This one was a super slow burn and took forever for the whole picture to come into view. The first 50% of the book felt extremely disjointed and hard to follow. I’m glad I finished it as the ending did have some redeeming parts, but overall I was fairly confused and bored.

Exploring the intertwining timelines, from present to past, added depth to the narrative, unraveling the secrets and motives of each character. The multifaceted personalities made the journey of delving into their lives truly enriching.

The Vacation is about a full cast of characters who have made a Venice Beach hostel their temporary home. But most of these travelers are hiding some secrets or running from something.

I think only a writer as skilled as John Marrs could make a book with this many storylines, this many characters, and this many twists work. At times, this book took the drama a little far, but I was continuously along for the ride. This book was nonstop action and constant surprises (for better or worse).

A skillful weaving of many plot lines and characters. Normally this many storylines and time leaps would be difficult to keep up with but Marrs does a masterful job in developing each character and relaying their past and present to the reader, making you hopeful that each of them will find what they are searching for.
I thoroughly enjoyed The Vacation - thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC.

I absolutely loved this book. The storytelling of the journeys each character went through was captivating. Through various walks of life, Marrs shows us the dark side of human nature exploiting the dynamics of the predator and the prey mentality. The wittiness and the commentary of the narrator provide subtle comic relief while building the character development.

A journey of friends and strangers trying to escape their pasts and recreate themselves in a new place. I wanted to hear more about what happened to Savannah. I was anticipating her father to pop up from the back seat after she kicked Michael out of the car.

This was my first John Marrs book, and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t impressed!

For the first maybe 20%, I had no idea what was going on and felt like characters were just being thrown at me left and right, but then things very quickly settled into a nice groove and I went from trying to keep up with characters to being eager to learn more about them, where they came from, why they’re there, and most importantly, what they’re hiding.

I enjoyed the back and forth between present day, and the past in order to get the full picture of everyone’s secrets and what they’re running from. So many of the characters were multifaceted, interesting individuals who were so much more than met the eye. Really digging in and getting to see all of them was a great experience!

The shocking, juicy revelations and twists were ABUNDANT, some of them heartbreaking. These are not characters who have had a happy go lucky life and are traveling for the joy of it. Almost everyone is running from something, or should be, and watching as their stories intertwine over and over, and then unravel again as we learn everything left me breathless in both anticipation and surprise.

Upon finishing, I can see why John Marrs remains at the pinnacle of psychological thrillers. This was a very well done, amazingly executed story that left me wanting more of his work. I love that he revisited this to edit and rerelease, and am so glad I finally picked up one of his books after meaning to for so long!

Thank you to NetGalley, Harlequin Trade Publishing, and the author for this ARC.
Publication date 12/19/23

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy of The Vacation by John Marrs.

I really loved the concept of this one. I liked that the author didn't really throw me a big twist at the very end, but scattered them throughout the book. A fun ride

"People are like the tide. Some come into your like and bring thins you'll need for short time, and others will bring thins you'll carry forever. But some are destined to disappear beneath the waves" - Jake

There's a hostel in Venice Beach where backpackers come through on their journeys. Tommy has been there for a few months; Nicole is coming through with her friend Eric; Ruth came from Australia for a cheap place to stay; Matty and Declan stopped through while traveling the world; Savannah is living there after running away from home; Jake is just going with the flow wherever life may lead him at this point; Ron owns the hostel. Each of them is carrying a secret. What are they running from and where will they go next?

I really enjoyed this read. Throughout this book you read from every characters view but it flows so well! It wasn't really a thriller for me but there were some twists that I didn't put together especially the one at the end.

Thank you Netgalley, the publisher and author for my ARC!

I love John Marrs and have read all of his previous books, however I just could not get into this one. It’s got great reviews, so I’m not sure what was going on but I can’t fairly comment as I only read 32%.

The vacation had a great premise, but there were way too many characters and time jumps to keep everything straight. Marrs writes short chapters that clearly label the timeframe of the story which makes reading this novel quick.

This thriller focuses on the stories of eight people staying at a run down hostel in California. We learn about the lives of the characters and what brought them to stay at the hostel. At first, the many intersecting stories are hard to keep track of, but by the middle of the book I was able to distinguish each of the characters. With a plot that keeps you guessing and relatable characters, I would recommend this book.

