
Member Reviews

Whilst I’m not a higher romance fan, I found this a rather enjoyable and entertaining read! I zoomed through it and it kept my attention the whole way.

Wow, I just love this novel! I am on my second read through at the moment and it is giving all the feels. I love Emily Henry's books and each year I look forward to their release dates. I really enjoy Poppy as a main character, someone who is very active in pursuing what she wants but can still keep a fun and 'bubbly' energy about her.

I must firstly apologise for the amount of time it has taken me to provide a review of this book, my health was rather bad for quite some time, something that had me in hospital on numerous occasions and simply didnt leave me with the time I once had to do what I love most.
Unfortunately that does mean I have missed the archive date for many of these books, so It would feel unjust throwing any review together without being able to pay attention to each novel properly.
However, I am now back to reading as before and look forward to sharing my honest reviews as always going forward. I thank you f0r the patience and understanding throughout x

This fun summer romance novel follows two best friends, Poppy and Alex, who have known each other since they started university. Every summer, they take a holiday together. But for some reason unknown to the reader, they haven't seen each other for a few years until Poppy invites Alex on one last vacation to try and save their friendship. The book is told in alternating chapters between the present day and past trips.
I'll start of by saying that this book was a lot of fun. Both Poppy and Alex are very likable characters and it was fun reading about all the places they have travelled to. This is a classic summer romance novel in my opinion, nothing ground-breaking, but compelling enough to suck you in for a relaxing read. The characters are both obviously pinning after one another which makes a refreshing change and if I had one complaint it would be that it's maybe a bit too long and slow to start. All the juicy stuff happens right at the end. But overall a fun and pleasant romance read that I would definitely recommend.

"You and Me on Vacation" by Emily Henry is a heartwarming and utterly relatable tale of friendship and romance. Henry's writing shines as she takes readers on a journey through the ups and downs of a lifelong friendship between Poppy and Alex. The clever use of alternating timelines, set against the backdrop of dreamy vacation destinations, adds depth to the story.
The characters are beautifully nuanced, making it easy to connect with their joys and struggles. The gradual build-up of romantic tension is both endearing and satisfying. Henry's storytelling is a delightful mix of humor and poignancy, and she delves into themes of self-discovery and the importance of taking chances.
This book is the perfect summer read, filled with laughter, nostalgia, and a reminder that sometimes the best moments happen when you least expect them. "You and Me on Vacation" is a charming and refreshing exploration of the complexities of love and friendship, making it a must-read for anyone in search of a sweet, witty, and touching novel.

Emily Henry never disappoints. As someone who discovered her back in her YA days, it's lovely to see how much of an impact she's now had on the romance genre. I keep thinking she'll end up repeating characters, yet each of them are unique in their own way and find their way to my heart!

Fresh, lovely - and believable! - romantic comedy about two friends who just belong together. Yet, they fight the attraction for a very long 12 summers...
This was my first novel by this authoress and definitely is not the last one! Ms Henry can definitely write this genre. The characters come alive on the pages, you get them, you understand them, their motivations and their scares. They definitely have been made for each other - but you also understand why they are not together (yet?). The believability is the key here and I definitely believe Poppy and Alex here.
The novel is also genuinely very, VERY funny.
So why 3 stars? This might be my pet peeve, but I like the attitude changes to happen - say, less swiftly than they are happening here. One of the characters acts on immaturity here - but the growth process is described quite speedily here, just couple of paragraphs containing realization and resolution and voila, here we go, I am all changed and ready. Uhm, I get the genre and maybe for some readers this very acceptable, but I personally like to see the growth. Also, the novel is a bit clichey and politically correct.
But otherwise - great read! Might be the best romantic comedy I have read this year (so far).

Love Emily Henry’s books and this is no exception. The tension that builds in this will they won’t they have they keeps you turning the page and hoping for a happy ending.

This was entertaining. I enjoyed Alex and Poppy's relationship but it was a little repetitive at points. The plot was fun but I could have happily kept on waiting for the Croatia story because it really wasn't worth the mystery. I did enjoy the ending and I related to a little bit of what was going on outside of their relationship. Now I'm finding myself wishing they'd explored that more.

