Very cute vacation mystery. Couldn’t decide if I liked the footnotes though. It was challenging to read on the kindle and keep track of what they were referencing.

Full disclosure, I only got two about 20% and the footnotes were very distracting. I’m going to continue this when it comes out on audio because I actually love the idea of footnotes, I just don’t think they work with e-books. However, the story is really cute and I am enjoying it so I definitely will continue it because I want to give this author a chance without the annoying format of ebooks.

This book was written in a way that I haven’t read before. I think it was a bit of a slow burn for me but I did enjoy some of the twists it had.

This was such a fun, clever, and unique read! I really loved the fresh take on a murder mystery with the “behind the scenes” glimpses of Eleanor’s thought process as an author, and as she’s working to solve a mystery in her real life. It kept me on my toes and I didn’t want to put it down. This was fantastic and I hope there’s a next book in the series!

It was a fun story, but the footnotes were very disruptive to my reading experience; would not read another book by this author if she did the footnote scheme

An absolutely delightful read! If you are looking for a light, fun, laugh out loud murder mystery with a twist, RUN and get this book on April 30, 2024!!

Catherine Mack may very well be my new favorite author! Her unique writing style captured me from the first page. The premise of "Every Time I go on Vacation, Someone Dies", is an Author, writing about an author on a book tour in Italy who desperately wants to kill her main character, who is also on the book tour. Only for this fictional author, things get messy when there's a murder on the tour. Think "Murder in the Building" meets "Murder Mystery", (you know, that movie with Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler), mixed with a little Ferris Bueller's Day off (breaking the 4th wall << if you haven't heard this before, don't feel bad, neither had I. It's when the main character speaks directly to the audience) ONLY SO MUCH BETTER!! And I loved it so much!

This book has an ex love, a struggling sibling relationship, a trip to Italy, secrets, an author stalker, a variety of characters and murder with a twist! What more could you ask for? It's quick, witty, mysterious, funny, and all the things I look for in a book. I could NOT put it down because I needed to know what was going to happen next!

I cannot wait to read more from this author and hope that this won't be the last we read about Eleanor Dash.

Thank you @Netgalley and St. Martin's publisher's for allowing me to read this ARC. This one is extra special to me because it's my very first ARC review for Netgalley. I hope I did ok. :)

This debut cozy mystery was an absolute delight! The story is told from the perspective of best-selling author Eleanor Dash, the protagonist and amateur sleuth, who speaks directly to the reader. I enjoyed her witty asides (assuming the footnotes make the cut :)) as the mystery unfolded and she tried to determine whether her ex was truly the target of a would-be killer while they are on promotional book tour in Italy. While she *would* like to kill off the character he is based on in her series, her plan isn't *that* extreme. At least that's what she assures the reader is the case. Is her fiction becoming the basis for a true crime story? It just may be.

The writing style was pitch perfect and I felt like the author played fair with the reader as I read the big reveal. I loved the Italian setting and look forward to finding out where Eleanor's publisher sends her next and whether any dead bodies appear. Something tells me her vacations are a lot more eventful than mine will (hopefully) ever be. And I can't wait to read all about them.

Many thanks to Minotaur Books for providing a NetGalley copy. I'm looking forward to continuing with this fun new series.

Loved the author’s way of writing; it made the main character seem like they were having a conversation with the reader and like I was really in her head. I would recommend this book to others!

✨ARC Review✨

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

Meet bestselling author Eleanor. Years ago on vacation, she met a guy, had some fun, and caught some bad guys. She went home and wrote a book based on all these events and especially based on the guy, Connor. Many books later, Eleanor is tired of all of it, mostly tired of Connor who showed back up to demand money for the main character being based on and named after him. Now, on a book tour in Italy, Eleanor is ready to kill off fictional Connor, but someone is trying to outdo her by offing real life Connor. Mystery and chaos ensues while the many characters on the book tour try to solve this new mystery!

What a great premise! What great side characters! But something about Mack’s writing style did me in. Mack is heavily relatable with a million of pop culture references, but being stuck in Eleanor’s head with her million of disjointed thoughts made her a very unlikeable main character. Especially when these chaotic inner thoughts led to 237 footnotes. Now, don’t get me wrong, the footnotes had generally funny or sarcastic remarks, but reading 237 footnotes on my kindle meant a lot of unnecessary jumping back and forth and the footnotes interrupting the text, sometimes mid sentence. I’m hoping this formatting will be improved come final novel release because I really wanted to read the footnotes! I really enjoyed the storyline and wanted the humor in the footnotes. I just couldn’t stand the constant back and forth and ended up skipping most the footnotes in the end.

