Poppy and Alex met in college and took a vacation together every summer, no matter where their lives took them. After 10 years of friendship and vacations, Croatia happened. Now, two years later, Poppy will do anything to set their friendship back on course. I couldn’t put the book down and loved every minute of it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC.

The thing I miss most during this pandemic is travelling. I love seeing new places, eating new foods, and meeting new people. So I was very drawn to travel writer Poppy, one of the main characters in, People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry. She has my dream job as a professional travel writer! But when she, herself, goes on vacation, she travels on the cheap with her male friend from college, Alex. This novel is an ode to the movie, When Harry Met Sally. Can male and female friends be "just friends"? Given how deeply they connect with each other, you can guess where this goes. This was a really fun, romantic novel, and the perfect summer read.

What I Liked:

Vacation Theme:

This book is a celebration of that freedom we all feel on vacation. Vacations are an escape from our "real" lives. We eat all the food we've denied ourselves, laugh more easily, and flirt with strangers. I liked that there were a variety of different types of vacations. Some of Poppy and Alex's trips were super touristy, where they see every kitschy tourist trap and do every stereotypical vacation activity one can imagine. Other trips were more about relaxing and getting to know people. Each time they met they learned to appreciate each other more and more. They were really good together. But, if they were around each other every day, would they still get along so well? Or was the magic of their relationship based on the ease one creates on vacation?

Characters:

Poppy is a woman who knows what she wants. She strives for the freedom of travel, and doesn't want anything that will tie her down, particularly having children. Alex is the exact opposite. He craves having the ideal family life with a wife and children. As the book progresses, we learn the reasons behind this. But they also have a lot in common. They come from the same area of Ohio, share a similar sense of humor, and are open to learn from each other.

Of the supporting characters, I really liked Poppy's glamorous boss, Swapna. This is a strong woman who mentors Poppy in her career, even though she is rather intimidating. I loved a scene where Swapna tells Poppy to stop apologizing for missing work, pointing out that her male colleagues would never feel the need to do that. We all need this kind of support in our professional life!

Throughout the book, Poppy and Alex meet a variety of wonderful characters on their trips. Shopkeepers who give them discounts for pretending to be newlyweds, friendly older couples enjoying life, as well as free spirits, dot the landscape of their journeys. This is one of the joys of travelling that I love.

Story:

The story is a celebration of friendship, travel and romance. Poppy and Alex's friendship is unlikely, at first. But over the years, from college, to first jobs and first romances to becoming more established, Poppy and Alex grow to depend on each other. Both of them are attracted to each other, but they also don't want to ruin their friendship (Harry and Sally, meet Alex and Poppy). Over the years the sexual tension builds as they see each other through other relationships. There are misunderstandings, and almost declarations that keep the reader wondering (hoping) if they'll ever get together.

But the story also brought up some questions for Poppy and Alex that were uncomfortable. Why is Alex so attached to his family? Why does Poppy feel the need to get as far away from their small town as possible? Are they each other's escape, or are they each other's destiny?

What I Was Mixed About:

Sex on the Page:

Sorry, but I am not a fan of graphic sex scenes in books. That's just my personal preference. I think since the whole story is a build upon , "will they, or won't they", it was understandable that there would be the big sex moment. I still loved this book. But, if you're looking for a "clean" romance, you might want to skip this novel.

This is the first book I read from this author and now I am a fan! I will now, go back to read her other books. People We Meet on Vacation is by far my favorite romance book of 2021. There's nothing sweeter and angsty to follow the story of two best friends, who are total opposite, slowly figure out they in love with each other. Soulmates. It may have taken years, but it was worth it!

Poppy and Alex are the definition of opposite attracts. The yin and yang. Salt and pepper. Ever since they met in college, these two were best friends, summer travel buddies. Even though the dated others over the years, they continued to have a platonic and fun-filled summer adventure. What I loved about this book is how the author takes you through the present and past years of their friendship.

These two characters were real and genuine. This author made me want to best friends with Poppy and find myself an Alex. This entire read, you just want to root for these two to find their happiness with each other. I loved their journey every summer and want to travel just like them.

A fantastic rom-com read that will have you swoon and dream of having your best guy friend turn into your one true love!

