The story - ⭐⭐⭐⭐
The writing - ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Overall - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

One of the things I loved about the Beach Read was Emily Henry's writing. It is lovely, not as flowery as I was expecting and once again both characters felt like they had a lot of depth to them.

Although the Harry met Sally-ness of it all got a bit frustrating over time, when Poppy and Alex finally started communicating that frustration finally eases and you can just really enjoy this chilled read.

I enjoyed how the book is split between the present holiday and the past ones leading up to the infamous Croatia trip which is referenced numerous times as the reason why Poppy and Alex have had a two year break from their friendship.

I didn't enjoy it as much as Beach Read, but I think that's mostly because I get annoyed when characters just don't communicate, and that's a big part of this slow burn romance.

I'd def recommend this to anyone wanting a chilled happy and hopeful pick me up book that's well written with likeable characters.

Fave quote - Your style is, like, 1960s Parisian bread maker’s daughter bicycling through her village at dawn, shouting Bonjour, le monde whilst doling out baguettes.

Fave moment - Poppy and Alex roadtrip banter

This is a light and fluffy read, perfect for taking on holiday or just as a bit of escapism.

I was offered an ARC by the publishers in exchange for an honest review.

Poppy and Alex take a trip each summer. The book jumps between their present trip and flashbacks to previous adventures. Sometimes this works well, sometimes it’s a bit confusing. I didn’t really like either character- if they were such good friends I think they’d have worked out their issues a long time ago! It’s the sort of book where it’s obvious exactly where the story is going and the reader is just along for the ride. It’s nicely written and well paced. It’s a nice example of its genre that will do well this summer, I’m sure.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for my copy of this book.

I absolutely loved this book so much. One of the best contemporary romances I’ve read in years. Emily Henry’s writing was exceptional, at times I felt like I was watching a movie rather than reading a book. It felt like the perfect ode to When Harry Met Sally but with a beautiful modern day feel to it. I can not wait to read more from Emily and I can’t wait till this book is released and people can fall in love with the two many characters as much as I did. If you like Christina Lauren type romances or any friends to lovers/slow burn type tropes then you will just adore this, I would pre order it now, it’s that good! ❤️

This is an easy read and the perfect light-hearted choice to read on holiday. Whilst I did enjoy it, I found it very predictable and found the jumping back and forth in time to be a bit messy and, at times, confusing. I liked ‘visiting’ all the different places that Poppy and Alex went on holiday and was so jealous of Poppy’s job. If you don’t mind a very predictable and cheesy plot, this will be perfect!

As usual in my reviews I will not rehash the plot...otherwise why would you bother reading the book?!

I was delighted to be invited to read this as I loved Emily Henry's last novel, "Beach Read". I hoped it would be just as enjoyable - and I wasn't disappointed.

I love her style - she writes characters that feel real, you can imagine exactly how they would be in real life (and some of them reminded me of people I have met along the way). The plot is well thought out, with the lives and backgrounds of Poppy and Alex (our heroine and hero) gradually revealed over time. I liked the way the timeline wasn't linear, and really enjoyed the vivid descriptions of Poppy and Alex's various trips (particularly as we cannot travel ourselves at this time!)

I read a LOT of books each year, and yet rarely find one where I like the main characters - but I really warmed to both Poppy and Alex (chalk and cheese as they are) and found myself caring about what happened to them. There's a great supporting cast in there too, some providing a humorous touch.

Just wanted to mention that it's not all sweetness and light along the road - there are some sad sections in the mix - but that's just like real life isn't it?

I could imagine this novel working as a movie...

Already looking forward to Emily Henry's next book!

My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC. All opinions my own.

I was sent a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Although COVID is stopping us from travelling right now, I was so glad I was able to live vicariously through this book. The entire book was so wonderfully heartwarming. If you're a fan of friends-to-lovers romance that includes hilarious banter and travelling, then you're going to love this book. I absolutely adored Emily Henry's Beach Read when I read it last year, but I think this book truly surpasses it.

