Short, funny and heartwarming! This started out as a holiday movie script and the authors decided it needed to be a book too. I had no idea when I started it that it was set around Christmas time, but it makes for a wonderful holiday read. I enjoyed this second chance romance with all the forced proximity travel mishaps!

4.75⭐️ thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to receive this arc in return for an honest review!

oh this was SO GOOD!!! this was my first book by Lauren Layne and knowing her and her husband wrote it together gave me all the giddy feels. this was a perfect rom-com, but also had such fleshed out characters that felt so real and relatable in such a short page count. i empathized so much with katherine and her struggles. she was so layered and even though she came across as grumpy and unfeeling, she truly had such a loyal, sweet heart. tom was an organized, sarcastic cutie and i loved the way he could take everything katherine dished and dish it right back! their banter was adorable and so fulfilling to read.

i loved their chaotic journey. each road block brought them closer and closer together :) i enjoyed seeing the two of them fall back in to love. they really never stopped, but seeing them realize how much they miss each other and that they really are the loves of their lives was beautiful. they’re perfect for each other! this got me in to the christmas spirit as well with the holiday vibes.

i thoroughly enjoyed this!!!

Lauren Layne is one of my favorite authors and I love that she wrote this book with her real life husband!

The book itself is such a fun, lighthearted holiday romance. Great banter and chemistry between the two main characters! The perfect book to read while curled up with a cup of cocoa next to the fireplace.

I have been waiting for a new Lauren Layne book and was very excited for Emergency Contact. This release is even more special because it’s co-written by her husband. How cute is that! I thought their writing styles complemented each other well and provided a seamless narrative.

The story idea was cute. It was a little Christmas Hallmark movie-ish – a road trip, second chance romance set during a snowstorm at Christmas. Katherine and Tom are divorced and traveling together (due to reasons you shouldn’t spend too much time analyzing) from New York to Chicago to Tom’s family where he plans to propose to his new girlfriend at Christmas. Along the way, there is a comedy of errors that result in delay after delay, while the former couple act like bitter exes who hate each other, but really start to remember why they don’t.

I did struggle with a few things, though. While there is not any physical cheating, Tom does a whole lot of emotional cheating on his girlfriend. I can give it a bit of a pass because even some of my favorite Hallmark Christmas movie plots have this type of situation happen. What left me feeling a little icky about it, though, is the way Tom describes his girlfriend, Lolo. She’s in no way a bad girlfriend or villain of the story (like in the movies I enjoy), but she’s just kind of boring when compared to feisty Katherine. It just rubbed me the wrong way.

Speaking of Katherine, I struggled with her, as well. It is a pet peeve of mine when authors explicitly mention within the pages of the story how characters don’t need to be likable or – in this particular instance – how it’s unfair to call women unlikable just for not being the ideal type of agreeable woman we’re supposed to be. It just seems like an excuse to not create a more well-rounded, sympathetic character. Sure, Katherine had some backstory to why she was closed off and she’s a strong woman in a profession mostly run by men, but that’s not an excuse to how just plain rude and self-centered she could be. There were times where she was just really mean and I wasn’t here for it. Her character was also not very consistent for me. She vacillated between being rude/mean and being teasing – sometimes even good naturedly. She did get mostly better for me as the story went on, though.

Overall, Emergency Contact was a cute story. While there were some things that I took issue with, it’s a fun, quick read that will get you in the mood for the holiday season.

3.5 Stars

Divorced couple, Kate and Tom, have to travel from NYC to Chicago together and start to wonder if they should have divorced. This was a cute story with all sorts of transportation issues and the banter between the couple keeps you hooked. I really enjoyed this story and hope there’s another book coming soon!

