Road trip books are one of my favorites and although Hairpin Curves was a little slow getting started, the story picked up the pace at about a quarter of the way into the book. Being in a semi-quarantine, this was a nice safe way to experience a trip and see new places from Megan and Scarlett's viewpoint. The road trip was semi-planned with time and possibilities for diversion off the beaten path. During this time Megan and Scarlett's relationship began to evolve from high school friends to trying to get past the hurt that Megan felt when Scarlett didn't go away to college with her as they had planned. The road trip gave them the opportunity to have this much need conversation.

The latter part of the road trip expands their relationship even further when they explore their chemistry with sex and romance. Overall this was a good read with interesting characters, travel destinations from Crystal River, FL to Quebec, Canada, and life-related decisions that most young people must make in their early to mid twenties. 4 stars.

I received an ARC from Carina Adores and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A road trip romance with that childhood crush you always thought was impossible. Sweetness abounds in this f/f love story - exactly the kind of book to take you away from the world and leave you with a smile. Characters struggling to understand each other and themselves, a tour of East Coast destinations - I'd definitely recommend this for a vacation read or general escapism. It's a little light on sex but builds sexual tension nicely; I would definitely say suitable for a wide age range. The least darkness in a book I've read in a long time, and that's a relief like aloe on a sunburn.

Hairpin Curves is a sweet and very sexy second-chance / enemies-to-lovers romance.

Megan, Scarlett and Juliet were the best of friends for the major part of their childhood. When Juliet moved to Québec, Megan and Scarlett stayed close… until they weren’t. A few years later, unaware her former best friends had a falling-out, Juliet invites them both to her wedding. In Québec. In February. Scarlett suggests they drive there together and, despite being terribly mad at her still, Megan agrees. She just lost her dead-end job, has no idea what she wants to do with herself and is coming to understand that playing it safe for all these years hasn’t made her either safe or happy. The idea of going out of Florida for the first time ever is irresistible, and Scarlett convinces her to make a whole trip out of it. Scarlett, whose crush on Megan never disappeared, is hoping to mend some fences on the way.

While Scarlett came out as bisexual very early in her life, Megan only realised in college that she, too, was attracted to women also. By then, they had lost touch, so Scarlett still believes Megan to be straight. A lot of what she thought she knew about Megan isn’t true, and they’ll both discover who the other has become in the few years since high school. Megan’s anger at Scarlett stems from nonsensical reasons, that have more to do with teenage angst than anything else.

The story starts too fast, as if the author wanted to lay the background as quickly as possible and be rid of it in order to get on with the real story ASAP. But once the road trip begins and the characters have no choice but to be themselves, put their guard down, they’re incredibly real. I’m not sure how to explain it, but I found this novel surprisingly moving. Something happened with these characters that touched me way deeper than I would expect from a Harlequin book, to be honest (I know, I’m a snob sometimes). I really liked how both characters slowly unveiled their true selves, which prove to be much more complex than what they show at the beginning of the book. Scarlett is not as free and comfortable with herself as she appears, Megan is not as bland as she lets the world believe.

Another excellent surprise of this book was how hot it is at times. The chemistry between Megan and Scarlett is fantastic, once they allow themselves to feel it. And while the romance itself would qualify as slow-burn, the relationship gets steamy early on.

My rating for this book wavered between 4* and 4.5* all along. I ultimately settled on 4* because both the beginning and the ending of the book feel a tad rushed. The author explains in the acknowledgements that she wrote this story during lockdown, so maybe that’s why. I did, however, enjoy it a lot, so 4* it is.

I received a copy from the publisher and I am voluntarily leaving a review.

Friends-to-enemies (sorta)-to-friends-to-lovers. This one covers a wide range in the relationship of the two leading ladies with excellence.

Megan Harris and Scarlett Andrews used to be inseparable in school. But that ended when Scarlett ditched Megan in college. They were supposed to go together but at the last minute Scarlett decided to go a more prestigious college elsewhere. Then when one tried to reach out to the other they were ghosted. Now they don’t have anything to do with one another though they live in the same town. Their school group used to be a trio with Juliet completing the triumvirate till she moved to Quebec. Now Juliet is getting married and would really like her two best friends to be there. So with all sorts of reservations, Megan and Scarlett decide to make a road trip from Florida to Quebec, together.

As they start travelling together, they rediscover each other. Learn things about the other that they didn’t imagine. Gain insights and understanding about their own and the other person’s behaviour.

Megan and Scarlett are everyday women written with such depth and detail that they become real. Their fears and anxieties resonate. Their hopes and dreams are tangible. Their disappointments and self-doubts are empathise-able. The attraction between them is believable. Particularly the back history when one had an unspoken crush on the other and the other had a feeling that she didn’t recognise because she was unaware of her sexuality.

Initially there is quite a bit of what each found wrong in the other when they were friends. While this sounds like they didn’t really like each other, it is something that is so, so real. When we’ve split from someone it is easier to focus and remember what we didn’t like about them rather than all the great things about them that leave us pining for what is not.

