But a very interesting title for this book.Because you really don't know what's gonna happen.You don't know if it's mystery a love story.But as we read out it becomes a mystery. E l e a n o r dash wrote mysteries through her vacation series. These stories take place in Italy and you find this out when she does.Different chapters and then puts like footnotes and like little synopsis.It's very very good writing. The main character is cornell smith Was the fictional character in a book?But he actually is a real life person in this book. It's funny because this man was a con man and he was suing her because she used his name in the books.So he kept black mailing her through different means. It was funny because she kept changing things in the book.Especially the book ladies who were taking a tour in In Roman. And this was really funny because they were just trying to meet the writer.And I was laughing hysterically. Title is like every time I go on vacation someone Dead in her box. Through the mystery.

Thank you @netgalley @catherinemckenzieauthor and @minotaur_books for this ARC! Funny. Witty. Light yet, Murder-y. I would kill to be on vacation in Italy right now and THIS BOOK would be my vacation read. 🥰 Also, the footnotes are to die for! (There’s a lot of puns in this book, I can’t help myself)

“𝙄 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙’𝙫𝙚 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙘𝙖𝙣’𝙩 𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙛𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚. 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙣’𝙩 𝙗𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚.”

I had entirely too much fun reading this ARC! The author is constantly “breaking the 4th wall” and clueing the reader in on the story which makes for such an interesting reading experience. The characters are lovable and REAL. And a fellow Swiftie?!? YES. Sign me up.

“𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙚, 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙬𝙖𝙮? 𝙊𝙝, 𝙖𝙡𝙘𝙤𝙝𝙤𝙡. 𝙍𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩, 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩.”

Definitely recommend this one if you want a fun, airy, vacation mystery! AND it’s the first of a series! I cannot wait for the next one! Hopefully I will actually be on vacation when I get my hands on it!
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ʏᴏᴜʟʟ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴛʜɪꜱ ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ʟɪᴋᴇ:
•books about books
•witty humor
•murder mystery
•travel

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy. Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies is a cozy mystery that follows multiple authors on a book tour throughout Italy. Eleanor is the reason behind the book tour. It is her series that features Connor that brought everyone to Italy. Eleanor didn’t expect to have to worry about her life on the tour along with Connor’s life. I overall enjoyed the story, but I do think the formatting of my copy was a bit off. I think the story would have been more enjoyable if it was formatted the way the author intended. I also believe that the author could have explained more aspects. I found myself confused at some points of the book.

Thank you to St Martin's Press/Minotaur Books and Netgalley for the arc. I DNF at 18%. I picked this up at least 6 times over the past month to try and get through it and I just couldn't.

I felt like the characters were extremely unlikeable. The main character tried to be funny but came off as impersonal. I overall didn't love the storyline.

i also felt like the overuse of footnotes was very annoying. I wanted to like this so much but I didn't.

I had an absolute blast with this one, truly. A mystery writer? A last betrayal impacting the now? A crew of characters heading abroad to Rome and death threats abound? All told from the quirky and fun point of view of the writer herself as clues cause twists and turns at every page, red herrings and new secrets are revealed, and the murder is turned up a notch. This was an Agatha Christie-esque “locked room” (almost) mystery done in the most unique and personal way and I couldn’t put it down. Every time I thought I had it figured out, I was thrown another curveball, and I laughed until I cried in between the harrowing moments. I will absolutely be picking up the author’s next one!

This is an hilarious trip to exotic locations with an author, her con man blackmailer and her book tour entourage. The fun starts from page one and continues rolling along all the way to the end! I loved the characters, even con man Connor, also the about-to-be-victim of a killer. He was so arrogant and narcissistic that he was entertaining. Author Eleanor Dash had an honest vulnerability about her that made her a magnetic personality for me and one that was very realistic and relatable. The plot moved along quickly with a lot of laugh out loud moments and a few asides from the narrator that were somewhat thought-provoking and enlightening about what may happen next. This book was one of the most fun books that I have ever read, with a glimpse into publishing, the life of an author and the lives of those who are her followers or assistants. I especially loved the descriptions of the settings in Italy and felt as though I were actually there with Eleanor. This first in a series has more than a little promise as it was a real winner for me and I look forward to more!
Disclaimer
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review and all opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16th CFR, Part 255, “Guidelines Concerning the Use of Testimonials and Endorsements in Advertising.”

