This is my absolute favorite romance of the year so far!! Scotland, Scottish men in Kilts, enemies to lovers! Yes, yes, yes please!!! I loved this book so much I have to get a physical copy to keep and so I'm able to reread it again and again! It is that good!! This is a must read romance!
I just reviewed Kilt Trip by Alexandra Kiley. #KiltTrip #NetGalley
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3.5 stars!

An enemies to lovers rom com about an American travel consultant who is sent to Scotland to help revitalize a family tour company in Scotland. One of the family owners (Logan) is passionate about his travel tours and is less than thrilled with the consultant's (Addie's) interference in the traditions of his company tours. Logan is a stubborn Scot with a big heart and Addie is grieving the loss of her mother. He falls first and she is very reluctant to trust, fearful of loss.

A fun and engaging debut for this author. A good balance of sweet romance, funny banter, some spice and likeable characters with believable baggage. Loved the setting (who doesn't love Scotland and men in kilts...) and the relationship between the two main characters, Logan and Addie.

The middle was a little slow for me, which is why it didn't make a 4, but I would certainly read more by this author.

Thank you to Netgalley and Canary Street Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review

I really liked the book. It was face paced, kept me hooked the entire time, and had an enjoyable storyline. I wish there were more of the side characters but overall 4 stars.

Addie has every Sagittarius’s dream job: jetting around the world to consult for local tourism and travel companies to help them improve. When tasked with a tour guide leader reluctant to change in a country full of emotional connections she’s been avoiding, Addie isn’t sure she can let her guard down enough to get the job done. Logan is as stubborn as he is sexy and he’ll do anything to show Addie the heart of Scotland, even if it means risking his heart too.

I’m a sucker for a book set in Scotland and I know there’s a lot of ladiew out there just like! There’s just some thing about putting us into Edinburgh or the highlands and we get cozy and enjoy! Kilt Trip is the story of Addie a travel consultant who is scared of commitment and staying in one place and Logan, the Scotsman, who is attached to his family‘s business and has deep deep roots. Instantly sparks fly between the two, but I like in any good romance novel they have to overcome some struggles before they can find their HEA. This was exactly the type of hallmark book. I wanted to read on a Sunday afternoon.

Thank you #Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I requested this book on @netgalley simply because the title made me giggle. I was expecting this to just be a silly little treat of a book but it was so much more than that! I did not expect to cry or the immediate need to book a trip to Scotland. If you love Emily Henry, Rebecca Serle, or even like watching Bar Rescue, you will absolutely love this book!

Kilt Trip tells the story of Addie, a travel consultant who is never in one spot too long, while she is helping Logan’s family-run tour company in Scotland’s Highlands become more profitable. Addie and Logan disagree on how to move the business forward, but through the magic of Scotland, sparks fly between them.

Many reviews have mentioned how this book reads a lot like an Emily Henry book (which is true!) but it actually really reminds me of One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle. One Italian Summer is one of my favorite books because of how she describes Positano and the journey we have of Katy working through her grief. Kilt Trip gave me the same thing! Hearing the descriptions of the Highlands, plus Logan’s fun historical facts, had me looking up pictures and ready to start making a trip itinerary. I even found the menu of one of the places they went to eat!

One thing I did struggle with while reading was keeping track of the timeline and whose POV I was reading. For the timeline, I would have appreciated the first sentence of the chapter saying something like “4 weeks later” to let me know how much time had passed when there was a longer chunk of time.

This started out as a meet cute turned rivals/enemies to lovers. Addie was emotionally constipated and Logan was terrible at communicating effectively. They’d both been hurt by their families in unintentional ways, although Addie was much more alone in the world than Logan was.
The story was pretty hallmark-esque with lots of cozy vibes and low stakes issues that revolved around finding the meaning of love and all that. It delved into Addie’s long lived grief for the loss of her mother and her father’s ensuing grief-fueled depression. It delved into Logan’s unwillingness to take risks and suggestions from an outside source. It was cute.

Spice: 3/5

Triggers: grief, depression (off page, not MC), death of parent, neglectful parent

I've always been interested in Scotland which had me wanting to read this book! I love how it has you feeling like you are really there with the details. The banter had me laughing. I love the character development and Addie and Logans relationship growth.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me am eARC of this book!

