I really wanted to like this book, the cover and description were good, but I couldn't connect with Katie. I found her a little too childish sometimes, but the friendship she starts with Jack made the story enjoyable and I liked how their relationship developed, but overall the book was a little boring.

I liked this book quite a bit! We start off with a runaway bride (Kitty), who is picked up my a man (Jack) in a camper van. The story is not only about the relationship between the two of them but stories that each one has from before they meet.

I’ll be honest. I thought this was going to be just a sappy romcom, but it was a lot more than that. There were so many twists and turns and surprises, even up to the end. It was sweet, fun, unexpected, and I definitely recommend this when you need a quick, enjoyable read.

Kitty has flown the coop...on her own wedding reception. She witnessed her own mother making out with the groom and can’t tell a soul. Who can she turn to??
She is desperate. No cell phone, no money and wearing a formal dress walking down a rural road...
Children’s author Jack Duffy has been running from his life for years after his wife tragically died. His life in the RV on the road, writing and illustrating seems like his only happy place.
When Jack sees Kitty on the road it seemed like fate. She has no idea who he is and she is happy to be on the run. But how long can they both live life like this? Or is this the life they were truly meant to have?

more than a romcom on board. This tale is a wild ride Mary Jayne Baker blesses the pages with the struggles of life, friendship and romance.

Wonderful romance with a bit of mystery set in as well! Kitty is our runaway bride, and we aren’t sure exactly why she is running at first. Only that something horrible has happened, and she has taken off from the reception in her gown with no purse or phone. Jack and his very pregnant pup, Sandy, happen to be driving by in their orange camper van and help her out with a ride, some money, and food.

We don’t get the whole picture for a bit into this story as to what all has happened and why she can’t bring herself to return home, or even talk to anyone from home. What we do get is a sweet picture of a friendship that grows between two very lost souls. Each is running from something, and what ensues is the unraveling of their lives’ stories amidst a new love story.

Jack and Kitty have the same dry sense of humor, so that their conversations keep you laughing, while their revelations might make you teary eyed. I loved this book, and couldn’t stop reading. I needed to know the whole story of why Kitty ran, and once I learned it, I needed to find out how their story ended.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC I received in exchange for an honest review!

The beginning of this book totally grabbed my attention right from the get-go. I was so curious about why Kitty had run away on her wedding day that I had to keep reading! What follows is a lovely tale of self discovery with loads of drama mixed in. The cover led me to believe this would be more of a rom-com than it was in actuality, but it was still entertaining.

CW: abuse, open door romance, language

This ARC was provided courtesy of Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Kitty and Jack's story is one about new beginnings, and the journey of self discovery that happens when you let go of guilt and regret.

Kitty's spirit has been broken by the controlling, oppressive life she runs away from. She leaves everything behind on her wedding day when she witnesses the ultimate betrayal. Jack and his pregnant dog Sandy rescue her. Jack gives her a roaming home, a new adventure, and safety and security.

Kitty begins to see herself as a strong, independent woman. She begins to confront the demons in her past. She finds love and freedom. She makes a choice- but the one man she wants to claim as her own has his own demons to battle.

This was a sweet, wonderful, slow burn romance. I loved both MCs and wanted to strangle the villains.

Awesome! It was an emotional rollercoaster. It was a very quick read and also fun. I loved the humor.

This book was super cute, funny, and really well-written, I just couldn’t get in to the plot. A lot of the book is just detailing a pretty normal life shared by Kitty and Jack (albeit in an RV which is pretty unique). Although there are some pretty big plot points, it just felt like nothing really happened throughout the story.
One redeeming piece of the book was the characters. I found them to be so likeable and their chemistry was believable. My heart broke for Kitty who experienced the ultimate betrayal and also for Jack who experienced the ultimate heartbreak.
I also enjoyed that this book ended up being heavier than I initially expected. I felt as though the author included some really difficult topics while still making it feel like a light romance.

