I read this book when it came out last year and I thought it be fun to listen to the audiobook so when I saw it I requested it. I really enjoyed this duos narration and they brought the story to life.

I think if I had to pick between the two I would recommend the audiobook over reading the book.

First off, I walked into this book completely blind. I had multiple friends love and highly rate it so I went in with complete trust…

Only to find this book was definitely not for me. First off, it’s second-chance romance, one of my least favorite tropes. They’re also a previously married couple (not just dating) which adds an extra layer of bitterness and anger to their situation. And lastly, it’s a bad to worse scenario which I do not love either.

The blurb compares it to The Proposal meets Planes, Trains, Automobiles that mostly checks out… except in those movies there’s comic relief. I’m sorry, but that brevity was lacking for me. I just witnessed two hurting, bitter, unlikable (mostly her), angry people argue and disagree an entire book only for them to suddenly reconcile after years of hurt???

If this was marketed as women’s fiction with some actual character growth, I would have been apt to like it more. But as a romance? No thanks.

The writing was fine, good even. I'd like to explore more by this author. This one just wasn't for me.

(Also, because I can’t resist — there’s a scene where she leaves her phone on a train, then later, there’s a scene shortly after a bus crash that she’s checking her phone for hotels. What??? Granted, I listened to the audiobook and sometimes I can miss details… maybe I got that piece wrong?? Seems like a huge edit miss.)

🙉 occasional curse word
💕 kisses only

Content warning: divorce, recounting loss of parent, cancer

5⭐ PERFECTION. Lauren Layne is my comfort another and there is othing in my life that Mrs layns books won't fix so when she announced a Christmas romance.... I knew that with her writing style it can never go wrong.
I had on my mind ever since it was announced and when it came out I was so excited but I needed to wait to read it at the perfect time and I'm so glad.

Even with the constant home alone style hurdles in the way of them getting back home, I loved every adventure they had. The thought process behind katherine not saying anything when tom asked for divorce and her struggle and feeling afterwards felt so personal to me and I've never been married nevermind divorced lol though the book was expected to be a little heavy considering Katherine's loss and the topic of divorce I'm glad it was light but I still cried 😭. Anyways I'm almost done with finishing mrs layns backlist so I need new books from her ASAP

Emergency Contact is such a great read!! I enjoyed it so much! The two main characters' banter was perfection! They cracked me up and I loved that this book was from both points of view. They adventure was definitely full of hang ups and hurdles but they kept powering through! This second chance romance is a must read and would make for a great book club book! It would be so much fun to sit down with a bunch of girlfriends and laugh together talking about this book!

Short quick and cute I highly recommend this one. The dual POV was perfect and the narrators are two I would love to hear more from.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for this book. I loved it! The characters were well done, the dialogue was fun and the narration was excellent. I found myself wishing that the book was longer.

Why have I never seen anyone post about this book?!?! This should be everywhere!

Exes Katherine and Tom haven’t spoken in the years since their divorce. Katherine is focused on becoming partner in her law firm and Tom has moved on with Lolo, a sweet teacher he is about to propose to on Christmas Eve, a family tradition. When Katherine gets into an accident in front of her work a couple days before Christmas they call her emergency contact who happens to still be Tom. That she hasn’t changed it since their divorce doesn’t mean anything, she’s just been busy. Tom is on his way to the airport but feels obligated to check on Katherine. Concussed, stitched up, and in pain with no family or friends in town it’s decided that Katherine will go home with Tom for Christmas. Not ideal and obviously not what either of them would ever want, but it feels like the safest option health wise. So begins a Planes, Trains, and Automobiles style journey, except with a bit o’ sexual tension. As the two exes try to get home in time for Tom’s proposal they begin to remember why they got married, and begin to forget why they ever got divorced.

This book is so much fun! Katherine snarky but vulnerable, Tom is wary but kind, and their adventure to get home for the holidays is hilarious and fraught with drama. I loved the narrators and highly recommend this! 4 ✈️✈️✈️✈️

I like the premise - an ex husband being called in an emergency because he’s still listed as the emergency contact for his ex-wife and this being the catalyst for their reconnecting. I also like the way the plot develops Planes, Trains and Automobiles style. The problem is there wasn’t enough chemistry between the former couple for me to believe there’s any reason why they’d second guess their divorce. Meanwhile, Tom’s current girlfriend whom he’s preparing to propose to is perfectly likable. We’re given no reason to root against her and instead for a reconciliation with Katherine.

This has some cute moments but just not quite the stuff that a second chance romance lover's dreams are made of.

Ratings
Quality of Writing 4/5
Pacing 4/5
Plot Development 3/5
Character Development 3/5
Overall Enjoyability 3/5

3.5 ⭐️

Loved the book, loved the narration. The banter was fantastic between the two main characters. The only thing that I didn’t love is the ending felt very rushed. Would’ve liked a bit more detail there. I would definitely recommend.

I loved the banter, but the angst really pushed me because I don't deal well with high angst sometimes. I really wanted to like Katherine but, man it was so hard I wanted to shake her. I felt for Tom and the edge of the sword he was on with the different situations.

I loved this book so much and the narration was amazing. I will be looking forward to reading more from this author in the future

This was a cute rom-com I listened to in one day and I had quite a lot of fun with it. It's a second-chance almost sunshine x grumpy romance about two people who used to be married and something happened and they are forced to spend the next 48h or so together, while traveling cross-country as he is trying to get home on Christmas Eve to propose to his current girlfriend!

