MoMoBookDiary

📖 Book Description

Can a Greek Getaway Last Forever

Escape to the Greek sunshine with It Started in Kos, a romantic getaway filled with friendship, laughter, secrets and unexpected connections.
Ellie arrives on the beautiful island of Kos for her friend Jodie’s hen do, expecting sunshine, cocktails and plenty of late nights.
Falling for someone definitely isn’t part of the plan.
But when she meets the charming Vasilis, what begins as holiday fun soon becomes something much harder to leave behind.

For Jodie, returning to Kos brings memories of a life she thought she’d left in the past.
And as the celebrations unfold, old faces, new romances and unexpected revelations threaten to change everything.

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📚 Publication Details

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✍️ About the Author

S.J. Wood

S.J. Wood grew up on a farm in Galloway with her three brothers and sister. She now lives in Wigtown, Scotland’s National Book Town, with her husband and three children.

She works full time supporting clients with vision and hearing loss. It Started in Kos is her debut novel.

🔗 Connect with the Author on Facebook

📚 Signed copies of  It Started in Kos  are available directly from S.J. Wood via her online shop

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👩🏻‍💻 My Review

Beautiful, Believable and Brilliantly Paced

Absolutely brilliant!

From the moment I started reading It Started in Kos, S.J. Wood transported me straight to the beautiful island of Kos. I could picture everything so vividly that I genuinely felt as though I was there with the characters, despite never leaving my reading chair! From the quiet early mornings and late-night walks along the beach to the busy evenings filled with people, music and celebrations, the setting came alive around me. I didn’t just picture Kos, I felt completely immersed in it.

And the story itself was just as beautifully done. There are a fair number of characters to get to know, both within the hen party and among the people they meet around the neighbouring hotels and eateries, but I never once struggled to keep track of anyone. Every character felt as though they belonged in the story and had a reason for being there.

The pacing was perfect. Nothing felt rushed, nothing felt forced and, most importantly for me, everything made sense. Even when the story moved into territory I can’t talk about without giving things away, the developments felt completely natural. Everything was given just the right amount of time and explanation. It all felt incredibly well thought out and carefully planned. The romance was beautiful too, developing at exactly the right pace and giving me plenty of time to become completely invested in the characters and their stories.

And Kos isn’t the only setting S.J. Wood brings beautifully to life. When the holiday ends and the story moves back to south-west Scotland, where the hen party returns to prepare for the wedding, the sense of place is every bit as vivid. The landscapes, the surroundings and that unmistakable feeling of Scotland are described so beautifully. It felt completely different from the sunshine and beaches of Kos, yet I was transported there just as easily.

The main romance may be at the heart of the book, but I became invested in so many of the other characters and their stories too. It’s one of those books where I reached the end knowing I would very happily spend more time with these characters.

For a debut novel, It Started in Kos feels remarkably accomplished. S.J. Wood writes with the confidence and skill of an author who has been doing this for years, and I could so easily imagine finding this book sitting among the bestsellers.

With the number of books I read by so many different authors, it’s only natural that I’ll sometimes notice a little niggle, something that doesn’t quite add up or a moment where the timing feels slightly off. With this one, I had absolutely nothing. Everything just worked.

And that ending… just beautiful. I couldn’t have asked for a better way to finish the story.

It Started in Kos is a beautiful, believable and brilliantly paced debut from S.J. Wood, and one I really hope finds the wider audience it deserves.

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DISCLOSURE: I purchased this book myself.

#ItStartedInKos #SJWood

MoMoBookDiary Index

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MoMoBookDiary Index

• Author
  • S.J. Wood
• Title
  • It Started in Kos
• Series
  • n/a
• Publisher
  • Independently Published
• Genre
  • Romance
• Setting
  • Kos
  • Scotland
• Source
  • Purchased
• Date Read
  • 1 October 2026
• Review Shared
  • Amazon
  • Goodreads
  • The StoryGraph
• Content Notes
  • X
• Archive Checked
  • X