I always look forward to memoirs on audiobook that are narrated by the author so I was eager to listen to this one. From what I had gathered prior to reading was that Ruiz is an experienced, if not expert on travel given her previously released books and blog on the subject. While I did fully fall in love with the travel locales that she visited, I found the book overall lacking. She seemed to spend majority of each trip reminiscing or trying to find a romantic partner. I would have preferred much less man-centric reflections and more commentary that was zoned in on her travels and what she learned from each destination and its culture. I also wasn’t fond of her lack of awareness when it came to traveling with friends and their budgets or her disregard for blatantly calling out of work to travel. I did appreciate her recollection of the elephants in Thailand and using her platform to advocate for them when it comes to tourism. Overall I would say read this for the specific destinations she travels to over thought provoking reflections or sensible travel tips.
Thank you to NetGalley and Blackstone for this #gifted ALC.

I love stories like this. Real life, real travel, real experiences. It’s hard to beat the first hand accounts of solo travelers- it’s really amazing! This book is exactly what I was looking for in an easy to read (or listen) nonfiction!

12 Trips in 12 Months gives the reader a glimpse of unique places in the world. Besides the interesting places the author visits, the reader is inspired to make choices to live their life, whether traveling in your own town or making a larger trip. Essentially, this book while is about 12 different trips, it's really about enjoying your life no matter what!

The first thing I will say about this book is that I think a different title might have helped with setting accurate reader expectations. While the author did, in fact go on more than 12 trips in 12 months, the focus of the book is on her personal growth during the year in question. Which is a perfectly fine thing to write about, but not what is implied by the title and cover. In fact, I think the title and cover sell the book a bit short - the journey from starting the year with the hope of finding a husband and settling into a traditional heteronormative life path by age 30 to the author's realization that she is a multi-dimensional human with dreams and choices of her own is a more unique and interesting story than a recitation of things to keep in mind when packing for variable climates or finding the best tour operators for Instagram photo shoots.

Going in with an expectation of listening to the author's personal story also sets aside the issue of whether you would make the same choices (the various men she meets in her travels, her methods of financing her travel, the whole "influencer" thing, etc.) - because despite the encouragement to consider a similar path for yourself at the end, this isn't an instructional guide or advice, it's one person's specific story.

I think this would be a particularly interesting read for young women in their 20's for whom 30 really does seem like the beginning of the end (as opposed to those of us for whom 30 has long since faded in the rearview mirror) - whether they're interested in travel or not.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

12 Trips in 12 Months - Make Your Own Solo Travel Magic by Jen Ruiz and narrated by Jen Ruiz is pure inspo. I took a long time off travelling and it was actually my return to it that highlighted this fantastic audiobook to me

This audiobook is a gorgeous listen and narrated by the author which adds that extra personal touch to the story told. Ruiz decided one day to stop saying no and start saying yes to getting the most out of her spare time. Defying expectations and forging ahead. Already successful in her career, Ruiz undertook a personal goal of making 12 trips (by plane) in 12 months and actually exceeded her goal by 8, taking a total of 20 trips

An insperational story for anyone who feels they are stuck in a rut, that life is passing them by. Ruiz is personable , relatable and inspirational

Stop waiting for others, do it for you

Thank you to Netgalley, Blackstone Publishing - Audiobooks and Jen Ruiz for this wonderful ALC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own

I absolutely loved the author's writing style with this non-fiction book. It was very inspiring and I can't wait to see what she comes out with next.

Jen balances personal life experiences with travel tips and tricks but most of all, she keeps her eye on the prize: her happiness.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC! I really enjoyed this! Traveling is one thing that brings me pure joy and I save my money to be able to do it! This book has even inspired me to put a couple things in place for 2025!
I have been to some of the places she was talking about. Which was quite fun listening to her describe her experiences. When it comes to traveling by yourself Jen Ruiz is an inspiration to women! I have spoken to three different lady friends who were contemplating taking a solo trip. I told them yes, go for it! I also told them about this book. I would recommend this book if you love to travel and love memoirs.

