
Member Reviews

n Wanderlust, Dylan wins a radio contest to travel the world. But she has to do it with someone randomly picked from her phone—a guy she met at a club and hasn’t talked to since.
This book popped up at the perfect time and was exactly what I wanted. Jack is cute and a bit awkward and so so soft, and Dylan and Jack complement each other perfectly. Ellie Everhart places a strong emphasis on the little touches and moments and I felt the importance of every single one. Jack was such a relatable character to me—I honestly don’t know that I’ve read another character that would react more like me. Wanderlust is perfect for fans of Just My Type by Falon Ballard and the travel vibes of The Charm Offensive by Alison Cochrun. I am so glad to add Elle Everhart to my list of authors that write amazing fun, sweet romances.
*Thank you SO much to Penguin Group Putnam for this ARC!

Such a fun book! This gave me Christina Lauren vibes in the best way. Perfect for fans of a rom com and a "feel good" read!

this book was so cute! i couldn't put it down! a great beach/summer/vacation read! there were a few slow bits, but overall i enjoyed it!

4.5⭐
The premise of 1) winning a contest to travel around the world, and 2) having to agree to hand over your phone and let a radio show call someone at random and ask them to join you (on air) instantly had me hooked. I thought that Elle Everhart did a wonderful job with both characters who were wildly different from each other but who, still, seemed to fit together in a way that seemed perfectly believable. Dylan was a strong, capable (sometimes stubbornly so), funny, intelligent FMC and I'd love to see more FMCs like her. She never backs down and it was so refreshing and satisfying to read about a woman who continues to take opportunities to stand up for herself. I think some of her confidence and dogged self-sufficiency might come across as arrogant to some, but I just read it as confidently capable. I guess if you <i>don't</i> like that kind of FMC, then this book wouldn't be for you...but, if that's the case, you also probably should steer away from all my reviews, anyway.
I <i>did</i> agree with some reviewers about the short amount of time we (the readers) get to spend in each location and wanting more descriptions and chapters for each place; BUT, I'm also thinking that this book is a contemporary romance novel, not War and Peace. I felt like the select experiences we did get to read about in each location were given an appropriate amount of real estate. Each experience served to move the plot along and gave us enough detail to capture the setting, at least for the purposes of this book. I WILL say, though, that it was kind of weird that they never went to South America? I mean, they were in Mexico, it was RIGHT there...but maybe that would add two chapters too many? Maybe it's just me, but I'd happily read a couple more chapters and don't think I'd feel any differently about the overall pacing or length of the book, I'd just feel happier about having "gone" to even more places ☺. That wasn't enough to lower my rating, though.
The <b>one small issue</b> I did have was that <b>I <i>need</i> an epilogue</b>!!! Please, for the love, tell me what happened one year later! Once I got to about 95% I kept expecting the book to start moving faster to wrap things up, because I assumed there'd be <i>at least</i> a page of epilogue, and when it just ENDED, I was a little devastated. But, only a half-star's worth. 🙃
FINALLY, I just signed up for NetGalley and this was the first eARC I read. Gotta say, I have high expectations for all future eARCs now. Blame Elle Everhart for setting the bar with this one.
Big thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for letting me read an eARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

Wanderlust tells the story of Dylan, a writer trying to get her own column at the magazine she works for, and Jack "the Posho," a guy she met at a bar one night. Winning a radio contest pairs Dylan with Jack (someone randomly chosen from her phone's contacts list) as they win a trip around the world.
The premise of this book sounded interesting and like a nice way to indulge in some vicarious wanderlust, but I think this book suffered from pacing issues. Some parts dragged, some parts were incredibly truncated, and time was convoluted throughout. The travel descriptions were also inconsistent, and despite the book's title, I didn't find much wanderlust satiated. I think this book would have benefited from more clear demarcations of time, and a dual POV would have been preferable.
Thank you to Putnam Books and NetGalley for gifting me with an ARC to review!

Dylan has been going through some troubles, and things finally get to go her way when she win a radio contest that would allow her to take the trip of a lifetime. The only catch is that they will randomly choose a contact out of her phone to travel with her. Unfortunately for Dylan, the radio chooses one random guy that she made out with and never contacted again. Obviously tensions are high at the beginning, but then the chemistry happens.
This book was cute, but it wasn't great. The beginning was slow, and the ending was wayyyyy too drawn out. Dylan annoyed me at times, and Jack's attitude got on my nerves. It was compared to The Unhoneymooners and Lease on Love, but I did not think the dialogue and connection was as cute in this one.
If someone reads a lot, this might be worth reading, but overall, I would not necessarily recommend it because of how dry some of the parts were.

This is a nice summer travel read, with the center being a quite lovely romance. Dylan is in a work rut, and randomly wins a "trip around the world." The catch being someone random from her phone tags along. A random bar hookup, Jack, ends up by her side. Elle Everhart does a really nice job of building tension, showing a budding romance between two people who are trying to figure themselves out. Dylan definitely had moments of being pretty selfish, but she shows growth over time. I like how Everhart approached some really tough topics, which felt like quite natural conversations. For me for a book that is set "around the world" there is a lot missing for me personally on the travel aspect, the locations, etc. but I suppose it makes sense since there are so many weeks that go by in between. Overall a very enjoyable read! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to provide my honest review.

