Every Time I go on Vacation, Someone Dies is a fast paste, modern, cozy mystery. This book breaks the fourth wall and captures the art of writing a mystery will also reading a mystery. Eleanor Dash, a mystery author, finds herself wrapped up in a real life murder case, while on her current book tour.

I absolutely love this book and couldn’t put it down. I really enjoyed the aspect of breaking the fourth wall, and feeling like this book was including the readers in the plot itself.. Overall was really fun and intriguing and I can’t wait for the next!

Every Time I Go On Vacation Someone Dies another entertaining mystery novel with a very long title. This novel is written by Catherine Mack.

This novel also is about a mystery author on a book tour interacting with her fans and readers. Along on the tour is her ex boyfriend who starts complaining that there have been murderous attempts on his life. As they travel along the Amalfi coast. As a few murders of people involved in the tour party start to make author Eleanor Dash begin to wonder if her ex's accusations are real, she starts to work out the truth around the deaths following her book tour.

So many different ways to approach mystery novels and so many different ways to present a new amateur detective.

Catherine Mack's "Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies" presents a captivating fusion of mystery and humor, adding a distinctive touch by breaking the fourth wall. The narrative unfolds around Eleanor Dash, a bestselling author on her Italian book tour, whose fictional world collides with reality when an attempt is made on the life of Connor Smith, the real-life inspiration for her main character.

The storyline is both intriguing and hilarious, as Eleanor is drawn into solving a genuine murder case, grappling with literary rivals, devoted fans, and even her unexpected ex, Oliver. The author skillfully weaves together theories, rivalries, and broken hearts, keeping readers on their toes.

While the novel boasts a unique narrative style, with Eleanor directly addressing the audience, the abundance of footnotes can be a bit overwhelming, occasionally making it challenging to connect them to the main text. Despite this minor drawback, the book earns a solid 4-star rating from me and I hope there will be a sequel soon.

The book was ok. I found myself skipping over the footnotes completely. They were quite annoying to be honest. I think some would really enjoy this book, but it just wasn’t for me. The title drew me in, so I requested the NetGalley ARC, I especially did not enjoy the format, as it didn’t sync to my Kindle. Trying to read on my phone was especially difficult.
I plan to revisit the book in print form once it drops to try it again. I will update my review at that time, as I feel the format was a big focus of my frustration.
I do thank the author and the publisher for the opportunity to read and leave a true review of this book.

leanor Dash is a bestselling author of mysteries. Her first book was a loosely masked fictional account about a real crime/mystery she and her then lover, Connor, were involved with. Her publisher and the public loved Connor and thus she was locked into including him in all the subsequent installments of her vacation mysteries series. But, she has had it with him and wants to kill him off in the next book. On a tour of Italy with Connor, her able assistant/sister, some other authors, her former lover whom she lost when she got involved with Connor, a group of fans, and an outrageous tour guide, it becomes apparent that someone is trying to really kill Connor and her as well. Some people do die and, as the blurb boasts, “eight suspects, three bodies”…..

It took me a while to realize I really liked this book. It was a fun romp through Rome and the Amalfi Coast and, despite the murders, amusing and lighthearted. Eleanor is quite funny and sarcastic; I loved that she often broke the fourth wall. The setting, especially along the Coast, is stunning and some of my favorite things about Italy (gelato, Aperol spritzes) are included. Her digs at Goodreads reviews will resonate with a lot of readers and authors! There is even some romance thrown into the mix.

Mack includes a number of foot notes…kind of asides that Eleanor made to further explain or emphasize something. They were clever and entertaining, but distracting and interrupted the flow of reading. Genre bending, this is a mystery/cozymystery/romcom/travelogue/comedy.

Thanks to @NetGalley and @stmartinspress @minotaur_books for the DRC.

Every Time I Go on Vacation by Catherine Mack is an absolutely delicious mystery and the first book in the Vacation Mystery Series.

A fun little story, I absolutely LOVE Catherine McKenzie (Six Weeks to Live, Have You Seen Her, I'll Never Tell, and the list goes on of the books I love).

