✨ Book review ✨

Work in Progress 🚌💼 by Kat Mackenzie
Women’s fiction, romance
Pub day: 1/14/25
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“A warm, sexy, laugh-out-loud rom-com about a woman who, desperate for a fresh start, books a literary bus tour across the UK that consists of a lively group of elderly ladies plus one infuriatingly handsome Scottish driver.”

This is a DEBUT?!?! Are you kidding me?! I absolutely loved and ATE. THIS. BOOK. UP. I haven’t had a book make me laugh out loud so much in a long time, I was cackling for most of the first half!

Not only was this ridiculously funny, it was heartwarming and hopeful. It had a romance that was believably and one that you rooted for, but it was also about discovering who you are. Alice went on a journey to find herself, and it was beautifully written.

Also, I honestly felt like I also took a 3 week trip to the UK along with these characters. The description and word choice for the places they traveled were perfect!

Thank you @avonbooks for my gifted copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own!

I am @stephlovesbooksss on Instagram and TikTok. My Instagram review will be posted on 1/2/25, and I’ll come back and add my TikTok review timeframe.

What a debut!! This book felt personal to me. I related so much to the main character that I felt like the story was about a version of me that I am lately, which caught me off guard in the best way. The book is a love letter to so many things: travel, losing&finding oneself, female companionship, adventure, books/reading, and of course, scruffy Scotsmen in kilts who drive you mad while they also drive you around Scotland, England and Wales.

Alice and Robbie’s banter had me full on giggling, swooning, and sometimes kicking my feet (and that is rare for me!). Sometimes books try for “enemies to lovers” but don’t convince me that the two really dislike each other; and while I knew these two were obvi on the path to romance, I actually felt convinced of their dislike for parts of each other in the most comedic way. They found each other’s buttons while also being playful and respectful.

What I wasn’t expecting going into this book, however, was the friendships Alice made amongst a rag-tag group of old ladies. This was so beautifully weaved into life lessons that didn’t feel placating or too “on the nose,” while also fitting the themes in the storyline.

What are my future plans, you ask? Looking up if there really are literary tours and if I can afford one of my own “Work In Progress” moments (esp if the guide is a single, sassy Scottish fella).

Infuriating and Spicy

Alice decides to treat herself to a literary three week bus tour of the UK. The tour starts off in the worst way with the loss of her luggage, only to find her "unbreakable" polycarbonate suitcase broken and taped back up.

Instead of the luxurious coach she expected, Alice meets up with a group of senior women on a small renovated school bus. To add to her misery, the driver is a handsome Scotsman who is determined to irritate her to no end.

The book describes the trip through Britain in illustrious terms with loads of details about the literary scene.

The ladies and Alice become fast friends and even the sexy but totally annoying tour guide works his charm on all of them, including Alice.

Kat Mackenzie has a real knack for creating vibrant and unique characters. Almost every character in this book felt distinct and fully realized, making it easy to connect with them on a personal level. The setting itself was absolutely captivating and the story itself was engaging and kept me hooked. The only reason I didn't give it a full 5 stars is that I felt a few of the plot points could have been developed a bit further and I wish there was a little more thought out into Tristan’s character. That being said, I absolutely loved the concept of the book tour and the dynamic between the women on it. They sounded like a fantastic group to travel with, and I couldn't help but wish I could have joined them!
Overall, "Work in Progress" is a charming and entertaining read that I would highly recommend.

A great read, I loved the setting and all the places they visited. A fab range of characters and you want everything to work out for Alice and Robbie.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!
I love Scotland, I love travel, I love a good bus trip, and I love elderly women and women camaraderie. This book was so fun and if you love those things as well this will be a winner for you. Our FMC needed a push to grab life by the horns again and she got just that!

From the quirky characters to the detailed descriptions of every tour stop, I was fully immersed in this book and felt like I was on this journey with them. I loved the banter between Alice and Robbie, and I loved seeing Alice’s transformation through the community of friends she made on the tour. The problems that they faced had more realistic outcomes, and there were various conflicts that made you question what would happen next. If you’re looking for a story filled with adventure, romance, and self-discovery, this book is for you.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy!

Alice Cooper’s life is in shambles (broken engagement, lost job, etc.) when she decides to book a women’s book tour in the UK. She immediately starts the trip with disaster after disaster, and when she finals makes it with minutes to spare, she finds out the trip is all senior women. And her and the young, handsome tour guide, Robbie, immediately have beef,

Along the way, Alice learns about the other women and their lives, and finds herself along the way.

Really cute, mushy story. I loved hearing about the places that they stopped on the tour as an American who lived briefly in Scotland and has visited most of the places. I will have to keep my eye out for what Kat Mackenzie writes next!