The only thing that was not quite easy to swallow was the easy nudity and un-understandable comfort with masturbating in the other’s presence. That didn’t flow too well with the otherwise perfect narrative of re-finding their old friendship.

As always, we have a soft spot for the person who is braver about going out on a limb with their emotions, so Scarlett wins for us. Not only for her bravery towards the end but her vulnerability throughout, for her honesty and for the way she puts Megan first.

This one was a lovely read which we completely recommend.

You know when there’s a trope you’re not particularly a fan of but you still attempt to read because the plot still sounds interesting to you and there might be a chance you love it? That was me with this book when I saw it was a road trip book.

This book was truly delightful. I found both Megan and Scarlett to be engaging and interesting characters. Watching their dynamic throughout the novel was interesting to see as a result of their strained friendship.

Since this is a romance, being stuck in a car with an ex friend where one of them has a crush on the other is great building blocks for a romance. Even though you can predict some of the beats of the story, it is done in these enjoyable way and enhanced by the characters.

Since Scarlett and Megan were best friends in high school, a lot of the book was them finding new things about the other. It was also about them reopening up to each other and I loved that factor. You can tell that even with their falling out they still care about the other.

This was definitely a slow burn and it was well worth it. The romance is believable and whenever there was glimpses of them getting along more, it brought so much joy.

Another aspect I loved about this book was that while it was a road trip, it wasn't your typical Summer Road Trip, it's in the middle of winter. That was a really nice twist to a trope I typically don't enjoy.

Overall, I loved this book and highly recommend it.

This was a cute and fun romance and i enjoyed that it focused on two slightly older protagonists that weren't teenagers. I loved the relationship between the two women and how it had ups and downs as they traveled across the country. The final section was a bit rushed for me and i would have liked it to have focused on what happened on the end a bit more of them falling in love post wedding.

This was such an empowering book

Megan is a girl who really doesn't do anything that is "outside"her comfort zone she's been working at the Starlight since she was 16 and she has never been outside the state of Florida.

Scarlett is the complete opposite she dates who she wants at times she has no filter.

Megan and Scarlett go on a road trip to Quebec, Canada and it is full of laughter tears and a blooming relationship

This book started out very slowly. I almost gave up on it about 25% of the way in. Once it got going it was better but I still felt like overall it wasn't well developed. In reading the acknowledgments it appears it was written during Covid, which makes me think it was rushed to press. It felt very much like an early draft of something that could be quite good but it wasn't there yet.

While I enjoyed the book and the authors style, I will come right out and say this book is very much a formula put together (at least it feels that way). The characters are fun and once you get deep enough into the story very enjoyable. They start out a little bland tho. It's a cute story with a nice build up.

I adore Elia Winters as a writer. I think she’s doing amazing things for romance and erotica because of the boundaries her stories push especially in regards to the classic HEA, her books really show that HEA can mean different things for different people. To the best of my knowledge this is her first FF and I was super excited to get approved for this ARC.

Megan and Scarlett are vibrant characters and writing dynamic characters is one of Winter’s strong suits and it continues to shine in this book. I love a good road trip story, there’s just something about two people together, alone in a car or hotel room, just the two of them that I just really love to read. It was great to see these two reconnect after being apart for years. Oh and don’t worry the love scenes Winter writes are very present so no worries there.

If you’ve never read a romance by Winters, this is actually a great jumping off point for you, it’s fun, sexy and just incredibly enjoyable!

Thank you NetGalley for sending me an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I don't usually talk technical issues in a review unless they're prominent and easily noticeable so here goes: the format of this ebook was quite messy and took me out the story quite a few times. The pages numbers were out of place as they appeared in the middle of the book instead of at the bottom like they normally would. Plus, the words author and title also appeared. I don't believe that was the authors fault in any way but the publishers in formatting this ebook the way they did. I seriously hope the final ebook/copy is not like this when it comes out.

Now that's out of the way, let's get into my official review:

For this being my first ever review using NetGalley, this didn't disappoint content wise. I read this pretty quickly in two days and became invested in the story (minus the ebook formatting) and the characters. The plot intrigued me from the get-go as 1, I enjoy reading the enemies to lovers (or in this case frenemies to lovers) trope and 2, I love me some good road trip books.

From the very beginning, I felt the tension from Scarlett and Megan and I enjoyed their development throughout their road trip. I also enjoyed both characters as individuals as well. I felt like this had the perfect amount of backstory to make their frenemies relationship believable, however their personal backstories were really lacking. Like I knew a little about Megan's family in terms of her brother, but knew virtually nothing about Scarlett's. So I wish that was developed a little more.

One last thing to add, I loved the actual road trip they went on and the fact I had been to some of the places made it so much better. Like I would actually go on this exact road trip with a friend.

This was such a great book overall and would highly recommend this. I would also like to check more from this author in the future.

