⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

From the first chapter, I was cracking up—jajajajaj! So much laughing and giggling. But beyond the humor, this book carries some deep life lessons.

One of the biggest takeaways? No matter how much you plan, nothing is ever certain. I loved how Alice gets to be completely honest, voicing her self-doubts to strangers who genuinely listen. It felt so liberating—more people should do that.

It’s a slow burn, but it feels real. The romance is just one part of the journey; at its core, this is a story about self-discovery—learning to be happy on your own and embracing the unexpected. That’s something I’ve come to understand myself over the years. One lesson that really stuck with me: No one should be responsible for your happiness but you.

And the setting? A road trip through England and Scotland filled with beautiful historical sites and traditions. This book isn’t just about love—it’s about adventure, growth, and finding yourself along the way.

I absolutely loved it!

The only reason I’m giving it 4 ⭐️ is because I personally prefer romantic comedies that focus more on the couple. But this was still an amazing book!

Ahh I absolutely loved the banter between these two. I’ve read three or four books set at least partially in Edinburgh this year and I think this one is my favorite so far.

I loved the tour group ladies and wish I could keep them in my pocket for a good laugh on my worst days.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon/Harper Voyager for the eARC in exchange for my honest review!

3.5/5 stars

This was a cozy, slightly chaotic little journey—and while the pacing dragged a bit for me at times, the side characters totally made it worth the ride. The cast of older women on the bus tour were an absolute highlight: fun, sharp, and full of heart. I would've happily read a book just about them sipping tea, gossiping, and causing gentle mayhem across the UK.

The premise is super cute—heartbroken woman books a spontaneous, literary-themed bus tour, expecting wanderlust and maybe a touch of Eat, Pray, Love energy... but instead finds herself surrounded by retirees and one very infuriating (and charming) tour guide. It leans into rom-com tropes with a bit of enemies-to-lovers banter, and while I didn’t totally connect with Alice or the romance, I appreciated her growth and the quiet moments of self-discovery.

It’s slow at times, but if you’re in the mood for something light, quirky, and full of charming chaos—with a side of bookish vibes and found family—you’ll probably enjoy the ride.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for an advance copy of this book.

A cute and fun rom-com that doesn't skimp on enemies-to-lovers...so promising! I really enjoyed the way this story kicked off, and I loved the sassy older ladies who joined our FMC on her journey.

Definitely recommend!

This book was so fun! I will always read a Scottish romance. It was heartwarming and light and hilarious, everything I love in a good rom com. I loved, loved, loved all the elderly ladies and their stories and life lessons. 10/10 read!!!

This book started off really strong for me—the first 50% was funny, charming, and thoroughly engaging. I especially loved the older ladies Alice ends up on a bus tour with—the humor was top-notch! However, once the couple realized their feelings, the story took a turn with a frustrating miscommunication trope (an overheard phone call). I saw where the author was going with it, but it felt like it dragged. After that, some parts became repetitive, and I found myself ready for the book to wrap up. The audiobook was 12 hours long, which felt about three hours too long for a rom-com, in my opinion. That said, this was still a cute and pleasant read. I debated between a 3- or 4-star rating, but ultimately, the charm and humor pushed it to 4 stars.

Loved it! Characters were tangible, loved the plot and setting! Pace was a bit slow but other than that it's a great read.

This was such a fun book! I adored all of the side characters, and I really enjoyed the setting and plot as well. The banter between Alice and Robbie was amazing, and I really enjoyed the romance as well. Overall, I would recommend this book and am excited to see what Kat Mackenzie writes next! :)

Work in Progress was so fun and clever! I absolutely loved every page and I laughed out loud so many times. Kat is such a master of banter, and I can't wait to see what she writes next!

Thank you to Avon Books for the gifted copy and eARC. All thoughts are my own.

I am obsessed with this book. The slow burn and the enemies-to-lovers aspect worked flawlessly, and I was enamored by all of the characters. This didn't read like a debut at all. I really hope Kat Mackenzie will be writing more, because I will be first in line to read whatever's next!

I always love a story about someone trying to rebuild their lives, but having it set in the UK with a bunch of great side characters is even better! It was a little rough at the beginning since it was hard to side with the FMC on her dislike of the MMC since it didn't really seem justified, but as she warmed up to him it became less of an issue. I do wish there had been more of the literary reference woven into the book since they were on a book themed tour, but that didn't take away from the enjoyment. Overall I really enjoyed the story and getting to travel through UK for a bit.

An extremely sweet and healing read, this book was like warm coffee and sunlight <3

The tourism aspect was written amazingly well, I felt like I wanted to go on the tour! And the found family was so so wholesome and I really loved how they all made sm meaningful connections with each other.

Also, the slow-burn romance?? Perfection, okay, the hate/enemies to crushes to enemies to friends to lovers pipeline was just >>>>>>

TWs (past) - cheating ex, parent with cancer

-- ty to the author, the publisher and Netgalley for an advanced copy!

This wasn't bad, it just felt a little surface level for me at times. Like a little too cutesy/flowery/etc for me

Work in Progress is a great rom-com inspired by Bridget Jones's Diary. Alice signs up for an impromptu book tour around the U.K. to get over her cheating ex-boyfriend and find the motivation to move on with her life. After a long trip, she arrives in Edinburgh exhausted and anxious to not miss her tour only to find out her luggage has been squashed to a pulp, that her tour driver is the good-looking Scotsman she had a showdown with at the airport and that all the other members of the tour are decades older than her. This trip is a learning adventure for Alice, where she grows, accepts that change is inevitable and even finds love, albeit reluctantly. It was a great read and impossible to put down.