When I was offered this book to read an early copy of, I had no idea that Catherine Mack was the same author as Catherine McKenzie and it made sense how much I loved this book!

This mystery is absolutely brilliant. I love books about authors and Eleanor Dash is a complex, flawed, well developed main character.

FOOTNOTES! Oh, my goodness, you have to read this book to understand how much the footnotes add to the story. And the humor.

The story is so clever. I love the setting of Italy , the author's research is excellent.

A vacation that ends up being a murder mystery with five authors and everyone is a suspect.

I tore through this book; it was so hard to put down. I cannot wait for the next book in the series and see what Eleanor Dash is up to next!

For a mystery, this was too much fluff for me. The characters were a strange bunch and quite disparate. To be honest, I skimmed through the last half of the book because I didn’t want to take any more time reading it.

Mystery author Eleanor Dash heads to Italy for a book tour that surprisingly contains colleagues and rivals, fans, two exes and a stalker. She wants to kill off her main character, Connor Smith, in her next book, but when the real Connor’s life is in danger, Eleanor will have to try her hand at real-life sleuthing…

This was a fun, quick read that kept me guessing. There were enough suspects, red herrings, and twists to keep me engaged. I enjoyed the second-chance romance. The sister relationship drew me in, even though their disagreements were sometimes hard to empathize with. Unfortunately, Eleanor had some character traits that made her unlikable—and so did several of the other characters. I struggled to care deeply about them and their fates.

The footnotes were sometimes entertaining but often distracting because they broke the flow of the scenes. The book would have read more smoothly without them. I also found it distracting when the narrator would break the fourth wall and talk to the reader.

Thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the ARC.

It’s an interesting premise for a book - a novel within novel and the main character breaks the 4th wall and talks directly to the reader about the mystery. I found aspects of it highly entertaining and there were a few unexpected twists at the end. The footnotes were generally entertaining but sometimes distracting for me, given I use a kindle to read books. There were quite a few characters and sometimes it was hard to keep track or understand what their motive could be but it starts to make sense as the story progressed. One point - there was a spoiler about another author’s novel and I found that to be off putting. 3.5 stars for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

Thank You NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for a complimentary copy of this novel! This review and all opinions expressed therein are my own.

I really enjoyed the concept of this novel. It is a novel within a novel. Eleanor Dash is a best-selling author who is plotting her tenth novel in her book series. But first, Eleanor and a group of authors have a 10-day book tour in Italy to get through. Along on the tour is Connor Smith, an acquaintance so to speak of Eleanor and the main character in her books. Eleanor and Connor have an interesting history together where ten years ago they solved a robbery mystery in Italy. This is from where Eleanor got the idea of her first book. But Eleanor wants to be done with the series…so she decides to kill Connor. Figuratively, not literally. However, when a real attempt is made on Connor’s life and Eleanor’s, there are plenty of suspects. Crazed book fans, fellow author rivalry, Eleanor’s ex-boyfriend, and even a possible stalker. The group tries to put their head together to figure out who it could be, but it could be any one of them. Then, one of their own does get murdered and another attempt is made on someone else. Who could want them dead and why?

This is Catherine Mack’s debut novel and it is the first book in the series, The Vacation Mysteries. I really wanted to give a 5-star review for this novel, because I enjoyed the concept of it, it was fast-paced, and overall, I enjoyed the novel itself. However, there were 2 items that really bothered me in this novel. The first thing that bothered me is that the author wrote “Florida is bull$hit.” I mean….WHAT?!?!? Why write that??? I’m a true Floridian, so that just really turned me off to this author. I know it’s just “part” of the novel, but still…too harsh. The second thing….for anyone who has not read Agatha Christie’s novel The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Catherine Mack completely spoils it. She reveals in a footnote at the end of a chapter who the murderer is. Again…WHY???? That’s a big no no for me. Luckily, I already read it, but for those who have not and wish to, there is no warning at all. Each chapter in her book has footnotes which I am assuming will be published as part of the final book. So if the author or publisher is reading this review before hand….you may consider fixing these two things before the book is published.