I don’t think I’ve laughed harder at someone else’s expense. Nothing goes right for Tom and Katherine as they travel from New York to Chicago two days before Christmas. She’s very much an intelligent woman with a tough as nails appearance and a New Yorker attitude. But she has to be tough as a lawyer trying to reach partner status. I found myself eager for her next words because she has no filter, everything is sarcastic and a front for her real thoughts. Tom seems like Prince Charming, doing the right things and saying the right things but it’s not for him. He needs a backbone, a voice and to follow his dreams. Their adventure was torturous, hysterical and down right criminal. I’m pretty sure the authors had a great time writing this book. I received an early copy from NetGalley and have written my review voluntarily.

This second chance holiday romance was originally written as a screenplay, and I could totally see it working as a movie. The constant bantering/bickering, fast-paced romance and overall storyline would work well in that format. As a book, I needed a smoother transition from hate to love. The story takes place over a 36-hour period and our hero is fully expecting to propose to another woman as soon as they reach their destination, so it's a delicate balance for sure. It was easy to see that these two former spouses still had a lot of love buried beneath a mountain of hurt and miscommunication, so it was fun to see their bickering transform into bantering. They had some solid chemistry, and I liked the merging of Layne's upscale rom com vibes with her real-life husband and co-author's comedic background. I liked all the banter, it was just a little too mean-spirited for a little too long, and that's why I can't round up my rating. But there's a lot to like within the pages.

The story follows Katherine, a workaholic who is fully aware of the reputation she's earned over the years. Christmas has been tough ever since her father passed away on the holiday, and she hasn't had a family to call her own since her divorce four years ago. So when she's injured on the 23rd and discovers that her emergency contact is still her estranged ex, it's a surprise to them both. Katherine and Tom haven't seen each other since their divorce, and there are clearly some unresolved feelings bubbling beneath the surface for them both. Though they both thought they'd closed that door and fully moved on, seeing each other again brings back all sorts of unwanted memories. But Tom is trying to get home to see his family for Christmas - and propose to the girlfriend who is already there - so watching over his ex was not in the plan. Since Katherine is temporarily in his care, she's got to accompany him... no matter how complicated the journey may be.

I've been a longtime fan of Layne's, so it's always great to see a new release from her. And I liked the addition of LeDonne's influence, which seems to have amped up the comedy and banter. I'm never going to complain about that. I also enjoyed the concept, and it's much more of a holiday romance than I anticipated, albeit focused on the road trip aspect. The forced proximity was excellent and the second chance scenario worked better than I expected. I obviously didn't love that Tom was basically engaged to someone else for the ENTIRE book, but the pacing made that easier to handle. It's an exceedingly slow burn with just a kiss at the end, reminiscent of a Hallmark movie - though no Hallmark movie has as much bite as this banter. I think the book would've been stronger with a longer length and more time to let the romance flourish. These two are bickering right up until the end, so I did get a bit of whiplash in the turnaround. With more quiet moments and some sexual tension, I could've easily seen myself upping my rating. I needed more from the romance, but there are plenty of solid components.

Lauren Layne and her hubby Anthony are the writing duo for this outstanding book, Katherine an attorney and workaholic suffers a concussion 2 days before Xmas and unfortunately for her ex-husband Tom, has not updated her emergency contact info and Tom begrudgingly agrees to look after her and take her home with him to his parents home for Xmas, this story takes us on their road-trip which is where the shenanigans begin.
I think this book will go down as one of my all time favourites, it had it all, it was such a well written story, soooo funny at times, the banter between Katherine and Tom had me laughing out loud one minute and close to tears the next, an absolute must read. I really hope Lauren and Anthony write more stories together.
I received a free copy from Blackstone Publishing/Netgalley and this is my honest review.

Emergency Contact is cute and quick and exactly that we expect from a Lauren Layne rom com. Her threads of NYC, stilettos and strong women are prominent in all ways in this holiday romance. When Katherine is in a car accident a few days before Christmas, the only person listed as her emergency contact is her ex husband, Tom. Tom is the ultimate good guy and can't leave her alone and in the hospital for the holidays so he takes her along on his trip home. If something could go wrong, it does. But proximity and external conflict bring long over due conversations and old feelings to the surface.