Emily Henry is fantastic at writing realistic characters. Poppy and Alex's friendship is one of the best I've ever read. I'm usually not a huge fan of friends-to-lovers but this book has completely won me over. I love the way their entire relationship is told over the course of several years and vacations; even though every time we met them, they were in different places in their lives, it was so easy to see how much they care about each other.

This book had everything I wanted: friends-to-lovers, hate-to-love, one bed, hilarious banter, slow burn. Highly recommend for anyone who enjoys romance novels.

As a fangirl of Emily Henry's last book, Beach Read, I knew I had to get my hands on her newest novel ASAP! It's winter in Minnesota right now, so the multitude of sunny vacation spots in this book were amazing. Henry describes them in great detail so you feel like you're right there. I enjoyed the relationship between Poppy and Alex, which was purposely reminiscent of When Harry Met Sally. Definitely worth reading!

This book was all kinds of cute! But it also made me cry, and swoon and look forward to my next summer trip.

Alex and Poppy were perfect, and even though I would have liked to see more of them as a couple, I loved their friendship and how they complemented each other. Everybody claims that “enemies-to-lovers” is the superior trope (and I particularly enjoyed that on “Beach Read”!) but I have a soft spot for the best friends trope. And here it was perfectly executed!

I can see myself re-reading this book in the future, and I’ve already pre-ordered a physical copy for myself.

I loved Beach Read so much, and I was so excited for You and Me on Vacation; I'm so pleased that it lived up to - and exceeded! - my expectations. Emily Henry is such a special writer and, reading You and Me on Vacation, I was struck by her talent. The narrative unfolded so deftly and naturally that it made for a genuinely joyous read. For me, I felt as though I could read all of the writer's love and respect for the genre - and its readers - in the story. Poppy and Alex were brilliantly sympathetic and flawed characters, and the tension between them kept me reading into the night: I just could not, and would not, stop! It was a witty and moving rom-com, and I loved it all.

Ah, I LOVE Emily Henry! If you liked Beach Read, you'll totally love this book, it's every bit as good, and I think I even enjoyed it more, because of the 'what if' element. Also, it is SO nice to read about Palm Springs in the sunshine when it's so cold and snowy here!

Oh man, I really enjoyed this. Partially because they go on holiday and talk about different places and god, don't we all want that at the moment. But mainly because the characters are engaging, fun, and not caricatures of rom com/commercial fiction characters.
Great story, lovely characters, nice depth.

Another gorgeous romantic comedy from Emily Henry. I really shouldn't read her books while I'm struggling to write my own, as it does my confidence no favours - but I just can't help myself. Her characters are so wonderfully textured and funny and she delves into those tricky, complex emotions and hang-ups people have, while keeping the laughs coming. Add in some beautiful trips around the globe and this is perfect escapism.

This book was incredible. Best friends to lovers who work through their issues to be better for each other in a relationship is the healthiest romance book Ive read in a long long time. Poppy was such a joyful qnd silly main character and Alex proved to be the perfect counterbalance for her abundance of energy. Their banter and chemistry had me laughing out loud on nearly every page and awing when they did sometime tender for each other. I loved the travel aspect of the book and the multitude of oddballs they met on their trips. While not prominent characters, they gave this story so much heart. Incredible book!!!

This book was like slipping into your favourite pair of shoes or having the perfect cup of tea after a long day at work. You know that feeling, the one where you feel content and happy and you know for a just a moment in time that everything just feels right. As you might have already guessed I found myself in a lot of like with this story. The characters, the theme and the romance all merged together to provide a wonderful reading experience and I know that this novel will be winning readers hearts all over. ‘You and me on vacation’ is a wonderfully pulled together friends to lovers romance with a healthy mix of real life mixed with a generously hopeful romantic alliance. Emily Henry is an author that seemed to be on everyone’s reading list for 2020 and in my romance reading opinion I think she really deserves the attention that she has gained, I foresee a 2021 with the same kind of following. If you are looking for a slice of lovely in a world that doesn’t currently feel so comforting right now then this book may just provide the perfect remedy.