Every now and then, I read a book and wish I could be best friends with its author. Dear reader, I wish I could be best friends with Emily Henry.

I loved Beach Read and went into :People We Meet on Vacation almost worried that I would feel as if I was being unfaithful by falling for the new book on the block. But Emily Henry grabbed me and did not let go, not that I ever wanted that to happen.

From the opening prologue, you know that Poppy and Alex are meant for each other, but they're so determined to be best friends that they can't--they won't--realize just how romantically meant for each other they are. Then we skip ahead a couple years and learn that fractures have occurred. Poppy has lost her professional groove and believes she needs Alex to help her get it back. Back when they were friends, they'd gone on a dozen road trips together, and Poppy wants Alex to join her for one more.

You hold your breath as you read these chapters, both desperate to find out what caused them to fall apart and frightened to do so. You want them to rediscover what they adore about each other, even as you worry that all they will see are flaws. These two are about as different as khakis and studded leather ... on the surface. Where it counts, though, they hold fundamental truths in common.

Emily Henry crafts a story that makes you laugh, makes your heart feel full, and makes you swoon over the sweet romance. She also rips your heart out and stomps on it with spiked cleats. One scene made me cry so hard, I had a headache for two days. (That's a compliment, by the way. I was so fully vested in these characters that I hurt for them.)

The problem with this book is that it makes me want more from Emily Henry. I want her to break my heart again because I know she knows just how to put it back together.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for gifting me a digital ARC of the sophomore book by Emily Henry. 5 stars for this book and a crown for the new queen of the romantic comedy!

Alex and Poppy met the first day of college as complete opposites. Their friendship bloomed on a shared car ride home to their hometown in Ohio. They discovered that their opposite personalities just fit each other to make that one perfect friend you can't live without. The friendship bloomed over their summer vacation each year - a trip that was part of Poppy's job at a travel magazine and fit perfectly with Alex's summers off teaching job. But one mistake on a vacation caused everything to go wrong in their friendship. Poppy is struggling with her job, her purpose, her life and is convinced that everything will be okay if she gets Alex to go on one more vacation with her.

Told in Poppy's voice from their current summer trip to past vacations, you will fall in love with these characters. This is just such a fun book - I loved the witty bantering between Alex and Poppy and you will feel like you've been on vacation yourself after vicariously visiting all these locations. This is a must read - in fact, once you are done with it, you'll want to escape into it again! Highly recommended!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

I'm a big fan of Emily Henry's work, and PEOPLE WE MEET ON VACATION did not disappoint. Henry has created well-developed characters and set them traveling the world - which is a welcome antidote to all of us who are homebound due to the pandemic. The plot works. The characters are real, and although they are flawed, they act like adults. I enjoyed this novel even more than BEACH READ.

Poppy Wright is weird. She likes being weird, likes taking the uncharted path, but she's also secretly self-conscious that her weirdness makes her unloveable. Alex Nilsen is not weird. At least, not outwardly. He's a straight-laced, academic homebody. But beneath the veneer of control that he has carefully constructed, he's a hot mess of emotions. Poppy and Alex find their way into an unlikely friendship where the only thing they seem to have in common is the fun they have on their summer trips. The only thing...unless you count the simmering attraction they suppress and the deep, unspoken love they share.

I always appreciate it when writers of contemporary novels create characters that are believable and not annoying. I have a wider tolerance for cave-man or damsel-in-distress archetypes in the historical romances I read; they just seem more in keeping with the times. But modern day romances? I get very annoyed with bad behavior. That means contemporary romances are a mixed bag for me, most of the time. Fortunately, in the case of PEOPLE, Henry has done a remarkably good job of creating characters I recognize and making them mostly behave as adults should. I know people like Poppy. I am partly Alex. Without going into pages of backstory, Henry makes us understand what makes them tick. Their histories are believable; it makes sense that they are who they are. And watching them decide on their future was truly a pleasure.

PEOPLE WE MEET ON VACATION is a funny, insightful romance with characters you can root for. Definitely put it on your summer reading list!