Is there emotional cheating? I don't know, you tell me, but I felt very bad for the girlfriend. He is clearly not over his ex-wife (even though they divorced 4 years ago) and his ex-wife still has feelings for him too. It's also not really clear why he divorced her - I mean, it is her job, but I felt like they did not even discussed this properly or so it gave me the impression. But, yeah, I felt bad for Lolo (the girlfriend) because not only is his boyfriend spending time with his ex-wife but his family are also kinda cold towards her and they are still obsessed with the ex-wife and they are still in contact with her! Poor Lolo!

I was also left with a bitter taste at the end - and it usually happens in these rom-coms when the career suddenly stops being important for the heroine even though that said career was a big part of the breakup and the hero gets everything he wanted in the end. Maybe it's me (it's probably me, and no, I am not a career driven woman, I am a chill-out couch potato book goblin wife).

That being said, it was also fun to spend the day with this rom-com. People are not perfect, but they are trying and it was nice to see them fighting with their feelings and trying to do what's right. I loved rom-coms that happen in a short amount of time (especially in audiobook form) and I love traveling books - and our main characters are really trying their best to arrive home in time for Christmas Eve. It was a fun ride.

Fun read but I was left a bit unimpressed.

I did not feel the connection between Katherine and Tom. The banter was cute at first but then started really getting on my nerves.
The planes trains and automobile journey started off well and entertaining enough but again I got irritated and kept rolling my eyes at everything that happened.

I was surprised at the focus on the slap stick “comedy” in the train compartment and of the truck driver. For instance, truck driver Gordie / Gordy was eating a hamburger and the way the story focussed on this physical appearance and eating (burping) was really off putting to me. I did not get at all why the authors chose to write about that in such a way (nothing against describing burping, just how it was used to tell the reader things about the character).

I felt bad for Lolo. Yes Tom and Lolo were clearly not a good match, but man up and take care of that, and not a few hours before proposing!!

The narrators were very good!

Read as an audiobook.

I received an ARC of this book (thanks!) and these are my own opinions.

Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for the chance to listen to this book! I am guilty of jumping into requests in large groups on here, and then getting a bulk approval and losing track of everything. This was definitely what happened here. HOWEVER, I really enjoyed this book! I like the second chance story, the endless string of bad luck, and likeable characters. I would read this again and recommend it to friends.

I loved the writing style. The narrators were great. I loved the banter and second chance premise between the two MCs but I could have done without the added girlfriend almost fiancé. It gave too much emotional cheating for me to really enjoy it. If the girlfriend was not there it would have been 5 stars.

Katherine, an ambitious NYC attorney, gets diagnosed with a concussion and must be monitored for 48 hours to make sure it doesn't get worse. Unfortunately, she forgot to update her emergency contact so the person they call is her ex-husband, Tom. Unable to be left alone, Katherine reluctantly agrees to travel to Chicago with Tom for the holidays. But thanks to a blizzard, what should have been a quick plane ride turns into an antagonistic overnight misadventure that stirs up old feelings even as Tom prepares to propose to his girlfriend on Christmas Eve.

This was so cute! Thank you NetGalley & The Publisher for a copy!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced audio arc! This was such a sweet read! It reminded me of an updated version of the movie Planes, Trains, and Automobiles! Except instead of two strangers, you have two ex's 🤣

I received this as an audio arc, and half way through realized it had been out for over six months. I have heard zero buzz on this one and ,man, was it great!

Katherine is an ambitious NYC attorney that hates Christmas. Her dad and only family died on Christmas. Her heart turned to stone. She focuses on partner track at her law firm.

Her cab gets in a horrible accident and her firm call her ex husband—Katherine never got around to updating her emergency contact. Tom was tired of playing second fiddle to her career. He is planning to propose to his girlfriend on Christmas Eve. He is going to get his life back on track.

Katherine has a large wound and a concussion. She can’t be left alone for 48 hrs. So, he decides to bring her to Chicago where the girlfriend is meeting the future in laws solo because he came to the rescue of his ex.

Que the absurd mix of planes, buses, trains and blizzards as these two banter their way toward the heartland.

This was so fun. 🤩 Thank you NetGalley for the audio arc!

I LOVE this book so much!! It's so funny. The fact that is it written by a husband and wife duo makes it even better. It was so real.
Katherine is not an easy person to get along with but it's her protection. Tom her ex-husband is a saint. Lol/ The sarcasm, banter and bickering made me laugh so many times.
A perfect read!

Thank you for the opportunity to listen to this arc.

Fun holiday romp with the requisite happy ending!

I listened to the audiobook version of "Emergency Contact" and found it to be a captivating and engaging story. The narrators did a fantastic job of bringing the characters to life, making it easy to become invested in their journey.

The story itself is both heartwarming and relatable, exploring themes of love, sacrifice, and self-discovery. I found myself eagerly listening to each chapter, eager to find out what would happen next. The dynamic between the two main characters was both endearing and complex, making their love-hate relationship feel genuine and heartfelt.

Overall, "Emergency Contact" is a compelling novel that I would highly recommend to fans of contemporary romantic fiction. The audiobook format only enhanced the experience, making it a truly enjoyable listening experience.