So now I want to visit Italy more than ever before. What a fun, exciting summer read. I could taste the pizza and see all the sites as I was reading it. Making it even more entertaining is the mystery aspect. The pages turned themselves between the whodunnit aspect and the laugh-out-loud comedy. Creatively written and engaging — I really hope to see Catherine Mack write more books like this one.

Read this is if you want a light beach read of a mystery. Great for fans of the Finlay Donovan series.

Thank you to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for the advanced copy.

*4.5 Stars*

This was such a fun read!

I really enjoyed this story from beginning until end. The characters were quirky and fun, all while trying to figure out who in the group was attempting to unalive someone else in the group. Just when I thought I had it all figured out another twist was thrown in and I was second guessing myself. I figured out pieces of the solution correctly but I didn't have it all right, which was nice!

The setting of this story was so fun, and I loved the connections and history between all the characters involved. The dash of romance thrown in was icing on the cake for me. I can't wait for more in this series!

After talking with some friends who also read this, I think I would have given it 5 stars had I listened to the audio. The foot notes were a fun addition, especially with how sarcastic some of them were, but they also were distracting while reading the eBook.

Grateful to have received a complimentary ARC copy to honestly review.

This is a modern cozy mystery and I enjoyed it! The story follows author Eleanor Dash on her book tour in Italy wanting to kill off her main character, Connor Smith. Things go array and escalate as someone actually attempts to kill Connor in real life!
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I thought the mystery and whodunnit antics were great and found myself laughing out loud at some parts!
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The author did a great job of intertwining all the other supporting characters while cracking me up with all of Eleanor’s foot notes! Such a creative way to write a book!

Happy Pub Day to @catherinemckenzieauthor and her novel EVERY TIME I GO ON VACATION, SOMEONE DIES. This was such a fun read. A cozy mystery set in Italy, this book has humor, sunshine, drinks, and drama. It’s a classic whodunnit like a good game of Clue.

Eleanor Dash, author of a mystery series, is on book tour with other authors and Connor, an ex-fling who she based one of her leading characters on. Cue the drama when Connor claims someone on the trip is trying to kill him and the number of suspects climb. Looking forward to a second book!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Many thanks to @minotaur_books for inviting me to participate in this book tour! I had a great time reading this book and loved the goodies that accompanied it! I especially love the finished copy and signed bookplate (check out the inside cover illustrations too💗)!

This book is out today and will be a great one for fans of Finlay Donovan, Knives Out, and anyone that loves the Clue game.

Everytime I go on Vacation Someone Dies was SO good! I thoroughly enjoyed the writing style, footnotes, plot twists, character development, all of it. I rated it 4.5 stars and the only reason I took off a half star is because I would have liked a little more romance. I will definitely check out Catherine's other works.

Catherine Mack’s Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies is an outrageously fun mystery. It is written about an author whose life has given inspiration to a bestselling mystery book. Clever, witty, and original book that made me laugh out loud more than once. An entire crew of unique characters to get to know while you begin to feel as if you are part of the group too. Who wouldn’t have thought of murdering while also loving con man, Connor? Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies is a hoot that can be enjoyed by anyone who loves a great story.

Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies is the perfect book for an afternoon on the beach or by the pool—it’s easy to get into and doesn’t require a ton of attention or deep thinking (not in a mean way, but it’s not dense). It was entertaining enough, I found it a bit predictable. I was really kind of annoyed by the footnotes in the digital format because they were all at the end of the chapter so I either had to flip back and forth or try to remember them out of context. In a physical book, I’d probably skip them. I also don’t love when a character addresses the reader directly, but that’s personal preference, not bad writing. If you want an easy cozy romance, I think this fits the bill rather well.