Good twists made the storyline enjoyable, many characters made for interesting conflict. I’d be curious to see where Mack takes this series in the future as there is a lot of potential. But I’d prefer a less childish inner voice for the protagonist and less footnotes.

Thank you Netgalley for an ARC of this novel!

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Release date: April 30th

This book was the first in a while that I couldn't stop reading. I had a digital copy and carried my tablet with me everywhere until I finished it. The story was so engaging, I was googling to see if it really was the first in the series because I wanted to read more. One of my favorite tidbits were the footnotes included throughout the book.

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

A great, cozy little mystery. Well done!

This was such a fun and different take on a murder mystery. It was fast paced, but kept everything pretty lighthearted with witty dialogue and ridiculous plot points. Kind of like the movie Knives Out, but in book form. Although even while reading it, it was playing through my head like a comedic mystery movie, which is a testament to the author’s writing capabilities. The writing is styled to where the MC is also the author and narrator, and at times she even breaks the fourth wall to speak to the reader. As far as the plot itself goes, we are following Eleanor, a famous author on a 10 day book tour around Italy, with an entourage of other authors, friends/frenemies, and a group of contest winners. They realize that someone is trying to murder one of them, or multiple among them, and it only progresses from there. It is full of twists that keep you guessing for a while, especially as the narrator doubts herself and makes you doubt yourself. I did feel like the ending was kind of like a “duh” moment rather than an “aha” moment, but still it was overall an enjoyable 4 star read, maybe even rounded to 4.5 due to the fun writing style. Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I absolutely could not finish this book. After reading at least 2/3rds of it I couldn’t take it anymore. The idea was cute-I didn’t like the execution. The footnotes especially bothered me-maybe it was the kindle version I was reading but there was no easy way to go back and see what the heck she was noting and seriously, footnotes, in fiction work, come on! Also, I didn’t really like any of the characters as written, they were just ‘meh’. #everytimeigoonvacationsomeonedies for me is a 1 star-it actually kept me from reading!-don’t bother. Thank you #netgalley and #minotaurbooks for this arc to read and review, all opinions are my own

I’m hoping there will be a sequel! Every time I Go On Vacation Someone Dies was a fun book! Great location, family ties, old flames, and food. Eleanor is a writer on a tenth anniversary tour - a group that includes her sister, two exes, and other writers, as well as fans, in Italy. It becomes apparent someone is trying to kill her, so she spends most of the trip using life to develop the plot of her next book. At first the footnotes were annoying but quickly became my favorite part. Looking forward to the next one!

This is a fun “cozy” mystery set in the backdrop of beautiful Italy. It’s a fresh, witty, and modern take on the whole new dunnit with lots of banter, breaking the fourth wall, and a dash of romance.

I did figure out pretty early on part of the mystery but definitely not all of it so I had lots of surprises over the course of the book.

I am enjoying this new ploy in books of breaking the fourth wall and using footnotes, however this one maybe went a little overboard. Not enough for me stop reading and definitely not enough that I won’t continue on with the series. I’m definitely invested in these characters and where they go from here!!

I’m curious is the narrator aka the author is an actual character in the series or if it’s just actual insight into who the author really is. That’s one mystery I haven’t figured out yet!!

Thank you to Minotaur books and NetGalley for my advance copy.

This was a unique book I had never read one quite like this. The storyline was interesting an author who’s on promotional trip with other authors and connected with her. Then there is her ex who claims someone is trying to murder him and the adventure begins. The story is written in the characters point of view as an author and at the end of ever chapter there are notes like the author is keeping notes and we see her inner thoughts. The storyline is engaging and interesting at times I felt sad because I felt like the character was blaming herself for everything which is something I didn’t like I hope if the stories continue she has more confidence. I give the storyline and the characters four stars. As a Christian I’m not a fan of foul language so I’m giving a content warning there were a few bad words in the story.

100% wanted to read this because of the title and it did not disappoint!

I found the writing to be well done, the plot was well-executed (hehe), the characters were well developed.

