I love Janice Horton's books, they are just so fantastic from a travel perspective as well as a brilliant story. Through her books I get to travel places I'm unlikely to ever get to myself in brilliant detail. This book made me lose myself in the exotic locations, but also cry over the sad and poignant moments along Maya's journey. I couldn't put it down and would highly recommend it

Beautifully written title about the journey through grief and the will to move forward. The descriptions were spot-on and I enjoyed the character development.

The premise of "The Backpacking Bride" was intriguing; however in the end, I found it predictable. The middle was filled with details of her various destinations that kept me reading and made me want to go see for myself. It's a great read for some people and others like my will read with enjoyment for the attention to detail that showed the authors passion for writing. I will look for other books by Janice Horton.

Janice Horton is a lovely writer, and this book lived up to expectation. Looking forward to the next one.

Many thanks to NetGalley and to the publisher for allowing me to read a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley, Janice Horton, and One More Chapter for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!!!

What a great story!! I was drawn in by the pretty cover and glad I was! This story ended up being very different from what I anticipated it would be and a great reminder that life is short and we should go for the things we want! It felt sort of like a fictional version of Eat, Pray, Love and I really enjoyed following along on Maya’s journey.

Maya is going on her honeymoon alone after her fiancé died on their wedding day. A surprise itinerary, she decides to use this time as a way to come to terms with her loss and find herself.

The setting and places Maya traveled to in this book were great choices and I loved going there with her! The author wrote them well and I felt I was experiencing them myself. The flow of the book was great and the pace of it fit really well for the story. It really is a story that reminds that life is short and we never truly know what the plan is!

I also appreciated an older main character. It was refreshing to see our main trying to figure things out and NOT be a twenty-something and at a completely different stage of her life. She is mature, open, and willing to see where the honeymoon takes her. She gets some surprises along the way, and is able to revisit her past a bit at the same time.

An enjoyable read and I would read more in this series!!

I totally immersed myself in this book- feeling the sights, senses, smells and scenery so vividly captured. You really feel a part of the story.
Maya very sadly loses her fiance on their wedding day and to honour him she decides to go on the wonderful honeymoon tour that he had planned for them both. He'd left meticulous notes with personal experiences that he wanted to share.
She's not a seasoned traveller but really wants to throw herself into the experiences he wanted her to have.
She starts at an ashram in India that she believes the Beatles stayed in. The rules seem very restrictive initially, no talking allowed in the morning and definately no coffee. She finds a rule breaker and spends some time sharing illicit coffee in the local village.
She meets some fascinating people along the way who try to encourage her to deviate from her itinerary and see some of the other major spots. She loves following his plans and tying up messages on post it notes.
You really can imagine all the sights and revel in the experience. A great escape read during lockdown.

I absolutely loved this book. All the places that were featured in this book are all the places I want to visit, especially India. Reading this book has made me even more determined to get there ! I found it emotional in places especially the chapters involving India as I will now have to visit there on my own and it was a long held dream of my husband's and mine to visit so it seemed very poignant. I loved all the descriptions of India and Hong Kong and it felt like a love letter to these places.
I loved the way Maya was pushed way out her comfort zone and how she managed to deal with everything that was thrown at her, considering how structured and boring her life had been.
The only thing that spoiled it a little bit for me was the romance she has with Henri and once she’d met him I knew how the story would develop, it didn’t detract from my enjoyment though.
I didn’t realise there are another 2 books so I will be reading these too.
I really recommend this book as a bit of escapism on a rather dull chilly Sunday afternoon.

This was my first Janice Horton book but will certainly not be the last! This was such a remedy for Covid hit travelling, I was transported to different worlds of India, Hong Kong and Singapore which were so richly described I felt I was there.

The Backpacking Bride is taking her honeymoon alone. A middle-aged woman who played it safe with her career and never traveled, she finally met her soul mate--and then her husband-to-be died during the wedding ceremony. She goes on the journey he planned for them, being taken out of her comfort zone repeatedly along the way. I picked this up at a sentimental moment, so I really felt for the heroine. In a more cynical mood, I might roll my eyes at some of the Eat, Pray, Love-style enlightenments Maya finds. But for the current moment, when international travel seems quite out of the question, it is nice to take a Magical Mystery Tour in one's mind, at least.

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for a digital ARC for the purpose of an unbiased review.

