Eighty Days to Elsewhere

May 25, 2020
Dyer (Finding Fraser) takes readers on an adventurous trip around the world with this high-concept rom-com. Romy Keene’s life revolves around the introvert paradise of her uncle’s New York City bookshop, so when Frank Venal takes over the building and threatens to evict them (saying “nobody in their right mind reads books anymore”), Romy will do anything to save the store. In a moment of rare boldness, she applies for a lucrative position with ExLibris, a travel firm that specializes in recreating famous journeys from literature. To land the job, Romy must successfully retrace the path of Phileas Fogg as a test-run for a client who hopes to mimic the Jules Verne character’s trip from Around the World in Eighty Days. To make this impossible task harder, she discovers that Frank’s “Evil Nephew,” Dominic Madison, is competing for the same position with ExLibris, leading to a neck-and-neck race around the world. But as their far-flung travels continually throw them together, Romy realizes there’s more to Dominic than meets the eye, and before she knows it, she’s falling for her rival. Like Romy’s journey, the plot sometimes wanders off course with an abundance of misadventures, but Dyer keeps readers engaged with scenic descriptions and a sweet, slow-burning love story. This is a delightful romp. Agent: Laura Bradford, Bradford Literary.

January 1, 2021

Ramona "Romy" Keene is a New Yorker who knows her city well but has limited firsthand experience with life beyond the five boroughs. Her steady life is turned upside down when her job, family, and home are threatened by a pitiless millionaire real estate developer and his attractive nephew. In need of a new job, Romy stumbles upon ExLibris Exhibitions, a company that allows wealthy bibliophiles the chance to travel the same routes as their literary heroes. She earns the chance to try out for a permanent position by plotting a trip around the world, though she has much less than the 80 days allotted to her inspiration. At first, Romy is dismayed to learn that the evil nephew is her competition, but comes to see that he might not be the villain she thought him to be. In fact, Romy finds that international travel awakens her awareness of a lot of things, including the limitations of her American perspective. Narrator Lauren Ezzo gamely tackles the large assortment of international characters and accents in the novel. VERDICT Recommended for general fiction collections.--Nicole Williams, Englewood, NJ

Copyright 2021 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.