i love the premise of a hunted road trip mixed with ghosts, but the execution just didn’t hit the mark for me on this one. loved the cover, so i was expecting some laughs, but i just got a couple chuckles and some confusion. very lacking in the horror and i just didn’t love it. don’t really have too many thought because it wasn’t my favorite unfortunately :(

Thank you, Netgalley, the author, Penguin Group Putnam for the gifted e-book! ❤️ #gifted. My review is comprised of my honest thoughts.

Read this book if you like: Spooky vibes, quirky humor, family road trip fun

This was entertaining, for the most part. It just didn't stand out a ton to me. There were some funny parts and some mildly scary parts. It needed more depth.

TW/CW: Language, anxiety, creepy scenes, grieving, mourning, death of child, smoking, drinking, unwanted pregnancy


*****SPOILERS*****
About the book:
Leigh Somerset wants to spend some quality time with her kids before they grow up, and her husband has always fancied himself sort of a Clark Griswold figure. So the Somersets will be spending their family vacation on the road, driving from suburban Milwaukee to Orlando, Florida. Already off to a rocky start, when they stumble upon an abandoned, half-burned farmhouse in Indiana, the Somersets inadvertently unleash an eerie past that will follow them the rest of their trip. From creepy indoor waterparks to paranormal-activity plagued Cracker Barrels, it’s one thing after another in the pursuit of the great American summer road trip. Will the Somersets be able to shake these bad vibes and get on with family bonding, or will the road less traveled become the highway to hell?
Release Date: September 10th, 2024
Genre: Horror
Pages: 320
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

What I Liked:
1. Love the whimsical writing style
2. Creepy scenes that happen
3. Leigh was a fun character
4. Funny moments between parents
5. Book was fun

What I Didn't Like:
1. Cheesy ending

Final Thoughts:
There's always someone that takes a part of the curse with them. Thanks to this child that decided he needed to pick something up and take it with him. Now they have a curse following them.

I thought this book had a lot of fun moments and the way the characters interacted with the weird things happening made me chuckle. I'm a sucker for stories and movies like this that take comedy effect into play.

I did not care for the ending of the book. It felt like I was watching some cheesy TV show where the mom character comes back to show how grateful they were for coming back. Plus it felt like it made little to no sense. The only thing the family does is bring the locket back that they stole. Leigh promises to tell the truth about what happened but why? There wasn't a legend about Patty purposely burning the house down. Oh and Leigh is so well off they buy the property too, which yeah they had discussed owning property in Indiana (lol - why???) I guess and want to fix the house up and give the family headstones. They sound insane. I'm sure the townspeople aren't going to think it's haunted when they put down headstones.

Leigh Somerset and her family set off on a road trip from Wisconsin to Florida, hoping for bonding time. But after a detour to a burned-down farmhouse in Indiana—and a mysterious locket—they find themselves haunted by increasingly bizarre supernatural events, from creepy waterparks to ghostly encounters at Cracker Barrel.

Thank you to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for this fun ARC!

I had a hard time connecting with the story and the characters in this now. I was hoping that it would be spooky, eerie, and funny. But I felt that it was missing the mark in a few of those categories.

I wanted to like this but I didn’t think it was scary or funny, it just wasn’t for me. I had a hard time connecting with the characters.

It took everything fun about a girls’ trip and twisted it into something surreal and unsettling. It starts light, but the way reality unravels—it caught me off guard. It’s not just horror; it’s the kind that creeps into the corners of your everyday life. I closed the book feeling like I needed to look twice at my own friends.

Maureen Kilmer's Nightmare of a Trip had all the ingredients for a delightful supernatural comedy: a quirky family road trip, eerie hauntings, and a touch of humor. However, the execution left much to be desired.

The story follows the Somerset family as they embark on a road trip from Wisconsin to Florida, only to encounter a series of paranormal events after visiting a mysterious, burned-down house in Indiana. While the premise is intriguing, the narrative quickly loses momentum. The horror elements are underdeveloped, with ghostly occurrences that feel more like fleeting interruptions than integral parts of the story .

Character development is another area where the book falls short. Leigh, the mother and narrator, comes across as one-dimensional, and her interactions with her family lack depth. The humor, which could have been a saving grace, often feels forced and fails to land .

In conclusion, while Nightmare of a Trip offers a unique concept, it doesn't deliver on its potential. Fans of Kilmer's previous works may find some enjoyment, but others might find it lacking in both thrills and laughs.

