3.5 Stars! Overall liked this cute rom com of “enemies” to lovers set in Scotland. It was really hard for me to like Alice in the beginning - but she grew on me. I thought Robbie was adorable and perfect. But what I really loved was the relationships and friendships Alice built with her tour group! So precious and appreciated that this was a book tour!

In this cute, slow-burn romance, Alice Cooper has had her life fall apart. Between her lack of a job and her cheating ex now being engaged to the woman he cheated with (using HER engagement ring no less!), she is stressed. Add in a hell of a flight itinerary after her flight was cancelled, she is not pleased to discover that her luggage was crushed. After an antagonistic interaction at the counter with not just the attendant but also a sexy Scot, she is running late for her literary tour of the British Isle. When she discovers that not only is her tour entirely made up of old ladies to her 29 years, but also is led by the infuriating sexy Scot, hilarity ensues.

The quips traded by the main characters are hilarious. The old ladies are delightful, and the scenery is well explained.

Overall, it is a very cute romance.

I would recommend the print/e-book version over the audiobook just because the information at the beginning of each chapter comes across better in written form, but the narration was great, aside from a mother and son sounding the same.

Thank you to Net Galley, Avon, and Harper Voyager for the DRC! All opinions are my own.

☆☆☆.5

after losing both her job and finding out that her ex fiancé proposed to a new woman with the same ring, alice books a non-refundable literary tour of the UK in a desperate attempt to find some perspective. when she arrives, the tour turns out to be nothing like she expected: the other “globe-trotting ladies” are all in their eighties or nineties, the tour bus does not come with amenities, and the bus driver/tour leader, robbie, happens to be the most infuriatingly attractive man alice has ever seen (emphasis on infuriating). work in progress is equal parts romance and heartfelt adventure. the side characters are well-developed and will tug at your heartstrings just as much as the romance between robbie & alice.

i don’t love the miscommunication trope, but i don’t mind it when it’s done intentionally and well. and while it did improve during the later half of the story, the trope just felt a bit much during the first half of work in progress. alice seemed hellbent on not hearing what robbie or the older ladies had to say for any reason, which was frustrating to read. i understand that it’s a defense mechanism and that it was central to her character development, but i just personally felt that it went on for too long. additionally, i do feel that there was a lot of telling rather than showing in this book. many chapters would end with alice just summarizing what happened throughout the rest of the day rather than the reader actually getting to experience the events alongside alice. and while i don’t need spice to enjoy a romance, i will say that i expected a bit more than what i got given that the novel was described as a “sexy” romcom. this reads more as cracked door romance. aside from those things, i really enjoyed work in progress!

review is currently live on goodreads (linked below) and will be shared to bookstagram (also linked below) and amazon on release day, january 14th 2025.

I really liked the main theme of this book... a woman spontaneously whisks herself off to a 3-week women-only bus tour of the UK to find herself and get her priorities in order after a bad breakup and job loss. It actually sounds like something I would do. The rocker in me also loved that her name was Alice Cooper. I also loved that the other ladies were older women, newly retired to 96, as this demographic is often left out of mainstream books these days. I wanted even more of their back stories like Helena and Flossie's came out. I did find Alice to sort of annoying. She professed herself to be this strong independent single woman, but she came off as quite whiny and entitled throughout the book and actually quite helpless many times. I didn't care for the damsel in distress scenes. The whole ankle sprain thing was laughable... any time I sprained an ankle, it was months before I could wear a dress shoe, let alone spiked high heels. It just made her come off as a drama queen. Robbie was the strong Scottish MMC I was looking for. Sarcastic and burly, smart, and with a heart of gold.

3.5 stars rounded up because now I definitely want to recreate their tour on a vacation of my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager | Avon for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

I received this book from Net Galley and the publisher for a review (many thanks).
Things I enjoyed immensely...
Scotland (made me want to take Robbie's tour), the Bridget Jones Tally at the start of each chapter (made me want to reread), the banter with all the characters.