Interesting stories by a travel blogger about getting her start and taking the plunge from full-time desk job to full-time traveler, something I would love to do. While the destinations are seemingly stunning, I don’t feel like I really got a good sense of where she went as it was more about her getting the right pictures and hopefully finding love. These are not bad things, they just weren’t what I was expecting.

I love to travel and I enjoy travel stories. I’m also a fan of audiobook memoirs read by their authors. I can say that overall, this book by Jen Ruiz checks those boxes and was an enjoyable read. I did understand from the summary that part of her reason for travel in this particular year was to combat her sense that she should be married and having children at almost-30 years old, although I didn’t realize that so much of the book would dwell on her efforts to find a man while traveling or the mistakes about relationships that she continued to make. But, I can understand how those two things connect. What I was less prepared for was the idea that she was trying to become a travel influencer/content creator (as I had never heard of her before). That part I was much less interested in, and I felt that it led to short trips crammed with activities—something she does discuss as an aspect of the job—and the result was somewhat superficial experiences. While many of her adventures were really interesting and I enjoyed hearing about her day with the elephants in Thailand, the hot air balloon ride in New Mexico, and many intriguing outdoor activities, I did like the other aspects of the book less. I do appreciate the opportunity to review this audiobook in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thank you to NetGalley for the audio arc of this book! I liked the stories about each of the author's trips. The author describes her twelve different adventures and what she learned from each of them. I think I might have liked this one better if I would have read it instead of listening to it. The narration didn't work for me. I do plan to read one of Jen Ruiz's older books and I do recommend trying this book in written format.

This book was good. I really enjoyed that the author traveled to and wrote about her travels to Latin countries, I feel like that is not something that is seen very often and is highly appreciated. I also liked that she traveled alone and talked about her experiences traveling alone, how she felt safe in places because of xyz. This was reassuring and made solo travel feel more approachable.
She is and does write like a travel blogger. There wasn’t any in-depth description of what she say or how it made her feel. It seemed more surface level, which I get for a travel blogger. With that though, I was hoping for more in the inspiration category and the “you can do this too.” Since she is an influencer, she gets perks and freebies, which she is very transparent about, but is just not sustainable for the average person looking to travel.

I was excited to read this book because I love to travel and learn things about new places. This book just… didn’t do it for me. This author claims that this book is great for the solo traveler and helpful for tips on how to travel alone affordably.
Here are her tips: become an influencer, put it on your credit card and pick up another job. Literally a quote from the book,

“Charge it!”

Ruiz’s instagram looks appealing, I hadn’t heard about it before but the pictures inspired the appropriate amount of wanderlust for the viewer. Knowing now what I know about the debt and absolute entitlement that this author has changes the way I view the pictures.

The absolute privilege in this book, the audacity of the author and the way she treats her work- it’s honestly astonishing.

“I’d practiced calling out so much that year, I had it down to a science. The key was to not ask for permission for a sick day, but rather to state it matter of factly.”

“I was playing hooky from work at Disney, hoping my boss wasn’t watching the show, or that no one would spot us on a replay.”

“Because life is about living and enjoying your worthwhile experiences, not sitting in your cubicle or windowless office until you die.”

To boil this to brass tacks, this author claims to go on a journey to find herself and discover her happiness by taking 12 trips in a year and though it may start that way, it seems to turn into “how much can I get for free?” And “I deserve this- my credit card will pick up the expense!”

If you’re looking for depth, personal discovery, coming-of-age stories, or even solo travel tips that you can ACTUALLY use… keep looking.

The author, Jen Ruiz, narrates the book and you can hear the excitement in her voice.

Does a great job of showing the highs and lows of traveling. I think when you travel like this, you really find yourself. Jen shares how she discovered major habits and revelations about herself. I think if you are in your 20's-30's you'll relate to her journey of self reflection. As a woman she shares the value of protecting yourself and respecting your own peace.

