Vacationland is a great choice for the beach or pool. It’s a quick, enjoyable foray into the New England summer. Favorite characters were the children . Did not care for the dynamic between Louisa and her husband . Wished for more depth in both of them. 3.5 stars

Vacationland took me to Rockland Maine. I could see the rocky coastline, smell the briney air, hear the birds calling. This book took me away. The descriptions of town and the restaurants and the summer home made me feel that I was navigating the area along with the main characters.

We meet Kristie on a bus, heading for Rockland after the death of her mother. She has $761 to her name, $27,000 medical debt from her mother, and a letter, and is seeking a fresh start and something else.

Louisa is in Rockland to spend the summer at her parents’ summer home. She has her children with her, while her husband works in New York. Her father, a renowned retired judge, has Alzheimer’s and has good and bad days, while her mother and some staff help care for him.

This book reminded me of a few others: Colony, by Anne Rivers Siddons, The Last House Guest, by Megan Miranda, and The Paper Palace, by Miranda Cowley Heller. I think these books have some common threads running through them and I enjoyed the way they were tied together in this book.

Vacationland is a quick and fun summer read, especially if you want a book that feels like a vacation.

Thank you to William Morrow for a copy of Vacationland.

The first book I ready by Moore was Two Truths and a Lie and I really enjoyed it! Vacationland is a story about a family getting away to a small seaside town in Maine to not only visit her parents, but to give her husband some time alone to get a business off the ground. In parallel to following this family we are also introduced to Kristie. Kristie is seemingly running away from her past, but we come to realize that she is actually running to a place where her past exists.

This is a fun beach read, however, the story seemed to move pretty quickly and skim over quite a few topics. Kristi met Danny the first day she arrived in town and within a week they moved in together. The story also included a few chapters around Louisa's son, however, that portion of the story didn't seem to contribute to the overall story.

“The way I figure it, we spend half our lives trying to get away from our roots. And then we spend the other half trying to get back.”

⭐️⭐️⭐️3.5/5

Drama drama drama. So much family drama in this book! Everyone has a story and there were lots of things going on! I loved that it took place on the coast of Maine in the family’s beach cottage! And I really think all the kids stories really made this book!

Louisa and her three kids are spending the summer in her parents beach house with her parents while her husband stays home to get his company home and running. Louisa is behind on a book deadline, her dad is suffering from Alzheimer’s and their family is coming into financial trouble.

Kristie is visiting the same town her mother passes away from cancer. The letter her mother leaves behind leads Kristie to the small Maine beach town to uncover a lot of family secrets.

I loved the dual POV’s between Louisa and Kristie! It was fun to see how their stories unfold and weave together. Definitely a good summer read if you’re looking for a bit of family drama!

Vacationland Meg Mitchell Moore
There is no better vacationland than a family summer home on the coast of Maine. But this summer Louisa and her three children will spend the entire summer there without her husband. As she deals with a father who is in the mid stages of Alzheimer’s family secrets are revealed. At the same time, Kristie arrives in Owl’s Head on a mission of her own. She has recently lost her mother and is overwhelmed with medical debt. How are these two lives connected? A very interesting light summer read.

Good summer read with some solid likeable characters and a good storyline. Louisa takes her kids to her parents' home in Owls Head, Maine, where they've been going for years. There's the typical husband that doesn't come because he's working, which leads to drama in the marriage, and we are introduced to Kristie, who is the love child of Louisa's father, a prominent former Judge who now has dementia. The story is told in alternating POV's, all of them good, in particular one of the kids, Claire, is very entertaining. A good story that flows well with a decent amount of drama, Meg Mitchell Moore turns out another good read for the summer. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy.

Absolutely loved Vacationland - a beautiful story of a family with many layers to it. A perfect summer read for sure.

Great beach read. I really enjoyed the story and found myself thinking about he characters while not reading. Most are flawed and not always likable, but human. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

This was a heavy summer read. The author touched on adultery, illegitimate children, single motherhood, Alzheimer’s, marriage struggles, job dissatisfaction… There was a lot to unpack here during a summer on the shores of Maine. I loved the children, watching them grow and enjoy the slower pace the summer had to offer. I also appreciated how Louisa and her husband were able to communicate. They had their struggles and their disagreements, but they were able to talk about it like grown adults. I love it when I find real relationships in books. It seems that authors frequently go for explosive marriage ending arguments or depict soulmates in a marriage with no problems. This wasn’t the quick, light, summer read I was anticipating, but it did transport me to the lazy summer days of Maine, where things move just a bit slower.