A recent string of unfortunate events causes Alice to seek refuge in good books and even better friends on a literary bus tour around the UK. She didn’t expect a case of exploded luggage, a gaggle of elderly ladies, and an infuriatingly sexy bus driver to completely upend her life again… but unlike last time, now it’s for the better.

Work in Progress is a laugh-out-loud funny romcom full of witty banter and swoon worthy tension. The only reason I did not give this book a 5/5 is that initially Alice comes off as a bit insufferable. Bad things happened to her and she takes it out on everyone, as if the world owes her. However, the undeniable feelings Robbie has for Alice kept me reading and I am so glad that I did. Alice transforms from a whiny, angry woman to a hilariously relatable character. No matter what age readers are, Alice’s anxiety over the direction her life is going is relatable to all. In juxtaposition, Robbie’s self assuredness is undeniably sexy and makes him such a good pairing for Alice. The romance between the two is adorable and heartwarming; it stirs nostalgic feelings of the great 2000’s romcoms, which adds an additional magic layer to the romance.

Fans of romcoms with witty banter and the tension of will they, won’t they need to read this book. Further, if you love the tropes of forced proximity, enemies to lovers, reverse grumpy sunshine, and found family then that is even more reason to read Work in Progress. This is Kat Mackenzie's debut novel and I genuinely cannot wait to read her future books.

Disclaimer: Thank you Avon for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are my own.

"No one should be responsible for your happiness but you, my girl. Happy must be built in here," she pounded firmly on my chest with an open palm."

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon for the eARC of this book.

The story follows a literary bus tour across the United Kingdom, where Alice is meant to get a fresh start, but she encounters the frustrating, yet handsome, Scottish bus driver. Alice joins the group, expecting to find a group of women her age to bond and be lively with. Instead, she finds a group of fun elderly women, with tons of humor and wisdom to impart. She's just lost her fiancé and her job, and she needs an escape, and the bus tour was supposed to provide that. But everything seems to be going wrong. However, as she goes through the UK, she learns not to judge a book by its cover, especially when it's gruff, handsome, and Scottish.

"You write your own story. If others wish to contribute to your story, that is nice. And if they do not, then it should not matter. You make your way on, with or without them. And you write your story how you want it."

I really enjoyed this story! Sure it was outrageous at times, but overall it was very well-written. It gave me a lot of the same feelings as The Lost Ticket by Freya Sampson did, but with a tad more romance at the focus. I loved the romance between Robbie and Alice. I think it was perfectly slow-burn. I didn't love the miscommunication because I felt like all their issues as a couple could have been resolved with a few direct questions, but I understand how it could be authentic to their characters.

4/5 ⭐️
2/5 🌶️

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and Kat Mackenzie for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Work in Progress follows Alice Cooper on her journey to rediscover herself after her life seemingly falls apart. In an attempt to discover her roots and go on an adventure, she decides to book a UK literary tour with, supposedly like-minded souls. What follows is a rom-comedy of errors filled with a surprising amount of penis jokes. Actually, just the right amount of penis jokes. I take that back.

It’s been a long time since I’ve read a book with such a wild cast of characters. The secondary characters read like caricatures, almost, in the way that they’re all so wonderfully exaggerated in order to differentiate one another. I really appreciate how each character is so unique and well developed because it often feels like they all blend together in books with large casts. Also Robbie was PERFECT for her.

This was truly funny. I laughed out loud many, many times. The romance was engaging, even if it took a while to get there. Like you might expect from a literary bus tour through the UK…it was a bit rambling with several bumps in the road. It felt a bit long which is probably my only complaint because I really, really loved this book and highly recommend it.

Content warnings: cancer (mentioned), cheating (mentioned), death of a spouse (mentioned)

Work In Progress originally caught my eye due to the beautiful cover art and the fun setting of a Scottish book tour with elderly ladies! Unfortunately this story ended up not being for me, for several reasons, but could be a good fit for more dedicated fans of banter-filled enemies to lovers contemporary romance.

I ended up DNF’ing this read which I really try not to do for ARCs, but there were a few things that just began to grate on my nerves in a way that made me avoid picking the book back up. The main issue was the banter felt more immature than tension-filled, and the final straw was how often being compared to British culture/accents/etc was used to get under the MMC’s skin. Just not for me!

I ended up rating this a 3/5 for netgalley but a more accurate rating would be 2.5. Thank you for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

3.5 rounded up

After heartbreak and job loss, Alice signs up for a 3 week literary tour overseas. It is not what she expected at all upon arrival in Edinburgh - a group of older women on an ancient bus.

The story includes lots of tributes to Scottish culture and geography as well as its presence in pop media (Outlander, etc). There are a bunch of literary references and each chapter begins with Bridget Jones references.

Alice develops relationships with each travel companion and learns each of their backstories, with some really sweet and some tragic stories in the mix. The story contains descriptions of historical sights and literary references along with funny banter between the main characters.