What I'm surprised didn't work for me, as it is usually exactly what I love (townies! odd side characters!), was the other ladies on the tour. I had a hard time keeping track of who was who and connecting with them. At times the book also felt too sweet and or silly.

Overall, it kept me entertained and wanting to plan a trip to Scotland so although not all parts of it worked for me, I know it will for others.

Slow burn romance but worth the wait! I love the banter between the two main characters. The different personalities on the tour were great as well!

Wow, wow, wow! Was not sure what to expect going into this book but it absolutely blew me away!

It was definitely giving romcom in the best ways that had me laughing out loud, yet it also had those emotional touching moments that had me crying and waiting to see what the outcome was going to be!

Alice Cooper is on a train wreck express right now after her 6 year relationship ending because of cheating, she lost her job, and she now feels like her life is not where it should be at her age. She decides to book a spontaneous trip to the UK on a book tour, ready to change her perspective on her life.

A bus full of old women with all kinds of personalities, backgrounds coming together, with the tour guide, Robbie, she immediately can’t get a long with, Alice doesn’t know how she’s going to last 3 weeks.

The tension between Alice and Robbie is thick, and their bantering only deepens as they spend more time together along the journey. At the end, Alice has learned so much and changed, but she is also faced with some very difficult choices when the man she’s falling for lives across the Atlantic Ocean.

Rivals to lovers, funny old women with stories to tell, a book tour that any book lover would love to experience, and a story about a woman who literally was a work in progress growing and becoming someone she finally recognizes is what Work In Progress is all about!

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon and Harper Voyager, and Kat Mackenzie for this incredible book in exchange for my honest review!

Work in Progress was an absolute joy to read, and I am disappointed that it is a debut novel only in the sense that it means there is no back-catalogue of Kat Mckenzie novels for me to read next. Work in Progress is a fast-paced enemies-to-lovers journey around Great Britain, but it's also a story about female friendships across generations. I cannot wait to read what Kat Mackenzie writes next!

This is a story that is going to stay with me. Alice’s life as she knows it has fallen apart and she decided to be spontaneous for once and books herself a tour around the UK for three weeks. And it definitely doesn’t start off as she had hoped. She absolutely does not get along with her bus driver/tour guide. I love how she doesn’t back down. The way they needle at each other is comical and as they swing from enemies to something like friends it becomes more so. There were times in this story that I laughed out loud and others that left a hollow feeling in my chest. I felt like I was seeing the sights along with them and wish I’d had a guide as entertaining and knowledgeable as Robbie when I traveled.

4.5 stars overall

Oh my goodness this was such a delightful debut! I really enjoyed Kat's writing and the details describing all the landmarks around the UK on the literary tour. All the characters were a hoot and the jabs between Alice and Robbie were amazing! I loved their strangers to enemies to lovers story and realizing that even though you're young you can still make friends with elders was a heartwarming sentiment. Throughout the book you felt like you were on the road and taking the tour with the characters. Now I want to book a literary tour to the UK. I'm very much looking forward to reading more by Kat. I will be recommending this one to all my friends! Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Publication date: January 14th,2025

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Alice needed a reason to get out of bed after of 6 months of doing nothing she decided to book a 3 week trip a literary bus UK tour but she did not expect her luggage to get destroyed and a bus full of old ladies

And the tour guide around her age she did not expect anything or even want anything especially trying to get over her ex and she doesn’t have job for last 6 months she did this trip to get something out of life.

I love everything about this book and group of characters we’re all fun and very funny. And along the way she gained a ton a wisdom from these older ladies

Robbie is tour guide but also the owner of this tour company

I don’t want to say too much you just to read to find out

Thank you NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager

ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

This felt like a dislike to lovers story with an ‘Eat Pray Love’ meets ‘Bridget Jones’ vibe. It was charming and wholesome (perhaps a bit too wholesome for my taste). Alice and Robbie made a sweet couple but as individual characters, I didn’t find them particularly compelling, especially Alice. their banter was enjoyable and I appreciated the natural (albeit slow) progression of their relationship. That said I tend to prefer my romance with a bit more open door spice.

