Open Roads, Open Hearts: A MM Road Trip Romance (Bucket List Romance Series)

This is a tender love story with hilarious banter. It was nice to relax and become lost on a road trip with interesting characters who are opposites but need each other to heal, love and move forward to a great life. Well done Izzy!

I love the premise of this book! Love that Emilee's friends and family are completing the bucket list she didn't get to complete. I also loved traveling with Gabe and Hayes. The things that brought the book down for me were a bit personal. I had difficulty keeping it straight in my head who's POV I was in and which character was Hayes and which was Gabe. Then the real personal bit was that part of it took place in a city near me that I'm familiar with and could not envision the things the author had taking place in this city.

This is a sweet, grumpy/sunshine, hurt/comfort, road trip romance that will draw you in and leave you satisfied. As this book opens, Hayes is attending the funeral of 27-year-old Emilee, a good friend from work, who recently died in a car accident. He’s with a group of friends – some co-workers, some not – all brought together by Emilee. At the reception afterward, the friend group decides to take Emilee’s bucket list and fulfill the different goals for her. Hayes chooses “take a road trip with my brother.” Then approaches Emilee’s brother, Gabe, sitting alone at the bar. Hayes explains what the friends are doing, and asks if they can take a road trip together. Both Hayes and Gabe have a lot of grief baggage. Hayes lost both parents at 13, Gabe and Emilee lost their parents separately, but also at young ages. While Hayes had a supportive grandfather and a lot of therapy to help, Gabe felt he had to be strong – especially when his first boyfriend died in high school. So Hayes is more glass half full, while Gabe is closeted and maintains his distance. After all, if you don’t get too close you can’t be hurt. Over the course of a few days, Hayes and Gabe drive from Chicago to New Orleans and back, seeking out places and experiences that they believe Emilee would love. Along the way they have amazing experiences, including an instance where they wind up in the same hotel room, and Gabe giving Hayes his first experience of driving a car. Watch, too, for the bananas… The story…

Gabe Porter is always running or flying away from everyone. When his sister passes, part of her wishes was to take a road trip with her brother. Now Gabe is on a road trip with his sisters best friend Hayes who just might be the one to make him stop running. This book is emotional and deals with a lot of grief. Its steamy and has an HEA, but be prepared for the emotional ride!

I have read every book by this author and will continue to do so. When this book came out, I had a lot going on in my life and it took me so much longer to read than it should have, but oh how I loved the escape it gave me. Following Gabe (and his stubbornness) and Hayes (and his clashing unsure but confident) as they navigated the loss of Emilee and tried to fulfill one of her bucket list items. There were moments of laughter and of complete frustration where I wanted to reach into the book and smack Gabe (and once or twice Hayes) and get their butts in gear. There were even moments where my heart broke in pieces right along with Gabe and Hayes. I was invested in their story. However, their journey felt honest and real. I, also, love the interaction between all of the future characters as well. I'm looking forward to more in this series.