This was sooooo cute. Having just come back from a trip to England (and already planning a literary tour for the next time around) the whole premise of this book immediately sucked me in. Literary tour of the UK with a hot Scottish driver and a bunch of hilarious old women? Sign me up!

The banter was top notch, I absolutely loved it and laughed out loud many times while reading. I even got teary eyed at the end. It was a bit more closed door than I was hoping, so a pretty low level of spice, but it was so entertaining and fun to read.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced reader’s copy!

This book was so fun to read! I have loved almost everything of this.

Alice is struggling with life, she was left a few months before her wedding and lost her job. she decides to take a holiday in England, a kind of a book tour. She was promised a tour full of adventure with younghearted women. And while she did get the adventures, the group of women she went on our with were a bunch of 80 year old ladies, and their tour guide was a young broody scotsman.

it goes without saying that she does not get along with Robbie, her guide. But a couple of weird situations led them to get closer.

The wonderful thing is that this book was not only centred on the romance, the other ladies in tour were a big part of the novel, and it was so entertaining reading about them, their interactions and everything they came up with, while driving through England for three weeks.

Thank you NetGalley for the arc opportunity, all opinions are my own.

#arc #arcreview #arcreader #arcreviewer #workinprogress #katmackenzie #hatetolove #englishbooktour #closeproximity #romance #romcom #readingchallenge2025

This story drew me in immediately. The characters were so funny, loveable and knew how to have fun.

Alice is going to have an adventure on a bus tour in Scotland. She is unemployed and getting over a breakup. The passengers are older ladies who are ready for their adventure, too. Her tour guide/bus driver is Robbie. The two get off on the wrong foot and the tension is high for both. The ladies will not allow Alice to be in her feelings on the trip and apply their wisdom to help her find her best self. The hurt that Alice is feeling begins to fade and she is taking more opportunities to be present with her trip. The tension between her and Robbie begins to thaw but she tries to keep her feelings at a distance because she believes he may have a girlfriend. The two form a truce but Alice affirms that they are friends only. This is challenging as there is chemistry that cannot be denied.

Robbie is such a strong character and his adoration for the passengers leaps off the pages. Nothing can rattle him, except for Alice and he is trying to live in the moment on the trip and consider making a bold move. This story is sweet, and the characters are wonderful and engaging. I loved it!!

This book is the kind of rom-com that will make you laugh, swoon, and probably want to book a spontaneous trip to the UK. Alice Cooper is having a rough time. She’s lost her job, her cheating ex, and is dreading turning 30. In a bid to reinvent herself, she signs up for a women-only literary bus tour in Scotland — except, she didn’t expect the tour to be full of octogenarians and run by a grumpy, ridiculously hot Scottish guy. Cue the enemies to lovers magic.

The banter between Alice and Robbie is hilarious. Mackenzie does an amazing job capturing Alice’s growth as she finds new friendships, laughs at herself, and slowly lets go of her past. The chemistry between Alice and Robbie? Chef’s kiss. Their relationship grows at a natural pace, and I loved how their dynamic evolved. Plus, the hilarious elderly ladies make the entire journey even more entertaining.
This book is pure joy — funny, heartfelt, and filled with warm, feel-good moments. If you love witty writing, closed door, slow-burn romance, and a fun, quirky adventure, Work in Progress is a must-read.

I took my time indulging in Alice Cooper's hilarious and life-changing adventure she decided to take when her life flipped upside-down. The way Kat Mackenzie wrote this book made me feel as though I was going on this literary bus tour right with the vivacious group of women and the dashing Scotsman. The back and forth banter between Alice and Robbie had me laughing out loud for most of the book. Add in the sassy ladies that accompany them on the journey as well as one mischievous little dog and you have the perfect recipe for the adventure of a lifetime.

Of course this book wasn't just filled with laughs and happy moments. We were following Alice's path to rediscovering herself which was bound to come with some hiccups. Kat was able to balance those moments so beautifully and made it so easy to relate and actually feel what Alice and other characters were going through.

Now that I've finished this book, I'm going to be looking out for future books by Kat Mackenzie. Not only that, I'm going to be looking into some of these places our friends visited during this tour and add them to my list of places to visit.

Work in Progress by Kat Mackenzie is an absolute delight—a heartwarming and humorous journey that beautifully captures the essence of self-discovery and unexpected connections. The protagonist, Alice, is a relatable and endearing character whose life takes an unforeseen turn, leading her to embark on a literary bus tour across the UK. The tour, filled with lively elderly ladies and an infuriatingly handsome Scottish driver, offers a perfect backdrop for Alice's transformative adventure.

