Road Trip: A Novel

New from the beloved New York Times bestselling author of Summers at the Saint and Hello, Summer!

Pack your bags for a summer journey shaped by family secrets, long-buried history, and charming men with Irish accents.

Maeve and Therese Dunigan haven’t spoken in years. Raised under the same roof in Savannah, the two sisters could not be more opposite—Maeve the rule follower, Therese the unapologetic rebel. But when their mother’s death pulls them back together, they inherit more than just grief: a mysterious painting that may be worth millions…if it’s real.

Determined to uncover the truth—and desperately in need of the money—the sisters set out on a journey to Ireland, tracing their family’s roots and the origins of the portrait. What begins as a search for answers soon becomes something deeper—a reckoning with the past, as they uncover secrets that span generations and reshape everything they thought they knew about their family.

With tensions simmering, the two hit the road and find themselves on twisty lanes, in colorful villages, at local pubs, and with handsome men whose gift of the gab is surpassed only by their charm.

Can Maeve and Therese actually survive the journey without killing each other? Join Mary Kay Andrews on a road trip that will entertain you for miles.

MARY KAY ANDREWS is the New York Times bestselling author of more than 30 novels (including Bright Lights, Big Christmas; The Homewreckers; The Santa Suit; The Newcomer; Hello, Summer; Sunset Beach; The High Tide Club; The Weekenders; Beach Town; Save the Date; Christmas Bliss; Ladies' Night; Spring Fever; and Summer Rental, all from St. Martin's Press, as well as The Fixer Upper; Deep Dish; Savannah Breeze; Blue Christmas; Hissy Fit; Little Bitty Lies; and Savannah Blues, all Harper Collins), and one cookbook, The Beach House Cookbook.

A native of St. Petersburg, Florida, she earned a B.A. in journalism from The University of Georgia (go Dawgs!). After a 14-year career working as a reporter at newspapers including The Savannah Morning News, The Marietta Journal, and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, where she spent the final ten years of her career, she left journalism in 1991 to write fiction.

Her first novel, Every Crooked Nanny, was published in 1992 by HarperCollins. She went on to write ten critically acclaimed mysteries, including the Callahan Garrity mystery series, under her real name, Kathy Hogan Trocheck. In 2002, she assumed the pen name Mary Kay Andrews with the publication of Savannah Blues. In 2006, Hissy Fit became her first New York Times bestseller, followed by dozens more New York Times, USA Today and Publisher’s Weekly bestsellers. To date, her novels have been published in German, Italian, Polish, Slovenian, Hungarian, Dutch, Czech and Japanese.

She and her family divide their time between Atlanta and Tybee Island, GA, where they cook up new recipes in their restored beach homes, The Breeze Inn and Ebbtide—both named after fictional places in Mary Kay’s novels, and both available to rent through Tybee Vacation Rentals. In between cooking, spoiling her grandkids, and plotting her next novel, Mary Kay is an intrepid treasure hunter whose favorite pastime is junking and fixing up old houses.

"With well-developed characters, a taut plot, and a keen sense of place, this lively tale is perfect for the beach bag." --Publishers Weekly

"The pacing is consistent throughout the entire story, making the entire reading experience enjoyable. These characters shine under Andrews’s established hand, and their story arc is very satisfying." --Library Journal

Praise for Mary Kay Andrews:
“[A] mesmerizing mix of mystery and romance . . . Series fans and newcomers alike will be riveted.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review

“Mary Kay Andrews is the queen of beach reads.” —CountryLiving.com

“Oh, just bring us the beach chair and fancy umbrella drink now. We’re in.” —CNN.com

“Mary Kay Andrews is having her moment.” —Today Show

"A cozy romp that touches lightly on multiple genres to spin an intriguing tale: murder mystery, IRA art heist, coming-to-America immigrant story, justice for elder financial abuse, dual rom-com narratives, and an earnest story of two sisters learning to appreciate each other again. A delightful tale with vivid characters." —Kirkus