Investment adviser Maya Thomas has been career orientated all her life, never finding that special someone until she is fifty years old. That’s when Jon walks into her office. The two fall in love, talking of their hopes, dreams and determined to marry. Their whirlwind romance culminates in a dream wedding in Italy . . . . a wedding that turns into a devastating nightmare when Jon collapses and dies at the altar……shattering her heart. It is only when she is given the folder with details of their back packing honeymoon that she sees all the post it notes with everything he’d secretly planned for them do together that Maya has a new purpose in life. backpack burton GIF by amandahertelendiShe decides to go on this adventure alone despite never having travelled abroad alone before! The journey starts in India with a stay in a retreat he’d visited more than 20 years ago . . . so starts an epic journey, both physical and spiritual in which she discovers maybe fate intervened on her behalf and provided her with a way to heal and find love again.

This is such a moving and dramatic story, one in which karma, yoga, positivity and so much more contribute to provide opportunities, experiences and love in unexpected ways. She encounters an eclectic mix of people on her journey and learns that

“… personal encounters are never by chance or mere coincidence because we are fated either to learn from or to teach something important to everyone we meet”
She also gets to revisit her birth place that she’s not returned to since she was just five years old. This is a brilliant journey, one that starts in grief and anger but ends in love and hope. It is one filled with wonderful places, fascinating people, fabulous new friends, excitement, opportunity and hope. It is a wonderful story to inspire and encourage you to keep on striving to follow your dreams, despite the set backs along the way as they may just be the stepping stones you need to tread to get to your goal, even if you don’t yet know that is your goal!! It is a story to put the biggest grin on your face despite the storms along the way.

I requested and was gifted a copy of this book and this is my honest review after choosing to read it and thoroughly enjoying doing so. I will definitely be looking out for more books by this author in future, including the earlier two books in this series which you definitely don’t need to have read to appreciate and enjoy this one.

I didn't realize this book is part of a series when I requested it. It was still enjoyable even though I have not read the first book. I really enjoyed the plot and Maya's character. I was drawn to the book because of the fun cover art. I definitely want to read more of Janice Horton's books, now.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-book in exchange for my honest review.

A very cute story about picking up the pieces of a broken engagement. Enjoyed it.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

When I first heard about this book I imagined it was going to be like Katy Colins The Lonely Hearts travel club series. You know about a bride-to-be that ends up with a husband and instead decides to travel the world to heal her heart. I was disappointed. I honestly don't know what it was that made me not like the feeling of this book. I knew they were gonna be different - but still expected the same cozy and heartwarming feeling with a nice dose of romance sprinkled into it.(plus a desire to travel) that I got the when I read Destination Thailand.
Instead of feeling hopeful for the future after finishing The Backpacking Bride I felt... nothing? The book had such a little impact on me that I almost forgot that I had read it.

‘I’ve decided I’m going to take one day and one adventure at a time and seize every moment.’

The Backpacking Bride by Janice Horton provided some enjoyable armchair travel with descriptive passages on locations and traditions from India to Hong Kong to Singapore. This is the story of Maya (see Synopsis) and the journey - both literally and figuratively - she goes through after the death of her fiance. Not the happy, light book I had originally imagined.


‘I’ve quickly come to the realisation that everyone who comes here must be searching for something. Nobody in their right mind comes here just for a holiday.’

This book is very much in the ‘Eat, Pray, Love’ theme but apart from the descriptions of locations and a few reflective gems, this was a book that skimmed along the surface, never really diving deeply into anything. The parts in India were drawn out, often providing nothing more than what sequentially occurred in her day. Yes, Maya’s lesson was to struggle in a lifestyle so foreign but it never really reached the mark. It falls flat with character interactions and relationships, too many convenient coincidences and a rushed ending. The timeline was confusing from grief to love in such a seemingly short time period with me holding grave reservations of her need for a partner to be happy.

If you are after a light, simple journey of growth and the chance to travel to some interesting destinations then this could be the quick read you are after.

‘What lessons had I learned here and what was it that I was taking away with me?’






This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.

This was not what I expected at all. I thought it was going to be a fun, quirky, feel good book from seeing the cover. I tried to keep at it in hopes something would click and take my interest. But, nope, it just kept right on perplexing me. Maybe it was me 🤷🏼‍♀️. My husband kept asking me why I was sighing so much while reading. I told him I just can’t get into this story.
Thank you to NetGallery, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read and give my honest opinion about this book.

