The Road Trip is a pretty well written book that I ended up not liking all that much. O’Leary has created an appealing plot line and some interesting characters. There is certainly a foundation for an enjoyable book. Unfortunately for me, the chemistry between Addie and Dylan was a mystery. What exactly did they see in each other that would solidify a serious relationship? The attendant friends and family members added depth and humor— the strength of an otherwise too long and hard to care about story. I will read Beth O’Leary’s next novel because I really liked The Flatshare; wish I could say the same for The Road Trip.

This book isn't charming, or cute, or likely to give warm fuzzies. I also disliked every character in this book. I really didn't connect with this title at all. I didn't find much to really like in it.

Beth O'Leary has become one of my reliably favorite authors. The Road Trip was a little less on the sweet side than her earlier books but she always has an interesting plot, believable characters, and an honest resolution. I could feel the tension, heat & stickiness of that never ending road trip right along with the characters!

I really enjoyed THE FLATSHARE by O'Leary, so I was pretty excited that this book was available to review. I like the author's writing style and her technique of telling her stories from two different perspectives. In this book, she also added on the extra layer of "then" and "now" sections. The hook for the book made me want to read it even more: Two exes on the way to a mutual friend's wedding find themselves having to ride-share and cram into a Mini with their travel companions (5 adults total in a little car) when one of them accidentally rear-ends the other.

HOWEVER, I don't think I am the right audience for this particular book. It is more new adult and coming-of-age than chicklit light romance in my opinion, probably geared to readers younger than me (in their 20s?). The main problem for me was that I didn't like the characters and the more that I read of the "then" sections, the more I disliked them and the more I was NOT rooting for the exes to get back together. The whole group of folks came off as overly-privileged partiers with unhealthy and toxic habits and relationships. The main love interests pretty much instantly fell in lust-love and didn't have any real solid foundation or healthy growth. I'm not really sure I would have read the whole book if I weren't reviewing it. There are also some really serious issues in the book that make it less fluffy and uplifting than I would have liked.

To be fair, the short chapters help move things along; and it's an easy read. There was also a particular plot line that presented itself later that got me wanting to turn the page. (But then I was plunged back into a loooong "then" section that pretty much took away that desire, sigh.)

Overall, not my cup of tea, but I am still interested in trying out the author's other published book that I haven't read yet (THE SWITCH), and I'll probably look out for future works by her.

the story didn’t really call to me all that much. i’m not sure why... might have been the characters who could be very off putting at times.

their actions and decisions were almost irredeemable sometimes...

the writing isn’t the issue, and neither is the plot...i just think it’s mainly the characters.

however, there were plenty of moments that i thought were lovely and cute and funny.

What a roller coaster!

Honestly, part of me really did not like the storyline but it was so cleverly written that it was hard to not like it. The characters felt really real and so did the entire story. I thought the way it was told, slowly unveiling what led up to the current lives of Addie and Dylan, was masterful. That being said, I may be one of the few that was not rooting for Addie and Dylan to get back together. However much they may have grown in the nearly 2 years they had been apart, that was one hell of a weird codependent situation.

Another ARC by another author that I am coming to love! The Road Trip by Beth O’Leary is her third book, but the second one that I’ve read (The Flatshare brought me much joy). I did really enjoy this book (read it verrrry quickly which is always a good sign), but there were parts that fell flat for me. The back and forth of each chapter between past and present as well as the view points from both Addie and Dylan I think is what made the book so easy to read. It didn’t drag on at all because of these varying components. I also am slightly obsessed with Addie’s sister Deb - she’s who I want to be when I grow up. That being said without spoiling anything, I did find it to be somewhat predictable at times. I had a hunch about what was going to happen with one of the storylines, and was kind of disappointed when I was right. I was secretly hoping for an unexpected twist, but that twist never came. That being said, I still need to read O’Leary’s 2nd book The Switch, and I definitely still will. There were more things I liked about this book than I didn’t like so it’s a win for me!

I really enjoyed the storytelling style of this book that bounced from past to present. The characters were excellent and the complexity of their relationships was excellent and what I've come to expect from O'Leary's writing. I loved this book and highly recommend it!