Mackenzie's writing is both witty and evocative, painting vivid scenes of the UK countryside and the eclectic mix of personalities aboard the bus. The chemistry between Alice and the tour guide is palpable, with banter that is both sharp and endearing. The supporting characters add depth and charm, each contributing to Alice's journey in meaningful ways.

This novel is more than just a romance; it's a story about embracing change, finding oneself, and the serendipitous nature of life. Work in Progress is a must-read for anyone seeking a feel-good story that resonates long after the final page.

A funny rom com about a list maker that takes a sudden trip to Scotland and England. After a bad breakup Alice Cooper books a last minute literary tour to find out that it is not quite what she signed up for...waiting for her after a disastrous encounter at the airport and damaged luggage to find the object of her anger amongst a bunch of silver haired ladies. But as she travels various castle ruins and pubs she finds friendship and love.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publishing Company for this Advanced Readers copy of Work in Progress by Kat Mackenzie!

"Work in Progress" is charming and rolls along quickly with little chapters following each step of a Scottish bus tour. The side characters are exceptionally well done and add depth and humor to the story. I was also presently surprised by how well the fade-to-black scenes were written - not typically my favorite style of romance writing, but they were plenty hot and did a fantastic job of demonstrating the chemistry between Alice and Robbie. I loved the growth of both characters and enjoyed their well-earned HEA.

I'm ready to sign up for the next tour!

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

"Work in Progress" by Kat Mackenzie 4/5 ⭐

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this book!

This book follows Alice who desperately needs a fresh start and decides to go on a literary bus tour across the UK. Of course, things do not go as expected. To start, the tour guide is infuriating, hot, and Scottish. 😏

This book is so joyous, romantic, and fun! I cannot get over how well-written this story was. Alice and Robbie's relationship was so tender and cute. I finished this book so fast because I simply needed them to be together, I also cannot get over the female friendships! I just adored the older women that were on the tour with Alice. I love all of their eccentric, oddball personalities.

On top of everything else, I LOVE SCOTLAND! This book filled me with an insatiable need to book a plane ticket ASAP.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves romcoms, beautiful scenery, and living life one day at a time! 🫶🏻

I enjoyed this when I read it, but in hindsight, I don’t remember that much. It was good in the moment but didn’t leave much of an impression either way. The plot wasn’t particularly unique, but I haven’t personally read a lot of books with this specific sequence of events before.. in my opinion, it’s worth a read if you’re drawn in by specific parts of the plot summary, but if you just want a romance book in general, this isn’t the one.

4.5 stars

This book surprised me in a fantastic way.

First, I don't remember the last time a book made me laugh out loud this much! The banter is top notch. Alice's voice brings humor and lightness to things in a charming way. Robbie is such a yummy character -- I would eat him up!

It feels like I've just been on this trip with Alice and all the women. The sense of place, the descriptions, the history is all so lovingly done. I want to go on a book tour like this with my reader friends.

Similarly, I feel like I went on the same emotional self-discovery journey that Alice did. It's very easy to identify with some or all of her story. And the way the wisdom and life stories from the other women weave in and out of the narrative makes it extra poignant.

The only thing I disliked is all the unfortunate events Alice suffers early on in the book. It felt a bit forced and unrealistic. And despite connecting with the self-discovery portion of Alice's journey, I didn't quite click with her as a character (and that's on me). I've just never understood this need to hit certain "milestones" in life by a certain age.

But seriously, go read this! I've already recommended it to a bunch of my friends. It's a bright spot in a time when those are harder to find.

<i>Many thanks to NetGalley, Avon, and the author for providing a copy in exchange for an honest review.</i>

2.5⭐

LIKED:
- The setting & the premise. The idea of the bus your and whole basis of the tour was really fun
- The old ladies. Having a gaggle of old ladies as a support system is something I always love
- The goal of re-discovering oneself after a break-up or loss of some kind. I think that FMC (Alice) - doesn’t start her journey *quite* early enough in the book for it to be the most worthwhile, but I do still think it was a good journey for her to be on for the sake of the book
- The MMC (Robbie) was pretty charming and I enjoyed him (especially more than the FMC)