3.5 stars

Megan Harris and Scarlett Andrews used to be childhood friends up to high school … until they are not. Scarlett left Megan before college without any explanation and years passed by without the two of them interact anymore, even after Scarlett returned home to Crystal River, Florida. But then another friend of theirs invited Megan and Scarlett to attend her wedding. And suddenly Megan found herself saying “yes” to Scarlett’s plan of doing road trip to Quebec... in February. How is that NOT a disaster coming?

...

I LOVE road trip stories (which is practically a forced proximity trope on the road). All those hours shared within the confinement of the car … it is a great setting for the characters to work out their feelings from long-time frustration to pent-up desire. That is why the summary of this book, by new-to-me author Elia Winters, attracted me in the first place.

What I liked the most from Hairpin Curves is the depiction of characteristics of both our heroines. They are quite complete opposite, each with their strengths and flaws. And I think Winters keep this part solid throughout, while still giving space for each Megan and Scarlett to ‘refine’ themselves by offering on how the other sees them.

For Megan, is all about stability and reassurances – she hates changes. It stops Megan from trying to expand her horizon. She never leaves Florida. She works at the same diner for the past decade. She avoids relationship because it entails ‘possibility’ of getting her heart broken. Scarlett bailing on their plan all those years ago also makes Megan unable to trust her ex-friend easily.

But at the same time, there are other things that make Megan unique. She is good at scrapbook. She is quite a good singer. Interestingly, Megan also embraces ‘adventure’ in sex (as in sex toys) more so than Scarlett. Even if her sex-partner is less than Scarlett

Scarlett might be more adventurous than Megan, but it is also because she tends to run away when there’s trouble. Scarlett doesn’t really believe in herself; she doesn’t think she has enough talent, enough smarts. Scarlett always sees Megan as more capable and confident of what she wants.

I do think that despite them being childhood friends, there are so MUCH that neither Megan nor Scarlett know about one another. They make a lot of assumption about the other girl – and we know what assumptions make, right? Maybe they are not good friends after all? *laugh*. Well, at least the road trip gives them the chance to learn.

The road trip itself is good – I liked the places that they visited and what they did there. I may question whether, with their financial limitations, Megan and Scarlett can actually do all of the things mentioned here… but hey, I don’t really have benchmark about prices in the U.S. since I live in another part of the world. So, what do I know?

Also, despite these girls being in their mid-twenties, the music references seem to be very old. Sometimes, I feel like it’s more of the author’s musical choices rather than trying to be updated with the current music trend. It’s easier to make the characters like old soul type, right?

Hairpin Curves is quite character centric. It’s all about Megan and Scarlett throughout, with very minimal secondary characters present. At times, it may be tiring reading about how their ‘break-up’ as friends are all based on those assumptions that each has about the other. But stick with them anyway… I think it’s worth it in the end.

This book was honestly lots of fun! I loved going on the road trip with Meghan and Scarlett and visiting places that i’ve actually been to before (including my home, the White Mountains)

I will say the I was little let down as the synopsis implied that the snowstorm was a major part of the book when it happened 80% in and lasted, what, a day? Also the whole reason these characters were forced together was due to lack of communication which definitely frustrated me a bit.

Overall this was really enjoyable and made my sapphic heart very happy.

F/F. frenemies to lovers road trip, just one bed? Yes please. This book was fun. Loved all of the road trip stops as it was the perfect vacation to take while staying home in the pandemic. I will interview Elia for the podcast. I will also feature this book in a few book recommendations episodes.

Friends from childhood till high school, Megan had a best friend in Scarlett till the day they were no longer. 7 years on, a wedding invite by a common old friend forced them on a road trip together. One that threatened to implode and explode with all the history between them. Will the introverted and geeky Megan be able to force open the pandora box and get answers about why Scarlett left all those years ago? Will the confident and poised Scarlett crack?

The road trip felt like a dates of dates that was 7 years late in the making. Joining them on the road trip was fun with the spilling of secrets and are the characters who they seem they are? Expect music, drama, pent up emotions given a run for their money and overactive libidos along the way. The book was easy to read and the characters might just surprise you.

I just reviewed Hairpin Curves by Elia Winters. #HairpinCurves #NetGalley

I actually enjoyed the storyline in this book and absolutely love when the MC’s start off hating each other. The book starts off good but really heats up once they are on the road. The only thing that I could not stand was the continuous formatting issues throughout the book. There were numbers in between the paragraphs and the words “author, title” appeared in between as well. This went on almost every other page and I almost got so frustrated that I put the book down but I powered through and I’m glad that I did because like I said, the book was good.

The premise of this book hooked me immediately - childhood best friends - enemies - lovers?? roadtrip?? self - discovery??? sounds like my cup of tea!! Yet, I unfortunately couldn't make myself read past page 70, because there was just 0 romantic chemistry or even non-romantic chemistry between the two main characters, and it all felt a bit too forced for me. So, I will not be continuing with this book, but I'm certain other people will love it and will be sure to recommend it to anyone I think will enjoy it.