I love Beth O'Leary. The Flatshare and The Switch are two books I can't stop recommending to readers. I was excited and delighted to get this one to read.
I will say, this one took me a bit to get into it. At first, it didn't seem to have that same feel as O'Leary's other books. I can't say that I really LIKED any of the characters at first. And then, it changed.

Addie and Dylan had a whirlwind relationship that ended in devastation for both of them. Now, forced together on a long road trip on their way to a friends wedding...Addie and Dylan are confronting some of their feelings and the untold truths of their breakup. Unfortunately, Dylan's bff Marcus is also in the car and Addie just can't stomach him for what he did.

As with all of O'Leary's works, there is more to this one than meets the eye and as readers progress truths are told and feelings surface.

I think the title on this one doesn't do the story justice, it almost lessens the story being told. To me, The Journey would have worked better (and still fit with O'Leary's other titles) and given the whole of this one more depth. That said, still a great read that I will definitely be recommending.

Unfortunately I’ll be unable to leave a review for this book. While I was enjoying the authors writing style and characters I didn’t realize going in that the book jumped from present to past storylines. This unfortunately is not something I enjoy, nor can I stay engaged in the story when this happens through the entirety of the book.

What a cute, sweet, fun, funny story about a road trip. Friends, lovers, ex's and even a stranger take off on a road trip to a wedding and second chance romance blooms and heartbreak happens. It was emotional, sometimes funny and it dealt with other issues that are hard to talk about. At times I rolled my eyes as I thought some things were far fetched and at other times I could hear myself saying, "been there, done that". Overall, it was an enjoyable read and I look forward to reading other books by this author.

This is not what I expected. It was even more. The Road Trip by Beth O'Leary is the first book I've read from this author and now a fan. This book is the ultimate 'road trip' book - it's a fun, humorous with an unexpecting twist to it! What I enjoyed is the present and past story about Dylan and Addie's relationship - the way the author wrote their story, really worked and made you feel how they fell in love since day one and ended up breaking up.

Road trip to forgiveness. A group of five are stuck together on a long road trip to a wedding. One stranger, two sisters, two lovers and two life long friends. The path to forgiveness and the wedding is repeated blocked and redirected. The story repeatedly take the audience back in time for contextual references. Made me realize that not every situation is black and white and sometimes forgiveness needs to happen from all parties involved.

The characters have matured significantly from "then' to 'now', which gives this second chance romance more depth than many of those relationships in novels just built on confusion in the past. In the 'then' the characters were kind of hard to like. As they mature, they become people you'd like to be around (except Marcus). The drive in a Mini Cooper with 5 people provides a lot of humor which helps when times are a bit darker in the past. I don't think I liked it as much as O'Leary's previous books, but this is still pretty good.

I really enjoyed this novel and the cast of characters. The only thing that rubbed me the wrong way was the obsession with the main character Addie being small - as a woman who has struggled with body image this focus seemed a little triggering.

The main characters in this book once said that summer suited them, and this is exactly that: a summer read. Road trips, beach houses, falling in love for the first time... this has it all. It doesn't quite have the joy and hopefulness of The Flatshare, as this, despite the title, deals a lot with toxicity in relationships, and mental health as well. The romance is sweet, if albeit rushed. Still, you will want Addie and Dylan to get their second chance HEA.

My skin crawled at some many points reading this! It was funny, fresh, and honestly horrifying to imagine. Being stuck on a road trip with any of MY ex's would not have had this outcome! This was a very enjoyable read. I like this author a lot.

The Road Trip by Beth O’Leary
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Two years after Dylan and Addie break up, they end up on a road trip together to a mutual friend’s wedding.

Isn’t this the best premise ever?? I’m a sucker for a road trip AND second chance tropes. This book was like cat nip for me.

What I loved:

💓I’ve been a Beth O’Leary fan since the flatshare and adore her writing style. This one definitely had a more serious tone and made for a touching, emotional read.

💓Loved the past timeline intertwined within, giving us a window into their past together.

💓The side characters made for some hilarious moments and excellent dynamics within the small vehicle 😂

💓I loved the humour woven in with some serious subject matter! So well done.

Massive thank you to Berkley, Netgalley and Beth O Leary for access to this ARC 💗

I wanted to like this book more than I did. I like the writing style a lot but the characters were really hard for me to get into. I found them both really hard to like which killed this book for me. The story itself with different characters or more likes or ones would have made this a much higher rating

There’s a lot to like in this book, and much of it is very well-written, with descriptions that pull you into the setting. The Addie + Dylan relationship was so compelling, and there were many fun side characters.

