I was looking forward to reading this because it seemed like the perfect book to read for summer/holiday vibes, but sadly, I had to DNF at 44% in because I just could not continue to force myself to get through the rest. I was not into it from the start but I wanted to give it a fair chance and see if it would possibly change my mind, but unfortunately I just couldn’t see it through any longer.

I had a lot of issues with this book but one of the main things was how unlikeable the “love interest” is. I quote love interest because after reading other reviews I now know there’s a second love interest, who we don’t even officially meet until 40% in. Prior to that he’s introduced as some mysterious guy the main character Candice comes across in the town she lives in. If I hadn’t read reviews, I wouldn’t have known Daniel is her actual love interest and would be under the impression that Alexis the “love interest” is who she’s ending up with and based on what I did read of the book, he is awful. I don’t care how hot a guy is (we get it, Makayla, he’s hot), if he’s always sighing and whining, I’m not into him. Not to mention the conversation he has with Candice where he 1) puts down booktok and actually refers to “booktok made me buy it” 2) makes eye roll worthy comments about how Mr. Darcy probably had a mistress (this personally offended me) 3) makes offense comments about the hype around Bridgerton and 4) has decided that as a writer he’s going to write a romance because he thinks it’ll be an easy cash grab. There were so many red flags and that doesn’t even touch on the lack of consent where Candice and Alexis get drunk and hook up. (That entire hook up scene was very uncomfortable to read, I didn’t find it sexy at all)

Oh and Candice finds a journal with notes where he talks about her nipples and how to write about them in a non pervy way (because he’s actually getting inspiration for his book by writing about her)

Speaking of Candice - I love a character who’s on a journey, and Candice is on exactly that after she’s left an emotionally abusive husband and is trying to have her surfing lesson business take off, which would’ve been fine until all of a sudden, out of nowhere, it turns out she moved from Hawaii (where she and her husband are from) to Newquay (in Cornwall) to find her father. It literally came out of nowhere and didn’t really fit. I think the author could’ve kept it as simple as she was just starting over after leaving her husband.

Some of my other issues are minor - some of the writing was too descriptive and was like reading a dictionary or encyclopedia, so I skimmed at some parts. There was some inconsistency in the length of chapters too — some were sooo long and never ended and then I came across a chapter that was two pages.

Going back to Candice, she was going through a lot of emotions and thinking a lot, and I think the author was trying to convey that she was grieving and trying to figure her life out but it was a lot of “telling” and not very much showing, so I couldn’t really connect with it.

I think this had potential but unfortunately did not meet my expectations and was not for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Aria & Aries for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

My Instagram grid has been a little dark lately with bad girls and hitmen and morticians. I felt like it was time to brighten things up a little bit with this cute summer read.

Candice is a Hawaiian surfer who escapes to Cornwall, England after several tragedies in her life. In Cornwall, she has a bodacious group of friends, who are hilarious, a little wild, and made me very happy with their dirty mouths. Candice meets Alexis, a total himbo- all looks, no substance who is struggling to write a romance book. Alexis’s agent, Daniel arrives and complicates everything with a little awkward love triangle.

This def started off slow and many of the plot points were underdeveloped- I think there were just a few too many moving parts. Also- this book has zero steam. In fact, anytime, somebody even hinted at physical intimacy, they were interrupted by something or someone. While I did have literary blue balls for this whole book, I still enjoyed it. See, you can still have a good time without getting drunk off of dopamine. But I’d be lying if I tell you, I wasn’t hoping for a threesome between Candace, Alexis, and Daniel. But, alas, it never happened. Overall- I didn’t hate the book- it was a generally nice, fluffy read that made me LOL several times.

Smut- 0.8 stars
Romance- 3.5 stars
Story- 3.8 stars
Literary blue balls- neg 2.6 stars

I was so excited to read this one but unfortunately i don’t think it was for me. I attempted to start this a few different times but had a hard time connecting with the story and the characters. Based on the blurb, I think this could be a successful read for someone else!

The knockoff of Emily Henry's Beach Vacation...

The title is misleading and the plot was much too close to EH's.

The following review was posted on my blog two days ago, on Tuesday, May 9th, two days before publication. It will not be shared on Instagram as to not push out low-rating reviews, but has already been posted on Goodreads. The blog post includes links to order the books and to its Goodreads page, so readers can add it to their to-be-read books.



Genre: Romance
Actual Rating: 2 stars
Spicy Meter: -1 fire emoji
Content Warnings: Discusses infidelity and contains a scene with questionable consent. Big trigger warning on being drunk and that dubious sexual content.

“Holiday Read” follows Candice, a surf instructor and romance lover, and Alexis, a writer struggling to finish his next romance novel. That’s how they end up in the weirdest of situations—Candice being Alexis’s secret inspiration and then Candice getting extremely pissed when she found out that’s what his interest in her was all about.

What do you get when you mix great writing but a question plot and not-so-relatable characters? A 2-star read apparently. Based on the premise (and the book cover) I thought I would enjoy this read, but sprinkle in some sexual assault and I was immediately turned off. I had to DNF at 32%, I could not find redemption for that situation.

Nonetheless, I really liked Taylor Cole’s writing there for a bit and I wouldn’t be against reading more of what she has to offer—as long as it doesn’t include drinking and tipsiness around a first hook up, explicitly after said drunk character had expressed their desire not to hook up.

