The Road Trip

2.5 stars... interesting but not captivating
I only enjoyed it whenever I picked it up but as soon as I closed it, I forgot about it. There was nothing pulling me back to read the book, I literally had to keep it by my bedside as a reminder that I was reading the book.

Wasn't convinced at first but slowly was drawn in to the story and the characters

I wanted to like this booked more, but it never really got there for me. Although I liked the characters and the idea of it, and love chapters told from the male's point of view, I found it boring. The good parts seemed rushed and the not so good parts seemed drawn out.

This was unexpected! Really good romance. I enjoyed it a lot!

This one was fun!

Loved the back and forth between now and then, and how Addie and Dylan's relationship developed.

As for Marcus...has there ever been a secondary character so disliked? Readers, you'll want to throttle him!

An enjoyable read.

2.5 stars.

Having been a huge fan of The Flatshare, I really, really wanted to like this book. But dear God, there was just no reason to root for these two to get back together, even though they were obviously going to. They make each other utterly miserable as soon as Addie leaves France. We're clearly supposed to feel that the characters have grown and matured between “then” and “now” but I didn't see much evidence of that. This was just a deeply frustrating read.

I approached this book thinking I was reading a fun romantic romp for the Valentine's holiday, but found a somewhat deeper story. The narrators Addie and Dylan hop back and forth in a dual timeline - one where they meet one summer and the other in present day, a few years later. The story touches on relationships, mental health, finding yourself (sometimes amidst supportive people, sometimes not), and sisterhood in addition to love, and leaves you with some things to think about.
I'll admit that the Addie/Dylan relationship in the ‘before' made me frustrated, which was likely intentional, although the growth in the ‘after' is rewarding. I loved the relationships between most of the women characters, especially Addie and her sister Deb. Deb's character is deserving of her own story, that's how fun and complete she is. Overall, this is a good book, and was worth my time. I've read the author's other books and I'll read more of her in the future. It would be a good book club choice, and the discussion questions at the end of the paperback edition are actually good ones to get a conversation going.

It was sweet and all. I mean, cute sisters relationship, good friends, interesting people on the road, etc. but I had high expectations for this book after her two others, so much I was saving it up. In that, I was a bit disappointed. The story was cute, but not something as good as I thought the other two were.

I don't write reviews for a lot of the books I read but I feel like I should here. For starters, I've read one other book by Beth, The Flatshare. I DNF'd that one. I got 70% and just couldn't handle it anymore, and this book almost got a DNF too.

After finishing the book I am glad I did, but the flashbacks and flashforwards ended up being extremely aggravating and at some times confusing. Not only do we have POV switches but we have time switches which can be a lot for you to wrap your mind around at times especially when you come back to the book after having to do something. I loved getting the past and the present don't get me wrong, but I REALLY wished it would have just been mostly the past with a few bits left out and then cutting to the present and you find out the big things at the same time as you currently do. Oh well.

This is a good story, I like the way the characters all grew and it ended up being a good read and a semi releastic look on relationships. Some points of this felt like a chore to get through but then the last 20% I breezed through. All in all it could have been much worse.

This was rather disappointing. It started off very slowly and I didn't get the feel that the main characters were as in love with each other as they were supposed to be. I was more annoyed than entertained by this story.

This book is such a lovely book about love, friendship, identity, and acceptance. Honestly, it surprised me. I expected just a fun romp of a road trip where two exes hash out their issues, but it is so much more than that.

In this story, exes Addie and Dylan find themselves traveling to a wedding together in a Mini with three other people. To say this situation is not ideal is definitely an understatement. Their relationship ended almost two years prior to this road trip in such a way that has left them both wounded. Add to that tension the fact that the man largely responsible for their break up is in the car also and it is a recipe for disaster.

The cast of characters in this book is highly entertaining. Addie and Dylan are both charming and lovable protagonists. Neither is a villain in their break up, which makes it much easier to like them. Addie's sister, Deb, is refreshingly independent and confident. Even the troublemaker, Marcus, has likable qualities at times, though he is largely self-absorbed and rude most of the time. Then there is the random wedding guest that hitched a ride, Rodney. He adds a good bit of goofy humor to the story.

The main road trip plot line is engaging and fun, even with the mishaps along the way. The characters are not having fun, of course, but the reader can laugh at their expense at times. Although there are adventures and light-hearted moments, there also very serious and somewhat therapeutic moments as well. Several of the individuals in the car have issues to resolve, and the close proximity forces them to do so whether they want to or not. The book touches on some serious topics along the way, such as depression, homophobia, alcoholism, and sexual assault , so the reader should be aware of that.

The romance in this book is probably one of the best I have read in a while. It is not pretty at times, but it feels quite authentic and believable. The main obstacle in the relationship is another person, but not in the usual manner. I like that it is not typical of all the other romances I have read lately. It feels fresh and different.

Overall, I am very happy with this book. I thoroughly enjoyed the reading experience and would love to read it again in the future. Well done, Beth O'Leary! I look forward to reading more!

Swing and a miss for me, although I appreciate the fact that Beth O'Leary was trying for something a little more substantial than [b:The Flatshare 36478784 The Flatshare Beth O'Leary https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1552471375l/36478784.SY75.jpg 58189559] and [b:The Switch 45134200 The Switch Beth O'Leary https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1573576865l/45134200.SY75.jpg 69811310]. Although The Road Trip starts with a car crash that puts ex-lovers Addie and Dylan together in a small car on the way to a mutual friend's wedding, the chapters of the novel that portray the rise and fall of their relationship almost two years ago feel like a slow-motion, inevitable wreck as well. There are red flags everywhere - Addie feels like she has to maintain the fun, wild persona she took on over summer break even when the couple returns to regular life, Dylan lets an obviously toxic relationship with his childhood friend Marcus poison the well, and the two never have frank conversations about the vast differences in their backgrounds and family dynamics. Unfortunately, when the end comes, it's because Dylan does something that in my opinion is completely unforgiveable : he believes Marcus' claim that Addie is being unfaithful to him when the truth is that her boss has responded to her (not quite innocent) flirtations by trying to rape her. And despite Dylan's almost immediate realization that he has screwed up big time, and subsequent sincere efforts to change for the better, I couldn't bring myself to forgive him, especially when combined with how many times he listened to Marcus, who obviously had his own selfish, twisted agenda.The titular road trip itself has some entertaining moments as the crew tries in vain to get to the wedding in time and lots of things go hideously wrong . Addie's sister Deb is along for the journey, and her fiercely loyal, got-no-f*cks-left-to-give personality was a breath of fresh air. (The less said about the oddball passenger Rodney, the better.) But the overall tone is somber. I've read some negative reviews that lamented the change from O'Leary's more lighthearted two previous books. I have no problem with drama, but ultimately I felt that Dylan (and Marcus) were let off the hook too easily. I would have liked to see a chapter set in the future where we could see Addie and Dylan working on their issues together as a couple, but since we don't, the best O'Leary can provide is a very tentative (and to me tenuous) Happy For Now ending. I'm still giving this four stars because it was a compelling read, but it was not as satisfying as I had hoped.