Mary Kay Andrews’s Road Trip is a delightful, sun-drenched summer read that seamlessly blends family drama, a historical art mystery, and the breathtaking scenery of Ireland into a heartfelt story of reconciliation. The novel introduces us to two deeply estranged sisters, Maeve and Therese Dunigan, who were raised under the same roof in Savannah, Georgia, but could not be more fundamentally different. Maeve is the quintessential rule-follower—a pragmatic, responsible woman who most recently worked as a college creative writing professor. When their mother, Mary Helen, fell ill and required four months of intensive hospice care, it was naturally Maeve who dropped everything to become her full-time caretaker. On the opposite end of the spectrum is Therese, an unapologetic rebel and struggling actress whose career never quite took off. Therese is notoriously irresponsible, perfectly evidenced by the fact that she failed to help with their mother’s care and even managed to arrive late to her funeral. The tension between the two sisters is palpable, making the Savannah air feel uncharacteristically frigid.

Despite their profound differences and simmering resentments, the sisters are forced to reunite to settle their late mother's estate. Both women are in desperate need of a financial lifeline. Maeve has recently been laid off from her teaching position, and Therese is broke from chasing acting dreams that never materialized. They both assume that the sale of their mother's long-held, mortgage-free house will provide the safety net they so desperately need. However, they are in for a devastating shock. Their Uncle Keith arrives with the heartbreaking news that Mary Helen had completely drained her retirement savings and heavily remortgaged the house. Tragically, she had been swindled by a shyster television preacher, trading her life savings for boxes full of cheap, ceramic praying hands. The financial security the sisters were counting on has vanished completely.

Amidst the wreckage of their mother’s estate, only two items of potential value remain. The first is an old coffee can stuffed with small bills—money Mary Helen meticulously saved over the years specifically so her daughters could travel to Ireland and trace their family roots. The second is an old painting that has hung prominently on their mother's wall for years. The portrait depicts an elegant woman named Lady Geraldine Rossington, whom Mary Helen always claimed was a wealthy ancestor. Given their mother's penchant for spinning tall tales, the sisters never put much stock into the story. However, everything changes when Therese spots a newspaper article detailing the recent sale of an identical painting for over a million dollars. Realizing that the portrait in their possession could be the answer to their financial ruin, they face a massive dilemma: they must determine if their painting is a genuine masterpiece or a worthless forgery, and discover exactly how it ended up in a Savannah living room.

Driven by desperation and the slim hope of a massive payout, Maeve and Therese pack their bags and embark on the titular road trip. Armed with their mother’s coffee-can savings, they travel across the Atlantic to the lush, green hills of Tarrymore, Ireland, the small village where their ancestors originated. What begins as a strictly transactional quest for money quickly evolves into a profound journey into their family’s murky past. The sisters uncover a tangled web of secrets spanning generations, including a shocking historical mystery involving a 1970s IRA art heist where the original Rossington portrait was famously stolen and never recovered. If their painting is the missing piece of this decades-old crime, the sisters must navigate treacherous legal and ethical waters to claim what is rightfully theirs.

As they explore the twisty lanes and colorful pubs of Tarrymore, they cross paths with a cast of vibrant, eccentric locals who bring the Irish setting to life. Most notable is Esme Rossington, a curmudgeonly, chain-smoking older woman who now resides in a run-down gardener's cottage after the sprawling Rossington estate was donated to the National Trust. Accompanied by her fiercely loyal cocker spaniel, Sinead O'Cocker, Esme harbors a deep disdain for Americans but reluctantly becomes a crucial key to unraveling the mystery of the duplicated portraits. Alongside the mystery, romance blossoms in the most unexpected places. Maeve experiences an immediate, undeniable spark with Liam, a smart and charismatic local who runs the village whiskey distillery. However, with Maeve scheduled to return to America in less than a week, their whirlwind romance is burdened by a ticking clock.

Ultimately, Mary Kay Andrews delivers an engaging romp that explores the powerful, often complicated dynamics of sisterhood. As Maeve and Therese navigate the beautiful Irish countryside, untangle a historical art heist, and spar with delightfully quirky locals, they are forced to confront their own personal failings and long-held grievances. The physical journey mirrors an emotional one, as the sisters slowly dismantle the walls they have built between them. They learn that while they cannot change their turbulent past or their mother's mistakes, they can choose to forgive, adapt, and rely on each other. Road Trip is a cozy, heartwarming testament to the enduring bonds of family, proving that sometimes you have to travel thousands of miles away from home to finally find your way back to each other.