The Plot (from Goodreads):
Since the loss of her fiancé, Anna has been shipwrecked by grief—until a reminder goes off about a trip they were supposed to take together. Impulsively, Anna goes to sea in their sailboat, intending to complete the voyage alone.
But after a treacherous night’s sail, she realizes she can’t do it by herself and hires Keane, a professional sailor, to help. Much like Anna, Keane is struggling with a very different future than the one he had planned. As romance rises with the tide, they discover that it’s never too late to chart a new course.
The Review:
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for a finished copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Float Plan was so much more than your average rom-com. I’ve always enjoyed books about tragedy and overcoming grief–hence a large number of Jodi Picoult books on my shelves!
One thing that makes a book especially enjoyable to me is when I can relate to it personally. A few years ago, I went on an island-hopping sailing trip around the islands off the coast of Croatia. We lived on the boat, so I’m very familiar with calling ahead to the marinas to reserve a spot, trying not to vomit on rough seas, and trying to berth a sailboat in bad weather.
I thought this book handled grief amazingly well–both Anna’s emotional struggle of overcoming the tragic loss of her fiance, and Keane’s recovery from physical trauma and the loss of a limb. Anna wonders why her love wasn’t enough to keep her fiance from committing suicide, and Keane is angry that the rest of his life won’t look like he imagined it. There was just enough humor to keep the sad parts from becoming overwhelming.
Anna and Keane were both amazing characters. I loved them both and were cheering for them, both individually and for their relationship. I enjoyed that they were able to lean on each other just enough to get through, but not too much to weigh each other down.
The rescue pup was the icing on the cake!
Have you ever been sailing? Do you get seasick? I usually don’t, but we had one day of really rough waters on my trip and that is the only time I’ve felt nauseous! Luckily I didn’t throw up, but it was a close call.