Review copy was received from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Here for a Good Time by Pyae Moe Thet War Published by St. Martin's Press on August 26, 2025
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Pages: 320
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
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Poe Myat Sabei has the publishing career that any writer would kill her first novel sold at auction, became an international number one bestseller, and is being turned into a Netflix film. But now on deadline for her second book, Poe is facing a catastrophic case of writer’s block. The solution? Book a two-week getaway to an exclusive island resort for her and her best friend Zwe where she’ll undoubtedly be inspired to write her next bestseller.
But the vacation of their dreams disintegrates in a flash when the resort is taken over by a group of masked women who are very armed and very angry. As they try to leave the island before the group can track them down, Poe and Zwe suddenly find themselves facing the kinds of conflicts that only come up when, well, you’re trapped in a life or death situation on a remote island with your (hot) best friend.
Poe wrote a best seller and picked up a movie deal for her first published book. While she worked hard to get published, she lost something as she is trying for her next book. So worried about letting her new fans down and being a one hit wonder, she is starting to feel desperate. In a spur of the moment late night decision, she books a fantastic get away to a remote all inclusive resort to be pampered and try some new things. But Poe can’t go alone, she is taking her roommate and best friend Zwe, along for the ride. It was supposed to be the time of their life, but they ended up hiding from the team that has taken over the resort for unknown reasons.
Here for a Good Time is a fun concept. Remote Island, friends to lovers story as the main characters expose some of the secrets they have been hiding. Poe has constant doubts about her talent and how she is going to live up to the craze that is around her. She is grasping at straws to find a new story and has been alienating the people around her. She has been a bad friend to Zwe and a poor daughter to her parents in the last year. As they run for their lives Poe has to come to terms with some hard truths and get past some of the fears she has been harboring and not expressing to the people who have always been her biggest supporters.
If you connect with this book is really going to depend on if you connect with Poe. She is in a bad place and a little needy. She also has some unrealistic expectations for Zwe to always back her up. They are going to need to clear the air if they are going to stay friends, let alone become more. I struggled with Poe, I struggled with Zwe and half the time I thought Poe’s expectations of Zwe were so unreasonable. She talks about living together still when they are old but doesn’t put two and two together that if she doesn’t make a move Zwe will find someone to have a life and a marriage with.
The pacing was a little strange and the infighting between Poe and Zwe felt a bit forced for my tastes so there were parts of this books that just didn’t read right in my head. That could be a miss on some of the cultural aspects as they were Asian and I’m an American.
There are cute moments in the book though and it all wraps up in a pretty fluffy ending. This was my first read by Pyae Moe Thet War and she is probably not my cup of tea. But, if you are into Asian culture reads and don’t mind a little infighting, this could be for you.
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I read book one and liked it, but didn’t love it. I skipped this one. Poe doesn’t sound like a character I’d enjoy much.
Something just didn’t resonate with me for this book. Maybe a different kind of MC would have worked a little better for me.
Mmmmm “The pacing was a little strange and the infighting between Poe and Zwe felt a bit force”…I would struggle with this.
Hmm, this one might not work for me based on the issues you had. Thank you for your honest review!