It's a fast and fun read with a delightful audio narration. It's just what you want for a holiday romance on a cold day at home.

Emergency Contact is husband-and-wife Lauren Layne & Anthony Ledonne‘s first co-written Christmas romantic comedy. This second-chance romance takes place over three days in New York City but includes flashbacks. The chapters are in alternating POV.

36-year-old Katherine Tate is an ambitious New York City attorney who is anxiously awaiting the announcement that she has made partner at her prestigious Manhattan law firm. On December 23 around noon, she leaves work and gets in a taxi to head to her upscale apartment, prepared to spend the holidays alone. She has HATED Christmas for the past nine years, ever since her father passed away from pancreatic cancer on Christmas Day, leaving her an orphan. As soon as the taxi pulls away from the curb, it’s T-boned and she is injured. Not only does she have a wound on her back that requires regular bandage changes, but she also has a concussion and must be monitored for 48 hours to make sure it doesn’t get worse. Unfortunately she has no friends or family except for her assistant, Irene, who she ordered to visit her own family for the holidays. Her employer notifies her next-of-kin, which is her ex-husband who she divorced four years ago.

It’s mid-morning on December 23 and 38-year-old Tom Walsh is in a hurry to pick up his beloved Lolo’s engagement ring at Tiffany’s. He must fly to his parents’ home in Chicago and propose to Lolo at midnight on Christmas Eve, since it is family tradition. He is astounded when he receives a phone call notifying him that his ex-wife has been injured and is being treated at the hospital emergency room. When he arrives with his suitcases in tow, he discovers that she has no one else to call. So he convinces Katherine to travel with him to Chicago since she knows and likes his family.

A forecasted blizzard hits New York City so Tom and Katherine cannot travel to Chicago via airplane. Then they have a series of misadventures reminiscent of the movies Are We There Yet? and Planes, Trains, and Automobiles. They bicker constantly but they also finally discuss the breakdown of their marriage. Tom is slow to reveal his plans to propose to Lolo, so that causes some angst for Katherine and the reader.

Emergency Contact is an entertaining Christmas story featuring a Scrooge-like heroine. My biggest criticism of the book is that it seems to have missed being edited: it’s filled with grammatical errors and extra and/or missing words on every single page! The writing itself is fantastic! The banter between Tom and Katherine is great, and his interactions with his family are hilarious and realistic. The pacing of the story is well done, and I found myself unable to put my Kindle down. A bonus is that the story contains no sex scenes so it can be enjoyed by all readers.

I received an Advance Review Copy (ARC) from NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This book was the definition of a cute holiday rom com! 😭💕 Lauren Layne has done it again. The way she manages to create these characters that feel so real and has you rooting for them until the very end is beyond me. However, this book was book was especially different since she had her husband be a co-writer 🤭 both of them did such a fantastic job!! I am such a hopeless fool for second chance romances so I was super excited to hear that she was going to write a book based on this trope! I can say that it did not disappoint! Both Tom and Katherine’s characters felt so real to me as well as their love 🥹 I especially loved Katherine’s sassy black cat personality and Tom’s very formal and anal character; they had me rooting for them to get back together until the very last page! Thanks again to Lauren’s team for the opportunity for an arc!

EMERGENCY CONTACT - Lauren Layne

PLENTY OF FUN! - 5 stars

Plot - 4.5 stars - Katherine, an ambitious NYC attorney, gets diagnosed with a concussion and must be monitored for 48 hours. Unable to be left alone, Katherine reluctantly agrees to travel to Chicago with her ex-husband Tom for the holidays. But thanks to a blizzard, what should have been a quick plane ride turns into an antagonistic overnight misadventure that stirs up old feelings even as Tom prepares to propose to his girlfriend on Christmas Eve.

Writing - 5 stars - I haven't read Layne for a while, but this book propelled me right back into her orbit and reminded me why I love her books so much. She writes in a very entertaining way, creating characters who are warm and friendly and approachable. I was definitely rooting for them and commiserating with their problems.

