There was just so much agenda in this book. I disagreed with a lot of it, respectfully of course, but it felt like by having the MC complain about different beliefs being pushed down her throat, it pushed her (or the authors) beliefs on us. A lot.

But the writing is great. I just wish it would’ve been more light hearted and RomCom and less opinions/beliefs. I mean there was A LOT.

Overall:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️

When a book is described as a mashup of two of my favorites (People We Meet on Vacation meets The Unhoneymooners), I had no choice but to read it, and it did not disappoint! 🩷

Honestly, this sounds like the coolest idea and I would love to win a contest to travel around the world for 2 months! I did take a deeper look at who was still in my phone contacts and deleted a few people in case this ever happens to me. 😂

I loved the chemistry between Dylan and Jack, but was a little annoyed by some of the miscommunications. I also feel like there was something lacking with their travels. I would have loved more descriptions and recommendations in the book if anyone wanted to try and recreate this trip.
For that reason, I’m giving it 4 stars.

Tropes:
Forced proximity
Grumpy X Sunshine
a touch of enemies to lovers

CW:
Abortion
Bullying
Panic Attacks

Thanks so much to Penguin Group Putnam, G.P. Putnam’s Sons and NetGalley for this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review!

This was a good rom com read. The way the characters played off each other made the read really fun. I just wish the author used more descriptors with the main characters. I feel like I have no clue what they look like.

DNF @23%- This book had potential, but the main character is such an entitled jerk. There were times I thought she was seeming more relatable, but the using a cell phone while driving (especially when she hasn’t driven in ten years and is in a new place) just pushed it over the edge.

For real, though. My DNF has been on a hair trigger lately. But... buuuuut... I got to almost halfway through WANDERLUST and there's no chemistry, no explanation on how this improbable contest set-up is even happening (how is this dude just taking off work?), and these characters are kind of blah for me.

I'm just not feeling it.

𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚: DNF at 46%

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This debut romance centers Dylan and Jack, a magazine writer and her forgotten one-night-stand that win a trip around the world together. As they travel, they get to know each other and begin to earn each other's trust -- until something happens to break that relationship and forces them to rebuild it. All the while, they're also confronting the ghosts of their pre-globetrotting past, including the harms that social media has inflicted upon them.

I liked that the protagonists in this story were complex, and that we got to watch them develop. I also really liked the premise of the characters seeing the world over the course of the story. However, I wish we had been given a bit more description of the locations they actually traveled to. I also found the story to be rather forgettable overall, especially since I am not a part of the influencer world.

Ultimately, I'd recommend this if you are looking for a relatively quick and easy read that still tackles a few mature topics and discusses the toxic nature of social media. It's not particularly groundbreaking, but it's still fun.

brb gonna go wander the world for a couple of months ✈️

4 ⭐️ wanderlust was so fun! in this book we are following dylan who wins a radio contest to travel the world, but she has to randomly choose one person from her phone contacts to go with her. who does she choose but a mysterious man who she doesn’t even remember meeting?? dylan and jack met at a bar several months ago but nothing ever came from it - but now just might be their time to spend some time together. both dylan and jack are in a weird spot with their jobs and lives - neither truly happy and neither knows what the best step is. a trip around the world might just help them learn what will make them happy, and maybe find a little love along the way.

other fun facts:
•bi fmc
•british & irish mcs
•important discussion around reproductive rights

this book was super cute and i’m super impressed with this debut author! absolutely recommend to be your next summer read ✨

thank you to Penguin Group - G.P. Putnam's Sons & NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review. this book is out now!

I was delighted by the first 50% of this book. The premise is cute, the writing is good, the characters are fun. It feels like a classic early 2000s rom-com movie.

My interest started to wane a bit after the halfway mark. I think this is because I prefer rom-coms with a big cast of characters and in this one Dylan and Jack are rather secluded while they are on their 'round the world trip. There was a lot of technical talk about influencing and how to be successful on Instagram that I think could have been left up to the imagination.

But, overall, rather delightful! I always love a British rom-com and I'm eager to see what this author comes up with next.