Alice was insufferable and immature for the first half of the book and I am not sure how Robbie saw past her prickly shell. After I could get past that, this contemporary rom-com/self-growth tour across the UK was an enjoyable read. It looks like this is a debut novel and I would not hesitate to try another from Kat Mackenzie.

Thank you Avon Books for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley.

What a fun book! This was a fast, light read that showed personal growth of the main character, a budding romance and the value that sharing life experiences can have on an individual. I was annoyed by the main character when the book starts and found her to be quite bratty, almost too much. I pushed through and found that as I read further and the character morphed and grew, that I appreciated her a bit more. The Scottish setting reminded me of a trip I took about 10 years ago and I enjoyed being reminded of the experience through the book. Overall a fun read!

Thank you Avon and Harper for the review copy, this was a fun, light escape, a romance with good character growth, banter, and humor, as well as great settings and fun "old ladies". Work in Progress is a perfect title for the story, which takes us on Alice's travel adventure where she learns a lot about herself, the joy of letting experiences take you where they take you, and opening up, and letting go, at the same time. I appreciated some genuine laugh out loud moments, managed the expected miscommunication trope, and was cheering on the role of the older ladies and the travel themes. A fun read, great for warming up the longer winter months or for a winter vacation travel bag!

60/100 or 3.0 stars

This was a fun romance! The dialogue and banter between the main characters for the most part was fun and believable.
There are some parts throughout that were predicatble in a way that took away from the story (miscommunication is my least favorite trope).
I thought the ending was okay, but after the main resolution around the 80% mark, it took what felt like too long to conclude the story.
I enjoyed the author's writing style, so I am interested in reading more from them. This was a three star since it was predictable, the conclusion was slow, and it wasn't all that memorable. It is a solid romance though.

What a lovely book. It had me with the plot of traveling thru the UK. Throw in some funny, older ladies and a hot Scotsman. Loved it!

I started out quite unsure of this book. Initially, I found the heroine to be unnecessarily rude and very annoying. That changes and Alice becomes open and starts to realize just how wonderful we "old ladies" can be. Robbie is just a natural charmer, though he may have taken the teasing of Alice Cooper a little too far in the beginning. All the ladies are fun with their own quirks and gifts and experiences they're willing to share. If you're looking for a pleasant read without too much angst, this is the book for you.
Thank you to NetGalley, Kat Mackenzie, Avon and Harper Voyager for an ARC of Work in Progress
#NetGalley#WorkInProgress#KatMackenzie#Avon#HarperVoyager

I'm going to being honest, I absolutely strongly disliked Alice at the beginning of this book, I thought I was going end up rage reading this book. However, she very slowly ended up growing on me. Robbie I absolutely enjoyed. This enemies to love was a joy to read, however with the amount and type of banter, I was honestly surprised this was a mostly closed door romance.

3.75 stars

Work In Progress tells the story of Alice Cooper, an American woman who ventures to the UK to go on a literary themed bus tour and reclaim her joy after her personal life implodes. Upon arrival, Alice discovers that the demographic of the group skews older than she realized, and she simultaneously makes enemies with the handsome, yet infuriating Scottish tour guide Robbie. Over the course of three weeks Alice undergoes an adventure full of romance, friendship, and growth that will ignite the spark within her.

This book had a lot of potential, but I couldn’t help but feel that it fell short. The setting was beautifully aesthetic, perfect for readers afflicted with wanderlust. The descriptions of the UK were lush and vibrant and made me want to book a one-way ticket abroad! Unfortunately though, the romance was one of the least compelling points of the story, despite it being the plot’s main focus.

No one loves enemies to lovers more than me, but in Alice and Robbie’s case, the enemies were enemy-ing a little too aggressively. I was a tad uncomfortable with how mean they were to one another. I’m so sensitive, I would have never been able to get over some of the insults they slung at each other. I understand that Alice was in a depressive state at the beginning of the novel, but I don’t think that excuses some of her less than ideal behavior.

Continuing with the romance, Alice is a mixed signals queen! She infuriated me, particularly when she asked Robbie to act professional towards her, only to flirt and sneak innuendos into conversation with him directly after. And then, when he responds guardedly, she has the audacity to be shocked. It takes about 75% of the book for Alice and Robbie to actually get together but when they do, their intimate scenes are completely glossed over. I have no problem with closed door romances, but this felt like a disservice to the characters. It was a lot of telling and not enough showing that resulted in a major lack of emotion.

The charm of this novel lies in the the camaraderie amongst the group of women. I wish that the romance was the B plot and that we got to see and hear more about the women and their travels. Alice’s relationships with the group brought about tenderhearted, memorable moments that I enjoyed immensely.

Thank you Avon Books and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.