I'm a massive fan of S.E Lynes books and always eagerly await her latest books.
The centres around 3 characters who are on holiday abroad. Kate and her husband, Jeff and the enigmatic Coco Moss. The reader is quickly drawn in to a complex triangle between the three of them when we learn that there's secrets from the past that is quickly turning Katie's holiday into a nightmare.
This book took a long time to properly get moving. There's a lot of swooning over Coco and Kate just comes across as embarrassing and desperate. The husband doesn't fair much better. All 3 characters were so unlikeable that I really didn't care what happened to them either way. There's a few little twists but I feel it is nothing to the normal standard by this author.
It it still a very readable book but there's no real tension or head turning revelations. I felt the past 'secret' was nothing new and a bit clichéd. Readable but not memorable for me.

Thank you Bookouture and NetGalley for an early copy of The Summer Holiday. Who doesn’t get excited when they see a new S. E. Lynes book? I loved the title and cover but the book was just ok. A lot of history between them all, the twists came at the end but it took awhile to get there. I’ve read better books of hers but I still can’t wait for another new one.

This was read as part of a buddy read.

Having read and adored all the authors' previous books, I was very excited to read The Summer Holiday and my thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my advanced copy.

Kate has spent her entire adult life living in the shadows of her successful husband, Jeff. Desperate for his attention and love and with a chance to rekindle their marriage, they have their first holiday alone at their Villa in Spain whilst their only daughter is holidaying elsewhere friends.

Coco Moss went to University with Kate and Jeff. She was cool, beautiful, popular, envied and worshipped by everyone.

When their paths cross many years later in Spain, Kate decides to befriend Coco, but things don't go to plan with deadly consequences.

Unfortunately, I just couldn't connect with any of the characters, so it was difficult to feel sympathy or any type of emotion towards them or their situations. They were all really unlikeable, in my opinion.

There were a couple of surprises, and the setting of Leeds and Spain added an atmospheric layer to the story, but overall, it fell a little flat for me.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for this ARC.

I'm just going to say it, I love Susie Lynes books! They never fail to disappoint.

The Summer Holiday hit deeper, though. Looking at relationships from the outside and the inside. Seeing different sides to people. Finding out that the grass isn't always greener and things are certainly never as they seem. From the outside, Kate and Jeff have it all, except when you discover they really don't. Jeff works far too hard, is absent far too much, and practically ignores his ever-present wife, Kate. It's, therefore, in some ways surprising that he's the straying one and not her! It's so hard for me to write about this book without giving any more spoilers.....argh! Basically, it's a really good read, so grab it if you can.

Fiftiesh Kate and her very successful husband, Jeff, are vacationing at their holiday home in Spain when Kate spies Coco Moss, someone she knew at school. Kate is reduced to a nervous, insecure wreck as Coco was THE girl everyone wanted to emulate. Working up courage, she eventually approaches Coco and invites her to their home for drinks. When Jeff and Coco encounter each other, their shocked expressions and edgy demeanor tell Kate there is something they are hiding. Old secrets are slowly revealed that will affect all of their lives.

This is a slow burn, with lots of ruminating from the three MCs differing POVs. A character driven psychological thriller with twists, many readers loved this book. It missed the mark for me, perhaps because the three MCs were so unlikable. I thought that the mature Kate, mother and operator of her own business, a bit ridiculous with her seeming adolescent crush on Coco. And Jeff and Coco were despicable.

Initially, I had to force myself to stick with the book, but after about the the halfway point, I found I couldn’t put it down, wanting to quickly get through it to find out what would happen next.

Again, many people will really like this book; it just wasn’t my favorite read.

The Summer Holiday has many elements that I love in a psychological thriller. From the beginning, the author drops lots of hints about what has happened in the past and its clear that almost all the characters are hiding some kind of secret from each other. Most of the characters are unlikeable and some of them are gullible and overall, this creates an interesting mix that made me want to continue reading. However, there are some scenes, particularly the scenes that take place whilst the characters are students, where I had to suspend my disbelief slightly as I found it difficult to understand how Kate would remember Coco so clearly.

Most of The Summer Holiday is set in Spain, with the flashback scenes set in Leeds. The author describes the setting really well and I was able to picture exactly what was happening as I read. As I live in Leeds, I am very familiar with the student areas of the city and I enjoyed seeing the city brought to life in the pages of this novel.

Although The Summer Holiday begins quite slowly, it comes to life as the tension begins to bubble over. I enjoyed reading as everything was revealed to the reader. There were also some surprises along the way, which gives the novel an interesting ending.

Firstly I would like to thank bookouture and the author S E Lynes for access to the summer holiday.

The review I am going to make is an honest review regardless of the access I received for this book. It should be noted I was not paid for this review and ensure honesty in all my reviews.

This holiday is the first time my husband Jeff and I have been on our own in years and I want it to be a fresh start. We can walk along the beach, eat ice cream in the bright Spanish sun and fall in love again.