Overview: Dylan, a magazine writer focused on getting her own column, wins a radio contest for a once-in-a-lifetime trip around the world. The only catch is that her travel companion will be randomly picked from her phone’s contact list. Which number was selected? One saved as “Jack the Posho,” who Dylan has no recollection of…at first…

Thoughts: I enjoyed this one and was impressed to learn that this was a debut novel! I am now inspired to plan my next vacation!
I LOVED the chemistry between Dylan and Jack, both of whom I found to be likeable and relatable. Funnily enough, this book was advertised as sort of a mashup between “The Unhoneymooners” and “People We Meet on Vacation,” which were two books that I did not love primarily because of the main characters. “Wanderlust” is by far my favorite of these three travel-themed/opposites attract books.

As a heads up, the book does touch upon some heavy topics, including LGBTQ-related issues, abortion, climate change, doxing, and unsupportive parents.

Take home message: This slow burn, opposites attract (but not quite second-chance) rom-com is perfect for those yearning to see the world. Definitely looking forward to seeing what Everhart will write next!

Big thanks to NetGalley and Putnam for this lovely digital ARC!

The premise of this book is just the cutest for a summer read. It fell a little flat for me. I love a book with atmospheric settings and this book had the perfect opportunity to create that but I just felt like it fell short there because the characters never spent enough time in one place. Jack felt closed off for too much of the story so it was hard to believe the romance when that hit. I did appreciate how the author approached difficult storylines and thought that was done well. I loved Dylan’s character. It was just an ok read!

I adored this book! Another incredible travel romance from Putnam. It made me want to book a flight like no other. I loved reading about all the different locations that Dylan and Jack traveled to. I've been to a handful of them, but now I absolutely need to visit the ones I haven't!

This book was heavier than I was expecting, but the author did a good job of balancing the romance with the heavy stuff. I would have liked a little more chemistry between Dylan and Jack, but I always can enjoy a good sunshine and grump story. The audiobook was incredible, narrated by Olivia Dowd.

This is the perfect book to read or listen to on a plane while you're headed somewhere awesome. Do you have any interesting travel planned this summer?

Thank you to Putnam and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy and to PRH Audio for the complimentary audiobook. These opinions are my own.

Dylan wins a radio contest for a free trip around the world. There's just one catch. The station gets to go through her contacts and randomly select who among them will be invited to accompany her. And they land on Jack, a man she met at a club but never called afterwards.

I was quite pleased with the pacing of this book. It had a quick start, getting to the key premise and through the synopsis early. I really liked both Dylan and Jack. And I loved their trip. They hit up nine different cities. We got more details on some than others, but all made me want to travel.

In amidst all of that beauty were some tough topics including online trolls and doxing, issues around privacy and consent, and how climate change will affect each of the cities they visited. I also quite appreciated the queer representation.

But the romance annoyed me at times. When a first person narrator says that she knows she should tell her love interest something but isn't going to yet, I can understand that. But I am only okay with that a maximum of two times. When we hear a third time why the narrator plans to delay and be secretive, I get pretty frustrated. They know better. This might frustrate those who get annoyed by miscommunication.

That also means it often felt this book was more about a woman's personal journey than a book focused on romance. The writing was fantastic and worth recommending, but not the romantic story I expected.

The audiobook was narrated by Olivia Dowd with a great variety of English accents. At 10 hours and 18 minutes, it was a great length and engaging throughout.

CW: biphobia

Unfortunately this one was just not for me. A few things at the beginning that are things I don't love in books & I just decided not to continue reading. DNFed around 10% of the way in. I think lots of people will really enjoy it - just my personal preference.

Wanderlust by Elle Everhart had my interest right away with the premise. The main character wins a radio show contest, and she gets to travel around the world. The catch? The radio station randomly selects a person from her phone to go on the trip with her. The randomly selected person ends up being Jack, a person she met one night at a bar.

Violet and Jack traveled to make fun places. The writing made me feel as if I was there too. That said, I couldn't feel the chemistry between Violet and Jack. Jack feels cold and distant throughout the book. This book had some heavy topics, such as abortion and doxing. That didn't both me, but going into the book would have been nice to know. I expected a fun rom-com travel romance, but the main characters missed the mark. This would have been a good dual-POV book.

Thank you, G.P. Putnam's Sons, for my complimentary copy for my honest review.

