With a trip to Scotland coming up, I KNEW this was the perfect romcom to read and it didn't disappoint. I enjoyed hearing about the history and culture inbetween the enemies to lovers going on. I also enjoyed that the story went deeper than just a superficial level with grief.

Thank you to NetGalley and Canary Street Press for the ARC of The Kilt Trip by Alexandra Kiley. This book was such a treat! Sweet, sexy, fun characters that you want to root for, great character development, and found family. Also, as someone who has lost a parent and struggles with that grief, I thought this novel did a fantastic job of bringing to the page those real-life emotions. And I am now desperate for a trip to Scotland; I feel like I need to experience the magic of it for myself! Highly recommend this one if you’re looking for a thoughtful, lovable book that you’ll smile your way through.

Kilt Trip by Alexandra Kiley transports readers to Scotland with travel consultant Addie McCrae and local tour guide Logan Sutherland! When Addie is tasked with turning around the struggling Sutherland family tour company, her vision for a more "touristy"-focused itinerary constantly clashes with Logan's desire for a more historically-rooted off the beaten path design. When Logan designs a tour for Addie to follow in the footsteps of her deceased mother, she finds herself growing closer to both Logan and her personal history. I really wanted to love this book; I visited Scotland last year and it is one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen!! I did just kind of struggle through this book; there were a lot of characters that didn't necessarily all need to be there cluttering the story and the plot isn't always very clear and easy to track with. That said I know this is Kiley's debut and I still want to read more books from her that I'm sure will just get better and better. I also would LOVE to go on Logan's tour to find out more about my personal connection to the beauty of Scotland.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley. All opinions expressed above are my own.

While Kilt Trip has all the adventure, tension and steam that most love in a romance book, it fell a bit flat for me. It started and ended well, and the main male character is written so well. However mid book I felt it was a bit off. I may try and read this one again.

What a fantastic book! Kilt trip is more than just romance but finding yourself, grief and adventure. Do yourself a favour and pick up this book, you will not be disappointed!

Utterly cute and somewhat steamy, came for the nice style and stayed for the great banter. Thanks for the ARC netgalley. And thanks for the AutoApprovs (!!) Harlequin

The cover of this book i love! This is the first time by this author and hope to read more.

Once i started reading i definitely wan to visit Edinburgh. I loved the part in the book which seemed like you were in Scotland while reading the book and it was a love story how can you not like those two combinations.

While reading the book you cannot help but love the characters and stand behind them as their story unfolds. I would recommend the book.

Thanks NetGalley for letting me read and review.

I had a hard time getting into this book. It took me a while to get to the 25% mark and I think that is because I didn't feel any sort of emotion when the two main characters first met. I was hoping their banter would be off the charts or there would be strong tension between them but their conversation seemed flat to me.
The storytelling and myths included also seemed underdeveloped. I don't think all of them were necessary and I would have loved more detail.
I did love how so many historical places were mentioned and how easy it is to picture these places. I also think it was very sweet how the main character learned more about her mother in every spot she visited.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an ARC of this book!

This book was, in a word, warm. It was a comforting read that was still sizzling with romantic tension. There were a lot of stories and places familiar to me throughout the book and Kiley reminded me of how beautiful and awe-inspiring they are. I’m not usually a fan of dual-POV romance, but I loved it in this story. Both Logan and Addie’s voice and perspectives felt so unique and rich in their sense of character and the plot was never repeated or slowed down by seeing it through two perspectives.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy! This was a solid 3 star read. I loved the idea and premise, but the execution was sloppy and choppy. The pacing felt off and I didn’t find myself rooting for the characters as much as I usually do. Pros are the setting and description of Scotland was amazing! But the overuse of ‘lass’ did give me the ick

3.5 stars
Globetrotter Addie Macrae, a travel consultant who never stays long in one place, arrives in Edinburgh to advise a tour company on improving profitability. Before meeting with the owner and his son, Addie books a city tour and meets Logan Sutherland, a handsome, charming tour guide in a kilt, only to find out at her meeting the next day that Logan's father is the owner of the tour company.

Logan and Addie butt heads because he prefers to focus on the hidden gems of Scotland while Addie believes that popular tourist attractions are most profitable. As the two wage war over the tour itineraries, Logan discovers that Addie has a connection to the country - a series of Polaroids of her late mother taken in Scotland - and decides to take her on a tour to find the places her mother had visited in hopes that seeing more of the country will convince her that there is beauty in the less-travelled destinations.

Kilt Trip is a cute romance about a woman who has closed herself off emotionally finding love and dealing with her grief. The best part of the book is the strong sense of place. I loved the descriptions of Edinburgh and the other places Addie and Logan visit as they travel around Scotland - this is a romance that will definitely stoke your wanderlust!