Kitty Clayton is on the run – from her own wedding. She has no money and no phone but she would rather be on the streets than with her controlling, cheating new husband. Jack Duffy thinks he is picking up a run-of-the-mill hitchhiker, but when he runs into Kitty again after dropping her off at her destination, he decides to take her under his wing. It’s not long before feelings start to develop between the two but they both must face up to their own problems before they can fully commit to each other.

The Runaway Bride is a very cute, light read, heartwarming story about how 2 broken hearts that can work together and help heal each other 🥰 while we follow Jack and Kitty around in their retro caravan, we learn about all their hidden heartbreaks, how strong each one can be once they over come their deepest fears and how freeing they can be when they let each other love! The last quarter of the book happed so fast, with quite a few twists and turns I didn’t see coming, I couldn’t put it down! Thanks Netgalley for my review copy

Instead of enjoying her big day, Kitty finds herself running away from her wedding. With nowhere to go, nowhere to turn she ends up hitchhiking. Taken under the wing of widower Jack who lives in a retro campervan. Between the two of them, they each discover the person they are, how they can move on with their lives and realising that there is still a chance at love. A heartwarming story, that was an easy read but not one that I was truly invested in.

The Runaway Bride by Mary Jayne Baker appears at first glance at the bright fun cover, to be a rom com about a wedding gone wrong. Well, there was trouble at the wedding, but this book is not a straight forward rom com. Instead we follow Kitty as she flees her husband of only hours without a cent, phone, or vehicle. She just knows she has to get away and figure out what to do. She is picked up off the side of the road by wandering children's author and illustrator, Jack. Jack has his own complicated back story that has him wandering the back roads of the UK, Scotland, and Ireland. Kitty and Jack find a comfortable companionship, but can their lives be ironed out enough for them to have a future together?

I loved this book. It was not, as I said above, the rom com I was expecting. While it did have some cute moments, it was the harder hitting moments that made the book for me. I loved how both Kitty and Jack are made to look at their lives and learn from their difficult experiences in anticipation of a different kind of future going forward. There were some unexpected things that happened that made the book more interesting. I was drawn in immediately and the book kept my interest all the way through.

My sincere thanks to the publisher, Aria, and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book and give my unbiased opinion of it. I look forward to more from this author.

I enjoyed this book quite a lot.
From the first chapter, I got myself immersed into the story and wanted to know what happened to the runaway bride and what’s going to happen in her future.
It reminded me of the movie with Richard Gere and Julia Roberts.
Lots of humours moments but also heartbreaking scenes where two people find themselves drawn to each other but also need time to heal from a hard past to be able to carry forward with their relationship.

As I started this novel, I felt it had real potential. I really love the idea of a quirky meet cute that resulted in a road trip, free-spirited romance. However, this book left me really uncomfortable, particularly with the portrayal of abuse. I do think it's important to represent survivors of abuse in stories but not in a way that is gimmicky. The conversation surrounding abuse and the actions of Kitty's ex and mom felt very artifical and the inclusion of the abuse as simply a way to make clear villains in the book. Also, the whole adoption twist again left me with a sour taste that seemed to invalidate adoption and the concept of family.

I would not recommend this book.

it was sweet, enjoyable read. sadly, i did not love it, but i did like it and i think it’s a great book if you’re looking for something light, cute and without bigger dramas. what i’m disappointed with is the chemistry between characters: i didn’t really feel it. i enjoyed their interactions and i do think that their relationship is very healthy (which i think is great because they deserve it after everything they’ve been through) and well-balanced, but there was something lacking here, something that didn’t allow me to fully connect to the story. but still, it’s an okay book and the cover is very pretty, so i’m sure it’s going to draw a lot of attention and satisfy many readers.

- arc kindly provided by aria & aries in exchange for an honest review.

What a unique book! At first, I thought it sounded like other runaway bride books I've read but then the plot changed and the book really kept my interest, and it became all about new beginnings.