I was 100% here for the premise of this book: Dylan, a writer who feels a bit stuck at her job for a buzzy magazine and website, wins an incredible radio contest: an all-expenses-paid trip around the world. There is, of course, a catch: The radio station will select a contact from her phone at random to accompany her on the vacation. As luck would have it, they choose Jack, an uptight lawyer who Dylan met (and kissed) one night in a bar. I felt that the chemistry between Dylan and Jack fell a little flat, or perhaps it took too long to progress. And there seemed to be a bit too much outside drama (both of their jobs and both of their families), plus I found it hard to believe that Jack wouldn't expect the story to play out online.

It wasn't for me, but I'm sure plenty of readers will enjoy it! I was intrigued by the premise of this debut romance, so I didn't hesitate to give it a try. I love the concept of traveling the world with someone you had one encounter with before things took an awkward turn, and I'm always up for a road trip romance with tons of forced proximity. However, I found the execution itself to be a little lackluster. The vast majority of romance novels out these days are written in first person, so I found the third person POV to be tougher to get into - especially since the heroine has a traditionally masculine name. It was just one extra thing to try to keep straight in my mind. I also didn't like Dylan's character all that much; she seemed kind of self-involved, and it was no wonder why Jack was irritated with her. Not that I liked him all that much better, but I was definitely curious about his character at the start. Ultimately, this didn't play out the way I was hoping and the lack of chemistry between the characters meant the love story didn't hold my interest. I ended up DNFing somewhere along the way.

This was a first time read for me by this author and I had such fun reading it, that it definitely won't be my last. It is a cute and fun story that will having you smiling and laughing along the way. Dylan is feeling kind of stuck in her life and on a whim, calls in to a radio station for a chance to win a trip around the world, and she actually wins. There is one catch, though. She has to randomly choose a travel partner from her contacts. And she ends up choosing the last person she would want to go with, Jack, an annoying and uptight guy who she had met on a night out. Despite all the awkwardness they initially had, after all they were virtual strangers taking a trip together, they ultimately began to bond and a wonderful chemistry developed between the two. I enjoyed following the character growth between Jack and Dylan and also how they championed each other. Both were well-developed characters and I liked getting to know them. This was an entertaining story and I look forward to reading more by this author.
I received a complimentary copy from Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.

Dylan is a magazine quiz writer struggling to get her big break. On a whim, she enters a radio contest for a trip around the world. The only catch is that she has to travel with someone randomly chosen from her phone contacts. The randomizer chooses wound-too-tight Jack, who Dylan met months ago and ghosted him before their first date. He surprisingly agrees and the two set off on their trip together.

I really enjoyed the personal journeys of Dylan and Jack individually. The both really came into their own and found out what they wanted to do with their careers and with their futures. It made the romance aspect feel like the cherry on top and not their sole purpose, which was refreshing and appreciated.

Overall, I loved all of the travel adventures that they went on and their character growth. The family subplot was especially timely and I also loved the bi rep. The romance wasn’t the main focus, but when the slow burn came to a boil, it was definitely hot! I would recommend this one for anyone who loves to travel and anyone who loves novels about writers.

Thank you so much to Penguin Group and NetGalley for this arc in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

I went into this book really hoping for a light, fun romance that was heavy on the travel.
What I got was different... And for that, I'm thankful!
This story did a lot of things well: We have likable enough lead characters, a fun narrative device that allows for forced proximity, our characters traveling to interesting locations, slow development of the lead character's relationship, and discussion of heavy/difficult topics is a really well done way.
What did this book do best? Definitely the story's conflict between our leads. Our female lead (and the reader's POV) does a not so great thing, which was refreshing. She made the mistake, she wasn't the "victim" of the mistake. The conflict doesn't make you want to roll your eyes, it's real, makes sense, and the male lead's reaction is warranted. Our character's discussion of the conflict and them working through the conflict allows for development of their relationship and communication, which is great.
I do wish the story had focused a bit more on the travel and the sights our main characters are fortunate enough to see. I also wish we would have gotten a bit more of our female lead's inner monologue with regards to her relationship with her parents, especially in the lead up to the reader understanding why there's tension there.
Overall, this was an enjoyable read and I would recommend giving it a read. It would be a great book to bring on a plane!

I loved this book until I didn't. And even though I didn't agree with all of the choices the FMC did I still loved Everhart's writing.