Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the arc of this book. all opinions are my own.

I will post my full review once SMP address the insensitive comments of their employee.

I think the cozy mystery market has become over saturated because while Every Time I Go On Vacation, Someone Dies was enjoyable, nothing felt new about it story wise. The thing that was new, the footnotes, was too distracting and unnecessary to the story. This seems to be the beginning of a series and hopefully the author will ditch the footnotes in future books.

Catherine Mack’s EVERY TIME I GO ON VACATION, SOMEONE DIES has all the makings of a great story, but the way it comes together falls just a little short. The plot was intriguing, but Mack’s style of storytelling lost me. Still, I can see this book appealing to many readers eager for a summertime story to get lost in. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC.

The twists and turns made me want to keep reading to see what was coming next. I enjoyed hearing about the countryside. The characters were realistic and likable. Thanks NetGalley for the eArc.

I always love a book about books and publishing, in this one Eleanor Dash is an author, breaking the fourth wall and telling us, the readers about her books and upcoming book. While also trying to solve a murder, while on vacation during a book tour.

It’s a crazy and cozy murder mystery. I’m not even sure how I decided I needed to read it but it was fresh, funny, with a little bit of romance, mystery and murder, it has it all. I couldn’t guess who the killer was either!

This book was a fun read! There is humor, light romance and it keeps you guessing what will happen next. It is a light, easy read! I like her style of writing in this book where she is plotting writing a book in the book itself. Great storyline and an ending that makes you think another book with be coming out.

This murder mystery is laugh out loud funny with witty dialog and many humorous situations. Eleanor and her sister Harper are best friends and also boss/employee, and there is a bit of familial tension there. Connor, Eleanor's ex, is a somewhat bumbling blackmailer that relies on Eleanor's books to fund his lifestyle and drives her crazy. Oliver is the man Eleanor is in love with although she doesn't know it yet. Filled with quirky characters and a fun murder mystery this start to a series is a charming read and perfect for a day at the beach! The audiobook is a fabulous way to enjoy this story and Elizabeth Evans does a great job with the narration.

A best selling mystery author, Eleanor, is on a book trip with a cast of characters. One thinks someone is trying to kill him, two are former lovers of the author, and another is a copycat writer to name a few. Being torn between book obligations, trying to figure out who is trying to kill the one companion, and brainstorming her next book, Eleanor is faced with decisions on where her focus should be. Does someone die while she’s on vacation? Read this one to find out.

I really enjoyed this read! Finley Donovan vibes, which I loved, but it's definitely unique. Funny, twisty, and propulsive. I'll be continuing the series for sure.

Location, location, location - who doesn’t want to read about a book tour in Italy? I’d say the story is mystery-lite as there’s a breeziness to it that kept me engaged, although I’m more of an intense thriller type of girl, which is funny because I also learned Catherine Mack is the loose pseudonym of a thriller author of books I’ve read and enjoyed.

I am incredibly happy with Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies by Catherine Mack (AKA Catherine McKenzie), and I can't believe how much I loved it! This was a delight to read and so many times I found myself laughing out loud. I will definitely be adding a copy to my shelf, and I'm happy this is the start of a new series. The overall tone of the story is very light, giving it a cozy mystery vibe, and I quite enjoyed reading from Eleanor's viewpoint. It is told in first person with asides to the reader from Eleanor, as well as annotations throughout. I loved this style of writing, and it fits so well with the FMC's job as well as personality.

I also love that the book was inspired by the author's own trip to Italy, and she made the setting come alive in a gorgeous way. I thought Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies might not completely translate on audio due to the annotations, but I had no issues with this, and I absolutely adored Elizabeth Evans as the narrator. I would highly recommend listening to the audiobook as well as having a copy on hand in order to get the full effect. I found myself following along in the book at times, and the commentary on the inside covers about the cover of the book was a great little addition. Brava Catherine Mack on a fun and engaging read that I couldn't put down! I can't wait to see what comes next. 👀

A cute and light modern cozy! I really liked the main character's voice, with her snarky sense of humour! The cast of characters was interesting and the story moved along quickly.

The main character often speaks directly to the reader, which I enjoyed, and I found her asides funny. There are lots of current pop culture references. I don't get that worried about unrealistic things happening in cozies, so while not every situation was likely to happen in real life, they all came together to make a great story!

3.5 ⭐️

Cozy Mystery is one of the genres I started to like. I was drawn to the title of the book and the plot. However, this book was for someone else. I couldn't connect with any of the characters. There were some funny moments and lines in this story. I'm usually okay with multiple characters who are possible suspects, but none of them stood out. I kept forgetting who's who, like Allison, Isabella, and Emily. I kept waiting for the big moment in the book but only felt it in Chapter 22. The beginning was exciting, the middle was dragging, and MC was getting annoying as she kept mentioning she was a lousy liar, she was ending the series, she was not a good writer, etc. Some of the parts I enjoyed while reading this book were the tour and near-death experiences. Still, I wished the 1st death happened in the beginning because it felt like the story kept dragging. I wanted to see some action and solve the Mystery right away. But once the death occurred, things picked up quickly. I love footnotes when I read, but I don't know if the ebook format affected the display of footnotes. It became distracting because it would just show up in the middle of the page, and it made it look like the author used too many footnotes. Overall, this is a good summer read for mystery lovers. I wish I loved it more; I think I'm just used to quick-paced murder mystery books.