Characters - 5 stars - This is where the story shone for me. Although Katherine is "prickly," I admire her professional capabilities, plus it's easy to see that she has a soft side, as evidenced by her relationship with her assistant Irene. It's always great to see a strong woman with vulnerabilities, even if she doesn't want to reveal them. Tom is the perfect foil for her--nice and charming but with a strong backbone. Both are appealing, and I was definitely rooting for their success as a couple, although I wasn't quite sure how they'd pull it off.

Title - 4 stars - This is the basis for the whole mishap since Katherine forgot to update her emergency contact, which means her office contacted her ex-husband when she's in an accident, leading to fun and games.

Cover - 4.5 stars - The cartoony character sets the tone for the light-hearted book, and the airplane sends us in the right direction. Adding more varied transportation pictures would have also been fun to have more options of what to expect.

Overall - 5 stars - Overall, this was a totally fun book. The characters are both strong and intelligent, providing witty banter with a sarcastic edge that kept me smiling. I liked their relationship (despite their divorce) because it was clear that they were both still feeling close ties despite themselves. The story kept getting worse and worse, and the format of having back-and-forth points of view with a clock marking the passing of time provided some suspense about how things would ultimately turn out. I laughed out loud when the final blow came, and the supposed Uber driver opened his trunk. I would have loved to have seen Katherine's face when he closed the trunk and drove away. And the final ride with Gorby was sweet and a perfect end to their trip. Supporting characters of Tom's family and even Lolo added interest and allowed us to see behind the scenes a little at each main character's personality.

I loved this book. I seriously laughed out loud at several points. I loved the relationship between the main characters. I loved their banter, bickering, and snide comments, I loved how much they obviously loved and cared for each other but didn’t want to. This is not a typical book for me and yet I couldn’t wait to find chances to listen again (and I do recommend this on audio. The narrators and alternating chapters are perfection).

This is a darling second chance romance set around Christmastime. The story is completely wholesome (read: no spice) and one I can totally picture on the big screen. I don’t usually like sweet books, I rarely like holiday books, I don’t usually do romcoms and yet this book absolutely worked for me and I had so much fun reading it.

This was an entertaining and unique rom com and I really enjoyed it -- and loved that it started in New York during the holidays, one of my favorite things to read about.

Katherine and Tom have been divorced for many years but when Katherine is in an accident, Tom is called to the hospital because she has never updated her emergency contact info. What follows is a hilarious, sometimes maddening, and sometimes anxiety provoking trip as they try to get to Tom's family's celebration in Chicago. And, Tom has ever intention to propose to his girlfriend on Christmas Eve, so it's urgent that they get there in time.

Told in alternating point-of-view chapters, I found both characters funny and endearing. It was predictable, but I didn't mind that - I was along for the ride.

Love that this is written by a real life couple, definitely makes me wonder what arguments and sweet moments are taken from their real life.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book!

♡ 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙𝙨 ♡
•they’re divorced
•second chance romance
•grumpy vs. grumpier?
•trains, planes, and automobiles
•this couldn’t get worse
•forced proximity
•gorby and rebecca
•caretaking
•tom’s family
•legume butter
•”it’s because i couldn’t wait.”

“ 𝙄’𝙫𝙚 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙙...𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙮, 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙣’𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙨 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙣. 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙣’𝙩 𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙮. 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙨 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙝, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪’𝙧𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙪𝙥𝙞𝙙 𝙚𝙣𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙩𝙤 𝙡𝙚𝙩 𝙜𝙤, 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙛𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙩𝙤 𝙜𝙚𝙩 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠.”

i forgot how much i loved lauren layne’s writing. add in her husband as a co-writer and they are downright bingeable!! i couldn’t this down and pretty much read it in one sitting.