I knew from the very first page that I was going to love Work in Progress by debut author Kat Mackenzie and that definitely became my reality as well! I flew through this hilarious and completely fresh romcom, and it is another one of those books that I never wanted to end. I have to thank many friends on Bookstagram for putting this on my radar, and I hope Mackenzie will write more romcoms soon because I don’t know how long I can wait for the next one. 🥺 Alice Cooper (such a great name for a character) and Robbie the tour guide stole my heart, and I never wanted to leave their story. I loved the lists, tallies, and lessons that were included in every chapter, and they were so great that sometimes I read them again just because I could.

If you are looking for a fantastic audiobook you will also find that here thanks to Angela Dawe. She effortlessly switched between American Alice, Scottish Robbie *sigh*, and octogenarian Brits which created such a delightful listen. I have to give some credit for my book love to her because she made it so easy for me to fall into the characters and writing. This enemies-to-lovers, forced proximity, grumpy x sunshine-esque storyline was full of humor, silly banter, sexiness, and a lovability that I fell head over heels for. It also made me want to take a trip to Scotland, especially if I could be on a tour bus full of snarky octogenarian women and a Scottish hunk. But also, minus the poop. 💩

Read this if you love laugh-out-loud humor mixed with heartfelt moments, escape reads, and that magic that is felt from new beginnings. The end will leave you with a smile on your face!

Audiobook Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

What a cute book, and I enjoyed it right to the end! Alice Cooper (no relation) has signed up for a 3 week tour of the UK. She’s broke, unemployed, without a relationship of any kind thanks to a boyfriend who was definitely not worth keeping. But she didn’t realize that the tour was made of senior ladies, and some of them were a little odd (putting it mildly).

The day-by-day of the trip sounded like it was fun, if you kept a sense of humor—-but for at least the first week, Alice wasn’t having it. just call her grumpy, and most of her bad temper was aimed towards the tour director, Robbie, who is gifted with handsome favor and beautiful blue eyes. A great part of the rest of the story is a push-and-pull between the two. All is intensified because they both are acutely aware that the clock is ticking and Alice needs to go home to try to put her life back together.

The book had me wanting to draw it out so it wouldn’t end! In addition, the new friendships Alice has formed with all the other ladies have become precious jewels and treasured gifts as well.

It’s a wonderful story and definitely worth reading! I loved it. 4.5 stars rounded up.

I received a copy of the digital ARC via NetGalley. My review is voluntary.

I really enjoyed this story! Alice and Robbie are an adorable opposites attract couple. I like their banter and chemistry with each other, and I especially like how it turns into a loving, tender friendship and romance between them. I loved the side characters and the fun, whimsical, matured perspectives they added to the story.

overall, this is a fun, tender, adventurous romcom that I simply adored!

thank you for the arc :)

I loved the setting and the immersive descriptions of the landscapes, city sights and sounds, and the generally romantic writing style that was reminiscent of the author’s highlighted in this book. I did feel as though the book was bit long, and I was not a fan of the miscommunication trope that took up 75% of the book. I also felt like Alice was quite petulant and unlikeable at times. Robbie gives golden retriever energy: fun, loyal, and so dang sweet. The banter was good but again, sometimes Alice’s inner voice was a bit too childish for my liking. She’s 30. She did seem to mature a bit after moving back home and figuring herself out. I loved the gaggle of grannies and how much silliness and camaraderie they added to the story. All in all, there were things I loved and some I didn’t, which is why I’m rating it 3 stars. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

Work in Progress by Kat Mackenzie is a romcom and the story of Alice and Robbie.
 
Alice is very unhappy with her current life and after being dumped by her fiancé, she impulsively books a trip to Scotland. But the trip is off to a horrible start in the airport, and I liked how Alice always makes the best of it. The setting in Scotland was absolutely beautiful and totally reminded me of my own trip last year and them traveling around with a bus was so cozy. I liked how it was a literary trip and all the other travelers were older ladies and they felt like meddling grandmas and I adored that. Alice expected the trip to be life changing and it totally was. I really liked seeing how she finds her happiness again and she’s such a funny and witty person.
 
Robbie is a tour guide by heart, and he always enjoys the trips with some older ladies. They’re all so warmhearted and Robbie perfectly charms them. But the only one who is a thorn in his side is Alice and the two immediately clash and they hate each other. Their bickering was top tier and there were so many funny moments, and the book has great humor. Robbie is such a sweet man, and it was only a matter of time until Alice finally sees this as well.
 
This book included everything I love in a romcom, and it has the perfect amount of humor and heart. Their first meeting was such a meet cute, and I already felt their chemistry from the first moments and was only waiting until they finally got together. Alice is definitely the stubborn one but that added the perfect amount of tension and slow burn. And that in combination with the travel aspect and the other characters created such a heartfelt story that I absolutely adored. And let me tell you I would love to book a trip to Scotland with Robbie immediately. 4,5 stars.
 
(Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an arc.)

Although this book is promoted as a contemporary romance, it includes aspects of women's fiction to support its plot. To be honest, some of my favorite situations were when Alice interacted with the females. Chapters begin with amusing lists and daily goals. It was a lot of joy to read this book. The combination of humorous banter, emotional moments, and beautiful surroundings made the story incredibly enjoyable and interesting.

Thank you to Avon and Harper Voyager & NetGalley for the e-ARC.