Book Review: People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry
People We Meet on Vacation
Author: Emily Henry
Published: May 11, 2021
373 Pages
Reviewed By: Kim
Kim’s Rating: 3 stars
Book Description:
Two best friends. Ten summer trips. One last chance to fall in love.
Poppy and Alex. Alex and Poppy. They have nothing in common. She’s a wild child; he wears khakis. She has insatiable wanderlust; he prefers to stay home with a book. And somehow, ever since a fateful car share home from college many years ago, they are the very best of friends. For most of the year they live far apart—she’s in New York City, and he’s in their small hometown—but every summer, for a decade, they have taken one glorious week of vacation together.
Until two years ago, when they ruined everything. They haven’t spoken since.
Poppy has everything she should want, but she’s stuck in a rut. When someone asks when she was last truly happy, she knows, without a doubt, it was on that ill-fated, final trip with Alex. And so, she decides to convince her best friend to take one more vacation together—lay everything on the table, make it all right. Miraculously, he agrees.
Now she has a week to fix everything. If only she can get around the one big truth that has always stood quietly in the middle of their seemingly perfect relationship. What could possibly go wrong?
Kim’s Review:
Brain candy, plain and simple. And unfortunately, it bordered on YA level maturity. A bunch of adults acting like teens and it did indeed get frustrating, per usual. Plus, who visits Sanibel Island and talks about book stores, without mentioning Gene’s Books by name?? I mean, come on; it’s a romcom book. There’s not much to say. It’s simple, it’s easy, it’s sorta feel good when you’re not annoyed with the characters’ stupidity. It entertained me, but I will never read it again. There it is.
Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
A Re-Read of They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera
They Both Die at the End
Series: Death-Cast #1
Author: Adam Silvera
Narrators:
Michael Crouch
Robbie Daymond
Bahni Turpin
Published: September 5, 2017
Audiobook
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Read: September 19-22, 2022
Jessica’s Rating: 5 stars
Book Description:
Adam Silvera reminds us that there’s no life without death and no love without loss in this devastating yet uplifting story about two people whose lives change over the course of one unforgettable day.
On September 5, a little after midnight, Death-Cast calls Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio to give them some bad news: They’re going to die today.
Mateo and Rufus are total strangers, but, for different reasons, they’re both looking to make a new friend on their End Day. The good news: There’s an app for that. It’s called the Last Friend, and through it, Rufus and Mateo are about to meet up for one last great adventure—to live a lifetime in a single day.
Jessica’s Review:
This was a re-read with the prequel coming out that I have been highly anticipating! I ordered the Barnes & Noble Special Edition months ago when I found out about it and was very happy when it arrived! I can say I loved They Both Die just as much the second time around. No crying again, but it does leave you thinking about the book and these characters long after you have put the book down.
I can’t say much more than what I said with my first review, which is here as a double review with Kim. I do want to add this time around that we ‘see’ other people that Mateo and Rufus come into some sort of contact with during their last day. We see these people before and after the contact, so we see how their day goes, whether it is their last day as well or not. This also shows how connected we are as people and even a little contact can have after affects.
This one will be a re-read every few years and I cannot wait to read The First to Die at the End! I have a few books to get to first, but it WILL be read by the end of the year! I wanted Rufus and Matteo’s story fresh in my head going in for the prequel as it is said that their younger versions make an appearance!
This is a novel I feel that everyone should read.
Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
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Audiobook Review: Booked on a Feeling by Jayci Kay
Booked on a Feeling
Series: A Sweet Mess #3
Author: Jayci Lee
Narrator: Cindy Kay
Published: July 26, 2022
Audiobook
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Read: July 13-18, 2022
Jessica’s Rating: 4 stars
Book Description:
Lizzy “Overachiever” Chung, Esq. has her life mapped out neatly:
* Become a lawyer. Check.
* Join a prestigious law firm. Check.
* Make partner. In progress.
If all goes to plan, she will check off that last box in a couple years, make her parents proud, and live a successful, fulfilled life in L.A. What was not in her plans was passing out from a panic attack during a pivotal moment in her career. A few deep breaths and a four-hour drive later, Lizzy is in Weldon for three weeks to shed the burnout and figure out what went wrong. And what better place to recharge than the small California town where she spent her childhood summers with her best friend, Jack Park.
Jack Park didn’t expect to see Lizzy back in Weldon, but now he’s got three weeks to spend with the girl of his dreams. Except she doesn’t know of his decades-long crush on her–and he intends to keep it that way. She’s a high-powered attorney who lives in L.A. and he’s a bookkeeper at his family’s brewery who never left his hometown. He can’t risk their friendship on a long shot. Can he? When Lizzy decides that the local bookstore needs a little revamp, of course, Jack is going to help her bring it back to life. But the more time they spend together, the harder it becomes to ignore there might be more than just friendship among the dusty shelves and books…
Sometimes the path to the rest of your life has been in front of you all along.
Jessica’s Review:
This one was a fun, adorable, and at times frustrating read! I did not realize it is the third in a series, but looking at the description of the other two books, I don’t believe you need to have read them first. We have Lizzy who is Asian, which was a nice change as we get to see a small side of Asian culture and families.
Lizzy has just won her first big court case, and to celebrate she takes three weeks off! A lawyer taking off 3 weeks?!?! That just doesn’t happen. But it was needed because Lizzy passed out due to a panic attack in front of the jury….
Lizzy returns to her hometown to relax and meets up with her lifelong friend Jack. And Jack has been in love with Lizzy for 20+ years, yet she doesn’t know it. She sees Jack as her lifelong best friend. While on ‘vacation’ Lizzy decides to help out the owner of the local bookstore and try to revitalize it. Jack also decides to help as it lets him spend more time with Lizzy. But can friends become lovers and not lose what they have had for their whole lives?
We also have both Lizzy and Jack having to discover what they want for themselves in their selective careers, which they actually keep from each other. And being part of an Asian family can complicate things with parental expectations, which we see over the course of the novel in several ways.
Booked on a Feeling surprised me with how much I enjoyed it. Jack was so adorable with his feelings for Lizzy and what he should do. His internal dialogue shows how much he truly loves her, but afraid to share his feelings because he doesn’t want to lose her. And then her internal dialogue! It just became frustrated because I just wanted them to hurry up and get together. And there is some really good sex in this one too!
If you enjoy the friends to lovers trope with family complications thrown in you should enjoy this one. If you love books and bookstores, (and what reader doesn’t?) you must read this one! Close to the end it becomes a sort of type story and I was hoping we get to see Lizzy and Jack finally get together!
Cindy Kay also did a great job with her narration!
I really enjoyed this one and I find myself wanting to check out the first two novels in this series! Many thanks the publisher Dreamscape Media for granting me a copy to listen to and review.
Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
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