After loving Beach Read last year, I had high hopes for You and Me on Vacation. This sounds like a setup to say it disappointed me — it’s not, I promise. It would be fair to say Beach Read is still my favourite of the two, but I loved You and Me on Vacation as well.

The story follows parallel timelines: the present, where Alex and Poppy’s relationship has been somewhat broken since some event on a trip to Croatia (you can probably easily guess what event that may be, but in the interests of no spoilers, I’m keeping schtum), and at various times across the preceding 12 years. In the present, Poppy is stuck in a rut in her job writing about vacations for a magazine, so she decides that what she needs to do is go back to the start: on a simple vacation with Alex.

Friends to lovers is one of my favourite tropes and this book did that to perfection. We get to see the build of Alex and Poppy’s friendship in the past, contrasted with their current relationship, a little bit fragile and each of them treading carefully. It’s an excellent way of establishing the bond they have while still growing them towards a romance, so I loved how that was done here.

As with Beach Read, the main two characters are also surrounded by a great cast. And they’re all characters you find yourself easily wanting to root for and read more of, both main and otherwise. Of course, Poppy and Alex are the most fleshed out of them — not a surprise given that most of the book involves scenes between them and only them — but the others do provide an interesting backdrop. Yes, the girlfriends and boyfriends who aren’t Poppy or Alex do sometimes come across a little flat and un-nuanced, but some of that is just because it’s Poppy’s POV.

I think the only issue I did have with this book would be in the third-act break-up. I really really don’t like third-act break-ups, particularly those which aren’t consistent with characterisation, and I do sort of feel like this was one of those. Especially since, to all intents and purposes, both characters had professed their love for one another, so the angst precipitating a break-up seemed to come out of nowhere. I think that’s the reason I’d give this book 4 stars instead of 5. For a bit, it did feel like a 5-star book. Until this.

But if you enjoyed Beach Read or you’re looking for another romance to get your teeth into, this is definitely one to look forward to.

I can tell you right now, January 24th, this will be on my top reads of the year. Mark my words.

Poppy and Alex meet at orientation week in college and don’t think about each other again until the end of freshman year, when they share a car ride back home for summer break and, even though they’re polar opposites, they become inseparable ever since. Right then they establish one of the main pillars of their friendship: The Summer Trip. Every summer, the two of them will go on an adventure somewhere new.

Now fast-forward to present day, 12 years later. Poppy is a travel journalist living in New York (basically getting paid to travel the world and write about it #dreamjob) and Alex is a high school teacher still living in their small Ohio hometown.

We’re told this story through Poppy’s eyes, switching between present time – when she and Alex are in no-speaking terms since their summer trip to Croatia two years ago –, and the past, as she recalls each one of their vacations together leading to that ill-fated trip. Poppy is convinced they can make their friendship work again, all she has to do is take Alex on yet another summer trip, like old times.

This story spoke to me (100% unintentional pun – I’m not crazy, you’ll understand the reference if you read it) on so many levels I can’t even begin to put it into words. Even though Poppy and Alex are like the day and the night, I recognized parts of me in both of them. I’m a let’s-book-this-random-trip-and-see-where-the-wind-takes-us kind of person like Poppy as much as I’m a let’s-stay-home-all-day-with-a-book-and-not-socialize introvert like Alex. They are both relatable, imperfect, insecure and laugh-out-loud funny in their own ways. I could just keep reading about them forever.

The relationship between the two of them and how that friends-to-lovers was inevitable all along was beautifully done. I laughed, I cried and really, really, really enjoyed this book. Like a lot. It’s the perfect opposites-attract, slow-burn, i-want-you-as-my-best-friend-and-also-everything-else-but-it-scares-the-shit-out-of-me we all deserve and all I want to do is forget it so I can read it all over again.

As Emily Henry herself puts it, this is ultimately a book about home. Because it’s less about the places we go than the people we meet along the way. But most of all, it’s about the ones who stay and become home.