That’s all for this review. If you’re into teacher-student relationships and aren’t repulsed by the no-consent thing, you might like this. I didn’t, but that’s just me.

If you click here, you’ll be redirected to Goodreads, so you can add the book to your TBR list.

Or you could click here, and be redirected to Amazon, so you can order the book.

ARC provided by NetGalley and Aria in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: May 11, 2023

DNFed at 37% as I didn't feel connected with the characters at all and didn't feel I should finish the book as I didn't see the potential of the story getting better. It just felt like a lot of copycat stories into one but with bland characters.

I'm not exactly sure what it was about this book, but I could not get in to it. The writing felt awkward and unclear. I just could not read it. I was disappointed because the plot sounded interesting.

Thank you NetGalley and Aria & Aries for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

DNF unfortunately
Started a few times, but I personally did not click with the writing.
The general idea has premise, just not for me sorry.

This was another DNF for me🤦🏼‍♀️
I was SO hopeful for this book, especially with it being comparable to Emily Henry. But it really fell short for me and I just couldn’t connect to the characters at all. It had potential but it wasn’t meeting it for me.

Unfortunately, this is a book I couldn't finish and will not be recommending.

To begin, the title of this book is misleading. It doesn't take place during the holidays, it doesn't really appear as if anyone is 'on' holiday, either. This feels like it was an attempt to draw in readers who like Emily Henry (i.e. Beach Read), and this book is not comparable to Beach Read, or any other Emily Henry book, in the slightest.

I really wanted to like this book, but I was never able to connect with it. The story is cute, but the characters are too whiny and flat, the story is longer and wordier than necessary. The potential was there, but I found myself skipping many parts and not missing anything important. The romance part is cute, so if you are looking for just that, definitely give it a try.
Alexis is a romance writer, struggling to write, until he meets Candice at her surf school. Alexis offers to bring Candice in on the deal, if he can deliver a winning book, and she accepts. But can she trust him? Candice spends her summer trying to teach Alexis and his agent Daniel about the perfect romance story. Will Candice find her happy ending?
Thank you netgalley for my advanced reader copy!

True, if you are a lover of Emily Henry, rest assured that this book will delight you.
Too bad that, broadly speaking, Holiday Read is very reminiscent of Beach Read by Emily Henry (also the cover).
It's not a bad book, but I wish I'd read something different.

Thank you Aria & Aries, Aria for this arc. I was maybe expecting more from the book with that cover. It was a lot of inside dialogs and lots stories around not knowing why. And then finally the twist and the end. I guess next time will works better. I like storiea about second chances and friendships, love searching.

DNF at 10%

I enjoyed the setting and the characters. I just found a lot of what happens to be repetitive and a bit much. It’s one thing to have a grumpy female character, but she came across as disgruntled more than anything. And the male main character came across as aloof. But it didn’t really seem like there was much else to them. Ultimately, the constant repetition made it difficult to follow or find myself engaged in the story.

Unfortunately this was a DNF for me. I didn’t like or connect to any of the characters so I wasn’t invested in their story at all and to be honest I was bored. I did try to push through and continue but it just wasn’t working for me.

I won’t be reviewing elsewhere as I didn’t read enough to give a full and fair review.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review,

This was just terrible. It was boring to start out with and you don't even meet the actual love interest until 40% through the book. And even then I don't think they talk enough. It seemed like it was trying to be beach read with a twist but it failed on all accounts.

I received an arc through netgalley.

Unfortunately I did not enjoy this book at all. The plot was so appealing to me, and he cover had me wanting to read it in one sitting. I spent weeks stuck in the first 25% of the book and struggled to make it to the end. I wish the author much success with this book and hope others out there will love it even if it wasn't my cup of tea.

Thank you NetGalley & Aria & Aries for the opportunity to read this in exchange for my honest review.

I've seen some reviews for this one that were all over the place. Some liked it, some loved it, and some really hated it. I sit in the 'liked it' camp. There were some good moments in this one and some parts I could have done without.

What I liked about Holiday Read: I really loved Makayla. She was hilarious, spontaneous, and the kind of friend I would love to have. Her sex jokes made me laugh out loud. This book had a lot of wit to it and it made it a pretty easy read. I also really liked the chemistry between Candice and Daniel. It felt real and honest.

What I didn't like about Holiday Read: I felt like important details were just randomly thrown in. There wasn't any flow and it just felt like it was added to make the book even longer. Apparently, Candice came to England to find her father, but it wasn't revealed until about half way through. Then she just miraculously finds him right at the end. I guess she always wanted to be a writer too, but again, that was really weirdly revealed. Also, I hated Alexis as a character. What a POS.

All in all, if you are on the fence about this one, I hope you give it a go. It had some great moments to it, but I can't say it gets anywhere near an Emily Henry read like it claims to. I give this one 3/5 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. To be honest, the only reason I finished this book was because it was an ARC and I felt obligated. I’m going to start with this quote from close to the end: “Even if they hate what I write, and say it everywhere, I'll be grateful to them for taking time out of their lives to read my writing.” I hate writing a review like this - I know a lot of people poured time and love into this project. However, it was not for me and I honestly can’t tell you who it was for. This book is…not good. Extremely long, boring plot, unlikable characters (but not in a good way) and overall poor use of my time.

There was something about this book that felt really disjointed. I also despised Alexis to the point where I had trouble reading the pages he was around for. Daniel was great but a lot of the plot points felt rushed and somewhat unfinished? Good premise, just needs a lot of fine tuning.