This is a perfect vacation/getaway book! I loved the friends to lovers trope! Poppy and Alex were such likable characters even though they were basically totally opposites their friendship complemented each other. Poppy being a quirky, live in the moment type of person and Alex being a calculated, laid back personality meet during freshman year orientation. Afterwards they soon become best friends and pledge to spend every summer together on a summer vacation! Even after they end up moving several miles away from each other, they still looked forward to their summer vacations! However with Poppy starting to realize she may actually have feelings for Alex and vice versa, things start to get a little bit awkward between them. But they still try to maintain their friendship throughout the years even while dating other people, however on one summer vacation things escalate and they end up not talking with each other for two years. Feeling lonely and heartbroken, Poppy decides the one thing missing from her life is Alex and their summer vacations where she was always so carefree and she could be herself! So she concocts this plan to have a perfect summer vacation just for them!

One of the main reasons why I love Emily Henry's books so much is because she does a fantastic job with the witty banter between characters! She knows how to pull out the character's personalities so well in her books and make you root for them!

This is a sweet but also sharp friends to lovers second chance rom-com. Alex and Poppy are an odd couple separated as much by location- he's in Ohio and she's in New York when not traveling the world- as by attitude. She's all out there and he's more restrained (he reads a book at the bar and worries that he's not making enough eye contact with the bartender). They've been spending a week together each summer until...well, no spoilers about what happened in Croatia. Don't worry- it wasn't bad. So they've been estranged and Poppy really really misses him so she convinces him to do it one more tine. You can guess, perhaps, what's going to happen. This is really trope-y but it's also really fun. The characters are good (I also liked Poppy's editor- I can see her!) even if Poppy sometimes goes over the top and Henry has a nice storytelling style. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. A fun read to make you smile.

Emily Henry has again written a beautiful love story. The tale of Poppy & Alex's travels will have you turning pages as you root for these two best friends to fall for one another.

I plowed through this!!! Super. charming and distinct from Beach Read, which was a concern of mine going in. Poppy and Alex are messier, more selfish, have more going on. But still, I was engaged, it worked for me.

I purchased this book through Book of the Month and shortly after received it through NetGalley for review.
I enjoyed Emily Henry’s last book, Beach Read, but her latest is even better. Alex and Poppy are such well-written characters who always come back to one another despite the ways life might pull them in different directions. Emily’s writing is detailed, funny, and emotional and the story is told so vividly. This is a great book for anyone looking for an escape and a reminder about the importance of the people in our lives. 4.25/5.

People We Meet on Vacation (Emily Henry)

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkeley Publishing Group for a digital ARC.

I love the way the author tells a story. As I really enjoyed 'Beach Read' last year, I was very interested in reading this one. She didn't disappoint. It was an excellent feel-good read with humour and romantic tension. Just what we need after the year we've endured.

#PeopleWeMeetOnVacation #NetGalley

I really enjoyed Emily Henry's Beach Read, but I absolutely adored People We Meet on Vacation. If I could give it more than 5 out of 5 stars, I would.

People We Meet on Vacation had a lot of the elements I love in a romance novel. I loved the slow burn of Poppy and Alex's friendship to romance. I loved the dual timeline of their present vacation and all of the ones they took in the past. They had such a sweet friendship.

Alex is one of my new favorite characters and new book boyfriends. He was so sweet and so supportive of Poppy.

It was so interesting to see all of the vacations they took over the years and how they changed when Poppy was working for the magazine, but not for the better.

The friends to lovers trope was so well done and I loved the only one bed too!

I'm so glad I preordered this so I will have a physical copy. I can't wait to see what Emily Henry writes next!

I will update with my link as soon as I share on my bookstagram page.

A huge thank you to Berkley Publication and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

“𝗜 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘆 𝘀𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝗵𝗶𝗺 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝗵𝗶𝗺 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁.”

First of all, WOW. It’s been a while since a book spoke to me 😭 (this is an inside joke from this book!) but it really did and now my face still hurts from crying as I type this 😭

𝘗𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘞𝘦 𝘔𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘰𝘯 𝘝𝘢𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 follows polar opposites Poppy and Alex who met twelve years ago and during a shared car ride back to their home town, they bond over those very differences and they become best friends. A year after, they start to dedicate their annual summer breaks on going on trips together until two years ago, something went wrong that changed the course of their friendship forever. And now they decide to go on one last trip together to fix their friendship or will it turn into something more?

