the trip of a lifetime

The couples, heading to Portugal for a wedding. Rachel and Jack have been married the longest. They left their teenaged son Josh at home to go to Jack’s brother’s wedding. Jack has a lot riding on this trip, as he was the one who introduced Will to Ali in the first place. Ali had been working with Jack, and at a bar one night after work, Will had been in town and dropped in for a drink. Now Will and Ali are getting married, and maybe Will will stop wandering around so much and settle down.

Also invited on the weekend are Noah and Paige. Rachel and Paige are best friends, but it was originally Rachel’s friendship with Noah that brought the couples together. Back in college, Rachel was supposed to travel with Noah. It had all been planned. But right before they were set to leave, Rachel had met Jack. She thought the relationship could turn into something really special, but not if she were to travel to Asia with someone else. She chose to stay home, and when Noah came home months later, Rachel was married to Jack and they were expecting a baby.

Rachel is looking forward to getting away to Portugal, and they villa Ali and Will rented is gorgeous. But Rachel knows a secret, and her feelings are off-balance. Jack had clearly been uncomfortable around Ali for several months. She had found another job and was doing well, so Rachel didn’t know why he’d been unhappy with her. But as they were packing for the trip, he let her in on his secret. He had discovered that Ali had been having an affair with someone at her new job. Rachel didn’t understand why he wouldn’t tell his brother about it, why he was just letting Will marry her anyway, but he didn’t have the heart to tell his brother.

So Rachel was setting off to Ali’s wedding trip, knowing that she was cheating on her fiancé, and not sure what to do about it.

Rachel confides in Paige, and the two women speculate about Ali’s relationships. She’s a beautiful woman, skinny and athletic, and she loves clothes that are more revealing than what Rachel or Paige wear. Paige also asks if Jack would tell Will before the wedding, to try to protect him for a terrible mistake.

But then Rachel walks into her room just after seeing Ali in the hallway. Jack was in the room, wearing only a towel. Is it possible that Ali had just left her bedroom, where her husband had been practically naked? Is it possible that Jack had made up the story about Ali having an affair with someone from work to cover up the fact that Ali was having an affair with Jack?

As their time in Portugal ticks by, the secrets and lies pile up. And when Rachel finally admits to herself that she has a secret too, then the wedding becomes a ticking time bomb of questions and innuendo, rumors and gossip. Will all three relationships be strong enough to withstand the truth, or will the wedding tear them all apart?

The Guilt Trip is a slow-burn thriller about the lies we tell our partners, and the ones we tell ourselves, in relationships. It’s about the assumptions we make and the promises we break. It’s about family and friends and secrets, and how they all intertwine in our lives to leave us entangled in each other’s stories. Author Sandie Jones brings us a domestic thriller with such a surprise ending.

I listened to the audio book of The Guilt Trip, and I thought narrator Clare Corbett did an amazing job of bringing these characters to life. A great deal of this book happens in Rachel’s head, as she tries to figure out what may be going on between Jack and Ali and what she wants to do about it, and I could feel the tension building in my shoulders as I listened to it.

I wanted to love this book. I do love relationship drama, but I struggled with this one. So much of the drama is based on just gossip and rumor that I struggled to stay involved with these characters. But I stuck with it, and the ending took a crazy turn that I did not see coming. The Guilt Trip is a crazy ride, and you have no idea when you’re starting out just where you will end up.

Egalleys for The Guilt Trip were provided by Minotaur Books through NetGalley, with many thanks, but I bought the audio book myself through Chirp.