Road-Tripped

by Nicole Archer

[stacey_is_sassy]

A road trip to happiness…with a few bumps.

Interruptions to my reading are the bane of my existence. I hate having to stop reading my book at the 90% mark because real life is calling. I get up at 6:30 on the mornings I work. If I leave it even 5 minutes later I’m scrambling to get everything done. Sometimes, I try to stretch it out to 6:35 or 6:40, but I always regret it and walk out the door with something missing (one earring) or not done (teeth brushing....I know gross). This morning I decided to get a little reading in before work and when the alarm went off I realised I was smack bang on 90%.

Oh no...Everything is up in the air, there’s drama, lack of communication and misunderstandings to work through. Do I read for 5 minutes more and hope that some of the issues have been worked through, or do I stop and wait till I can sit back and work through their problems without rushing? I did the right thing and turned off my kindle. It was hard, but I knew it was the best decision I could make. Only problem…I spent the whole bloody day worrying about how they were going to work through their issues. I wanted to sit them down, have a sensible chat with them or alternatively smack their bloody thick skulls together. Luckily, they waited for me…and we worked it all out fine and dandy.

In the beginning, we meet Callie Murphy who appears to be trying to rig a bomb to blow up her workplace. Luckily this is all in her head and we come to realise that Callie is suffering through her idea of hell. Her boss, Skip, who’s also one of her closest friends, likes to have social gatherings with his staff. Skip and the staff seem to party more than they work and Callie finds their shenanigans very frustrating. One of the things that drive her crazy is watching her manwhore co-worker, Walker, being fawned over by the women in the office. She tells herself it’s because he’s despicable, but deep down she knows it’s more because she wouldn’t mind getting her hands on him herself. What she doesn’t realise is that things are not quite as they seem.

Walker HATES his work and is very close to quitting. When the opportunity comes up to leave the office behind and hop in a campervan for two months, he jumps at the chance. The campervan company wants a writer and a photographer to travel around America blogging about the experience. Walker’s the photographer and his friend Avery was supposed to be the writer. Unfortunately, she's pregnant and has extreme morning, noon and night sickness. Avery has to back out and a new writer needs to be found. Imagine Walker’s surprise and horror when he finds out the woman he’s going to spend the next two months with…hates him with a vengeance.

Poor old Callie and Walker don’t start their trip very well. Callie has some stuff she’s trying to get over and is, unfortunately, taking it out on Walker. Walker knows that Callie got the worst impression of him when they were at a work function and women seem to be throwing themselves at him. He didn’t take them up on their offer…but Callie didn’t see that part. The first part of their journey they have to get to know the real Callie and Walker and work together to make this campaign a winner.

Road Tripped at first seemed a little OTT with its humour but as the story progressed it seemed to settle down and I was actually laughing out loud. Callie is foul-mouthed and has no hesitations saying what’s on her mind. Walker, on the other hand, is a good ole Southern boy who charms his way with a smile, a wink and all the right words. There were times that both Callie and Walker seemed a wee bit immature and it drove me a little bonkers. Slight misunderstandings turned into temper tantrums and silent treatments. The sexy times were steamy but Walker’s dirty talk sounded like a 16-year-old. At first, I was cringing but by the end, I was smirking.

Road Tripped is Nicole Archer’s debut novel and I think she’s done a pretty awesome job with it. Do I think there’s room for improvement? Sure. Will I read more work by her? You bet. Do I recommend Road Tripped? Yeppers.

To buy Road Tripped from Amazon - http://amzn.to/2aIjE2W



I’m an Aussie chick who loves to read and review romance, drink coffee, be a Style Setter and stalk David Gandy. To see more of my reviews, fashion, food and pervathons -