{"id":4851,"date":"2017-03-01T00:00:35","date_gmt":"2017-02-28T22:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thelesbianreview.com\/?p=4851"},"modified":"2023-06-13T17:51:20","modified_gmt":"2023-06-13T15:51:20","slug":"smooth-sailing-susan-x-meagher","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thelesbianreview.com\/smooth-sailing-susan-x-meagher\/","title":{"rendered":"Smooth Sailing by Susan X Meagher: Book Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Smooth<\/a>Smooth Sailing by Susan X Meagher<\/strong> is a vacation romance that shows how stepping away from the office can make you rethink your priorities.<\/p>\n

Laurie Nielsen has been at it non-stop for a few years, planning and working towards launching a theme park in Japan. When her chronic 18+ hour days leads to a medical crisis, she\u2019s forced into the personal hell of taking a vacation on one of her company\u2019s family-themed Caribbean cruises.<\/p>\n

Laurie hates the cruise, but slowly starts to unwind, sleep off her exhaustion, and eventually gets off the boat to explore. When she charters a small craft from Kaatje Hoogaboom, she quickly learns that not everyone has the same work obsession she does, even if she doesn\u2019t understand it. Despite always identifying as straight, there\u2019s something about Kaatje, and missing her chance to rejoin the cruise gives her the opportunity to explore it. She can\u2019t stay on vacation forever though, and phone, Skype, and email can only take them so far. Can their relationship survive Laurie\u2019s career and Kaatje\u2019s commitment to her own carefree lifestyle?<\/p>\n

The Characters<\/b><\/h3>\n

Laurie is not easy to like at first, and I found her difficult to relate to because I\u2019m not a workaholic. That said, Susan X Meagher does a wonderful job developing her character, and we get to see Laurie change and grow as she becomes involved with Kaatje and eventually realizes she\u2019s in love with her. She may have to make compromises for Kaatje, but I love that it happened in a way that was true to who she is as a person.<\/p>\n

Kaatje has to make her own compromises for Laurie and has her own growth and journey as a character. Although Smooth Sailing is told almost entirely from Laurie\u2019s perspective, we see a lot of who Kaatje is through Laurie and their interactions. Laurie is so strong willed that it would have been easy for a partner to be steamrolled by her and her impossible schedule, so I was happy to see Kaatje communicate what she needed from their relationship, rather than simply cave to her.<\/p>\n

The Writing Style<\/b><\/h3>\n

The language and writing style totally sucked me in and had me captivated from beginning to end. Not a lot happens in terms of storyline because it\u2019s a character-driven story, and I was fully invested in who these women were as individuals and as a couple.<\/p>\n

The Pros<\/b><\/h3>\n

Laurie\u2019s journey was probably my favourite element of Smooth Sailing, but really, I loved everything.<\/p>\n

The Cons<\/b><\/h3>\n

The cover doesn\u2019t do the book justice at all. If you\u2019re hesitating to read it because of the cover, I\u2019d urge you to at least download a sample and give it a try.<\/p>\n

\"taras<\/a>The Conclusion<\/b><\/h3>\n

If you like character-driven romances, definitely check out Smooth Sailing. I loved every page and hated that it had to end.<\/p>\n

Excerpt from <\/b>Smooth Sailing by Susan X Meagher<\/b><\/h2>\n

Kaatje put her arms around Laurie\u2019s neck and pulled her into a long, luxurious kiss. \u201cDid you like your first time?\u201d The question was nonchalant, and Laurie took a moment to let it register.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, God, was it that obvious?\u201d She buried her head in the crook of Kaatje\u2019s neck.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, not at all.\u201d Kaatje cupped her cheek and forced her to raise her head. \u201cI\u2019m really happy that you chose me to be your first.\u201d<\/p>\n

Smiling, Laurie said, \u201cI think you chose me. I never would have had the nerve to kiss you.\u201d She kissed her quickly, glad she could do it without reserve. \u201cWhen did you know?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt wasn\u2019t any one thing. It was the sum of a bunch of little clues. I\u2019m glad I wasn\u2019t wrong,\u201d she said, chuckling. \u201cCan you imagine how insulting that would have been if you\u2019d had sex with women hundreds of times?\u201d She laughed harder, the sound carrying across the dark, calm water.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow did you know?\u201d Laurie asked again. \u201cTell me. I must have seemed like I didn\u2019t have a clue.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, not true. You seemed like someone who knew how to make love. Just not in this variety. Like when I asked you what you liked. You acted like no one had ever asked you that before.\u201dShe smiled impishly. \u201cThat sounds like someone who\u2019s only been with men.\u201d<\/p>\n

Get This Book On Amazon<\/b><\/h3>\n

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[tweetthis]They barely knew each other, but they were making love. There was no doubt in her mind[\/tweetthis]<\/b><\/p>\n

Bits and Bobs<\/b><\/h3>\n