Reviews with content warning for Animal death - Earls Trip

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Earls Trip by Jenny Holiday

3 reviews

webbsusa's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No

5.0

I won a print ARC through a publisher’s giveaway of Earls Trip, and I’m so glad I did. I really, really loved this book! I loved the friendship among the “earls,” the development of the relationship between the sisters, and of course Clem and Archie (separately and together). Archie is probably one of my favorite heroes ever. He was so sweet and loving. He cared so deeply about his friends, his mom, and Clementine. Clem was so loyal to her sister and fought for her, even when she wasn’t so sure her sister deserved it. Clem was true to herself and her value system, even when the sanctions for that could be quite high, and I really appreciated her commitment to her values (being vague so as not to spoil). Both Clem and Archie grew a lot and came to important realizations about themselves as they fell in love with each other.

Thanks again to Kensington Books for the giveaway! All opinions are my own.

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srivalli's review against another edition

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lighthearted reflective relaxing slow-paced

3.75

3.7 stars

One Liner: Slow-paced but entertaining

1821

Archibald Fielding-Burton, the Earl of Harcourt, calls himself lucky for having two best friends who would do anything for him. Simon and Effie are his dearest friends and partners in crime. The trio plans an all-men trip every year and calls it the Earl’s Trip to unwind from the pressures of daily life.

That year was no different until Archie got a letter from Sir Albert Morgan, an old family friend, begging for help. His daughter Olive has eloped with someone. His other daughter, Clementine, has rushed to rescue Olive. Now, Archie has to rescue them both and bring them back safely.

Archie and Clem go back a long way. They were always good friends, but Archie finds the grown-up even more alluring. When Clem shares a proposal, Archie knows he would accept it. But where will this lead?

The story comes in the third-person POV of Archie and Clementine.

My Thoughts:

As the premise suggests, this is a fun book that deals with some serious topics. However, the overall tone is lighthearted and entertaining.

The beginning is slow but in no way boring. We get enough laughs as the characters are introduced and established. At the same time, we get a glimpse of the deeper emotions these characters feel.

Dementia/ early memory loss, found family, sibling relationships (between sisters), loss of a parent, dysfunctional families, etc., are some themes explored in the book. Not all of them are prominent, though. A few more tropes are modernish, but it has almost become a norm, so I won’t complain.

Archie is surprisingly easy to like. He is lively, friendly, mischievous, understanding, supportive, and fun. Yet, he has his pain, uncertainties, vulnerabilities, and doubts. Clem is nice, though not as much as Archie. He is a gem.

While it is good to have Regency FMC as a vegetarian, even if it doesn’t seem realistic for the period, Clem comes across as a bit too judgmental about others. (I’m a vegetarian, too, but I don’t go around wrinkling my nose at meat eaters). Moreover, she doesn’t seem to make the same effort to understand Archie the way he tries to get to know her thoughts and takes them seriously.

The relationship takes time to progress. This gives space for enough scenes and conversation between them. Things don’t feel rushed, despite what the blurb states.

The side characters are developed enough to go beyond what’s initially defined for them. There’s more than what meets’s eye applies here. Olive’s arc is very good. I did like her more than the FMC sometimes.

The repetition slows down the pacing, which could have been trimmed a little. The chapter length also contributes to the slowness due to the extended length (I like short chapters).

The book has some steam, though I don’t know why it changed toward the end and skipped over the scene (which was important). Didn’t make sense to me, but maybe they had a page limit to work with (?).

To summarize, Earl’s Trip is an entertaining book with a loveable male lead and worthy side characters. It works well as a standalone. The last chapter could be considered a lead for the next book, which I would love to read.

Thank you, Edelweiss+ and Kensington Books, for eARC. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

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bookrecsbyjess's review

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emotional funny slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? Yes

3.5

Thank you to Kensington Books for this ARC of Earls Trip by Jenny Holiday. All opinions are my own.

This was my second time reading a Jenny Holiday book. I discovered her books earlier this year when I read Canadian Boyfriend, and I absolutely loved that book. I had expectations that I was going to love this book as well even though it’s a historical romance and not a contemporary romance.

I do think these expectations affected how I perceived this story because this book was drastically different than Canadian Boyfriend in writing style and pacing.

What I liked best about Earls Trip was the characters and the friendships between them.

Archie, Simon, and Effie were so lovable, and their friendship was just wholesome and so welcoming to read about. They were so supportive of each other’s passions and personalities, and I really appreciated this found family aspect since none of them had close relationships with their biological families.

Clementine was also a very likable character because she had a unique personality and interests unlike her sister Olive, which I didn’t particularly like. When I learned more about Olive’s backstory, she didn’t seem as awful, but she still wasn’t great.

The sexual innuendos were a bit much in this story. While some of them were funny, it seemed like the author was trying too hard to cram them in whenever she could.

Also, the pacing was just off in this book. The beginning of this book started off strong. I enjoyed all of the plot leading up to arriving at their residence for the earls’ trip. However, after they arrived, hardly anything happened for most of the book. The characters mostly just spent time talking. It wasn’t until near the end that the plot picked up a little and then was just wrapped right up.

Overall, I enjoyed the characters and relationships in this book, but the rest of the story fell flat for me. I would however read another book by this author since my first experience with her books was great.

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