I will definitely be recommending this to my friends and on my Instagram!

Just like its title, this novel was a fun, quirky, different cozy mystery. Completely breaking the 4th wall, our protagonist Eleanor is relaying the story, and backstory to her readers as it unfolds, even getting parts incorrect at times as the truth continues to be revealed. While this format isn't for everyone, it works in this format, as the author instantly feels like a friend.
I enjoyed this refreshing, cozy mystery and thought it was well done. Having said that, footnotes can be difficult, especially on a kindle, so I could see why it may be offputting to some.

DNF @ 30% - I’m usually all for a cozy mystery but the writing style in this one just was not for me at all. it was a bit too juvenile, and I would say that the target audience for this one is more for an NA audience. however, the setting was fantastic, and the characters had me laughing out loud at moments! thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

Eleanor Dash (or El, as she’s frequently called) is a best-selling author of the 'Vacation Mystery' series. The first book in the series, ‘When in Rome,’ is a semi-autobiographical true crime novel; she wrote it after she lived the experience to process what had happened. She changed all the names of course, except for one, unfortunately: Connor Smith. He was the hero of ‘When in Rome,’ and her true love. That is, until she found out he had lied to her and was in fact married. Because she used his name, he demanded a percentage of her sales as a 'consultant.' Jump forward 10 years. El is over having Connor in her life, over having him 'blackmail' her for a percentage of her earnings. So, she decides to do what any good writer does and bump off the character (literary, not literally). Only she's suffering from writer's block. Since it's approaching the 10-year anniversary of ‘When in Rome,’ her publisher suggests a book tour of Italy with several other authors they publish. El agrees, hoping it will inspire her on how exactly to bump off her detective. Only in true El fashion, she doesn't read the itinerary and is a bit shocked by the cast of characters accompanying her.

First, there's her younger sister, BBF, and personal assistant Harper Dash (okay, she knew Harper was going to be there). About 20 years earlier, their parents were killed in a tragic, senseless accident, leading 18-year-old El to become a single parent to 15-year-old Harper. Despite being close, there's some tension between the sisters; El is afraid that Harper is going to finally quit as her assistant to follow her dream of being a writer.

Next there's Connor Smith, El’s ex. He's convinced someone is trying to kill him and wants El's help figuring out who. Also on the trip is Allison Smith, Connor's ex-wife, who divorced him when ‘When in Rome’ was published and his infidelity revealed. (Of course, I must wonder: didn't she realize what he was like before? At dinner one evening, someone asks Connor who hasn't he slept with, only for El to realize, he's slept with all the woman at the table. All of 'em. And it's a big table.)

Also on the tour is Guy Charles, Connor's former private detective partner. Connor ended their partnership soon after he became a celebrity. There is also Oliver Forrest, another ex of El. He was there to help El pickup the pieces after Connor broke her heart. Despite them no longer being together, there is still a lot of affection between the two of them.

The final two authors on the tour are Emily Ma and Abishek Botha (Shek (pronounced 'Shake') to his friends.) Emily is a former Tik-Tok influencer and now an up and coming author who is basically copying El's plots while Shek is a long established author whose book sales have been slipping.

Rounding out the tour is a group of about twenty fans who won the trip. Known as the BookFace Ladies, they're mostly harmless except maybe for Crazy Cathy, the stalker whom El had to get a restraining order in the US.

El is initially skeptical of Connor's claims that someone's trying to kill him. Yes, his brakes gave out, but his car is over 60 years old. Someone pushed him into traffic, but was it deliberate, or someone accidently jostling him in the crowd? When someone dies of poisoning after drinking Connor's glass of champaign, the question is resolved. But who? Unfortunately, El can easily come up with motives for everyone in the group, but can she figure out whodunnit before they kill again?

This was a fun book! The footnotes were hysterical at times (yes, the book has 250 - 300 footnotes in it!) It's also a bit like ‘Everyone in My Family has Killed Someone’ with how frequently and deliberately the author breaks the fourth wall. For example, at one point, El confesses to the reader that she's a liar and not a nice person. The epilogue was terrific, both tying up loose ends and introducing the next book (and murder) (along with an accompanying footnote, suggesting the title of the third book in the series, of course).

Highly recommended for those tolerant of breaking the fourth wall and quirky characters.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley.com that I voluntarily chose to review.