If All Else Sails

A Sweet Grumpy-Sunshine Rom-Com

De: Emma St. Clair

Narrado por: Andi Arndt, Patrick Zeller

In this grumpy-sunshine romance, school nurse Josie and her brother's best friend—hockey player Wyatt Jacobs—are tricked into spending a summer together that's anything but smooth sailing.

When Josie's brother sends her to a random address for their (sometimes) annual Super Summer Sibling Extravaganza, she finds neither siblings nor extravaganzas. Instead, ends up at a run-down cottage on the Northern Neck of Virginia occupied by a hockey player she knows and loathes.

A hockey player who isn't just one of her sports agent brother's clients. He's also his best friend. And Josie's sworn enemy.

Oh—and her brother wants Josie to help Wyatt recover from his injury.

Dragging grumpy hockey players to physical therapy is a far cry from bandaging skinned knees, but for the price her brother offers to pay, Josie is willing to try.

Even if it means sharing what she dubs the quaint little murder cottage with Wyatt.

Begrudgingly, Josie starts to see a little more of the man behind the grumpy exterior. And when she finds out he was supposed to sail the Intracoastal Waterway south to Savannah scattering his uncle's ashes, Josie surprises even herself by offering to be Wyatt's first mate.

Smooth sailing is nowhere to be found, and Josie begins to wonder if they'll be able to make it home without killing—or kissing?—each other.

And yet, the longer they share cramped quarters and canned food, the more of Wyatt's layers she peels back until Josie realizes she misunderstood him, their shared history, and perhaps herself as well.

If you're a fan of closed-door romance with sizzling chemistry, laugh-out-loud banter, and relatable characters, this romance with enemies-to-lovers vibes is your perfect escape. Dive into the irresistible story of Wyatt and Josie as they navigate the rocky waters of their past, uncover hidden depths, and discover that sometimes love is found in the most unexpected places. With the delightful grumpy-sunshine dynamic and the swoon-worthy he-falls-first trope, If All Else Sails by USA TODAY bestselling author Emma St. Clair will keep you listening late into the night.

©2025 Emma St. Clair (P)2025 Thomas Nelson

Funny

This was such a cute and funny book! It was hard to not at least smile while listening to it. Funny moments and hilarious lines-good stuff! I liked the references to the Appies since I read that whole series. I enjoyed Andi Arndt’s narration. Patrick Zeller was pretty good too, but I preferred the chapters when Andi was reading.

Such a sweet story!

This is one of the most enjoyable stories I’ve listened to lately. I’m a big Emma St. Clair fan, and this may be my favorite stories of hers. There was so much sweet humor, and I loved both characters. Andi Arndt’s narration was fantastic, as always (performance would have been five stars, if it was just her), but I had to keep adjusting the volume with the male narrator. Sometimes he almost whispered, sometimes he bellowed, and the voice didn’t seem right for the character.

A great book!

I really enjoyed this one. It’s sweet, cute, and has a fun dose of humor. This is a brother’s-best-friend, grumpy-sunshine, hockey rom-com. It’s not action-packed but rather focused on the character and relationship development, which has a smooth and steady build. Both MCs are likable and their relationship is sweet.

Jib was a fun side character, and I really liked the sailing aspect of it. The doubts and internal circling of the FMC stretched a little too long for my taste, but it wasn’t outrageously excessive.

This book is tied in with the Appies series, with both Eli and Van making a short appearance.

For the audiobook, both narrators are great EXCEPT the volume for the male narrator was all over the place, making it impossible to hear in parts and blaring in others.

Content:
There’s no foul language, sex, or violence. The romance is limited to mildly descriptive kisses. There is no mention of faith or God

Trigger warning - an attempted sexual assault on a female character (prior to story but described)

Cutest romance ever!!!!

I am a die hard Emma St Clair, and this book was instantly added to the list of books I love!! I loved all the funny moments, and the balance of serious and swoon. So dang good!!! Narrators were also so good!! Highly recommend!!

Love this story!

Att and Josie have the greatest banter! And the foot in mouth disease comments made me laugh out loud! A must listen!!

If you love Emma’s other books (and I do!)…

Sweet and clean with everything else I love about an Emma St. Clair novel, just more. I felt like everything was just a bit deeper and richer and more fulfilling. The female narrator is ah-mazing and the male one is good but there are times it feels like he is yelling and others when he is whispering. If you have never tried this author before, you’ll enjoy this book if you like clean romcoms with some great tension, some good laughs, and some sighs over a well-earned HEA.