This was my second book by this author. It was hard for me to follow all the different characters and flashbacks in this one, and it also seemed like nothing much was going on through the book. The other book I read of his left me jaw dropped while this one did not. This is a new version of one of his older works, so maybe his style has changed over the years. I’ll try more from him even though this one wasn’t my favorite.

Thanks to Harlequin Trade & NetGalley. I didn’t realize that this was a rerelease of a book from 2022. When I started reading, I had realized I had read it already. I always enjoy John Marrs, even if this isn’t a favorite of mine!!

Delighted to include this title in the December edition of Novel Encounters, my column highlighting the month’s most anticipated fiction for the Books section of Zoomer, Canada’s national culture magazine. (see column and mini-review at link)

My favorite John Marrs book yet. This book follows eight main characters all staying in a run down hostel on Venice Beach in California. Although there were so many main characters, and switching timelines - it was easy to keep track of who was who and to remember each story.

I literally could not stop reading, and finished within 24 hours. Each storyline was well laid out, with enough missing to make you want to keep reading. I loved each characters story and the turns and twists to the plot as they weave together in a great conclusion to the book.

I loved this book and highly recommend!!

Thank you to Net Galley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬:
This book is exactly why I have never stayed in a hostel when traveling 🤣 A hostel located in Venice Beach, California…people from all over the world come and go from this tiny, run down hostel, and all of them has their own story, secrets, and past which have brought them here.
There are eight main characters that this book centers around, and at times that got a bit confusing and hard to keep straight, especially with the alternating time lines weaving from past and present. If you can stick through that, the wait is well worth it. I loved the characters, Marrs did a fantastic job with character development, depth to each character, and their stories. I loved the amount of twists that Marrs threw at us with this one, and the short chapters. However, I will say that at times the story did drag on, but I imagine that is because there were so many characters and backstories to be told, that it tended to bog the story down at times. The stories of each character all come together neatly at the end, but almost too neatly? Overall, this was a fun, bingeable read that quickly reminded me why Marrs is a brilliant author, as I absolutely loved THE ONE!

𝐖𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐞𝐧𝐣𝐨𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞?
If you enjoyed the author’s previous book THE ONE, you should definitely check this one out!

𝐌𝐲 𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️4/5

The Vacation by John Marrs
Pub date: December 19, 2023

The Vacation is definitely a slow burn and with a large cast of characters, was a little harder for me to get into then the rest of his books that I know and love.

While I loved the intricacy of the plot and all its twists, I did have to keep going back the first 75 pages or so to see who was who. That’s a me problem, but still, it did take away from the story for me.

On to the good stuff! The meat of the story is wholly unique and once I caught on the characters, I found myself invested in the plot. It’s a web of intrigue and twists and I’m happy I kept at it!

The ending wasn’t exactly a disappointment but I was hoping for a bit more. All in all, very enjoyable but not my favorite story by one of my favorite writers!

My thanks to Harlequin Trade Publishing/Hanover Square Press for this gifted copy!

First time I've read this author and I can see why a lot of people like his work , there's just something about that pulls you into his story and once that happens your hooked , so much so that you don't want to put it down , you have to see what happens next . its not just a story it's a puzzle, as will as a maze of twists and turns that will test your comprehension and intrigue you to the point that you have no idea who or what to believe .

The Vacation is full of characters from dark places trying to find their way back into the light. Marrs knows how to intertwine multiple characters paths in ways you weren’t expecting. For me it did start off a little slow but picked up pace halfway through up until the end. John Marrs will be on my radar after this book. Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!

John Marrs can do no wrong! The king of thrillers. I loved the vacation. Probably my fave by this author so far!

This was my first John Marrs book! I went in completely blind and started reading.

First, if you don't care for multiple POV and a variable timeline, then this book is not for you. I happen to enjoy that so this book was super fun for me. I absolutely loved all the distinct characters and how their lives intersected. The story feels tied together, connected, etc.

I was pleasantly surprised with John Marrs' writing style. I'd compare him to Karin slaughter and Pat Cornwell rather than Freida McFadden and Daniel Hurst, Marrs is a bit more descriptive and wordy in his books and i am drawn to that over the latter.

Overall 4/5 ⭐️ for me!

When I requested this book I didn't realize it had actually been published years ago. It looks like it's been edited and republished.

A group of diverse people find their way to a hotel in Venice Beach. All of them are keeping secrets. There is a lot of good character development in this book, although there are quite a few characters to keep track of. The plot is very creative and well done.

I always enjoy John Marrs and this is no different. If you like psychological thrillers check this one out.

Thank you netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for giving me an advanced review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars rounded up

I'm not going to lie I started this book like 6 months ago but only got through about 4% before moving to another book. It felt like possibly one of the longest most drawn out books ever, and I've read the unabridged version of the stand.

That being said I hit my quota for the year and decided to pick up the few dnf books I had. I picked this one up and as I went to work as a substitute teacher, I read, and I read and I read, and I kept reading. I was only like 25% through and couldn't understand why. It felt like I've been reading for hours but really nothing had happened. There were so many characters and so many little things happening it was confused and kind of over it.