Addie is sent on assignment to help a struggling family-run tour company in the Highlands—and save her own job—Addie packs away her emotional baggage and turns on the professional charm. Rugged as the land he loves, Logan's greatest joy is sharing the beauty of Scotland’s hidden gems. The last thing Logan wants is some American “expert” pushing tourist traps.

This book will heighten your Wanderlust senses to the max. Set in gorgeous Scotland, I loved the idea of helping one another in the time of need.

Addie & Logan's relationship was a rollercoaster; sometimes flirty, sometimes snappy. I really enjoyed how they worked together to save the tour company along with discovering the places Addie's mom had been.
This book reminded me of one of my favorite movies, "Leap Year." I could totally imagine the picturesque scenes being shown on a screen.

Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️

"Sometimes we find a place we’ve never been before, but it feels like coming home."

Addie’s next work trip is a place where she can no longer avoid. In a beautiful prose of finding her way back “home,” Addie navigates more than just the beautiful Highland hills. With the help of our handsome tour guide in a kilt, they take a trip along a path of rediscovering connections- to land, to people, to the past. Cozy up with this yummy romance filled with castles, hairy coos & Logan’s mom’s shortbread!

Themes in the book:
a tad bit of office romance
slow burn
close proximity
wanderlust
found family
healing

This book was everything and more- such a perfect blend of wanderlust and romance. I immediately added celebrating Hogmanay in Scotland on my bucket list! The writing was so descriptive and immersive, that I truly felt like I was a part of the tour group roadtripping around the Highlands. I also appreciate how pieces of history and storytelling were sprinkled around without dragging the story down and making it too “discovery channel-y”. It was just enough to capture the wonder of the scenery without taking away from the main characters.

You can feel the emotion and the vulnerability of the MCs, and I found the book was so well paced. I felt like every single part of the book was needed to truly capture Addie and Logan’s love story. What an absolutely wonderful [kilt] trip!
See you all in Scotland!!

TW: parent death, partner death (not MC), abandonment, grief

*Thank you NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review! All opinions are my own.*

UGH! This book was the perfect mix of romance, comedy, grief, and history, all with a little spice sprinkled in. The cover immediately drew me in, and every time Logan wore a kilt had me swooning (and possibly wanting to change my dating profile location to Scotland immediately ????)

I loved how relatable both Logan and Addie’s struggles and character development felt. I think many readers (including myself) can really identify with their journeys to follow their passions while dealing with their past trauma and pain, and wanted to stay true to themselves.

You could absolutely feel Alexandra Kiley’s passion for Scotland come through the pages of this book. I was really impressed with how seamlessly she included fascinating tidbits of the country’s history…all while still making them somehow sexy?! Like hello who doesn’t want to make out in the dark nooks and corners of a Scottish castle?!

Definitely suggest this book if you’re looking for a fun romance, with some history and personal growth all mixed together!

Thank you NetGalley and Canary Street Press for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to the publisher for the ARC.

I was instantly intrigued by this book because I love all things Scotland and I wasn’t disappointed. There were several laugh out loud moments and also a few weepy scenes. I felt transported as if I was actually in Scotland and I didn’t want to leave. Great read!

I very much enjoyed this book. It made me smile, laugh, and cry. I loved the story of Addie and Logan meeting and keeping the initial secret of her spying in his tour group. All of the characters were fun and well written. This book is a love letter to Scotland!!!

3.5 rounded up

I love books that are set in Scotland, that was the big reason I wanted to read this book, and the Scotland setting was very prevalent throughout - so I was very happy about that! The Scotland aspect was my favorite part of the book.

The romance between the MCs was slow burn, but it didn’t quite work for me. I felt the book was missing the pining between the characters before the romance finally set in. There wasn’t the amount of tension/chemistry I was hoping for in the first half, so then when things finally happened between the characters, I wasn’t screaming with excitement like I would want to be in a slow burn book.

