All Aboard The Situation Ship

Get ready for your murder mystery cruise, which starts today. Let us all wish a happy birthday to The Situation Ship by Kate Callaghan. Read my 4-star review of this engrossing, suspenseful romance below.

Poppy Roe is the pop star going on a luxurious cruise. Isaiah is the suspicious detective who ends up being her bodyguard at sea. He is a man on a mission, one that evolves to not only to truly protecting Poppy, but also working with her to solve the puzzling murders that start happening on the ship. Will their blossoming romance get in the way of getting to the truth?

First of all, a letter of confession as a prologue? What an incredible way to start a murder mystery! Romantic suspense suits this author. The cruise setting gives the murders locked-room vibes. Dripping with intrigue and danger from the get-go, it might be unconventional to say this has huggable energy, but it does. It is a state of Callaghan's books, even when she is getting murdery. There is a plethora of great, grounded dialogue that is always insightful. As are the musings of each character in their POV.

This is my 5th ARC by Kate Callaghan, and we have here her first female lead I have read, teetering so perilously on a morality tightrope. The dynamic between the leads is one of ease and respect, even in their what could be called weird and then tense-ridden situation. They are both stubborn, set in their ways — he as a gruff, no-nonsense, take my actions seriously detective, she as a basically lonely, doesn't trust easily, tad spoiled celebrity. The romance is a passion that comes on strong and a matching of wits. Their flirting made my cheeks hurt from smiling.

I liked that the chapters have no numbers, just names. I'm glad the mystery starts early with little things that something is wrong. Poppy is quite capable and clever for an amateur detective. I also enjoyed the fact that almost everyone looks like a suspect, and trying to piece how everything fits together. A lot of WTF moments. I relished the flow of the storyline, of the investigation. Threaded with humor and moments of honest emotions and truths, our characters are deliciously flawed, each with their own secrets. The author shows the proper sensitivity to less-than-easy topics.

Includes some of the most useless and/or aggravating staff members of a cruise ship ever. I adored the guest appearances of characters from where we first saw Isaiah. It was in Not Another Rockstarr and don't worry you don't have to have read that to enjoy this book, but you would be missing out.

I may have needed a bit more of a wow factor from the characters upon discovery of some of the bodies or clues, especially from Poppy, who was supposed to be new at this. Not histrionics, not by any means. Just a bit more oomph, to feel the calm getting away from them. Also, their first 'encounter', although caliente felt a bit nonsensical in the moment. But their back and forth after that scene was even more entertaining.

Themes that are explored here are revenge, the pitfalls of fame, betrayal and survival. We deal with how the world is not black and white but grey — morally grey. I know people will have a difference of opinion on the rights and wrongs of this story.

Certainly unpredictable, with a perpetrator playing engrossing mind games, and an unbelievable final twist, this is a blockbuster of a romance/murder mystery.