The next day I got called to sub again so I took the same book and I was bound to finish it no matter what. that being said about 3 hours into my day it clicked. Bam, things you weren't expecting. People you weren't thinking were linked together. They were linked together in the most atrocious, sad, magnificent ways possible. It really made me go back and think about the little bits that I had been complaining about for the last 2 days.

If you have time and you can make it through about half the book before deciding to keep going, DO IT. This book was really really good in the end, even though it took a decent chunk to get through the tiny details before it all starts to make sense.

Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC. John Marrs is forever a favorite of mine. And this thriller was fantastic. A hostile on the Venice boardwalk that gets travelers from all across the world. What could possibly go wrong?

NEW FAVORITE @johnmarrs.author BOOK!

The One has always been a favorite of mine, and The Vacation was in that same writing style - you have all these different characters and I loved how all their stories came together.

This book was insanely bingeable, it was about 500 pages, but I could not put it down until I finished it. SO GOOD!!!!

This book will be releasing on the 19th, so make sure you add it to those Christmas lists 😉

Thank you @netgally and @hanoversquarepress for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

*Thank you to Netgalley, John Marrs and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the digital ARC of this being republished!*

This was previously published as Welcome to Wherever You Are, repub date of Dec 19/23, long before I knew John Marrs. I have now devoured a few of his and he just writes some great thrillers. Many intricate twists and turns and effortlessly weaving so many characters stories together in this psychological thriller that kept me up and glued to my Kindle to finish it. Highly recommend this one to anyone wanting a good thrill or an established John Marrs fan! This one is not my top John Marrs but it holds its own.

I'm glad I knew this was one of John Marrs' early works because it definitely wasn't as tightly written as The One. Lots of astounding coincidences and character turns that didn't totally make sense (like Tommy's). It was still enjoyable and once I got used to the flashbacks inside of some of the chapters, it flowed just fine to me. I'm curious what parts Marrs rewrote, because there were some things that didn't make sense but then there were references to Selling Sunset, which post-dates this book's original publication. There were definitely some plot twists I didn't foresee and some that I did. I like the idea of the hostel becoming home for people. but where did Peyk go?!

I received an advanced copy of this book from Harlequin Trade Publishing via NetGalley.

Eight strangers, all seeking a fresh start and eager to escape their pasts, find themselves united at a Los Angeles backpacker hostel. Motivated by the craving for a new identity and a chance to begin anew, they're bound by a common desire. However, their pursuit of a clean slate turns out to be more challenging than anticipated. They soon realize that no matter where or who they are, if they cannot resolve their pasts, chance, destiny, and deceit have a knack for catching up with them when they least expect it.

A hostel is an interesting setting for a book. Well, I have been in a few myself as an American. It is true. I have always opted for a hotel, rather than a hostel and left the hostels to the European countries. At first, the abundance of characters was quite confusing. However, the author did an amazing job with each character's storyline, making it easy to follow pretty quickly, especially considering the amount of characters. I do like how, even though particularly all of the characters were strangers, the author did a great job of interestingly intersecting them, and left more than one surprise along the way.

Thank you to NetGalley, Harlequin Trade Publishing, Hanover Square Press, and John Marrs for allowing me to review this twisty character driven novel. I enjoyed this book over all, however, it was a tad difficult to follow given the large number of characters and view points. This is a bit different from his usual fast paced novels as this is more slow paced and character driven. I still very much enjoyed this book and recommend it to those who enjoy character driven thrillers. I look forward to reading more from this author. Thank you again.

Review of The Vacation by John Marrs.

Thank you NetGalley, Harlequin Trade Publishing, and Hanover Square Press for the ARC and the opportunity for an honest review.

The Vacation is a story about different people that find connections with others through various paths their travels take them. You will encounter characters that are on the receiving end of tragedy, loss, strength, redemption, and revenge; some characters cause the aforementioned.

Character development strongly influenced my review. Each main character has a backstory weaved throughout and you get a true sense of who they are. The characters are written well and it’s easy to recreate and visualize them in your mind. There are characters that you definitely root for, and some not so much.

The plot is pretty well developed and everything is tied up with conflicts resolved in the end. There are a couple side characters I would’ve loved to know what happened to them in the end, but it’s written in a way you can infer that their lives go on as before. Jaw dropping moments, big and small, are sprinkled throughout the novel, however I did expect more of them considering the previous books I've read by John Marrs. I would consider this book a bit of a slow burn, however I didn’t mind because it’s written so well I was invested in all the characters' conflicts. And let me tell you, there are definitely some doozy conflicts, hence the jaw dropping moments!

This novel overall was a 4/5 star read for me only because the slow burn lasted longer than I anticipated, and I wanted additional major conflicts to surface. His twists are so good, how could I not want more? I will be reading more books by this author because his creativity is just too good to ignore and his writing is by far nearly exquisite.

I typically love John Marrs books, but this one I did not. It was difficult to follow with so many characters.