Then I run into Coco, the girl we all wanted to be at university. She’s just like I remember: effortlessly cool with her blonde hair and her white linen dress. I can’t resist inviting her round to our clifftop villa with its pristine pool, to show off how much Jeff and I have changed.

But when Coco steps from the dusty street into the cool tiled hall, her face freezes in horror. I turn to see Jeff, his eyes wide, his cheeks pale.

They pretend nothing’s wrong but I know they’re both lying. And when I catch them in whispered conversations, I’m determined to find out what they’re hiding.
But when I confront them, the truth is worse than I could have dreamed.

I was engaged and wanted to know how the story ended but it did fall a bit meh at the end. I also disliked the main characters a lot.

I really enjoyed this book though it took I really enjoyed this book though it took a while to get going.

I found Kate to be a bit pathetic at first for a grown woman, and Jeff wasn't much better.

When Coco Moss comes back into their lives after a 30 year absence, Kate knows there's something between her and her own husband, Jeff. She can't quite put her finger on it but after some investigating, discovers that they did know each other even though they both said they didn't. What transpires is a story full of drama, twists and turns and an ending I didn't see coming.

4🌟 from me.

Kate and her husband, Jeff, are finally vacationing alone together at their vacation home in Spain. Kate spots Coco Moss, the popular girl that she and Jeff obsessed over in college, and immediately gets excited. She invites her to their home for cocktails and, upon her arrival, she notices an awkward reaction between Coco and Jeff. They both brush it off with explanations, but Kate has a feeling that their reactions to each other was not a coincidence. She is determined to find out if something happened between them all those years ago.

I really wanted to like this book, but it fell flat for me in a lot of ways. I was engaged throughout, eager to know how the story ended and was rapidly turning pages to find out. I also loved the backdrop of the story and the setting in Spain. However, the pace of the book was so slow and I didn’t like any of the characters, which really brought down the experience for me.
In addition, a jaw dropping plot twist is how you get my attention in a thriller and I honestly feel that the twists in this book were very lame/dull. Maybe it’s because I didn’t like the characters? Maybe it’s because I figured things out too quickly? I don’t really know. But I definitely was not shocked at all when the twists were revealed throughout.
All in all, decent storyline, but I wouldn’t recommend over others.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookoture for a gifted ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I found the beginning of this book rather tedious with the middle class people and their fancy villas and clothes and food but I'm glad I stuck with it. The ending really ramped up with twists and suspense that saved the day. Overall a good read but I wasn't a fan of the characters personalities and problems and did nearly give up on them, but I'm glad I didn't.

I can't remember the last time I loathed a fictional character as much as I did Coco Moss, and this is in every way a compliment to the author. God, the woman is despicable! (Coco...not the author) We know she's there to stir up trouble....we know there's a secret that's threatening to destroy Kate's life as she knows it, and Lynes does a fantastic job at tweaking out the details at just the right pace, teasing the reader with 'what ifs' while keeping us turning the pages to find out more. There were times I thought I knew what was going on, but each time I was wrong. The denouement was completely unexpected, and as with all Lynes's books, this one is beautifully written.

Holy cow what did i just read…. Talk about twists oh my my!
This unputdownable book had me going nuts to figure out what was going to happen.
I absolutely hated CoCo! Despised her like no other. Her uppity, conniving ways had me so disgusted from the moment her POV came into the book. I’ll give the author major kudos on getting to hate CoCo so much and I’m pretty sure you’ll feel the same. I’ll even admit I skimmed a bit of CoCo’s POV because she made me sick with her analytical hogwash.

This is an absolute must read, filled with love, lust, affairs, secrets so many secrets. You will start to feel sorry for Kate and maybe even for others like I did in the end.

The Summer Holiday
S.E Lynes
Bookouture
9th May 2023

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thanks so much to Netgalley and author S.E Lynes aswell as publishers Bookouture for an ARC of this latest book due to be released 9th May in exchange for an honest review.

This one started off kind of slow for me, it wasnt as fast paced as some other thrillers in this genre but I found by the half way point, it picked up and got going and by that stage I just couldnt put it down, I had to keep reading to find out what happened. I disliked all of the characters so I wasnt really rooting for any of them which is unusual for me in a read like this lol! But they were all unlikable and had no great qualities! Overall, the book was written really well with short chapters and once I got properly into the story, I flew through it.

While its not one of my favourites in this genre, it was an enjoyable read and I'll make sure to look out for the auhors next book.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

A totally addictive read! I whizzed through this book it just reeled me in. Brilliant characters and the story is told from their respective pov which added depth to the story. Would definitely recommend as a holiday read.

This is a clever and well written thriller told by the three main characters, Kate, Jeff (husband of Kate) and Coco (much admired uni ‘friend’ of both Kate and Jeff).

Kate lives a very comfortable life with husband Jeff, he is a high flying lawyer and she runs a catering business. They own a villa abroad where they are having their first child free holiday since their teens. Kate is astounded to see her ‘idol’ from uni Coco at a table nearby while she enjoys a coffee and cannot wait to invite her to their house to show her what a successful couple she and Jeff are. Coco, however, seems to not remember Kate at all.