I feel bad giving this two stars, but it just didn’t work for me. I didn’t understand the point of the “curse” - one minute it’s just a family tragedy, the next minute it’s demons, and if it’d just picked a lane I think I’d have said three stars. The way Leigh was so weirdly secretive when it was made clear how great her relationships were didn’t work for me, and while the different crazy stops on the trip were meant to be funny or creepy, they all felt pretty boring to me. Sadly nit a book I’d recommend based on my reading experience, but obviously your mileage may vary.

Overall enjoyed the story but had a hard time connecting to the characters. Felt like the book moved at a slow pace for me.

Kilmer is the queen of the suburban family horror and her latest adventure, while not my favorite, was still an enjoyable ride! As if a 20 hour road trip to MagicLand with three kids wasn’t enough of a horror show, let’s just throw in a family of ghosts to haunt you along the way! As with her other novels, Kilmer never gets too scary, always remembering that she is a comedic author of domestic fiction so there’s always a nice interplay there. A fun ride for sure although her first novel is still my favorite!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance electronic copy. All opinions are my own.

3.5 stars- this was so funny and wild. loved it!!! thanks netgalley & the publisher for the arc in exchange for an honest review

Kilmer has a way of making you feel like your on a fun trip even when terrible things are happening to the hilarious characters she always introduces! Like what the heck in a fun way!

3.5 stars

"This is one family getaway they'll never forget..." - from Goodreads summary.

I was trying to figure out what I was in the mood for when I found this one in my NetGalley queue. I couldn't resist the comparisons to National Lampoon's Vacation which is a movie I've seen multiple times. Plus, this cover and the full book summary made this book feel perfect for October reading. This was a fun read and it did fit with spooky season reading with the family possibly being haunted. Here's the thing: I struggled a bit with this one at first. It just didn't all quite make sense to me with the why's behind everything that was happening. Once I stopped thinking about it so much and just went with it, I did enjoy this book more. It's one to not take too seriously and just enjoy. There are humorous moments and also relatable ones especially if you have ever stayed in one of those indoor waterpark hotels with kids. This ended up being good for me but not a favorite. I would definitely read more by this author though.

Readers looking for something lighter for spooky season (aka not scary) and a more fun paranormal read should pick this book up. I'm landing on 3.5 stars overall.

Thanks to the publisher for my copy of this book. Honest thoughts are my own.

I enjoyed this novel for its unique blend of humor and horror.. The quirky,spooky encounters kept me entertained although the ghostly elements could have been a little more impactful.
Many thanks to PENGUIN GROUP Putnam and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc of this one in exchange for an honest review!

Unfortunately, this book was not for me. I don't feel like it was scary or funny unfortunately. I had a hard time connecting to the characters and it was just boring.

I hope others love this one.

All family road trips are a nightmare, right? Unfortunately, for the Somerset family, their trip gets truly terrifying. I've enjoyed all of Maureen Kilmer's books I've read so farvand this one was just as good as the first two. I loved the creepy, cozy horror vibes, the ghosts, and the humor.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.

3.5 Stars

Every time I read a new book by Maureen Kilmer, I feel like I am seen as a Midwestern Mom. She nails our personalities and the quirks of motherhood to such a degree that I wonder if she secretly knows who I am or if I am in fact not alone with all of crazy.

Nightmare of a Trip is veers slightly off road from her previous works in that this one is almost pure horror (although it is more of a cozier creepy horror like Grady Hendrix's novels than pure terror) with a few humorous incidents that as mentioned earlier, are relatable if you are a mom in the Midwest. Even with the humor tamped down, Nightmare of a Trip is a solid haunting story - think National Lampoon's Vacation but with a haunting. I thoroughly enjoyed road tripping with the family down to Florida and could even relate to the chapter with the tornado (again...do I know you Maureen??) as my family was stuck in a hotel bathroom on our last road trip with 120 mile sheer winds outside while my teenage daughter had an anxiety attack. Thanks for having me revisit that trauma!

My only issue with the book was the pacing was a bit off. Even with the intended stops along the way, I couldn't understand why it was taking so long to get down to Florida, as we live in the burbs of Chicago and it only took us two days to get down to Disney. Otherwise, I thought the book was an original take on the family road trip and again...much of it was completely relatable.

Either way, I can't wait to read what Kilmer comes up with next and also terrified that it will continue to mirror my life.

Recommended for fans of Maureen Kilmer, Grady Hendrix, and lovers of cozy horror (is that even a thing? It should be a thing).

Thank you to NetGalley, Maureen Kilmer, and G.P. Putnam's Sons for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.

Nope, it's me not you book, I just am not interested. I have tried, but I couldn't get into it. Thank you for the chance to read it though!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this book.

I thought this was just a fun little romp of a book! It didn't take itself too seriously, nor was it too silly. It was just fun, and a perfect palate cleanser!