I especially loved the elephant part!

Thank you to NetGalley, Jen Ruiz, and Blackstone Publishing for the opportunity to listen to 12 Trips in 12 Months. I have written this review voluntarily.

Jen Ruiz is a non-profit lawyer turned full-time professional international travel blogger extraordinaire. I can’t say I’ve ever read a travel memoir before, but I absolutely adored this one and lived vicariously through it!

Jen found herself nearing her thirties, love interest-less and childless, looking for some purpose. Following her first solo trip, the idea to do twelve trips in twelve months was born (which she ended up doing almost double that amount in the end) and this book was later written in fascinating detail about her adventures, a little about how she did it, and a lot about why. You can follow along with her on adventures through Iceland, Italy, Thailand, Greece, Mexico, Canada, and more. I completely understand the public interest burnout as a government lawyer myself and wish I had the courage to quit my job and travel to see the world like Jen did! For now, I’ll enjoy armchair travel seeing the world through her eyes, a strong, independent, and happy female. Jen is very raw, humorous, and well-written and I breezed right through this book in a few days!

For audiobook listeners, she reads her own memoir which is super cool and I always appreciate more 🎧 She is very articulate and well spoken.

Thank you so much to Jen, Blackstone Audio, NetGalley for the advance audiobook!

I had never heard of Jen or her adventures before; I love to travel and when I saw the title I thought I would request a copy. I am so glad that I did.
I listened to the audiobook which was narrated by the author and she did a great job telling her story. It often felt like a conversation with a friend.
While I enjoyed the audiobook, and it allowed me to preview the book, I think I would buy the physical copy for the library and I actually bought a physical copy as a gift for a fellow traveler as well.
This book spoke volumes to me: feeling lost in your 20s when everyone else seems to be doing something else, diving into travel as a way to find yourself, realizing the happiness on the other side. I did the same thing in my 20s--and continue to travel with young people to help introduce them to how travel can change your life and perspective.

I enjoyed her writing and the trips which are described in lots of different ways, and I appreciated learning of her tours and travels. I appreciated that her stories were more than just about traveling and the places she went, but more of the journey in her life as well. I think this book was great and would definitely recommend to others, especially some of my seniors as they are trying to figure things out.
I added Jen Ruiz to my reading list and look forward to finding more of her writing.
Thanks NetGalley for the audio ARC to review.

DNF at 45%. I was expecting this book to be about solo travel and finding oneself (which is the journey I've been on and was excited about a book with a similar story. The book seems to be much more about the author going on solo trips, but looking for guys around every corner. It's just not my cup of tea.

This was a nice quick and easy to listen to audiobook that I really enjoyed! The memoir chronicles the author's journey over the course of one year as she commits to travelling more. The book covers some travelling tips and tricks as well as fun and interesting anecdotes from her time in each location. Other themes from the story include the transition from young adulthood to turning thirty, life as a hard working single woman, trying new things/putting yourself out there, and re-evaluating what is most important to you in life. The book is narrated by the author, making it feel more like a friend sharing their recent vacations than an audiobook. I would recommend this for anyone who loves travelling or wants to travel more, and for someone looking for something to sit back and enjoy without worrying too much about missing important plot lines or critical details (something I very much value in an audiobook).

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for giving me the chance to listen to and review this audiobook!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Between Ruiz's engaging writing about her travels and her insightful self-reflections, it was the perfect combination of entertainment and education.

Thank you to NetGalley and the pubisher for this ARC in exhcange for an honet review.

I wasn’t sure what to expect with this book but I love travel so I was intrigued.

I’m so glad I listened to this - with the author as narrator.

Some great travel tips, moments of real self reflection. She visited a lot of fun places during these 12 months and did some really fun things (I think the volcano in Iceland might’ve been the one that I most wanted to try - and the swing over a cliff made me queasy, there’s no way I could do that).

This book is authentic, relatable and a fun listen.