If you are looking for a book that will provide mystery, romance and laughter then Catherine Mack’s Evey Time I Go On Vacation, Someone Dies is the perfect choice. Author Eleanor Dash is on a ten day tour of Italy accompanied by her sister/assistant Harper, a group of her fans and several additional authors. Ten years earlier El visited Italy, where she met Connor, an investigator. Working together they solved a series of bank robberies. She put her experiences into her first book, which became a bestseller. Her mistake was not changing Connor’s name in the book. Threatening a lawsuit, he settled for a percentage of her book earnings. Her publisher was insisting on Connor’s inclusion in future books in her series, but after tolerating his arrogance and demands she has decided that she has had enough. It is time to kill off his character and end the series. Someone else has a similar idea and several attempts have been made on his life. She is not sure who organized this tour, but almost everyone has a reason to get rid of him. Then an attempt is made on El’s life. She is saved by Oliver, one of the authors that she had been in a relationship with. There is still a spark between them, making El wonder if they might re-kindle that relationship. When one of the authors is murdered, El becomes a prime suspect despite threats against her own life.

From the childish bickering between the authors to the guide who reads her information directly from the internet (and still gets it wrong), Mack injects her story with humor. She loves footnotes and liberally sprinkles them through the story. Clues are sprinkled throughout the story and she challenges the reader to solve the mystery before reaching her conclusion. With a limited group of suspects and constant twists she will keep you guessing to the end. This is the first book in Mack’s series and she leaves you with the discovery of another body and the hope that El will soon return. I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s - Minotaur for providing this book.

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

Every Time I Go On Vacation, Someone Dies
by Catherine Mack

A fabulous “whodunnit” among a group of touring authors (who write murder mysteries)! This was a clever book with an added feature. Footnotes. Lots and lots of footnotes that were full of hints and doubts to keep you guessing. In the digital ARC, the footnotes didn’t convert perfectly so I’m excited to see this published.

Can I interest you in a charming, funny and snarky mystery with lots of travel and just enough romance to keep you on your toes?!

Oh was this FUN! A big thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for this ARC. Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies is out TODAY!

Eleanor Dash is a bestselling mystery author who has been keeping some secrets. The main character in her stories is her ex, Connor Smith, and while the world knows him as her muse, what they don't know is that he's been blackmailing her since she wrote her first book. Desperate to get rid of him, she's decided that she's going to kill him off in her upcoming novel, #10.

What makes this even more awkward is that Connor is joining El, her sister/personal assistant Harper, and a cast of other supporting characters from their book lives, along with superfans on a trip around Italy to celebrate ten years of her writing. And they're all thrown for a loop when it Connor is being targeted in real life. So naturally El decides to take up the case...

I couldn't put this down and found myself giggling through the night. It was such a fun mystery - it kept me guessing (I was wrong every time!) but also rooting for these folks to just get it together. The side characters were well developed and the chemistry with the whole group was excellent. El is an unreliable but incredibly engaging narrator - I LOVED the footnotes and they often made me snort.

The perfect book when you are in a mood to laugh and solve a mystery. What a debut, Catherine Mack!!! Can't wait to read what comes next!

Pub Day Book Review
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

This cozy mystery has a gorgeous setting, multiple unreliable characters, and a whodunit plot told from the perspective of a witty, sarcastic narrator all wrapped up in one!
This was one of a few books I've read that included footnotes and I found all of them to be enjoyable, however, some were more so a glimpse into the thoughts of the narrator than actually providing substance to the story. I still loved their inclusion in the story!

I appreciate how this novel broke through the fourth wall and provided a glimpse into the world of publishing! Eleanor was such a snarky and spunky main character to help navigate the journey and I definitely laughed a bit throughout this book.

The setting is MARVELOUS. The descriptions of foods and the vivid scenery were so atmospheric that I had to resist the urge to book my flight to Italy ASAP! It's definitely a travel destination for sure though!!