Overall this was a cute story! A fun idea, winning a radio contest and traveling the world with a randomly chosen person from your contacts list? You know what....yes I'm in!
The wanderlust in me was looking forward to an enemies to lovers, set amidst amazingly an amazingly scenic backdrop and while I enjoyed reading this, it ultimately fell pretty flat. We don't know what caused the rift between Jack and Dylan (I really wish there was a prologue to show their meet cure or at least give us some chemistry to root for later), their initial animosity did not include any of the serial tension we would normally see in an enemies to lovers and they were down right plain rude go each other for far far too long. In the end, I just wanted more. I wanted to feel like I was in each of these locations with them but the author didn't really set the scene, I wanted more interaction between the MMC and FMC, I wanted to see something that would help me root for their, at least, happily for now. And for goodness sake, the number of missed opportunities for a one bed scene?!?!? 🤣
Overall this is a perfect airplane to vacation read. And I'm going to not so secretly hope for some of their itinerary related details to show up in the final version at the end (kind of like how some food related books might share a recipe, or music related books with a playlist), while it seemed like they hit all the major cities, there was clearly some research on possible activities and such that would make a great author's note!
Thank you Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam for the ARC in exchange for my review!

I very much enjoyed this lovely romance showing that sometimes true love awaits in the unlikeliest of places such as a fluke win of a trip with a total stranger.

This was fantastic and such a fun read. I loved it so much and kept turning the pages. Can’t wait to be able to share this with friends.

The story begins with Dylan, a bi-sexual writer for a magazine entering a radio contest. The winner of the contest gets to go on a once in a lifetime vacation, but there is a catch. The radio can choose any random person out of your contacts to go with the winner. Dylan, so excited she won, doesn’t even think twice about having a contact that wouldn’t want to go with her. The person that agrees to go with her is a guy named Jack, that she met months ago at a bar.
Jack is a stoic lawyer truly creating a fantastic grumpy sunshine. It included the second chance romance vibe. Most of the book is sharing Jack and Dylan’s adventures, and how they end up falling in love. I felt that in the end it wasn’t enough chemistry for me to buy in overall. I felt like there was something missing.
What I loved: the ridiculous base idea of the book, the adventure, the main characters discovering what’s best for them and the boundaries they set with those around them.
What I disliked: there was a breakdown of chemistry for me, maybe lack of returned banter? Just something small missing.
Spice level: 🌶️
Stars: 4.5/5

A fun, while outlandish, premise made this book pretty fun. The romance was a fun one and believable as well. The traveling piece landed well but I agree with other reviews that more time spent in every locale would have been good - when I'm reading travel stories, I want to FEEL like I'm in that location.

A cute and fun read for fans of Christina Lauren, Emily Henry, etc.
Dylan, a writer for Buxom magazine, decides to call into a radio contest and wins a two month global getaway. The catch? The station gets to choose a random contact from her phone to accompany her.
Enter Jack, a man who Dylan shared a brief encounter with at a bar a few months prior, as the random contact.
While the two don’t know each other well at the beginning, their travels bring them closer together. They share family struggles, work horror stories, and a passion for good food. But how much of what they are experiencing is authentic, and how much is just fodder for Dylan’s travel column?
The journey that these two characters go on felt authentic, and the trials of social media that they both dealt with were (unfortunately) quite believable. I can see readers enjoying this as a beach read this summer!

This was such a good rainy day comfort read. The main characters had an interesting backstory and strong chemistry, the travel descriptions were dazzling, and there was a solid mix of sweet and serious moments. Everything else I want to say is a spoiler, so I'll just add this — it was a really charming book and I'm excited to see what the author releases next.

Absolutely fantastic plot! Could not put the book down once I began reading it. Cannot wait for it to be released. Will recommend it to everyone I know!

I love a book that takes the characters out of their comfort zones and pushes them into situations where what they least expect happens so this one really worked for me. This is truly a vacation in a book and I was right there alongside the characters and loving every second!

Objectively, this wasn't a horrible book but I just never really liked either Dylan or Jack that much for the entire story. I found the first third very promising but it never really built up from there, in my opinion. Instead, it's just more of the same: Dylan is very carefree and Jack is very uptight; they clash; I have to read the phrase "taking the mick" for the millionth time; then they move to a new city. I'd have liked to see their chemistry develop more because I feel like we only get a glance at how they first met (and then later are thrown together on this trip). These are my opinions though, maybe you'll like it more, etc etc.

If you love adventure, travel, forced proximity trope this book is a must read. Wanderlust is a story that takes Dylan, a writer, on a trip around the world, accompanied by someone the radio station gets to choose from her phone. Dylan dreams of having her own column at her job and her boss takes this trip Dylan has won as a chance for her to test her ability for her own column. Both the main characters had a lot of growth on this trip and discovering who they really are. The chemistry they felt the first night is slow. There is so much tension the beginning of the trip. They are both such strong willed characters that really just misunderstanding one another. The book takes you on a world adventure as these two discover who they really are. Many thanks to PENGUIN GROUP Putnam, G.P. Putnam's Sons and NetGalley for the digital review copy of this novel. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

A good read -- I thought the characters were well-developed but I didn't connect with their chemistry as much as I hoped.

This was a fun book, even though it started off a bit awkwardly. There’s nothing that gives me more anxiety than the thought of traveling with someone you barely know. But this author was able to use this as an opportunity for Dylan and Jack to have one epic adventure. She carved out opportunities to allow moments of vulnerability between Dylan and Jack by creating an emotional connection during their travels. It never felt forced or insincere, but rather a natural progression.
My only complaint is that I wish I felt the scenery more. It felt like a missed opportunity to truly immerse the reader in this story by not giving them the whole picture. There would be times that I forgot they were traveling. Also I wished this was a dual POV because this story felt as much Jacks as it did Dylan. To me, Dylan was a hard character to love because she had an A type personality, but I think if we had Jack's POV, it would have softened the rough edges.
Thank you to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for this ARC