From the title of Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies, I was expecting a light-hearted mystery where the protagonist discovers dead bodies wherever she goes (Jessica Fletcher, anyone?). Instead, the title refers to the series of books written by Eleanor Dash, where dead bodies do indeed abound wherever her main character travels. On a trip to Rome ten years earlier, Eleanor herself had a dangerous escapade with her new flame, "detective" Connor Smith, that resulted in the death of one member of a notorious Italian gang family and the imprisonment of others.

Arriving home, Eleanor was driven to capture the story in a book, which was a runaway hit. She used fake names for all of the characters except the dashing Connor, who is now almost as popular as the author with the fans, and who has demanded and received a share of the royalties ever since, through many sequels. Eleanor is tired of Connor and his blackmail and wants to kill his character off in her next novel, but meanwhile the two, along with other authors and fans, embark on a book tour of Italy. When Connor's life is threatened and Eleanor has a near miss (or two) herself, it is clear that someone wants one or both of them dead.

It is a fun premise, but this book just wasn't for me. Eleanor's protagonist (her name is mentioned maybe once?) narrates the book in flighty manner, including many unnecessary footnotes that add nothing to the plot and are especially annoying for ebook readers. At one point, she officially breaks the fourth wall to address readers directly, asking us how we feel, whether we suspect her of anything, who we think are the culprits. I just don't enjoy this writing style and never felt any connection with the shallow main character. I also found Connor unlikable, not so strangely since most of the characters dislike him as well. Several other characters are so underdeveloped as to be almost indistinguishable from each other. I will say that there was an unexpected twist toward the end of the book, and those who enjoyed the book (many, based on the reviews), will be happy to know that a series is planned.

My thanks to St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and write an honest review of this book.

Loved this one! I think we will be seeing it as a highly-sought after pick for a lot of book clubs. I highly recommend this unique story.

Spoiler Free Arc Review: 4.75 ⭐️

I absolutely love a who-done-it mystery. This book is exactly like Murder Mystery/Knives out, but the characters are all in the book world! Author Eleanor Dash is on the tenth anniversary book tour for her famous series inspired by a crime she witnessed and helped solve. Her tour group is comprised of her sister, her ex muse, her ex lover, a TikTok author stealing her content, an ex detective, and an old friend scorned. In addition to this cadre of eclectic personalities, plenty of other people join them on their 10 day journey through the Italian coast. Paranoia from one of the group members has everyone either on high alert or skeptical of the accusation that someone is trying to kill him…. That is until someone actually drops dead.

I adored this book and could not put it down. I suspected almost every character as the murder at different points. The evidence kept pointing to different people, which definitely kept me engaged and on my toes through the entire novel.

My favorite part was the writing. Mack is talking directly to the reader throughout the book with her “check ins”, allowing us to see if we can solve the mystery. I also enjoyed the use of foot notes because it gave us insight into the main characters inner monologue.

I would absolutely recommend this to anyone looking for a funny and light mystery!!

This charming cozy mystery is clever, engaging and a tweak on the typical murder-in-an-exotic-location trope. With the madcap moodiness, sinister undercurrent, and dreamy gelato-soaked Italian-esque setting of the fabulous (and slyly referenced) “White Lotus”, this story is coupled with main characters who are themselves mystery authors, including (and a series first installment featuring) our first person POV narrator, Eleanor Dash.

Eleanor, thirty-five years old (a self-proclaimed “woman who spends most of her days in stretchy pants with her hair in a messy bun”) is all a reader could expect of a heroine - humorous, vulnerable, mixed-up, needy, loving, romantically self-destructive, fearful and sometimes brave. Eleanor also clearly has her own secrets.

A successful mega-author on a contractually-necessary book tour, Eleanor is traveling with her sister, Harper (her P.A, and herself something of an enigma) ; a collection of ex-lovers; a boatload of fans; and a resentful, competitive, back-stabbing complement of her writerly peers.

Eleanor’s narrative voice is the readers’ guide, providing an intimate first-person take on the plot, as it unfolds, as a plot, revealed directly to the acknowledged reader, via an unusual literary technique known as removing the fourth wall.

