TW// attempted rape/unwanted sexual contact

Yet another brilliant book by Beth O’Leary. I’m not much of a contemporary or romance fan but I’ve thoroughly enjoyed every one of her books. This one switches between the past - Dylan and Addie meeting and their relationship beginning, middle and end, and the present - a road trip to a wedding where they end up car pooling after having not spoken since the break up. I loved seeing the two alongside each other and rooted for Dylan and Addie from early on. Ill definitely be picking up a physical copy of this ASAP to add to my collection.

This is a book I'd been so excited to read and so anticipating, but unfortunately it didn't work for me.

I found it really hard to like most of the characters, and I couldn't at all understand why Rodney was included for most of the book - he could easily have been taken out of the story.

Most of all though, I couldn't get on board with Addie and Dylan's relationship . While the flashbacks to their happier days were a great inclusion, I really struggled with their attitudes toward each other in the present day narrative.

I was looking forward to reading this book as I really enjoyed The Switch and had high expectations of a light, funny and intriguing storyline. The blurb sounds quite good.

Addie and her sister Deb are about to embark on an epic road trip to a friend's wedding in the north of Scotland. The playlist is all planned and the snacks are packed. They're also taking along Random Rodney. 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 Marcus 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 three hundred miles ahead of them, Dylan and Addie can't avoid confronting the very messy history of their relationship.

I'm not sure I would have offered them a list to be honest and perhaps I would have enjoyed the story more if it had taken a different tangent as Marcus is a rude obnoxious snob and am sure I would have dropped him off and made him walk the rest of the journey, after just 5 minutes in the car with him. He completely blames Addie for their break up and is just an irritant and overpowers the storyline too much.. I didn't really take to Dylan either to be fair and began to lose interest quite quickly after about 10% of the book, but managed to trundle through.

That said I'm still looking forward to reading the The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary but this one missed the mark for me and found it a bit too graphic in areas that really didn't need to be.

The road trip doesn't really have that heart warming feel good factor which I enjoyed with The Switch and didn't find any of the characters appealing.

The book switched between the present (the car journey and the past - how Dylan and Addie met a few years ago. Again I didn't really enjoy the earlier aspect.

Thank you to Netgalley and Quercus Books for the opportunity to read and review this book for an honest opinion.

First of all, I adored the cover design! It was minimalist and cute!

The premise of the book was very interesting, especially at the start. I think I flew through the first 100 pages. However, I got a little bit disappointed that the start of Addie and Dylan’s relationship turned out to be insta-love. I actually couldn’t really think of any strong reason beyond physical of why they would be attracted to each other. I didn’t think the book showed enough strong reasons of why these two people couldn’t be with anyone else aside from each other. I kept waiting to see more, but we never got there.

While I really enjoyed most of the ‘Now’ chapters (Kevin was the highlight for me!), I couldn’t say the same with the ‘Then’ chapters. I went through the ‘Then’ chapters mostly just to find out the main reason why Addy and Dylan broke up.

All in all, I think the book didn’t need 400 pages. If most of the ‘Then’ chapters could be culled, it would’ve made the pace more enjoyable for me.

I really enjoyed this book. Loved the characters & the way it was told in past & present. I’d highly recommend this book & author.

I didn’t care enough about the characters to be invested in their history or the outcome. I enjoyed the Flat Share so I had high hopes for Road Trip but it just missed the mark for me.

Addie and her sister, Deb, are all packed and ready for a road trip to Scotland to see one of their best friends get married. The tunes are set and the snacks loaded - it’s going to be a blast!

Dylan and his best mate, Marcus, are also en route to the same wedding when Dylan runs straight into the back of Deb’s Mini and writes off Marcus’ Dad’s car.

Addie is in a pickle. On the one hand the decent thing to do would be to give Dylan and Marcus a lift to the wedding but on the other hand Dylan is Addie’s ex and she has not spoken to him since they split almost two years ago.

Decent wins and soon they are all piled into the Mini with Rodney, a somewhat stranger who is also going to the wedding and needed a lift. Marcus is antsy and Dylan and Addie are hyper-aware of one another. It is definitely going to be a long road trip to Scotland and it’s made even longer when anything that can go wrong goes go wrong.

Told from Addie and Dylan’s perspectives the story flits between past and present and we discover how the two met and how things went so drastically wrong.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommended it. There were a few times I laughed out loud and others where I felt quite emotional. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced read copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

I loved this book. The Road Trip has a different feel to it compared to Beth O’Leary’s previous two novels, and whatever direction she’ll take next, I’m going along for the ride (see what I did there!🤭)

I just love the way that O’Leary writes characters: in this book they’re funny, flawed and feel like genuine, real people. There are those with mental health problems, dysfunctional families and strong sibling relationships.

We see the contrast of the carefree student on holiday, and the way that real life has a habit of sticking its oar in - and not always in a good way.

The road trip element was hilarious though. Deliciously awkward, thanks to Addie, Dylan and Dylan’s friend Marcus, with the devil-may-care attitude of Addie’s sister, Debs. And than there’s Rodney (I’l leave him right here - I don’t want to spoil THIS character for you!).