Maya had done everything right in terms of her career, but never quite managed to chuck it all aside to travel and live life. Until she met Jon, a new client, with stories to tell and experiences to share. Soon the two are finding their instant attraction is so much more, and are off to Italy to marry. Until Jon’s sudden death before the vows are complete, and Maya’s life is tossed into uncertainty.

But Jon left her a list – their honeymoon itinerary, fully paid for, and her own need to ‘connect to him’. From an ashram in India to food in Singapore and the fireworks in Hong Kong, she’s got a list and tentatively, but not without a bit of grumbling, she sets off. Throughout the story, with a sense of her pushing her limits and stretching her dreams to encompass possibilities, Maya’s previously reserved and rather reticent nature starts to reform as she finds peace with Jon’s death and the aftermath, and learns to both love herself and let herself be vulnerable to take more chances.

Full of lovely and scenic moments, plenty of spiritual food for the ‘seekers’ and lots of emotion that one can easily see can become a prison of its own making, readers will care about Maya, want to see her happy once again, and perhaps gain a bit of their own emotional settling as she finds joy in life again. A clever and fun story that takes rather heavy emotional moments and allows us to come out the other side feeling lighter and more hopeful.

I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

Review first appeared at <a href=” https://wp.me/p3OmRo-aLb /” > <a> I am, Indeed </a>

I didn’t realise this was the third book in a series, although for me it made no difference. I really enjoyed it; it was a lovely heart-warming easy read. I do like books that make me feel like I’m on a journey too, and this one didn’t disappoint.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

This book did not appeal to me on many levels. Unfortunately the story layout was a big miss for me.

Maya is on a journey to heal from the death of Jon. It’s that and her honeymoon. I didn’t know enough about Jon to feel her pain. Perhaps if the first quarter of the book was about their love, only their love, I would have been able to feel her sorrow. The back and forth time jump did not help me connect with her emotions.

Maya also describes all of the places she is visiting. Most of this fell flat for me. Not sure why. Amazing locations that just came off as, meh.

A little to depressing for me. She looses her husband to be on her wedding day and decides to take their honeymoon starting in India. DNF to strange to finished.

**************I received an ARC for my honest opinion through NetGalley.***

The following review will be published on the below mentioned blog and other social media on 24 July

Book Title: The BackPacking Bride

Author: Janice Horton

Genre: Fiction

Publishing Date: 10 July 2020




Line Summary:

From Goodreads: When Maya’s fiancé drops dead just moments before he’s set to kiss the bride, her life is spent spinning out of control. Now, Maya setting off on the mystery honeymoon her fiancé had planned for them, she finds that there is life after loss, that fate has its own way of helping you heal and that those with the courage to grasp love will never go lonely

My Review:

My expectations for this book were high from the beginning and I felt this one didn’t fulfill it! It may be my mood but the story is not engaging! The storyline is very good, and traveling scenes were brilliant, but somehow it lacks emotional depth! I couldn’t feel Maya's lost, her sorrow anything at all! Everything is in words but not touching the heart! The travel scenes were neither serious nor humorous and so failed to impact me. The "India" scenes hurt me, I could understand the cultural shock, and in orderly behaviors of people, dirty Ganges, etc but still, it hurts ( maybe I am a too much pride Indian) after the story reached Hong Kong everything is so dramatic! Though the storyline picked up , the twists were unbelievable! Very melodramatic for me! But I loved the final twists in the race and the climax! If you are looking for a good laid back enjoyable uplifting story you would enjoy it!

Thoughts while reading:
From the beginning, Maya's character seemed weak! There is no strong definition and so couldn’t make a connection with her emotions!!
The "India" scenes were made me uncomfortable and the way she felt the divine power and all felt dubious than blissful!
The Ashram related scenes were neither funny nor serious!
The scenes are lucid but the way she made connected it with fate and divine power kind of feel like a cliche (believe me I am a believer of divine power, cosmic ordering everything ).
Once she reached the Hongkong, the story is filled with unbelievable events, followed by Maya's dilemma and justifying thoughts !! its kind of boring to read the repeated dilemmas in each and every situation!
I loved the final race twists and the climax! But it took a long time for me to reach there as the story lagging in the engaging part!


Thanks to #netgalley and the publishers #harpercollinsuk #onemorechapter for this ARC. This review is straight from my heart not biased in any way!