But honestly, I had a real problem with this book, and that is how male stalkers are portrayed. Yes, stalkerS, plural, because there are two in this book (and on the road trip).

If you want to avoid spoilers don’t read the rest of this.
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One of the men who is a stalker is portrayed as harmless, goofy, and generally comic relief. This despite the fact that he has a) lied about being invited to the wedding b) lied to Addie and her sister about why he needs a ride and c) most importantly, IS STALKING THEIR FRIEND in order to try to prevent her from getting married. But they bring him to the wedding anyway!

The other stalker is actually much more disturbing, and while the characters kind of acknowledge that, he is given a full-fledged redemption arc, without ever actually FULLY apologizing for the harm he committed or attempting to make amends for the damage he caused. (SPOILER) (AND MAJOR TW FOR STALKING).

Dylan’s best friend Marcus has a problem with Addie from the beginning of their relationship. He says horrible shit to and about her, and spends pages telling Dylan she’s awful and he needs to break up with her. Later they discover Marcus has been following Addie. He admits to standing outside of her apartment on the dumpster to watch her through the windows. He admits he has been following her to her work and standing outside for hours watching her through the windows. At one point, he takes photos of her. This is sort of addressed as “he was in love with her and it killed him to see his best friend have her.” Which, sure, maybe that drives someone to stalking, but it doesn’t fucking excuse their behavior. And they act like it does. He gets let off easy. Addie doesn’t even really have that much of a reaction to finding out that her suspicions of two years ago, when she felt like she was going crazy because she thought Marcus was following her and she couldn’t prove it, was correct. Dylan tells her something to the effect of “I can understand if you don’t want him in your life again” when he and Addie reunite, but she doesn’t say anything in response. It’s not really addressed and the finale includes Marcus being embraced by their entire friend group again after his shitty behavior.


And you know what, maybe that’s realistic. Maybe that IS what happens a lot in real life. Social groups tend to take the easy way out, and in this case the easy way out is observing literally 2 days of “changed” Marcus’s behavior and saying “yeah he’s good now.” What about Addie? This man stalked her. For months. He broke up her relationship with her boyfriend due to his stalking. Then he slut shamed her for years. He’s abusive. Men like that, they don’t just do a little light stalking and then completely change their lives in 18 months. Stalking is an escalating behavior and it usually leads to violence against women. The way Marcus talks about Addie is the way male abusers talk about women they want to hurt. He never explicitly threatens violence against her but it is clear that he HATES her for the majority of the plot. This is why it was so disturbing to me for it to be waved off as “oh, he was IN LOVE WITH HER,” and everyone forgives him.

And here’s the thing: when Dylan and Marcus get in the car with Addie & her sister, Dylan is choosing to let this man, who he KNOWS had stalked his girlfriend, back into the car with the woman he stalked and harmed. There’s a lot of stuff in this book about forgiveness and healing and therapy. But there’s no fucking amount of therapy in the world that would allow me to feel it was okay for my ex to bring the man who stalked me into a car with me.

Ultimately, I think I would’ve really enjoyed this book overall had it not been for the TWO stalkers. I don’t know which upset me more, the wedding crasher stalker being portrayed as a nice guy who’s just a little clueless, or the situation with Marcus. I just can’t get over it. I know the author’s intention was probably to show people can be redeemed and grow and change even when they’ve done terrible things. But does it have to all be at the expense of the woman at the center of this story? Why does what happened to her with Marcus get treated without the proper weight as the other trauma that occurs in the book? It feels like Marcus’s stalking is brushed aside because of the other major trauma that Addie endured right around the same time as the stalking was revealed.

Really, it comes down to this: yes, I have a personal reaction to this story because I have been stalked by men who wanted to hurt me. If you’ve ever had a stalker, I do not recommend reading this book. But I can also say that, outside of my own personal reaction, the way that stalking is handled in this book just doesn’t make sense and approaches abuse apologetics (he was in love with her, that explains it all, etc).

Two stars because the writing itself was good and there were lots of funny and swoony parts. Just not enough to make me feel okay after seeing men who stalk women get off so easy in this plot.