And so the stage is set for a mystery to solve, headed by our colorful heroine, with what appears to be a murderer operating within the tour’s own ranks, amidst the stunning backdrop of the Italian coast. As the tension builds, it is accompanied by a steady stream of clues, commentary and nudges from our chatty narrator (many of which are simply distractions, others we suspect to contain nuggets of crucial meaning).

The result is a fun and quirky read, with a heroine who may be completely accessible to the reader, or the exact opposite (clearly unreliable); a twisty plot peppered with intrigue; a hint of love reclaimed; and an ending and final reveal both satisfying and only moderately predictable.

All in all, a first installment that promises more, much more, of the same to come - and the start of a delightful new series.

*** four and a half shiny stars

I did not care for the footnotes & found them distracting. Footnotes may be easier to keep up with in physical format, but it is confusing and annoying on Kindle. This is not my usual genre of reading, but I did find some of the humor enjoyable. It was pretty predictable, but still a quick light read. This is a good palette cleansing book to read between darker thriller reads and fantasy which are my usual genres.

This book was so entertaining, I can’t even lie to you. It had me hooked from the beginning, and I really only put it down because I had to when life things popped up. Otherwise, it probably would’ve been a one sitting read (I’m telling you, it was entertaining).

The voice that Catherine created for Eleanor, who is our narrator and an author of mystery books, was so authentic and fun. I think she did an excellent job making us feel like we were reading an authors journal (I guess that’s honestly the best way I have to describe it). There were genuinely moments in time where I was like wait… is this really the character of Eleanor, or Catherine herself? It was honestly a very interesting moment mentally for me and kinda trippy. Now, there were moments where I got sort of frustrated with the footnotes, because I would forget what it was referring to by the time I got to it, but overall I think including them was so clever and did end up adding to the reading experience.

Now, in regards for the plot, I have to say it was well done. There were moments where I genuinely couldn’t figure out who it was. When we finally got to the final reveal, I had a sense of “I KNEW IT” but in reality, throughout the entire book, I went back and forth on who I thought the big bad was. And while there was an aspect of the final reveal I had theorized earlier in the book, the rest of it was new and very well done for me. I was shocked, and didn’t expect it at all.

Genuinely I can say I’m looking forward to the next book (which A+ work setting up for it in the epilogue), and I wound up rating this one 4.75 stars.

I really enjoyed this book. It breaks the fourth wall in such a unique way and I loved the use of footnotes. This reminded me a little of Jen Lancaster's books in the best way. Definitely exceeded my expectations and I would recommend this as a perfect beach read. Very engaging!

Every Time I Go on Vacation , Someone Dies is a light-hearted , easy vacation read that’s meant to be devoured in a day at the beach or on a plane . It was fun and there were many parts that I LOL’d (and snorted a little bit) !!! It’s a murder mystery that kept me guessing until the very end and I am looking forward to the next in the series !! This gem is set to release on 4/30/24 .
@catherinemckenzieauthor thanks for the enjoyable read that allowed me to escape the cold Maine winter for a while ♥️ & thank you @netgalley and @minotaur_books for a chance to enjoy prior to publication .
#everytimeigoonvacationsomeonedies #netgalley #netgalleyreads #minotaurbooks #goodreads #arc #tbr #advancedreaderscopy #vacation #mainewinter #bookreview #bookreviewer #series #murdermysteries

This was a super fun read. In a nutshell you're reading a story about a story with characters who are true and not true... I know confusing - but so good! It reminds me of a Finlay Donovan type read - quick easy read - PERFECT beach trip read. It moved fast paced - back and forth - with lots of "fun" twists! Will read more from this author - was my first book by her!

Every time I go on vacation someone dies by Catherine Mack

🍋 🍋 🍋 🍋 🍋/ 5

If you are in a bit of a book funk and need a fun pick me up this book is for you! The plot is fun and unique, the characters are great and it is set in Italy!!

I absolutely loved this book! It was so much fun to read and immediately kept my attention from page 1! I absolutely loved the use of snarky footnotes and the occasional break of the 4th wall in the novel! I hope there will be a sequel because I adored this book so much!!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press, and Minotaur books for the digital advanced readers copy!! Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. This novel will be published April 30, 2024! Add it to your TBR!!