This was good. I enjoyed it. Nothing about it stuck though and unfortunately I know I’ll forget about it rather quickly but that cover!! It’s completely captivating and drew me in!

This is the first book I have read by author Catherine Mack. The synopsis caught my attention because I enjoy reading books about authors, librarians, or bookshop owners. This book is kind of slow until about halfway through. It is somewhat of a cozy mystery. It does contain some humor but not enough to allow the story to ride on the humor alone. This book has a cute premise but was just too slow for my taste.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for a digital ARC. All opinions are my own.

When she was 25, Eleanor had a trip to Italy that led to her helping to solve a string of robberies and a murder, with the help of the dashing PI, Connor. She ended up writing a novel that launched her writing career but ended up in her own sticky situation. Now, 10 years later, she is going back to Italy on a book tour with a mismatched group of people, among them, her sister, Connor and her ex. The drama ensues when it comes out that someone is trying to kill Connor and maybe even Eleanor.

This was a fun, quick read, narrated by Eleanor, a self-claimed liar. Who doesn't love an unreliable narrator? This was a funny, twisty turn-y mystery that kept me guessing the whole time. I love Catherine Mack's character development and the eggs that she drops along the way. I also enjoyed how the narrator was speaking directly to you as the reader, and the footnotes were hilarious, like a conversation with the author. I think that some of these eggs are setting up for a series, but that was kind of unclear. I think it's a good, fun read, that gave me Finlay Donovan vibes. It took me a bit to get into it at first, but then I just had to know what happens at the end.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books and Catherine Mack for the eARC of Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies in exchange for an honest review. Publication Date for Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies by Catherine Mack was 30 April 2024.

Special thanks to St. Martin's Press and Minotaur Books and NetGalley for an e-arc of this novel.

It was such a fun read. It's the first story in the Vacation Mystery Series. It was written in a very unique format, which I loved.

The book is original, a little bit quirky and loads of fun.

I loved the characters and the story and I can't wait until they release book 2.

I am fully in my cozy mystery era and Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies was absolutely perfect for me.

It had a little bit of romance, lots of mystery, so much witty & hilarious dialogue - it was a very enjoyable book that I didn’t want to put down. I expected this book to have unlikeable characters and I was not disappointed. It was fun to try to figure out who-dun-it, especially when each person that I was convinced was the culprit, ended up dead…

I can’t wait for book 2 and book 3 - While I didn’t get an ALC, I ended up listing to the audio of this book (which was utterly fantastic) and I have a physical copy to re-read and annotate as well.

Huge thank you to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Author Eleanor Dash has a wild month in Italy at 25 that ended with her and Connor (a private detective she met in Italy) solving a string of bank robberies. This inspired her to write a novel loosely based on the events that launched a career that has her readers waiting for the 10th volume and Eleanor on a work vacation that has her and several other authors touring Italy along with some fans.
It sounds like a dream come true, but not everything's as perfect as it sounds with Eleanor's career or private life and a tour that includes the man who broke her heart, his ex-wife, the man whose heart she broke, and her dissatisfied little sister/PA does not a relaxing vacation make. Add the fact that someone is trying to kill Connor and maybe even Eleanor and it starts to sound like the plot of one of Eleanor's novels come to life.

It's a super fun and twisty plot narrated by a super unreliable narrator who tells you straight up that she is an unreliable narrator. The way it's told is a big part of the charm because Mack gave Eleanor a loose and slightly carefree personality that counterbalances the harder moments. Even when things are dire, she's there with a quip to make it feel like the stakes are not as high as they seem. Not that this means that it's not a twisty mystery that will keep you guessing even though it's super obvious who's behind everything if you really think about it. Almost every chapter throws you something new and you have to be paying attention because Eleanor gives you hints over the course of the story that will make sense once the ending comes.

The one thing I can find to complain about is that some of the hints Eleanor drops over the course of the story don't get solved and feel like a setup for a future novel more than an important part of this one. Not a major detail, but a pet peeve of mine is when books set up situations and never solve them in a way that feels more like a tease than a cliffhanger.

Happy thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the fun and twisty read!

This was a really fun read! I haven't enjoyed a mystery like this in a while. I love the author's humor, style of writing, and characters. While they were fun in the beginning, the footnotes did get a little tedious after a while. I'm just not a big fan of footnotes but I will admit these were very fun little add-ons.

While reading this one, it was reminiscent of Clue, at least for me. That was an added joy on top of everything else. This is definitely a good one for people who enjoy mysteries, but like a little humor and romance thrown in. Adding this one to my 2024 favorites.2024 favorites.