This is a rerelease of Marrs’s 2015 thriller Welcome to Wherever You Are in which 8 strangers from all over stay in a Venice Beach hostel. Eight characters is a lot to keep up with so you have to pay attention from the jump but there are several good twists along the way. I really enjoyed this one. I’m glad it’s getting a new life.

When I first started reading this book, I was very disappointed. There are a lot of characters, and it was very hard to follow and understand. However, knowing that John Marrs wrote this book I kept pushing myself to continue the read and not give up. Man am I glad I did! This book is a very intricate weaving of a group of people who are traveling the world looking for something(and or running away from something) and cross paths in a hostile in Venice Beach CA.
This seemingly boring story ended up taking me for quiet the wild ride filled with twist and turns. Thank You Netgalley and the publishers for the ACR. #NetGalley #TheVaction #JohnMarrs

I first discovered John Marrs on NetGalley back in 2020 when I read What Lies Between Us. Marrs was undoubtedly a master of the domestic thriller, so I was excited to check out The Vacation. Once again, I was so impressed with Marrs' writing. I loved the plot, setting, and extensive character development. I could not put this book down! A great way to end 2023, and the perfect read for your next vacation!

John Marrs is such a gem of a writer. He always delivers interesting and plot-driven thrillers. This one kept me turning the pages. I liked that it took place mostly in Venice Beach CA which was an interesting change from his typical England setting.

The Vacation tells a tale of eight strangers who find themselves staying at the same hostel in Venice beach.

Alternating timelines from past and present unfold the picture that each individual is running from their past and harbouring secrets. Furthermore, some of them are a whole lot deadlier than they appear to be, but which ones?

This is definitely a slow burn book at the beginning, but the outgoing bubble characters, such as Tommy the hostel manager and his banter and fondness with the guests keep you entertained as time goes on. The short chapters help to keep momentum going until the plot starts to unravel and reveal itself.

There are a lot of twists and surprises at the end as everything clicks into place. Although this isn’t my favourite John Marrs book it was still a fun enjoyable read. I can’t wait to read more from this author, I’m especially anticipating his new novels “the stranger in her house” and “the family experiment” set to release early new year - June 2024

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the chance to read this book! 🩵

This book is a re-release from best selling author John Marrs originally published in 2015. I love Marrs' The One World and was hoping for something along the lines of those books. While this was not speculative fiction, it did surprise me in the best way.
Like Marrs' other books, we have many POVs that we follow throughout the story. All of these POVs are residents at a hostel in Venice Beach, California and happen to cross paths at the same time. All of these different voices are hiding secrets -- many deadly -- and they are all looking for a do-over or a fresh start in life.
Each story is told in little snippets (very short chapters) that reveal something new about each characters past and how their life choices got them to the hostel.
So, I found this intriguing in print (e-book), but wonder if it might be a bit hard to follow in audio. There are many POVs and many flashbacks (almost one per chapter). It took me a little while to get used to all the characters, but in true Marrs fashion, he was able to make them unique enough and distinguished enough.
I could tell, however, that this was an earlier book in his backlist. Some of the side characters felt more like caricatures than actual people. I also found it a bit implausible that so many people connected to untimely deaths would find themselves in the same place at the same time. But I was able to suspend my disbelief to enjoy the wild ride that was this book.
Overall, I really enjoyed this one. John Marrs is an absolute one-click author for me. This was a fast-paced, mystery with a lot of threads to unweave that kept me turning pages.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a solid 3 star read for me. I’m a huge fan of John Marrs, but this is probably my least favorite book by him.

To start, there were so many characters’ POVs that got flipped back and forth from, so the plot started to get harder to understand. I did love how suspenseful it was up until the very end.

The setting is phenomenal - a hostel in California where so many people pass through and their stories are unravelled slowly.

I would still recommend this book to anyone seeking a fast paced thriller. John Marrs has a beautiful way of keeping you hooked until the very end.

Huge thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

Overall I liked The Vacation and the twists and turns!

But the 8 characters, switching between the past and today and all of the characters did get a little confusing for me. I appreciated how they all intertwined but i think the number of main characters could have been reduced. The brief amount of time you have with the character before the next chapter adds to the confusion.

I do like John Marrs and think hes an excellent author overall!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!