Great story. Easy read. Great story. Easy read. Great story. Easy read. Great story. Easy read. Great story. Easy read. Great story. Easy read. Great story. Easy read. Great story. Easy read. Great story. Easy read. Great story. Easy read. Great story. Easy read. Great story. Easy read. Great story. Easy read.

I’m a huge fan of Beth O’Leary’s books – I absolutely loved The Flatshare and The Switch so I was excited to read this one. I have to be honest and say I didn’t adore The Road Trip as much as I’d hoped but my expectations were pretty sky high – which could be part of the reason. The story follows Addie and Dylan, exes who end up sharing a car with three others on the way to a wedding they are both attending. They have a messy history and we follow them both on the awkward road trip and we also jump back in time to witness the inception of their relationship.

First off, I have to say that Beth O’Leary proves once again she is an exceptionally good writer. She manages to write with a warmth and wit which makes her books so easy to fall into and be swept along by. The Road Trip is no exception and I did also find the story mostly compelling. The reason this book doesn’t rate as highly for me personally as O’Leary’s previous books is that the characters simply left me a bit cold. I couldn’t really find a reason to care all that much about Addie, who I found a little irritating and Dylan, who I failed to see the attraction in. Because of this, I couldn’t connect to the story with any real sense of emotion and couldn’t bring myself to truly invest in the outcome. I don’t want to put anyone off too much because I know others have loved The Road Trip and it certainly won’t stop me reading everything Beth O’Leary writes but, for me, this one just didn’t quite hit the extremely high heights of her previous books.

3.5⭐

I was expecting this to be more light women's fiction, but there was some significant depth to it, including alcoholism.

I received this book from NetGalley last year but couldn't bring myself to read it as we were in lockdown. Having read it, I now wish I had read it last year as it was a great escape!

Beth O’Leary has been such a good find for me over the last few years. Like everyone I thought The Flatshare was amazing and The Switch was sweet and heartwarming. The Road Trip was as you can guess about a road trip for friends through England to get to a wedding in Scotland. I just didn’t gel with any of the character, especially the male ones. I couldn’t understand the appeal of him at all and so the romantic relationship just didn’t work for me. The banter in the car really irritated me and overall I thought the story was just a bit underwhelming. It’s well written, of that there’s no doubt, but not a top one for me.

I have been a huge fan of Beth O'Leary's work so far, which only makes this so much more disappointing for me!

I found all of the characters pretty unlikeable, which isn't necessarily an issue, except for the fact that I was actively hoping that the relationship we were presumably supposed to be routing for, to end and stay that way. The first few chapters were promising and cute, and I loved the summer sections of this book, but it got very frustrating after that. It was hard to feel sympathy for any of the characters, despite what was happening to them.

I'll definitely be continuing with the author's future releases, but this was a miss for me.

Finished this little beauty tonight. A bit darker than her previous books I thought. Definitely struggled with Marcus as a character but really enjoyed Rodney as light relief. Definitely worth a read!

Addie and her sister are about to embark on an epic road trip to a friend's wedding in rural Scotland. The playlist is all planned and the snacks are packed.

But, not long after setting off, a car slams into the back of theirs. The driver is none other than Addie's ex, Dylan, who she's avoided since their traumatic break-up two years earlier.

Dylan and his best mate are heading to the wedding too, and they've totalled their car, so Addie has no choice but to offer them a ride. The car is soon jam-packed full of luggage and secrets, and with four-hundred miles ahead of them, Dylan and Addie can't avoid confronting the very messy history of their relationship...

Will they make it to the wedding on time? And, more importantly, is this really the end of the road for Addie and Dylan?

#bookstagram #books #reading #libraries #borrowing #betholeary #theroadtrip #relationships #weddings #friendships #holidayromances #love

Don't usually go for this genre but the synopsis intrigued me. Unfortunately I couldn't really get into it but I would still recommend it to those who liked her first book and those who like this genre, as it's well written.

Addie and her sister are about to go on a road trip to their friends wedding in Scotland. Clothes packed, music sorted, snacks prepped, as they set off a car slams into the back of theirs - it’s Addies ex boyfriend. They end up sharing a car journey to Scotland.
The storyline to start was soft, laugh out loud and entertaining but as I got further into the book the story became angsty, emotional and powerful..a real heartfelt read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for this advanced copy of The Road Trip.

This premise of this book is every girls worst nightmare, having to share a very cramped car ride to a wedding with the ex you never got over. The book was fast paced and hilarious. I was so sucked into the story that I read the book in one sitting.