This book is a little darker in places in comparison to her other books, but I absolutely loved every page. I can’t wait to see what’s next from Beth O’Leary. Oh, and you should definitely read this book!!

Many thanks to Quercus for my copy via NetGalley.

This novel didn't really work for me. I wanted different things from it. That's how it is sometimes, right? Especially with romance novels, they can certainly leave you wishing for a different outcome.

The story itself was pleasant. Addie is going on a road trip with her sister to Scotland for her best friend's wedding. Another car crashes into her, which leaves the other car unable to proceed the trip. A trip to the same location, because it's Addie's ex Dylan who is also making her to the wedding. They decide to go on the trip together, which brings back a lot of memories of the past and what has happened to make their love story end.

A lot of adventures happen on the road, but none of them memorable. The ending is quite predictable as well, even though it could've gone another way altogether. There's a thing with Dylan's best friend Marcus which I would've loved to be explored further.

This is an average romance novel. A light read for when you're chilling on a beach.

I am a big Beth O'Leary fan and loved her previous books, but this one fell a little flat for me.

I found a lot of the storyline to be very unbelievable and coincidental, I did have to suspend my belief several times throughout the book.

But the romance was nice and sweet, focusing on some heavier family-related themes but the side characters were the saving grace in this book, although a lot of times they definitely overshadowed the main characters leaving them somewhat flat.

I was so excited to get an e-ARC copy of this book as I absolutely loved both Beth O'Leary's previous books, however I didn't enjoy this one quite as much as the first two. I found some of the characters choices frustrating, and the slow reveal of their history meant it took a long time to understand their motives and empathise with them.

That said, it was still a funny romantic and enjoyable book, and I would probably have enjoyed it more if I hadn't had such high expectations from having loved her first two books so much.

This is primarily a story of Addie and Dylan. It starts off where they are all heading to Scotland for a wedding of a good friend but Dylan and his best friend’s car is smashed into and they can’t get to the wedding. Addie and her sister are coming along and give them a lift. As the journey progresses there are many obstacles that are thrown in the way but the journey does continue.



We learn about Addie and Dylan along the way and there meeting and start of a relationship which should have gone the distance but something happened for them to split up. We learn about the characters and the life they have been living since they were all in France where Addie and her sister were looking after a villa that Dylan rented.

The story is funny but heart-warming and has you wondering what happened but also is a nice uncomplicated read, which is fab for laying on the beach or in the sun. The story is amazing and upbeat with the comedy side of the road trip for all involved but has an air of mystery with a stalker. I loved reading this book and would highly recommend.

I had high hopes for this after ready Beth O'Leary's previous books, The Flat Share and The Switch. I've thoroughly enjoyed both of these and thought that this would be right up my street. Unfortunately, it felt like something was missing and this wasn't a review that I wanted to write.

The book felt like it dragged at times. The emotional connection with the characters wasn't there and I wasn't rooting for them to get together! Because that connection wasn't there, it felt like a chore to get through the book at points. That being said, the writing style is good and serious topics and weaved effortlessly into the story.

It all comes out in the end as an average, ok book. Not what I was expecting from the queen of romance books. 2.5 stars.

After reading her previous book I was hoping that I would enjoy this one as much, sadly no. I found it really difficult to get into and stopped and started on a few occasions before having to finish it. I didn’t like the characters or the story. Sadly not for me

It took me a while to get into this book. For some reason it just didn't grip me in the same way that the previous two books by Beth O'Leary have done. I'm sure others will enjoy it a lot and I'm not sure why it didn't quite work for me.

High expectations after the previous two books from this author. Sadly this was a car journey that I really wanted to walk away from. The back story is kind of ok, the people in the car just get on your nerves. Comes together ok in the end, quite far fetched, but just not the same warmth as the previous books

I really enjoyed this book. I think it's now safe to say that Beth O'Leary is an auto-buy author for me! This is a storyline that could easily have come across as completely ridiculous, but it worked really well. The relationships and personalities were believable. I also like how Beth O'Leary has more serious subjects woven into her novels, but manages to overall have a more light-hearted feel to the story, without minimising anything or being dismissive. Can't wait for her next one, I've seen the synopsis and it sounds great!

Addie is driving up to Scotland with her sister Debs and Rodney (some random in the Facebook group who needed a lift) to her friend Cherry's wedding. Not long after setting off do they have an accident with a car failing to stop behind and shunting the car. This would be bad enough if the car wasn't been driven by her ex Dylan and his annoying best mate Marcus.

Running into Addie after almost two years apart was not suppose to happen like this - but here they are. All headed to the same wedding, Marcus somehow convincing the girls to give them a lift. Five adults crammed into a mini with luggage and a host of emotional baggage - how could this road trip possibly go wrong? Other than a breakdown, a trucker, dashing out for a wee, road closure and skeletons let out of the closet.

Flitting back and forth between now and the past, you gain an insight into how they met, the relationship between the characters and how they ended up where they are today.

I loved Beth’s first book - the flat share - and this one didn’t disappoint. With the majority of the story set in a car, it was very eventful with some great strorylines and plot twists

This was such a great read!! I loved THE FLATSHARE, and I was delighted to read this one!! Beth O'Leary is one of my favourite romance writers!!