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for sending a digital ARC of this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Get your passport ready, after reading Kilt Trip you’re going to want to visit Edinburgh. This story doubled not only as a heartwarming love story but also a unique literary tour of Scotland. Whether you’ve been before or not, Alexandra Kiley’s rich descriptions will have you eager to return in person. Logan and Addie have a sweet meet cute turned on its head and you’ll spend the rest of the story rooting for them. Kilt Trip is the perfect romantic escape!

I started following Alexandra on Instagram early 2023? Maybe it was late 2022? — and I am so excited to have an opportunity to read Kilt Trip, her debut novel! This is a bit of a pinch me moment as a reader.

Alexandra immediately pulls you in by taking you on a tour of Edinburgh, Scotland - and then all around the country - as if you’re right alongside Addie and Logan. Her writing is absolutely beautiful, and not once did it feel like a filler to the story, but always moving it along.

Addie’s adolescence tugs at your heartstrings. Makes you feel things along the spectrum of grateful to oh my gosh I have taken advantage of this relationship.

Addie’s walls are thicker than a historic Scottish castle, and Logan is up for the challenge. Logan loves with his whole self; his sense of community and family are his roots, and he isn’t willing to compromise on them. His family welcomes Addie right in alongside them and their traditions blurring the lines between colleague and romantic interest.

Addie and Logan find themselves dancing around it’s not personal, it’s business while trying to find a balance between business and pleasure while speaking different love languages. Their story made my heart swell, and then my eyes with tears, maybe broke my soul a little, and then pieced it back together. I love them.

I can only imagine Gemma and Neil’s home cottage like that in The Holiday. And with that, I’m off to find a man who will call me lass, and mean it in the most endearing/heart is about to burst way, and lives in a lovely Scottish cottage.

Tropes:
Strangers to enemies to lovers
Instant attraction
Foreigner and local
Workplace proximity/Office romance

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this eARC!

A sweet and emotional story of love and dealing with grief in the beautiful setting of Scotland! Addie and Logan's immediate connection drew me right in. But then the blowback of him discovering she is in Edinburgh to shake up his family's business creates a delicious tension between the two.

What stood out the most for me in this book was how detailed the imagery was. I truly felt like I was on the tours Logan was giving. I also appreciated the honesty of Addie's grieving process. While her mother's death wasn't recent, she was still very much processing that grief years later, which is something I think many people can relate to.

However, I am still wishing for a romance that doesn't feature grief as a subplot! There seem to be so many as of late. Additionally, the repetitiveness of Logan's frustration with Addie not opening up was grating by the end.

This was a enjoyable post-holiday winter read with strong writing, excellent characterization, and an unforgettable setting. I can only hope it turns into a series, I'd love to see what's in store for Logan's brothers and Elyse.

The cover of Kilt Trip drew me in. After reading the synopsis, I knew I had to give it a try. Unfortunately, it wasn't for me. I felt that the beginning of the story gave too many details about attraction tours. I understand what the author was trying to do but it didn't work for me. The banter between the main characters felt awkward and not fun and flirty.

Kilt Trip has an immersive & beautiful setting as we travel through Scotland with our main characters. Addie’s story as she tries to find closure and connection to her mother who has died years prior is compelling & beautiful. A fantastic debut!

Unfortunately, Kilt Trip just wasn’t for me. While I think others might find charm in how much history is mentioned I personally found it boring. I felt the amount of history made me feel disconnected to the main characters like I didn’t truly know them as people beyond being encyclopedias of Scottish knowledge. I personally DNF-ed at 31%. But a history lover out there might love the book!

I was very excited for this book and it breaks my heart that it wasn’t for me. I’ve seen so many book friends loving it that I was convinced I would as well, but I didn’t connect with the characters. Both Logan and Addie had some personality traits that made me not like them very much, and it affected how I viewed their relationship. I also feel like the job Addie was doing and the tours took up too many time in the novel, which made the romance feel secondary and a bit underdeveloped to me.

I’m thankful for my review copy.

Overall, this was a very good read - not just a rom-com, though that's the root premise, but an (at times slightly contrived) exploration of how relationships flourish and how one contends with grief. Addie and Logan become well-rounded realistic protagonists, and the Epilogue is worth reading the rest of the book for.

I was excited to have early access to read Kilt Trip because of the setting in Edinburgh, Scotland - one of my favorite cities in the world (and not did I feel the wanderlust reading all of the many details about Edinburgh and the Scottish highlands woven into this story!).

This story follows main characters Addie Macrae (American travel consultant) and Logan Sutherland (co-owner of his family’s Edinburgh-based tour company). Addie is hired by Logan’s dad/company co-owner, to help get the business in better shape before he retires (much to Logan’s chagrin, who likes things just the way they are, thank ye very much). Addie and Logan hit it off instantly, until they know who each other is, that is.

This story is pleasantly stuffed with details and facts about Scotland that make the reader feel like they’re in the setting. Addie and Logan have plenty of banter and also growth throughout the novel. I found the story wasn’t gripping my attention during the last 1/3 of the book, however I did find the ending really cute. A solid 3⭐️ read for me!