In "Every Time I Go On Vacation, Someone Dies," Eleanor Dash's book tour takes a chaotic turn when it seems like someone is trying to murder someone else on the tour. The almost victim, Connor, also happens to be the inspiration for a character in Eleanor’s bestselling books and a major thorn in her side. As he begs for her help in finding who the attempted murderer is, Eleanor realizes that most people on their tour have a motive for murder, including Eleanor.

This cozy-ish mystery novel gives Finlay Donovan and Ernest Cunningham vibes, which I thoroughly enjoyed. The book had potential for a solid 4-star rating, but I would say this was somewhere around 3.5 because I figured out who the murderer was too early. I prefer my mysteries to keep me guessing a bit longer.

One of the things I liked was Eleanor breaking the fourth wall and speaking directly to the reader, much like the protagonist in the Ernest Cunningham series. This narrative technique added a fun twist and was an engaging way to recap key parts of the story. Overall, it was an enjoyable read that I’d recommend if you want a light mystery for a day at the beach.

Thank you to NetGalley, Catherine Mack, and St Martin’s press for the arc.

I was so pleasantly surprised by this book!

I’ve been in a huge reading slump lately and decided to pick this one up as a buddy read hoping it could get me out of this funk, and it didn’t disappoint!

“𝘛𝘦𝘯 𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘴, 𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘴𝘶𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘴, 𝘴𝘪𝘹 𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘴, 𝘧𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘴....𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘱 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘪𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳."

I found this book to be a lot of fun to read. I laughed out loud and enjoyed the light sarcastic humour and dialogue. Everyone is a suspect and it is an easy page turner that keeps you guessing.

And it’s always fun to read books set it beautiful settings and this one takes place in Italy!

I will say that I’m thankful I did the audio for this one and actually suggest it.
This book has footnotes that I found difficult to read in print, but absolutely loved with the audio.

If you love a good cozy mystery that is a quick read I highly suggest picking this one up.

This is the first book in The Vacation Mystery series and I look forward to reading the next one!

Mack's storytelling is both engaging and witty, as Eleanor navigates through literary rivals, rabid fans, a stalker, and her ex, Oliver, who unexpectedly turns up. The plot thickens when an attempt is made on the life of Connor Smith, the charming con man from Eleanor’s past, mirroring the murder she planned for his namesake in her next book.

With vibrant characters and an intriguing blend of humor and suspense, this novel keeps readers guessing until the very end. Mack masterfully reveals rivalries, rifts, and broken hearts, making this book a must-read for mystery lovers. If you enjoy a good laugh mixed with a thrilling whodunit, "Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies" is the perfect pick for your next read.

📖 Book Review 📖

📱🎧 "Every Time I Go on Vacation Someone Dies" by Catherine Mack

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
published April 30, 2024

Narration is by Elizabeth Evans, who does a wonderful job making each character’s voice distinctive and different. The point of view is 1st person and present tense, which was well done but the main character speaks to the readers which is probably my biggest complaint.

Eleanor Dash, is a best selling author of a series of who-done-it books that all started when she met Connor Smith in Italy on vacation. She is now on a book tour, back in Italy promoting the 10th book with some friends and super fans. Connor has been a thorn in her side for too long so Eleanor has decided to kill him off in the series. Well he just so happens to think there's someone that actually wants him dead in real life.

This was a cute, entertaining listen which was about 80% of how I “read” the book. There were a lot of footnotes when reading on my kindle and that was quite difficult.

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A quick read, even if the copious amount of footnotes at times were distracting. Loved how the main character was the narrator/author although at times she was absurd. Connor was annoying, loved the pop culture references thru out and the book tour setting. A good mystery for summer reading. 3.5 stars

I LOVED this book - one of my favorite reads this year. While the format is probably not for everyone, it totally worked for me. I could not put it down, and enjoyed the twists and turns. I also thought the narration/breaking of the 4th wall was well done. This is the perfect summer/beach read murder mystery, and I would highly recommend!

Thank you to the author, St Martin's Press, and NetGalley for providing a copy to review.

This was so fun!! I loved the writing and how Eleanor made us feel like we were right there solving the crime with her. I liked all the characters and how the story evolved. This story was definitely giving Finlay Donovan and I loved it!

Catherine Mack has begun a new cozy series about Eleanor, a best-selling author who was caught up in a bank heist by then-boyfriend, Conner. Ten books later, her publishing company sends her on a book tour in Italy with Conner, a various crew of other authors, and her sister, Hannah. Someone tries to kill both El and Conner, and the rest of the tour group are suspects.

El narrates the book as she tries to unravel who it could be. She's very funny, and adds footnotes to the story, to be explanatory and to address the reader. It's fresh and comedic, self-deprecating, and I can't wait to see what happens in the next installment of the Vacation Murders.

I really tried to like this book more than anyone knows but I couldnt get into it. The footnotes were really hard to not be distracted by and i saw someone else switched to the audio version and I had to do the same. Reading in on a kindle just didnt work. Other than that the content was okay and wasnt anything too special. It was what I would consider a cozy mystery and quick read or a beach read.

3.5 Stars
Switched to audio at 30% and it made all the difference! Those footnotes were driving me nuts on the page, but they were read seamlessly in the audio. I hope the author re-thinks them in the coming books.

I was rooting for Eleanor, but I found her hard to connect with as she was clueless, frustrating and TSTL in spots. The whole situation with Conner was annoying.

I think the story was supposed to be like the Ernest Cunningham series (Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone) but it lacked some of its humor and charm, IMO.

Still, the story was entertaining enough to keep me listening to the end and Italy was a beautiful backdrop.

I'll be honest. I don't usually like cozy mysteries. I normally find them boring. But I really liked the format and style of this book. The author was addressing the book directly to the reader. I loved all the snarky, funny, interesting footnotes and hints. It was a really fun read. Maybe the start of a fun series? I'd definitely read more and recommend it.

The format of the ARC was very distracting and probably took me out of the story too often.
But I did enjoy the story and the format, it was unique. The Taylor Swift and other very recent pop culture references were nicely thrown in, too. The MC felt real and human.

"Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies" is a delightful romp through Italy consisting of a book tour with a hand-selected group of fans. Since the publisher coordinated the tour, there are actually multiple authors on the trip. The problem is, they each have a reason for wanting the others dead.

So when Connor Smith tells author Eleanor Dash that he suspects someone is trying to kill him, she doesn't know what to think at first. After all, he's a weasel who has been blackmailing her for years. So, if someone wants to go to the trouble of knocking him off, why should she care?

But then when she begins to suspect that she might actually be the intended target, she has a change of heart. The question is, who can she trust with her life?

This was a cleverly written story that reminded me of Knives Out with all its complexity. It certainly wasn't easy to figure out "whodunit" since so many people had the means, motive and opportunity! And I loved how Eleanor walked us through the whole situation, frequently breaking the fourth wall through her footnotes to help point out relevant clues or gives us necessary backstories.

This truly was a fun book to read!

Thank you to Catherine Mack, St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an advance review copy!

I really wanted to like this story, but it missed the mark for me. I know a lot of people really enjoyed the story, but I did not like the footnotes, I thought the main character spent too much time foreshadowing rather than actually writing about what was happening. The romance was lackluster and the sister relationship left much to be desired. It was a quick read, but I found myself struggling to pick this up.

This book was lots of fun! I found myself laughing from the jump and will look forward to potentially listening to the audiobook one day!

This was so chaotic lol I liked the main character’s internal dialogue, but sometimes it was too much. I enjoyed how dialogue heavy this book was though. The characters were fun and there were plenty of LOL moments.

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.