The meeting starts a downward spiral of events as on meeting Jeff and Coco look at each other like they have seen a ghost, what has happened between them?

All incredibly unlikeable characters, Kate, Jeff and Coco tell their own stories of what happened at uni and how it shaped their lives. Despite and because of this I was completely invested in seeing what happened and hoping for justice to be done.

Well written and a good fast paced read I enjoyed this and would definitely recommend it.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Summer Holiday by S.E. Lynes is a tense, engaging and twisted tale.

Kate and Jeff plan a holiday in Spain to rekindle their relationship.
While Kate and her husband are away on their child free vacation they just so happen to cross paths with an old acquaintance Coco.
Coco, is the gorgeous girl everyone seemed to fall over and wanted to be while at university.
Kate invites Coco over their villa to meet her husband.
After this meeting starts a vacation from hell.
And when the lying and secrets start to bubble up to the surface Kate soon realizes someone is lying and not all of them will walk away from this…..

An utterly gripping thriller that had me racing through the pages at the shocking and brilliant twists.
I instantly knew that this was one story I wasn’t going to be able to put down.
This has been intriguing and moves at the perfect pace.
I have devoured page after page, completely hooked and unable to predict where this one was going.
This book was crazy good. S.E. Lynes has created an addictive read with multiple POVs.
Intriguing, interesting and fun suspense that I couldn’t read quick enough.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank You NetGalley and Bookouture for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

The synopsis of this book really appealed to me and I was excited to start reading it. At first I found myself getting very bogged down. It wasn’t boring but it didn’t reel me in either. I disliked the main characters but found it interesting getting to know them. Before I knew it I was involved in the story and found myself loving it.

Great story, great characters, even If they weren’t very likeable and some wonderful twists made this a fun and ultimately exciting book that deserves the 4 stars I give it.

I have read a couple of this authors books in the past and will definitely be reading more in the future.

Thank you to the author, Netgalley and Bookouture for allowing me to read the ARC in return for an honest review.

#Netgalley #Bookouture #TheSummerHoliday

Kate and Jeff have been trundling along in their marriage, having been best friends at university. Jeff is now a wealthy and successful lawyer, and they have a second house in Spain. However Kate, despite having a successful cake business of her own, looks after his every need, always putting her needs after his and their daughter.
When Kate spots Coco Moss in a bar while she is in Spain, Kate finds a way to bump into the IT girl from university, in order for he finally spend time with the girl she idolised 30 years previously. When she invites Coco to her villa to meet Jeff, their reactions, despite claiming never to have met, starts a snowball of catastrophic events, that once started can not stop.
We all know a version of Coco, the girl who everyone wants to be or at least acknowledged by, who is devious and manipulative beyond all imagination. I loved this book and found it difficult to put down. I was very grateful for a few long train journeys.
This summer’s must-read.

“The Summer Holiday” by author S.E. Lynes is a thrilling psychological suspense novel that had me on the edge of my seat. The story follows a couple, Jeff and Kate who are trying to rekindle their love during their long-awaited holiday in Spain. But the holiday takes a dark turn when they invite their old college acquaintance, Coco, over for a visit.

The author skillfully creates a tense and atmospheric setting, with vivid descriptions of the Spanish sun, the pristine pool, and the dusty streets. The plot is full of unexpected twists and turns, and the characters are well-developed, each with their own secrets and motivations. The suspense builds up as the story progresses which had me frantically turning the pages trying to guess what was going to happen. A page-turner that is hard to put down once started.

Overall, “The Summer Holiday” is a an exciting read, a gripping plot, well-drawn characters, and an atmospheric setting making it a must-read for fans of psychological thrillers.

I was immediately hooked by the premise and couldn’t put it down until I found out what happened to these characters. The plot was filled with secrets, drama, and suspense, the characters were so well-written that I felt like I knew them personally. They were flawed and complex, which made them all the more interesting to read about. While some of their choices were frustrating, I understood their motivations and found myself rooting for them even when I didn’t agree with their actions.

Easy to read with vivid descriptions that brought the setting to life. The pacing was perfect, with twists and turns that kept me guessing until the very end.

I would like to thank both Netgalley and Bookouture for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
Overall, I enjoyed this book. The story is told from the POV of the 3 main characters: Kate, her husband Jeff, and Coco. Jeff has always been an MIA husband, Kate is the doting wife who has always waited on him hand and foot, and because of that only has 1 true friend and no true purpose. Coco the sociopath comes along and everything goes downhill for the couple from there.
There were a few twists you don't see coming, but I can't say I was surprised by the "attempt" at the end, and finding out so many left out details about the main antagonist.
The book focuses on how people worry so much about what others think, and reflects how often times we don't feel good enough to be liked by "the cool people" and go about changing ourselves to meet their expectations.
I would read another book by this author.