Now that’s all said, please excuse me while I go find myself a copy of Beach Read and get book-drunk on that one too, because what else am I supposed to do with my life now?

A massive thank you to NetGalley and Penguin UK for an e-ARC in exchange of an honest and voluntary review.

Such a delight to read and I was fully immersed in the story between Poppy and Alex. Love to see the relationship between the both blossom with their holidays and love for each other. Perfect for a winter afternoon.

I had hears such good things about Beach Read by Emily Henry I knew I had to ask to read her next book You and Me on Vacation and I have found a new auto-buy author for contemporary romance.

You and Me on Vacation is about Poppy and Alex and their friendship over 12 years and is a Best Friends to Lovers book. If you don't like this kind of Trope then I suggest you put that aside and read this book. I found that Emily Henry had written it superbly and found my love for this trope again.

The book jumps back and forth between the present and the past 12 years. I found this delightful as you got to know both Poppy and Alex from the flashbacks and how they come to be where they are now. Poppy is a travel writer for R+R a magazine and she jets off around the world to exotic places on the company dime. The problem is something is missing from her life, and she realises that its her friend Alex. Alex is a super sweet and also from the description given HOT. He is a high school teacher and writer. Poppy and Alex are complete opposites but they have been friends since their college days and can't be without one another.

It's hinted that something went on between the two of them on one of their Summer Vacations and you get to know what this is towards the end of the book. I found the build up subtle but intriguing as I felt that I got to know the characters by travelling on their summer vacations with them in every other chapter.

The book had my heart in my throat though towards the end as I was wondering what the ending would be, but I am pleased with how it played out and felt that it was the right conclusion. Poppy definitely grew throughout the book and I loved being on the journey with her.

Do you know why I rated it as a 4 instead of a 5? This is because I heard that Emily wrote a real hot scene raunchy in Beach Read however in this book I didn't think it was that, sexy. It was more subtle and loving and I loved that and felt that was right for the characters however I wanted a bit more heat between the two.

I did however love the style of writing, the characters the witty comments between the two, the tension between the two as well. Definitely on pre-order now!

This was an intresting read. Very unsure as it went forward and back. . A third of the way I was gripped and I could not put it down. The air conditioning made me laugh. Going down a degree at a time. All the places they travelled. . Alex had loved Poppy for so long. You were not sure how it would end. I liked Poppies boss..Families can mess you up. A great read

After Emily Henry's superb 'Beach Read', I was desperate to read her next novel. When 'You and Me on Vacation' appeared on NetGalley, I almost dislocated my arm speed pressing that request button! Henry has returned with her characteristic blend of hilarious writing and weightier topics in this fulfilling friends to lovers romance in the style of the classic 'When Harry Met Sally'.

Poppy and Alex meet in college, their friendship first forming during an excruciating shared drive home from college. It is the following summer that their annual tradition is born: The Summer Trip. We follow them across 12 years of their friendship around the world, flashing back and forth between Summer Trips gone and the present summer. (Gosh, it made me miss travelling, beaches, sun, bars...) However, we are told that something happened on the trip two years ago which estranged these two friends and the present trip is their last chance to salvage their special relationship (and perhaps find love along the way).

The concept and the structure are well plotted, each holiday taking Poppy and Alex to a distinct location and deepening their (platonic?!) relationship. The sexual tension over the years is simmering throughout as the reader wills these two to stop skirting around their obvious deep love for one another. The journey sees them come of age, find their way in the world of work, enter relationships with other people, but their deep bond seems unbreakable... until the 'incident' of two years ago. The 'details of this are not revealed for most of the book and most of their Summer Trips are just them hitting bars and enjoying each other's company. I almost wish the flashbacks could have been halved and we could have spent more time seeing how Poppy and Alex cope with addressing their feelings in the present and moving on from how they have previously hurt each other.

Overall, this is a witty and thoroughly absorbing read. Henry has a real gift for writing believable yet enjoyable romance and I cannot wait to see what she comes up with next! 4.5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher who provided an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.