I had only read one other Beth O’Leary book before this but I will now be looking out for other books by this author.

A fun enjoyable read, not Beth O'Leary's best work but I don't think anything would beat The Switch in my eyes! I liked the characters, something that I think O'Leary excels at every time is her character work, and I always find them easy to root for. I enjoyed the fact that the plot was once again different from her previous works, and that this one explored a relationship that had broken apart and a pair that was thrown back into close quarters. I did find the characters harder to love this time, it at times felt like O'leary's version of Normal people by Rooney and that didn't work for me. I also wasn't a fan of using sexual assualt as the reason the two main leads where no longer together, I know O'Leary can handle these things well (The Flat Share was handled beautifully to me) so it was a little odd that here it felt like a trope that was used to create friction rather than explored and discussed. However these are still fun romance novels and are so easy to read and get invested in. I will definitely be reading her again!

As the title gives away this is a trip of a read. Comedy woven in with a lot of deep, angsty feelings which made for a good read.

A brilliant read. Full of fun! I really enjoyed this story and the characters! This will definitely be a bestseller!

Ended up DNFing for now. I found the premise lacked and was quite slow which surprised me as I loved The Flatshare. I will try reading it again at somepoint and see what I think.

A cute, gentle tale with a wicked sense of humour. Perfect holiday reading.
A tale of lovers that just can’t get their act together. You know it will be alright in the end but spend half the book just wanting to shake them out of their idiocy.
This book is full of colourful characters that keep the hilarious situation chugging along nicely

*DJ Khaled voice* ANOTHER ONE! Yes, that’s right, another Beth O’Leary review. Don’t even @ me. I’m obsessed. I’m out of control. I’m pre-ordering her new book immediately on payday.

Ok, so by now we’re all aware that I am loving the formula that Beth O’Leary is concocting, and this book is no different. She just has such a wonderful way of keeping the typical ‘Rom-Com’ formula fresh. She manages to lace in seriousness, sadness, trauma, drama, and yet, still make a feel-good, wonderful story. It’s genuinely a complete talent.

I enjoyed this one (obviously). It’s got similar vibes to The Flat Share (more so than The Switch). A good, slow-unravelling love story, with threads of lost love, toxic friendship, trauma, bad parents, independent women, amateur stalkers, alcoholism, and an abundance more.

I think I might just give up on my book page and become an official Beth O’Leary fan account… What do you think @quercusbooks? Where do I apply?

I thought this was funny and I really liked the characters in this book.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

Addie and her sister Deb are on their way to a wedding in Scotland and end up having a minor car accident when the vehicle behind hits them. It happens to be Addie's ex boyfriend, Dylan and what ensues is a to and fro-ing from 'then' when Addie and Dylan were together to 'now' where Addie and Deb have to take Dylan and his passengers to the wedding.
What O'Leary does so well is gives each character a great personality and I loved all of them, similar to her previous books. As usual, the road trip isn't plain sailing with lots of mishaps and arguments on the way!
I didn't love it as much as The Flat Share but its still a light, feel good book with good characters!

This was my first Beth O'Leary book and it wasn't quite the type of romance I was expecting, but I enjoyed the fact that it balanced humorous moments with serious topics. The book moves between the present, where Addie and her friends end up having to car share with her ex Dylan to get to a wedding on time, and the past, where Addie originally met Dylan in France.

The story focuses on Addie and Dylan's shared infatuation with each other and the gradual changes in their lives and mental health that affect their relationship. Addie and Dylan come from different backgrounds and have different ideas about work ethic and aspirations. O'Leary uses the story to discuss class and wealth, career aspirations, jealousy, best friends, and sexual assault, and how all these things can affect a relationship.

I enjoyed the present-day scenes more than the past tense scenes, but I understand why the flashback scenes were necessary to build out the story and show us how Dylan and Addie came to break up. On the whole, this isn't a light-hearted contemporary romance, but it's one that will make you pause for thought and consider the relationships in your life.

Oh I loved this book. The characters were so brilliantly drawn, I'd love to hear more from all of them (even Rodney) (but especially Deb). It's warm and funny and smart and I couldn't put it down.

This felt completely different to Beth's previous books but still a great read.
The way Beth writes characters is fab, you really get a feel for them as people and they feel real and present.
The story flicked back between the present road trip to an old friends wedding and the history of Dylan and Addie's previous relationship. This was all lined up very well so it never felt confusing.
There was the main storyline of the relationship but also lots of little ones such as Marcus's redemption, the friendships, Deb's route into motherhood. It all tied together beautifully.
Another cracking read from a great author