I sincerely appreciate Minotaur Books and NetGalley for the review copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

Although this review is late I still want to post one! I'm so grateful for the opportunity to have received this ARC and I want to thank NetGalley first and foremost.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and it truly surprised me in quite a few ways. I typically read romance over mystery so I really enjoyed the twists and turns of the plot throughout the story. The author does a great job of mixing humor into something that's generally very dark or serious, keeping the story lighter and less intense than other reads, which made it a perfect summer read. it also made me really want to take a trip to Italy! I also found myself laughing at Eleanor's quips and her banter with all of the other characters often.
The footnotes were an interesting addition and something I've never seen in a book before. I felt that at times they were hard to follow and I think that it took me longer than normal to read this book because I often would need to go back and find the part that the footnote was referencing. This partly could have been due to the formatting on my kindle and having the book as a document vs. actual book though. And, I wonder that if I had read this as a physical read or if they were more closely placed to their reference sentences if this would have been easier to read. Despite that part of the footnotes, the ADHD part of my brain LOVED them and I felt like I could resonate with the author because sometimes my brain works in the same exact way. I truly enjoyed her pop culture references sprinkled throughout the book...ahem Bridgerton, as well as her use of celebrities to describe the characters. As a non-true crime/mystery reader, I actually really loved the breaking of the 4th wall and the recap she added of all the "facts," because she knew that the reader would be working the whole time to try to piece it all together. All and all, I will certainly be looking forward to the next book!

Every Time I Go on Vacation had a cast of eclectic people who were clever, witty and full of secrets. The author broke the 4th wall through footnotes. They added so much humor, sarcasm and insight to the story. Looking back, they were my favorite part.

I enjoyed following Eleanor on her book tour with her sister, he two exes, a crazed fan. The book starts with her ex convinced he is the target of unfortunate events and involves Eleanor on his quest to not only survive the tour but find out who is responsible.

Looking forward to the next book in this series. Pick up a copy today!

This book was so fun, so fresh, and full of FOOTNOTES!! I realized my love for a good footnote in the Magnolia Parks series and I haven’t looked back since. These footnotes were so funny, some actually laugh out loud worthy!! 🤣

This was such a unique concept for a book and I just had such a fun time with it. This would def qualify under cozy mystery, but for me the humor was what made the entire book.

We travel to Italy with Eleanor, who is on a book tour and trying to kill off Connor, who she wrote about in a successful Vacation Mystery series and hasn’t been able to shake off since. When there’s an actual attempt on Connor’s life, Eleanor is enlisted to help solve the case.

This is a great book to throw in your beach bag this summer! Funny, fresh, and the characters are just plain fun.

And the cover…gorgeous! 🍋

This was a riot. I loved every minute of my time with Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies. A fresh concept with too many to count laugh out loud moments. This is the kind of book that plays out like a super vivid movie in your head.

I really wanted to love this book, but it unfortunately fell flat for me. I didn’t really enjoy the characters in this book, and I really didn’t like the footnotes. I felt like there was so many interruptions in this book. I wanted to DNF it so bad, but I stuck it out in hopes that it’d get better. I know others loved it. So I recommend checking their thoughts as well! It may just not have been for me.

Thank you to and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book. This book was an absolute delight! This is a funny laugh out loud cozy murder mystery. Eleanor Dash is a famous author going on book tour with her beautiful sister and her ex who is experiencing near death experiences and thinks someone is out to kill him. Everything about this book was great - the plot, the characters, even the footnotes! Loved this book and can't wait for more from this author.

This is my first time reading this author’s books. It won’t be my last. This book is a cozy mystery with murder and a little romance.

The main character and narrator, Eleanor Dash, is a successful writer of ten books in her Vacation Mystery Series. She is on a tour of Italy with her sister, Harper, who is also her assistant. There are a few other authors and a group of loyal readers of her books on this trip. Joining the group is Connor Smith, Eleanor’s former boyfriend, who receives a percentage of her book profits because his name is used in her books. Another former boyfriend, Oliver, has joined the group. As the group tours the country, it becomes evident that someone is trying to kill Eleanor and Connor. Could it be a member of the tour group?

Fans of the movie Knives Out will love this book. I loved the way the author broke that fourth wall. One way was her use of footnotes that were sprinkled throughout the book. Many were humorous. She also spoke directly to readers offering encouragement to solve the mystery.

Although I didn't completely predict the outcome, I enjoyed this book. There was also a tease for a sequel at the end. Since this is Book #1, I’m looking forward to Book #2.

“But secrets don’t keep; they rot until their stench makes them impossible to ignore.”

What a fun read for summer! This cozy mystery has a beautiful setting (Italy!) and a great cast of characters. I really enjoyed Ms. Mack's writing style. There is humor throughout and the footnotes were fun. I'm looking forward to reading the next book in this series.

You know when you pick up a book and start reading it and you're like "I'm NOT in the mood for this genre" ???? That was me with this book. I started reading it and almost put it down for something else because I just didn't think I was in the mood for it.

