Judy Leigh’s books can be counted on to provide cheery scenarios, heart-warming encounters, and memorable (and often feisty) older women as the main characters — and Lil’s Bus Trip is yet another terrific listening experience!

Lil’s life is perfectly nice, if not exceptionally exciting. She lives in a pleasant senior community, has good friends, and is very close to her daughter Cassie, whom she’s raised on her own after becoming unexpectedly pregnant as an unwed teen. But couldn’t they both use a little adventure for a change?

When a friend from the local pub decides to organize and lead a European road trip, Lil decides it’s just what she and Cassie need. What’s more, Lil’s best friend and next-door neighbor Maggie is slowly suffocating from neglect, as her husband mainly ignores her and sits watching TV all day, so Lil practically forces her along as well. Joining them on their trip are a group of younger folks from a local football team, the pub owner and his elderly father, and a trio of snobs from the tennis club who insist they’re only interested in culture and intellectual pursuits.

As the trip gets underway, the group gets to experience both serious moments — such as the beaches of Normandy — as well as silly mishaps… like what happens when the three oldest members of the group order a brownie to go with their coffee in an Amsterdam coffeeshop.

There’s actually not a ton of plot to describe, other than the highlights of the road trip itself. And yet, there’s something so warm and delightful about this audiobook. I was apprehensive at the beginning about there being so many characters, but ultimately, the twelve people on the mini-bus are each developed over the course of the story, so that by the end, it feels like we’ve been hanging out with a group of our own friends.

The adventures on the road are lots of fun, and there are more serious moments too, as the various characters have opportunities to rethink their lives back home and come to terms with what they want (or don’t want). For Lil especially, it’s a chance to look back at a life lived on her own terms, but often lived alone, and consider whether it’s too late to take a chance on loving someone new.

The audiobook narrator rises to the challenge of voicing the twelve travelers, and bringing them all to distinct life… along with several other memorable people they meet along the way. For me, a jarring note was that the narrator adds in the vocal effects described… so if it’s stated that a character laughs, the narrator laughs… or coughs… or takes a deep breath. I find this approach a bit annoying, but I’m sure some listeners like that sort of thing. (Also, Cassie is a singer, and when she performs in the book, the narrator sings Cassie’s songs, rather than just reading the words. Again, whether you’ll enjoy this is a matter of taste and preference. She does a perfectly respectable job with the singing, but it’s not my cup of tea.)

Still, audio/narration preferences aside, I did really have a great time with this sweet story. Listening to Lil’s Bus Trip is the audiobook equivalent of a warm blanket and a cup of hot cocoa. It’s comforting and pleasant, not particularly dramatic, but so easy to sink into and enjoy.

This is now my 4th book by Judy Leigh, and it won’t be my last! Fortunately, she has a good-sized backlist for me to dig into while waiting for her next new release!