I am an Emma Lord fan, so take this review knowing how much I love her.

This book is one I would not want to give a young adult….

First, the glorification of disrespect. The age old cliche of “I am a teenager so I know better than any adult”. It hurt my heart to see a child blatantly flaunting her moms “stupidity” like she knew anything about life and adulting five seconds after getting her high school diploma.

I get wanting to spread your wings, and I think this just went too far.

And when the teen gets her way, it’s all good.

Also for a YA book 48 uses of the F word is crazy.

The Getaway List was a cute coming of age story. I thought Tom and Riley were fun main characters. I can see young readers relating to the pressures Tom and Riley experienced. I liked that the author highlighted different paths after graduating high school. I also liked that the secondary characters were fleshed out. I did struggle with some aspects of the book. There were points in the story where the writing felt clunky. I also found the story unrealistic. New York is hard to live in and I wish we saw the characters struggle a little more. Although the book read a little too long for my taste, I would recommend this one to the teens at my library! Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

What a lovely, sweet, and poignant coming of age novel! It keeps the light and breezy touch that Ms. Lord is known for but burrows in with a depth and tenderness that resonates with anyone, young or old, who has felt lost on their journey to find themselves.

Riley's character is especially touching and relatable. She is so full of life and fire but yet still so young and unsure of herself and her place in the world. She has courage and the determination to overcome and grow, and that is such an impressive lesson for readers to experience as they follow her through that growth. The secondary characters are also enjoyable and easy to like, each with their specific quirks and gifts. Ms. Lord did a fabulous job of painting a picture of modern day teens in a positive way, while still uncovering their youthful inexperience realistically. I do think there are times the character's insights came across as much older than their 18 years and, given the world we live in, the ability to do many of the things they did may not seem completely viable.

Still, the messages, the struggles, and the hope shine so brightly that one can't help but adore both the characters and the story. It is truly a delight and one that leaves a sweet smile as the last page turns.

This was a sweet coming of age story - filled with adventures, found family, and growing up.

Riley just graduated and the first thing she wants to do see see her childhood friend in New York. She takes a bus to get there.. on her way she thinks about what she wants to do, who she is, and have they changed.

I think that is one of the major theme of the book - change is natural while growing up and that is something they come to terms with throughout the book.

Another is finding your tribe, home, and friends - their little group for this Getaway List was the best. The sweetest and not backstabbing or sassy mean at all. This is the kind of story with that you can vibe with if you are looking for a happy, zero stress story.

A favorite! Cannot wait to get a physical next year because man 2024 is rocking it with good feel books. Also zero spice! Which fits the story :)

Thank you netgalley for this earc for an honest review.

Emma Lord has a magical way of writing young adult books that appeal to everyone, and The Getaway List is no different. I am definitely not the target audience, as a 31 year old, but I can still appreciate a good young adult novel. The Getaway List has themes that are common in young adult novels, like parents not understanding you, wanting to find yourself, doing your own thing, etc but still feels fresh and new. I really enjoyed the characters and their relationships, and the ways they try to better themselves and each other!

Okay so this might be the first Emma Lord book that I didn’t LOVE. Normally she can do no wrong, but this one just didn’t hook me all that well and I found the plot device (the list) to be sort of silly and boring.

Not her greatest but she’s still an auto buy for me.

This is a cute, YA romcom read but wasn't quite as good as other books I've read by this author. I love the found family aspect but at times the story felt pretty juvenile considering all the main characters are 18+ and I felt like Tom and Riley's love story was underdeveloped.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Emma Lord’s newest is a better storyline than her last. I enjoyed the overall theme of his book. But the language was off-putting. Wished she had left it out. Best friends reconnecting and whole new mishmash of friends trying to figure out their place in life and New York City. Good solid read….except the language. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review

Thank you Wednesday Books and NetGalley for an arc of The Getaway List by Emma Lord in exchange for my honest review. This is a coming of age story of two best friends who met as children: a sheltered girl, Riley, and a boy, Tom,who has free to do whatever because his mom is often traveling for work. When Tom was in high school, he moved to NYC and they haven't seen each other since because Riley's mom kept her intentionally very busy with school activities. As soon as Riley graduates college, she goes to NYC to see Riley for a weekend and ends up staying longer. When they were younger, they wrote a Getaway List of various things to do and now that they are both in NYC, they are starting to cross off that list. In this book, Riley discovers who she is without the pressure of her mom, while Tom is also discovering how he can have a good relationship with his often distant mom.

The Getaway List by Emma Lord was a cute and light YA read but this one just didn’t do it for me, didn’t love the characters as much as in her previous novels. Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

At high school graduation, Riley Larson only knows one thing for sure: she doesn’t know what to do with her life. All 10 colleges she applied to rejected her, and she doesn’t want to work at her mom’s coffee shop. She’s also bummed that her best friend, Tom, couldn’t make it from New York City for graduation, but he watched it online.