But I forced myself read a little more. And then I read a little more. And before I knew it, I'd read half the book. And I loved every second of it. I loved it all the way until the end. All of the characters were amazing. The mystery was GREAT. I literally was guessing until the end. I found the footnotes in the book comical, even though it was super annoying to read them on my Kindle app.

But you know what? This book made me mad. Because the heroine of this story, Eleanor Dash? She got to go to Italy at LEAST twice and I've never been! That's just not fair. But I suppose that isn't Eleanore Dash or Catherine Mack's fault, is it?

Anyway, now I just need to know when book 2 will be out???

The best way to describe Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies by Catherine Mack is as a delightfully engaging mystery that provides countless laughs and unexpected detours. While this is a debut for the penname, the author behind the novel is a seasoned veteran with over a dozen novels to her credit. That said, Catherine Mack is poised to become a new fan favorite, so I hope she has been practicing her new autograph.


Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies might look like a cozy mystery—a subgenre with which it does share much DNA—but it would be more accurately defined as a traditional mystery, even straying into thriller territory on more than one occasion. This hybrid serves to make the whole endeavor feel fresh and unique.

Readers interested in the behind-the-scenes workings of the publishing industry will find a wealth of information here—albeit wrapped in the veil of fiction. Eleanor Dash is the bestselling author of nine books in the Vacation Mystery Series. She’s currently on a research/marketing trip to Italy working on the tenth novel. She secretly plans to kill off the lead male character in the series—Connor Smith—who is based on her real-life ex with the same name.

Connor, who is idolized by the faithful and exuberant female fans of the Vacation Mystery Series, is along for the book tour and when Eleanor finds out that someone is really trying to kill him, fact and fiction collide. Also along for the tour are some other authors using cross-promotion to boost their sales, inspire ideas, and maybe some other less wholesome activities.

Over the course of ten days and six cities, Eleanor weeds through the facts looking for the key to solving a string of mishaps that put all their lives in danger. Between dueling love interests, a fervent stalker, the complexities of sibling bonds with her sister, and a publisher anxious for news of the next book, Eleanor certainly has her hands full.

Catherine Mack makes what is really quite a complex storyline feel like vacation fodder through the use of humor and short, fast-paced chapters. She even employs the use of footnotes—which she immediately tells the reader can be skipped as they are not integral to the plot—that might seem like a chore, but which quickly become one of the many highlights of Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies.

Through it all, it is the characters that truly sing here. Eleanor is instantly loveable, though a bit of a train-wreck in many ways. Readers can’t help but hope for the best for her and each new revelation shows the challenges she faces. Many secondary characters will rise to be favorites of Every Time I Go on Vacation, Somone Dies’s fans. Thankfully, this is the start of a new series, so we’ll see many of them again in the future—the ones that make it out alive, anyway.

There’s unlikely to be a more fun read this season. Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies has something for everyone. The descriptions of Italy alone will have you ready to renew your passport. Come along on this madcap adventure now, and join the throng of readers anxiously awaiting Eleanor’s new excursion—No One Was Supposed to Die at this Wedding is coming soon.

This book sounds like the perfect summer read for those who love cozy mysteries. I did enjoy this book however it was quite predictable and a little redundant in places. Would recommend if looking for an easy read where you don't have to think to hard about plot points or characters.

Funny, quirky and full of lively characters, I enjoyed this read. Every Time I Go On Vacation, Someone Dies by Catherine Mack is the perfect Beach Read. It has a bit of whodunnit with a side of humor and a hint of romance. Eleanor is an accidental novelist looking to end her popular series and cut ties with her trifling ex. A trip to Italy for a book tour turns murderous, hilarity ensues and the arm chair detectives get to work. Although the story is on the light side, it’s still a good summer read with a cozy ending., I would enjoy seeing this one transformed into a screen adaptation. Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur Books:for the ARC.

Thank you @stmartinspress and @minotaur_books for the gift eARC of EVERY TIME I GO ON VACATION SOMEONE DIES!

Every now and then I take a break from fantasy and romance land and just need a good mystery in my life!
When that mood struck, I picked up EVERY TIME I GO and had such a blast reading it. This book is light and funny with lots of snarky footnotes and asides (you know I love snark) and it’s set in Italy so you get an immediate escapism factor.
And then of course there are the murders!

The mystery is clever and not gory which I appreciated. It’s not quite a cozy mystery but definitely has those vibes as it’s not especially horrific or violent like some thrillers and mysteries can be. The twists were fun and there was a point where the narrator basically breaks down all the clues and tells you what’s going to happen and yet I was still pleasantly surprised by the twist.

Pick this one up if you like:
*Clever mysteries
*Books about authors and books
*Snarky narrators
*Italian setting
*Quick and easy beach reads

This one is out now!

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6543855020
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