LOATHED:
- Alice, the POV character for the entirety of the book, is exhausting to follow. She’s outright mean for the majority of the first act of the book and it’s frankly very unpleasant. She is just a stereotype of an American abroad to the Nth degree and it’s just infuriating to read AS an American
- The "Bridget Jones" Tally was...not my favorite. Maybe it's just a generational thing, but I don't have a fondness for Bridget Jones. The tallies were...fine? They kind of spoiled what was going to happen in the chapter, which isn't the end of the world and has been done in the past. But these tallies were also under, like, a rule as well? It just made the start of the chapters really murky.
- The Tristan plot-line. Why is it there.
- The culmination of the story of Robbie’s mom and the WHOLE miscommunication of it all. This version of miscommunication is my absolute least favorite where someone overhears something, jumps to a conclusion without talking to the other party, and then just…festers in their wrong assumptions for the whole thing. It’s drama for drama’s sake and it adds so little
- Them being enemies of this caliber? Why was her attitude getting off the airplane and being rude enough for him, a businessman focusing in customer service, to hate her to this level? And they were *vicious* and I think it was for the sake of being able to truly call this an enemies-to-lovers which, to be fair, I do appreciate the effort. But I think it would have been more fun for them to have been more feisty than outright cruel

LONGED FOR:
- A bit more differentiation between the ladies of the tour. Some of them felt very distinct and then some of them I just kept mixing up or misremembering or forgetting entirely
- More of a hero’s journey design to the actual plot. This felt very meandering, even with the tour and it made the momentum a bit hard to get onboard with (pun unintended)
- This is a bit minor, but more exploration with Alice’s backstory outside of her past relationship. I wanted to know who she was outside that relationship and if it was something she didn’t know herself (which I believe it was), I wish that had been a bit more incorporated into the third act growth.

WILL I READ THE NEXT ONE? : Probably not

Thank you so much to the author and to NetGalley for an ARC copy of this book!

This was definitely a light, cutesy read and did feel somewhat too cheesy at times. But it is definitely lighthearted and quick to get through. In this book, you find Alice, who has just gone through a pretty rough breakup and drunkenly purchases tickets to a 3 week bus tour of the UK. I did thoroughly enjoy all the knowledge thrown in about UK landmarks and places they visited. It was fun to hear about.

Robbie is the leader of the trip and the tour guide, taking them around on their bus adventure. At first, he and Alice do not get along at all. But of course, they are enemies to lovers and end up all over each other during the trip around the UK. I did just find everything to be a little too cheesy and flowery at some points, but again, it was a cute quick read. 3 out of 5 stars for me!

Alice Cooper & Robbie! ❤️❤️❤️
Alice has had a rough handful of months. A drunken flight and tour booking leads her across the Atlantic and onto Scottish soil for the first time. She’s always wanted to travel but with literally nothing left to lose, Alice resorts to stretching her savings account to save her sanity. Her trip starts out like any hangover nightmare should but Alice finds comradely in the least expected souls aboard a tour bus full of older women well past their prime and a habitually annoying tour guide who just so happens to wear the heck out of a kilt.
Work in Progress made me want to befriend Kat. I was cracking up so many times throughout the novel because WHO SAYS THAT!?! Made me feel like I’d found a soul friend within the pages who also loves traveling and uses sarcasm as a shield/tool to make others laugh. I will stan Alice + dreamy Scottish tour guide forever.
Thank you to Avon Books and NetGalley for the advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.

In a word, this book was charming. First of all that cover is so amazing! It definitely sets the tone for the lighthearted and fun time that the story brings.

One of the strong points of this book was definitely the narrative; it was genuinely funny making me chuckle out loud at times. The MCs were great, but I also felt that the side characters had their space to shine and really added to the story. The author also did a great job capturing the beauty of Scotland.

I was so excited about the premise of this book and couldn’t wait to read it. Unfortunately I found the main character so intolerable and her hatred for the main male character so unfounded, I DNF’d 25% in. I’m sorry that I don’t have a better review, it just was not believable for me.

Thank you to the publisher for the review copy! I just couldn't get in the mood for this one, but I do love this author!

This book was such a joy to read! I felt like I was transported to the UK and was actually a part of this wonderful bus tour.

So well written, witty and entertaining.

It had so much depth and it was just beautiful in so many ways.

I will definitely read more by Kat!

I loved how this was filled with so much bookish tidbits and history and was done in such a fun way that was also so realistic that it made you feel like you were a part of this tour.

Witnessing Alice’s metamorphosis was such a joy and the romance aspect was wonderfully done.

I loved this book so so SO MUCH!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Avon and Harper Voyager, Avon and Kat Mackenzie for giving me an ARC of this delightful book.

Work in Progress by Kat Mackenzie was fantastic! A+! My first by this author but not my last. The chemistry between the main characters was cute and I truly enjoyed the book.