Riley still wishes Tom could have been there. She’s missed him a lot lately; his warmth and their childhood bond over their favorite book series. More than anything, Riley wants what Tom seems to have: direction. Tom is headed to Columbia University to study psychology. Riley’s biggest accomplishment is gluing their Getaway List to her graduation cap.

The Getaway List is their collective bucket list, but they haven’t done anything on it and Riley wants to change that by visiting Tom. Despite her mother’s disapproval and their heated exchange, Riley hops on a bus to New York.

She learns quickly that everything is different. Tom is happy to see her, but he’s no longer the person who makes friends everywhere. Also, he’s decided to defer Columbia for a year. And every time Riley looks at him, she feels a flutter. What is that all about?

There are some good things for Tom in NYC. He’s working as a bike messenger for Dear, Love, a cool app that allows people to send gifts to one another anonymously. He does have one new friend, Mariella. And he’s definitely on board with completing the Getaway List. Mariella wants to join them, and before Riley knows it they’ve made a gaggle of friends who want in too.

The weekend visit turns into a summer stay, and Riley starts falling in love with New York and all its possibilities. She’s also returned to her writing. Best of all, she and Tom are finding their way again…and maybe falling a little in love with each other too.

Author Emma Lord’s ability to channel the voices of teens is in fine form once again in her latest book. Riley’s confusion over her future while wanting to assert some control will sound familiar to adult readers. The book’s biggest issue is its lack of strong conflict. From the moment Tom opens the apartment door to Riley, there’s no doubt about their relationship’s endpoint. The entrances and exits of various friends provide minor subplots without enough strength to last the entire book. Many miscommunications, too, feel contrived for the plot’s convenience.

Watching the unfolding romance between Tom and Riley may sustain some readers in the target audience; others might wish there was more than just general “growing up” propelling the book forward.

At high school graduation, Riley Larson only knows one thing for sure: she doesn’t know what to do with her life. All 10 colleges she applied to rejected her, and she doesn’t want to work at her mom’s coffee shop. She’s also bummed that her best friend, Tom, couldn’t make it from New York City for graduation, but he watched it online.

Riley still wishes Tom could have been there. She’s missed him a lot lately; his warmth and their childhood bond over their favorite book series. More than anything, Riley wants what Tom seems to have: direction. Tom is headed to Columbia University to study psychology. Riley’s biggest accomplishment is gluing their Getaway List to her graduation cap.

The Getaway List is their collective bucket list, but they haven’t done anything on it and Riley wants to change that by visiting Tom. Despite her mother’s disapproval and their heated exchange, Riley hops on a bus to New York.

She learns quickly that everything is different. Tom is happy to see her, but he’s no longer the person who makes friends everywhere. Also, he’s decided to defer Columbia for a year. And every time Riley looks at him, she feels a flutter. What is that all about?

There are some good things for Tom in NYC. He’s working as a bike messenger for Dear, Love, a cool app that allows people to send gifts to one another anonymously. He does have one new friend, Mariella. And he’s definitely on board with completing the Getaway List. Mariella wants to join them, and before Riley knows it they’ve made a gaggle of friends who want in too.

The weekend visit turns into a summer stay, and Riley starts falling in love with New York and all its possibilities. She’s also returned to her writing. Best of all, she and Tom are finding their way again…and maybe falling a little in love with each other too.

Author Emma Lord’s ability to channel the voices of teens is in fine form once again in her latest book. Riley’s confusion over her future while wanting to assert some control will sound familiar to adult readers. The book’s biggest issue is its lack of strong conflict. From the moment Tom opens the apartment door to Riley, there’s no doubt about their relationship’s endpoint. The entrances and exits of various friends provide minor subplots without enough strength to last the entire book. Many miscommunications, too, feel contrived for the plot’s convenience.

Watching the unfolding romance between Tom and Riley may sustain some readers in the target audience; others might wish there was more than just general “growing up” propelling the book forward.

In this love letter to New York, two childhood best friends find their way back to each other and themselves. Riley and Tom were attached at the hip until Tom had to move away, and, years later, with no plan for what to do after high school ends, Riley impulsively moves to New York for the summer to complete their Getaway List (aka a bucket list).

I have conflicting feelings about this book. It started off rough — I found Riley to be extremely selfish and rude to her mother, and her entitled and frankly stupid decision to run away annoyed me. Plus, her “tragic backstory” of being forced into different activities to the point where she ~doesn’t know who she is anymore~ felt strained, and I was honestly siding with her mother. But Riley grew over the course of the novel, and I really did appreciate how Emma Lord stuck to the message of putting yourself and your happiness first, even if it meant having to let someone go.

