A Cross-Country Wedding (Road Trip Romance #2) by Courtney Walsh

A Cross-Country Wedding is a touching and slow burn friends-to-lovers romance brimming with heartfelt moments and personal growth.

Previous book in the series –

A Cross-Country Christmas (Book 1)

Synopsis

A fun-loving free spirit.
Her buttoned-up best friend.
And a cross-country wedding that could drive their platonic relationship toward something else entirely.

Simon Collier is my friend.

Heck, he’s been my friend for most of my adult life—and we couldn’t be more different.

I love late-night karaoke. He’s a homebody with a piano I’ve never heard him play.

I relish being the center of attention while Simon prefers to fade into the background.

My dresser is a disaster. He alphabetizes his fridge.

I suppose we’re a little like sunshine and rain. It’s why our friendship works.

Even though we’re total opposites, we get along like peas and carrots. He’s constantly saving me after failed romances, and I push him to live a little. . .even if that means dragging him out of his comfort zone.

If I can make him laugh, it’s a win.

He’s my safe person. Secure, reliable, fun to poke fun at.

Simon Collier is my friend.

But now, all that might change.

After another predictable break-up, I find myself in need of a plus-one for my best friend Lauren’s cross-country wedding. A wedding that reenacts the road trip where she and her fiancé, Will, first fell in love. And despite his fussiness, Simon is the safest person to bring along because I’m not in the market for any more messy feelings.

Our friendship has been intact for over ten years, surely we can handle a week crammed in a car, sharing meals and playlists and nighttime secrets and single beds.

Right?

Review

A Cross-Country Wedding is delightful and charming romance that features Maddie and her long time best friend Simon who secretly harbors feelings for her but she couldn’t see it until they joins Lauren and Will on their road trip wedding.

Maddie is a mess. She is known to vbe care-free and irresponsible who doesn’t take life seriously and she has a record of boyfriends who lasts only three months but that is because she has disastrous choice when it comes to dating. She doesn’t go out on date with smart and nice man who are keeper like her best friend, Simon.

Simon is smart, observant who has his life figured and is now a business owner. He have been in love with Maddie ever since he first saw her in their freshman year but looking at their differences, Maddie squarely put him into friends zone and he have maintained that position ever since and tortured his heart by having front row seat of her pathetic dating life. But he cannot go on like this forever. He has decided to give his feelings a last chance and Maddie’s invitation to be her plus one for their best friend, Lauren’s road trip wedding.

Walsh’s storytelling is heartfelt and immersive. While A Cross-Country Wedding takes a steadier pace compared to A Cross-Country Christmas, the time spent building Maddie and Simon’s relationship feels authentic and rewarding. The flashback chapters that explore their ten-year friendship add depth and emotional resonance, making their eventual romance feel all the more genuine.

Maddie’s transformation is one of the highlights of the book. While I liked Maddie who was fun and lively, there was more self-pitying with her character for my liking. I get she was true to herself and she didn’t like how people saw her but that was the image she created herself and I didn’t see the point of self-pitying as she wasn’t doing anything to change it.

I liked how this road trip made her change. spurred by the realization of her financial struggles, close proximity with Simon, and his gentle encouragement helps Maddie see not just him in a new light, but also herself making her to take a brave step and get her life together, towards confidence and happiness and life with Simon.

Simon is so very patient man. I don’t know he could hide his feeling for ten years. I loved him for being their for Maddie even though she didn’t really see him or know him. Like Maddie observed, he was the biggest cheerleader of her. He saw through Maddie’s fun lively facade and cracked open those hidden vulnerability, hammered love and support over it to make her real self shine brightly.

His hesitations were cute and I loved how he took Will’s advice and worked on the points he gave. He looked put together at the beginning but he too had set backs and weak points in life that he never shared before. It was amazing how he finally could share them with Maddie that helped her change her perspective towards him and see how they the best for each other.

The romance is slow-burn but deeply satisfying, with heart-melting moments that linger long after the last page. From Maddie’s surprise at Simon’s performance, to their first kiss, to their collaborative efforts in Maddie’s pottery business, every step of their journey is layered with tenderness and charm.

The road trip setting, complete with vivid descriptions of the places they visit, adds a sense of adventure and spontaneity. From breathtaking landscapes to intimate car conversations, these scenes create a perfect backdrop in their romance.

Overall, A Cross-Country Wedding is a touching and slow burn friends-to-lovers romance brimming with heartfelt moments, personal growth, and the kind of love that sneaks up on you when you least expect it.

What to Expect A Cross-Country Wedding

Friends-to-Lovers
Road Trip romance
Lauren and Will’s Wedding
Dual Perspectives
Past chapters giving the picture of their friendship journey
Slow-burn but rewarding romance
Clean/closed door Romance

Book Links

Goodreads | Amazon.in | Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk

Have you read this or previous book in series or plan to?
What is your favorite friends-to-lovers romance?

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Just in case you missed,,,

• February 2025 Wrap Up – Life and Reading Highlights
• Before We Say Goodbye (Before Coffee Gets Cold #4) by Toshikazu Kawaguchi – heartwarming yet not the strongest in the series
• The Love Lyric (The Greene Sisters #3) by Kristina Forest – Heartfelt conclusion to Series

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