Title: Road Trip
Author: Mary Kay Andrews
Genre: Mystery, Contemporary Fiction, Romance
Format: eARC
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐✨ (3.5★)
Release Date: June 2, 2026
Synopsis
Maeve and Therese Dunigan may be sisters, but after years of estrangement, they can barely tolerate being in the same room together.
Following their mother’s death, the two are forced to reconnect in order to sort out a complicated inheritance situation involving an old family painting that could potentially be worth millions… if it’s authentic.
The problem is that nobody seems to know where the painting truly came from.
Reluctantly, the sisters set off on a road trip through Ireland to uncover the origins of both the painting and their family history, all while dealing with unresolved tension, old secrets, charming locals, and more than a little chaos along the way.
My Thoughts
As the blurb says, Maeve and Therese are sisters… but sisters who absolutely cannot stand each other. They’ve been estranged for years, and after their mother’s death, they’re suddenly forced to cooperate in order to deal with their inheritance situation.
Part of that means taking the trip their mother always wanted them to take to Ireland while also trying to uncover the truth behind an old painting inherited through their family.
At first glance, the painting could potentially be worth a fortune… if it’s authentic.
The problem? They know almost nothing about its origins.
So despite barely tolerating each other, the sisters reluctantly head to Ireland to investigate both the painting and their own complicated family history.
Now... honestly? On paper, this sounded like such a fun setup:
Ireland, family secrets, small towns, mystery, old art, a little romance, some investigation… all things I usually enjoy.
And I did enjoy parts of it.
The Ireland setting itself was lovely, and the story had a very cozy atmosphere overall. I especially liked the small-town feel and the way the book leaned into family history and generational secrets.
But unfortunately… the pacing felt way, waaaay too slow for me. (ofc, this could be only a personal choice)
Even though technically a lot happens throughout the story, I never fully felt emotionally invested in either the mystery or the characters, and most of the twists felt fairly predictable.
I also struggled to connect with the sisters themselves. I didn’t necessarily dislike them, but they mostly felt like characters I was observing rather than people I genuinely cared about emotionally.
I also think that emotional distance made the slower pacing stand out even more.
Final Thoughts
Overall, Road Trip wasn’t a bad book by any means. It had a cozy atmosphere, beautiful Irish scenery, family secrets, and an interesting premise involving art and inheritance.
But for me personally, the pacing dragged quite a bit, and I think the story could’ve been significantly shorter while still keeping the strongest parts intact.
Still, if you enjoy slower family mysteries with travel vibes and emotional family drama, this one may work much better for you.
ARC Disclaimer
Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
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