This book captured exactly what I feel about love and falling in love especially that terrifying feeling of trusting someone with your happiness. I’m in pain but good pain? Like a bittersweet feeling of knowing that someone understands you but also knowing that this could happen to you. Despite the happily ever after, there’s the journey that goes with it. You can never know if it’ll filled with pain or happiness.

Going back to the book itself and less of me emotionally rambling, the prologue had my heart immediately! It had me cackling and from there, I just knew I would love Poppy and Alex and their friendship! Their chemistry is SO GOOD!! I couldn’t get enough of them! Poppy grew up in chaotically good household with her loud family and lots of pets. She’s always been a traveller at heart and she wants nothing more than to leave her hometown. Alex grew up raising his siblings, enjoying the company of his books and dreaming of a life of stabilty in his hometown. I love how they acknowledge these differences but still find solace in each other’s company. Poppy is realistically relatable and I saw myself in her, her fears and thoughts. Alex is an absolute cinnamon roll, the purest of simps and husband material of the best kind! I loved how he was shown to be so emotionally open which is refreshing!

Besides the amazing main leads, the side characters were such a delight to read! I loved Poppy’s and Alex’s families! Poppy’s support system aka Rachel, her mom and Swapna 🙈

It’s been a while since I got to read a really good slow burn, opposites attract, friends to lovers romance and Emily Henry just ticked all the boxes of exactly why I love these tropes! 😭 I enjoyed going on all these trips with them and seeing them experience the harsh but fun reality of going on budget trips! 😍

Moreover, I want to talk about the steamy scenes which is an important factor in romance novels IMHO 🤣 The amount of passion and fire during their sexier scenes was off the roof and I had the best time savoring each one 😭

All in all, I would give this book all of the stars if I could! 🌟 This is a heartwrenchingly unforgettable, tear jerker of a love story between two people who couldn’t be anymore different but find common ground on how they feel towards each other. I highly recommend for everyone and anyone who fears love but is willing to take the risk for the sake of experiencing that kind of happiness that goes with it. A must read for all romance lovers! Emily Henry is definitely an auto-read author for me now 😭

A fabulous follow-up from Emily Henry! BEACH READ was one of my favorites last year, so I had high expectations for this one, and it succeeded! From the first page, the tension was so clear, and it made for such an enjoyable read. Friends-to-lovers may be one of my new favorite tropes after this one!

Hi friends! I hope you’re all doing well!
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Thank you so much to Berkley Publishing and Netgalley for a copy of People we Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry.
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I just love Emily Henry’s writing so much. It is so easy to become immersed in this book and invested in her characters. Her writing is the perfect mix of funny and emotional and this book was exactly what I needed and wanted to read.
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In People we Meet on Vacation we follow Poppy and Alex across different time lines. We follow their friendship and the vacations over a number of years and we get to see how they develop throughout the years, learn and grow. I loved how you could see how they matured over the years! I love this book and definitely recommend it to those wanting a friends to more romance.
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I highly recommend this novel! It comes out on May 11!
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CW: death of a parent, discussions of grief - both in memories, child taking on parent responsibility,

I’m big on friends-to-lovers romances so People We Meet on Vacation was right up my alley. As far as a summer reads go, this checked all the boxes for me. It’s funny, emotional, and romantic. I think Emily Henry did a great job writing characters that you want to root for. The banter never felt over the top, the pacing was great (I loved the use of dual timelines to tell the story), and the globetrotting fed into my wanderlust.

The last time a book made me cry was The Stationery Shop and People We Meet on Vacation has done just that to me.

I went into this book not knowing too much about the premise of the story, but on the flipside, knowing that Emily Henry is hugely popular and I was lucky enough to get the e-arc of this novel. What I wasn’t expecting was to be so moved to tears. This was a novel filled with movie worthy moments. Kisses in the rain, unrequited and requited love, and powerful moments filled with electricity and what ifs.