Louisa and her 3 children spend the summer in Maine with her parents at their summer home. I enjoyed the references to a few of the local spots in Maine. This novel is about family and secrets within the family and how they handle them. I really enjoyed the 3 kids perspectives being told and the humor that came with it. Thank for NetGalley for this ARC.

I went to Maine for the firs time last fall and so reading this felt like I was there again. This is a multi-generational family drama that takes place over a summer in Rockland. Sweet kids, marital strife, elderly illness and secrets revealed. It’s a hopeful story filled with love.

As much as I wanted to love this one, it fell flat for me. I lost interest about 50% of the way through. I wanted to know where it was headed as the plot was dragging too much for my taste.

Fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid or Elin Hilderbrand will enjoy Meg's writing style.

Meg Mitchell Moore is one of my favorite authors and this beautiful Maine book is another hit!

This is a solid family drama set in coastal Maine with multiple POV. It was the perfect amount of drama for a fun beachy book. The Maine setting was my favorite. I love how descriptive the author is and I can feel like I'm in in the town!

3.5 stars. This was a slice of life family drama that stayed pretty slow. I ended up enjoying the characters but it took a while to feel connected to them. It did make me want to visit Maine in the summertime. Full review to follow.

This is a very nice beach read about family, secrets, consequences and just the day to day ups and downs in any marriage or life. I particularly liked the children in this novel, I thought they were the best part. The storylines of all the adults weren't quite as developed or as realistic as I prefer. And unfortunately, I just didn't feel compelled to keep reading at any time, so it took me way more time to read this than it should have. This is probably a 3.25-3.5 star read for me, rounded up to a 4. But I'm quite sure many people will love it. Many thanks to the Book Club Girls and NetGalley for the e-arc.

I absolutely loved this book and will be recommending it, for sure. This novel portrays different relationship dynamics so well - intergenerational family challenges, marriage struggles, balancing work and family life, navigating grief after losing a parent. This might sound like a lot to tackle, but it all works well. The novel is well-paced, spread over the course of the summer. I particularly identified with Louisa, who feels pulled in every direction. She's trying to provide her children with the perfect Maine summer that she remembers from her own childhood; she's trying to hold her marriage together; she's dealing with her father's Alzheimer's diagnosis and the possibility of losing the family summer home in order to fund his care; and on top of all of that, she's struggling to write the book she must deliver by the end of her sabbatical. To add to all of this, Louisa's secret half sister shows up to try to find the family connection she never had - only to find that the father she never knew no longer remembers her.

The book has a rich cast of side characters who we may only meet for a handful of scenes, but who add texture and depth to the story. These characters reflect the people you might meet during a summer in Maine and brought such authenticity to the story. As a native New Englander who spent my fair share of summer weekends in Maine, I really enjoyed this aspect of the story!

I need to admit that I love a book with a strong sense of place and I also love Maine! Vacationland offers both! This books immediately sweeps you away to mid-coast Maine. Meg mindfully layers the stories of two characters, Louisa and Kristie in a beautiful juxtaposition as you being to unfold into their summer, both searching for understanding. A family saga to remember!

Oh my gosh I really, really enjoyed this book! It hooked me from page one and kept me hooked the whole time!

Thank you to NetGalley, William Morrow and Book Club Girls for this ARC.

This is my first Meg Mitchell Moore book though I know a lot of others who like her. I"m not sure why I've never read her work because summery reads in New England settings are definitely my jam, and this was no exception.

Vacationland takes place in Owls Head, Maine where disparate members of the Fitzgerald family have flocked to over the summer to figure out the next steps of their lives. Louisa feels distanced from her husband, Annie is losing hers and Kristie just wants to see where she fits in.

I really enjoyed this novel though there were parts I struggled with. Moore hops between many points of view and there were some that I wasn't sure truly fit. Then, some of the conflict felt like it never quite reached the boiling point and I was left at the end of the book feeling like "that's it?"

However, Moore did a really great job with the setting and there were some characters I was really invested in. My favorite part might have been 10 year old Abigail's letters to her father, which were hilarious. I also was really rooting for Danny and Kristie.

3.5/5 stars and adding the rest of Moore's work to my TBR.

Vacationland by Meg Mitchell Moore is set on the rocky coast of Maine at a family compound during the summer. Louisa has grown up coming to this house every summer of her life and she now brings her three children with her. This summer her husband has stayed behind in New York to work on his new business venture. Louisa's parents are in residence and coping with a recent Alzheimer's diagnosis for her father. Louisa has a lot to think about (not to mention a book she's to have already written by now) and must navigate the sandwich role of caretaking for her parents and her children while also being a successful career woman. Lots to think about in this book. Read and enjoy!