Of course, the bride flees her wedding, gets picked up by a hitchhiker and the rest is history, as they say. The heroine struggles with overcoming emotional abuse and the hero must learn how to overcome guilt to get a second chance at love.

While the book deals with some heavy subject matter, it has a good balance of lighthearted and sexy moments mixed in with the struggles.

The only thing I didn't like was that the ending felt rushed to me and everything came together in the last few pages. As if the author reached her word count and so it was time to finish.

Both a fun ride and a serious journey, this one cleverly unfolded into a beautiful story, although not exactly the laugh out loud that I was expecting. Instead, this one was filled with a quiet humor, along with some heavier topics to tackle.
Kitty and Jack both needed some help finding their way out of the dark, even if they didn’t realize it, and they made an excellent team.
I definitely enjoyed this one!

Kitty ran away from her wedding after 3 hours of being married. Then met Jack. She hitch-hiked with him. He dropped her to her aunt's house whom she didn't even explain what happen. So her aunt called her mom. Kitty ran away again and came across Jack. He let her stay with him and his pregnant dog who just gave birth to six cute puppies after a few weeks. He also gave her a job.


Here's the thing. I hated how stupid and dumb she's as she couldn't even tell what's the difference between abuse and love was. And she was dumb enough to trust her new hubby, Ethan so blindly as he was using her money. I don't think she's educated. Even a five years old knows not to give her/his candy to someone else. 🙄 And she's a grown up. She at some point behaved like she's soothing a newborn baby with Jack. WTF! It was such a turn off that I could not imagine them together after that. Shudder! This book's boring. I don't remember laughing at any point at all or crying. Felt bad that Jake lost his wife. But that's just it.

The cover is cute! And I like the involvement of dog and puppies. AW!

P.S. - I only read 31% of this book and the last chapter. I was really really bored.

What was supposed to be the happiest day of her life soon turned into her entire world getting turned upside down, after seeing Ethan cheat on her on their wedding day Kitty can't help but run. The last person she wants to see is her cheating husband or share a bed with him, this is exactly how Kitty finds herself hitch hiking in her wedding dress. She just never expected to find solace driving around with children's book author Jack Duffy and his pregnant dog in his tripped out campervan.

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Jack has had his own shared of heart ache but when he sees the sad lost looking bride on the side of the road he just knew that he had to help her. After the death of his wife Jack never thought that he would ever feel again but there is just something about Kitty that calls to his broken soul. As they travel about they begin to find that their friendship starts to grow into more but with both still dealing with relationships issues of their own, will they be able find their way to each other?

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The Runaway Bride was definitely not what I had expected, but this heart warming slow burn romance really wormed its way into my heart. Kitty was great, I loved getting to see her grow into her own and find her voice. After being so used to never really have a say in anything it was liberating seeing her finding her voice and being free for the first time in her life. This was a beautiful journey of self discovery and watching Kitty open her wings after being held down by Ethan and her mother was very rewarding.

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As for our guy Jack, what was not to love about this guy? He really did have a way with saving ladies in need. I loved seeing Kitty break down his walls and show him that even he needs to be taken care of sometimes. These two were so perfectly suited for each other and watching them help heal each other was just beautiful.

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I would definitely recommend reading this heartwarming romance with all of its unexpected twists and turns, you will definitely be flying through the pages!

This was a heart-warming tale of two people coming together ~ both of whom have suffered a lot in their lives. Jack and Kitty were very interesting characters. I loved reading about them. Sometimes spontaneous decisions bring out the best outcome our lives can possibly take, and The Runaway Bride was all about taking chances.

The story was filled with humor, heart and unexpected twists! We got to see Jack and Kitty navigate their blooming relationship with traumas and painful histories playing in the background. The plot was a bit cliched at times ~ but it was enjoyable nevertheless. I felt that the ending was abrupt for my liking. :( The reveal at last few chapters could have been fleshed out properly too. These are the only complains I've about the book.

3.85/5 🌟 Many thanks to the publisher for the e-ARC ❤️