Although this review won't be live for a few weeks I am going to tell you about the weather. It is hot. Like hot hot. And I am ginger and I don't do well in this heat. However, one thing that has kept me sane during this stupid heatwave is reading You and Me on Vacation by Emily Henry. It was boss.
It is the story of Poppy and Alex - the epitome of the perfect will they won't they couple - who are best friends but just cannot seem to take things to the next step where we all know that they belong. Set over many years, fast forwarding and rewinding, we see their love story play out and yes, you, dear reader, will be screaming at these characters to kiss her/him you fool.
Recently, I haven't read a lot of romance books, they have fallen a little out of favour genre wise for me but dammit You and Me on Vacation was a brilliant step back into the romance story.
You and Me on Vacation by Emily Henry is available now.
For more information regarding Penguin (@PenguinUKBooks) please visit www.penguin.co.uk.

This was my first Emily Henry book and I know they are very popular so I was excited to get started.
The novel follows Poppy, a travel writer and her best friend Alex who is a teacher. They have been best friends since school and would go on a summer vacation together every year. Two summers ago, something happened that caused them to stop talking but now Poppy has reached out to Alex, inviting him on the summer vacation again to try and reconnect. She realises that the best times of her life have been with him.
This is beautifully written, there is no doubt about that and I totally bought Poppy and Alex's close friendship. I got lost a little with their chemistry and I think it probably would have been deepened if we got chapters from Alex's point of view too. I also think a more linear timeline would have worked better for me, but that is just a personal preference.
Friends to lovers and the miscommunication trope wouldn't be my favourites but this is still a cute and fluffy read!

Not as good a beach read but a pretty decent second book, warm, witty & fun.
The chemistry between the characters was on point, one for the slow burn fans..

I received an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review. This book was a real cute journey that made me smile. My only problem with this book was the pacing as I found there were times where I was bored wanting it to hurry up so I could see more of their relationship. It was very cute though and I did love Alex and Poppy together. Would definitely recommend to read it. Excited to try Emily Henry’s other books to see if I’ll love them or like them like this one.

I had very high expectations for this book, as I've heard such good things about all of Emily Henry's books - she's one of, if not the most, popular romance authors at the moment, and now I know why! She's become a firm favourite author in this genre and I'm so happy to say this didn't disappoint at all. I'm not normally the biggest fan of a friends-to-lovers romance over some of the other tropes, but I honestly couldn't have rooted for Alex and Poppy more. The love they had for each other was so strong and unwavering throughout all their years of friendship, and I really enjoyed the swapping between present-day and their friendship from the beginning before joining up together as it provided the context needed to prove just how much they were meant to be together. I though the travel element to their relationship was so fun, and was perfect timing for reading this in the summertime. It's safe to say I'm now a huge fan of Henry and can't wait to go back and read all her other works!

It's been a while since I've felt so connected to characters in a book as I did to this one. I literally could not put it down. I loved everything about this book.
I laughed lots and also cried in equal measure. I absolutely adore it when a book makes you feel so much and this one really did that.
Emily Henry is definitely going to be a new favourite author of mine. I adored everything about the way this story was written. She has a very unique and beautiful way of unravelling a story. I didn't ever feel like I was waiting too long for information but at the same time...I couldn't stop reading because I just couldn't wait to find out more.
Poppy is a modern day imperfect heroine.. I absolutely loved her. Even her faults (and they were not hidden from us!). I thought it was amazing how much her family featured in this and just how much she loved them, quirks and all. There was no choosing between love and family which is a nice relief!
Towards the end it did get frustrating with all the stumbling blocks but that's because we were rooting for these wonderful characters so much.
Just everything about this book is perfection. I absolutely loved every moment I was reading it. I will definitely be reading it again and cannot wait to read other Emily Henry books.
Everyone should read it...its just a beautiful, happy, moving and romantic story.
Thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A sweet summer romance with lovely characters that we follow through different stages of their lives and relationship. I really enjoyed this book. Thank you for the chance to read and review.

A great friends-to-lovers story. I loved that the characters had such a long history together. Also enjoyed the way the chapters switched between past holidays to the present. A great choice for a summer holiday read!

This author has a huge fan base but for me personally I struggle to get into the fluffy tales . I do love a romance the steamier the better , I think the authors later books are better but sadly I had to dnf this as I just lost interest saying that I will purchase and fry book lovers and the happy place

I would like to thank netgalley and Penguin for a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
This was my first introduction to Henry's work and I couldn't put it down.

I enjoyed Beach Reads and this book was another fun-filled, holiday-themed romantic comedy of a novel. An original story with good characters and a feel-good uplift. Great escapist fiction.