I had my suspicions regarding who was to blame for multiple murders, however, I became a victim of the infamous red herrings, so I was wrong, oh well! 😅

I loved the nods to the queen of mystery, Agatha Christie and the pop culture references, spoiler there's Taylor Swift gems, sprinkled throughout the story!

Overall, this debut for a new cozy mystery series definitely kept me intrigued and I will keep an out of for more books in the series, especially given the cliffhanger at the end of it!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing an eARC in exchange for my honest review! 💛

Oooh, Eleanor, you gotta be careful how you phrase "I'm going to kill Connor!" You mean the book version of your blackmailing con man ex, right? Someone has a target on his back, that's for sure. Or is it?

This story was incredibly entertaining. There's loads of personality in this fast-paced vacation mystery and I, for one, got a kick out of the fourth wall breaking and the many many footnotes. If you're in the mood for a funny, setting-strong, cozy mystery about a wiseass author on tour... this is it!

Determined to end her popular series of books, Eleanor Dash is faced with a few hurdles. The biggest obstacle is writing the demise of the character Connor Smith. Now Conner isn’t your average fictional character. In fact, Conner is the real life love interest to Eleanor.

While Conner has been hamming it up in the limelight, Eleanor has been trying her best to figure out how she can plot Connor’s demise. As the author struggles for creativity, the publisher sends a group of writers with Eleanor, Connor, and her assistant on a tour of Italy. While this band of vagabonds travels through Italy on a book tour, Connor quickly finds someone is attempting to ‘off him’ in real life. Who would want to plot Connor’s demise while conducting a press tour?

Every Time I Go On Vacation, Someone Dies is the first book in The Vacation Mysteries series by Catherine Mack. It was a witty and clever take on a ‘cozy’ mystery. I found myself drawn to the blurb to try to escape the huge reading ‘funk’ I have been in lately. The cast of characters was entertaining and the novel certainly had a very unique plot. However – I found myself distracted and often annoyed at the layout of the book. There were footnotes littered throughout the novel. To take in all the nuances attributed to the footnotes, I found myself flipping pages and trying to keep up with the notations. It quickly became more of a chore than I bargained for. Had the footnotes been absent in the novel, I believe I would have connected more with the story. It was too distracting for my tastes in reading!!

“𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐬 𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠. 𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐥𝐞, 𝐨𝐫 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐧𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐝, 𝐨𝐫 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐲. 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞’𝐬 𝐚 𝐛𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐦𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐨𝐨.”

I was so excited to join Minotaur’s “When In Rome Tenth Anniversary Tour” and read the first in a new hilarious mystery series from author Catherine MacKenzie.

This book is extremely meta with narrator, author Eleanor Dash, breaking the fourth wall, talking directly to the reader (“𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶’𝘭𝘭 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘵 350 𝘱𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘰 (𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭), 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘤𝘭𝘶𝘦”), much like Benjamin Stevenson’s Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone. The narration also contains footnotes, which reminded me of the Crazy Rich Asians trilogy - they act as side remarks that had me laughing out loud. I hear they are integrated really well in the audiobook. MacKenzie creates a loveable (yet flawed and selfish) narrator in Eleanor, and sprinkles in a romance that you want to cheer for (Oliver is swoon worthy). The cast of suspects all have reasonable motives for wanting to commit murder. I loved the idea of a book anniversary tour; it was a super neat way of having a “locked room mystery” with a small number of suspects, but also allows for changes in setting - I really want to go to Italy and do my own “When In Rome” tour now! Is it over the top in ways? For sure, but I felt it was part of the charm and fun of this story.

Every Time I Go On Vacation, Someone Dies is a story of love, travel, taking responsibility, and betrayal. MacKenzie even makes a wink to the coming television series with the footnote “𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴, 𝘈𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘱𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘳 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬” - I’ll be intrigued to see how this is adapted! I’m very much looking forward to more Vacation Mysteries, especially with that ending! Thank you to Minotaur Books, Raincoast Books and NetGalley for the ARC package!