Figured I’d try a cozy mystery and find out what all the hype was about, but Every Time I Go on Vacation was not for me. Maybe it was the flippant attitude of the MC, or maybe all the footnotes through and immature commentary. I just couldn’t get into the substance of the story. I did question many times who the main suspect was, and was surprised at the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s Publishing/ Minotaur Books for this arc in return for my honest review.

Pub date: 30 April 2024

This was a fun and clever cozy mystery. It was reminiscent of Everyone in my Family Has Killed Someone, with its narrative style and breaking the fourth wall. I was engaged in the mystery the whole time and was surprised by the endings. I think I would have enjoyed more hijinks and action throughout the story--it was a little slow in terms of the mystery/murder element of the story. I was surprised by the ending and all my theories ended up being wrong!

This is a novel written in a unique and entertaining way. Footnotes, for example. Who ever heard of copious footnotes in a novel. (For the record, I skipped most of them.) But Mack says she always wanted to add them so did. And there are a few other interesting features like boxed text and the narrator talking to readers.

The characters are developed well. Eleanor is a kick, going on a trip but not reading the itinerary. That gets her into all kinds of situations she does not enjoy. Harper, her sister and efficient assistant to the rescue. Connor is well portrayed as a troublesome past love and current irritant.

I like the plot where a famous author wants to get rid of one of the characters in her novels (who also happens to be a real person) but other people die. There are a number of suspects from jealous authors to stalking fans but Eleanor is on the case.

This is an enjoyable and clever mystery with fun locations and a good dose of humor from time to time.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

I am sure there is a good story buried here somewhere, as this book seems to check all the boxes for a cozy mystery. Unfortunately, the “footnotes” were a major distraction. As much as I love a book written in the first person, I did not like the “editorializing” before and during the last third of the book. A work of fiction where the author/major character has to review and tell me what has happened and what may happen in the story also distracts from my enjoyment of the book. Perhaps I just don’t like this writer’s style, but as stated previously, the actual story was good. Thank you NetGalley for providing the ARC.

Many thanks to Netgalley for this book. I received this book in exchange for my honest review. My thoughts are entirely my own.

I loved this book so much. The author even added footnotes in the main characters pov which adds something different from other cozy mysteries. I love cozy mysteries and this is officially a new cozy mystery series that I will read whenever a new book comes out. Eleanor Dash is the main character of this series and she has written a series called the Vacation Mystery Series and it's the tenth anniversary. Eleanor goes on a tenth anniversary book tour and someone is trying to kill Connor who is also a character in Eleanor's book series. Eleanor fell in love with Connor when she was twenty five and when she wrote her first book she didn't change his name in the book so her blackmail's her into paying him off and has for the last nine books. Eleanor decides to kill Connor off in the series but not in real life. When Connor admits to someone trying to kill him Eleanor thinks that he is doing it for attention and doesn't believe it until she sees it with her own eyes. Then someone ends up trying to kill her and another author ends up dying from poison. The investigator ends up making Eleanore the number one suspect. It ends up being the wife, brother in law, and daughters of the capo that they had arrested in Italy that inspired the Vacation Mystery Series. This book is so cute and witty and I can't wait for the next book to come out.

This book was cute! I like a good “cozy” mystery. The characters were developed very nicely and the whitty banter was great! I didn’t love all the footnotes the author had as I thought they were a tad too much too often. I liked the Italy setting which was perfect for a spring/ summer read!

There are enough twists in this fabulous beach read to fuel an entire fleet of martinis at an all-inclusive resort! (1)

This summer you need to save space in your carry on for a copy of “Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies” Catherine Mack. The writing is sharp and quick (2) taking you on a literary tour featuring murders galore (3)

Here’s the gist: Bestselling author Eleanor Dash embarks on an anniversary book tour through Italy (4), only to find herself caught up in a real-life murder plot that *gasp* involves her and her ex-lover/inspiration for her book series (5). With literary rivals, rabid fans, and a stalker all in tow, Eleanor must solve the case while her life imitates her own fictional world.

I loved Eleanor’s footnote commentary. It helped pace the story by showing you behind the curtain. There are also a few chapters where she breaks the fourth wall, making it very engaging.

Overall the book was a suspenseful and funny read that is the perfect companion on any vacation this summer (6)

1) That’s shaken not stirred, right?
2) And obviously I’m mimicking the sassy use of footnotes through out the entire novel.
3) dun dun DUN!
4) So 👏much👏pasta
5) I actually got annoyed with how much every character didn’t like Connor. It made some of the twists a bit easy to see through.
6) Hopefully no one dies on YOUR vacation