an author I love, and another great read! This romantic comedy kept me happily turning the pages. Celeste and Travis shared a sweet, citrusy kiss during a game of spin the bottle which she thought she had forgotten, until Travis starts popping up everywhere she goes. Celeste who is a bit of a workaholic splits her time between her office in Notting Hill and her tiny apartment in Exmouth Market, and is just to busy for love and romance. Every time she has tried dating it has ended in disaster and she thinks she's cursed. When she first sees Travis she believes that fate has caught up with them and is convinced that the only way to stop the curse is to call its bluff, by her and Travis fake dating. Celeste thinks her only problem is getting Travis to agree to her crazy plan, until they start dating and she realises she might actually be falling in love. I love the characters and the chemistry between Celeste and Travis sizzled off the page. The settings of London and Gibraltar came vividly to life through the descriptive narrative, making me feel immersed in the story. A real page turner which left me with a real feel good feeling!

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's something sugary sweet and sometimes spicy about this book. Disastrous dates aside, Celeste is living a charmed life, right until Travis stumbled back into it. While initial meetings are not promising, there is a ton of UST just simmering under the surface. It makes me wonder if Celeste and Travis would've gotten together faster without the curse hanging over their heads.

Nevertheless, the banter is witty, the romance is lively and light, and there's just a hint of the supernatural. For a fan of fake dating, unique date ideas, and lemons, this book will tickle your fancy.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book Rachel's Random Resources; all opinions are my own

[Diane Green · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was fine for the most part. A little longer than necessary, a lot more angst than necessary and less plot than necessary. But the thing that got me was the side friend? Well her marriage is crap. To the point he hits her. And the end result? She stays! That’s literally how it resolves! The two friends had an argument and when they reconnect she admits her husband regularly cheats on her and has put his hands on her. But she doesn’t think it’s that serious and she will stay until her youngest kid is 21????? 🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯

[Evelyn V · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Author Isabella May for the ARC! Celeste keeps running into Travis everywhere she goes. Seriously, he's always there since the spin the bottle kiss years ago! It may have to do with a curse? Travis and Celeste decide to fake date and hopefully get rid of the curse. Does it work? Do they want it too? Go read this charming and funny book to find out! Fair warning,you will want cake and tea by the end of the story.

[Angela Pearse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Celeste kissed Travis in a game of spin the bottle in Gibraltar when she was 13 and ever since her love life has been a disaster. Now she keeps bumping into him in London. Roll on a series of fake dates between the two with much hilarity and soul searching. This was my first book by Isabella May and wow what a great read! A richly imagined story brimming with joie de vivre, and the food descriptions were to die for. Deliciously enjoyable, I loved it!

[Alicia Grasby · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wish I could give this book a better rating but there were just too many issues. Firstly the pacing. The first half of the book dragged on and on while the second half felt like it was very rushed. Secondly the characters were all annoying and I felt zero chemistry between them. Finally the side story about the friend and her husband seemed to be included with no real thought of how it would impact the story, and the ending of that side plot was horrible!
Don't bother with this book.

[Elaine - Splashes Into Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thirteen year old Celeste played a 'Spin the Bottle' game,
Decades later, the boy she kissed she can still name!
Even more she can remember the curse or rhyme
Whispered by her friend's gran at that time.

The boy was Travis and she keeps seeing him around
Doesn't matter where she goes he's there to be found.
Is his presence here now a twist of fate?
Can she avoid him before it is too late?

When avoiding doesn't work, maybe fake dating may?
Can she convince Travis to try this way?
Fake dates - with food - may help thwart the curse,
Both hope it won't make things worse!

A fun romcom with food and drinks, too,
How will fate intervene in what they do?
There's friendship dramas as well
As they try to negate the old lady's spell.

For my complementary copy, I say thank you,
As I share with you this, my honest review.

[N.L. Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kate has two sides to her life. Her successful and working life where she is happy and then her lack of confidence and toxic relationship with her partner Daniel.
But Kate must find her inner strength, but she may just be too low to do it.

WOW! This read is not what I expected. I love how May writes about these characters who are realistic and flawed. I was constantly begging Kate to leave Daniel and to find her courage and strength.

This author explores situations in a storyline that you become invested in.

[Rosie Travers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another delectable delight from Isabella May. Her stories are always original and in this episode, set between London and Gibraltar, fake dating is given a unique spin. I loved the zingy chemistry between the two leading characters, Celeste and Travis. As always Isabella May’s foodie descriptions tempt the taste buds to create a highly enjoyable read.

[Lizzie Chantree · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Isabella May's brilliant foodie romances! This book is my favourite so far. It's zesty, full of love and drama and the chemistry between Celeste and Travis almost jumps off of the page! This book has spice, flavour and loads of giggles. I sat in the garden and enjoyed reading this magical book in the sunshine. Perfect for rom com lovers.

[Kristin Motter · Rating 2 out of 5]

Couldn’t get on board with the characters. Also to have the age old “oh there is only one bed available at the hotel” plot seemed very predictable. Wished there was more romance and not sure if I would call this a foodie romance either, they talk about lemons and cake.

[abby · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is actually atrocious I had to DNF, the writing was so confusing and all over the place I was so confused half the time and kept having to reread paragraphs/sentences that were jumbled and unorganized

[Beccy Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another beautiful read from this author.
Her books never fail to make me feel good by the end
Well written with excellent characters- including some reappearances from previous books!

[Pamela · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Sweet light hearted enjoyable read. I find the authors books never disappoint. I certainly enjoyed this gem.

[Heidi Catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delicious!! This is my favourite Isabella May book yet. Full of sweetness (with a good dose of spice!!!) this is a fabulously fun read. Highly recommended.