While I wasn’t the biggest fan of Riley, I did really love Tom and the friends she made in New York. Lord is an expert at crafting adorable friend-groups, and I really enjoyed all the shenanigans they got up to. The side-romances were also very cute!! Some of the ~drama~ and ~secrecy~ felt a bit overblown at times, but that may just be YA. It was an ok book.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Getaway List features Riley, freshly graduated from high school but rejected from every school she had applied for. Her solution? Go to New York to see Tom. Her best friend growing up who had moved away to New York a few years ago. He's been distant lately, slow to respond to texts and not being himself. Now suddenly he says he's taking a gap year. They bring out the adventurous side of each other and decide to do items form their "Getaway List" that they created when they were younger based on their favourite book series.

This was a fun YA book full of adventure and showing both Riley and Tom coming into adulthood, figuring out what they need. Recommended!

Emma Lord is definitely a gifted author, her writing is skilled, well paced, and her characters and topics feel authentic and relatable. Her books tend to land in that in between stage of YA and NA Contemporary and she is one of the few that I continue to read and have as an auto buy in this genre. I’m always eager to see what she has coming next.

Her newest book, The Getaway List, was not my favorite of her books. Still well written and had the aspects I’ve come to love and expect in an Emma Lord book, but it didn’t grab me in particular as some of the others have. That being said, the writing is still great and the book still features many enjoyable bits.

I as always love to see a story with some good character soul searching and growth. I loved the found family aspect and really liked the bio family dynamics that were delved into as well. The secondary cast was great and I enjoyed watching their adventures/ interactions together.

Some parts felt slower to me in how it came together - with Riley’s inner experience feeling a bit repetitive at times. However, that’s also pretty authentic and part of me thinks that were I reading this as the intended audience age it might resonate with me more and not have felt that way.

It requires a bit of suspension of reality for a few bits for sure - my logical brain couldn’t figure out the numbers in some of it 😅

However overall, I think it was a cute, fun contemporary read that will likely resonate with those around the age of our protagonists. Also served as a sweet love note to nyc, and will definitely be for fans / admirers of the city and city life.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an early copy! All thoughts and opinions are my own and freely offered.

3.5 ⭐️

I really liked a lot of this book! The story’s messages were something any young adult can relate to, especially the theme of struggling with change and self identity as we age and our dreams change. This book had a great balance of cute, fun adventures, and heavier feelings. I personally found myself flying through to read about the group's adventures and absolutely adored the main characters.

2.5 stars!

This was my third book my Emma Lord and I'm so underwhelmed! The first novel I read of hers- You Have A Match- was so wholesome and the story is still stuck in my head.

I never really got attached to either of the MCs and dislike their names so much. Tom is a pretty bland name according to me, and Riley just wasn't it. There were a couple of emotional scenes thrown in between with the MCs feeling vulnerable which I liked and even reread those bits. But on the whole, I couldn't wait for the book to get over coz it felt so long and slow-paced.

Conflict and secrets are pretty much central in this novel, and it added zero value to the story, with the sub-plots just dragging on in the pages. There's a whole wild goose chase with anonymous presents and what Riley's mother will think of her decisions, and these 'mysteries' were so clear to me from the start. Every misunderstanding could be cleared with a single call. There are some good themes in book about friendship and self-discovery, but I don't really understand why it was turned into a boring, pointless story.

Friendships in the story actually stood out to me, even more than the flimsy romance itself. As a writer, I loved that Luca and Riley were able to bond so deeply over writing and their hundreds of story ideas. Honestly, I didn't feel much for Tom and Riley except wanting for their friendship to survive. I'm hoping for so much more from this author coz You've Had A Match is still one of my faves.

Thank you to St Martin's Press and NetGalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions in this review are solely mine.

“Friends. It used to be a simple word, but time sure has a way of complicating it.”

This book is a fantastic YA contemporary coming of age story. It centers around Riley, a chaotic 18 year old and her best friend Tom, who moved away from their hometown in high school. The two created a “Getaway List” of things to accomplish when they finally get to see each other again, and they tick things off the list while finding their way back to each other and trying to find their own selves again.

I instantly liked Riley, her attitude towards the world, and her witty narration.

It’s beautifully equal parts coming of age and finding your place in the world, building loving friendships, and a soft romance. The characters are all so likeable.

3 stars! Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Emma Lord has done it again with another sweet, endearing YA novel.

We start by meeting Riley. She’s just graduated from high school and has no real plan for what comes next.
She’s spent the last 4 years separated from her best friend Tom and micro managed by her mother and feels like she is no longer feels like herself.

(Don’t get me even started on her mother who is the most unlikeable person for most of the book)

Riley and Tom were inseparable from the time they met until he and his mom moved to New York. They created something called The Getaway List of all the things they wanted to do when they next saw each other next.

When Riley finds out that her mom intentionally kept her and Tom apart, Riley impulsively jumps on the bus to visit Tom for a few days. Friends are made and experiences are had while both Tom and Riley figure out their way back to feeling like their true selves.


Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for for my advanced copy in exchange for my honest review

Thanks net galley for the advance reader copy of this YA novel. I love this author but was a bit disappointed in this one for the zip to the romance factor.