I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

This one was cute, but the author seemed to over explain a lot. We don’t need 4 pages of someone picking up their policing that spilled from their purse. However, the scatter brained FMC was a huge hit for me. I loved the old ladies as well. It was a fun time, but needed some refinement

I very much enjoyed my time with this ARC. I found the main character to be relatable and the banter between two of the main characters to be excellent. If you are looking for a fun rom-com that takes you across the UK with heavy Scottish themes then give this one a go. I also found the side characters to be adorable and at times hilarious not to mention all the wisdom that they shared along the way.

I want to thank Netgalley, Kat Mackenzie, and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date is January 14, 2025

A lighthearted read that packs an emotional punch, Work in Progress has plenty of humor and romance, but also provides an emotional journey for the heroine. With great settings and memorable characters, a great read to start off the new year.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

3 🌟
1 🌶️

This books was beautifully detailed with all of the stops along the FMCs journey to finding herself after a horrible breakup. It definitely reignited my desire to travel to Scotland in the future and maybe gave me a slightly skewed outlook on finding myself a surly Scottish man.

The book was good, it was a little bit drawn out in spots and then it felt clipped short in others. There’s a lot going on in this book and I love the journey she went on and all the friends she made out of her travel companions, it just could get very busy at times.

I had the woman on the phone pegged as his mom a little too quick probably and I wish that there had been more time with her I think or maybe that they had talked about it instead of her showing up.

Anyway, overall a cute and sweet book. Will probably recommend to my mom because I think she would enjoy the travel aspect of it lol.

Thank you so much to Avon for an early copy of this book! 🥹

Work in Progress was my first read of 2025 and I think it was a great start because this book is a little more women's fiction + literary fiction and this book contains a great tale of adventure, personal growth, learning to accept what's going on in life, going with the unexpected, etc. It has a lot of beautiful sentiments and it's demonstrated in a beautiful (and sometimes comedic) way! When Alice (FMC) goes on a 3 week UK tour and ends up on a women-only literary tour with, lets just say, an older crowd, AND her grumpy and rude Scottish tour guide/bus driver! 👀. I love all of the side characters in this book (the older women who also attend the tour) because there is a multitude of personalities and some characters act as plot movers, comedic breaks, wisdom givers, and so much more! I really just enjoyed this book for the themes and wisdom, and of course, the sizzling enemies to lovers tension helps too! 😂

4.5⭐️s Such a good book loaded with banter. There are some amazing one liners in here. Alice and Robby are *chefs kiss*. I’m also a sucker for meddling older ladies. Tropes you will find are miscommunication, forced proximity, romantic gestures, and so much more.

Alice has lost the life she thought was perfect. Her fiancé dumped her, and she’s about to make a very spontaneous move. She always wanted to travel to where all the places with so much literary history. So to a 3 week tour of the UK, she goes. Too bad it’s not starting off to be the glorious experience she thought. Her luggage is more than a lost cause with everything that happens to it. Alice expects to make friends her own age; and bond over their love of the literature and places they will tour. Well, she does form bonds with the other ladies. Oh, and the tour guide is insufferable. But also has a very handsome appeal in that mischievous grin.

You will not want to miss this one coming January 14th! Thank you to @netgalley @katmackenziewrites and @avonbooks for the advanced reader copy. #workinprogress #katmackenziewrites #netgalley #romancebooks #advancedreadercopy #arcreader #bookstagram #avon

I was unfortunately very turned off by the main character's attitude in the first chunk of the book, and it remained that unbearable for most of the story. I didn't believe that the two main characters would be so rude to each other for so long as virtual strangers

Alice has been in a rut for far too long. She is a Type A planner through and through. On a whim she decides to book a bus tour in Scotland and meets a rival she never saw coming. Will their banter best her or will she succumb to his pretty blue eyes and kilt?

I found it hard to like Alice at first. Even though I completely understood her personality, I still had a hard time accepting her rude behavior towards Robbie. Once the romance began though I was hooked. Also Scotland is a beautiful place and I had fun going through those landmarks as well as the fun "Bridget Jones" type shenanigans that went on.