This is a story about two friends who are so wrong and so right for one another, but don’t ever cross the line until one night on the last trip they took together two years ago and the last time they really spoke. Poppy is a free spirit, while Alex has a routine but allows Poppy to push him out of his comfort zone whenever they go on their summer trips. But now that no longer happens, Poppy feels stuck in her job and in her life. And so, she spontaneously invites Alex on a work trip to Palm Springs where Alex’s brother happens to also be getting married at. As the two reunite, they are forced to confront their feelings and figure out what is best for them as friends or possibly something more.

This was a beautiful tale and I must say, I think I like the friends-to-lovers trope. Although it might seem it’s impossible for them to have explored more than friendship over the span of several years, I didn’t feel that way at all. I felt that Poppy and Alex were complex characters that needed to take the time to figure out who they were and what they wanted. It took me a lot time to figure out what it was I wanted to do as a career resulting in me going back to school again and getting a degree in my now career.

This is another book that I don’t want to say too much because I don’t want to spoil it for you. But just know that this was a tearjerker and one that I will be rereading once my TBR is back to a manageable length.

"𝘖𝘯 𝘝𝘢𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘣𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵."

𝘉𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘙𝘦𝘢𝘥 was one of my favorite books of 2020 so my expectations for 𝗣𝗘𝗢𝗣𝗟𝗘 𝗪𝗘 𝗠𝗘𝗘𝗧 𝗢𝗡 𝗩𝗔𝗖𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 were high. It definitely exceeded them.

Poppy and Alex meet as college freshmen and despite being complete opposites (Alex is an emotionally repressed academic and Poppy is a loud, free-spirit) the two become best friends. After graduation, they move to different cities but vow to continue their annual summer trip no matter what. The story is told in flashbacks - present day where Poppy and Alex are estranged and she tries to lure him into another vacation and back in time to the trips they've taken over the years which eventually reveal what went wrong between them.

No one writes banter like Emily Henry does. The exchanges and verbal volleys between Poppy and Alex had me laughing out loud. Despite their differences, you can see why they connected and how they bring out the best in one another. Henry mentions that "When Harry Met Sally" was an inspiration in the author's note and it shows in the opposites attract and friends-to-lovers (and enemies) storylines but it's really the repartee between them that reminds me most of Harry and Sally. I loved both characters, flaws and all, and their beautiful friendship and would be totally happy if they were people I met on vacation. Put this one on your summer reading lists! Even if you don't get away, it will transport you.

Thanks to Berkley Publishing and NetGalley for the copy to review.

Poppy and Alex have been best friends since college. Alex returned to their hometown to work as a teacher, while Poppy moved to New York City to work as a travel journalist. But every summer, Poppy and Alex go on vacation together. These vacations are special to both Alex and Poppy. But something happened two summers ago in Croatia that pushed Alex and Poppy apart. They haven't gone on vacation since Croatia. This summer, Poppy reaches out to Alex about going on vacation and when he agrees, Poppy is determined to use this vacation to save their friendship.

I've said this before and I'll say it again: there is something magical about Emily Henry's writing. She uses the most perfect descriptors and expressions to describe a character's feelings and thoughts in a way that I find completely relatable. For this book in particular, I related to both Alex and Poppy in different ways. Alex's fussiness about certain things was like a mirror reflecting my own fussiness about the same things. I honestly did not realize how fussy I was until this book 😂 I also see pieces of myself in Poppy. Her uncertainty about where she belongs and where she wants to be in life echo my own uncertainties in life. It was honestly a breath of fresh air reading a book about a hero and heroine who felt real and relatable.

Poppy and Alex's story is told in the present day and through flashbacks of their past vacations. It was absolute torture waiting to get to the summer vacation they spent in Croatia. The flashbacks are mostly told in chronological order, but sometimes they jump around in time, which caused a bit of confusion for me. Because of that, it sometimes took me a while to re-orient myself and determine what stage of life Poppy and Alex were at. It also took such a long time to get to the Croatia chapter that by the time I got there, it sadly felt anticlimactic.

Regardless of these minor complaints, I thoroughly enjoyed Poppy and Alex's friends to lovers romance. They honestly gave me all the feels, which is not surprising considering this is Emily Henry we're talking about. Not many authors can do the friends to lovers trope justice, but I think Emily Henry did an incredible job writing this romance in way that feels real and genuine. I just love her prose and storytelling style so much!! I am already waiting for her next book!