i loved how fleshed out katherine and tom were from the very beginning. they had two very distinct, very opposite personalities and it was easy to see where their insecurities came from. it was also easy to see how this ultimately led to the demise of their marriage. the animosity between these two was off the charts and i really didn’t know how these two could possibly end up together again by the end of the book.

tom and katherine’s banter was hilarious and filled with so much tension. i love how the forced proximity made them talk and face the things they truly didn’t want to acknowledge. i loved tom’s doubts from the very beginning, and they made the ending more believable. there were so many heartwarming, tender moments that showed how much katie and tom really still felt for each other. the ending absolutely made my heart swoon! this angsty, slow burn second chance story is an absolute must read!

romance: kisses

thank you to blackstone publishing for an advanced copy. my thoughts are my own.

Let's see, prickly, grumpy, "difficult" FMC? Check. Helpful, sweet, conscientious MMC? Check. Set at Christmas? Check. A plot reminiscent of Planes, Trains, and Automobiles complete with massive snowstorm, missed connections, and witty banter? Check.

I loved this fun, holiday second chance romance and raced through it in one day. Katherine and Tom had a whirlwind romance and leapt into marriage but due to incompatible goals and lack of communication, they ended up divorced. Both have been trying to move on with their lives but three years later, they are thrown together after Katherine suffers a concussion and Tom is called as her emergency contact since she never updated her HR paperwork. After her accident, Katherine can't be left alone, while Tom is desperate to get to Chicago for Xmas Eve to propose to his girlfriend, hence his not very well thought out plan to bring Katherine along with him on the trip. These two know each other so well that they can't help landing verbal blows where it hurts the most, yet underneath it all, it's very clear that there are still strong, unresolved feelings between them.

I loved that Katherine was "difficult" and was completely unapologetic about it. She hated Xmas (with good reason) and my heart ached for her. No attempt was made to soften up her prickly outside, although her gooey interior was also shown. A clear message of the book was that she didn't need to change who she was to be just as deserving of love as anyone else. It was also clear that Tom and Katherine equally shared responsibility for the failure of their marriage, but there was also hope that they have learned from their earlier mistakes and can move forward on a better path. My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.

4.5 stars

Lauren Layne has always been one of my favorite authors. I am so glad she is back...and writing with her husband just added to the comedic level in this book. This story about ex-spouses, Katherine and Tom, is so good. It's like Planes, Trains and Automobiles with a divorced couple trying to get to his family's home on eve. Katherine had an accident resulting in a concussion and had not taken Tom off as her emergency contact. He decides to take her home with him, because there is no one else to watch over her. Everything that could go wrong on their travels home does go wrong.

I loved the dual POV and the snarky banter between two people who know each other intimately, and the real love shining through for both. It was so good that Katherine had not removed Tom as her emergency contact.

Thank you to Blackstone Publishing and NetGalley for an advanced readers copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Emergency Contact is the first book Lauren Layne has written with her husband, Anthony Ledonne, and it was fantastic. Katherine is an adorable Grinch (for good reasons), and Tom is is her swoony ex-husband. They're thrown together over the holidays and have quite an adventure. Planes, trains, & automobiles... and then some! Highly recommend!!

Katherine is an attorney in NYC; she's divorced from Tom. Tom divorced her because she was so career driven. Katherine is in a taxicab accident and Tom is called since she didn't change her contact information.
Tom just picked up the engagement ring for his girlfriend and needs to be in Chicago on Christmas eve to ask the big question. Seems Tom has a since of honor and can't leave her alone and takes her with him on his trip home for Christmas. It seems that his family has been keeping secrets about their relationship with Katherine. They of course are having trouble getting to Chicago and the weather is bad.
Seems as they travel together the learn more about each other.
Good book about relationships and learning life lessons.

I loved the premise of this book. But frankly I got tired of what was supposed to be snappy banter between the two main characters. The dialogue seemed forced. Maybe I'm naive, but I'm not sure peolle actually talk like that.
Also, I know there are tropes and templates, but much of this plot seemd lifted from other rom coms.