However, I do have to say the book was well written. I understood the character’s motivations for why they did what they did, and I enjoyed how the story came together in the end. Def not bad for a debut and I’m happy I did read it!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

while this is absolutely a cute, fun contemporary romance between two characters, it is ALSO a love letter to scotland, and alexandra’s ability to weave scottish lore, history, and quirks into the story while making it still feel organic is nothing short of magic.

this story focuses on addie and logan — addie, a practical, focused, weighed-down-with-baggage-and-vulnerability-issues professional in the overhauling-outdated-tourism-companies business, and logan, a deeply sentimental scottish man, trying desperately to keep his family-owned business afloat while also maintaining the integrity and authenticity of the tours he loves to give. addie and logan routinely butt heads in this workplace romance rife with slow burn, forced proximity, and a dash of rivals-to-lovers as they both try to prove to the other why their business plans are the best.

it’s a bit slow through the middle, but that’s mostly because of the extra details pertaining to scotland — it’s SO immersive that it truly felt like i was celebrating hogmanay with addie and logan, and trekking to see highland cows. (SOMEDAY, GOD, THE DREAM!)

ultimately this is a cute contemporary romance with a strong emotional thread that makes the characters easy to connect with, enough slow burn to make you YEARN, and about 1,001 reasons to book a trip to scotland immediately. men in kilts being reason #1, obviously.

First of all, I would like to thank NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a cozy and really nice romance novel. It didn't have much spice in it, so if you are a reader that loves spicy books maybe this isn't for you. I loved how beautiful was the setting described throughout the book. I lived in the UK for 3 years and sadly never had the time to visit Scotland. This book really made me want to prioritize going to Scotland in the next few years on my bucket list.

There was a lot I liked about this book, but unfortunately, there was also a lot that didn't work for me.

What worked:
- Edinburgh as a setting -- Kiley did her research and the setting felt lived in, with the correct history and flavor added to the story to make the setting real, even if the reader had never been to Edinburgh.
- Discussions of tourism in the present era of social media and quick photos versus in-depth personalization and history
- The side characters were, at times, more delightful than our MCs (see below), and they certainly had more common sense. Elyse was a DELIGHT and I felt that Logan was surrounded by people who had more common sense than he did.
- The strongest part of this book -- and one that I haven't seen advertised as much -- is the representation of the omnipresent grief Aimee feels at the loss of her mother, a free spirit, and her father's subsequent detachment in the wake of his own grief. Her journey to connect to why she loves travel and heading to her parents' honeymoon spots was beautifully told, and Logan's help on finding the locations was the best part of their relationship.

What didn't work:
- I didn't buy the romance which is essential...for a romance novel. There was instant attraction, then (childish on both of the MC's parts) office dislike and pranks, and then all of a sudden a truce and banging? And then they're in love?
- I don't love the trope of "business-focused American needs to slow down and fall in love with a man with an accent".
- I felt that the differences between Aimee and Logan seemed too wide to overcome, almost to the point of being stereotyped. He's a tour guide that doesn't believe in showing the most popular sites at all? She's a travel consultant (not a relatable job) who doesn't understand the need for personal connection or history in tours? Really? I felt both of them were so stubborn about their jobs, and not in the "passionate defense of what I love way". Also Aimee's company seems like it really sucked (I'm sure that's the point), but it made it difficult to see why she even worked for them in the first place. Honestly, I think the story would have been more compelling if Aimee was there on on a different type of work trip and stumbled into Logan and he helped her reconnect with her mother's memory and she helped him with his business.
- The end seemed rushed, plus the epilogue was a bit too corny, even for me.

Even with what I didn't like, I enjoyed the book as a fun, rompy quick read. Kiley has a good voice for romance and I will definitely check out other books she publishes. 2.5 stars rounded up.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC

I haven’t been this genuinely invested in romcom characters since the last Emily Henry. I even teared up a little by the end. These characters felt so real and their development was believable. I found myself rooting for both of them and shouting in my head "Just talk to each other!"

Side note: This is not absolutely foul like most of these cutesy illustrated covers. A true miracle.

DNF @ 32%
I tried to get into this story but I couldn’t relate to the characters the more I kept reading. I feel like a lot of the main characters backstory was missing. I believe have more backstory of how each of the main character got to where they were when they first met would have helped me to get into the story mode.

This is not to say that others won’t enjoy this story or this style of writing. I had high hopes with the setting being in Scotland that I would be whisked away into the Scottish setting.

Thank you Harlequin Trade Publishing for the chance to read this book to submit my honest opinion.

DNF @ 30%

Gosh dangit I really wanted to like this, but I didn't get on with the writing style. I felt like the story moves forward in fits and starts, and because it didn't flow I had a really hard time keeping my attention. I wasn't invested in the characters either, nor their pending romance. It just fell a bit flat for me.

THAT SAID. There are people out there who will LOVE this book. This is just about my preferences when I'm reading, and is not a reflection of how others may feel!